Beyond Reality discussion

Let's hear what you're reading this month! All genres welcome!

I just finished reading When the Sparrow Falls which I did not really enjoy. I'm now happy to return to the world of Fae in The Becoming

Folktales of England by Katharine M. Briggs and Ruth L. Tongue

I finished The Long Cosmos and just loved it—a wonderful conclusion to the series. Stephen Baxter had to wrap up the book on his own after co-author Terry Pratchett’s death, although I think the book was pretty far along at that point. There were a few pages near the end that were very moving for me—yep, I was quietly sobbing—just touched me in a special way right now in my life.

Now I am way out of genre with Avalon by Anya Seton.

My goal for this month is to read the following:


Clean Sweep, Once Upon a River, Sweep in Peace, Skysworn, and Dark Matter, but not necessarily in that order.

I'm working on Project Hail Mary and The Space Between Worlds, both of which are captivating and vying for my attention. Out of genre, I'm reading or listening to Henry VIII: The King and His Court, Your Inner Fish: a Journey into the 3.5-Billion-Year History of the Human Body (which is fantastic so far), and Mothertrucker: Finding Joy on the Loneliest Road in America.

Questland by Carrie Vaughn

The Last Last-Day-of-Summer by Lamar Giles

Lindsey wrote: "I'm working on Project Hail Mary and The Space Between Worlds, both of which are captivating and vying for my attention."

The group read both of those last year - we never close our old threads, so if you feel like digging them up and commenting we'd love to hear what your thoughts are! I really loved them both.

Shel wrote: "Lindsey wrote: "I'm working on Project Hail Mary and The Space Between Worlds, both of which are captivating and vying for my attention."

The group read both of those last year - we never close our old threads, so if you feel like digging them up and commenting we'd love to hear what your thoughts are! I really loved them both."

Thanks for the heads up! I will check those threads out as soon as I'm finished reading them. I feel like they both have a LOT to discuss. I'm happy to be reading both with IRL book clubs so I can do some processing out loud!

For those who are interested, this year's Hugo Nominees have just been announced:

Best Novel
• A Desolation Called Peace, by Arkady Martine (Tor)
• The Galaxy, and the Ground Within, by Becky Chambers
(Harper Voyager / Hodder & Stoughton)
• Light From Uncommon Stars, by Ryka Aoki (Tor / St Martin’s Press)
• A Master of Djinn, by P. Djèlí Clark (Tordotcom / Orbit UK)
• Project Hail Mary, by Andy Weir (Ballantine / Del Rey)
• She Who Became the Sun, by Shelley Parker-Chan (Tor / Mantle)

Best Novella
• Across the Green Grass Fields, by Seanan McGuire (Tordotcom)
• Elder Race, by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Tordotcom)
• Fireheart Tiger, by Aliette de Bodard (Tordotcom)
• The Past Is Red, by Catherynne M. Valente (Tordotcom)
• A Psalm for the Wild-Built, by Becky Chambers (Tordotcom)
• A Spindle Splintered, by Alix E. Harrow (Tordotcom)

Best Novelette
• “Bots of the Lost Ark”, by Suzanne Palmer (Clarkesworld, Jun 2021)
• “Colors of the Immortal Palette”, by Caroline M. Yoachim (Uncanny Magazine, Mar/Apr 2021)
• L’Esprit de L’Escalier, by Catherynne M. Valente (Tordotcom)
• “O2 Arena”, by Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki (Galaxy's Edge, Nov 2021)
• “That Story Isn't the Story”, by John Wiswell (Uncanny Magazine, Nov/Dec 2021)
• “Unseelie Brothers, Ltd.”, by Fran Wilde (Uncanny Magazine, May/Jun 2021)

Best Short Story
• “Mr. Death”, by Alix E. Harrow (Apex Magazine, Feb 2021)
• “Proof by Induction”, by José Pablo Iriarte
(Uncanny Magazine, May/Jun 2021)
• “The Sin of America”, by Catherynne M. Valente
(Uncanny Magazine, Mar/Apr 2021)
• “Tangles”, by Seanan McGuire
(Magicthegathering.com: Magic Story, Sep 2021)
• “Unknown Number”, by Blue Neustifter (Twitter, Jul 2021)
• “Where Oaken Hearts Do Gather”, by Sarah Pinsker
(Uncanny Magazine, Mar/Apr 2021)

Best Series
• The Green Bone Saga, by Fonda Lee (Orbit)
• The Kingston Cycle, by C. L. Polk (Tordotcom)
• Merchant Princes, by Charles Stross (Macmillan)
• Terra Ignota, by Ada Palmer (Tor Books)
• Wayward Children, by Seanan McGuire (Tordotcom)
• The World of the White Rat, by T. Kingfisher (Ursula Vernon)
(Argyll Productions)

Best Graphic Story or Comic
• DIE, vol. 4: Bleed, written by Kieron Gillen, art by Stephanie Hans, lettering by Clayton Cowles (Image)
• Far Sector, written by N.K. Jemisin, art by Jamal Campbell (DC)
• Lore Olympus, vol. 1, by Rachel Smythe (Del Rey)
• Monstress, vol. 6: The Vow, written by Marjorie Liu, art by Sana Takeda (Image)
• Once & Future, vol. 3: The Parliament of Magpies, written by Kieron Gillen, illustrated by Dan Mora, colored by Tamra Bonvillain (BOOM!)
• Strange Adventures, written by Tom King, art by Mitch Gerads and Evan “Doc” Shaner (DC)

Best Related Work
• Being Seen: One Deafblind Woman’s Fight to End Ableism,
by Elsa Sjunneson (Tiller Press)
• The Complete Debarkle: Saga of a Culture War,
by Camestros Felapton (Camestros Felapton)
• Dangerous Visions and New Worlds: Radical Science Fiction, 1950 to 1985, edited by Andrew Nette and Iain McIntyre (PM Press)
• “How Twitter can ruin a life”, by Emily St. James (Vox, Jun 2021)
• Never Say You Can't Survive, by Charlie Jane Anders (Tordotcom)
• True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee, by Abraham Riesman (Crown)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form
• Dune, screenplay by Jon Spaihts, Denis Villeneuve, and Eric Roth; directed by Denis Villeneuve; based on the novel Dune by Frank Herbert (Warner Bros / Legendary Entertainment)
• Encanto, screenplay by Charise Castro Smith and Jared Bush; directed by Jared Bush, Byron Howard, and Charise Castro Smith (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• The Green Knight, written and directed by David Lowery (BRON Studios/A24)
• Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, screenplay by Dave Callaham, Destin Daniel Cretton, Andrew Lanham; directed by Destin Daniel Cretton (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
• Space Sweepers, written and directed by Jo Sung-hee (Bidangil Pictures)
• WandaVision, screenplay by Peter Cameron, Mackenzie Dohr, Laura Donney, Bobak Esfarjani, Megan McDonnell, Jac Schaeffer (created by and head writer), Cameron Squires, Gretchen Enders, Chuck Hayward; directed by Matt Shakman (Disney+)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form
• The Wheel of Time: The Flame of Tar Valon, written by Justine Juel Gillmer, directed by Salli Richardson-Whitfield, based on The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan (Amazon Studios)
• For All Mankind: The Grey, written by Matt Wolpert and Ben Nedivi; directed by Sergio Mimica-Gezzan (Tall Ship Productions/Sony Pictures Television)
• Arcane: The Monster You Created, written by Christian Linke and Alex Yee; story by Christian Linke, Alex Yee, Conor Sheehy, and Ash Brannon; directed by Pascal Charrue and Arnaud Delord (Netflix)
• The Expanse: Nemesis Games, written by Daniel Abraham, Ty Franck, and Naren Shankar; directed by Breck Eisner (Amazon Studios)
• Loki: The Nexus Event, written by Eric Martin, directed by Kate Herron, created for television by Michael Waldron (Disney+)
• Star Trek: Lower Decks: wej Duj, written by Kathryn Lyn, directed by Bob Suarez (CBS Eye Animation Productions)

Best Editor, Short Form
• Neil Clarke
• Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki
• Mur Lafferty & S.B. Divya
• Jonathan Strahan
• Sheree Renée Thomas
• Sheila Williams

Best Editor, Long Form
• Ruoxi Chen
• Nivia Evans
• Sarah T. Guan
• Brit Hvide
• Patrick Nielsen Hayden
• Navah Wolfe

Best Professional Artist
• Tommy Arnold
• Rovina Cai
• Ashley Mackenzie
• Maurizio Manzieri
• Will Staehle
• Alyssa Winans

Best Semiprozine
• Beneath Ceaseless Skies, editor Scott H. Andrews
• Escape Pod, editors S.B. Divya, Mur Lafferty, and Valerie Valdes; assistant editors Benjamin C. Kinney and Premee Mohamed; guest editor Brent C. Lambert; hosts Tina Connolly and Alasdair Stuart; audio producers Summer Brooks and Adam Pracht; and the entire Escape Pod team
• FIYAH Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction, publisher Troy L Wiggins; executive editor DaVaun Sanders; managing editor Eboni Dunbar; poetry editor B. Sharise Moore; reviews editor and social media manager Brent Lambert; art director L. D. Lewis; web editor Chavonne Brown; non-fiction editor Margeaux Weston; guest editors Summer Farah and Nadia Shammas; acquiring editors Kaleb Russell, Rebecca McGee, Kerine Wint, Joshua Morley, Emmalia Harrington, Genine Tyson, Tonya R. Moore, Danny Lore; technical assistant Nelson Rolon
• PodCastle, co-editors Jen R. Albert, C. L. Clark, Shingai Njeri Kagunda, and Eleanor R. Wood; assistant editors Summer Fletcher and Sofía Barker; audio producer Peter Adrian Behravesh; host Matt Dovey; and the entire PodCastle team
• Strange Horizons, Vanessa Aguirre, Joseph Aitken, Kwan-Ann Tan, Rachel Ayers, M H Ayinde, Tierney Bailey, Scott Beggs, Drew Matthew Beyer, Gautam Bhatia, Tom Borger, S. K. Campbell, Emma Celi, Zhui Ning Chang, Rita Chen, Tania Chen, Liz Christman, Emma-Grace Clarke, Linda H. Codega, Kristian Wilson Colyard, Bruhad Dave, Sarah Davidson, Tahlia Day, Arinn Dembo, Belen Edwards, Rebecca Evans, Ciro Faienza, Courtney Floyd, Lila Garrott, Guananí Gómez-Van Cortright, Colette Grecco, Julia Gunnison, Dan Hartland, Sydney Hilton, Angela Hinck, Amanda Jean, Jamie Johnson, Sean Joyce-Farley, Erika Kanda, Kat Kourbeti, Catherine Krahe, Anna Krepinsky, Clayton Kroh, Natasha Leullier, Dante Luiz, Gui Machiavelli, Cameron Mack, Samantha Manaktola, Marisa Manuel, Jean McConnell, Heather McDougal, Maria Morabe, Amelia Moriarty, Sarah Noakes, Aidan Oatway, AJ Odasso, Joel Oliver-Cormier, Kristina Palmer, Karintha Parker, Anjali Patel, Juliana Pinho, Nicasio Reed, Belicia Rhea, Abbey Schlanz, Elijah Rain Smith, Alyn Spector, Hebe Stanton, Melody Steiner, Romie Stott, Yejin Suh, Sonia Sulaiman, Ben Tyrrell, Renee Van Siclen, Kathryn Weaver, Liza Wemakor, Aigner Loren Wilson, E.M. Wright, Vicki Xu, and The Strange Horizons Editorial Collective
• Uncanny Magazine, publishers and editors-in-chief Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas; managing/poetry editor Chimedum Ohaegbu; nonfiction editor Elsa Sjunneson; podcast producers Erika Ensign & Steven Schapansky

Best Fanzine
• The Full Lid, by Alasdair Stuart and Marguerite Kenner
• Galactic Journey, founder Gideon Marcus; editor Janice L. Newman; associate writers Gwyn Conaway, Jason Sacks, and John Boston
• Journey Planet, edited by Erin Underwood, Jean Martin, Sara Felix, Vanessa Applegate, Chuck Serface, Errick Nunnally, Evan Reeves, Steven H Silver, James Bacon and Christopher J Garcia
• Quick Sip Reviews, editor Charles Payseur
• Small Gods, Lee Moyer (Icon) and Seanan McGuire (Story)
• Unofficial Hugo Book Club Blog, editors Amanda Wakaruk and Olav Rokne

Best Fancast
• Be The Serpent, presented by Alexandra Rowland, Freya Marske, and Jennifer Mace
• The Coode Street Podcast, presented by Jonathan Strahan and Gary K. Wolfe, Jonathan Strahan producer
• Hugo, Girl!, hosts Haley Zapal, Amy Salley, and Lori Anderson; producer/editor Kevin Anderson
• Octothorpe, by John Coxon, Alison Scott, and Liz Batty
• Our Opinions Are Correct, presented by Annalee Newitz and Charlie Jane Anders, produced by Veronica Simonetti
• Worldbuilding for Masochists, presented by Cass Morris, Rowenna Miller, and Marshall Ryan Maresca

Best Fan Writer
• Chris M. Barkley
• Bitter Karella
• Alex Brown
• Cora Buhlert
• Jason Sanford
• Paul Weimer

Best Fan Artist
• Iain J. Clark
• Lorelei Esther
• Sara Felix
• Ariela Housman
• Nilah Magruder
• Lee Moyer

Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book
• Chaos on CatNet, by Naomi Kritzer (Tor Teen)
• Iron Widow, by Xiran Jay Zhao (Penguin Teen / Rock the Boat)
• The Last Graduate, by Naomi Novik (Del Rey Books)
• Redemptor, by Jordan Ifueko (Amulet Books / Hot Key Books)
• A Snake Falls to Earth, by Darcie Little Badger (Levine Querido)
• Victories Greater Than Death, by Charlie Jane Anders (Tor Teen / Titan)

Astounding Award for Best New Writer
• Tracy Deonn (2nd year of eligibility)
• Micaiah Johnson (2nd year of eligibility)
• A.K. Larkwood (2nd year of eligibility)
• Everina Maxwell (1st year of eligibility)
• Shelley Parker-Chan (1st year of eligibility)
• Xiran Jay Zhao (1st year of eligibility)

I hope A DESOLATION CALLED PEACE gets it!!

I finished Sea of Rust a few days ago (have added my thoughts to the discussion thread) and wanted something a little different before picking up another SF, so last night I started The Night Bird, a mystery/thriller which has been languishing unread on my kindle for a very long time. It's quite gripping so far!

Chance Encounters: Temporary Street Art by David Zinn

I read Avalon by Anya Seton, 7/10, a well-researched historical fiction, and then returned to The Dagger and The Coin series with The Widow's House by Daniel Abraham, also 7/10. This book is somewhat of a lull in the overall series. Yes, the various plot threads move forward, and there are some surprises, but I just didn’t feel as enthralled as I did when reading the previous books. I do have high hopes for the conclusion of the series, though.

Now I’m starting The Enduring Flame series by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory. Book 1 is The Phoenix Unchained. I read the series that precedes this (the Obsidian trilogy) many years ago and since this was on my shelf, I decided to give it a go. I’ve always enjoyed Lackey’s books.

I remember enjoying the Obsidian trilogy quite a bit, but never continued with the sequel series. Looking forward to your report!

Edit: just kidding, I have The Phoenix Unchained on my shelves, apparently I did read it and rated it 3 stars. Must not have been very memorable?

Shel wrote: "Edit: just kidding, I have The Phoenix Unchained on my shelves, apparently I did read it and rated it 3 stars. Must not have been very memorable?"

We’ll see. It feels pretty traditional so far but I’m enjoying it.

Odd Magics: Tales for the Lost by Sarah A. Hoyt

I loved The Becoming and look forward to the final volume; I'm now reading The Darkness Outside Us

Shel wrote: "Edit: just kidding, I have The Phoenix Unchained on my shelves, apparently I did read it and rated it 3 stars. Must not have been very memorable?"

Well, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The two main characters, Tiercel and Harrier, have a “bantering best buddies” kind of relationship that lays the foundation for their adventures. Yes, it’s a quest of sorts, and yes, these are ordinary young men unexpectedly called to be heroes and no, they don’t exactly know how to do that. There are many typical fantasy creatures—elves, centaurs, dragons, etc.—so I suppose some people might find the story a bit too predictable, but there were enough original elements to keep things fresh. I was entertained and am looking forward to continuing the series.

I finished The Darkness Outside Us which I enjoyed and recommend; now starting The Glass Hotel

Light Unto Another World: Volume 1 by Yakov Merkin

I finished Dark Matter yesterday and am still thinking about it! I have The Uplift War handy for the next installment of the series read, but I think I'm going to read something else before starting it. Not sure what, but I usually tend not to read two of the same genre in a row. I'm kind of in the mood to re-read an old favorite but I'm not sure which one.

Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism by Benedict Anderson

Nyssa wrote: "My goal for this month is to read the following:
Clean Sweep, Once Upon a River, Sweep in Peace, Skysworn, and Dark Matter, but not necessarily in that order.."

I completed Clean Sweep (5 Stars) & Skysworn (4 Stars).

I just started Once Upon a River earlier this evening, and I am already enjoying it!

I might have to push Dark Matter to the beginning of May if you guys allow BotM discussions to continue after the "due date."

Nyssa wrote: "I might have to push Dark Matter to the beginning of May if you guys allow BotM discussions to continue after the "due date."

We leave all book discussion topic threads open for comments so people can read what others said and add their own comments whenever they like. I have gone back to some discussion topic threads many months later to add my comments. Older Book of the Month discussion topic threads are in the “Previous BotM—DISCUSSIONS” folder..

Thank you, Kathi! :)

I zipped through a re-read of Soulless by Gail Carriger (first book of the Parasol Protectorate series, which are utterly delightful and I recommend them to everyone) and now I've started The Uplift War for the series read.

I finished The Phoenix Unchained and The Phoenix Endangered by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory, both 8/10. They are somewhat traditional fantasy books, with unprepared and reluctant “ordinary” characters thrust into heroic roles, but the stories flow right along and I am finding them enjoyable. One more book in this trilogy and then a Duology that takes place before both this and the earlier trilogy set in this world.

I also read Flesh and Blood by Patricia Cornwell, 8/10. I had sworn to stop reading the Kay Scarpetta books but the last couple were quite good. I have one more on my shelf, but then I’m quitting for sure.

Reversible Errors by Scott Turow was also in this month’s reading batch. This is part of Turow’s Kindle County books—each a stand-alone with some carry-over characters from book to book. 9/10.

A couple short books—The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling (6/10) and North to Paradise by Ousman Umar, also 6/10. The former is a book I gave my grandniece for Christmas and she wanted to lend it to me at Easter since I’d told her how much I enjoyed the Harry Potter books. The latter was a free Amazon “Read the World” book, a memoir of a migrant from Ghana to Spain. The story is horrific in many ways, yet full of perseverance and hope, but somehow the spare, plain prose robbed it of much of the emotional impact it could/should have, at least for me.

I also finished The Dagger and the Coin series with The Spider's War by Daniel Abraham, 10/10. Highly recommend this series!

I am now reading Waking Up White: And Finding Myself in the Story of Race by Debby Irving. Doing a bit of self-reflection as I read.

I ended up abandoningThe Glass Hotel and one other book before settling on The Long Earth which I enjoyed; I see the next book in the series is only available as an ebook at my library, so I guess I'll read that on my next trip. I've started Good Behavior

Christine wrote: "I ended up abandoningThe Glass Hotel and one other book before settling on The Long Earth which I enjoyed; I see the next book in the series is only available as an ..."

I’ll be interested in your comments as you work through the Long Earth series. I recently finished the last book in the series.

Kathi wrote: "Christine wrote: "I ended up abandoningThe Glass Hotel and one other book before settling on The Long Earth which I enjoyed; I see the next book in the series is onl..."
I enjoyed the first one, but don't know when I'll get around to reading the next one. I get all my books from my library and the second book is only available digitally-I prefer to read books except when travelling

Currently rereading The Lady of the Sorrows. I read this series years ago and remember really liking it. However, this book occurs mostly at court and I prefer the adventures before and after it. Still good so far.

Also reading Log Horizon, Vol. 5: A Sunday in Akiba. I've always liked the world building in this series but it's actually starting to feel a little slow. Currently in the middle of a chapter about a young girl discovering she's in love.

Currently reading Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse, the sequel to Black Sun which I absolutely loved. It was just released last week and I managed to snag one of the first library copies. This world is based on ancient Meso-American cultures and is gorgeously drawn.

Monster Punk Horizon by H.P. Holo

I wrapped up The Enduring Flame trilogy with The Phoenix Transformed by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory, 8.5/10. Yes, a pretty traditional fantasy, but I liked the desert setting, culture of the tribes, and the two kinds of magic. I thought the characters were engaging and they certainly underwent some major changes over the course of 3 books.
EDITED TO ADD: There should have been maps!

Next up for me is book 1 of Green Bone series, Jade City by Fonda Lee. I am reading it for a different Goodreads group. I hadn’t planned on joining the discussion but there was a deal on book 1 as an ebook and, of course, I had to buy books 2 & 3 as well!

Glad you finished the Dagger and the Coin series and also highly recommend it (I agree!) I’m definitely looking forward to Abraham’s new series which starts with AGE OF ASH.

So, I set Once Upon a River aside because I got pulled into Sweep in Peace but could not get back into OUaR. I'll have to give myself a minute to reset and then try it again.
I am now reading one of our May BotM selections - Under the Whispering Door.

I've started In an Absent Dream which I am enjoying