Books, briefly

Okay, seriously? How does anyone manage to work, commute, eat, sleep and still have some exercise, much less a life?

Much reading has been done, mostly on the train. Here's the 'in thirty words or less' summary version of most of them.

Books 119-131, Fiction 113-125

113-118. Jane Fletcher, The Traitor and the Chalice, The Empress and the Acolyte, Rangers at Roadsend, The Temple at Landfall and The Walls of Westernfort.

Good, solid fantasy adventures with romantic elements. They suffer from some some structural issues which I'm beginning to think may be intended as a feature rather than a bug, though it feels like a bug to me, but overall these books are enjoyable character-centred good, solid stories.

119. Nina Kiriki Hoffman, A Fistful of Sky.

An odd book, and one that feels unfinished to me. It seems to leave unexamined at least half the questions it raises for me. But measured, quiet, interesting - though much less forgiving, I think, than other Hoffman novels I've read. A good read.

120. Jane Lindskold, Wolf Hunting.

Another book in the Firekeeper series. Quite frankly, this one doesn't do anything new. The prose remains workmanlike, the characters don't undergo any major change or growth, and the story moves far too slowly for my liking. Don't get me wrong: this isn't a bad book. But it's not a particularly good one, either.

121. Victoria Thompson, Murder on Mulberry Bend.

It is a bad thing in a murder mystery when one knows who the culprint is before one is even a third of the way through. Thompson's investigators suffer from a terrible blindspot when it comes to the appallingly obvious, and have done in all of her novels so far. I'm not going to give them another chance to annoy me.

122. C.S. Harris, What Angels Fear.

In contrast to the Thompson book, this was a really interesting, fast-paced mystery set in 1811 London. Compelling characters, lovely politics (I like books with politics) and a believeably doomed romance. Doomed, I tell you.

Wonderful all round.

123. C.S. Harris, When Gods Die.

Not quite as excellent as Angels, but still a superior historical murder mystery.

124. Patricia Briggs, The Hob's Bargain.

Briggs can always be relied upon for solid characters and decent storytelling with a little bit of something extra that makes a book pleasantly satisfying instead of merely tolerably good. And this one, while somewhat - how do I describe it? quieter, maybe? - more local in scope than many of her other novels, is still the good stuff.

125. Rosemary Kirstein, The Steerswoman's Road.

This edition brings together Kirstein's The Steerswoman and The Outskirter's Secret. I can't remember where and when I first heard of Kirstein, but damn am I glad I gave in to curiosity and ordered this book. She is up there with the very best, in my opinion, standing right alongside P.C. Hodgell in the category of Little-Known-and-Undeservedly-Underrated. Great characters, superior storytelling, superior worldbuilding, entirely excellent.

Books 132, Non-fiction 6:

6. Susan Pollock, Ancient Mesopotamia: The Eden That Never Was, from the 'Case Studies in Early Societies' series out of Cambridge University Press.

This book offers a comprehensive anthropological introduction to and overview of developments in Mesopotamia from about 5000 to 2100 BC. Very interesting reading: the anthropological approach is not one my previous reading dealt with in any detail.

It is readable - always an unexpected plus with any academic work - and doesn't assume any great familiarity with the region, research and period on the part of the reader. Good stuff, good stuff.

---

Good night and good luck.

Books, briefly

Okay, seriously? How does anyone manage to work, commute, eat, sleep and still have some exercise, much less a life?

Much reading has been done, mostly on the train. Here's the 'in thirty words or less' summary version of most of them.

Books 119-131, Fiction 113-125

113-118. Jane Fletcher, The Traitor and the Chalice, The Empress and the Acolyte, Rangers at Roadsend, The Temple at Landfall and The Walls of Westernfort.

Good, solid fantasy adventures with romantic elements. They suffer from some some structural issues which I'm beginning to think may be intended as a feature rather than a bug, though it feels like a bug to me, but overall these books are enjoyable character-centred good, solid stories.

119. Nina Kiriki Hoffman, A Fistful of Sky.

An odd book, and one that feels unfinished to me. It seems to leave unexamined at least half the questions it raises for me. But measured, quiet, interesting - though much less forgiving, I think, than other Hoffman novels I've read. A good read.

120. Jane Lindskold, Wolf Hunting.

Another book in the Firekeeper series. Quite frankly, this one doesn't do anything new. The prose remains workmanlike, the characters don't undergo any major change or growth, and the story moves far too slowly for my liking. Don't get me wrong: this isn't a bad book. But it's not a particularly good one, either.

121. Victoria Thompson, Murder on Mulberry Bend.

It is a bad thing in a murder mystery when one knows who the culprint is before one is even a third of the way through. Thompson's investigators suffer from a terrible blindspot when it comes to the appallingly obvious, and have done in all of her novels so far. I'm not going to give them another chance to annoy me.

122. C.S. Harris, What Angels Fear.

In contrast to the Thompson book, this was a really interesting, fast-paced mystery set in 1811 London. Compelling characters, lovely politics (I like books with politics) and a believeably doomed romance. Doomed, I tell you.

Wonderful all round.

123. C.S. Harris, When Gods Die.

Not quite as excellent as Angels, but still a superior historical murder mystery.

124. Patricia Briggs, The Hob's Bargain.

Briggs can always be relied upon for solid characters and decent storytelling with a little bit of something extra that makes a book pleasantly satisfying instead of merely tolerably good. And this one, while somewhat - how do I describe it? quieter, maybe? - more local in scope than many of her other novels, is still the good stuff.

125. Rosemary Kirstein, The Steerswoman's Road.

This edition brings together Kirstein's The Steerswoman and The Outskirter's Secret. I can't remember where and when I first heard of Kirstein, but damn am I glad I gave in to curiosity and ordered this book. She is up there with the very best, in my opinion, standing right alongside P.C. Hodgell in the category of Little-Known-and-Undeservedly-Underrated. Great characters, superior storytelling, superior worldbuilding, entirely excellent.

Books 132, Non-fiction 6:

6. Susan Pollock, Ancient Mesopotamia: The Eden That Never Was, from the 'Case Studies in Early Societies' series out of Cambridge University Press.

This book offers a comprehensive anthropological introduction to and overview of developments in Mesopotamia from about 5000 to 2100 BC. Very interesting reading: the anthropological approach is not one my previous reading dealt with in any detail.

It is readable - always an unexpected plus with any academic work - and doesn't assume any great familiarity with the region, research and period on the part of the reader. Good stuff, good stuff.

---

Good night and good luck.