2016 Discovery Challenge – How Did I Do?

After reading Jo Hall’s post here, I decided to join this challenge and set myself the target of reading and reviewing at least two books a month by women authors I’ve not previously encountered. For a variety of reasons, 2016 proved to be my best reading year, ever. So I actually read and reviewed 45 books by women I haven’t read before. There were so many great authors in that group and my top five are included in my outstanding books of 2016 – see here. So I want to feature my top five very near misses in no particular order:-

Radiance by Cathrynne M. Valente
I enjoy being a Netgalley reader – it pushes me out of my comfort zone every so often. I’m not sure I would have picked up this offering if it hadn’t been on offer, given the description was a decopunk pulp SF alt-history space opera mystery set in a Hollywood-and solar system-very different from our own. Severin Unck’s father is a famous director of Gothic romances in an alternate 1986 in which talking movies are still a daring innovation due to the patent-hoarding Edison family. Rebelling against her father’s films of passion, intrigue, and spirits from beyond, Severin starts making documentaries, traveling through space and investigating the levitator cults of Neptune and the lawless saloons of Mars. For this is not our solar system, but one drawn from classic science fiction in which all the planets are inhabited and we travel through space on beautiful rockets. Severin is a realist in a fantastic universe.

For starters, this is a novel with a fractured timeline, so the story skips around and is told in a mixture of interviews, gossip and through extracts of old classic film, among other narrative modes. Therefore you need to pay attention. Initially I wondered what I was getting myself into – for the sheer oddness of the world wasn’t anything I was prepared for, given that I’m allergic to reading any kind of blurb. Was it worth the effort? Oh, yes.

 

Machinations – Book 1 of the Machinations series by Hayley Stone
The machines have risen, but not out of malice. They were simply following a command: to stop the endless wars that have plagued the world throughout history. Their solution was perfectly logical. To end the fighting, they decided to end the human race. A potent symbol of the resistance, Rhona Long has served on the front lines of the conflict since the first Machinations began—until she is killed during a rescue mission gone wrong. Now Rhona awakens to find herself transported to a new body, complete with her DNA, her personality, even her memories. She is a clone . . . of herself. Trapped in the shadow of the life she once knew, the reincarnated Rhona must find her place among old friends and newfound enemies—and quickly. For the machines are inching closer to exterminating humans for good. And only Rhona, whoever she is now, can save them.

I also read and reviewed the second book, Counterpart in this intriguing series. There are indications that Stone is still feeling her way – this is, after all, her debut novel and the machines weren’t particularly vividly drawn – but I have never read a book where the issue of cloning has been so thoroughly and emotionally examined. Despite its flaws, this one has stayed with me.

 

The Fettered Flame – Book 2 of the Shkode series by E.D.E. Bell
The Fettered Flame is a genre-bending fantasy novel that continues the saga of two dying worlds, plagued by their own unique struggles for power. Follow the journeys of Cor – a woman striving to understand her powers of magic and how the connect to her past, Atesh – her contemplative dragon companion, and Jwala – a dragon plunged into a rebirth of ancient ideals. The Fettered Flame is the second instalment in the Shkode trilogy: a quirky and modern take on dragons and wizards, exploring themes of identity, prejudice, violence, compassion, and the ways we are all connected.

I was sufficiently impressed to seek out the first book, The Banished Craft, in this science fiction/fantasy mashup. The blurb may sound a bit gushy, but it is spot on. This is epic fantasy with a sci fi twist and I’m looking forward to reading the next instalment when it is released as I love the characters and Bell’s quirky, insightful take on the world she has created.

 

Rosemary and Rue – Book 1 of the Toby Daye series by Seanan McGuire
October “Toby” Daye, a changeling who is half human and half fae, has been an outsider from birth. After getting burned by both sides of her heritage, Toby has denied the Faerie world, retreating to a “normal” life. Unfortunately for her, the Faerie world has other ideas…

I loved McGuire’s writing and went on to read her wonderful novella Every Heart a Doorway. One of my promises to myself is to continue reading more of the Toby Daye series in 2017.

 

Rebel of the Sands – Book 1 of the Rebel of the Sands series by Alywn Hamilton
Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there’s nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can’t wait to escape from. Destined to wind up “wed or dead,” Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk, but things don’t go according to plan…

Hamilton’s punchy, accomplished writing grabbed me from the first page and didn’t let go until the end of this adrenaline-fuelled ride. Amani is a feisty heroine who attracts trouble like iron filings to a magnet and I found this one really hard to put down until it was finished and am very much looking forward to reading the sequel.

 

Given I nearly doubled the target number of women authors I read and reviewed, should I increase my goal for 2017? I’ve decided against doing so. One of the reasons why 2016 was such a bumper reading year was because I wasn’t writing. Editing and rewriting, yes – but I wrote nothing new. So reading became a refuge that I don’t normally crave so intensely as diving into a new world of my own for the first time tends to thoroughly tick that box. Therefore, I shall launch my 2017 Discovery Challenge with the target of reading and reviewing at least two books a month by women writers previously unknown to me. And if I have half as much joy in the coming year as I’ve had reading this year’s offerings, I shall be very happy, indeed.

What about you? Did you set yourself any reading challenges in 2016 – and if so, how have you got on? Do you intend to continue them into 2017?

Discovery Challenge Books I Read in 2016
1. The Puppet Boy of Warsaw by Eva Weaver
2. Truthwitch – Book 1 of the Witchlands series by Susan Dennard
3. Gold, Fame, Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins
4. Daughter of Smoke and Bone – Book 1 of the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series by Laini Taylor
5. Heart of Obsidian – Book 12 of the Psy-Changeling series by Nalini Singh
6. Radiance by Catherynne M. Valente
7. Rosemary and Rue – Book 1 of the Toby Daye series by Seanan McGuire
8. Radio Silence by Alice Oseman
9. The Sector – Book 1 of the Non-Compliance series by Paige Daniels
10. Brink’s Unfortunate Escape from Hell – Prequel to the Skycastle series by Andy Mulberry
11. The Many Selves of Katherine North by Emma Geen
12. The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi
13. Cinder – Book 1 of the Luna Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
14. Bright Blaze of Magic – Book 3 of the Black Blade series by Jennifer Estep
15. A Rural Affair by Catherine Alliott
16. Queen of Hearts – Book 1 of the Queen of Hearts saga by Colleen Oakes
17. The Outliers – Book 1 of The Outliers trilogy by Kimberley McCreight
18. The Loneliness of Distant Beings by Kate Ling
19. Banished – Book 1 of the Blackhart trilogy by Liz de Jager
20. The Nothing Girl by Jodi Taylor
21. Change of Life – Book 2 of a Menopausal Superhero by Samantha Bryant
22. Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by Charlie N. Holmberg
23. Speak by Louisa Hall
24. Inborn – Book 1 of The Birthright series by Amy Saunders
25. Machinations – Book 1 of The Machinations series by Hayley Stone
26. Woman of the Hour by Jane Lythell
27. Shift by Em Bailey
28. An Accident of Stars – Book 1 of The Manifold Worlds series by Foz Meadows
29. Across the Universe – Book 1 of the Across the Universe series by Beth Revis
30. The Thousandth Floor – Book 1 of The Thousandth Floor series by Katherine McGee
31. The Changeling by Christina Soontornvat
32. The Fettered Flame – Book 2 of the Shkode series by E.D.E. Bell
33. Aveline – Book 1 of The Lost Vegas series by Lizzy Ford
34. Escapology by Ren Warom
35. So Many Boots, So Little Time – Book 3 of the MisAdventures of Miss Lilly series by Kalan Chapman Lloyd
36. The Imlen Brat by Sarah Avery
37. Return to the Secret Garden by Holly Webb
38. A Darker Shade of Magic – Book 1 of the Shades of Magic series by V.E. Schwab
39. Synners by Pat Cadigan
40. Renting Silence – A Roaring Twenties Mystery by Mary Miley
41. Split the Sun – Book 2 of the Inherit the Stars duology by Tessa Elwood
42. Rebel of the Sands – Book 1 of the Rebel of the Sands series by Alwyn Hamilton
43. Ever the Hunted – Book 1 of the Clash of Kingdoms series by Erin Summerill
44. The City of Ice – Book 2 of the Gates of the World series by K.M. McKinley
45. Graveyard Shift – Book 10 of the Pepper Martin series by Casey Daniels

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of KINDLE Ebook Graveyard Shift – Book 10 of the Pepper Martin series by Casey Daniels

Pepper Martin, now Community Relations Director of Garden View Cemetery, is contacted by the ghost of Eliot Ness, one of Cleveland’s most famous dearly departed. According to Ness, the ashes scattered at the ceremony twenty years earlier weren’t his. His were stolen prior to the ceremony by a Ness groupie, and he cannot rest until those ashes are found. Luckily, Pepper has an idea where they may be – but of course it isn’t nearly that straightforward…

Well this is fun! And the fact that I’d crashed into a series with nine previous books wasn’t an issue, as Pepper is very much into dealing with the current situation. While she occasionally alludes to previous incidents, none were confusing or difficult to assimilate in relation to her more recent problems – which start stacking up very fast. I really like Pepper – she is rather lazy, a bit scatty and not above bending the truth to breaking point if it gets her out of a jam. In short, she is very much like a lot of us. So when the initially light-hearted tone suddenly got a lot darker and Pepper’s very existence is on the line, I really cared.

That said, while this murder mystery gathered momentum with the stakes suddenly becoming a lot higher, this is no grim gorefest. The action moved along at a reasonable clip, while still giving us a ringside seat to Pepper’s feelings and motivation as she becomes increasingly entangled in this mystery, all in first person viewpoint. There is also a strong cast of supporting characters, including her slightly demented mother who seems hellbent on marrying Pepper off, her work colleagues and Quinn, her policeman boyfriend.

Daniels weaves a satisfying whodunit with a really unpleasant villain, a real sense of threat and a denouement I didn’t see coming. Despite this being a long-running series, the main adventure is satisfactorily tied up and I found myself coming to the end of this pleasing tale wanting to read more about Pepper and her previous adventures. So I shall be revisiting this series at some stage during 2017 and this enjoyable, well-crafted mystery comes highly recommended. Receiving a copy of Graveyard Shift from the publisher via NetGalley has in no way affected my honest opinion of this book.
9/10

Sunday Post – 1st January 2017

This is part of the weekly meme over at the Caffeinated Book Reviewer, where book bloggers can share the books and blogs they have written.

Like many of you, I’ve been busy catching up with family and enjoying the festive season. It’s been a wonderful Christmas – better than I dared wish for. We spent Christmas with my in-laws, while staying at a nearby hotel – an arrangement that worked very well. I also got a chance to pop in and see my parents and sisters and their families. On Boxing Day we returned home, then travelled on to my daughter’s house for a meal and picked up my son who stayed with us for a few days. It was all lovely. On Friday afternoon I chilled with a couple of friends at a local spa, catching up with them and enjoying the sensation of being toooo hot in the sauna – bliss! Today we’re hosting a New Year lunch with writing buddy Mhairi and her mother as well as my sister, while last night we saw 2017 in quietly, just the two of us. I hope you, too, all had a great Christmas and here’s to a better year.

This week I have read:
The King’s Peace – Book 1 of the Tir Tanagiri series by Jo Walton
Sulien ap Gwien was seventeen when the Jarnish raiders came. Had she been armed when they found her, she could have taken them all. As it was, it took six of them to subdue her. She will never forgive them. Thus begins her story—a story that takes her back to her family, with its ancient ties to the Vincan empire that once ruled in Tir Tanagiri, and forward to Caer Tanaga, where the greatest man of his time, King Urdo, struggles to bind together the squabbling nobles and petty princes into a unified force that will drive out the barbarian invader and restore the King’s Peace.
Walton’s writing never disappoints. This retelling of the King Arthur legend took me back to a world where might is right and a wartorn, battle-weary people long for some stability. As one of the great warriors of her time, Sulien helps to deliver it. I loved this one and as I received some book tokens for Christmas – yippee! – I shall be acquiring the other two books in this wonderful series.

 

What Not To Do If You Turn Invisible by Ross Welford
Turning invisible at will: it’s one way of curing your acne. But far more drastic than 13 year-old Ethel Leatherhead intended when she tried a combination of untested medicines and a sunbed. It’s fun at first, being invisible. And aided by her friend Boydy, she manages to keep her extraordinary ability secret. Or does she…?
Ethel is tipped into a series of farcical adventures once she becomes invisible and Welford has absolutely nailed this spiky twelve-year-old protagonist. I was caught up in her problems and at times teetered between wanting to both laugh and cry at her struggles. This is a book I shall be reading to my granddaughter in due course.

 

Freeks by Amanda Hocking
Welcome to Gideon Davorin’s Traveling Sideshow, where necromancy, magical visions, and pyrokinesis are more than just part of the act… Mara has always longed for a normal life in a normal town where no one has the ability to levitate or predict the future. Instead, she roams from place to place, cleaning the tiger cage while her friends perform supernatural feats every night. When the struggling sideshow is miraculously offered the money they need if they set up camp in Caudry, Louisiana, Mara meets local-boy Gabe…and a normal life has never been more appealing. Until things start going wrong…
This YA paranormal tale of a travelling show starts with a bang and then pulls back to steadily ramp up the sense of unease, culminating in a shocking denouement. Mara is an appealing convincing protagonist in this enjoyable this page-turner.

 

Graveyard Shift – Book 10 of the Pepper Martin series by Casey Daniels
Pepper Martin, now Community Relations Director of Garden View Cemetery, is contacted by the ghost of Eliot Ness, one of Cleveland s most famous dearly departed. According to Ness, the ashes scattered at the ceremony twenty years earlier weren’t his. His were stolen prior to the ceremony by a Ness groupie, and he cannot rest until those ashes are found. Luckily, Pepper has an idea where they may be. But, this being Pepper, it isn’t going to be that straightforward…
The fact this is the tenth in the series simply doesn’t matter. Daniels whisked me into the middle of the action without any difficulty as Pepper’s first person pov popped off the page. She’s funny, slightly lazy and not adverse to spinning a yarn or two to ease her way through life – and thoroughly likeable. So it mattered as murder, ghostly attacks and her mother’s slightly demented attempts to get her married all kicked off. This was an amusing, enjoyable addition to my holiday reading and I shall be reading more of this series.

My posts last week:
Teaser Tuesday featuring Freeks by Amanda Hocking

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of Ever the Hunted – Book 1 of The Clash of Kingdoms series by Erin Summerill

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of The City of Ice – Book 2 of The Gates of the World series by K.M. McKinley

Friday Faceoff – Ho, ho, ho to the bottle I go… featuring Dandelion Wine – Book 1 of The Green Town series by Ray Bradbury

*NEW RELEASE SPECIAL* Review of What Not To Do If You Turn Invisible by Ross Welford

 

Interesting/outstanding blogs and articles that have caught my attention during the last week, in no particular order:
Looking Back – And Forward https://inesemjphotography.com/2016/12/30/looking-back-and-forward/ Inevitably there are a host of articles on this subject at this time of year – but this one is exceptionally good…

SFSF Awards 2016 https://sfsfsocial.wordpress.com/2016/12/30/sfsf-awards-2016/ I looked down this list with approval and if you are wondering what good modern science fiction and fantasy books to next tackle, this is an excellent starting point.

My New High Maintenance Boss https://readlorigreer.com/2016/12/28/my-new-high-maintenance-boss/ This one had me chuckling with sympathy and recognition…

Space Features of the Week (25th December) http://earthianhivemind.net/2016/12/25/space-features-week-25-december/ Once again, Steph provides us with an excellent roundup of some of what is happening offplanet, complete with links.

Many thanks for visiting and taking the time and trouble to comment – and may you have a wonderful reading and blogging week. Happy New Year, everyone!