March Suggestion box

[james_davis_nicoll]

Waiting for the last few books on my to-read list to come in. Open to suggestions, particularly for more recent books.

I cannot recall who asked me to read the Rational Harry Potter but it has defeated me. May I review something else?

Comments

[kithrup.livejournal.com]

Did you ever review Aaronovitch's Rivers of London books?

Looking forward, you should try to get a review copy of The Obelisk Gate so your review can go up around the time that comes out.

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

Just the first one, which I wanted in the original English English.

[carloshasanax.livejournal.com]

What miscreant wanted to dine on your reaction to Yudkowsky fanfic? Gah.

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

Lots of people love it but I just bounce off.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

If memory serves me correctly, it lost me in the scene where they have Draco (aged 11) boasting about raping muggle-born girls on the train to Hogwarts. It's a truly stupid scene, given that boys that age are more likely to run a mile from a girl than try to rape her. And by the end of the chapter Harry and Draco are friends, which is just mad if Harry has any conception of what Draco is talking about.

[netmouse.livejournal.com]

I'd be interested to know what you think of Andrea Hairston's Redwood and Wildfire.

[lostwanderfound.livejournal.com]

Is Thomas the Rhymer still on your list?

recommendations

[(Anonymous)]

- The Library at Mount Char / Scott Hawkins

- The Rook, Daniel O' Malley

- Nexus (and sequels) / Ramez Naam

- Lonely Werewolf Girl / Martin Millar (heck, anything by Millar; not many people writing like him. Who else writes drug addict or transgender Scottish werewolves?

- Shallow Graves (Kali Wallace)

- Spellbent (Lucy Snyder) or any of Snyder's short story collections

- Imp series (Debra Dunbar)

[heron61.livejournal.com]

I rather liked Andrea K. Host's The Pyramids of London, it's also nice to hear someone who bounced off Rational Harry Potter, I heard good things about it, and dear gods was it dull and bad.

[coyotegoth.livejournal.com]

Through the Valley of the Nest of Spiders?

[thebluerose.livejournal.com]

I would second this, and anything else she has written too (tho some of the earlier self pub works are a bit choppy in execution)

[ckd]

I think I have a few sponsorships worth of Patreon queued up, actually....

Paladin of Souls, Lois McMaster Bujold
Silver on the Road, Laura Anne Gilman
Farthing, Jo Walton
Updraft, Fran Wilde

(Two older, two quite recent.)

[thebluerose.livejournal.com]

Anything by T Kingfisher tho I particularly love Nine Goblins

Anything by Jodi Taylor - in particular the St Mary's series but if you want a stand alone, The Nothing Girl is available

Charlie N Holmberg - The Paper Magician Series

Alma Alexander - Random (The Were Chronicles ) not your average shape shifter story

Andrea K Host - Pyramids of London

Naomi Novik - Uprooted

Susan Dennard - Truthwitch

Patricia A McKillip - Kingfisher

Illan C Myer - Last Song Before Night

[thebluerose.livejournal.com]

Oooh I really enjoyed Silver on the Road - quite different in feel to most other stuff.

[dsrtao]

Of these, I think The Rook was the best.

[affreca.livejournal.com]

Marguerite Reed's Archangel? I haven't gotten far in it, and my only comment thus far is that describes the grasslands in the newly settled planet like someone who has spent time on the prairie (author is from Kansas, and not the hilly foresty bit I live in).

Kate Elliott's Black Wolves, which I think you'd like better than the last Kate Elliott I suggested (hopefully). This one is points out the problems with monarchy, especially over generations. It is the second book in a sequel trilogy, but I don't think you need to read the first three books to enjoy it.

[james-nicoll.livejournal.com]

On the to-do list. Would have done the Bujold earlier but I thought that I had done it.

[ckd]

I had hoped you would after doing the review of Curse of Chalion, since I selfishly wanted the review without using a sponsor slot for it. :-)

[owlmirror36.livejournal.com]

James has already reviewed three works by T. Kingfisher (http://jamesdavisnicoll.com/reviews/contributor/1507), including Nine Goblins.

[bruce munro (from livejournal.com)]

If you do non-fiction, I wonder what you would think of Prisoners of Geography. http://www.amazon.com/Prisoners-Geography-Explain-Everything-About/dp/1501121464

Others:

Jack McDevitt: Thunderbird

Matt Ruff: Lovecraft Country

Ken Liu: The Paper Menagerie

Greg Bear: The "War Dogs" new series

Ben Peek: the Godless

John Honor Jacobs: The Incorruptibles

And just to enjoy your pain: Stephen Baxter's Ultima :)

[tavella.livejournal.com]

The McKillip might be interesting. I thought the mix of fantasy and modern day didn't fully jell, but there were a number of things I liked about it. And I did really appreciate her doing something new, as I have felt a lot of her 21st century stuff has been hoeing the same turf and using the same tricks.

[thornsilver]

"Dark Jewels" series by Anne Bishop

[thebluerose.livejournal.com]

I liked the story overall and enjoyed how she blended fantasy with modern elements. The story itself felt too short and choppy, one particular element seemed to add no value to the story at all and the point of the last line still eludes me.

[thebluerose.livejournal.com]

How did I miss out on those!!!

[thebluerose.livejournal.com]

I found it painfully slow and gave up not even half way thru. Her earlier series relating to it Crossroads? I also DNF the first book. Loved pretty much everything else she wrote tho