October has come and gone and it’s time for book reviews again. Looks like the themes in this month’s reads are great short stories and novels with cliff hangers! I’ll also throw in a link to my Twitter review of the newly released Dune movie. Book reviews after the jump.
Speculative Fiction
The Last Graduate (The Scholomance #2) by Naomi Novik – Well, the pros and cons to this book are exactly the same as the first book. The concept is still really neat: a magical school that’s actively trying to kill its students (or is it?) and a girl who’s foretold to become an evil dark sorceress trying to survive. It fills all the Evil Harry Potter vibes you could want.
And yet the execution is still off. There’s a lot of info-dumping. Like the main character will be asked a question, then she gives the reader three layers of historical background so we can understand the question, then maybe she actually answers the question. The voice of the character is almost charming enough to pull this off. And the world building is so brilliant, you want it to succeed so badly. And there’s some weird fourth-wall breaking where she’s talking to the reader which makes me unsure if the character is writing this down or what.
Finally, there’s the ending, even worse of a cliffhanger than the first. I’m not sure whether I will pick up the final volume. I love the idea of this series, but not so much actually reading them.
ReDawn (Skyward #2.2) by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson – At first, I had a hard time buying the tree theme of the planet, but once you accept it, the story works really well. I liked this one better than Sunreach, as the tone of Alanik’s story fits really well into the existing Cytoverse lore, with a focus on high-stakes politics and space battles. Loved the shout-out to Grandpa Tolkien. The ending cliff-hanger is maddening but now we’re only a few weeks away from the release of Cytonic, so I guess I’ll live.
Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang – Now I know why they say Ted Chiang is the modern master of the short story. If you are a reader of SFF but not sure about short stories, this is the collection I would hand to you. I loved all the religious themes in these stories, particularly “Hell is the Absence of God” and its commentary on salvation and suffering. Lots of food for thought in these stories and every one a full-fledged world of just the right size. Ted Chiang has earned a spot on my “authors I will buy everything they put out” list. Time to go read everything else he’s written.
Fiction
The Mormon Lit Blitz Anthology: Volume 1: The First Five Years 2012 to 2016 by The Mormon Lit Lab – A great collection of very short pieces of Mormon influenced fiction, memoir, and poetry. The pieces are less than five pages but absolutely pull you into a whole world in that time. I’m going to buy extra copies to give away and lend out because these are so dang good. The Mormon Lit Blitz is an absolute treasure; may it continue for many years! *envision Mormon appropriate toast here*
I can’t write reviews of every piece in the book, but here are some of my favorites with short notes to entice you to pick up this book and read!
“The Elder Who Wouldn’t Stop . . .” by William Morris – A comic twist on the classic missionary gift of tongues tale.
“When the Bishop Started Killing Dogs” by Stephen L Peck – That title, but seriously a great story of what happens when ward members are also obnoxious neighbors. You feel horrified but also secretly vindicated.
“Avek, Who Is Distributed” by Stephen L Peck – This story makes the case for Mormon Lit as exploring future theology, as it asks what happens when an AI wants to be baptized.
“Dumb Idols” by Hillary Sterling – Moving piece about realizing your parents are just human beings doing their best.
“Natural Coloring” by Marianne Hales Harding – As a sometime unicorn hair-dyer myself, I loved this poem about the significance of blue hair.
“In Which Eve Names Everything Else” by Katherine Cowley – A heartbreaking sequel to the expulsion from the garden.
“In Remembrance” by Merrijane Rice – I loved this line: “rejection sneaks up / bayonets from behind / and saunters off, wiping the blade” Chills.
“Curelom Riders” by Annalise Lemmon – The Book of Mormon with DRAGONS, guys. Freakin’ dragons. I’m only mad I didn’t think of it first.
“Spring Hill” by Luisa Perkins – I won’t spoil the surprises in this one, but it’s a very good new Mormon myth.
“A Voice Not Crying in the Wilderness” by Jonathan Penny – The church during the zombie outbreak. Enough said.
“Foolish and Wise” by Lisa Barker – I am bringing this poem into my next Relief Society lesson. I love how it breaks down our usual simple dichotomies.
“Fresh Courage Take” by Bradeigh Godfrey – A harrowing take on the mythical call to return to Missouri.
“Branch 9 3/4” by Kaki Olsen – I loved this story of a little girl whose faith in gospel is matched only by her love of Harry Potter. I feel like many have had this discussion with their kids.
“The Back Row” by Kelli Swofford Nielsen – A heartfelt justification of those who sit in the back. This is another one that deserves to be read from the pulpit.
Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz – A really delightful murder mystery in the style of Agatha Christie. I loved the book-within-a-book trope so much, and the commentary on the relationship between an author, their book, and readers was right up my alley. Highly recommended if you need a fun, not too scary Halloween read.
Nonfiction
This Is Where You Belong: The Art and Science of Loving the Place You Live by Melody Warnick – Re-read for book club. I love Warnick’s approach to moving to a new place and methodically finding ways to become attached to it. Some of the chapters read a little more depressing in a post-2020 world and some of the tech solutions are outdated, but there are still lots of good ideas in here for community building. Worth a read for anyone who has recently moved and wants a jump start guide to getting rooted in a new place.
Confessions of an Unlikely Runner: A Guide to Racing and Obstacle Courses for the Averagely Fit and Halfway Dedicated by Dana L. Ayers – Funny little running memoir. She had some really ridiculous stories in here. Nothing revolutionary, and I wanted it to be longer and more filled out, but it was a completely lovely little running book which gave me some motivation to keep training.
