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.

The Hidden Place (Golem and Jinni #2)

The Hidden Place by Helene Wecker is the second historical fiction book featuring the Golem and the Jinni. This second book is every bit as wonderful as the first!

In the early 1900s Manhattan, there live (at least) two creatures passing themselves off as human - a golem who goes by Chava and works as a baker. And a jinni who works with metal in Little Syria, Ahmad. 

Both Chava and Ahmad have changed the lives of the humans around the for the better. Now it is time for their lives to change a bit, too. 

Sophia Winston lives on the upper edges of Central Park with her family. She has an illness that makes her very cold. She has told her parent that she is to travel to Europe to get better. They have hired two companions to accompany her - and report back to her parents. 

Wecker is an amazing writer. You will be captured on the first page and long for more when you complete both books. If you are only going to read one thing this year, start here. 

Wecker, Helene. (2021). The Hidden Place. New York: Harper.

With the Fire on High

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo is the story of

Emoni Santiago is a high school senior, mother of a three year old, who loves to cook and lives with her grandmother. She loves to cook. Her family and friends say they can feel the emotion she puts into her meals. 

While juggling all of responsibilities Emoni has to figure out what is next for her when she graduates. What is the best plan for her and her daughter.

When an unexpected elective offers her the chance to study under a real chef, she cannot pass it up. How she will raise the money for the end of the year trip to Italy is another question.

Acevedo has piled responsibility on this character. And Emoni is plenty smart and tough enough to handle it. She has decision to make that remind us that while you may not be able to have it all right now, there is more than one path to get to your dreams.

Acevedo, Elizabeth. (2019). With the Fire on High. New York: Quill Tree Books.

The Stars Now Unclaimed (Universe After #1)

The Stars Now Unclaimed by Drew Williams is the first book in the Universe After series, a fast-paced race through the galaxies. 

About 100 years ago, a pulse traveled across known space, knocking out technology as it went. No all planets were hit at the same level. Some sent back to pre-combustion engine and some left virtually untouched. The one positive side-effect is that the intergalactic wars came to a halt.

Another side effect, seems to be some children being both with a skill, or power, to do what the ordinary human cannot.

Jane Kamali is a pilot, soldier and agent for the Justified. Her role is to rescue children with special gifts - children who are often look upon with suspicion on the backwards planets. 

Jane has just arrived on a planet that has about old West technology. She is looking for a child, she doesn't yet know who. Her first stop is the local church - always a good place to pick up town gossip. 

Williams has created a fun series filled with different types of sentient being, in the feel of Becky Chambers, but set in a time of unease. The wars would not have stopped if the pulse had not stranded most spaceships where they were. This is a great, fast read with some wonderful characters. 

Williams, Drew. (2018). The Stars Now Unclaimed. New York: Tor. 

The Secret to Superhuman Strength

The Secret to Superhuman Strength by Alison Bechdel is an illustrated memoir of her life using exercise as the viewpoint.

After a book on her father and one on her mother, Bechdel tells of her relationship to exercise as both a way of being in shape, following the latest fads, and breaking the gender norms of her childhood.

She looks for enlightenment and the exercise for her in her usual light but poignant way. 

Bechdel is the master of the graphic novel form. It is a high art to be able to convey so much in each panel - limited by space that leads to such succinct dialog.  

Bechdel, Alison. (2021). The Secret to Superhuman Strength. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

The Best We Could Do

The Best We Could Do: An Illustrated Memoir by Thi Bui is a beautifully told story of her family history.

This is the story of a Vietnamese family from generations before the American war, to living in the United States to raise the next generation. 

Beginning with the birth of her first child - the first drawing is a very pregnant belly - Thi looks back at her family and their history as she takes on the role of teacher for the next generation. 

The history of Vietnam from colonization, war, politics to her family in a refugee camp and emigrating to the US, this is a beautifully told story of hardship and choices for a better life. 

This is an example of why immigration is beneficial to both the people leaving to start again, and the nation that receives their knowledge and different way of looking at things. Immigration makes a country stronger.

Bui, Thi. (2017). The Best We Could Do. New York: Abrams.

A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan #1)

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine is the first book in the Teixcalaan science fiction series. 

Mahit Dzmare is being sent from Lsel Station, a nation that exists in outer space on mining vessels, to the hungry empire of Teixcalaan - a political entity known for subsuming anyone who lives too close. 

Mahit was called with no notice to be ambassador. She doesn't know what happened to the previous ambassador Yskandr. She does have what is common in Lsel - an implant in her brain stem that allows her to access his knowledge. This is how whey pass knowledge on to the next generation. Unfortunately, Yskandr has not been back to update the information so she has no way of knowing the situation she is walking into.

When she arrives at the city-planet at the center of Emperor Six Direction's rule, she finds that Yskandr is dead. Her assigned liaison has trained her whole life to serve an ambassador, but Mahit is not sure who to trust. Three Seagrass has no idea what happened before her promotion but is willing to join Mahit in finding out - even if that means risking her life to do so.

This first book in the series is engaging, filled with political intrigue, confusion of the new ambassador, rumblings of a revolt against the emperor - everything a space opera should be and more. If you are a science fiction fan, read this!  

Martine, Arkady. (2019). A Memory Called Empire. New York: Tor.

Last Night at the Telegraph Club

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo is the story of a Chinese American young woman coming of as in 1950s San Francisco and balancing her budding lesbianism with her family culture. 

Seventeen year old Lily Hu lives in China town with her family. When at a friend's restaurant one evening, she sees in the paper an ad for a male impersonator. Her curiosity is piqued. Lily dreams of leaving the neighborhood where everyone knows her to explore other ways of life.

At classmate she has shared classes with but not often spoken to, Kathleen Miller, sees the newspaper clipping when Lily drops her book. Kath has seen that same ad, and the show it references.

Through shy hints and slowly opening up to each other, Lily and Kath find they have something in common. Their discovery is both exciting and dangerous - in the midst of the McCarthy era.

Lo is a wonderful writer, one of my favorites. She is a master as historical fiction. Read this book for a glimpse into our past. 

Lo, Malinda. (2021). Last Night at the Telegraph Club. New York: Dutton Books.

The Seed Keeper

The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson is the story of one woman's journey from foster care back to her Native American roots. 

Rosalie Iron Wing was twelve when her father died. Instead of looking for relatives, the state removed her from her tribe and placed her with a foster family hours from home. In her case, the foster family was only in it for the money and free labor, not to help a girl who lost her parent.

As Rosalie grows up, she has few encounters with other Lakota. One friend at school reminds her of a home that is fading from memory.

When Rosalie takes a job working in a corn field her senior year - in the hopes of saving money to move away on her eighteenth birthday - she recalls her father teaching her about plants near their cabin. This fertilizes a long dormant seed in her about her family and being Lakota.

I will admit I am biased in favor of any book about plants or animals, but The Seed Keeper is also an important look at the history of how the US and state governments treat Native Americans. 

Read-A-Like for plant lovers / gardeners The Overstory.

Wilson, Diane. (2021). The Seed Keeper. Canada: Milkweed Editions. 

The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree

The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree by Shokoofeh Azar is a beautiful tale of one family's difficult time during the Islamic revolution in Iran. Translated from Persian.

Narrated by Bahar, a thirteen year old ghost, we follow her family as they flee from Tehran for a small village in the forest. They build a house in the woods where they can continue to enjoy the now illegal music, books and intellectual freedom they had before the revolution.

In the chaos of the time they are only trying to go on living. While the violence of the time intrudes, the writing of this family tale is more folktale than horror story. Infused with magical realism, this based on real life tale, is poignant in our unstable times.

Azar and her translator have created a story that will quickly become a classic. Read this book for the beauty of an ancient culture trying to survive in the midst of political oppression.  

Azar, Shokoofeh. (2017). The Enlightenment of the Greengage Tree. NY: Europa Editions. 

The Disaster Tourist

The Disaster Tourist by Yun Ko-Eun, translated to English by Lizzie Buehler, is the story of a specialty travel agent.

Yona Ko works for a travel agency specializing in trips to disaster struck areas. Her job is to travel to places where an earthquake, tsunami, shooting, etc...happen. Then she creates a travel package for people wanting to visit them - either to feel like they are helping rebuild, or to tangentially experience a tragedy from safely after the fact.

When Yona needs a break from work, at a company where people don't take time off, her boss tells her to choose a travel package out of the lesser purchased ones; she can relax and evaluate the trip for contract renewal/cancellation.

The island nation of Mui, off of the coast of Vietnam, is famous only for the giant sink hole that has since filled with water and just looks like a lake. 

Yona's vacation is extended when she get separated from the group, her passport is stolen, and she cannot contact her agency to help. She ends up back on Mui in what seems to be a plan to bring more tourists.

The Disaster Tourist is a very unique story that will not end up where reader expect. This is Yun Ko-Eun's first book translated into English.

Ko-Eun, Yun. (2020). The Disaster Tourist. Berkley, CA: Counterpoint.

The Old Drift

The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell is both a family saga and the fictionalized history of Zambia. This genreblend combines historical fiction, magical realism, science fiction and more. 

In 1904 on the Zambezi River, an incident involving three families sets off a series of events/results that will effect five generations of offspring.

A British explorer, Percy has been in Africa for a few years and is suffering from delirium when he attends an evening at the new hotel on the River.

Giovanna is the daughter of the Italian hotel owner. Her actions that night cause a hex on her family.

N'gulube is injured that night and caught up in the fates.

This is an amazing book, both in scope and creativity. It has been hailed as the Heart of Darkness from the point of view of those invaded instead of from the colonizers. Serpell is a wonderful writer whose characters are endearing and wonderfully flawed. This book is sure to become a classic.

Serpell, Namwali, (2019). The Old Drift. New York: Hogarth.

The Consequences of Fear (Maisie Dobbs #16)

The Consequences of Fear by Jacqueline Winspear is her sixteenth book featuring the amazing Maisie Dobbs, private detective and psychologist. London, October 1941.

Freddie Hackett, a boy who runs messages through the blackout, witnesses a murder during a bombing raid. He then delivers his message to the same man he saw stab someone.

When the police do not believe him, Freddie goes to Maisie Dobb's office. He has run messages for her for her war work and knows she solves crimes. 

Winspear is a masterful writer whose research (including within her family history) makes for scenes in which you can feel the bombs drop. If you like mystery, historical fiction or just damn well written books, read this series. 

Winspear, Jacqueline. (2021). The Consequences of Fear. New York: Harper. 

Recipe for Love

Recipe for Love: A Farm to Table Romance by Aurora Rey is what happens when a New York City chef takes a job in the Finger Lakes region.

Drew Davis has accepted a job hours upstate to advance her career. Being head chef in the city is years off, but this job can jump her ahead. Even if she has to live in the middle of nowhere.

As part of her interview Drew is being sent to the farm to choose ingredients to make the restaurant owner dinner. 

Hannah Little is a farmer and the owner of 3 Willows Farms. Her product is beautiful and she loves farming. Though it doesn't leave her much time to date. 

Rey now has four books that take place in the upstate Finger Lakes area. I have enjoyed each one, though this might be the hottest one yet.

Rey, Aurora. (2019). Recipe for Love. Valley Falls, NY: Bold Strokes Books.

Infinite Country

Infinite Country by Patricia Engel is a book everyone should read. 

Talia, who is sixteen, has a week to get across Colombia back to Bogota to catch a plane to the United States. Her mother is finally sending for her to join her siblings in New Jersey.

Unfortunately, in order to get there, Talia has to break out of a school/prison and, with no money, get about one hundred miles.

Talia born in the US, but raised in Bogota by her grandmother and father. Her parents had traveled to the US for work and stayed past their visas - living in fear, taking underpaying and dangerous jobs with no protection from their employers. 

When her father was deported back to Columbia, there was no way for him to return to the US. Two of his three children born in a country he cannot visit, the third of who cannot come see him in Colombia.

Engel has written a family epic in a small book with a giant punch. This is a beautiful, heart-wrenching story of many families. Buy a copy today.

Engel, Patricia. (2021). Infinite Country. New York: Avid Reader Press.

The Vanishing Half

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett is the tale of twin sisters and their diverging lives. 

Stella and Desiree Vignes were born in Mallard, Louisiana in the 1950s. Most people born there stay their whole lives. 

At sixteen, their mother takes them out of school so they can help support the family. That is when they leave and move to New Orleans. From there they separate, creating very different lives for themselves.

Ten years later, Desiree moves back home, bringing her daughter Jude. She has not seen or herd from Stella in years. Desiree hires someone to track Stella to find out what happened to her.

Spanning forty years and the width of the United States, Bennett explores the history of passing, racism and identity in this beautiful family epic. 

Bennett, Brit (2020). The Vanishing Half. New York: Riverhead Books.

The Russian Cage (Gunnie Rose #3)

The Russian Cage by Charlaine Harris is her alternate history series featuring Gunnie Rose. Lizbeth Rose is a guard who, with a crew, guides people through the wilds of an altered United States.

Lizbeth gets a letter from her half-sister in the Holy Russian Empire (what we call California and Oregon) - a sister she only discovered months ago. On a second reading she notices a code.

Eli has been arrested. Eli's brother, a classmate of her sister, has been to see him but cannot find out why he is in jail. 

Lizbeth packs a bag, digs up some money and hops a train west. Once arriving in San Diego, she has to attempt to blend in - including not carrying her guns. 

Harris has created a wonderful genreblend - alternate history magic, western - which should surprise no one who is familiar with her Southern Vampire (aka True Blood) series. She is a great writer with an extra amount of imagination! I love this series!

Harris, Charlaine. (2021). The Russian Cage. New York: Saga Press.

The King's Justice (Maggie Hope #9)

The King's Justice by Susan Elia MacNeal is her ninth book in the Maggie Hope series - an historical mystery / espionage series lead by a wonderful character. 

Maggie has had many jobs since she moved to London - from secretary to Mr. Churchill, to espionage work, to helping Scotland Yard catch a sequential murderer. Now she just wants a break. 

Of course her idea of a break from that previous work is to join a bomb disposal unit. Her role being defusing the UXBs before they can explode. 

The man from Scotland Yard has other ideas. He wants her help, and to get her away from the UXBs. She can choose her case - either a new sequential killer who is putting human bones in suitcases in the Thames, or the theft of a Stradivarius violin. 

MacNeal's series is one of my favorite in any genre. This and Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs are equally the best of historical mystery.  

MacNeal, Susan Elia. (2020). The King's Justice. New York: Bantam Books.