#spensa can't help it

[bigmeangoat]

Honestly, Spensa putting the pedal to the floor and only realizing afterwards that "hmmm, maybe that was a little fast" is 100% how I envisioned the first Spinface date. So, bravo, Brando! 👏👏👏

[medilea]

January 2024 Reads:

I'm trying to write more again so I'm writing down all of my candid thoughts on all the books I read this year. Starting off strong this year with 4 books read. Well over my average for the month despite the new job, partner, and constant new layer of responsibility that gets added every few weeks it seems. They were all enjoyable at the least and fucking bangers at best so let's get started.

1.) Defiant by Brandon Sanderson

This was a great finale to an already beloved series of mine. It scratched all the right itches and I left satisfied. It wasn't absolutely mind-blowing but it served its purpose. I enjoyed how much Spensa grew over these four books and found myself finally loving her instead of just liking. One of the downsides for me was how much it relied on the reader knowing the Skyward Flight novellas to fully get 100% of it. I know that fans will probably read every bit available but if I were just some random bloke I would've just gotten the four main novels. I may go and read the follow up series if I run out of other stuff to read in the future but for now I'm happy where it ended.

4-/5

2.) The Will of the Many by James Islington

Best read of the month, probably year if I'm being honest. I was enthralled with this book. I put off plans with friends to read this book. I read this book during my lunch break and in between parent-teacher conferences. Absolute banger. Read this book.

It was the best iteration of an Academy that I've read and enjoyed all facets of it from the academic to social to political and everything in between. I didn't know who I could trust I didn't know what to believe everything about the mysteries of the world had my mind racing.

And there were characters and moments in here that will stay for me for years to come just like all my favorites in my mind's hall of fantasy greats. I can't wait to see what else is in store.

5+/5

3.) Pines by Blake Crouch

I listened to this one and couldn't tell if that helped it or not. This definitely sounded like something that was written to be adapted into something. Had a cool premise and a mystery I was genuinely hooked by but something about the written descriptions and mannerisms that just struck me as weird. Like there were definitely some lines that people said that would never be uttered from a person irl it seems. If you know the story it may have been intentional but I'm gonna assume not. We didn't need that to clue us off that something was off here.

Despite how it seems above I actually liked it and continued on to the 2nd book (which I'm almost done with at the time of writing and am enjoying it so much more than this one). First time for me also diving into Crouch without realizing I had other stuff by him on my TBR so looking forward to more.

3/5

4.) Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

This was something I didn't really think to read until I saw it available at the library and was like, "oh, I recognize this cover. I think my friend told me about this I'll check it out." and I'm so happy I did. This was such a short and sweet novel that told all the story it needed to. I feel like it had the impact of a book even twice its length. I didn't need much to get invested in the different characters and the weaving timelines to solve this anomaly that wasn't even so major in the first place. But it just had me hooked. Read it in like 3 days. I love Emily's writing too. It's so artistically succinct(?) and there's always a jab in there. Like a line of text that just hits and rings so true and resounds regarding injustices in the world and especially during the times the snippets take place in.

5/5

[libertyreads]

November 2023 TBR--

This month's TBR is going to be quite a bit smaller than the ones I've posted throughout the year so far. Moving has taken a lot out of me so I'm going to try to balance reading with watching TV shows and other things I enjoy that don't require nearly as much of my attention. (I say while The Shadow of the Gods just sits there staring at me.) I have a couple of rereads, a series starter, a new release, and a holiday read on the list this month.

We'll Be Home for Christmas by HelenKay Dimon (Library)-- I was surprised to find that I enjoyed a Christmas novella from HelenKay Dimon after reading her 2023 release earlier this year so I wanted to add the next Christmas novella in the series to my list. This one follows the older brother who has a high IQ but can't seem to understand women--at least one woman in particular. He takes women to bed one night and moves on the next morning, but, after a three day weekend with Lila, Spencer can't seem to get her off his mind. And it seems like fate is giving him a helping hand when she shows up in his town ready to take over her uncle's resort. But Spencer doesn't do serious.

The Hunting Moon by Susan Dennard (New Release)-- I cannot explain how truly excited I am for the next book in this series. The Luminaries was somehow everything I didn't know I wanted. It follows Winnie who just wants to join the Luminaries--an ancient order that protects the town of Hemlock Falls from the nightmares that prowl the forest in their town. After her family being disgraced by her traitor father, Winnie has known what it's like to be on the outside looking in, but as her birthday draws closer she's allowed to start the trials to determine if she'll finally get her wish. But, with new monsters popping up in the forest at night, is the forest safe even for the ones who hunt them?

The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne-- I would say this is my most intimidating read on my physical TBR shelf (and of course on this month's TBR). I know this is the start of a new Norse inspired fantasy series so I think it's a good place for me to start with John Gwynne (let me know if I'm wrong and I'll probably slate something else here instead). I remember seeing the cover for the first time and immediately wanting to know more. Gods warred and drove themselves to extinction which shattered the land. A new world rises with monsters stalking the woods and mountains. A world where the bones of the dead gods still hold great power for those brave or desperate enough to seek them out. Seems a little bit vague but I'm excited to learn more.

The Righteous by Renee Ahdieh (Reread)-- This is one I'm not super looking forward to rereading. The series starts with The Beautiful and takes place in 19th century New Orleans following a group of vampires (stop me if you've also watched a similar TV show). I've found that over time my intrigue has dropped quite a bit. Though, this reread of book number three means I would only have one book left to complete the series so why not. This one actually follows Pippa more than I was expecting so I remember that being fun at the first read. Let's hope it will be this time as well.

Evershore by Brandon Sanderson and Janci Patterson (Reread)-- Another reread for me in preparation for a new release. I struggled through rereading Cytonic so I think rereading Evershore is actually going to be a good mental break before Defiant comes out at the end of the month. This series follows Spensa who wants nothing more than to become a pilot for her planet's military, but given the cowardice her father exhibited before his death, they're not so willing to have her. The world really expands a lot from there as the series goes on. A lot of people say that the series becomes repetitious as you keep reading and after my reread of Cytonic I don't know that I can disagree with the sentiment. See Spensa do more training yet again got old fast. I think the highlight of this series for me is actually the novellas (shocking. I know) and so I'm looking forward to this reread.

I'm hoping to also add in a couple of holiday romances from my local library where I can in the month.

[aphroditesmoon]

reading his dark materials made me want to rewatch the show, and i can't help but compare Lyra and Will to Spinface (no I'm not talking abt the biracial thing🙄) the way lyra is wild and messy like spensa and will is more organized(?) like jorgen

tell me they don't give off spinface vibes

[onlycosmere]

Writing Female Characters

Anushia Kandasivam: So, Brandon, you just introduced a really amazing female character [Spensa] to us. Your female characters throughout all your books are resourceful and independent. Some of them are leaders, some of them go through very interesting journeys of growth and self-discovery. Some of your female characters, like Vin and Sarene, they have mentors and teachers who are men, but their decisions about who to be and what to do are always their own. They always have agency. Was it a conscious choice to write these female characters and their journeys like this, and can you tell us if the process was easy or difficult?

Brandon Sanderson: So, there are a number of different responses to this. One is, I came into fantasy by way of some excellent female novelists that I highly recommend. Barbara Hambly was my first experience with fantasy, and then Anne McCaffery, Melanie Rawn, and Jane Yolen were kind of my introduction to fantasy. It's how I got pulled into it. To the point that when I was first given a David Eddings book, I was hesitant, because I was like, "Is this a genre guys can write?" was my honest reaction to that.

So, when I started writing my own books, I knew I wanted to do a good job with this, but I was really bad at it at the start. It was very embarrassing to me as a writer. And this happens to all new writers. There are things that you want do that, in your head, you imagine yourself doing very well, and then when you start out, you just do poorly. And the later in life that you start writing your stories, the more you're generally able to recognize how poorly you're doing things that you want to do well. And my very first book, that I didn't publish, particularly the female lead was very generic, and written very much to fill the role of love interest rather than to be a character. And I recognized it, even as I was writing it, but I didn't know how to do it differently. And it took practice. It took a lot of work. It really shouldn't, on one hand, right? Write the characters as people. rather than as roles. That's what you have to learn is - everybody is the hero of their own story in their head. They're the protagonist, whoever they are. And writing the characters so that they view themselves that way, and so they have autonomy, and they aren't being shoved around by the plot or by the protagonist, or things like this, but it's just very hard to do. I had a lot of early readers who were very helpful. I often credit my friend Annie as being one of the big reasons why Sarene eventually ended up working in Elantris. And she gave me some early reads, and things like this.

But, you know... it is hard to abandon our own preconceptions that we don't even know are there without practice, effort, and somebody pointing them out to you. And it was just a matter of practice and trying to get better. And I still think that there are lots of times I get it wrong. And you mentioned Mistborn. And I was really determined that I was going to do a good female protagonist. I try to stay away from the kind of cliched term "strong female character." Because we don't talk about "strong male characters."

We talk about characters who are distinctive, interesting, flawed, and real people. And I was determined to do this with Vin. And I feel like I did a pretty good job. But, of course, I had a completely different blind side in that I defaulted to making the rest of the crew that Vin interacts with all guys.

This is because my story archetype for Mistborn was the heist novel, the heist story, and my favorite heist movies are Ocean's Eleven and Sneakers and The Sting, and these are great stories. I absolutely love them. But they all are almost exclusively male casts. And that's not to say that, you know, someone can't write an all-male cast if they want to. But it wasn't like I had sat down and said, "I'm intentionally going to write an all-male cast." I just defaulted to making the rest of the cast male because that was the archetype that was in my head, that I hadn't examined.

And so, when I got done with those books, I looked back, and I'm like, "Wouldn't this have been a better and more interesting story if there had been more women in the cast?" And I absolutely think it would have been. But becoming a writer, becoming an artist, is a long process of learning what you do well, what you do poorly, what you've done well once and want to learn how to replicate, what you've done poorly and want to learn to get better at. It's a very long process, I think, becoming the writer that we want to be.

[dachi-chan25]

All in all, a pretty solid reading month, I was so busy so I am proud that I did finish this TBR.

1.-Dreamcatcher by Stephen King

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I am aghast. How did this get published??? It was honestly the worst SK book I have read so far (and it hurts me cuz I am a big fan of his work). I am not fond of the alíen invation trope, just not my cup of tea, but I had hopes for this one cuz I knew it had to do with Derry and Pennywise (I just love IT) but it definitely let me down, and even if I hadn't any expectations it was bad for me, the characters had not much going on for them like I only liked Beaver and yeah... The shitweasels have to be one of the wierdest concepts I have ever read, and it was unpleasant (the number of fart jokes in this one had me rolling my eyes) Douglas felt more like a prop/device than a proper character. Idk how I'm gonna get through From a Buick 8 cuz I don't like cars and I heard it is also bad but I just gotta do it.

2.- Starsight (Skyward #2) by Brandon Sanderson

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OMG that cliffhanger!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So I loved this book, it expanded this universe so much, it gave Spensa an enviroment that challenged everything she was and believed in and I LOVE it, that development. We as readers get to know more about cytonics and the hyperdrive!!! That plot twist!!!! We get our heart se broken but also a beutiful message of acceptance and union, of not letting our differences divide or scare us... Simply amazing, can't wait for the next one!!!!

3.- Frostbite (Vampire Academy #2) by Richelle Mead

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I did enjoy this book more than the 1st one. I feel Rose got a bit of development, and that’s great, also we get more characters and more relationships between them. The plot was more action focused as well (I mean it had a BIG portion of fluff where nothing much happened but It was ok ) I was not expecting a character to die, so it hit me hard. Now the only thing that makes me roll my eyes is Dimitri and I know this is a very unpopular opinion but I don't like him as a romantic interest, he and Rose have negative chemistry for me it feels forced, also I found more Ivan more intresting so I am looking forward to the next book.

4.-Rust & Stardust by T. Greenwood

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This made me cry, it is a very hard to read book, it deals with the kiddnapping and abuse of a young girl, and the despair of her family, of the woman In her life that she gets to know while captive and try to help her. While not graphic on the sexual assault (something I am grateful for, and that felt appropiate given this book fictionalizes a real case) it really is heartbreaking and the ending made me angry and sad but still it was such a worthy read and a reminder that we should always look out for one another and take care of children even if they are not our own because predators might be where you least expect them.

5.- Defy the Worlds (Constellations #2) by Claudia Grey

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First off, how Fucking Dare You Claudia Grey!!!!!! You just can't end a book like that, it's sadistic. Ok, now I LOVED this book, like once I got started I couldn't stop cuz I just had to see Abel and Noemi together again, this book expands on the problems laid out on the 1st book in such an amazing way, it advances the relationship between Abel and Noemi in a really satisfactory way and has a great plot twist at the end so yeah I definitely need to read the next one ASAP.

6.- La mujer que leía demasiado de Bahiyyih Nakhjavani

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Este libro me gustó, pero no me encantó como yo esperaba (tal vez es debido a la traducción pero lo encontré repetitivo en muchas ocasiones). Desde que leí Rejected Princesses el año pasado me dio curiosidad la Poetisa de Quazvin y este libro habla acerca de ella, pero no sólo eso, va más allá contándonos la historia desde el punto de vista de diversas mujeres como la Reina Madre, la esposa del Alguacil en cuya casa la Poetisa estuvo presa, su madre, la hermana del Sha, etc. Haciéndolo una gran historia acerca de todo tipo de mujeres, en diferentes posiciones con diferentes grados de poder y como cada una tuvo contacto con esta mujer que no estaba conforme en como la sociedad trataba a las mujeres y su deseo de educar y reivindicar el rol de la mujer en su país y dentro de su religión. Lo recomiendo mucho.

7.-Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

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To be fair this book had me at the first 100 pages or so, the magic system was great, the characters felt ok (Kaoru leaned a bit too hard on the 'not like the other girls' at first but then she got better as we find out about her family and work) but when Akiva enters the picture everything falls apart, the romance is so cheesy and I hate insta love with a passion, another of my pet peeves is reincarnated love or destined love so I noped out of it FAST, the book quickly became predictable and all too focused on a relationship that had barely started and I just didn't give a fuck about, so yeah I am not reading the rest of the series.

8.- The Wicked King (Folk of Air #2) by Holly Black

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Hells yeah!!!!!! This book was so much better than the 1st one, Jude was really coming on strong for that political power, and darnnnnn Cardan got so much better in this book I now actually give a damn about him alsoooo that plot twist!!!! I just love political drama and this book delivered, can't wait to read the next one!!!

9.- Good Omens by Neil Gaiman / Terry Pratchett

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I was planning to re read this before the series came out but I just couldn't, so now I did and I am glad cuz I love this book so much, it's funny and smart and so very original and magical like everything these 2 authors write.

10.- The Time Machine by H.G Wells

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This is a classic I hadn't read, I watched one movie adaptation (I belive from the early 2000s it was good) so I knew the gist of it, or so I thought because this book is actually pretty smart, and it's spooky how it predicts the future. Well, more like it warns us of the evil of class estratification and of the gap in wealth and privilege (also this book takes the 'eat the rich' to a whole new level xD) and that’s always nice on any book. Really short read but still so worth it.

[libertyreads]

Book Review #140 of 2023--

Defiant by Brandon Sanderson. Rating: 3.5 stars.

Read from December 8th to 12th.

Reviewing this one feels so weird. I kind of can't believe this series is over. Well. I liked the way this one ended but I don't like how we got here. The pacing throughout the entire novel was a mess. It felt so slow at the beginning but once you hit the final 100 pages or so everything was moving at a break neck speed. I don't know if that was to give the reader the impression of what war might actually be like. Or maybe that's just how Sanderson writes finales to series. To me, it just felt so weird. My other main complaint with this one was something I had to explain to my husband as soon as I noticed it. I needed to mention it to someone. With this one, it felt like Sanderson took all of the collective criticism of the series and attempted to fix it. The anger and immaturity of our main character becomes something she overcomes in this one. The way he handled the main character's relationship and the fact that the main character is always so inconsiderate of her partner. All of that got explained away or fixed and it felt...a smidge too far for me to believe.

I still love these characters and I still enjoy this world so much. The story has definitely diverged from where it started in book one and the world has expanded so much. At the heart of the story though, has always been a girl with something to prove and the flight/friends who help her along the way. I think that still holds up in this one, but I think Spensa has grown a lot and realizes some hard truths that you don't know when you're a brash kid running around half cocked. I loved the way things ended with M-Bot and Doomslug. I also loved seeing how the war ends up working out. It was always going to end this way but seeing the intricacies of the battles was good. But we've known the whole time that Brandon Sanderson does space battles well. I've known it since book one. It's been true the whole time.

Overall, this was a little bit of a let down for me just in the execution. I think all the beats that were hit in this one, all the character development, all of the emotional development--it was always meant to end this way and I think it also makes the most sense. I just wish the book--and the series as a whole--had a bit better execution.

[dachi-chan25]

OMFG! I can't belive I did read them all.

1.-Murder at the Happy Home for the Aged by Bulbul Sharma.

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So it wasn't bad but it wasn't exactly great. Had some intresting stuff worth exploring much, but the book didn't go there and I mean fine, the characters were pretty bland, I was hoping more definition to them but nope, still the book is a pretty straightforward murder mystery and it is entretaining.

2.-None of the Above by I.W Gregorio

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I absolutely loved it!!! There is still not much talk or information out there about intersex people, so I really think this book is great for intersex people to come forward and tell their own stories, I.W Gregorio wrote a very informative story and honestly is great, the characters are so human and that’s what I loved the most of this book it felt so real.

3.- Defy the Stars (Constellations #1) by Claudia Gray

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Claudia Gray made me fall in love with a robot (sorry not sorry) and I adore her for it. Ok so this book is great, it laids out such an intresting complicated future for Earth and what would happen if humanity did succeed in colonizing habitable worlds, honestly this book is so great and the romance the FUCKING romance is *cheff kiss* exquisite like I want them together forever and I can't wait to get to the sequel.

4.-Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

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Fucking god this book is a whole ass ride. I wasn't expecting to enjoy it at all I thought I would drag myself through it but nope I was turning the pages like a possesed entity, I guess that it helped the fact that I found all the main characters such insuffrable hateful people that it filled me with joy to see what fucking misfortune was gonna happen to them next. Honestly I thought this book was gonna be all white power fantasy (it had some of that and the fucking PoC representation in this book is atrocious like fucking disgusting how Mitchell dared to think slaves were happy as they were her idiot mind) and all the glory for "ThE CaUsE " but this book is surprisingly self aware and it shook me cause most of the main characters think the war was a stupid ass idea and the only think they miss is the privilege and position they lost and honestly the way that post war is portrayed is quite raw and yup honestly it was a great read even if there were moments that made me sick.

5.- Feminismo para Principiantes de Nuria Varela

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Un libro muy informativo y bien documentado acerca de la historia del feminismo y las diferentes olas y los momentos históricos que los ocasionaron. Me fascinó, siempre es un placer leer acerca de la lucha por el feminismo porque creo que al menos a mi me da una nueva perspectiva de porque es importante seguir luchando por un mundo más justo y equitativo para todos.

6.- Skyward by Brandon Sanderson

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I loved it!!! Spensa is so extra and she has my whole ass heart, I am dying for the next book to come out. That plot twist tho like I wanted to know what the Krell are and my mind was blown. This is the 1st Brandon Sanderson book I have ever read and I see why he is so succesful his stories are fucking bomb.

7.-The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See

This book made me ugly cry, it was so good and honestly I could see a lot of similrarities between how ethnic minorities are treated in China and how they treated here in Mexico and I depressed myself all over again about the unfairness of it all. The book was an amazing story of growth, healing, suffering... simply amazing, and I will definitely read more books by Lisa See.

8.-The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

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Wow simply wow. This book has such an intense style such a way of taking you along the emotional and mental break down of Esther when she is faced with the world out side school and all this expectations she faces from her family, society and herself that it's just too much, that shit felt so real for me, I really liked it a lot but I don't think I'll be reading it again anytime soon cuz it really hit me too close being a woman that has (and still is) struggled with mental health a lot .

9.-An Assassin's Guide to Love and Treason by Virginia Boecker

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The plot of this book is completely outlandish BUT it was a welcomed respite after the intensity of "The Bell Jar" and honestly I fricken love Shakespeare retellings (like pls go read Hag Seed by Margaret Atwood y'all) and the Twelfth Night is such a silly fun play what is not to like??? The pacing is good, the characters are ok, the romance is good and it's an all around fun silly story (yes they attempt to kill the queen but who cares?)

10.- Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk

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I had only ever watched the movie before and it low key annoyed me how every incel fan boy out there thinks the movie is the truest shit out there (cuz boooooy the toxic masculinity of the whole ass concept of a Fight Club all those edgy ass bitches Tyler Durden wannabes drawing anarchy signs in their notebooks that I have had to deal with *sigh*), but I absolutely love Chuck Palahniuk's books, his sense of humor is my jam and I knew there had to be more to the Fight Club than edgy fake depth and omg like it was so funny this book is about the dangers of toxic masculinity (half of the book I thought our narrator was in love with Tyler and I was like omg this shit is so gay how are those incels not seein this??) and that fake ass depth all those edgelords worship had me in stiches. Truly loved this book.

11.- The Lady from the Black Lagoon by Mallory O'Meara

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This book tho. Millicent Patrick was a fricken badass and such a wonderful artist and her story is so incredible. Like wow the film industry hasn't changed all that much huh? It was an amazing biography, I was crying by the end of it at the amount of love that went into all the research and how important it is to bring to light all these creative amazing woman facing the odds just to pursue their dreams, the thing I loved the most about the book was Mallory intertwining the story of her research with Millicent story like I appreciate all the effort it took her and it was amazing to read it.

12.- The Prince (Original Sinners #3) by Tiffany Reisz

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First off, how dare u Tiffany Reisz!!! That fucking cliff hanger. Now onto the book, wow, just when I thought Søren's life couldn't get more fucked up u proved me wrong, also why u make me ship everything, like now that I know what Kingsley and Søren's relationship was and how much Kingsley still loves him and wants to be with him aghfhfhhd, but also Nora and Weasley, he is so goddamn sweet and they love each other but thing is I don't think they will work out at all, cuz Nora and Søren are so much like each other (the parallels between the 2 of them were so clear) and their love is still there even if they are apart and whyyyyyy u make me suffer like this???

13.- Descendant of the Crane by Joan He

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This book is really great, all the construction of the lore and the political drama!!!! Like I live for that and I seriously need a sequel. A great fantasy with an amazing protagonist, those plot twists !!!!!! I never saw them coming. I just need the next book pls 😢😢.

14.-The Poppy War by R.F Kuang

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This blew my mind, honestly this month I read such great fantasy books. I wasn't expecting anything that happened (well I did guess about what Rin was but it was pretty clear) it broke my heart time and time again and I need to get to the sequel soon (like why do I do this to myself, I need to finish a hella lot of series and I just keep starting new ones like a dumbass).

15.-The Way of Kings (Stormlight Archives #1) by Brandon Sanderson

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💞💞💞 High Fantasy is my favorite thing in the world and this book, gosh i fell in love. The characters! The fucking world!!!! The political drama, the magic, the religion, (also all those drawings throughout the book were amazing) ahdhenmdhdj I adore when writers create whole ass worlds and this omg I hadn't been so excited about a high fantasy book since I finished the ASOIAF books. The story blew me away Brandon Sanderson dives right into it and I need to read the next book.

It was a great reading month for me tbh, I didn't think I would finish my TBR for this month but suddenly I did and it was because I got really great books and I hope next month will be just as good.