Hellooo!!

I managed a week! Normality is restored.  Pretty much a wipeout of a week.  The illness I had on my week off decided to go another round and I was sent home Monday from work being told I looked terrible so most of this week was involving long lies in bed.  The house move inches ever closer but signs this week are very promising that I may. But for the first time ever all Xmas shopping is done before Christmas Eve and presents wrapped before Xmas day so with the next two weeks off I intend a nice long rest.  I hope your end of year is a peaceful one and Merry Christmas!

Other Media

Television –

Voltron Legendary Defender – Yes, I may have binged the whole second year while I rested. Its fun as I always enjoy giant robots combining into an even bigger robot with a good cast of characters but as of yet not got that oooh sense I got with She-ra.

Films –

The Holiday – An interesting festive Rom-Com with Kate Winslett and Cameron Diaz swapping their English and LA homes.  Nice performances from all the cast and it felt sweet which at this time of year works well for me!

Captain America – a slow Marvel re-watch continues and I like how old-school action it feels.  Chris Evans though sells the film on that sense of noble integrity which the whole series ends up focusing on. From great acorns….

Podcasts – Bunged up with cold did not aid listening!

What I read – Interesting being full of cold meant I really had time to focus on novellas before nodding off a lot. But this did mean I hit my 120 books for the year target!

-          Scourge of the Seas if Time (and Space) edited by Catherine Lundoff - Reviewed - great pirate characters and settings – read this!!

-          A Fistful of Rubies and The Best Laid Plans by K T Davies – two great short stories focused on Davies’ half human half demon Breed a rogue who may just just have a sense of morality provided price isn’t right

-          The Expert System’s Brother by Adrian Tchaikovsky – an interesting SF tale where a young man is accidentally forced out of his society (and food stuffs and animals become inedible).  A very good SF mystery trying to work out how everything works in this world.  Recommended

-          The Black God’s Drums by P Djeli Clark – fascinating alternative history New Orleans involving zombie gases, hidden gods and secret technology.

-          The Nearest by Greg Egan – Unsettling creepy SG mystery focused on memory.  Great 180 turn to puzzle the reader.

-          No Flight Without the Shatter by Brooke Bolander – the last human on earth and the last animals make preparations for the end of the world.  Haunting and an author I really love to read.

-          Waiting on a Bright Moon by JY Yang – a beautiful tale of rebellion and love in an cruel empire

-          Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire – the latest Wayward Children instalment and a weird gorgeous tale tying up the first book and setting up future tales too.

-          The Descent of Monsters by J Y Yang – the latest Tensorate tale moves into a series of letters and reports trying to explain a mysterious event at a Tensorate base.  I do like how a mystery and the truth can be hidden in a veil of administrative documents!

What I want to read next

-          The Winter Road by Adrian Selby - a new series looking at mercenaries in the wilderness

-          The Dark Vault by VE Schwab– a duology of two of her earlier works

-          Darksoul by Anna Stephens – the sequel to another one of my favourite debuts Godblind

-          Cabin at the end of the World by Paul Tremblay – perfect end of year horror

-          Europe at Dawn – how will this end?

Next week – The best reads of the year!