read
2022
The Water Cure
Strange and compelling.
An Actual Star
I either learned a lot about Mayans or was sufficiently fooled. A fun romp in triple.
The Golden Enclaves
A solid ending to a very rad magic system and series.
The Sunny Nihilist
Pretty light reading but this matched up nicely with a lot that I’ve been thinking for years.
The Answers
A weird send-up of heterosexual romance, male myopia, and capitalism.
Nona the Ninth
I’m still not sure what I read
Too Like Lightning
At times deeply frustrating, but it doled-out its pleasure at random intervals ensuring I kept reading.
The World of Cycling According to G
Fun stories and info, if a bit disjointed. Definitely came off as a series of anecdotes instead of something like Gaimon’s work.
Unnatural Magic
Not really my thing, but if you like awkward romance fic, this is probably up your alley.
The Bayern Agenda
A fun space spy thriller.
Our Wives Under the Sea
A haunting tale about love and loss mixed with a bit of deep-sea horror. Bits of this reminded me of the Area X trilogy.
Draft Animals
The sequel in many ways to Phil’s $10 a Day book, this covers his time off and on with Cannonade. It’s pretty fun to read so many weird stories about people I watch in races all the time, and a good reminder just how bro-y sports dudes are even in cycling. Fun and touching.
Amatka
A creepy, fun mix of Vandermeer and LeGuin. I loved this book.
Pro Cycling on $10 A Day
Definitely a bro book. I loved hearing all the weird stories about the pro/am US cycling scene but it reminded me how weird pro sports are and that cycling is rife with fatphobia and eating disorders. I laughed a lot and cringed at every flat and crash. It’s rad to see how one of my favorite KOM-chasers got his start.
Ring Shout
This took me entirely too long to finish as it was written in dialect. Ever since I tried to read Redwall I’ve had trouble reading books written where I might need to say it out loud to understand what’s going on. This was otherwise super solid though—no points off for my own issues.
The Echo Wife
Way heavier than I expected, but an interesting look at trauma, nature vs. nurture, and the limits of tech and morality.
Do You Dream of Terra Two
Largely a meditation on the effects of space on psychology and the dangers of kids laser-focusing on a dream from youth. Sometimes fun, but mostly tense.
Planetfall
The mystery and excitement builds, with stopovers in rather chilling depictions of mental illness.
Salvaged
Excellent space horror/survival.
Sea of Tranquility
Fantastic! Shades of David Mitchell, but more contained and rather relaxing.
The Body Keeps the Score
I’ll definitely return to this again in the future. This book captures the cutting-edge and seemingly silly ways modern trauma is treated effectively. Many stories and ideas here have fueled therapy sessions for the two or three months I’ve read it.
Ninth House
Magic at a University more mundane than the Magicians, but every bit as seedy. I hope there are more of these.
Warm Worlds and Otherwise
A very strange collections from an interesting lady. I’ve got a few other of Tiptree’s books and I’m curious if they’re all so horny.
The Haunting of Tram Car 015
A fun introduction to a magical alt-Cairo. I’ve had a harder time finishing Clark’s Ring Shout and perhaps prefer his short fiction.
The Caledonian Gambit
Space heists and spy stories are my jam. I loved this and hope that his other books return to the universe he created here, because it seems full of intrigue and possibility.
The Goblin Emperor
The number of characters with similar names was baffling at times, especially for such a densely woven tale of intrigue, but on balance I enjoyed the story.
The Exiled Fleet
This series is a fun space adventure with a compelling cast and a story that’s building up well. I’m curious to see how long it goes for, as there are enough lingering mysteries and plot threads it could be four or five books to resolve.
Bone Shard Daughter
It took a little bit for this to click for me, but by the end I was reading a hundred pages in a sitting. A neat fantasy story with a bit to magic, intrigue, and a looming threat of an ancient evil.
Heretics of Dune
This is Herbert at his perverse peak. You can sense the awkward sexual desperation in every explanation of the Honored Matres. Every time someone said “whores” I heard it in Danny Devito’s voice.
Less is More
Riveting and surprisingly upbeat. Despite outlining the incredibly apocalyptic circumstances of our present, Hickels built a case for optimism if we’re able to understand the interdependence we have with the planet. I liked how there was a call for more Animism too.