What did you read in November 2020?

[ScarletBea]

Here it is: The what did you read this past month thread.

Come share your list and what you thought of the books you read last month. We're not looking for full out reviews, just a brief couple of sentences that sum up your impressions.

This is also not a contest for who read the most books, I know some of us struggle to find time to read one book a month, and others manage a dozen. That doesn't matter, so don't feel reluctant to post if you have read less books (or way more books) than others. This is all for sharing, and if you read anything, come let us know what it was and what you thought of it

[cupiscent]

Return of the Thief by Megan Whalen Turner - final in her Queen's Thief series, and wheeeeee it was a great time. Technically YA, these books really hit a powerful, dark theme of "you can destroy people, so you need to be mindful of your own capacity and remember what is important" that I think is a great message for any age. Plus the prose is just beautiful.

The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo - this novella wasn't quite what I was expecting (the framing narrative wasn't mentioned in any summary I read of it) but I really enjoyed it. Then again, I'm a sucker for a wronged woman on a brutal revenge path enabled by the establishment writing her off as "just a woman".

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It by KJ Parker - doesn't quite have the zing of 16 Ways, but I really liked Notker and the way this played out.

[eclipse]

How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It by KJ Parker - doesn't quite have the zing of 16 Ways, but I really liked Notker and the way this played out.

I prefer the ending in How to Rule an Empire

[ScarletBea]

This month there were quite a lot, for me, because they were all shorter!

4 Fantasy:

Piranesi, Susanna Clarke
I really LOVED this book - it was different and magical and for me had a lot of different layers that you could read into the story.

A time of dread, A time of blood, A time of courage, John Gwynne (Of Blood and bone trilogy)
I re-read book 1 before 2 and 3, as I couldn't remember much. I really enjoyed book 1, his other series is one of my favourites, but then I think it was a case of 'right book at wrong time', a few things got to me and I couldn't connect that much.
If you like reenactments, the last book is definitely for you - it felt (probably wrongly) 80% battles and 20% not battles, and you could do a study in strategy and tactics, with all the detailed steps, hehe
I was a bit sad about it, because the good bits, about friendship and growth and acceptance were really good. Definitely one to re-read at a different time!

2 non-fantasy:

Confessions of a bookseller, Shaun Bythell
Second volume of his diaries as the owner of a second hand bookshop in south Scotland. Funny and interesting, it's a picture of books, and people.

Talking to strangers, Malcolm Gladwell
A book about how and why miscommunication and misunderstandings happen, sometimes with serious consequences. Lots of examples and ideas, the one that remains with me is that people's expressions aren't like on TV, with grief, surprise, anger and sadness being obviously visible in people's faces - and that can create a lot of issues (and that people in different parts of the world even read the 'obvious' facial expressions as reflecting totally different emotions!).

And I'm still reading/playing Crystal of storms, Rhyanna Pratchett, a 'choose your own adventure' book

[DrNefario]

Another 3-book month for me, since I've been reading the next Crown of Stars volume since the middle of the month:

Curtain - Agatha Christie - The final Poirot. Slightly odd and anachronistic, having been written decades earlier, but also better than the other late Poirots for the same reason.

The Vagrant - Peter Newman - A mute protagonist crosses the land with a sword, a baby and a goat. It was OK, but I'm not sure I want to continue the series.

The Return of the Incredible Exploding Man - Dave Hutchinson - A journalist gets recruited to write a book about a collider. I enjoyed Hutchinson's writing, as usual, but I felt the plot was a bit woolly. I'd really like to read the original short version.

I'm about 800 pages into Child of Flame now, into the final stages, so maybe I'll do better this month. I need to read one more Christie and one more Morningstar nominee to meet two of my sub-goals, and 7 more books in total (so far) to meet my main target of reading twice as many books as I buy. I might need to throw in a few novellas.

[eclipse]

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon 2/5  underwhelming doubt I will read anything by this author again.

Orconomics by J.Zachary Pike 5/5

Son of a Liche by J.Zachary Pike 5/5 The humour worked for me in this two books.

[Elfy]

It wasn't a bad November reading wise.

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik. This was a fun read by Novik. A little like Harry Potter meets Umbrella Academy. My major quibble was that I felt it poorly edited, but I've never held high opinions of Novik's favoured editor.

Stormbird by Conn Iggulden. This is the first of Iggulden's Wars of the Roses series. I've read the first two before and am now reading it through, because I've got the final 2 books. It's a pretty good look at how the entire conflict kicked off. I tend to prefer the sequences that follow the archer Thomas Woodchurch and the rebellion led by Jack Cade than the bits with the various claimants to the throne squabbling with each other.

Random Sh*t Flying Through the Air by Jackson Ford. The sequel to The Girl Who Could Move Sh*t with Her Mind. Every bit as much fun as its predecessor and the stakes were higher this time, too. Really enjoyable and page turning. Sets up the next book with a great cliff, too.

The Dragon Republic by R. F. Kuang. I really liked The Poppy War and this didn't disappoint. Like all good trilogies, shit got very real in the second book and was suitably tragic, as well as epic. I picked up the conclusion The Burning God on Friday and can't wait to dive in and find out how its wrapped up.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab. I've never not liked a Schwab book and this was no exception. It is, however, very different from everything else she's written. It's long, but for me never flagged or wasted that length. It did make me think a lot about the drawbacks of being effectively immortal.

[cupiscent]

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab.

oooh, have you also read Claire North's The Sudden Appearance of Hope? Because the premises seem very similar and I am so curious how the two compare. (I mean, I also enjoy Schwab's work, so I will read this eventually for myself, but I mentioned the SO CURIOUS, right? )

[Elfy]

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab.

oooh, have you also read Claire North's The Sudden Appearance of Hope? Because the premises seem very similar and I am so curious how the two compare. (I mean, I also enjoy Schwab's work, so I will read this eventually for myself, but I mentioned the SO CURIOUS, right? )

I haven’t read anything by Claire North, so I can’t be of help there @cupiscent, but I did really like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. It was such an interesting concept and carried off flawlessly.

[isos81]

• Foundation (3.5*)
• All Systems Red(4*)
• Flowers for Algernon(4*)
• Equal Rites(4*)
• Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy(4*)

[Nora]

The first three volumes of a time travel fix it fic where Obi Wan Kenobi is propelled 40 years in the past after his death on the Death Star and it's genuinely some of the best work I've read in the SW universe, hands down.

Mmmh... Also a bunch of Hannibal fanfics... I've been busy doing NaNo, sue me.

[TheEighthRenewal]

This is like that line from History of the world.

"Did you read last month??"
"No."
"Did you try to read last month??"
"Yes."   

I started reading Oathbringer, but couldn't get too far. I've been so busy between work and my own novels that it's sad but I haven't had much time.  I think my next book is gonna be something a lot lighter though, like the Wyrd sisters, by Pratchett.