Seis de mayo

[rolanni]

So, the text of the talk I delivered at Ravencon is online, for your viewing pleasure.  Here's your link.

Steve is shortly on his way to Portland to partake of the secret delights offered by the Maine State Democratic Convention; I will join him there tomorrow to do my duty as a delegate for Bernie Sanders.  Today, with luck and tailwind, I will finish the first draft of the story that's due on May 15.

In the meantime, I am soliciting recommendations for novels that are. . .light-hearted. They don't have to be comedies, but they do have to be. . .soothing and generally uplifting -- along the lines of The Goblin King, or Uprooted.  I foresee finishing Karen Memory (which I'm enjoying very much) this weekend, and the books remaining on my TBR pile lean somewhat toward the Grim and Improving, which is not what I need to read right now.

And, now?  I am turning the internet off, in order to get with the as-yet nameless short story.

Everybody have a fun-filled Friday, 'k?

Comments

[cgbookcat1.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Soothing and generally uplifting? Seanan McGuire's InCryptid books, Marie Brennan's Natural History of Dragons books, Barbara Hambly's Bride of the Rat God, Emma Bull's Territory, Laura Anne Gilman's Silver on the Road, Fran Wilde's Updraft, Jo Walton's Lifelode, Karen Lord's Best of All Possible Worlds, Liz Williams' Inspector Chen series, Wrede and Stevermer's The Enchanted Chocolate Pot, Tanya Huff's Enchantment Emporium series, or Ursula Vernon's (as T. Kingfisher) recent fairytale retellings (Bryony and Roses, The Raven and the Reindeer, Seventh Bride) might all work.

Sharon Shinn's Twelve Houses series or Ilona Andrews Burn for Me might fit if you want a more romantic setting,

Diane Duane's Young Wizards series is also excellent, if you don't mind young protagonists. I still re-read them in my thirties due to their overall optimistic focus.

[sb-moof.livejournal.com]

I can second the Marie Brennan Natural History of Dragons.

I also like Spencer Quinn's Chet and Bernie mysteries (Dog On It is the first). Light hearted, written from the dog's POV. Fair warning - cats are not portrayed in a positive light. :-)

[catlinye-maker.livejournal.com]

I really liked The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, for some of the same reasons I like The Goblin Emperor: while there's a lot going on in macro-scale, the story focuses on the interpersonal. Also recommend MCA Hogarth's Mindhealers series, two books and a bunch of short stories. Her Spots the Space Marine is good on that front too, and I liked the style (written like a script) once I got used to it.

Oh! Seeing Patricia Wrede in the comments above; her Frontier Magic series (trilogy) is a lovely example of uplifting and cozy. Interesting alternate U.S. history, complete with cool magic systems and a great protagonist.

[catlinye-maker.livejournal.com]

I should really learn to wait five minutes before posting my top-of-head recommendations. Every time, I want to go back and add to what’s been written in haste.

Also recommended as uplifting: the Phryne Fisher mysteries, by Kerry Greenwood. Mysteries are good in general wrt upbeatness, because in most of them (at least the ones I like to read), justice prevails and the evil are punished at the end. These books are good examples of the breed; the first was a bit of a slog but I was happy I persevered. Pets and children are rescued with regularity, the protagonist’s household is harmonious, the author’s version of 20’s Australia is interesting, and the protagonist is a Rich Girl ™ with a heart of gold.

Phryne Fisher is also a TV series – I haven’t seen the series but I believe it differs from the books in some notable ways.

Also good for comfort reading is The Comfortable Courtesan, a serial on Dreamwidth here: the-comfortable-courtesan.dreamwidth.org. Tone-perfect Regency diarist, detailing the adventures of Madame C-C and all of her last-initial friends and acquaintances in the Ton. This one has quite a bit of back issues to read – they’ve been collected in volumes readable with Google, and it’s totally worth figuring out how to read them in order to be spared paging back through the reverse-order posts. I recommend starting at the beginning – the series has improved over time but I think it would be hard to follow if you come in in the middle.

[reedrover]

Are you looking for a particular genre? In my recently read or re-read list, I could recommend the following:

Children's books - Castle Hangnail, Nurk: The Strange, Surprising Adventures of a (Somewhat) Brave Shrew, and Harriett the Invincible by Ursula Vernon

Adult books - Lumby Lines by Gail Fraser
When Demons Walk - Patricia Briggs

Everybody dance now - Zen Pencils: Cartoon Quotes from Inspirational Folks, by Gavin Aung Than

[romsfuulynn.livejournal.com]

Well, I had separately come up with the Seanan McGuire InCriptid books and they are great.. and I'd second a lot of what people have recommended.

Thea Harrison's Elder Races books - start with Dragon Bound - the heroine steals a penny from a dragon's hoard, under duress. There are a bunch of them and lots of different magical/mythical creatures.

I like Robyn Carr's contemporaries. Either the Virgin River series or the Thunder Point series, Sullivan's Crossing series. Straight small town fiction series.

Lucy Parker's Act Like It. A premise you've seen a bunch of times, and yet carried out REALLY well. An early quote "Christ, we've only been here for five minutes. It's like being stuck in the Tardis. Time has lost all meaning." He turned away to ditch his cocktail glass, thus missing Lainie's gobsmacked expression. A Doctor Who reference from her second-least-favorite person? Wonders never ceased.”

Anything by Rose Lerner. Historicals

Anything by Courtney Milan. Also historicals. (And one contemporary._

Also second Marie Brennan.

[mbernardi]

For a few less well known tales; The Noctis Magicae series by Sylvia Izzo Hunter - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrill meets Harry Potter at Graduate school, with kings and princesses.
Somewhat fluffier the Fantasy and Forensics series by Michael Angel - Narnia meets CSI - the first one is free for amazon kindle

[kalimeg.livejournal.com]

Night Calls by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel. Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews. Burn for me by Ilona Andrews. Good, definitely. Soothing? For some values of soothe. And here is another vote for the InCryptid books. They also have a pile of associated short works on McGuire's web site.

[countrygirlxxoo.livejournal.com]

If you aren't adverse to a gay romantic fantasy, T.J. Klune's The Lightning-Struck Heart is so very excellent. It took me several days longer than usual to read it because I had to stop after every 3 or 4 chapters because I had given myself a headache from laughing so hard. He has also written some hilarious contemporary gay romances Tell Me It's Real, The Queen and the Homo Jock King, and How To Be A Normal Person. I love everything he's written, and let me tell you that he can wring your emotions from the very low to the very high (his Bear, Otter, and The Kid series). He's also written serious fantasy/scifi works (Into This River I Drown, Withered + Sere, and Burn). He publishes through Dreamspinner Press, but his stuff is on Amazon and other retailers as well. He also has a blog, and he's put up several free stories that expand on several of his works so you can get an idea if you like his writing. http://tjklunebooks.blogspot.com/?zx=8c0ecbfa86f29819

Amy Lane is another excellent writer. She has written the gamut from scifi, fantasy, contemporary, gay, heterosexual, rock stars, athletes, historical superheroes (a Batman type), fairy tales, vampires-werewolves-elves-angels-psy talented oh my (all in one series), light-hearted, grim...she does everything well. She is also at Dreamspinner and Amazon. Here's her blog: http://writerslane.blogspot.com/

[otterb.livejournal.com]

I didn't find Uprooted very soothing at all but I loved The Goblin Emperor.

I'll second the recommendations above for The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chalmers and for anything by Ursula Vernon, either the kids' books under her own name or the others as T. Kingfisher (though the Kingfisher ones can tilt a little dark, so I'd opt for Castle Hangnail myself).

And an older Diane Duane, Stealing the Elf-King's Roses.

And Martha Wells. I love her Raksura series (begins with The Cloud Roads) but my top re-read of hers is Wheel of the Infinite - an older heroine with an attitude, a landscape more like fantasy-Cambodia than faux-medieval-Europe

And normally I'd list Janet Kagan, but you just posted about her a couple of days ago, so no need to do that. :-)

Books to read

[susan h beaty (from livejournal.com)]

Loved The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, the Katharine Eliska Kimbriel Night Calls, and Sharon Shinn's Angels books as well as her Twelve Houses series.

[attilathepbnun.livejournal.com]

I second Marie Brennan's Lady Trent dragon books, and the Seanan McGuire's InCryptid books --- she also offers several InCryptid long short stories on her website, for free!!

Ilona Andrews has two ... short novels? Clean Sweep and Sweep in Peace, that are terrific! I keep on checking for a new one ...

There's also a mystery writer, Donna Andrews, who is also great! Her main character Meg Langslow is a blacksmith, and the books all have a bird in the title ... Murder With Peacocks, Murder With Puffins, The Revenge of the Wrought-Iron Flamingos .....

And Bride of the Rat God is so good I bought the ebook just so I don't wear the cover off my paperback!

[cgbookcat1.livejournal.com]

There is a 3rd book, being published as a serial on their website (One Fell Sweep). They usually update on Fridays, and when the book is done it gets revised and officially published.

[attilathepbnun.livejournal.com]

Aaah!*runs to website*
*runs back to offer cgbookcat1 hugs and chocolate*
*runs back to website*

[melita66.livejournal.com]

Second (or third) recommendations for Martha Wells and Patricia Wrede. I also a great fan of Wells's Raksura series and Wheel of the Infinite. Maskelle's great! I often reread Wrede's A Matter of Magicwhich is an omnibus of Mairelon the Magician and Magician's Ward. It feels almost like it's in the same world as Wrede and Stevermer's Enchanted Chocolate Pot series. Stevermer's A Scholar of Magics has appealing characters and is a indirect sequel to A College of Magics.

When I think of "humanistic" writers, I also think of Diane Duane (although she does characters with psychological trauma) and Nina Kiriki Hoffman. Zenna Henderson, too, of course, but there are no legal ebooks.

In the last year or so, I've enjoyed books by L. Shelby (Across the Jade Sea) and Melissa McShane.

I just started rereading Fair's Point by Melissa Scott which is an interesting series. I don't think I'd suggest starting there but probably with Point of Hopes.

The Dubious Hills by Pamela Dean is now out in ebook.

[6-penny.livejournal.com]

'Mclendons Syndrome' by Robert Frezza.
Seconding the 13th child trilogy. And my favorite comfort and giggle read: 'Three Men in a Boat' by Jerome K Jerome. One of the best funny books in the English language for the last 100+ years.

Light Reading suggestions

[ireneha.livejournal.com]

Well I always go back to Connie Willis NOT TO MENTION THE DOG.

Then if you have not found Donna Andrews start with the first bird book MURDER WITH PEACOCKS
Farce done rather well. But for some of the best lines, you will have to continue on with her 20 odd books.

I've been purchasing a lot of these in ebooks. But foolishly purchased the latest Carola Dunn in Hard Cover.

RE: Light Reading suggestions

[ireneha.livejournal.com]

Oops and apologies Connie Willis TO SAY NOTHING OF THE DOG
Did I mention that you should have THREE MEN IN A BOAT, in one hand and TO SAY NOTHING OF THE DOGin the other? Connie Willis based he book on the full title of
Jerome K Jerome THREE MEN IN A BOAT To say nothing of the Dog!

My favorite Margery Allingham is THE FEAR SIGN

[hairmonger.livejournal.com]

I'm taking notes of what I haven't tried above.
Heather Rose Jones, Daughter of Mystery, and The Mystic Marriage. Post-Napoleonic Ruritania with magic.

[baobrien.livejournal.com]

I have been re-reading the latest Lois McMaster Bujold title - Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen. Something about the characters and choices made, as well as the lovely over-50 romance, really speaks to me. I agree with many of the other recommendations, especially the Goblin Emperor.
Barbara

[quotidian-c.livejournal.com]

Zen Cho's Sorcerer to the Crown - fun postcolonial regency fantasy. Cho's romance novella and short story collection would also fit the bill

Stephanie Burgis' Kat, Incorrigible - a middle grade regency fantasy romp. I also enjoyed her recent adult book, but it's much darker.

In mysteries, the Agatha Raisin series by MC Beaton. If you're an audiobook person, the recordings with Penelope Keith as narrator are good.

Thinking of audiobooks, Lenny Henry's recording of Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys is excellent and is light hearted.

[marzipanmuffin.livejournal.com]

Some light-hearted, uplifting books in addition to the wonderful recommendations above (my tbr is growing accordingly):

Barry Hughart: The Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox

Fantasy
Margaret Ball: Lost in Translation, No Earthly Sunne
Frank Tuttle: All the Paths of Shadow
Wen Spencer - Elfhome: Tinker
not exactly light-hearted, but I find them uplifting:
P.C. Hodgell – Kencyrath: Godstalk

Romance (historical)
Sherwood Smith: Danse de la Folie, Rondo Allegro
Madeleine Robins: My dear Jenny, Althea, Lady John, The Heiress Companion, The Spanish Marriage

Mystery (Golden Age)
Death on the Cherwell, and quite a nice lot of re-issues from the „British Crime Library“
R.Austin Freeman – Dr. Thorndyke Mysteries

Mystery (cozy, screwball comedy)
Phoebe Atwood Taylor/ Alice Tilton – Leonidas Witherall: Beginning With A Bash

Mystery:
Sarah Caudwell: Thus was Adonis Murdered
Josephine Tey (can be found at Project Gutenberg Australia, http://gutenberg.net.au/plusfifty-n-z.html#letterT)
Earl Derr Biggers - Charlie Chan (http://gutenberg.net.au/plusfifty-a-m.html#letterB)

[enleve.livejournal.com]

The Far Time Incident by Neve Maslakovic is a time travel mystery with a relatively realistic depiction of academia. I enjoyed listening to Mary Robinette Kowal narrate the audiobook of it.

If you don't mind the romance genre, Midnight Crystal by Jayne Castle makes me smile when I read it. I think it is because of all of the things the main character gets to do - save her love interest's sister, discover new things in the underworld, and so on. It did not annoy me. Many romance novels do.