A Psalm for the Wild-Built (A Monk and Robot Book #1)

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers is the first book in the Monk and Robot series. 

Sibling Dex is a monk who is changing their job and planning to go on the road to offer tea service. After declining the optional training session, Dex is on the road with this Oxbike and trailer.

Tea Service is a ceremony where the monk parks, sets up a seating area and anyone can come and talk about their problems or ideas. At the end of the talk, the monk makes them a tea appropriate to the discussion / feelings expressed.

This is a part of Panga human culture centuries after the split between humans and robot. The land was divided fifty percent for humans and fifty percent for robots. 

When Sibling Dex decides that even the small villages are not as remote as they were hoping, they decide to try a pilgrimage to a former temple in the wilds.

Not too far off of the paved human road, Sibling Dex meets a robot! This is the first conversation between human and robot since the split. 

Chambers is a wonderful writer who brings humanity to her characters - regardless of species. This discussion between two very different beings illustrates what humans think of themselves versus what others might see. A beautiful book for all humans!

Chambers, Becky. (2021). A Psalm for the Wild-Built. New York: Tor.

Magic for Liars

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey is the story of Ivy Gamble being hired to solve a death at a high school for magic students - the same high school in which her sister teaches.

Ivy and her twin sister kinda went their separate ways when Tabitha started doing magic. You are either born with magic or you are not. Now Tabitha is a teacher at a prestigious magic school and Ivy is a hard-drinking private detective.

Ivy will have to investigate in a setting she does not understand. Her knowledge of magic is better than most, in that she knows it exists. But that is where her knowledge stops. She will have to decide who to trust to teach her as she interviews teachers and students to discover what happened to the woman who was divided in two in the library.

Gailey is a creative storyteller. Their books never go quite where you expect. If you need a book Sarah Gailey is always a great author to pick up.

Gailey, Sarah. (2019). Magic for Lairs. New York: Tor. 

The Forest of Vanishing Stars

The Forest of Vanishing Stars by Kristin Harmel is the story of survival in the greatest of odds. 

Stolen from a wealthy German couple, Yona is raised in the forest by an old woman. Jerusza teaches her how to survive on what the land provides, how to avoid other people, and how to kill if necessary.

In 941, Jerusza dies, leaving Yona alone. While she stay away from the villages on the edges of the forest, she is starting to encounter more people in the woods. After a while she decides to intervene to help a family of three who will not make it without some guidance on how to live in the forest. 

They tell her of the Nazis and their abhorrent attempt to kill all Jewish people. Yona decides to help the Jews refugees who escape from the ghettos and make it to her forest.  

Harmel is a master of historical fiction story telling. This is an amazing book with a strong lead character whom we could all learn something from. 

Harmel, Kristin. (2021). The Forest of Vanishing Stars. New York: Gallery Books.

A Desolation Called Peace (Teixcalaan #2)

A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine is the second book in the Teixcalaan empire science fiction series. 

Mahit Dzmare is the ambassador to Teixcalaan from the small Lsel Station, a nation floating in space untied to any planet. She is home after an emotional start to her job in the capital city planet of Teixcalaan. She is hoping to take a small break from the intensity of politics - only to find herself in danger from one of her counselors. 

Back in Teixcalaan, Three Seagrass has been promoted. When she gets a request from their starships at the front of a new war - a request for someone to try and understand the alien language - she assigns herself to the job. She plans to pick up Mahit Dzmare on her way, as the fighting is just outside Lsel space's jumpgate.

This second book is every bit as good as the first. Martine's series has quickly become one of my top three science fiction series of all time! Can't wait for more...

Martine, Arkady. (2021). A Desolation Called Peace. New York: Tor. 

The Sun is a Compass: My 4,000-Mile Journey into the Alaskan Wilds

The Sun is a Compass: My 4,000-Mile Journey into the Alaskan Wilds by Caroline Van Hemert is the story of two people traveling from Bellingham, Washington to the Arctic Circle, ending in Kotzebue wholly under their own power - rowing, skiing, paddling, hiking.

After finishing a degree in biology, that kept her in the lab so long that she needed a trip to remind her of her love of birds and nature. Joined by her husband, Pat, a builder who designed and built his first cabin in Alaska at nineteen, they came up with an ambitious route that they tackled in 2012.

Traveling through the Inside Passage, Coast Mountains, Yukon River, Yukon, Mackenzie Delta, Artic Coast, Brooks Range and Noatak River this was an incredible jouney.

Van Hemert includes information on the birds they see along the way, including the Roufus Hummingbird who has the longest documented migration, there is so much in this adventure for bird lovers. 

Van Hemert, Caroline. (2019). The Sun is a Compass. New York: Little, Brown Sparks. 

A Chain Across the Dawn (Universe After #2)

A Chain Across the Dawn by Drew Williams is the second book in the science fiction series Universe After. 

Jane and Esa, a girl she rescued who has joined her mission, travel the stars in search of children with a gift - running into trouble occasionally. 

Jane and Esa are headed to a planet that should have little higher technology. The pulse wiped out most of it. They arrive in the middle of a war - the three sects always battling each other. 

They are looking for a young Wulf pup who controls, maybe even produces electricity. Arriving in the middle of the fighting will reduce the time they have to get him and get out safely.

Williams has written some great characters in this series. Their story continues here, with some more hints to the overall universe and what may come next. Great science fiction, fast reading.

Williams, Drew. (2019). A Chain Across the Dawn. New York: Tor.