Books! (Patreon)

As promised (in the short video you may or may not have watched) here are some of the books I've been reading. 

Encyclopedia of the Undead by Curran was my go-to research book this week. Those torn up little pieces of paper have been in there since 2008 (!) when I first wrote Hold Me Closer, Necromancer. Curran also has a vampire book.

Putting the Fact in Fantasy edited by Koboldt is a fun book for fantasy writers. It's full of essays from a variety of writers about everything from how to write horses properly, to the forest, to building a fantasy army, and a lot more. Each essay is followed by reference titles, too. I found this through my library when looking for resources for a class on magic systems I was teaching, but I'm going to get my own copy soon.

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Mandanna is a hug of a book. Fantasy and romance, found family, over coming trauma, whimsy and frankly a shocking plot moment that I DID NOT SEE COMING. (This is a difficult thing to pull off because I read so, so much and write books and have studied books and I see most things coming, which is totally fine. I just know what to look for, but this one, woo! Total shocker.) This book manages to be sweet, but not saccharine, and has a delightfully grumpy librarian. (If you liked ALTF, you will probably like this book.)

In Cold Blood by Capote--this book was an audiobook for me, and I picked it up after talking to Kendare Blake about it (it was one of her inspirations for All These Bodies) and she was surprised I'd never read it because it's basically the first True Crime book. This book hit me in a way that most true crime doesn't. I can see why this book broke Truman Capote. He must have interviewed the entire town. While this book is about the brutal slaying of a family, it's also about the time, the town, the impact the event had, and the killers themselves. I'm glad I read it, but it will be sitting with me for a long time. (FYI--this book is older, and does include racial slurs from people Capote was interviewing and from the killers themselves. Just wanted to give a head's up.)

When Blood Lies by Harris is my current audiobook and the 17th book in the Sebastian St. Cyr historical mystery series. I've really liked this series, obviously. After this one I'll be all caught up and have to wait for the next book to come out. *sad trombone noise*

Hotel of Secrets by Biller--this book isn't out yet (I got an ARC of it) but if you like historical, romance or funny books, put this on your TBR. It's set in Vienna and is about a woman trying to rebuild her family's hotel (and avoid her supposed romantic destiny) and a grouchy, stoic, delightfully competent Treasury Agent from the US. There are balls! (The dancing kind. I mean, probably the other kind, too. I wasn't paying attention.) French spies! Intrigue! Assassins! Complicated family stuff! I will buy this book when it comes out. Just funny and lovely all around.

Blood Debts by Gardner--I've caught up on this series now, but if you like mysteries, this was a fun one because you don't see a lot of things set in Rome during Nero's reign. It follows a gladiator, Leonidas, and Cassia, the slave woman given to him by a mysterious benefactor who acts as his scribe. I've read all three of these now, the first one is Blood of a Gladiator, I think. In case you're worried about the obviously problematic "Cassia is a slave" thing, it's not a gross situation. Rome during this time had a rigid caste system and slaves were part of that, often coming from captured people from wars. While this is obviously not an okay practice, Leonidas doesn't abuse Cassia in anyway (he sees it as his duty to take care of and protect her since she's in his service) and is hoping to earn enough money to free her when he can. But again, I like to give a head's up about these things before you jump into them.

The last book I'm reading is actually a writer friend's book which isn't out yet! And since she's getting it ready to take it out to editors, I can't say anything about it. BUT, she's a great writer, and so I posted a cover of one of her other books, Borrowed Souls, which I liked a lot. (She also has some mystery titles and a teen horror book that reminded me a LOT of Christopher Pike in the best possible way.)

That's my reading round up. Hope you enjoyed it. I used to post about books I'm reading a lot more. If you like this post, perhaps I'll do so more often? So let me know if you're into it. Also, feel free to post about any books you're enjoying in the comments! 

Stay safe!

-Lish