Books 31 - 38 of 50 Book Challenge
31) Circle of the Moon by Barbara Hambly. 2005. Another good read by Barbara Hambly. This is a continuation after Sisters of the Raven. New and more terrifying problems arise as the old male magic continues to fade and the women still struggle to learn to master and harness their powers. The wards keeping the tenyn in line and the various household problems at bay, the women have their jobs cut of the. Add to that some political and ceremonial complications for the King and you have a good suspenseful read.
32) A Natural History of Dragons: A Memoir by Lady Trent by Marie Brennan. 2013. This reads like an Edwardian gentlewoman's adventure book and was very delightful. Isabella comes from a good family who mainly live in the countryside but has an odd obsession when it comes to dragons. She is writing her memoirs about her early days about her obsession and where it lead her. The pacing, the vocabulary, the observations of customs by country, and the dragons was worth the read. And it's part of a series of books so I will look into reading the rest.
33) The Enchantment of Flesh and Spirit: The First Book of Wraeththu by Storm Constantine. 1988. This classic of spiritual post-apolitical science-fiction book is the beginning of the Wraeththu series. The world is falling apart and humans are mutated in the Wraeththu. This instalment covers Pellaz' transformation from a human male into a hermaphroditic har. Along the way we see the different communities and challenges the old and new humans undergo.
34) The Bewitchment of Love and Hate: The Second Book of Wraeththu by Storm Constantine. 1988. This second book of the Wraeththu series covers the family of Swift, one of the first natural born Hars into the Varrs tribe. Swift's journey into adulthood covers some pleasant and some unpleasant aspects of the Varrs culture and practices.
35) Stardragon by Barbara Hambly. 2002, The conclusion of her Winterlands series starts off with an unexpected rescue for John and a few other twists and turns for Jenny as she reclaims her magic. A good conclusion with some interesting twist and turns for the heroes as they try to defeat the demons imperilling their world.
36) The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: the Japanese art of decluttering and organizing by Marie Kondo, translated by Cathy Hirano. 2014. A really different way at looking at how to declutter your life of possessions that you have all over your house. I will give it a try.
37) The Chocolate Companion by Chantal Coady. Second Edition. 2006. A little book coveringt he history of cocoa, chocolate, and a lot of chocolate makers in Europe and the United States. All have addresses and websites listed. Might look some up for the fun of it and see what the prices are for a box of hand made chocolates.
38) Truckers by Terry Prachett. Originally published in 1990, republished 2015. Another delightful book by Terry Prachett about Nomes, wee folk who live beneath our notice. Our heroes come from the Outside in the Department Store to find fellow Nomes who don't believe the Outside exits, much less that the Department Store is closing down and Everything Must Go.