Media - October 2015

[themadpoker]

Did you know you can load up e-books to read on your phone? I was aware of this in theory but I did not realize that in practice it is genuinely simple. It's....probably obvious at which point I figured this out from my book list.

Books

155. Filter House by Nisi Shawl -- 4 stars (sff) (50books_poc: Book 15)
156. Alex + Ada Volume 2 by Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn -- 3 stars
157. A Bride's Story Volume 6 by Kaoru Mori -- 3 stars
158. Library Wars Volume 13 by Kiiro Yumi -- 3 stars
159. Alice in the Country of Hearts Volume 3 by QuinRose and Soumei Hoshino -- 2 stars
160. Carry On by Rainbow Rowell -- 4 stars (ya sff)
161. Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates -- 5 stars (n-f) (50books_poc: Book 16)
162. No Sex in the City by Randa Abdel-Fattah -- 3.5 stars (chick lit) (50books_poc: Book 17)
163. Talk Sweetly to Me by Courtney Milan -- 4.5 stars (rom) (50books_poc: Book 18)
164. The Duchess War by Courtney Milan -- 3.5 stars (rom) (50books_poc: Book 19)
165. The Heiress Effect by Courtney Milan -- 5 stars (rom) (50books_poc: Book 20)
166. A Kiss for Midwinter by Courtney Milan -- 3.5 stars (rom) (50books_poc: Book 21)
167. Boy vs. Girl by Na'ima B. Robert -- 3 stars (ya) (50books_poc: Book 22)
168. The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin -- 4.5 stars (sff) (50books_poc: Book 23)
169. The Countess Conspiracy by Courtney Milan -- 3 stars (rom) (50books_poc: Book 24)

Books: 11
  chick lit: 1
  ya: 2
  romance: 5
  sff: 2
  non-fiction: 1
Manga/Comics: 4
50books_poc: 10

Movies

12. Breakfast with Scot (October 10) -- 4 stars

This was an interesting experience in which I rocketed between cooing over what a precious child Scot is and outragedly lecturing Eric through his parenting growing pains. By the end this conflict was resolved in favour of happily cooing over what a precious family they'd created together. 4 stars

Television

Broad City 2.06
Brooklyn 99 3.01, 3.02, 3.03, 3.04, 3.05
Empire 2.02, 2.03, 2.04
Faking It 2.15, 2.16, 2.17, 2.18, 2.19, 2.20
Fresh Off the Boat 2.02, 2.03, 2.04, 2.05
How to Get Away With Murder 1.13, 1.14, 1.15, 2.01, 2.02, 2.03
Man's World 1.01, 1.02, 1.03, 1.04, COMPLETE.
Over the Garden Wall 1.01, 1.02, 1.03

Comments

[wingstodust]

YOU READ COURTNEY MILAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Fave OTP??? Hero????? Heroine??? In the Brothers Sinisters series and/or other series?????

(sorry for capslock my mind is just blown)

[themadpoker]

She's incredible!!! Okay I'm going to limit myself Brothers Sinister because it's been awhile since I've read her other series (though I will say I'll have a soft spot for Unclaimed until my dying day because it introduced me to her work and I was like 'there are romance novelists that do this? Write period appropriate feminist heroes and centre the entire storyline on the theme of agency and ensuring the heroine always keeps hers? Where have you been all my life???)

Okay so OTP-wise Rose and Stephen are SO CUTE, I am so happy that I got to read a romance that involved flirting via math nerdery, they are adorable. And like. A black heroine! In a period romance! The only other place I've gotten to enjoy that is in Belle (which is an incredible movie omg, if you haven't seen it HIGHLY RECOMMENDED).

Picking a favourite heroine is SUPER hard because I tend to fall in love with whoever's book I'm reading but as of right now I'm gonna say Jane Fairfield is edging ahead! She's loud and wears bright colours and refuses to let anyone make her less than what she is, I adore her. ♥_♥ Also some of her marriage-repelling moves were hilarious which I deeply appreciated because as much as I adore Milan she tends to deliver way more on drama then humour. I don't mind but a spot of comic relief in the midst of revelations of psychological trauma and intense feelings is always welcome!

Favourite hero: Stephen Shaughnessy all the way! :D He adores Rose which is HIGHLY RELATABLE for me and the Ask A Man column brought a lot of joy to my life. I...am very easy for characters with a sense of humour, what can I say. /o\ Sebastian also made a good showing in this category but I don't like The Countess Conspiracy as much as Talk Sweetly to Me so alas, he is hampered by his book.

Okay, turning the same questions to you! Fav heroine? Hero? OTP? How excited are you to read the next book in her Cyclone series because I am SUPER EXCITED, I've been so lost trying to figure out who delivers good contemporary romance and then Milan came out with Trade Me because she is an actual DREAM. \o/

(never apologize for capslock, I don't think I actually know how to communicate on the Internet without using it anymore xDDD)

[wingstodust]

(UNCLAIMED WAS AMAZEBALLS!!!!!! omg that scene with pistols at dawn oh my frickin god <33333333333333333333333333333 My intro to Courtney Milan was The Governess Affair, personally, so I read Brothers Sinister first before the Turner series, and I really didn't like Unveiled very much... But Unclaimed made up for EVERYTHING. Bought myself a hardcopy of it for reasons =DDDD. Brothers Sinister and all her other stuff I have as ebooks... for now.)

MOAR BLACK HEROINES IN PERIOD ROMANCES!!!!!!!! Rose/Stephen was so cute and so nerdy it is ridiculous ahhhhhhhhh <3333333 AND YES I HAVE WATCHED BELLE, GOT TO WATCH IN THEATRE WITH FRIEND AND IT WAS SO LOVELY AND BEAUTIFUL AND I WENT AND BOUGHT A COPY OF THE BOOK GIVING ME A BIT OF HISTORICAL BACKGROUND BUT IT'S NOT THE SAME AS THE BOOK ITSELF!!!!

Oh yes, Jane Fairfield is super boss!! I confess my favourite in Brothers Sinister is hands down Violet Waterfield though, just I love how at the end she gets to shine and never punished for wanting to do all the things and it's just so great and the SCIENCE NERDERY and can I just say that I love how nerdy all of Milan's romances are???? Too cute for words.

Ask A Man column was the best thing of my life. Yes to the humour!! Not all of Milan's stuff is funny, but when it's there, it works for me. Ohhhhhhh side note, do you read Tessa Dare??!?!?!?! She is HILARIOUS!!!

Okay So I kind of answered Fave Heroine and I agree with your OTP. Oh wait, I want to give an honorary shout out to Lydia Charingford because she is so BRIGHT and BUBBLY and POSITIVE and she is just fantastic in every single way and I love her whole arc!!!!!

Fave Hero is so hard!! Stephen is so great in every way, and so is Sebastien, but I think the Hero who made the biggest impression on me was Anjan Bhattacharya, which will lead me to say that for secondary romances, EMILY/ANJAN WAS THE MOST ADORABLE OF THEM ALL!!!

Which brings me to the point, my questions on Courtney Milan have been very incomplete!! What is fave novel? Novella??? Secondary romance????

I will admit, for Brothers Sinister, I actually find that I like the novellas more than the novels??? I don't know, like the novellas gave me the Christmas special and TALK TO ME SWEETLY so!!!!

I AM SO EXCITED FOR HOLD ME I CANNOT ACTUALLY EXPRESS PROPERLY IN WORDS, I FEEL THESE CAPS LOCK DO NOT GIVE MY EMOTIONS JUSTICE!!!! AND THE FACT THAT IT'S COMING OUT IN 2016 IS DESTROYING ME BUT AT LEAST ONCE UPON A MARQUESS IS COMING OUT IN LIKE TWO WEEKS OR SOMETHING?!!?!?!?

Yeahhhh I haven't been getting a lot of good hits with contemporary romance/New Adult, unfortunately!! But, I recently read How To Say Goodbye by Amber Lin, and it was decent. (Not Milan awesome though, more's the pity)

[themadpoker]

(it's such a good scene!! Also Unveiled surprised me because while I didn't like it as much as Unclaimed I still liked it? And like 99/100 times I hate the 'alpha male' hero type romance novels are so fond of but in that case the couple worked for me! Milan is MAGIC)

Violet! I read a few reviews that thought the ending for Countess Conspiracy was a bit unrealistic? And I disagreed STRONGLY because we went through like 300 pages of Violet being miserable and down on herself and I needed her to get everything she wanted, she deserved the world and more after all she went through! I just started The Suffragette Scandal and I am so curious to see how the alt-history aspects of Countess are going to play out there because a woman just got openly acknowledged as making the scientific advance of the century! TELL ME MORE ABOUT HOW THIS AFFECTS GENDER DISCOURSE GOING FORWARD

Okay so 100% agreed about Anjan/Emily being the secondary romance to rule them all, like there is no contest there! (though! I heard that Genevieve gets a romance with one of Free's reporters in Scandal? I am SUPER JAZZED for this so this category may be updated to a dual award in the future: STAY TUNED), and it is probably obvious that Talk Sweetly to Me is my pick for novella. I've actually only read it and The Governess Affair from Milan's novellas but I feel confident that this choice will probably stay unchanged going forward! Unclaimed still gets top pick novelwise for me, I feel like the combination of it being basically perfect and my first Milan read basically guarantees it staying there forever.

I have only ever read one book by Tessa Dare but seeing as I recall the resolution involved the day being saved by the efforts of heroic cosplayers, this is an excellent reminder that I should pick up more of her books! Any recommendations? :D

Also! While we're on related authors have you read Rose Lerner? Her book 'A Lily Among Thorns' reminded me of Unclaimed in the best way, like they are sibling books and it's GREAT. She just got back to publishing after four years of being stuck in rights problems so it's an excellent time to be a fan!

I haven't gotten great results on New Adult either which is a shame because in theory I feel like it should be my favourite publishing category out there? YA aged-up: what's not to love? But I guess it needs time to develop because so far most of what I've read have been extremely mediocre romances. Although! I did recently read Black Iris by Leah Raeder which is pretty good thriller and would get a high recommendation for me if it weren't for a particular plot twist towards the end that I need to fight her over. It was good enough until then that I want to try her next book though! Ideally it'll temporarily fill the terrible contemporary hole that is waiting for Hold Me to come out.

[wingstodust]

(Agree re: Magic of Courtney Milan and alpha hero opinions!!! I liked the romance, but the whole deception thing made Unveiled a harder read for me. I remember I got to the halfway point wherein the deception was revealed, and I stopped reading it for a while because I couldn't handle the fallout scenes <-- overly emotionally involved in my fiction.)

Everytime I see a review of Regency romance being "unrealistic" I roll my eyes. VIOLET DESERVES THE WORLD AND THE STARS.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh I want all your feels once you're done reading The Suffragette Scandal!! And the Secondary Romance showdown between TSS and THE. *_*

OMG PLEASE READ A WEEK TO BE WICKED BY TESSA DARE IT'S ONE OF MY FAVES EVER!!! Nerdy bluestocking girl into fossils brainwashes residential rake in town (who is superrrrrrrr into her) to go to fossil related lecture, SO MANY SHENANIGANS WITH TRAVELS AND NERDY FOSSIL STUFF I LOOOOOOOOOOVE!! And of course, extremely funny.

Ahhh I've heard of Rose Lerner but I still haven't gotten to it yet!! I keep meaning to!! *bumps up Rose Lerner on to-read list***

All this talk, and I realize that we have not discussed YA preferences!!! What are your fave YAs??? I gathered superheroes would be one, but unfortunately for me I have hard time finding good superhero teen books? (Will take recs!! :D) I mean, Rise of Renegade X was okayyyyyyy but not quite what I was looking for, and basically Posterchildren is the best and nothing has come close to its awesome.

Also! FYI - http://dearauthor.com/features/book-deals-features/daily-deals-80-regencies-80-hours/

[themadpoker]

I just finished Suffragette Scandal! Okay so most important things first: Anjan and Emily still win for top secondary mostly because as cute as Amanda and Genevieve were there was so LITTLE of them, reporter/social organizer is such a good ship idea, I needed more! Other things I needed more of: reporting, I am a sucker for reading excerpts of other kinds of writing in books, I really wanted to read one of Free's (or Amanda's!) articles instead of just hearing them described.

Also Suffragette felt weirdly short to me? But I think that's because everyone there had more sense then I'm accustomed to reading in romance novels, like at the end when Edward's like 'I don't want to make Free's dreams smaller!' I was honestly expecting him to run off like an idjit which like. Good fake-out Milan! I should have known better but I have read WAY too many romances where exactly that would have happened, I can't be blamed for misaimed expectations.

I have a Week to Be Wicked on hold at the library! :D I'm v excited, fossil nerdery is tops, I think I read a...Sherry Thomas romance? I think it was Sherry Thomas, don't quote me on that - with a similar premise and the bits where the bluestocking nerded out about fossils to her bemused paramour were the best part, I am totally ready to enjoy that experience again.

Also, favourite YA is a TERRIBLE question, I read so much YA, how do I choose?!! So I will address the superhero bit of your question instead. 8D Okay so most of the best YA superhero stuff lives in comics, there's a couple of books I liked (Perry Moore's Hero was pretty good! And I feel like Sarah Cross' Dull Boy was good but I can't 100% vouch on that one because it has been YEARS since I read it, I suspect I may have only just graduated high school when it came out?) but you are entirely correct in thinking Posterchildren takes top honours when it comes to the book side of YA superheroes. However! Let me drop some comics for you.

Runaways vol 1 - 6: Teenagers discover their parents are supervillains, freak out and run away from home! There are way more than six volumes of this but alas American comics have this awful tendency to switch writers at the drop of the hat and the later stuff is...not good. I'd basically vouch 100% for the first six volumes, semi-endorse volumes 7-9 (authored by Joss Whedon who I have mixed feelings about but I know he is well loved by many) and recommend running away at top speed from the rest. There is no Runaways after volume 9. Just likes there's no Heroes after the first season! Everyone's happier this way. Bonus: works well as a standalone from the rest of Marvel comics which is something I try for when I recommend comics because the world of comics is intimidatingly large and interlinked. Also one of the more diverse teams in Marvel's arsenal!

Young Avengers: Okay SO. Young Avengers is....sliiiightly less accessible than Runaways, sorry in advance. Basic premise: teenagers decide to reform the Avengers, time travel is semi-involved! This is necessarily a bit more tied to the rest of Marvel because Avengers but honestly, you can get by just fine with implied context and the occasional dip into wikipedia if you really want to know why everyone's caught feelings about some dude named Kang the Conqueror. There are two volumes that came out 2006-ish which introduce the team and give you time to fall in love with them so you're really angry when their title is then placed on hiatus! They show up in a bunch of crossover titles after which I wouldn't bother with, they're hard to find and of varying quality. However! The title was revived for three volumes in 2013 written by Kieron Gillen who is a delightful person who GETS teens and social media in a way I haven't seen integrated into comics before. Also if you liked Loki in the Marvel movies I suspect you will enjoy how he shows up in this comic.

Ultimate Spider-Man (Miles Morales): Okay so a little bit of background on this: every once in awhile superhero comics will do this thing where they revamp iconic superhero roles with new characters because why not? So when they announced they were going to do a version of Spiderman as a young black kid from Brooklyn I held my breath for about a month because I needed it to be good, because God knows I was going to be invested either way. It was not good. It was AMAZING. :D It deliberately echoes the original Spiderman story but does a great job fleshing out Miles and his friends and family to make something new. Minimal background knowledge is fine for this, an idea of who Spiderman is and how mutants are treated in Marvel is enough to get you through (if you've seen the movies you're good to go).

Ms. Marvel: This is cute as HECK. Kamala Khan, Desi Muslim fangirl from Jersey gets powers and does her level best to help people with them! The vibe of her comic is a lot like Spiderman, teenager coming of age, coming into her powers, being supported by her friends and family, etc. It's a feel good classic superhero story, I always feel cheery after finishing a volume. Also stands alone well though there's the occasional entirely delightful teamup (Kamala Khan meets Wolverine! :D)

Umm. Well. So you might have noticed, I kiiiiind of have a lot of feelings about superheroes. Also I run with it whenever anyone invites recs. Don't feel pressure to read any of them if they don't sound like they'd appeal! I also feel semi-guilty for completely dodging your YA questions in favour of superheroes so! I cannot pick all time favourites (too haaaaaard) but a few authors I always return to include Tamora Pierce, Angela Johnson, Elizabeth E. Wein, Karen Healey. I basically tend to dig fantasy, contemporary, and history with female leads! I was going to drop N. K. Jemisin here too but in retrospect she's actually never written YA, it's just her first trilogy vibed me as having a lot of YA appeal? What about you? Favourite authors? Genres? Are you actually capable of answering the favourite question and if so, how do you do it, I have never been that decisive in my life.

I'm pretty sure I just dropped 1000+ words here, why can't I find it this easy to write for my NaNo. /o\

[themadpoker]

P.S. Thanks for the link! I've been eyeing some of those Heyers for awhile, I read a review that made Sylvester sound DEEPLY hilarious.

[wingstodust]

Argh yes there was WAY TOO LITTLE AMANDA/GENEVIEVE!!! I remember when I was reading and the romance happened my mind was BLOWN 'cause I was like 'oh my gosh this is real this is actually happening!!". But I read to the end and I was like.... That's it???!!! Maybe we will get more out if her next books....

Ahhh I hope you like A Week To Be Wicked!! I think you are referring to Beguiling the Beauty by Sherry Thomas?? I thought that was fun but liked A Week To Be Wicked a lot more. Have you read any more of Sherry Thomas? I love love love Ravishing the Heiress, definitely check it out if you haven't yet!!! And if you want more nerds in love The Luckiest Lady in London has some serious astronomy geekery happening (not as epic as Talk to Me Sweetly!!!! But very few things are!!!)

Lolol we will need to sit down and have Serious YA talk then!!! I have Hero on my shelf untouched, need to get on that!!

I am currently reading (on and off) Vicious which has superhero vibes. See how that goes! :-)

OHHH YOU KNOW WHAT IS GOOD SUPERHERO YA!!!! SUSAN JANE BIGELOW'S STUFF!!! Go read Broken whenever you have a chance!!

Ahhhh I really don't like Joss Whedon (will never forgive for travesty that us Dollhouse) so might not try Runaways. One of my friends loooooves Young Avengers, always meant to try that one some day (good to know re-Loki. Loooove Thor-movieverse!Loki). Ahhhh I really want to try Ultimate Spiderman and Ms. Marvel so glad to hear that it is good! Have you tried Silk by any chance??

I quite like The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms but was a bit bored by the second book and never finished her trilogy. Did you read the last book? Did you like it? Also for Elizabeth Wein - DOES THIS MEAN YOU READ CODE NAME VERITY BECAUSE THAT SHIT DESTROYED ME I WAS A WRECK FOR DAYSSSSS. Favourite authors are harddddd. Um I quite liked Stacey Lee's debut Under the Painted Sky (two girls, one Asian the other black, head out west. YA WESTERN WITH WOC LEADS!!!! It had some flaws but still fun) enough to put all her upcoming books under my to read list. Just a sample, authors I love: Jacqueline Woodson, Angela Johnson, Sara Farizan is fantastic, Dia Reeves, Matt de la Pena, Shannon Hale, etc. I read most genres in YA but things with a fantasy or sci-fi or fairy tale retelling element to it get a plus from me, also if leads are POC and/or LGBT I always give it a shot. Favourite book is HELLA HARD, but if I had to pick, it would be Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, I reread that book SO MANY TIMES!!!!!

[themadpoker]

Oh man, that must have been such a pleasant surprise, I went in expecting it but I was still pleased. Keeping my fingers crossed for more in later books too.

And! Ravishing the Heiress is my FAVOURITE Sherry Thomas, I was so deeply disappointed when I read Tempting the Bride after because it was like, I know you can do better? You gave me Fitz and Millie? I swooned over Fitz and Millie? WHAT HAPPENED? In terms of other books, I think I've read almost everything she's done? Except for that new-ish duology (Goodreads claims it's called the Heart of Blade?) and her YA trilogy. Have you read her YA trilogy (starts with The Burning Sky)? It's theoretically on my to read list but idk, it isn't really calling to me so it'd be nice to know if it's worth the time.

Let me know how Vicious goes! It's also on my to read list but that thing is massive so unless I have a reason to prioritize I'm going to end up picking it up five years from now at earliest. xD But I'm glad to hear Broken's good! I have the faint recollection that I read a review somewhere for it that sounded good, not sure why I didn't jot it down to pick up at the time.

Also, high five, I'm diplomatic about Whedon because so many people love him but like. Nope. Nooooooope. He gave me some joy in Buffy but boy do we disagree strongly about many of his narrative choices. And you are a braver soul than me for trying Dollhouse because I heard the premise and immediately exited stage left, I had zero faith it'd draw out anything but the worst of Whedon. However! Volumes 1-6 are not by Whedon, they are by Brian K. Vaughan and he is SO GOOD, I have liked everything he's written. I haven't tried Silk yet, I tend to only pick up comics once they're collected into trade volumes, issue to issue is too hard on my wallet. Have you read it/heard good things?

I did read the third book! And I enjoyed it which was surprising because ngl, I went in as a hostile audience. (the summary implied a romance between Sieh and the heroine? and I was like NO, he's the god of childhood, I REFUSE. I was also coming in with some lingering bitterness over a romantic relationship in the second book that I was really digging as platonic so. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯). I also really liked her next book, The Killing Moon (which is technically part of a duology? But I haven't gotten about to reading the second book yet and as far as Killing Moon is concerned it stands alone great).

AND YES, OH MY GOD, CODE NAME VERITY, WHAAAAAAT, I WAS A *MESS*. WHAT A BRUTAL BOOK. WHAT AN *AMAZING* BRUTAL BOOK. I first got into Wein via her Arthuriana meets Africa! books (they probaaaaaably have an actual series name? but idk what it is off the top of my head and tbh I always remember them as the Arthuriana in Africa books) which in retrospect also got pretty brutal but somehow I was still wholly unprepared.

I am beginning to see that my to read list is going to grow exponentially the more I talk to you btw, Under the Painted Sky sounds great and is going to the list rn. Also I need to get back to reading Sara Farizan's debut! I started and liked it but it was due back at the library so I never finished. (This...happens with way more books then I really want to admit. u_u I have this problem where I always pick up way more books than any human could conceivably read before the end of loan period and end up with a lot of fines and half read books. Reasons to want a public library job: LESS FINES). Also we have the exact same YA priorities! And re: Aristotle and Dante, WHAT A GOOD BOOK. I'm so happy that Benjamin Alire Saenz has a fair sized back catalogue, it's like a list of guaranteed reads I can dip into whenever I'm in the mood for contemporary stories.

(side note: any chance you've read Sherman Alexie's Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian? I group him, Matt de la Pena, and Benjamin Alire Saenz in my mental readers advisory list of dudes doing good work writing POC boys in YA. Recently picked up Adam Silvera's More Happy than Not too which I have high hopes of adding to the list provided I get around to reading it some time soon)

[wingstodust]

ngl the lead dude in Tempting the Bride really tested my patience. blarghhhhhh. I bought The Burning Sky but I haven't actually made much progress in it. I read the first two chapters and put it down. I'll get around to finishing it... Someday... (Tip: Do NOT read the Duology!!! The first book was decent but the second book was a hot mess and the first book really reads like a prequel that doesn't wrap things up on its own so just... don't even start it).

lol I am very vocal about my disdain for Joss Whedon, I don't even know why I started Dollhouse, I am going to put that down as the misguided actions of my youth or whatever that was. But OK, I shall give Runaways a shot! Someday... And yes I heard good things about Silk! But once again have not gotten around to reading it (Can you tell how not caught up I am re:comics?? lol)

!! Yes I read the Killing Moon and I really liked it!! Ok good to hear about Third Book, I'll have to actually check it out this time then. :)

Code Name Verity was my first Wein book, and I WILL NEVER TRUST AGAIN!!! ALSDKFJALSKDJFAL;JKDF. But I must check out Arthuriana in Africa because I cannot believe no one has told me that was a thing until now.

(I can say the same to you re:my reading list growing!!) Do you want to borrow my copy of If You Could Be Mine? I have both that and her other contemporary High School fluff book. :D And you neeeeeeed to read If You Could Be Mine because I've been telling people ever since I finished it that I think that book would make an excellent musical but no one is listening to my genius ideas. Yay re: matching YA priorities!! *high fives* MY FEELINGS ABOUT ARISTOTLE AND DANTE ARE RIDICULOUS, I LOVE THESE TWO DOOFUSES TO MUCH DOOFUSES IN LOVE AHHHHH!!! ALSO I AM SO EXCITED FOR THE SEQUEL OF ARISTOTLE AND DANTE AHHHHHHHHH.

(I have read and own Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian!! What a good!! Also, PLEASE READ MORE HAPPY THAN NOT SOON BECAUSE I AM TRYING TO MAKE A PLAYLIST FOR IT AND I WISH TO TALK TO PEOPLE ABOUT MY FEELINGS ABOUT THIS BOOK!!!! AND DEBATE ALL THE MATCHING SONGS FOR THIS BOOK FOR REASONS!!!!)

lol I am gonna end this off with: Courtney Milan's Once Upon a Marquess is coming out TOMORROW *___*

[themadpoker]

Okay I'm heading off to work so I will respond later but! Did you know Marvel's making an Avengers high school AU??? :D! This is my exact flavour of nonsense, I'm so excited!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CY3VBKryE0I

[wingstodust]

Ahhhhh here for this!!!

Did you see Lin-Manuel Miranda wheel of freestyle on the Jimmy Fallon show??

[themadpoker]

I did, it was incredible! :D He's so talented omg, I would never be able to pull off freestyling like that. And ty for the Sherry Thomas tip! I'm always glad to see my to read list get that tiny bit shorter. xD

Re: Wein, I can't believe no one told you either! First book is about Mordred and set in Ye Olde Anglo-Saxon Land and then at some point he gets himself to Africa, marries a woman there and the other books are all set in Africa and follow his sister and son respectively. GOOD TIMES. :D

And thanks for the offer but nah, I can pick it up from the library. I feel guilty borrowing people's books because I've always got so many in the house that it takes me awhile to get to anything. I am very intrigued about this musical idea though! Consider me a captive audience as soon as I've picked it up (so, uhh awhile from now probably). Also, the Aristotle and Dante sequelllllllll, every now and then I google to see if there's any kind of release date out yet and nothing. /o\ Though if Publishers Weekly can be trusted, Saenz should be putting out another (different) YA novel soon! For a value of soon that is about six months away. >_> The slow pace of publishing is a trial to me sometimes.

(It's amazing! I reread it for a Young Adult Literature class I took last year and it was like WHY do I not reread books more often, it's literally guaranteeing a good experience for yourself. And I will bump More Happy Than Not up on the list! I've got two books I'm in the middle of right now (a Cinderella telling with an evil Fairy Godmother? idk how it's going to work out, I'm only a chapter in; and the Welcome to Nightvale novel) but I'll go onto More Happy Than Not next!)

Also, re: Marquess, it is? I can't find it on Amazon, is it selling through a different retailer?

[wingstodust]

We can only aspire to be as awesome as Lin-Manuel Miranda. 8D

Re: Heart of Blade duology - I am SO SAD that it sucked though! I was so excited for Sherry Thomas to release a wuxia romance, but it was awful. :( At least there is still Jeannie Lin... (Have you read any of her novels?)

Arthuriana in Africa is def now on high priority of books to read 8D

Haha I understand re:ridiculous amounts of books at home. It gets really intimidating... And you start thinking of creative ways of storing your books because there is no space on the shelves......

OH I DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT NEW (DIFFERENT) SAENZ YA!! Do you have link? Deets? Can't find anything ;_;

Yay when you get to More Happy than Not let me know!! :)

Can I ask what is this Cinderella retelling? The only retelling I can think of rn with an ambiguous Fairy Godmother was Ash.....

I still haven't gotten around to Welcome to the Nightvale podcasts! One day....

I double checked Courtney Milan, she changed the release date to December! :( but we should be getting two Courtney Milan stuff in December so at least there is that?

[themadpoker]

I own two of Jeannie Lin's books! And have read one. The one I don't own. xD I tend to read library books quicker then things I've bought because I have a deadline. I thiiiiink the title was something like The Dragon and the Pearl? Idk, it's the one about the courtesan and the warlord. It's been awhile, the only thing I remember was being annoyed that the courtesan didn't get more development (everytime she pulled off something it got glossed over in like two lines and meanwhile the dude got to have an entire political plotline in tandem with his love story? booooooo)

But yeah, at some point I will read Butterfly Sword and My Fair Concubine too. Someday. Probably some far off day when I have actually returned every library book I have checked out.

I recently bought a new bookshelf! It's great, it goes nearly to the ceiling of my room and now I don't have to double stack my books anymore. I even moved most of the books I've been keeping in my bed drawers! PROGRESS. :D Other tips for book storage: if you have a sibling, lowkey take over their bookshelves, if they're like my brother they only use two shelves for videogames anyways, they don't need the extra space. :D

And sure! Here's the post where Publishers Weekly announced the purchase: http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-book-news/article/64476-rights-report-week-of-october-20-2014.html

He also talked a little about it on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BenjaminAlireSa/status/513372314134904832 Not a lot of deets but I'm looking forward to it!

Will do! And re: Cinderella, it's Ash & Bramble by Sarah Prineas. Someone I follow on Goodreads described it as subversive, critical of fairy tale Happily Ever Afters, and featuring a lesbian Rapunzel. SOLD.

I recommend Nightvale highly! :D I'm not really a podcast person but I started playing it while doing chores and ended up burning through all the episodes within a few days. I find it hard to sell though because the best description I can manage is The Twilight Zone meets This American Life with bonus romance. Which I feel is accurate but doesn't quite get the experience across.

Also! For whenever you end up finishing Hamilton, I just came across a tumblr with some of earlier songs that were cut in the move from off-Broadway to Broadway: http://icantbelievemientuscalledmeadick.tumblr.com/. They're interesting to hear! I can totally see why Miranda cut what he did and I think the final version is stronger for it but there are some great lines that got axed.

EDIT: omg. I hope someone got the full performance on camera, I was just getting into it when the video cut off. Idle dreams: what if one day Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote a musical and cast Lea Salonga in it. WHAT IF.

[wingstodust]

omg you basically read the WORST Jeannie Lin book! I hated Dragon and the Pearl ugh the guy was super gross and the girl didn't get to do much!! Okay so my FAVOURITE Jeannie Lin novel is Sword Dancer, which I see you don't own, check it out from the library, I love this thing!! All the troupes (family honour! quest for object! rooftop chases!! I won't say more because it spoils things!! but trust me!!), and it's just super fun. Romance between thief-catcher and sword dancer is THE BEST.

Butterfly Sword is not bad, did not hate the lead dude, shockingly. My Fair Concubine is okayyyyyy, cute forgettable fluff, I feel like I blocked out things that might have been objectionable in the novel but my overall feeling was that it was cute but meh. Basically if you were wondering which one of the two books you should start with, definitely choose Butterfly Sword!

I'm currently reading her Gunpowder Alchemy book and I keep waiting for the lead girl to do things but so far nope. Also not feeling the love triangle in this one. =/ But maybe it will improve??

Ohhhhhh bookshelves that reach the ceiling are my DREAM COME TRUE. (Haha I have used the drawer and siblings' bookshelf technique already! Also using basement space ahaha...)

*INSTANT ADDS ASH AND BRAMBLE TO TO-READ LIST*

I keep telling my friends into Nightvale I will get around to it someday so maybe!!

Yay thank you for link!! Will definitely look all the things up when I am done listening.

LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA HAS MENTIONED CASTING A HAPPY MUSICAL STARRING LEA SALONGA MAYBE DREAMS DO COME TRUE????

[wingstodust]

AHHH YOU NEED TO SEE THIS RIGHT NOW https://twitter.com/ConStar24/status/664578352443953152

LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA AND LEA SALONGA SINGING A WHOLE NEW WORLD TOGETHER!!!!!!!!!