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Books
Ben Aaronovitch: Moon over Soho
Do you know my favourite bit of this book? At the end, when they've identificed the jazz vampires, and Peter went and tried to warn them that his superior and his soldier-team was coming to kill them, and afterwards Nightingale tries to yell at Peter - and Peter stands up to him and yells (well, doesn't yell, but you get the idea) at him right back, challenging Nightingale's whole approach to killing scary supernatural creatures without any authority but his own, without as much as a day in court. See, that's the sort of thing I want more of in urban fantasy - Peter makes a very, very good point. An even better point when you remember this is not set in the US, but in England, a country that doesn't have the death penalty for anything. I love that this series seems to be willing to at least try.
Kelley Armstrong: Bitten
So, I got hold of this while I still had hopes that the tv series might prove to be something to my taste. Sadly, as it turns out, the book is basically the bits that made me give up on the tv series - the lovely family dynamics and affection is nowhere in sight, but the creepy Clay/Elena romance is core and center and includes a scene that reads like straight-up rape to me. And of course Elena is a super-special-snowflake urban fantasy female protagonist - the only female werewolf! (You want the only female werewolf? Read Glen Duncan's books - much better) - and of course the plot ends up being about a villain werewolf wanting her for his mate. And it's not even that the book is that bad, it's just - I've read far too many of this sort of urban fantasy to want to bother with yet another of these series.
Gail Carriger: Curtsies & Conspiracies
Jónas Kristjánsson: Eldvígslan
You know, when I sit down to read a historical novel about Regnar Lodbrog and his sons - I could have done with a little less christianity in it?
Dorte Lilmose: Fantasy
Christopher Marlowe: The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus
I wonder who decided that what this play really needed was a hot pink cover...
Tamora Pierce: Battle Magic
J.D. Robb: Liebesnacht mit einem Mörder (aka Holiday in death)
I am still unreasonably proud of having read this in German - though apparently the next volumes in the series is not available in either English or German in the Danish library system, so I guess this is the end. Though I really should keep on reading German books, maybe not as many as English or Danish, but I should keep on doing it, right? Hmmm...
Charles Stross: The Jennifer Morgue
Charles Stross: The Trade of Queens
This was - kinda an unsatisfactory read. The big-scale political events overtook the individual stories completely, and besides, while at the end it seems as if Miriam/Helge has managed to find a safe haven for her Clan - well, it's far from clear, New Britain is in the early stages of post-revolution upheavel, and anyway, this book series has made a habit of letting Miriam get in a position of almost being in control, almost kicking ass - only for some new threat to come from the shadows and pull the rug out from under her. Which means that an ending that only hints at her succeeding - leaves me worried, okay? Anyway, as a deconstruction of the "wouldn't it be wonderful if I was actually a princess in a fairytale world", this series works very well - mind you, how a bunch of Viking colonies managed to develop into quite that patriarchal a world I'm not sure...
Johan Theorin: Rörgast
I was a little disappointed that the supernatural element had pretty much disappeared - I rather enjoyed the mixture of mystery novel/family saga/ghost story in the Öland novels - but it's still a pretty good book.
Carrie Vaughn: Kitty Steals the Show
Oh dear. Right, I'm hoping the whole wolf queen thing doesn't mean that Kitty is suddenly going to start manifesting superpowers - one thing I've been enjoying about this series is that the protagonist isn't a super-special snowflake daughter of a god/actually a demon/only female werewolf/whatever. I really hope this is just a general political term.
Also, can I just say how annoying I find the master vampire trope in urban fantasy? How urban fantasy will have some 1000 year old European powerful vampire lord expecting complete servitude and obedience from everybody in his domain and the excuse of the story is, well, that's how it was back then. Because no, it wasn't like that, even during the feudal age - absolute power like that, has that ever truly existed in Europe? I don't think so. And in this book we (briefly) meet a vampire called Njal, some sort of Scandinavian master vampire, and I - just - listen, if the guy is old enough that Njal makes sense as a name, then he's old enough to be from the time when the thing was still a thing. Not absolutely rulers, but Viking Age democracy. And the same goes for the rest of Europe - small domains and rulers that had to rely on the goodwill of their people, unless the people themselves ruled. Athenian democracy, the Roman republic, old Norse things - so why is it always "obey, obey, obey"? It makes no sense.
Elisa Viperas: Dark Lord Seeks Friendship, Maybe More
Cute. And fun. Mostly cute.
Elizabeth Wein: Code Name Verity
Comics
Juan Díaz Canales: Blacksad: Amarillo
Bo Hampton: Riven
Jonathan Hickman: The Manhattan projects vol. 3.
Dennis Hopeless: Avengers Arena: Kill or Die
Geoff Johns: Green Lantern: Rebirth
China Miéville: Dial H: Into You
I hope the story will continue exploring where the hero-powers come from that the dial accesses - that story at the end was the most intriguing bit, really. Makes you worry about how Nelson and Roxie's constant dialling might be affecting other places...
Scott Snyder: American Vampire 4.
Total number of books and comics read this month: 21
Currently reading: Scott Snyder's American Vampire 5. and Vampyr
Ben Aaronovitch: Moon over Soho
Do you know my favourite bit of this book? At the end, when they've identificed the jazz vampires, and Peter went and tried to warn them that his superior and his soldier-team was coming to kill them, and afterwards Nightingale tries to yell at Peter - and Peter stands up to him and yells (well, doesn't yell, but you get the idea) at him right back, challenging Nightingale's whole approach to killing scary supernatural creatures without any authority but his own, without as much as a day in court. See, that's the sort of thing I want more of in urban fantasy - Peter makes a very, very good point. An even better point when you remember this is not set in the US, but in England, a country that doesn't have the death penalty for anything. I love that this series seems to be willing to at least try.
Kelley Armstrong: Bitten
So, I got hold of this while I still had hopes that the tv series might prove to be something to my taste. Sadly, as it turns out, the book is basically the bits that made me give up on the tv series - the lovely family dynamics and affection is nowhere in sight, but the creepy Clay/Elena romance is core and center and includes a scene that reads like straight-up rape to me. And of course Elena is a super-special-snowflake urban fantasy female protagonist - the only female werewolf! (You want the only female werewolf? Read Glen Duncan's books - much better) - and of course the plot ends up being about a villain werewolf wanting her for his mate. And it's not even that the book is that bad, it's just - I've read far too many of this sort of urban fantasy to want to bother with yet another of these series.
Gail Carriger: Curtsies & Conspiracies
Jónas Kristjánsson: Eldvígslan
You know, when I sit down to read a historical novel about Regnar Lodbrog and his sons - I could have done with a little less christianity in it?
Dorte Lilmose: Fantasy
Christopher Marlowe: The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus
I wonder who decided that what this play really needed was a hot pink cover...
Tamora Pierce: Battle Magic
J.D. Robb: Liebesnacht mit einem Mörder (aka Holiday in death)
I am still unreasonably proud of having read this in German - though apparently the next volumes in the series is not available in either English or German in the Danish library system, so I guess this is the end. Though I really should keep on reading German books, maybe not as many as English or Danish, but I should keep on doing it, right? Hmmm...
Charles Stross: The Jennifer Morgue
Charles Stross: The Trade of Queens
This was - kinda an unsatisfactory read. The big-scale political events overtook the individual stories completely, and besides, while at the end it seems as if Miriam/Helge has managed to find a safe haven for her Clan - well, it's far from clear, New Britain is in the early stages of post-revolution upheavel, and anyway, this book series has made a habit of letting Miriam get in a position of almost being in control, almost kicking ass - only for some new threat to come from the shadows and pull the rug out from under her. Which means that an ending that only hints at her succeeding - leaves me worried, okay? Anyway, as a deconstruction of the "wouldn't it be wonderful if I was actually a princess in a fairytale world", this series works very well - mind you, how a bunch of Viking colonies managed to develop into quite that patriarchal a world I'm not sure...
Johan Theorin: Rörgast
I was a little disappointed that the supernatural element had pretty much disappeared - I rather enjoyed the mixture of mystery novel/family saga/ghost story in the Öland novels - but it's still a pretty good book.
Carrie Vaughn: Kitty Steals the Show
Oh dear. Right, I'm hoping the whole wolf queen thing doesn't mean that Kitty is suddenly going to start manifesting superpowers - one thing I've been enjoying about this series is that the protagonist isn't a super-special snowflake daughter of a god/actually a demon/only female werewolf/whatever. I really hope this is just a general political term.
Also, can I just say how annoying I find the master vampire trope in urban fantasy? How urban fantasy will have some 1000 year old European powerful vampire lord expecting complete servitude and obedience from everybody in his domain and the excuse of the story is, well, that's how it was back then. Because no, it wasn't like that, even during the feudal age - absolute power like that, has that ever truly existed in Europe? I don't think so. And in this book we (briefly) meet a vampire called Njal, some sort of Scandinavian master vampire, and I - just - listen, if the guy is old enough that Njal makes sense as a name, then he's old enough to be from the time when the thing was still a thing. Not absolutely rulers, but Viking Age democracy. And the same goes for the rest of Europe - small domains and rulers that had to rely on the goodwill of their people, unless the people themselves ruled. Athenian democracy, the Roman republic, old Norse things - so why is it always "obey, obey, obey"? It makes no sense.
Elisa Viperas: Dark Lord Seeks Friendship, Maybe More
Cute. And fun. Mostly cute.
Elizabeth Wein: Code Name Verity
Comics
Juan Díaz Canales: Blacksad: Amarillo
Bo Hampton: Riven
Jonathan Hickman: The Manhattan projects vol. 3.
Dennis Hopeless: Avengers Arena: Kill or Die
Geoff Johns: Green Lantern: Rebirth
China Miéville: Dial H: Into You
I hope the story will continue exploring where the hero-powers come from that the dial accesses - that story at the end was the most intriguing bit, really. Makes you worry about how Nelson and Roxie's constant dialling might be affecting other places...
Scott Snyder: American Vampire 4.
Total number of books and comics read this month: 21
Currently reading: Scott Snyder's American Vampire 5. and Vampyr
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Finally I tried quoting to support my arguments, and everyone was, "uhm, that's not in the text!". So turned out they'd all read the first version (like we were supposed to).
I don't understand why the professor didn't make us read both version and discuss the differences. I don't understand nobody seemed to think it'd even be worth discussing!
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Though if there are two version, then I would have thought that's an obvious discussion to have. I mean, it's not like it's a long play.