This book was bonkers in many ways, lacking in subtlety and slipping some sneaky/interesting ideas between blood, gore, and horror. The tone falls between a hacker flick and an epic fantasy novel, which I didn't expect and liked more than I would have guessed. Most of the over-the-top violence here serves a purpose, but sometimes I felt it was a bit much.

Another short tale within a tale from Nigh Vo.

I just finished Stormbringer, which works as one of my reading challenge books. This time it’s “a book with the same title as a song.”

Ikigai is a book about finding your purpose and putting that purpose into practice for a long, healthy, and happy life. It’s small—an easy read—filled with lots of practical nuggets and insight.

The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo is a mythological-style tale told with exquisite and ephemeral prose.

Empire of Silence is a brilliant debut, the first in the forebodingly named Sun Eater series. It has been described as The Name of The Wind meets Dune and that’s…a pretty good description actually. Maybe throw in a little Star Wars and some Red Rising and you’d get a pretty good picture of what you’re in for.

I don't want to speculate too much about the Meaning or Theme behind "Piranesi" or give away any details. I think going in, as I did, with very little idea of what to expect is probably best. It's a short but dense book, a magical mystery that unfolds slowly; it's sort of like piecing together a puzzle, but there is so much symbolism, allusion and allegory in there, that you might feel like you're constructing the pieces yourself. At the same time, it works well as a straight-forward portal fantasy/mystery, guiding the reader just enough so that the pieces, ephemeral as they feel at times, fit together in a perfectly imperfect way.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune is a little hard to review. It's a beautiful, well-written, and immensely thought-provoking book. And that's the problem. There are too many reasons to like this book, far too many to really capture in any meaningful way.

Roger Zelazny, one of the masters of early sci-fi and fantasy, is one of the absolute best at cramming a ton of interesting world-building and compelling story into small packages. Jack of Shadows, which tackles both of those genres, is a fantastic example. It's a small, odd, jewel. Not Amber, but similar enough, both in the flaws and smooth edges. The writing is terrific if dated-feeling (it was first published in 1971 and it shows) with a brash style that I very much enjoy, despite the quirks and passages that are a bit hard to follow.