meitachi | books, books, books: 2017 sept-dec

Reading over the last quarter of the year! Lining up with my new job as well, but I still got a decent amount of reading in. I wonder if I should have higher 2018 goals.

White Heat by Ilona Andrews - It has been so long since I've read this series that the last two books blend together in my head, but I remember I really enjoyed both; the world-building, the action, the characters in both books were a lot of fun. Fast-paced, strong characters, and lots of hints of really interesting backstories and sidestories which I hope will be further explored. Nevada and Conner's relationship didn't grate, and Nevada definitely got to be strong on her own and choose her own values.

Wildfire by Ilona Andrews - The big finale so many fans had waited so long for, and the release that finally prompted me to read the whole series because I thought it was complete. Well, more or less! The main story was complete, but even the "resolution"/epilogue of this story sets up so well a second series featuring Catalina, the second sister. And then obviously Arabella would need her own story too! Unfortunately these are not yet written, or at least certainly not published, so I run again into my nemesis: the unending wait time for the next installment in a series. That said, again, really do enjoy this world and its characters. Also very cool to see it in an alternate Houston, so a lot of sites mentioned are very familiar.

Spirits Abroad by Zen Cho - Everything I never knew I wanted but everything I wanted and loved! A series of short stories rife with fantasy and magical/supernatural elements, but steeped deeply in Southeast Asian and specifically Malaysian mythology and culture. Basically magical realism if SE Asian instead of Latin American, I guess? So refreshing, interesting, to see fantasy lore that isn't medieval and western. Instead, we've got other kinds of ghosts and vampires, other types of family dynamics and creepy forests. I loved every weird story in this series, some set in the past, some contemporary, some abroad at a UK boarding school and others firmly rooted in Malaysia, but all populated with great characters and natural dialogue and a sense of fantasy that is both familiar (I spent some time in Singapore, and some of the mythos are pan-Asian or at least pan-Chinese) and eerily unfamiliar.

Covenants by Lorna Freeman - A reread of one of my favorite fantasy books of all time. It's so tropey, honestly, with the Gary Stu main character with all the magical traits beginning his heroic quest -- but it's all done so well, and Rabbit is so reluctant and self-effacing, distasteful of limelight (except for his fashion sense), and is just easily likeable...or easily ignorable as a way to highlight all the other characters I like so much. Such great characters! While I love the war and politics backdrop, the characters and dialogue really make this for me. The narrative voice is wry and funny and an easy read. The world-building is also tropey but still engaging. I should reread the sequels as well; I remember being fond of them but to a lesser degree.

Reforming Lord Ragsdale by Carla Kelly - A clean, older Regency, and it's been a while but I think I enjoyed it. Of course, nothing in particular stands out. But I feel like I enjoyed the character and development. The hero was likeable, the heroine was fine, although there was a lot of emphasis on the heroine's red hair though. That always seems to be the case...instant lust or appreciation for outwardly appearance, then gradual development of the actual relationship. The heroine's stoicism over her tragic(tm) past was very iddy, lots of emotional h/c that I think might've worked better if I'd liked both characters more. Oh well.

Five Dares by Eli Easton - Silly m/m ebook with a silly tropey premise of two ostensibly straight boys/daredevil BFFs injuring their hands in a fireworks incident and needing each other to get off. Because life is just like a porno! There was some attempt at further character depth, but mostly there was a lot of feelings-denial and sexytimes, and minor angst near the conclusion before the Big Brave Character Moment. Fairly enjoyable for what it was; a fast read.

Blame It On the Mistletoe by Eli Easton - I was a in a tough period of not wanting to read any of my books and stalling out over good fic (reading only terrible Batfamily stuff, tbh), so needed a short m/m thing to read. Christmas-themed, roommates turned BFF turned more, with a former jock and an awkwardly social genius nerd. Very tropey but just missed my id, alas. I'm sort of over awkwardly social genius nerds, given the current state of affairs (see: Silicon Valley, Facebook, etc.) where it often masks general male assholishness. Aside: 2017, the year of jocks standing up for social justice and sensitivity, and nerds harassing women and trolling people online. Not a great look for nerds.

The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo by Zen Cho - An absolutely delightful novella. Very, very fun to read, set in 1920s London and featuring a Malay-Chinese second gen immigrant working in the west. East meets West, but Diary/epistolary style and Jade has an enjoyably (but not annoyingly) self-deprecating sense of humor, and a very straightforward, practical, and relatable narrative voice. Excellent character and shenanigans. Available online as an ebook or for free! http://zencho.org/the-perilous-life-of-jade-yeo/

Eleventh Hour by Elin Gregory - M/m story featuring secret British spies during WWI, plus crossdressing and a pretend relationship! A fun historical with period details and a sense of time and place. I liked the two leads a lot, and their sparking UST (which sadly became resolved faster than I'd like), and the plot that wasn't resolved as easily as first appeared. I can't gauge the historical accuracy but there was enough detail and atmosphere to feel like a Christie novel, so count it as passing marks from me. I appreciated that the two leads had real differences and used conversation to resolve many of them. Impressive; and each character continued to behave credibly in character to their motivations.

Viewfinder by Yamano Ayane - Reread the whole series up to the ongoing arc and oh my gooooddd I have so many feelings. This series is 100% lined up to my id, and I'm over the jealousy issues I had earlier so now it's all just hot. I love how fucked up both Akihito and Asami are and not exactly good for each other, but completely tied up in each other and unable and unwilling to extricate themselves now, to the point of compromising some of their own principles. Get it. Always hot. Love the mutual possessiveness, and the new arc hinting at new protective instincts in Asami that no longer stem merely from right of ownership/"that's my property" to more maybe actual care. Love Asami being Not Good (and so deliciously competent at it) and how it's always Akihito throwing the wrench into his otherwise perfect plans, to the point where Asami both expects and enjoys it now. And Akihito's own insecurities and angst and jealousy builds into the perfect fucked up emotional h/c I enjoy.

The Clocks by Agatha Christie - I knew I'd read this before but I literally had no recollection until about halfway through, when I remembered the murderer. I almost never do! So good job to me. I always enjoy Poirot and I was looking for some more of him after watching "Murder on the Orient Express"; this was the only Christie at the library not already checked out and was available immediately. Good times. As always with Christie, some relevant details, lots of red herrings, and interesting characters.

The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare - The clearest thing I remember about this book, beyond genuinely enjoying it more than expected, was how funny it was. Pretty much a riff off Beauty and the Beast, but entertaining and compelling despite being almost farcically satirical. Don't take it too seriously: the servants are trying to matchmake. The hero was so brooding but self-aware about it. A lot of this book is tongue-in-cheek, but it works beecause it clearly loves and appreciates the genre it knows it belongs to even as it's poking fun at it. The circle of close quirky friends was a little too convenient for my tastes, but I know a set-up for a series if I've ever seen one. The bookshop meet-cute has definitely set up the next book and relationship. But this one was fun. Maybe I'll go back through some of Tessa Dare's other stuff, I thought...

Say Yes to the Marquess by Tessa Dare - After reading "The Duchess Deal", I thought I'd read something else by Tessa Dare, so I picked this up. Alas, I did not enjoy it as much, probably because I didn't like the heroine as much. That's probably on me. Clio was both a wilting flower who'd spent eight years waiting for her betrothed and also a headstrong independent who wanted to flout social conventions and open a brewery. I couldn't really get a feel of her consistent character. Rafe was an interesting hero, though: not as polished and "intelligent" as the usual, but much more rough and tumble, kind of a black sheep. I liked his family loyalty and angst. The childhood crush/romance was laughably convenient but a staple of this genre; I'm pretty sure I would've loved it if it were m/m. Alas.

The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman - Sold to me as Regency romance with added paranormal/supernatural. And it's basically that! Regency-flavored demon-hunting, featuring a young Lady Helen and demons who walk among men and prey upon their life force. So she's forced to learn about her talent and then choose if she wants the regular Regency life or one invovling magic and danger. Add some parental angst, an overbearing and judgmental uncle, a hot but mysterious mentor, and a genuinely likeable secondary love interest. A slow build-up with a lot of detail on Regency life and dress, which I enjoyed, but which probably didn't help the flow of the story much; the weight of the world and atmosphere took up a lot of space, and we ended up spending more time in Helen's head and emotional angst than with the plot. I have the second book on hold, which I've heard unfortunately suffers much the same, with romantic angst taking priority over the demon/magic plot. Still, worth a read.

It Takes Two to Tumble by Cat Sebastian - Back in JayDick hell with no good fic and no attention span for books, I discovered Cat Sebastian had published a new m/m Regency! I pounced. A riff off "Sound of Music", she said. I love that movie, I could see this work. Unfortunately it left me kind of baffled. The plot and characters all seemed to meander; I never exactly felt or believed the developing relationship between the two main characters, and all of a sudden they were suffused with affection and love for each other, and torn over their inner angst over life duties. Except even those inner turmoils were resolved fairly quickly with no real consequences. Everything sort of conveniently worked out, so I didn't get any real emotional h/c, and no real UST since they fell into bed with each other so quickly. All other obstacles or issues briefly mentioned were just as briefly handled or dismissed entirely (like Ben's brother's prostitution?? His lifelong resentment of his dad resolved in one afternoon??). I didn't necessarily mind the setting: not fashionable London but rather a small bucolic village where one of the heroes is a vicar, but everything felt sort of thin and pasted on. For a vicar, the religious aspects were not really addressed in depth, and his faith felt painted on rather than truly informing his character. I can't help but compare to that Ronaldo/Kaka priest/demon AU and this honestly falls so short in use and depiction of of a religious character falling in love. Oh well.

Onto more books in the future! A list of books I have to read, probably incomplete and ever growing:
-The Thief by Megan Whaler Turner
-Snowspelled by Stephanie Burgis
-The Dark Days Pact by Alison Goodman
-What Happened by Hillary Clinton
-Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett
-Angela Carter's Book of Fairy Tales by Angela Carter