The Return of the Week in Womble aka Back in the Saddle?
Hellooo and Blimey three months have passed since the last ahem weekly update! So, in March I got offered a chance to work with a very important project team and it was one of those career moments where it was a chance worth taking. This has led to three months where I’m doing in the week-long days. I decided to keep the blogging up (although there were a few gaps) but by the end of the week I’ve not done much else bar read. The good news is if I’m reading then I’m not too stressed so it’s just meaning I’m tending to do bulk blog posts at the weekend for a few more weeks…
Touching wood though I’m in the end of that particular cycle and the last few weeks ends I look like I’ve seen daylight and want to do more than just lie on the sofa so let’s try and get back into a weekly schedule. Immediate aims for this summer finish my SKCA reading and then my next reading project will involve some catch-ups…
Summer is coming; cons are on the horizon and yes there will be books to tempt you with! Speaking of which time to get back in the saddle of telling you what I’ve been up to…
Books that I’ve read this week
Miranda in Milan by Katherine Duckett – a really enjoyable attempt to revision a Shakespeare tale Mixing family secrets, romance and some progressive themes. Really charming
25 Ways to Kill A Werewolf by Jo Thomas – yep that’s a title to grab you isn’t it. A welsh working class Buffy tackles over five years endless werewolf attacks both funny and emotionally investing.
The Poison Song by Jen Williams – The Winnowing Flame trilogy ends in explosive joy and heartbreak. I loved it and there were all the feels for my favourites. Jen Williams is truly a star.
Other Words for Smoke by Sarah Maria Griffin – I was impressed last year by Griffin’s take on Spare and Found Parts - trust this is even better with a coming of age fantasy tale that also has something to say about the scarily recent social history of Ireland. I seriously think Griffin is a writer to watch so get to this now
An Unheard Song by Laura Ambrose – the last Romancing in the Page novellas about f/f romance with a sf publishing twist. I really have enjoyed these stories – lovely character building.
Books to come
84k by Claire North – I finish SF in the SKCA awards with this dark dystopia tale
Rosewater Insurrection by Tade Thompson – remiss of me to not yet get to this sequel to one of my faves from last year
A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher – I believe there may be tears in this slice of SF…
Children of Ruin by Adrian Tchaikovsky – Loved Children of Time so intrigued if a second tale can match the joy of the first
Wastelands 3 The New Apocalypse edited by Jon Joseph Adams – an amazing list of writers such as Elizabeth Bear, Seanan McGuire and Ken Liu have tales about after the end of the world
What I’ve been watching
A few shows on my radar but I’m very behind as always
Farscape – really enjoying this rewatch
Robin of Sherwood – a spur of the moment purchase but love the mythic quality of this show
Fringe – Season 1 I’m finding suffering from a lot of sexism/violence towards women so far
What I’m listening to
Two new shows have come on my radar
You’re Never Going to Read This – Julia and Justine are two sisters with differing tastes in books and each episode they try that hardest thing to persuade a loved one that they will love a book. Already a fan of Justine’s Youtube channel – ishouldreadthat – so I may be biased who’s side I am on but it’s a lovely conversation
Jackdaw Meandering – Dave Probert; one of our best podcasters, has a Doctor Who podcast – a randomiser allocates an episode and we get a live commentary from Dave. Can be funny, insightful or critical but its been a while since I enjoyed a Who podcast!
