Welcome to Winter Time

Winter isn't coming. It's still far too warm. But the earth continues to rotate around the sun, and daylight hours grow ever shorter -

- and now we're on Winter Time, and it'll be sunset by three minutes past five.

And the sea area forecast from 1200 today has a gale force warning in operation.

Forecast for coasts from Malin Head to Carlingford Lough to Wicklow Head and for the Irish Sea north of Anglesey:

Wind: Southwest to south, force 7 to strong gale force 9, gradually decreasing force 3 or 4 for a time tonight, but increasing west to northwest force 5 or 6 by morning, then westerly, force 6 to gale force 8.

Forecast for coasts from Wicklow Head to Hook Head to Mizen Head and for the Irish Sea south of Anglesey:

Wind: Southwesterly, gale force 8 to strong gale force 9, decreasing southerly or variable force 4 to 6 for a time early tonight but increasing west to northwest force 6 to gale force 8 overnight, with a risk of strong gales or storm force winds for a time mainly in the southeast, becoming westerly force 6 to gale force 8 early tomorrow.

High winds. Yay.

PS: I am still not healthy and terrified I will never be so again, so that's another annoying thing. Although I did go for a three-minute run with slightly less wheezing than yesterday, which is something - but now my kidneys ache again. FEAR. TERROR. HYPOCHONDRIA.

Books 2013: if you don't got the snake-oil, buster, you don't got the show

Books 2013: 161-180


161. Glenda Larke, The Last Stormlord. Orbit, 2009.

Epic fantasy. Interesting world-building, but the characterisation is inconsistent or occasionally odd, and the narrative drive and tension are not driving enough to make up for it. It isn't doing enough with the space it has, which makes it feel slack and rather aimless at times.


162-165. Jeannie Lin, The Dragon and the Pearl, The Lotus Palace, Butterfly Swords and My Fair Concubine. Ebooks, various recent years.

These are entertaining romances set mostly in Tang dynasty China. Fun, really good incluing technique - as necessary in historical work as the genres of the fantastic - and the romance did not make me want to stab anyone in the face. Rather the opposite, in fact.


166-167. Sophia Kell Hagin, Whatever Gods May Be and Shadows of Something Real. Ebooks, various recent years.

Near-future stories starring a lesbian main character. The first is a war story, and the second less easily categorised. They're surprisingly good, with real confidence in the prose.


168. C.S. Friedman, In Conquest Born. DAW, 1986, 2001 reprint.

Science fiction. Empires. Psychics. Space battles. Disturbing, unpleasant; depiction of a culture where male-on-female rape is normal, practically a requirement; characters all on the antihero end of the spectrum. Not My Cup Of Tea At All.


169-170. Jacqueline Carey, Dark Currents and Autumn Bones. Roc, 2012 and 2013.

Delightful, entertaining, interesting urban fantasy set in a small American town. More like this, please.


171. Tamora Pierce, Battle Magic. Scholastic, 2013.

Once again Pierce delivers a grand adventure involving young people. Although her not-Tibet and not-China has me side-eyeing a bit: the strokes are a little too broad, and the war is a little too easily won.


172-173. Lesley Davis, Dark Wings Descending and Pale Wings Protecting. Ebooks, recent dates.

Bad lesbian romance, with a side-order of cops and angels and demons.


174. Mira Grant, Parasite. Orbit, 2013.

Seanan McGuire really likes mad science, biological apocalypses, conspiracies, and simple organisms. I mean, really really really likes.

I'm going to need some time to think about this novel, really. There is a shit-tonne of info-dumping (through various methods, but a lot through excerpts from news sources and autobiographies), and the voice doesn't seem particularly distinct from the rest of McGuire's oeuvre, Discount Armageddon and sequel aside. On the other hand, I rather like the soft apocalypse conceit.

It's not mind-blowing. It's rather like John Scalzi's novels - moderately interesting concepts, middle-of-the-road execution - which clearly isn't exactly a niche market. I would like it to excite me more than it does. But it's also very... American? It nests itself within - or perhaps it nests within itself - so many assumptions about how the world works, and how central America is to the world, that it creates in me a sense of disconnect and alienation.

Anyway.


175. Gail Simone, Batgirl Vol. 1. DC, 2013.

So I am converted to the idea of comics as an interesting medium now. Also Gail Simone is awesome.


176-177. Greg Rucka, Private Wars and The Last Run. Bantam, 2005 and 2010.

Rucka writes the best spy thrillers. No, really. The best. And I'm not just saying that because I would kill to see his Queen and Country stuff made into a good television series.


178-180. Greg Rucka and various artists, Queen and Country, collected volumes one through three. Oni Press.

I am extra converted to the idea of comics as an interesting medium. Rucka's facility with writing flawed, ethically compromised, yet immensely compelling characters is brilliantly on display. Fantastic work.