Wednesday Reading Meme
What I Just Finished Reading: Since last week I read four books: A Gathering of Shadows by VE Schwab, Commune: Book One by Joshua Gayou, The End of the World: Stories of the Apocalypse edited by Martin H. Greenberg, and The Persian Always Meows Twice by Eileen Watkins.
What I'm Reading Right Now: I wasn't feeling great today (I know, whine whine again) so I took the day off and finished my book this morning before napping the afternoon away. So I haven't started the next book yet.
What I'm Planning to Read Next: Next up is the next book in the Shady Hollow series, Mirror Lake by Juneau Black, and the short story that follows it, Evergreen Chase.
139. A Gathering of Shadows by VE Schwab
The second book in the trilogy picks up four months after Kell and Lila have vanquished the evil rulers of White London. Lila has fulfilled her dream of passage on a pirate ship (*ahem* privateer), while Kell and Rhy are dealing with the aftermath of Kell’s actions to save Rhy at the end of the last book. Everyone ends up back in Red London for a sort of magician's Olympics. This was a great installment, actually better than the first book because we can just jump straight into the action. Loved the addition of a new character, Alucard Emery, and some fleshing out of Rhy’s character. This one does end on a cliffhanger and I’m eager to read the conclusion.
Dates Read: October 25 to 28, 2023
Page Count: 512
5 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 20 - read 20 books set on the water/in a coastal town/water on the cover (08/20)
Lost Challenges Want to Read Bingo - B02 (24/25)
140. Commune by Joshua Gayou
A solar flare quickly followed by a virulent disease decimates the world, leaving the survivors struggling in the aftermath. Told from the POV of a community member chronicling the events two years after the apocalypse, this is the origin story of the commune of the title and follows the first group of survivors who bonded together. Though I can’t say that there was anything all that different from other end-of-the-world tales- they run into the usual group of bad guys, good guys, and rapey guys - I really enjoyed this one. Jake as a lead character was pretty unique, and the story had really good pacing for the most part. My eyes did tend to gloss over when the author got too technical about guns, bullets, or even chess, but overall I found myself drawn to keep reading and found it hard to put down.
Date Read: October 29, 2023
Page Count: 272
4 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 16 - read 16 books from your favourite genre (16/16) - this task complete!
Challenge Factory Hallowe’en Roundup - GHOST “Enchanted” Spell-Out - “C”
141. The End of the World: Stories of the Apocalypse edited by Martin H. Greenberg
The stories in this anthology mostly range from the absolutely ridiculous (children as savages in The Underdweller by William F. Nolan; The Flash by Norman Spinrod, which I imagine might be enjoyable if you’re on an acid trip but not at any other time) to the incredibly boring (Kindness by Lester Del Ray, which I’d forgotten 10 minutes after I read it.) Many are products of their time and thus feel dated.
There is the odd gem. GRR Martin’s Dark, Dark Were The Tunnels is a super interesting story about what might happen to mankind after nuclear war; The Store of the Worlds by Robert Steckley packs a big emotional punch, and By Folks Like Me by Nancy Kress and The Wheel by John Wyndham both deal with the cult-like fanaticism of folks who fear repeating the mistakes of the past.
Overall though, the good stories are already available in other, better anthologies, and it’s not worth wading through the dreck in this one to get to them.
Dates Read: October 29 to 30, 2023
Page Count: 338
2 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 19 - read 19 books that have an outdoor cover (11/19)
Challenge Factory Hallowe’en Roundup - GHOST - “Enchanted” Spell-Out - “E”
142. The Persian Always Meows Twice by Eileen Watkins
When a pet groomer finds a wealthy client murdered, she’s drawn into the investigation as she cares for his cat. Though this cozy mystery has some things in common with the genre - new to town, self-employed, a potential love interest - it also shakes things up a little by giving the protagonist a little more depth. She’s coming off an abusive relationship, she curses (though not in the prose, but it’s referenced) and she’s pretty eager to get to the fun stuff with the handsome vet she fancies. I loved her love of cats, and the mystery itself offered plenty of suspects and a nice red herring. Just when I said I was giving up on cozy mysteries, this one pulled me back in!
Dates Read: October 31 to November 01
Page Count: 272
5 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 18 - read 18 books with a red, white or blue cover (17/18)
Challenge Factory Hallowe’en Roundup - GHOST - “Enchanted Spell-Out” - “E”
.
What I'm Reading Right Now: I wasn't feeling great today (I know, whine whine again) so I took the day off and finished my book this morning before napping the afternoon away. So I haven't started the next book yet.
What I'm Planning to Read Next: Next up is the next book in the Shady Hollow series, Mirror Lake by Juneau Black, and the short story that follows it, Evergreen Chase.
139. A Gathering of Shadows by VE Schwab
The second book in the trilogy picks up four months after Kell and Lila have vanquished the evil rulers of White London. Lila has fulfilled her dream of passage on a pirate ship (*ahem* privateer), while Kell and Rhy are dealing with the aftermath of Kell’s actions to save Rhy at the end of the last book. Everyone ends up back in Red London for a sort of magician's Olympics. This was a great installment, actually better than the first book because we can just jump straight into the action. Loved the addition of a new character, Alucard Emery, and some fleshing out of Rhy’s character. This one does end on a cliffhanger and I’m eager to read the conclusion.
Dates Read: October 25 to 28, 2023
Page Count: 512
5 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 20 - read 20 books set on the water/in a coastal town/water on the cover (08/20)
Lost Challenges Want to Read Bingo - B02 (24/25)
140. Commune by Joshua Gayou
A solar flare quickly followed by a virulent disease decimates the world, leaving the survivors struggling in the aftermath. Told from the POV of a community member chronicling the events two years after the apocalypse, this is the origin story of the commune of the title and follows the first group of survivors who bonded together. Though I can’t say that there was anything all that different from other end-of-the-world tales- they run into the usual group of bad guys, good guys, and rapey guys - I really enjoyed this one. Jake as a lead character was pretty unique, and the story had really good pacing for the most part. My eyes did tend to gloss over when the author got too technical about guns, bullets, or even chess, but overall I found myself drawn to keep reading and found it hard to put down.
Date Read: October 29, 2023
Page Count: 272
4 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 16 - read 16 books from your favourite genre (16/16) - this task complete!
Challenge Factory Hallowe’en Roundup - GHOST “Enchanted” Spell-Out - “C”
141. The End of the World: Stories of the Apocalypse edited by Martin H. Greenberg
The stories in this anthology mostly range from the absolutely ridiculous (children as savages in The Underdweller by William F. Nolan; The Flash by Norman Spinrod, which I imagine might be enjoyable if you’re on an acid trip but not at any other time) to the incredibly boring (Kindness by Lester Del Ray, which I’d forgotten 10 minutes after I read it.) Many are products of their time and thus feel dated.
There is the odd gem. GRR Martin’s Dark, Dark Were The Tunnels is a super interesting story about what might happen to mankind after nuclear war; The Store of the Worlds by Robert Steckley packs a big emotional punch, and By Folks Like Me by Nancy Kress and The Wheel by John Wyndham both deal with the cult-like fanaticism of folks who fear repeating the mistakes of the past.
Overall though, the good stories are already available in other, better anthologies, and it’s not worth wading through the dreck in this one to get to them.
Dates Read: October 29 to 30, 2023
Page Count: 338
2 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 19 - read 19 books that have an outdoor cover (11/19)
Challenge Factory Hallowe’en Roundup - GHOST - “Enchanted” Spell-Out - “E”
142. The Persian Always Meows Twice by Eileen Watkins
When a pet groomer finds a wealthy client murdered, she’s drawn into the investigation as she cares for his cat. Though this cozy mystery has some things in common with the genre - new to town, self-employed, a potential love interest - it also shakes things up a little by giving the protagonist a little more depth. She’s coming off an abusive relationship, she curses (though not in the prose, but it’s referenced) and she’s pretty eager to get to the fun stuff with the handsome vet she fancies. I loved her love of cats, and the mystery itself offered plenty of suspects and a nice red herring. Just when I said I was giving up on cozy mysteries, this one pulled me back in!
Dates Read: October 31 to November 01
Page Count: 272
5 out of 5 stars
Lost Challenges Pyramid of Books - Task 18 - read 18 books with a red, white or blue cover (17/18)
Challenge Factory Hallowe’en Roundup - GHOST - “Enchanted Spell-Out” - “E”
.