Author: Jenn Northington

In The Club October 18

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date October 17, 2017

Welcome back to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met and well-read. Let’s dive in.

This newsletter is sponsored by The Librarian of Auschwitz by Antonio Iturbe.

Based on the experience of real-life Auschwitz prisoner Dita Kraus, this is the incredible story of a girl who risked her life to keep the magic of books alive during the Holocaust.

First and foremost: you could buy your group a whole lot of books by entering our giveaway for a $500 bookstore gift card of your choice.

Spooktober continues! Here are seven new TV/film adaptations of scary books, complete with Scare Factor ratings. I’ll be over here hiding under my covers, thanks very much.

If your Spooktober needs more paranormal and supernatural phenomena, here’s a list of 50 paranormal romances that can help. Vampires, shifters, dragons, and more await you.

What makes your group automatically quit a book? Rioters shared their own DNF rules. This is a discussion I’m definitely going to bring up in my next book group meeting — you can learn more about a person’s reading habits from their DNF pile than almost anything else!

We talked about surreal workplaces; now how about making your work-life better? We’ve got a list for that! I’ve done a couple small, one-off book groups around titles like these and they’ve been incredibly helpful.

Read like librarians! One Rioter-librarian put together a list of 100 staff picks from her public library and there is a TON of good stuff here.

Thrillers, but not just any thrillers: Jamie put together a list of mysteries in which the past catches up with the protagonist. This is a trope I had never thought of before but totally love!

New releases, but not just any new releases: Lit CelebrAsian has a list of October new releases to have on your radar, and I am delighted to cosign Forest of a Thousand Lanterns and Not Your Villain by C.B. Lee, particularly if you’re looking for solid YA picks.

Heads did, in fact, roll: Here’s a list of recommended nonfiction about Henry VIII’s six wives, for those of you looking to get historical with your next pick.

And that’s a wrap: Happy discussing! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations (including the occasional book club question!) you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Insiders

Behind The Scenes: Clint pt 1

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date October 16, 2017

Happy October, Insiders! This month, Jenn sat down with co-founder and COO Clinton Kabler, known around the offices as Clint, to talk about how Book Riot has grown and changed since its founding in 2011. But first! A couple notes:

We want to hear from you. Please head on over to our very quick survey about the Insiders program so far. On October 31 we’ll randomly select one (1) responder to win a $50 Powell’s gift card, so go forth and let us know how we’re doing!

Novel and Epic members: there’s a new treat in the Podcast feed, appearing monthly from now on. We hope you enjoy!

And, of course, we’ve got your Insiders-only deal. Accessorize in bookish style! 25% off scarves & socks with code GETINSIDEFALL.

Jenn: Book Riot is now 6 years old! What’s your first thought when you hear that?

Clint: I’m grateful for the group of book bloggers who went along with Jeff’s and my crazy idea. I’m grateful for the staff, who are largely still intact from the beginning, that took a chance on the craziness. And, I’m grateful for all the readers of Book Riot who’ve journeyed with us.

I also think about the way reading Book Riot has helped me read outside of my experience and comfort. I was not a mindful reader, and now I am. More importantly, I’m hopeful that the changes Book Riot brought to my own reading life have extended to Book Riot readers as well as the broader marketplace, contributing in a small way to the economic return that creators from traditionally marginalized groups receive from their books and comics.

Jenn: Unlike most of the staff, you’d never worked in books or a book-related job before founding Book Riot. How did that happen?

Clint: Jeff and I were friends from undergraduate at the University of Kansas, and we both moved to the New York City area to go to graduate school. In 2003, I moved to Vancouver, British Columbia. He gave me two books when I left. I still have them — East of Eden and The Things They Carried. (Confession: I’ve never brought myself to finish The Things They Carried. It’s too much.) After I moved to Vancouver, we stayed in touch because I travelled to New York City for work. Also, Jeff started sending out a list of about 10 books he felt were the best from the prior year. I read most of them, and he would get spatterings of my thoughts back. I still hold a grudge for his inclusion of 2666 on that list (which I finished).

From left to right: Clint, Jeff, and Michelle (professional architect and Jeff's partner)

From left to right: Clint, Jeff, and Michelle (professional architect and Jeff’s partner)

By mid-2010, I had spent seven years at a software startup. My travel schedule was gruelling. My wife and I wanted to travel with our first child, so I started paternity that July. While in Guanajuato, Mexico, about a month into the three months we were traveling, I decided I didn’t want to return to my old job. I quit.

When we returned to Vancouver, my wife returned to work while I stayed at home with our daughter. I did some consulting but mostly just enjoyed being a stay-at-home dad. At this same time, Jeff had started a book blog. I was reading and enjoying it. I started reading some other blogs by people he followed like Greg Zimmerman (The New Dork Review of Books), Rachel Manwill (A Home Between Pages, now defunct), Wallace Yovetich (Unputdownables, now defunct), Kim Ukura (Sophisticated Dorkiness), and Amanda Nelson (Dead White Guys, now defunct). I remember waking up one morning with the idea that we could do “TechCrunch for books.” (Cue eye roll.) I talked with Jeff about it. He agreed. I was unemployed. He was underemployed. So, we thought it would be a ~~~great idea to pool money from savings~~~ and start a thing. That was June 2011. We put the infrastructure in place and launched Book Riot on October 3 of the same year. The goal: create an influential place where books and reading could be talked about in the interesting ways book bloggers were talking about books and reading. Jeff and I didn’t get paid anything for the first 18 months… and here we are today. As I was writing this, I went back and opened our first business plan. After two minutes, I closed it because I couldn’t handle past me’s naivety.

Jenn: Tell us one of your favorite stories from the founding days of Book Riot, back when it was just you and Jeff.

Clint: Well first, it was never just Jeff and me. We both had working women who provided for our families so that Book Riot was possible.

Jeff and I were trying to come up with a name for the thing. We had a spreadsheet of the possibilities, and he was convinced it was Book Riot. I wasn’t convinced. He called me the evening of June 15 to try to convince me. I stepped out onto our balcony to argue about the name. There was black smoke over Vancouver. My wife stuck her head out the door and said something about the Canucks losing Game 7 and riots had started (clearly I care about hockey). I don’t know if I took that as a sign, but I capitulated quickly so I could turn on the local news.

Jenn: What has been the most surprising change from Book Riot’s founding to today?

Clint: I don’t know if it is surprising, but it is noticeable. Rebecca and I were in New York City at the end of September and we stayed in a hotel. In our own rooms!

The first year when I travelled to New York to meet with potential advertisers my friends Kahlief and Jill let me sleep on their couch in Brooklyn. A year or so later, we graduated to the cheapest Airbnbs where you’d have to walk through a colleague’s room to get to your sleeping closet. We’ve had various other non-private, perilous arrangements that lacked air-conditioning. Walking into a private room a few weeks ago after a full day of meetings in NYC and immediately depantsing, because I could, was a luxury.

Jenn: What’s your favorite book right now?

Clint: I’m going to pick three. A favorite I enjoyed for the writing: Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing. A favorite for the pure enjoyment of the story: Kevin Kwan’s Crazy Rich Asians trilogy. A favorite because it is a respite from the chaos of the world: Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals by Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, and Enuma Okoro. Since Jeff doesn’t recommend books much anymore, Book Riot contributor Derek Attig is my go-to for book recommendations.

Swords and Spaceships

Swords and Spaceships Oct 13

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date October 12, 2017

Hello and happy Friday the 13th, heroes and anti-heroes! Today we’re talking about 27 Hours and Fifteen Dogs (I have an accidental number theme apparently), plus Star Trek, alternate history, and more.

This newsletter is sponsored by Dare Mighty Things by Heather Kaczynski.

THE RULES ARE SIMPLE: You must be gifted, younger than twenty-five, and willing to accept the dangers that you will face if you win. Cassandra Gupta’s entire life has been leading up to this—the opportunity to travel to space. But to secure a spot on this classified mission, she must compete against the best and brightest. Cassie is ready for the rigorous tests designed to push her to the brink. But with each passing day it’s more difficult to ignore the feeling that the true objective of the mission is being hidden. As the stakes rise higher than ever, only one thing is clear: she’ll never back down…even if it costs her everything.

Why can’t I stop taking Harry Potter quizzes? I did slightly better on this one, all about things that happened on Halloween nights throughout the series.

Speaking of Harry Potter, have some ’90s TV nostalgia plus sorting: I cannot believe Rachel actually sorted 101 different TV characters into their Hogwarts houses. Although for the record, Carol Hathaway is a Gryffindor and I will accept no other answers.

What should the crew of the Star Trek: Enterprise read? We have some recommendations. Also I now really want Star Trek book club fics????

Alternate history can often be a lot of bustles and monocles, but here are five that embrace inclusivity. Cosign on Everfair, The Sea Is Ours, and The Ballad of Black Tom!

Do you ever get nostalgic for text-based RPGs? Would you appreciate more profanity in them? Here you go. (NSFW!) I laughed for at least five solid minutes playing this.

Speculative fiction in translation, the Czech edition! I have a small section of my wheelhouse dedicated to fictional travelogues (I’m looking at you: Pym, Islandia, Hav, Herland), so I definitely need The Golden Age ASAP.

And now for our accidentally-thematic reviews!

27 Hours by Tristina Wright

I have been waiting and waiting to talk about this book — I read it back in March or April, so it’s felt like forever. But it’s here, finally, and it’s the Queer Teen Space Squad of your dreams.

The book follows several teenagers on the colonized moon of Sahara, where humanity has carved out a reasonably stable existence — except for the gargoyles. At least, that’s what they call the original inhabitants of Sahara, largely regarded as simple but vicious beasts. As the book opens, Rumor Mora has to make a run from his home because the gargoyles are attacking, and it looks like they have a plan.

Over the next 27 hours we meet Nyx, Dahlia, Braeden, and Jude, each battling their own internal demons in addition to the literal ones. They will all discover that things are not as they were taught, and be faced with difficult choices that will change the course of this war and of humanity’s survival on Sahara. This is an action-packed, fast-paced space romp with an entirely inclusive cast: disabled, transgender, asexual, ethnically diverse, you name it. And while some might call that “ticking boxes,” each character felt complex, wonderfully drawn, and wholly themselves.

If I could go back in time and give this to my high-school lunch table (bookish misfit, goth lesbian, brown punk kid), I would. This book was a joy to read, and I am waiting impatiently for the second installment.

Fifteen Dogs by André Alexis

I picked this one up thanks to the Afrofuture Books box, and I am here to spread the good word. This is the book about talking, thinking dogs you never knew you wanted.

Apollo and Hermes walk into a bar in Toronto and make a bet. No, really! If animals were granted human consciousness, would they be happier or unhappier? They decide to grant intelligence to a group of 15 dogs boarded at a veterinary clinic to find out, with Apollo on the side of “unhappy” and Hermes on the side of “happy”. The book follows the dogs as they seek to adapt to their new mental abilities and negotiate a suddenly very different world.

This is a deeply philosophical and thoughtful novel, which is unnerving because you’re literally in the heads of a bunch of dogs. How does one balance one’s innate nature with one’s awareness of society’s expectations? Can a complex mental state still allow for true joy? Can partnership come out of ownership? Some of the dogs meet truly awful ends, while others find poetry and beauty in their new lives. The absurdity of the situation is also its power, and Alexis handles it beautifully.

A weird, thought-provoking, and moving novel, Fifteen Dogs is perfect for that moment when you want something completely different. And when you’re done? Come talk to me about it.

And that’s a wrap! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations, you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Valar morghulis,
Jenn

In The Club

In The Club Oct 11

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date October 10, 2017

Welcome back to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met and well-read. Let’s dive in.

This newsletter is sponsored by Penguin Random House Audio.

Listen to your book club’s next pick. Visit TryAudiobooks.com/bookclub for suggested listens and for a free audiobook download of The Knockoff!

With fall ramping up, it’s back to juggling busy school and work schedules with social engagements like date nights, yoga with friends, and book club. Luckily, you can listen to your book club’s next pick so you can stay on top of it all.

It’s Spooktober! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays — candy and costumes, how can you go wrong? So expect lots more links of this sort in the coming weeks. For today, I’ve got two:

Have some haunted house stories, which are truly a mainstay of creepy fiction.

Kristen Bell, RuPaul, LeVar Burton, and several more amazing actors are part of a new murder mystery podcast! It’s called Deadly Manners, and it’s a 1940s-style radio drama. The first three episodes are live right now, and might make a good change of pace for your group this month.

Can’t (or don’t want to) make time for an IRL book club? Join a Goodreads group! We’ve put together a guide to help you find the right one.

The National Book Award finalists have been announced! While you could wait for the winners, I love mining the shortlist. Whether you want Young Adult, fiction, nonfiction, or poetry, this is an excellent year to pick up a nominee.

What is a mystery Skype? It’s a thing that book clubs do apparently! I had no idea. It’s a bit like 20 Questions, in which you pair up with another book group and try to guess where in the world each other are. If you want to skip a book discussion and just do something fun, this might be a perfect choice.

For all my foodies: Here’s a list of memoirs from the culinary world, all written by women. There are several on here that I’d never heard of, alongside standards like Blood, Bones, & Butter and Tender at the Bone, and I now have a bunch on my TBR. Many of these also include recipes, in case your group is feeling inspired to cook!

Spotlight On: Kazuo Ishiguro

Last week Kazuo Ishiguro won the Nobel Prize for Literature, which was a bit of a surprise since he didn’t make it onto the betting list. He’s most famous for Never Let Me Go — which was adapted not once but twice — and Remains of the Day, but he’s the author of six other books. There’s no time like the present to pick him for your next discussion! Here are a few other links to help you out.

Not sure where to start? We can help.

Why is this an important win? A bookseller rejoices and explains.

The NYT is throwing some mild shade. “Formidable and not uninteresting,” really???? That’s what you’re going with? Well ok.

Slate discusses Never Let Me Go and The Buried Giant in particular.

And here’s an interview with Ishiguro from the Daily Beast’s archives.

And that’s a wrap! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations (including the occasional book club question!) you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Swords and Spaceships

Swords and Spaceships Oct 6

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date October 3, 2017

Happy Friday, explorers and ectoplasms! Today we’re talking about An Unkindness of Ghosts and the Riddle-Master trilogy, upcoming books for your list, short stories, space swag, and more.

This newsletter is sponsored by The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli.

Kristen Ciccarelli’s debut fantasy explores an intricately woven world that fantasy fans won’t be able to resist!

Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, is the fiercest, most feared dragon slayer in the land. But no kill can free her from the shackles that await her at home: her betrothal to the cruel commandant. When she’s offered the chance to gain her freedom in exchange for the life of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard, she finds that there may be more truth to the ancient legends of the past than she ever could have expected.

Charles Yu has been a favorite author of mine since I read How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe, so I’m delighted he’s editing this year’s Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy anthology. Wired interviewed him and John Joseph Adams, and there are some gems in here about the writing process, Westworld, and more.

Curious about what’s coming in October and should be on your list? Here’s a round-up of some highly recommended and inclusive sf/f, including today’s reviewed book An Unkindness of Ghosts!

Do you love short stories? Thea James of The Book Smugglers (and this sf/f-themed episode of Get Booked) has a list of six that you definitely need to read if you haven’t already.

Scientists unearthed 3.95-billion year-old evidence of life, and primordial life is definitely something that I now want science fiction about. Here is my question, though: is “historical” science fiction possible? (And I don’t mean steampunk or time travel.)

I know you love space-related swag because you’re getting this email. Here are 30 non-book things you might want to own or gift; sorry not sorry.

And now for some cheap e-books! Fledgling by Octavia Butler (a formative book for me) is only $3.99 right now on Kindle. And if you’re interested in Golden Age sci-fi, The Day of The Triffids is only $3.49 and is a weird and interesting read.

Today in reviews, we have a very timely and innovative sci-fi debut, and an immersive high fantasy series to get lost in.

An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon

Trigger warnings for physical and sexual violence.

I love a generation-ship premise, so it’s no surprise that I was eager to read An Unkindness of Ghosts. What I wasn’t expecting was how Solomon takes a classic trope in a new direction, and does it with skill and verve.

Aster, the primary narrator, is a self-taught healer onboard the enormous spaceship Matilda, which has been traveling through space in search of a new home planet for many generations. Instead of creating a new society and culture, humanity has fallen back on its worst history. The upper decks are landscaped, lush, beautiful, and populated entirely by white people, while the lower decks arepopulated by the darker-skinned inhabitants of the ship: enslaved, rationed, and patrolled and abused by armed guards. Ruthless violence keeps them working for the upper-deckers, and a religious dictatorship enforces class and race order across levels.

Aster, a lower-decker, doesn’t have any plans to be a revolutionary. She says more than once that if she knew how to kill the Sovereign and blow up the ship, she would; in the meantime she takes solace in science and medicine. But when her friend Giselle points out a coded message in Aster’s dead mother’s diaries, everything begins to shift.

Aster is a neurodiverse character, who sees clearly enough the world around her but can’t always communicate like she wants or like others want her too. The web of relationships, fraught and tender, that Solomon has built around her are beautifully rendered and layered. The world-building is detailed, thoroughly envisioned, and all too familiar. I’m still processing my feelings about the ending. An Unkindness of Ghosts is the debut of a powerful new voice in science fiction, and a must-read for fans of Ursula Le Guin, NK Jemisin, Octavia Butler, and Margaret Atwood.

The Riddle-Master trilogy: The Riddle-Master of Hed, Heir of Sea and Fire, and Harpist in the Wind by Patricia McKillip

I grew up reading Patricia McKillip — never very systematically, it always felt like I was discovering her by chance each time. I first found the Riddle-Master books whilst digging through the fantasy section in a used bookstore, and definitely bought them because of this cover. I started rereading them last week, and two decades later they’re even better than I remember.

The Riddle-Master of Hed is a classic high fantasy hero’s journey. Morgon of Hed has inherited the rulership after his parents’ sudden death, and he’s still learning to be kingly. Meaning, the book opens with him and his brother Eliard getting in a fist-fight in the rose bushes, at which point his sister Tristan empties a jug of milk on them. Morgon also won a crown in a riddle contest with a ghost, and the “prize” is the hand of Raederle of An, the second most beautiful woman in the realm. (Eyeroll, I know. BUT WAIT.) As he heads out on a journey to her court, he discovers that the three stars on his brow have marked him for a mysterious destiny, and shapechangers hidden for centuries are coming back to prevent him from fulfilling it. Classic, right? Where it gets interesting is in the sidelong humor (witness the rosebush fight) and depth of character that McKillip roots the story in.

And then things get even better in Heir of Sea and Fire. Morgon has gone missing, and Raederle is tired of waiting around to see what’s going to happen next. So she steals a ship with the help of Morgon’s sister Tristan and ultimate bad-ass Lyra of Herun and heads off on her own quest to find him. In the process, she finds out that her own history is far from what she thought, and that she has powers no one could have expected.

I am not, obviously, going to tell you anything about Harpist in the Wind.

Morgon and Raederle both fight their destinies every step of the way, regardless of the forces pushing them forward. The way they choose their battles; the choices they make when all the options are terrible; the way that they come to own themselves, even as they become unrecognizable to those around them; these are what makes The Riddle-Master series stand the test of time, and give me all The Feels to boot.

And that’s a wrap! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

So long and thanks for all the fish,
Jenn

In The Club

In the Club Oct 4

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date October 2, 2017

Welcome back to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met and well-read. Let’s dive in.

This newsletter is sponsored by A Place in the Wind by Suzanne Gates.

On a frigid night, a school girl walks out of an English class she tutors for immigrants—and vanishes. Suspicion quickly falls on the men she was teaching, many of whom are undocumented. As disturbing evidence trickles in, news of the incident spreads beyond the scenic town of Lake Holly, New York, unearthing deep-seated fears and enflaming cultural tensions. For county police detective Jimmy Vega, the situation is personal. His girlfriend, Harvard-educated attorney Adele Figueroa, heads the immigrant center where the teen volunteer disappeared. Someone wants to destroy far more than Vega’s career. And no matter which way he turns, every step will put him and his family in the killer’s cross-hairs.

The 9 to 5 slog can be weird, but here are five books with surreal workplaces that might put things into perspective, from academia to temping.

It’s October, which means it’s time for witchy reads! (Well, it’s always time for witchy reads in my life, but I know others prefer seasonal.) Here are 16 books on the Salem Witch trials, both fiction and nonfiction, that will give your book group a lot to talk about.

Today’s fun pairing: K-Pop (a.k.a. Korean pop music) for your ears and matching book recs for your brain!

I’m not sure anyone really wants to read/talk about money, but a lot of us could use a nudge to get better at it, and what is book group for if not to nudge us? Here’s a list of personal finance books that might be worth adding to your club’s TBR.

Been watching HBO’s The Deuce and/or trying to get your club members on board? Here are some crime novels about NYC that might help that along.

To further that mystery fix: here’s a round-up of this fall’s mystery/thrillers with an inclusive bent!

Bi Visibility Day was September 23, and in case you missed it here are 100 must-read books about bisexuality.

And finally, some food for discussion and thought: This conversation, courtesy of PEN America, with Jamaica Kincaid, Marlon James, Valeria Luiselli, Kwame Anthony Appiah, and Colum McCann, is great reading. They start out talking about the word “expatriate” and touch on immigration, diversity and racism in publishing and in America, the writing life, and so much more. It made me want to start a book group, to read one of their books each and then talk about this conversation. Maybe you’ll want to, too.

And that’s a wrap: Happy discussing! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations (including the occasional book club question!) you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Swords and Spaceships

Swords and Spaceships Sept 29

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date September 28, 2017

Happy Friday, rebels and revenants! Today I’ve got two series you need to read immediately — the Revolution books and the Tensorate novellas, adaptation news about Annihilation and Sabrina the Teenage Witch, additional magical pets, and more.

This newsletter is sponsored by Elly Blake’s Fireblood, published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

In this action-packed sequel to the New York Times bestselling Frostblood, Ruby must choose between her fiery homeland and the icy king who loves her.

Did you watch the Annihilation trailer? Do you have feelings? I have feelings. Conflicted feelings! It looks like they nailed the visuals of Area X, but they also whitewashed the lead character.

Ariel Gore proposes a magical feminism reading list, and I appreciate it. Isabel Allende, Jewel Parker Rhodes, Jeanette Winterson, Louise Erdrich — lots of heavy hitters are featured, but there were several I hadn’t heard of. TBR: check.

More magical pets! Here are Syfy’s top 25 choices of magical creatures. This list does not contain Sabriel‘s Mogget and is therefore invalid. (Jokes! Well, half-jokes.)

Sabrina the Teenage Witch is getting a reboot, and people have demands. I am not a reader of the Archie comics and I didn’t watch the TV show growing up (I KNOW, blasphemy, don’t @ me) but I am still intrigued.

I love this piece by Deji Bryce Olukotun about Tron, digital rights activism, and science fictional thinking.

You can do some good with your sf/f dollars: Fireside Fiction has set up a Hurricane Relief Bookstore, with 100% of profits going to relief efforts for the Caribbean, Houston, and Florida.

And onto our reviews! A trilogy and a duology of novellas; sorry not sorry to your TBR.

Revolution series: Gemsigns, Binary, and Regeneration by Stephanie Saulter

The Revolution trilogy by Stephanie Saulter is one of my favorite sci-fi series that no one else I know has read. Set in a future where humanity has survived a plague event through genetic engineering, only to then go on to use that technology to create specialized workers, these books are deeply concerned with how we imagine and define humanity and personhood.

In Gemsigns, we’re introduced to this possible future through a “norm” scientist, a leader of the “gem” (or extremely genetically modified) population, and a ruthless corporate executive. Legislation is on the table that will literally decide whether or not the gems count as people, so the stakes are incredibly high. Corporations stand to lose out on profits if their previously-unregulated and unorganized workers get full rights; the general population is torn between their fears of the abilities of the gems and sympathy for their ill treatment; and there are godgangs on the rise terrorizing the gem population — consider this your warning for scenes including graphic violence.

It would be a spoiler to give you any details about Binary and Regeneration, but I can tell you that while the stakes change, new characters are added to the mix, and new aspects of the world and the science are revealed, the books never stray from these central questions. How do we deal with fear of the unknown? How do we empathize with those who are different from us? What does it mean to be a person, and who gets to decide? The Revolution are thoughtful as well as action-packed, and I can’t wait to hear what you think about them.

Tensorate series: The Black Tides of Heaven #1 and The Red Threads of Fortune #2 by JY Yang

I am SO EXCITED that these novellas are finally available! Ever since reading them a few months ago, I’ve been counting down the days til I could review them here.

Following the adventures of twins Akeha and Mokoya, children of the ruthless and conniving Protector, the books introduce us to a world where magic and steam technology mix. Mokoya was born with prophetic gifts but, like Cassandra of Troy, she finds that they don’t make her life any better. Akeha, always in her shadow, finds that he has to develop his own ways to see the world. The Black Tides follows them as children and then Akeha’s entrance into political rebellion, while The Red Threads follows Mokoya in adulthood after a terrible accident kills her young daughter.

This world is beautifully imagined and rendered, and Yang has a gift for playing with known elements in new and unexpected ways. For instance, gravity is relative to geography, and naga and dinosaurs exist side by side. This world is also inclusive: gender is selected at a certain age, sexuality is fluid and wide-ranging, and the society and religion, and the term “silkpunk” definitely implies. Yang has described them as “Dragon Age meets Jurassic World meets Star Wars meets Mad Max” in an interview, and I can definitely get behind that. Are you convinced yet??

Nota bene to file under “tech world problems”: those of us who use the platform Slack on a regular basis will have to take a moment to reshape our brains, as that is word for the source of magic in this world.

And that’s it for today! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Allons-y!,
Jenn

Insiders

Behind the Scenes Sept pt 2

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date September 28, 2017

Congrats to this month’s winners! Kirsty G. was our randomly selected Epic Mailbag winner, and Kerry W. was our Novel winner. Muppet arms and confetti cannons to them! Novel folks, remember that to be entered in the monthly drawing, just keep your Watchlist updated on a monthly basis.

For the second installment of this month’s Behind the Scenes, Sharifah shares the secrets of making beautiful bookstagrams. Got a favorite trick of your own? Share it in the comments!

I’m a sucker for a pretty book, and for set dressing. It must be the theater nerd in me — the one that usually got dismissed to the prop department (International Thespian Society troupe secretary in the house!). I guess it figures that one of my favorite work responsibilities is taking photos of books.

During a typical week, I have to take about seven bookish photos for giveaways and content that gets posted to social. My personal social media happy place is Instagram. It’s the only platform I use consistently outside of work; I adore the bookstagram community. And since quite a few bookish people feel similarly about bookstagramming, I thought I’d share a little about my process and some tips for bookish photography.

The Book

image of six books layed out on white paper and a cat inspecting them with text, "Tabitha disapproves of this layout & this carpet"

I get a lot of work-related book mail. I keep these books in a pile away from my own library until I’ve taken my photos. I’m not a delicate reader, and I try to avoid publishing photos of books with coffee rings on the covers. Every book has a different personality — every book is a different actor waiting to play the lead in the right production. Am I stretching this metaphor? Sometimes the book demands a vibrant, bustling backdrop; a stark, brick wall; or, sometimes, it gets the 10”x10” square of clean surface in my apartment and a flower because I’m very busy.

Equipment

I have use of a fancy camera, but to be honest most of my photos are taken on my iPhone. It’s just faster, and goodness how far we’ve come with phone cameras. Also, it’s more efficient for photo editing since I use apps.

Sometimes it’s not bright enough out, or the light casts everything in a mustardy ’70s haze and something must be done. My preferred photo editing apps are VSCO and Snapseed, and my best friend is the temperature tool (cooler, always cooler). I don’t use the pre-set filters on these apps — I usually just nudge the contrast, temp, and saturation. I’ve been playing around with fade as well, for that misty, vintage look.

Props

Did you know that often when you see those flatlay photos where someone has a beautiful marble surface or rustic wood floor, what you might actually be looking at is textured contact paper on cardboard? One of my new favorite things to do is to find special paper for backdrops. I glue them to poster board with spray adhesive and voila! My current favorite is the textured paper with pressed flowers (pictured under Akata Warrior).

image of Akata Warrior and Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor layed out on top of paper surrounded by flowers, essential oils, candles, and other natural props

As far as props go, it helps to be a hoarder of whosits and whatsits galore. I used to do embarrassing/fun things like go to The Labyrinth of Jareth Masquerade Ball, the Society of Creative Anachronism events, and Wasteland Weekend (a Mad Max “immersion” event)… Thanks to costuming, I have a lot of random crap shoved into a lot of drawers. Feathers, weird fabric, ribbons, gears, shells, beads, blah blah blah. I also think witchy stuff and curiosities improve any picture, but I have to remind myself that it’s not appropriate for every book to be photographed with a seahorse skeleton. My point is: half the fun of taking these photos is going on scavenger hunts for interesting props.

Caveat

I don’t expect anyone to make as big a fuss over book photography as I do. These things I do for my job, but also for myself. Because everybody needs a creative outlet, and it can be fun to create a story around a story, and because I’ll take a dose of circus where I can get it. But the star of the show will always be a really great story.

– Sharifah

In The Club

In The Club Sept 27

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date September 25, 2017

Welcome back to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met and well-read. Let’s dive in.

This newsletter is sponsored by A Poison Dark and Drowning by Jessica Cluess.

Henrietta Howel doesn’t need a prophecy to know that she’s in danger. She came to London to be named the chosen one, the first female sorcerer in centuries, the one who would defeat the Ancients. Instead, she discovered a city ruled by secrets. And the biggest secret of all: Henrietta is not the chosen one. In the seductive and explosive second book in the Kingdom on Fire series, Jessica Cluess delivers her signature mix of magic, passion, and teen warriors fighting for survival.

The Book Riot contributors got inspired by “fall”s of many different kinds, leading to this list which includes everything from Reichenbach Falls to falls from grace to Things Fall Apart. Enjoy!

5 Under 35 is an award that goes to (you guessed it) 5 debut authors, all under the age of 35, and this year’s list is very very good. If your group is interested in contemporary fiction, buzzy books, and doesn’t mind hardcover, all of these would be excellent choices.

‘Bees’ might not be the first theme you think of for your next discussion, but maybe it should be! Here’s a list of five books about bees (including poetry, fiction, AND nonfiction) that might give you some starting points.

What does membership in 10 book clubs look like? Pretty great, actually, if you believe Laura (and I do). The most I’ve ever done at once was seven, so I salute her! There are also great ideas for different styles of book club — themed, classic, two-person. For the record, I too want to join her mother’s book club.

Does your book club need a soundtrack? Well here you go: seven songs with literary references embedded in their lyrics.

For those feeling ambitious about their fall reading, one Rioter put together a Back To School reading list for grown-ups. It’s full of classics across genres that you might have missed in your school days (or might want to revisit).

Is your group into audiobooks? Here are 11 places to find free (and legal) ones!

Read it before it’s on-air: Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (which is a contemporary retelling of Pride and Prejudice) is getting a “soapy” adaptation from AMC, with a team that includes an executive producer from Pretty Little Liars. I can’t decide if Jane Austen would be delighted or horrified??

Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn

More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page

Swords and Spaceships

Swords and Spaceships Sept 22

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date September 21, 2017

Happy Friday, astronauts and alchemists! This week’s reviews include Null States and Jane, Unlimited, and we’ve got some noteworthy SF/F YA, mind control, music, and more.

This week’s newsletter is sponsored by Retrograde by Peter Cawdron.

The international team at the Mars Endeavour colony is prepared for every eventuality except one—what happens when disaster strikes Earth?

Mankind has long dreamed of reaching out to live on other planets, and with the establishment of the Mars Endeavour colony, that dream has become reality. The fledgling colony consists of 120 scientists, astronauts, medical staff, and engineers. Buried deep underground, they’re protected from the harsh radiation that sterilizes the surface of the planet. The colony is prepared for every eventuality except one—what happens when disaster strikes Earth?

You might have heard us gushing on SFF Yeah about Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fears Death getting an HBO adaptation, and there’s now a writer attached to the project: Selwyn Seyfu Hinds. He doesn’t have a lot of writing credits screen-wise, but he’s worked in comics and authored and co-authored a couple books (including one called Gunshots In My Cook-Up: Bits and Bites from a Hip-Hop Caribbean Life, which I now need to get my hands on).

For your Fall TBR, Unbound Worlds has a list of 12 SFF YA titles to watch out for, several of which are on the stack next to my desk. So much to read!

The ultimate bad hair day is when your hair is SUPERNATURAL AND MAYBE ALSO EVIL. Which is what these books all have in common. Note to self, stop complaining about fly-aways.

Mind control: not so sci-fi anymore. (Although note to this guy: “making phonetic sounds” with your hands is called sign language.)

Genre up your Friday playlist: here are 13 songs that reference sf/f! Now you know: Iron Maiden are Dune fans, and Chance the Rapper loves Harry Potter.

For our reviews this week, we’ve got policy-punk sci-fi and a multi-verse adventure that otherwise refuses to be categorized.

Null States (Centenal Cycle #2) by Malka Older

I didn’t know what to expect out of this sequel for Infomocracy, so it was easy to be surprised. In this case, the surprise was a good one!

It’s been almost two years since the election debacle, and Information mostly has things settled. But what should be a simple assignment in shepherding a government into micro-democracy puts one of our characters, Roz, squarely in the middle of an assassination and strange local tensions, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Mishima is back (#TeamMishima!), and she’s just as kick-ass as ever. With major governments threatening to secede from the system, she has to go undercover to find out how serious these threats are. There are several other POV characters as well and they’re great, but Roz and Mishima absolutely steal the show.

Older has pulled off an excellent Book Two. Not only does it build on the events of the first, but it adds nuance and asks further questions about the world in which our characters live, questions that readers might already have been asking themselves. What does it look like when a country doesn’t participate in micro-democracy? How does war work? But it never feels like a thought exercise or an infodump; the dangers, consequences, and emotions surrounding these questions are present, real, and compelling. It also really showcases Older’s own knowledge; she worked in Darfur in humanitarian aid, and that experience alongside her research into multi-government disaster response is put to good use. All that being said, I would highly discourage picking this up without having read Infomocracy first — the grounding is essential, and you won’t have half as much fun following the characters. On the other hand, I hope this recap sells you on the series. For my money, the Centenal Cycle is one of the smartest and most interesting new sci-fi series on the scene.

Jane, Unlimited by Kristen Cashore

Ask three readers about this novel, and you’ll get five different answers as to what kind of a book it is and what it’s about. (I speak from actual experience on this, and it was one of the most entertaining and surprising book-related group-texts of my life.) But perhaps that’s not a surprise, given that it’s a genre-jumping, multi-verse exploring work.

Our titular heroine Jane is a college drop-out grieving the recent death of her aunt, adrift in life, until she runs into her former tutor Kiran. Kiran’s family is rich, has their own island mansion, and is planning a gala, and Jane is invited along. Since she has pretty much nothing else going for her, she heads to the island — and that’s where the hijinks ensue.

It starts out feeling like a Gothic novel — unpleasant servants, careless and oddball rich people, an orphan making her way through high society, things and people going bump in the night. And then you get about 100 pages in and things take a very sharp turn, and continue taking them for the rest of the book. Some chapters double down on the horror; others are more light-hearted; some are decidedly more fantasy; still others call to mind spy thrillers and Bond movies. There is a lot going on, is what I’m saying.

I’m a huge fan of Cashore’s Graceling series, and this is nothing like those. Not in style, not in structure, not in content. If what you’re looking for is more of that, I suggest you recalibrate your expectations. I also highly recommend you pick this up. This is a book that truly feels as though it has something for every reader in it, and is a TON of fun to talk about — once the other people have read it. Until then, I will continue waving my hands around and yelling, “Read this!”

And that’s a wrap! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.

Never give up, never surrender,
Jenn