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It was fun to read the short story that helped inspire the musical Guys and Dolls! The style of writing really is preserved in the show. I didn't know this author before, but it was a cute little story.

This is a terrific reference for managing the trees and shrubs you have. Its also good to read if you want to know the care involved in plants you are considering purchase of.

Slightly interesting only as a Historical document. Challenging to read, with nonstandard spellings, very indirect, imprecise language, etc. I've read many antique books, but this book, while on a technical topic, is hugely imprecise. Not one time is a single temperature measurement given. I know this book is from 1847, but the Fahrenheit temperature scale was in use for a couple of centuries before this.

I have a serious weak spot for Sci-Fi and Fantasy that comment on and make use of linguistics, social structure, and Anthropology. I also know Elizabeth Moon to be a good author, so I grabbed this once I came across someone else describing it, and I am glad I did. I read this book in a single night. This book is really different, and I found that enjoyable. We get a main character in Ofelia that is so not the usual. She's not young, gorgeous, extraordinarily strong, extraordinarily smart, the Chosen One, or any of the tropes we typically see. Her strength is strength of character, determination, and a desire to be respected. Ofelia turns the art of small stubborn moments and the sublime joy of small things into a lifestyle.

This main character is humanly fleshed out as an individual going through an entirely new time of discovering she is more as a person than she thought she was (or has been permitted to be), and then also discovers the planet around her is not what she thought it was. Anyone who has been an introvert will feel some kinship with Ofelia. Everyone who has faced the stereotypes of other humans will feel some kinship with Ofelia. Everyone who has loved a woman and watched her discover new parts of herself after her children were grown (no matter how much she loves them) will feel some kinship with Ofelia. The aliens aren't what you expect, and then they are, and then they aren't what you expect again. So many authors would have felt compelled to take the entire thing in a far darker direction, and I applaud Elizabeth Moon for acknowledging the darkness, showing it to us, and not letting it steal the focus of the story from Ofelia. I think this was an author skillfully choosing not to follow the “typical” narrative path that most authors would have easily slid the premise of this story into.

And finally, to anyone asking the question, “Can you have a book about an individual who spends a substantial stretch of time alone without it being a riff on Robinson Crusoe?” Elizabeth Moon shows us in Remnant Populations that you can.

I liked this book. Some parts are a little slower than others, but the sheer scale of imagination kept me hooked. This authors sheer Sci-Fi Imagination in the realms of epic engineering and technology are just pure genre goodness. This was my second book in The Culture series, and I will definitely be reading more.

Deeply depressing. Not a good read.

Cute young adult/juvenile book. I was curious after seeing the Netflix movie, and the book and movie are just different enough to keep it interesting. Would recommend this to young bookworms.

The world has had Southern Gothic for some time, but this book is instead rather Coalfields Gothic, but with that Alix E Harrow warmth underneath. Definitely recommend.

This was a nice addition to the series. Different; showing that adventures can be costly, even when they are calmer than many.

The concept seemed good, and I've seen others online talk about loving these books. I've read the first three now, and found them a disappointment. Despite the title, this should just be called “Hawk”. Fisher has a very limited role. She isn't as much of a POV character as Hawk. The writing is also not great, and the plot is transparent. I honestly do no get the love for these. There are a lot of fun ideas here that just aren't executed well.

Disappointing read. It was a slow start for me to get into this one. Even though the basic concept attracted me to the book, the characters were mostly not likeable (and rather stupid all around), and this made it hard to get drawn in. So, it took me a really long time to read. I finally started to really get into it three quarters of the way through, mostly out of interest in seeing how the author wrapped things up. However, the author simply did not wrap anything up. There is no ending and no resolution. The book just suddenly abruptly ends. We are just left hanging. I cannot recommend this book, because it feels like it is only three quarters of a book that just stops. Disappointing after such an unusual premise and setting.

An annual Christmas season must-read. My favorite work of Dickens' by far. Dickens when he wasn't being paid per word is a delight.

Despite the fact that the author was really dropping hints, I didn't see the plot twists during the first two books (only seeing them as I started the third book), but I still thoroughly enjoyed the ride. I do wonder about a few lingering details, and their implications for the future of the characters, but, this trilogy was just a fun read. I enjoyed the ride along with El as she learned things.

I read this one rather hoping for something with a Terry Pratchett flavor. This is not that, but it was a delightful read! I enjoyed the magic system. I enjoyed the lighthearted read. There are dark situations, but the overall tone is still a great light read. I would recommend this as a great young adult read with some enjoyable characters.

Then, I read up on the author and it turns out that T. Kingfisher is none other than a pen name for the fantasy artist Ursula Vernon! This was an added delight.

I hesitated to post this review, because I've encountered the author around the ‘nets and he seems like an ok guy. However, for me this book just didn't do it. First, I didn't realize when I picked this up, that it isn't really a novel. It's more like several longish short-stories in one volume. I think that if the author re-developed this into true novel form, it would improve greatly. I read this book because it had an interesting premise. There was an idea there. It could have been so very good, but for me it was not great. It has the feel that it should have been workshopped with a good writing group to tighten the outline. It also seemed in need of an editor. There were a noticeable number of errors in punctuation, spelling, and word choice (using the wrong but similar sounding word, but not in a way that seemed intentional). That took away from it a bit for me.

I've read vast amounts of literature, fantasy, sci-fi, horror. I've seen despicable characters made sympathetic. I've seen other extremely down-and-out characters made sympathetic (or made unsympathetically hate-able). In this case, I never came to care much about the characters in this book. The protagonist hints at things in his past that might help us care more about him, but they aren't actually revealed. Yeah, he's from a poor, tough area in the rural American South, and I love that setting, and it should have made this aces for me, but somehow we just kept getting Big Hints. “Something bad” happened to the main character to make him the junkie he is. “Granny” is scary powerful, and he won't go around her. It was deeply disappointing that we don't get to meet Granny. There are fae in this book's setting, it seems, and they even like one of the main character's actions enough that they leave him a reward! We don't see them, just the reward they left. The rest of the book, this isn't mentioned again! Not the effects of this on the character, nothing (just a sudden fae powerup [maybe] with unspecified effects, then forgotten)! Just Big Hints and Loose Ends all around.

It seemed the entire time to me that the main character was narrating his life as if it were the life of someone else, not his own. It was a very detached first-person narration in some ways. Perhaps this was an intentional artistic choice that has just whooshed past me as a reader. Perhaps all the hinting, forgetting, and loose ends is intentionally done to make us feel more like the hot mess that the main character is, but for me that didn't connect.

At this point, I feel like, I would love to see the main character grow and progress. There are Big Hints that he may, but I just read this entire book without getting much of that. I didn't like any character enough to make me sure I want to read the next book. There are still Big Hints of things I might really like later, but there are SO many other books on my to-be-read list. So, I may check in on this author later again, because I really wanted to love this. However, every book is not for every reader, and you may love it. For me, as the stars say: “It's OK”.

This is a cute book. It is enjoyable, but not fantastic. I read it rather hoping for shades of Terry Pratchett. Instead, I can very much see an influence of Douglas Adams. It is not like reading Adams, but you can see the influence. Easy and quick read, just enjoyable enough to make me hope the sequel lives up to the potential this has.

Goodreads tells me 2 stars means “It was OK”. So, 2 stars.

If you already know a fair bit about the Colonial British History, the Abolitionist Movement, The Opium Wars, Etymology, and Linguistics, then move along. You won't learn anything new. This book isn't written for you. I think it would be far more enjoyable if you know nothing of these subjects.

The magic system is interesting. Definitely some dark spots. The character development is not great. It would have been nice, for example, to have more character development of Victoire. We really only get a hint of it as what feels like an afterthought at the end. Ramy almost as bad. The main characters are all walking stereotypes, and each is simply an embodiment of their culture of origin. Even that exists not in a deep way, but mostly just as a function of their difference.

It was very transparent what the author was doing, all the way through. There were a few moments of delight (mostly etymological in nature), but the ending is blindingly obvious from very early on in the book. There was only one actual surprise in the entire book (and that was in the timing of an event, not the actual event). So, for me, this is an OK Historical Fantasy with a cool linguistic magic system, very strong anti-colonial theme, poor character development of most characters, and you can see the end coming for hundreds of pages. It was difficult to stay engaged all the way to the finish, because so much was so obvious. This took me far longer to read than most Fantasy books, because it was just hard to keep slogging through for so long with no surprises and no character depth.

Interesting read, to see PTerry's work at the beginning of his storytelling career. Nowhere near the level of writing or humor that he would go on to achieve, but interesting from the perspective of seeing how very far he developed as a writer, and you can see glimmers of the writer he would become in a few spots.

Delightfully fun! I want more, please! The friends who recommended it were totally correct; great book!

I've experienced homes heated by wood and homes heated by coal, and yet Ruth Goodman's book still held surprises for me. I didn't realize how very late some technologies (such as cast iron) came into existence, therefore how very difficult the first century or so of domestic coal adoption would have been. If you enjoy the author's other work, you will enjoy this. If you enjoy learning and thinking about the changes that common household living has changed, you will enjoy this. If you enjoy reading about women's history, then you will enjoy this.

Excellent for that 9 to 10 year old age.

Stephen King is always a great story-teller! This book is no different. This is not the typical horror/slasher stereotype of a tale that might come to mind when you hear the author's name. This is one of his “other” books. There is plenty of evil, in a book about imprisoned children. There are innocents suffering, but at the same time, this book seems to be Stephen King having a moment of optimism in the face of darkness. I see two big themes here:

1. It is possible for victims to take back power from abusers by working together.
2. If you could shape the course of the world in ways that you see as beneficial or moral, but at the cost of committing cruelty upon innocents, would you?

Some reviewers have ranted about a handful of sentences in the novel where a character makes an anti-Trump comment. If you are so unable to handle an opposing idea that 5 or 6 sentences in an otherwise excellent novel will make you stop reading or boycott an author, then you have a very sad lack of tolerance, character, and intellect. People who take this path allow a knee-jerk reaction cut themselves off from seeing how Mr. King is making digs at both extreme ends of the political spectrum. Light spoiler:
2b, if you like, is this: Some of the actions taken by those wielding great power in this book might please the deranged absolute left end of the political spectrum, such as planning to murder a strident anti-gay-rights individual, for example. Even though this character is predicted to potentially damage human society on a great scale through his future actions, should he be murdered for the greater good? Should innocents be abused and suffer in order to effect his murder for the greater good? In this book, Mr. King answers "no"!

This is a book with conspiracy, psychic powers, and other entertaining elements, but it is ultimately about the idea that committing wrongs in the name of right should not be done. Mr. King seems to be reminding us that people, groups, and nations who want to stand for the greater good should take care that they do not use the tools of evil to pursue that good.

Also, it's a terrific yarn! Read this book!

What if an Aztec-like culture became a vast conquering space empire? How would that culture, ritual, and language evolve?

This is my first read of Arkady Martine, prompted by award nominations, book club recommendations, and the apparent streak of Aztec/Nahuatl influence and language present in Martine's vast space empire. I was intrigued that some reviewers recommended this book to fans of C.J. Cherryh. Combine all that with a “whodunit” murder mystery, and I began.

I was pleasantly surprised by the skill of this writer. I was delighted by her use of language, linguistics, and poetry in world-building. This book combines psychology and anthropology skillfully. This story is not an action-movie (although it contains everything from warships to daggers). However, it is a layered kaleidoscope of ideas about culture, linguistics, literature, politics, and above all: identity. While there are several points where an astute reader can see where events are going, it is still a delight to watch how the path will unfold from here to there. Part of the pleasure is watching the protagonist learn and discover, even if we can already see a bit ahead of where she can see. I enjoyed the main characters and the process of discovering them with the protagonist.

There are moments when this author taps perfectly into the torn feeling a person can have who comes from a less “mainstream” culture into a larger one. That feeling of being the outsider, even if one is well-versed. This could have been so easy to mess up, but she handled it well.

This author is not C.J. Cherryh, but try this book if you love Cherryh's exploration of personal identity. Neither is this author Guy Gavriel Kay, but try this book if you love the way she uses the “big” human themes of pivotal moments in history, immersion in layers of culture, and lovely descriptions of place. Most of all, give this book a try if you like the idea of identity discovery in the midst of a whodunit, in the midst of a culture that breathes poetry.

It started off ok, but at 48% through, I've had enough. The heavy male-stalker-who-pursues-the-woman-by-insisting-instead-of-asking trope was just laid on too thick for me here. Sorry. Series ruined. Too much. I don't care how dreamy the male lead is supposed to be in other ways. This is not cool.

I loved another book by C.S. Friendman, so I was excited to read this one. Then, years ago, I started it and hated the intro so much that I put it down. It took years to get back to it. There are a couple of good ideas here, but I didn't like any character in particular, and I found the plot that centered on “we macho men must sacrifice greatly to rescue the lady in distress” a bit off-putting. The basic concept of the world is good, but not the only time such concept has been used in Sci-Fi. For me this was a “meh, it's ok” sort of read. I'm unsure whether I'll ever read the sequels.