July Book Wrap Up

I only read 6 books in July. This wasn’t just a reading slump, this was a life slump. I did not get a lot done this month.

Stats

Number of books: 6

Hours
Total: 71h 33m
Average per day: 2.29

Pages
Total: 2198
Average per day: 70.9

Physical: 1
Ebook: 2
Audio Book: 3

Science Fiction: 3
Fantasy: 3

Young Adult: 2
Adult: 4

Queer Representation
MM Romance: 3
FF Romance: 2
Trans Character: 1
Non-binary/Gender Queer character: 1
Bisexual/ Pansexual Characters: 0
Asexual Characters: 0


1 star: 1
2 stars: 1
3 stars: 2
4 stars: 1
5 stars: 1
Average Star Rating: 3.08

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

Genres: Post Apocalyptic

Format: Audio Book

Queer Rep: No clue

Disability Rep: The guy in the wheelchair kills himself because he won’t be able to survive the apocalypse and his brother agrees.

Did not finish

The opening scene is a man dying on stage and we follow the paramedic who was in the audience as he tries to save the actor.

It gets interesting when he’s warned by a friend that there’s a virus at the hospital that is spreading really quick and no one is surviving it. This is the end.

So he does what I think I would do with that news. He goes to a shop and buys seven shopping carts worth of food and supplies.

He takes it all back to his brother’s flat who is in a wheelchair. I perked up because I don’t think I’ve ever read a post apocalyptic book with a disabled character. I wanted to see where this was going.

Unfortunately we flash forward to decades after society has crumbled and we follow a theatre troupe who travel the country putting on Shakespeare’s Plays. If I cared more about Shakespeare it might have been more interesting in these sections.

Then we flashback to the dying actor before society died and it’s so boring. I was pressing the skip 30 seconds button to get to another section. If I was interested in celebrities I’d buy those sorts of magazines or watch reality TV.

By the time we get back to the brothers in the flat I’ve lost most of my hope this book is going to get good. Then the disabled brother decides to kill himself in his flat instead of trying to escape the city with his brother. And I was done.
For some reason the narrator had an english accent but the book was set in America. It was very distracting.

There are so many positive reviews for this book and I don’t get it at all.

All good children by Dayna Ingram

Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult, Dystopian

Format: Ebook (storybundle)

2 stars
Queer Rep: Jordan is the main character who has a relationship with another girl. There’s also another female character who’s in a relationship with a woman.

Story

Aliens invade and enslave the human race. They demand a certain amount of children be given to them for lots of horrible uses. Jordan and her brothers are chosen to go to a camp where they get selected for different uses.

Thoughts

I failed to engage with this book at all. It’s probably mostly due to how terrible I felt at the beginning of the month. So not a lot of this book stayed with me either. I was not in a good place while reading this.

I’d only recommend this if you’re up for lots of depressing things to happen to characters.
Trigger warnings for self harm.

The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K Le Guin

Genres: Science Fiction

Format: Ebook
3 stars
Queer Rep: The story is set on a planet where humans evolved as intersex and are capable of becoming male or female but they spend most of their time with no gender or sexual desire.

Story

Genly Ai is a human emissary sent to the planet Winter. He’s there to try to get them to join the Ekumen which is how humans spread across space by trading and helping each other. Things don’t go well for him.

Thoughts

Genly is very into being a masculine man and he sees femininity as deceitful or untrustworthy. So he doesnt fit in with the other people on Winter. He’s really into the gender binary. I didn’t like him.
I found this book hard to read. I think I like reading the five star reviews of it more than I liked reading the actual book. Those reviews put into words things I find difficult to say. What’s funny is I agree with those five star reviews but I only gave it three.

I’m genderqueer/non-binary what ever you want to call it. So I’m already at a place where I find the labels of men and women restrictive. It feels like the book is trying to catch up to me rather than the other way around.

Science fiction is good when it introduces new ideas or new ways of thinking. So back in 1969 this would have been a newish idea. Although I think a lot of the population now could still do with reading it too (everyone is obsessed with the gender binary). But I don’t think this would be a very good starting point.

One reviewer on Goodreads said the setting is the protagonist and that is very true. I think that’s a problem with old books there’s a lot more description and thinking done rather than plot or character. That’s part of the reason why I had a hard time with this book.

Genly is unlikable from the start and I couldn’t get into his head. I understood where he was coming from because I’m surrounded by those people on a daily basis. I don’t want to read about them too. Especially not in a book that’s meant to be queer.
I think what I’m trying to say is this isn’t for queer people. It’s for straight heteronormative people who see the world in one way and have never considered there might be another. But even then I doubt this would be to many people’s tastes because how we write stories has moved on since then. It’s just sad that a lot of speculative fiction didn’t take this idea and run with it. It’s really hard to find non-binary characters in science fiction that aren’t aliens.

I’m glad I read it but I wouldn’t recommend it unless you’re already into science fiction classics.

Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Genre: Fantasy, Greek Mythology, Young Adult

Format: Physical
3 stars
Queer Rep: The entire story is about Patroclus and his relationship with Achilles.

Story

Achilles is the best fighter ever and has a destiny that he’s going to die. So of course Patroclus doesn’t want this to happen and tries to get him not to fight in the Trojan war.

Thoughts

This was very slow going at first. It also hasn’t helped my YA aversion. I think my expectations were too high because everyone seems to love this book. Also I was excited because I love Greek myths like Hercules, and Xena was my childhood.

Instead I was mostly disappointed as I never connected with the characters and I quickly got bored.

I think it was the way it was written. Achilles is too perfect and without him Patroclus wouldn’t have a personality because all he does is follow Achilles around. Neither of them were compelling

It also doesn’t help that you know they’re going to end up at the Trojan war but there’s a whole lot of filler between here and there. It’s entertaining but feels like we could skip it easy.

I’d only recommend this if you enjoy young adult, retellings and greek myths.

The last Sun (The Tarot Sequence #1) by K.D.Edwards

Genres: Urban Fantasy

Format: Audio Book
4 stars
Queer Rep: I think every male character in this book is either bisexual or gay.

Story

Rune is the heir to the sun court, which got destroyed when he was young, and he gets hired to find Lady Judgement’s missing son. But it gets way more complicated and dangerous than he was expecting.

Thoughts

Rune has a companion and body guard called Bandon and I love how long suffering he is with trying to keep Rune safe. It might be my favourite trope.

There’s one moment that almost made laugh out loud. Brand tells Rune to stay put and Rune decides to go somewhere without telling Brand. Rune gets a text from Brand and all it says is “the fuck?” I love that moment and it sums up their relationship perfectly.
I think this is going to be one of those series where either Rune has lots of partners or it’s going to be a love triangle between him, Brand and Adam. I’m not usually one for love triangles because I find the jealousy annoying. And I can never understand how someone can put up with two people being jealous arseholes around them all the time.

That’s not what happens here. There’s one scene where all three of them are naked in the showers (because nudity isn’t a taboo in their culture) and Brand gives Rune a massage while telling Adam he’s not making a move. I love it.

I don’t usually care who ends up with who either but I now ship Rune and Brand. I’m fine with Rune and Adam having a relationship (I actually encourage it) but Rune and Brand are endgame.

I do like Adam though and I especially like his little brother. I hope they’re both in the sequel. I was so disappointed when I realised the sequel wasn’t out already and wouldn’t be out until January 2019. That is so far away.
I listened to this as an audiobook and the narrator is so good. I love his voice. I could listen to him all day and I did try, but life gets in the way.
There is rape in this book and it’s mostly Rune’s memories but it is brutal. He’s also very young when it happens. There’s also some dodgy stuff going on with another young character who Rune saves. So trigger warnings for all that.

I highly recommend this book because it was so fun. All the characters are very snarky and I love their relationships.

The House of Binding Thorns (Dominion of the Fallen #2) by Aliette De Boddard

Genres: Urban Fantasy, Alternative history, Angels, Dystopian

Format: Audio Book
5 stars
Queer Rep: There is a lesbian couple and one of them is a transgendered angel woman. At first I wasn’t sure if this would be considered trans rep because you get authors who write aliens or fantasy species as swapping genders but don’t have any human trans characters in their work. But in this case I think it does because many trans issues are mentioned. Like the name she had before the transition, who she used to be, people from the past not accepting her new body. It doesn’t feel like the author is trying to avoid having a trans character in their work but still wants to get diversity points.
There’s also Asmodeus, who was in the first book where his male lover died, and now he’s getting married to a prince of the dragon kingdom.

Story

This takes place after The House of Shattered Wings and follows Madeline at Hawthorn House where she’s expecting to be tortured to death. Instead Asmodeus keeps her because he never let go of her, even if it has been 20 years since she was a dependent of the house.
Madeline gets sent as part of a delegation into the dragon kingdom because Asmodeus is about to marry their prince.
Meanwhile another prince has infiltrated the house and is spying for the dragon kingdom.

Thoughts

There is a lot going on in this book and I didn’t quite realise how much until I tried to summarise it.

It’s Madeline’s story but Phillipe gets his own chapters and he is trying to resurrect his friend.
So does Francoise who is a houseless angel with strong and peculiar magic. Her partner is a human and is pregnant. Their flat is their House and Francoise is more powerful there. She’s also a trans woman and there’s one scene where a character from her past is a bit transphobic towards her. He calls her by her old name and notes her new body. He only does it once though and not after being told off for it.
I think Madeline in my favourite character because she’s just struggling to stay alive when everyone around her is playing political games and she’s terrible at it. She doesn’t have an underhanded bone in her body and can’t play their games even though her life depends on it.
I really like Asmodeus too, even though he’s a bit of a bastard. That may be the reason why I like him so much. When Peter Kenney does the voice of Asmodeus it’s brilliant.
This is another narrator who has a voice I love.
I’m really hoping there will be a third book.
Trigger Warnings: The violence is very graphic and everywhere.