The Friday 56 (232) & Book Beginnings: Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most elite universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her? Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs” are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywood’s biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive.

Beginning: "Alex hurried across the wide, alien plane of Beinecke Plaza, boots thudding over flat squares of clean concrete." 

56: "A vague, confused expression crossed his face."

Comments: Last month, I read Ninth House to get out of my reading slump. I really loved the story, and I'm looking forward to the sequel. What are you reading this week?

So I Played Ooblets

So, last month I talked about my experience with Going Under (you can read about that HERE). Another one of the other games I was playing at the time was Ooblets, a life sim with a cute design—which was one of the three Indie titles I purchased in December of 2022.

I liked this game a whole lot. It was similar to Animal Crossing New Horizons with fishing, character customization, decorating, farming, and seasonal events. It was low stakes, but, as an aside, there was a narrative surrounding strange happenings to pay attention to. It was a source of trouble for Badgetown, and particularly for the character you play as (who is new) is tasked with errands to help improve the town and the nearby Wildlands. Completing one unlocks more, and I’d recommend doing the Wildlands tasks—mainly because it eventually unlocks a wealth of one of the crucial materials for Oobcoop upgrades (little houses for the Ooblets that aid with farming) and the 3D printer.

There were other places to travel to as well—like Port Forward, Nullwhere, and Mamoonia—and they each had their own unique biomes. There were specific tasks that needed to be done, but these other locations also expanded the type of collectable ingredients that could be picked up just by finding them while exploring the area (or purchased with in-game currency).

Ooblets also has a creature collecting aspect that was connected to the dance battle function. The battles were also pretty easy after getting the hang of them. But, the real draw for me was how fun it was to build my team of Ooblets. Each one had unique moves that could add an advantage to the randomized deck—for example extra beats and a card to clear flusters and trepidations, both of which could be a big help in a dance battle with a slightly higher difficulty.

As of the writing of this, the spring time event is still going (it ends at the end of May). So even after playing through the story, there are still aspects to Ooblets that act as an incentive to return to it. By the end of the story, I still have a lot left to complete, but those require growing crops, fishing, and etc.

So, Ooblets is a fun game.

 
Check out the launch trailer!

Music Monday (241): Florence + The Machine, Yukihiro Fukutomi & En Vogue

Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: I recently added Just A Girl by Florence + The Machine to my playlist. It's been some time since I listened to this group, but I instantly loved this song the first time I heard it on the trailer for the new season of Yellowjackets.

 

Adri: I'm currently listening to Peace by Yukihiro Fukutomi featuring Lady Alma.

Andrea: Hi All! This week I'm listening to Hold On by En Vogue. Have an amazing week!

What are you listening to this week?

The Thorns Remain by J.J.A. Harwood

Title: The Thorns Remain

Series: n/a
Author: J.J.A. Harwood
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Historical Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Harper360 & Magpie; May 2, 2023

Goodreads     Amazon     Barnes & Noble

Synopsis from Goodreads...

A dance with the fae will change everything

1919. In a highland village forgotten by the world, harvest season is over and the young who remain after war and flu have ravaged the village will soon head south to make something of themselves. Moira Jean and her friends head to the forest for a last night of laughter before parting ways. Moira Jean is being left behind. She had plans to leave once – but her lover died in France and with him, her future. The friends light a fire, sing and dance. But with every twirl about the flames, strange new dancers thread between them, music streaming from the trees. The fae are here. Suddenly Moira Jean finds herself all alone, her friends spirited away. The iron medal of her lost love, pinned to her dress, protected her from magic. For the Fae feel forgotten too. Lead by the darkly handsome Lord of the Fae, they are out to make themselves known once more. Moira Jean must enter into a bargain with the Lord to save her friends – and fast, for the longer one spends with the Fae, the less like themselves they are upon return. If Moira Jean cannot save her friends before Beltine, they will be lost forever…

Completely bewitching, threaded with Highland charm and sparkling with dark romance, this is a fairytale that will carry you away.

I was looking for more stories in the same vein as A River Enchanted and The Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross, which happened to be two of my favorite books from 2022 and all-around an excellent duology full of magic and folklore. So I was intrigued by the way The Thorns Remain was described by its synopsis.

This book wasn’t exactly what I was looking to read at the time, and I found the story to just be fine. And though the synopsis claims that it’s “sparkling with dark romance,” it didn’t really feel very romantic, even as the story was heading toward its conclusion. Instead, Moira Jean’s story was more about manipulation, grief, and co-dependency. Where even the fantasy/folklore aspects kind of served the purpose of highlighting the way her life had stopped moving after a death left her grief stricken and prone to lamenting wistfully for the past. In that regard, the story did work. And Harwood really delved into the themes by presenting a situation where being surrounded by the familiar was almost like a curse in itself. And the relationships Moira Jean still had left (especially with her neighbors), was more often than not marred by a feeling of transaction—particularly with the endless amounts of monotonous and increasingly difficult work being fostered on her. It wasn’t healthy and carried its own bitter cost. And at several points though, I wanted Moira Jean to be angrier for herself, and it took a long time for her to finally admit what she really wanted.

Regarding The Thorns Remain having a romantic subplot—as hinted about in its synopsis—it didn’t really work for me. However, if you look at the story instead as a melancholic character study, it can be appreciated for its exploration of toxic relationships.

About the author....

JJA Harwood is an author, editor and blogger. She grew up in Norfolk, read History at the University of Warwick and eventually found her way to London, which is still something of a shock for somebody used to so many fields. When not writing, she can be found learning languages, cooking with more enthusiasm than skill, wandering off into clearly haunted houses and making friends with stray cats. THE SHADOW IN THE GLASS is her debut novel.

Goodreads     Website     Instagram

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Harper360 & Magpie) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

Music Monday (240): The NYChillharmonic

Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana:  The NYChillharmonic is currently one of my favorite bands, and they recently released a new song. It's called To Covet A Quiet Mind. It's in the same style as their other music, and I love it! 

 

What are you listening to this week?

Short Stories I Read In March

It’s the twenty-ninth of April. So it’s time to talk about the short stories, miscellaneous posts, and podcast episodes I read or listened to in March!

Yingying—Shadow by Ai Jiang (Uncanny Magazine; Issue Fifty-One)

Yingying-Shadow by Ai Jiang is an evocative piece of flash fiction. At its focal point are family issues—between a child and a father—combined with a melancholic atmosphere in the face of a figurative and literal haunting.

The Gratitude of Mice by Yume Kitasei (Strange Horizons; Issue: 6 March 2023)

I didn’t know what to expect going into the Gratitude of Mice by Yume Kitasei, but, like Yingying—Shadow, this story was also short but with a tightly woven (and eerie) narrative. It largely reminded me of folklore Brownies—or tales about other kinds of household spirits—except with mice in the role instead (and a warning about greed). All-in-all, The Gratitude of Mice was a really good read!

Our Exquisite Delights by Megan Chee (Lightspeed Magazine; Mar. 2023 (Issue 154))

I like this story. It’s kind of like the Wayward Children’s series by Seanan McGuire, except the doors can appear to anyone instead of just children. And the portal fantasy aspect is limited to various rooms, which the story describes to the reader with an almost omnipresent narrator. It was an interesting mix of fantasy and horror-ish imagery, so I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more stories by Megan Chee.

From around the web…

• “The Greenery Around Me Held Secrets I Would Never Learn”: Plant Life In Contemporary Science Fiction [Samantha Hind; Clarkesworld Magazine; Issue 198—March 2023]
• Print Run Podcast Episode 159: All The Strange Silences

So...I Played Aggro Crab's Going Under (2020)

If you read my “I’m Back” blog post at the beginning of the year, you’ll know that during my annual break from Our Thoughts Precisely I didn’t do as much reading as I thought I would. The reason for that was simple! Nintendo was having a sale on indie games, and some of the titles I’d had my eye on for a while were marked down to ridiculously good prices. One of the games that kept me preoccupied was Going Under. At the time of the “I’m Back” post, I hadn’t made much progress in the game. However, fast forward to March + a reading slump, I finally beat the main story for Going Under. I had so much fun playing this game!

I liked it, especially for how unusual of a setting it was for a dungeon crawler Roguelike. It was bright, colorful, and the visual design style was very distinct. And the office/ failed startup setting provided the perfect opportunity for plenty of witty/ironic dialogue and commentary. That was combined with the principle storyline. It was a relatively simple straightforward narrative, but with a few surprising (and excellent) twists.

Basically, you play as Jackie, an intern for a drink company (Fizzle), which was acquired by a tech giant. There are three main failed startups to play through—Winkydink, Styxcoin, and Joblin—and each one had its own unique and appropriately business themed environments.

The game drops you right into the first battle then subsequently the first of the dungeons almost immediately, which was a crash course in the game’s battle mechanic. Win or lose the first go around, it was a challenging but fun experience. Weapons don’t last forever, and what you get per room was randomized. There was also the unpredictability of what “Skills” can be applied to the character—only one endorsed skill can be equipped, all others have to be found—which kept a level of interest (and required some strategizing) to the dungeons even after multiple runs. There was also “Business Cards”—which have information about the different monsters and NPCs—and mentors who added extra and helpful perks for navigating the dungeons.

**(Note: there is an assist mode that can be applied to each save profile before logging into the game. You can adjust stats like the amount of hearts you start each dungeon run with, weapon durability, enemy health, and etc..)**

There’s still one other mode to the game, but I can’t speak about that yet since I haven’t delved into it. That being said, overall, I really enjoyed Going Under.

 Check out Going Under's trailer!

Music Monday (239): Angèle

Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: Over the weekend, I watched the second week of Coachella's livestream, just to see a couple of performances again. Afterwards, I ended up listening to Angèle's album, Nonante-Cinq La Suite, and one of my favorite songs is Solo.

ngèle

What are you listening to this week?

The Friday 56 (231) & Book Beginnings: Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love, in this heartwarming and enchanting fantasy.

Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people. So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her. But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.

Beginning: "Shadow is not at all happy with me."

56: "I tapped the rim of my mug, watching him. "What form do you anticipate this assistance taking, precisely?'"

Comments: I read this book at the end of last year, as an ARC from Netgalley. Recently, I finally purchased a copy to have on my shelf, and I had a lot of fun revisiting my favorite scenes. What are you reading this week?

Breakup from Hell by Ann Dávila Cardinal

Title: Breakup from Hell

Series: n/a
Author: Ann Dávila Cardinal
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Young Adult; Contemporary Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Harperteen; January 3, 2023

Goodreads     Amazon     Barnes & Noble    

Synopsis from Goodreads...

Miguela Angeles is tired. Tired of her abuela keeping secrets, especially about her heritage. Tired of her small Vermont town and hanging out at the same places with the same friends she’s known forever. So when another boring Sunday trip to church turns into a run-in with Sam, a mysterious hottie in town on vacation, Mica seizes the opportunity to get closer to him. It’s not long before she is under Sam’s spell and doing things she’s never done before, like winning all her martial arts sparring matches—and lying to her favorite people. The more time Mica spends with Sam, the more weird things start to happen, too. Like terrifying-visions-of-the-world-ending weird. Mica’s gut instincts keep telling her something is off, yet Sam is the most exciting guy she’s ever met. But when Mica discovers his family’s roots, she realizes that instead of being in the typical high school relationship, she’s living in a horror novel. She has to leave Sam, but will ending their relationship also bring an end to everything she knows and everyone she loves? Clever, hilarious, and steeped in supernatural suspense, Breakup From Hell will keep you hooked until the last page.

It’s been a while since I picked up a YA novel, but I was interested in Ann Davila Cardinal’s Breakup from Hell.

The synopsis was a hook, but, once I started reading it, I instantly liked Miguela (Mica) Angeles’s characterization. She loved her grandmother and her group of friends, even when she was at odds with them. But, it was clear as day to me that she also felt stifled by what she viewed as a monotonous life—same friends, same town, same everything. She basically wished for change, and boy did she get it in what was probably the worst way.

There was a substantial amount of religious themes present throughout Breakup from Hell. For example, the characters quoted scripture and Mica attended a religious school. However, when angels, saints, demons, and hell are involved, I pretty much expect it.

The quick pace of the story allowed for the paranormal and horror aspects to show up on page fairly early, and the events unfolded one after another. It was basically instantaneous—and it wasn’t much of a mystery for me either—because the synopsis is pretty clear as to what the story was about. I didn’t mind the predictability though, because I liked the explanation the author provided for why it was happening. And, ultimately, I was very entertained by Breakup from Hell.

About the author....

Ann is a novelist and Director of Recruitment for Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA). She has a B.A. in Latino Studies from Norwich University, an M.A. in sociology from UI&U and an MFA in Writing from VCFA. She also helped create VCFA’s winter Writing residency in Puerto Rico. Ann’s first novel, Sister Chicas was released from New American Library in 2006. Her next novel, a horror YA work titled Five Midnights, was released by Tor Teen on June 4, 2019. Her stories have appeared in several anthologies, including A Cup of Comfort for Mothers and Sons (2005) and Women Writing the Weird (2012) and she contributed to the Encyclopedia Latina: History, Culture, And Society in the United States edited by Ilan Stavans. Her essays have appeared in American Scholar, Vermont Woman, AARP, and Latina Magazines. Ann lives in Vermont, needle-felts tiny reading creatures, and cycles four seasons a year.

Goodreads     Website

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Harperteen) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!