“I belong in the refrigerator. Because the truth is, I’m just food for a superhero. He’ll eat up my death and get the energy he needs to become a legend.”
The Refrigerator Monologues by Catherynne M. Valente
Looking back in September, I did not do too badly on the reading front. I am still dealing with health issues, so reading has not been as effortless as I would like it to be. However, this month was an excellent month for killer graphic novels. Tim Seeley’s Revival is fast becoming my favorite series. Saga is my numero uno, but Revival is moving quickly with a bullet. It is consistently quality writing and graphics. Other highlights from this month The Ten Thousand Doors, The Refrigerator Monologues, Middlewest, and My Favorite Thing are Monsters. Other notable things that happened:
I participated in a roundtable podcast by Calvin Park @cp2005 on twitter.
Had some great Indiespotlights
Got approved for some fantastic books
September Totals:
Books read: 18
Books I did not finish (DNF’d): 3
Hours listened: 7 hours
Pages Read: 3914
Totals So Far:
Total books read: 153
Books Read in September:
- The Magic Order Vol. 1 by Mark Millar — 4 stars
- A Different Time by Michael C. Hall — 4 stars
- The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow — 5 stars
- The Refrigerator Monologues by Catherynne M. Valente — 5 stars
- John Wick by Greg Pak — 3 stars
- My Favorite Thing Is Monsters by Emil Ferris — 5 Stars
- Shuri Vol. 1 by Nnedi Okorafor — 4 stars
- The President’s Brain is Missing by John Scalzi — 4 stars
- In The Shadow of The Spindrift House – Mira Grant — 4 stars
- Middlewest Book vol 1. by Skottie Young — 5 stars
- The Wall by John Lanchester — 3 stars
- Revival Vol. 6 by Tim Seeley — 5 stars
- We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia — 3 stars
- Revival Vol. 7 by Tim Seeley — 5 stars
- The Dark Yule by R.M Callahan — 4 stars
Books DNF’d:
- Alban’s Choice by Monica Zwikstra — 3 stars (SPFBO book) 50pages
- The Unicorn Anthology by Peter S. Beagle editor — 2 stars (finished 200 pages)
- Alpha and Omega by Harry Turtledove — 2 stars (480p total completed 390)
Favorite book of the Month: Hands down my favorite book of the month was 10,000 Doors of January. That is a fantastic book! Also, I have a ton more reviews to write. OY
Goals for October
Lot of exciting things planned for this month. First off, I am going to tackle my TBR. I have a lot of books that are outstanding and I want to read. Also, in honor of my favorite month, October, I will be reading a few horrors. I ordered Jeremy Shipp’s Book box. A box of surprises that you open in order with your experiences in the book. Interactive.
I want that, all of the time. Please someone make this a service.
Hell, I could make that a service. Who wants that kind of book experience?
Upcoming October Reads
Full Throttle by Joe Hill
In this masterful collection of short fiction, Joe Hill dissects timeless human struggles in thirteen relentless tales of supernatural suspense, including “In The Tall Grass,” one of two stories co-written with Stephen King, basis for the terrifying feature film from Netflix.
Radio Dark by Shane Hinton
A mysterious condition sweeps the country, leaving its victims in a catatonic state. The power grid fails and the world goes dark. Somewhere in Florida, where the sprawling suburbs meet a dying citrus grove, a janitor at a small community radio station, an FCC field agent, and a DJ attempt to restore order and humanity. They build a radio tower to recruit survivors. As newcomers arrive and occupy the homes of the affected, a community grows and thrives. But when supplies dwindle and more people succumb to the condition, a doomsday preacher arrives to test the limits of the community; and the radio tower, once seen as a marvel, begins to look like an abomination.
Old Media by Annalee Newitz
The story of a freed slave and a robot professor, trying to figure out what it means to be in love while they watch old anime from the 21st century.
The Unexpected by C.S. Coy
Taking place in the year 2025, an invasion of alien creatures called Instinctive Outside Beings (IOBs) have taken over the world. With the world merely destroyed, a man named Clay Treston finds himself struggling within a reality he has long lost. Tortured and beaten from the impact of the IOBs, he continues to fight and protect a city full of survivors in order to hang onto a past that holds him together. But when suspicious events begin to appear, he soon learns a bigger plot beginning to unfold around him as he tries to hold himself together to fight. On the verge of losing himself and the city, he is then forced to not only learn what his true path is in the world, but to put aside his feelings to finally see a new reality before him.
The True Bastards by Johnathan French
Fetching was once the only female rider in the Lot Lands. Now she is the leader of her own hoof, a band of loyal half orcs sworn to her command. But in the year since she took power, the True Bastards have struggled to survive. Tested to the breaking point by the burdens of leadership, Fetching battles desperately to stave off famine, desertion, and the scorn of the other half-orc chieftains, even as orcs and humans alike threaten the Lots’ very existence. Then an old enemy finds a way to strike at her from beyond the grave–and suddenly only one, faint hope for salvation remains.
A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djèlí Clark
Egypt, 1912. In an alternate Cairo infused with the otherworldly, the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities investigate disturbances between the mortal and the (possibly) divine. What starts off as an odd suicide case for Special Investigator Fatma el-Sha’arawi leads her through the city’s underbelly as she encounters rampaging ghouls, saucy assassins, clockwork angels, and plot that could unravel time itself.
Fissure Vol. 1 by Tim Daniel (Editor), Adrian F. Wassel, Patricio Delpeche (Cover Art)
El Sueño, Texas was a single street town withering under the shadow of the Mexico—U.S. Barrier. Then the pavement split, and a massive crack spread from one end to the other, rapidly swallowing El Sueño whole. Young couple Avery Lee Olmos and Hark Wright fight to escape the mysterious sinkhole and the malevolent force that beckons from its depths.
Plus a few more I am sure. I am a mood reader, so sometimes things change based on how I am feeling. We shall see.
What do you think of these selections? Anything you have read or have an opinion on?