The Magpie Murders - Anthony Horowitz
I liked this novel! It was a bit long in places (possibly to differentiate our main narrator from the author of the book she was editing? It felt intentional but also the first half really dragged), and I think it resolved a little tidily, but the narrative conceit was just so great, such a wonderful twist on both the classic whodunit and the classic book-within-a-book structure. I listened to it as an audiobook and the narrators' performances were exceptional as well. I can see why it got so much acclaim when it first came out! It was a great first-read-of-the-year.
I liked this novel! It was a bit long in places (possibly to differentiate our main narrator from the author of the book she was editing? It felt intentional but also the first half really dragged), and I think it resolved a little tidily, but the narrative conceit was just so great, such a wonderful twist on both the classic whodunit and the classic book-within-a-book structure. I listened to it as an audiobook and the narrators' performances were exceptional as well. I can see why it got so much acclaim when it first came out! It was a great first-read-of-the-year.
Master of Djinn - P. Djeli Clark
What a ride! I loved the novellas in this series, so it is not a surprise to me that I also enjoyed this installment. Clark's Cairo is so delightful, in part because of how vibrant his descriptions are, but in larger part because it doesn't read as exoticising, which is hard to find in English specfic set in MENA by North American authors. I love the many layers of religiosity (unsurprisingly), and of fashion, and the particular quirks of our main character and her surroundings. I love how COLOURFUL the story is, and also how Clark's alternate history asks uncomfortable questions about the nature of power. I saw the twist coming, which made it all the more enjoyable, feeling that great affirmation of being able to read intention into the story, and while there are some technical aspects of Clark's writing that made my inner editor go "oh, no, bb," that's probably the only detractor from my enjoyment. Also loved that the audiobook narrator had a wide array of Arabic accents, but all the British characters had more or less the same absolutely horrendous British accent. It probably wasn't intentional, but it fit the tone of the story PERFECTLY.
What a ride! I loved the novellas in this series, so it is not a surprise to me that I also enjoyed this installment. Clark's Cairo is so delightful, in part because of how vibrant his descriptions are, but in larger part because it doesn't read as exoticising, which is hard to find in English specfic set in MENA by North American authors. I love the many layers of religiosity (unsurprisingly), and of fashion, and the particular quirks of our main character and her surroundings. I love how COLOURFUL the story is, and also how Clark's alternate history asks uncomfortable questions about the nature of power. I saw the twist coming, which made it all the more enjoyable, feeling that great affirmation of being able to read intention into the story, and while there are some technical aspects of Clark's writing that made my inner editor go "oh, no, bb," that's probably the only detractor from my enjoyment. Also loved that the audiobook narrator had a wide array of Arabic accents, but all the British characters had more or less the same absolutely horrendous British accent. It probably wasn't intentional, but it fit the tone of the story PERFECTLY.
They Never Learn - Layne Fargo
I feel like the big reveal in this novel happened too soon? I think we could have been kept in suspense longer, could have assumed that Carly and Scarlett would meet on campus for several more chapters. I also found the short length of chapters, the very frequent viewpoint switches, not super conducive to getting invested in either character. As a campus novel, it was kind of run-of-the-mill. As a crime novel, there was something a little too contrived, something a little too tidy, and the moral grey zones (Scarlett going after sexual predators but also sleeping with her grad student!) insufficiently explored. I liked the ending, for Scarlett, and because it wasn't something I'd have expected from this genre. I liked the discussion of Titus Andronicus. I liked Scarlett's research area, but again, insufficiently explored, and eventually dropped entirely. It was an okay book! Part of that might be because the audiobook readers were very, very good, though.
I feel like the big reveal in this novel happened too soon? I think we could have been kept in suspense longer, could have assumed that Carly and Scarlett would meet on campus for several more chapters. I also found the short length of chapters, the very frequent viewpoint switches, not super conducive to getting invested in either character. As a campus novel, it was kind of run-of-the-mill. As a crime novel, there was something a little too contrived, something a little too tidy, and the moral grey zones (Scarlett going after sexual predators but also sleeping with her grad student!) insufficiently explored. I liked the ending, for Scarlett, and because it wasn't something I'd have expected from this genre. I liked the discussion of Titus Andronicus. I liked Scarlett's research area, but again, insufficiently explored, and eventually dropped entirely. It was an okay book! Part of that might be because the audiobook readers were very, very good, though.
The Past is Red - Catherine Valente
This novella is the perfect read for the current apocalypse: it's bitter but not hopeless, imaginative but not unrealistic, lonely but full of heart. It is short and to the point but there's still so much in it; if it weren't for a few abrupt plot points, it would really have felt like a much longer work, in the best possible way. Tetley is such a wonderful protagonist, and her narrative voice is one of the strongest first-person voices I've read. I don't know that I can re-read it - it's painful in so many, many ways - but I will be thinking about this book for a long time.
This novella is the perfect read for the current apocalypse: it's bitter but not hopeless, imaginative but not unrealistic, lonely but full of heart. It is short and to the point but there's still so much in it; if it weren't for a few abrupt plot points, it would really have felt like a much longer work, in the best possible way. Tetley is such a wonderful protagonist, and her narrative voice is one of the strongest first-person voices I've read. I don't know that I can re-read it - it's painful in so many, many ways - but I will be thinking about this book for a long time.
Walking to Aldebaran - Adrian Tchaikovsky
*spoilers for the novella; I usually try to avoid them but in this case I really cannot* I can't believe that this short-form cosmic horror dripping with dark humour and unbearable loneliness is a "what if Beowulf was actually about Grendel?" It's so masterfully done, you don't even realise that it's happening until the end when the dawning terror finally unfolds its last petal and you realise, as our narrator and protagonist runs screaming in pain and fury, calling to the mother machine to avenge him, that this whole thing was a Beowulf setup. The journey, as is only fitting for this story about journeys, is a reward in itself, if by "reward" you mean something harrowing and unsettling and ultimately utterly dehumanising. The way time skips around, mimicking the way time works in the crypts! The way we lose our protagonist as he loses himself! All the questions left purposefully unanswered, the beauty of an author really embracing first-person narration's limits and telling a claustrophobic story inside them!
*spoilers for the novella; I usually try to avoid them but in this case I really cannot* I can't believe that this short-form cosmic horror dripping with dark humour and unbearable loneliness is a "what if Beowulf was actually about Grendel?" It's so masterfully done, you don't even realise that it's happening until the end when the dawning terror finally unfolds its last petal and you realise, as our narrator and protagonist runs screaming in pain and fury, calling to the mother machine to avenge him, that this whole thing was a Beowulf setup. The journey, as is only fitting for this story about journeys, is a reward in itself, if by "reward" you mean something harrowing and unsettling and ultimately utterly dehumanising. The way time skips around, mimicking the way time works in the crypts! The way we lose our protagonist as he loses himself! All the questions left purposefully unanswered, the beauty of an author really embracing first-person narration's limits and telling a claustrophobic story inside them!
The Passenger - Lisa Lutz
It has to be said, I enjoy a good pulpy mystery-thriller. I even sometimes think they're good stories, beyond the engaging popcorn-ness of them! This particular iteration was definitely enjoyable, but paced very strangely, and was ultimately a lot of build-up for very little payoff, which was sad because the build-up was pretty good. I liked the email interludes, I liked the first chapter's immediate plunge, I liked the little side-adventures. But because it didn't really feel like we were heading anywhere, until suddenly we were there and then we got the whole backstory dumped on us at once, the little side-adventures didn't feel thematically relevant and the email interludes felt, after a certain point, like they were there more to mystify us than to drive the plot or the characterisation. All in all, a pretty solid exemplar of the genre! I enjoyed listening to it, especially the last few chapters, which I experienced while braving a winter storm in Halifax.
It has to be said, I enjoy a good pulpy mystery-thriller. I even sometimes think they're good stories, beyond the engaging popcorn-ness of them! This particular iteration was definitely enjoyable, but paced very strangely, and was ultimately a lot of build-up for very little payoff, which was sad because the build-up was pretty good. I liked the email interludes, I liked the first chapter's immediate plunge, I liked the little side-adventures. But because it didn't really feel like we were heading anywhere, until suddenly we were there and then we got the whole backstory dumped on us at once, the little side-adventures didn't feel thematically relevant and the email interludes felt, after a certain point, like they were there more to mystify us than to drive the plot or the characterisation. All in all, a pretty solid exemplar of the genre! I enjoyed listening to it, especially the last few chapters, which I experienced while braving a winter storm in Halifax.
The Murders of Molly Southbourne - Tade Thompson
I liked this novella. I liked the conceit (I liked the mystery's resolution less but oh well, we can't have everything), I liked the character's voice, I liked the framing device, I liked how real-yet-unreal it felt. Like everything about the world was just slightly off. There were a few pacing issues - we learned about global infertility WAY late in the game for how important it was, for instance - but otherwise, I had no complaints. Thompson writes a female perspective very, very well, which is rare in male specfic authors, and gives just enough detail to be intriguing. A very accomplished novella!
I liked this novella. I liked the conceit (I liked the mystery's resolution less but oh well, we can't have everything), I liked the character's voice, I liked the framing device, I liked how real-yet-unreal it felt. Like everything about the world was just slightly off. There were a few pacing issues - we learned about global infertility WAY late in the game for how important it was, for instance - but otherwise, I had no complaints. Thompson writes a female perspective very, very well, which is rare in male specfic authors, and gives just enough detail to be intriguing. A very accomplished novella!