Monday, August 30, 2021

Music Monday (170): Halsey, Moon Boots, Fiora, Kane Brown & AJR

 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'm currently listening to Halsey's new album: If I Can't Have Love, I Want Power. One of my favorite songs is The Tradition.


Adri: This week I'm listening to some more chill music. It's I Want Your Attention by Moon Boots feat. Fiora


Andrea: Hi All, this week I am listening to Worship You by Kane Brown & Bang by AJR.



Until next time, have an amazing week and stay safe!


What are you listening to this week?

Sunday, August 29, 2021

Short Stories I Read In July


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

Eilam is Forever by Beth Dawkins (Apex Magazine, July 6, 2021)

The first of two short stories I read in July was Eliam is Forever by Beth Dawkins. This story was fine. I liked a few of its aspects, especially the themes. Some of it kind of reminded me of the Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. In that the story is told from the point of view of what appeared to be a ship. But it was like SecUnit if SecUnit had only just hacked itself and discovered emotions.

Data Migration by Melanie Harding-Shaw (Strange Horizons; Issue: 12 July 2021)

The second and last story I read was Data Migration by Melanie Harding-Shaw. I liked this story. It was told in a somewhat mixed format that was equal parts homework and comments made by the person doing the assigning and reading of those assignments. The major theme here was climate change, and it was an interesting choice to explore that topic through the above mentioned format.

From around the web…

Tuesday, August 24, 2021

ARC Review: Seven-Year Witch by Angela M. Sanders


 Title: Seven-Year Witch

Series: Witch Way Librarian Mysteries #2
Author: Angela M. Sanders
Source/Format: Netgalley; eARC
More Details: Mystery; Paranormal
Publisher/Publication Date: Kensington; August 24, 2021

Goodreads    Amazon      Barnes & Noble      Target

Synopsis from Goodreads...
Finding your feet in a new job isn't always easy. That goes double for Josie Way, who's settling in as Wilfred, Oregon's, new librarian--and has just discovered she's a witch. But will her fledgling powers be enough to save her from a spell of murder? 
While Josie develops her witchcraft with the help of letters left by her grandmother, there are other changes happening in her new hometown. A retreat center is being built at the old mill site, and rumor has it that the location is cursed. That piques Josie's interest almost as much as Sam Wilfred, handsome FBI agent and descendent of the town's founder. When Sam's soon-to-be ex-wife, Fiona, goes missing at the same time that a bloodied weapon is found, Josie enlists her witchy insight, and her cat familiar, to clear Sam's name. But then the mill project's architect is found dead, and it's clear that someone has been drawing up a vicious plan. Now Josie will have to divine her way out of fatal mischief, before this deadly trouble turns double...

 


Seven-Year Witch’s premise is what drew me to the story. There are a few cozy mystery series that I can think of off the top of my head that also involve witches and magic. I’m a total sucker for stories that have a contemporary setting with a supernatural edge, so I had high hopes for this book.

Overall, I liked the story. The setting was a small town, and there seemed to be secrets around every corner. The mystery portion of the story was good. It had a strong presence in the story. And while the characters went about their daily routines, I mostly liked the way they approached investigating the incident. There were a few stumbles with the main character putting too much focus on one possible scenario/cause, which didn’t really lead anywhere. But besides that, the mystery was good. 

Josie Way is a witch that’s technically in training. She’s also a librarian with an unrequited crush who also happens to live in the apartment above the library, which comes in handy since her magic is mostly book based. That alone, was quite an enjoyable aspect about the story. The books really stood out as a highlight, because of the way the quotes and their presence were used in Seven-Year Witch. At times, the library felt like a character in its own right.

There were a lot of good and interesting ideas here, which wrapped up with a nice but open-ended conclusion for some aspects of the story. Seven-Year Witch was a fun read.

About the author...
Angela grew up in rural Northern California building forts in the woods where she devoured Nancy Drew mysteries. She earned degrees in economics and public administration, and in graduate school studied six months in Paris, sparking a lifelong interest in French culture. After 11 years as a congressional investigator, Angela realized she was more fascinated by the stories at the edges of her investigations–the decrepit exercise equipment in the ladies room of a Czech oil company; the curious number of framed photographs of women on a nuclear weapons official’s desk; the stupendous speed by which a particular Agriculture undersecretary inhaled chili dogs–than by the policies she evaluated. She returned to the west coast to explore the world and her imagination through magazine stories and fiction.

Angela lives in Portland, Oregon.


Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Kensington) via Netgalley for this review, thank you!


Monday, August 23, 2021

Music Monday (169): Jack Savoretti, Jennifer Hudson

 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 Secret Life by Jack Savoretti to my playlist. I really like this song, and the music video is fun.

 
Andrea: Hi all! This week I'm listening to Here I Am (Singing My Way Home) by Jennifer Hudson. The song is from the Respect (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack). I haven't listened to the full soundtrack, but so far, I like what I've heard. 

Have an amazing week! 



What are you listening to this week?



Friday, August 20, 2021

The Friday 56 (204) & Book Beginnings: Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim

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...
Shiori, the only princess of Kiata, has a secret. Forbidden magic runs through her veins. Normally she conceals it well, but on the morning of her betrothal ceremony, Shiori loses control. At first, her mistake seems like a stroke of luck, forestalling the wedding she never wanted, but it also catches the attention of Raikama, her stepmother. Raikama has dark magic of her own, and she banishes the young princess, turning her brothers into cranes, and warning Shiori that she must speak of it to no one: for with every word that escapes her lips, one of her brothers will die. Penniless, voiceless, and alone, Shiori searches for her brothers, and, on her journey, uncovers a conspiracy to overtake the throne—a conspiracy more twisted and deceitful, more cunning and complex, than even Raikama's betrayal. Only Shiori can set the kingdom to rights, but to do so she must place her trust in the very boy she fought so hard not to marry. And she must embrace the magic she's been taught all her life to contain—no matter what it costs her.




Beginning: "The bottom of the lake tasted like mud, salt, and regret."

56: "Nervously, I placed the scraps of paper on my lap, four in total." 


Comments: Last month, I read and reviewed Elizabeth Lim's Six Crimson Cranes. So far, it's one of my favorite reads of 2021. While I originally planned to do a 56 for it in July, my preorder from Mysterious Galaxy didn't arrive until recently. The wait was worth it, because the preorder goodies are really gorgeous (the picture is on my Instagram page HERE). What are you reading this week? 


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