Acorna's People by Anne McCaffrey & Elizabeth Ann Scarborough

Honestly, right off the top, the vibe of this book is different. Something in the way things a described… so different from the first two in a good way. This, unfortunately, does not last. There are literally parts of this book that just rush past or just seem to get utterly bored with what's going on and both draw out but rush at the same time. I did very much enjoy parts of this book, while others left me wishing for those parts. I think the story overall hangs together well enough, but... I doubt I'll be rereading this series again.

I found the antagonist characters both extremely boring and annoying. Every. Single. One. Of. Them. Count Edacki was the boring, in the background, capitalistic asshole out for literally just making money. Captain or Admiral (I literally don't care about his title) Ikwaskwan was apparently in it for revenge against Nadhari... still not entirely sure what that was about, but it was gross. And then there's Kisla and Yasmin, who were both mentally ill and exploited by Edacki for his own ends. They were also incredibly boring and predictable. Thanks, I hate it.

I was really far more interested in Acorna's plot-line trying to learn and fit into the Linyaari society than I was in the plot-line involving her "rescue." While I was reading that part, I was desperate to get away from Hafiz et. al. and back to Acorna. Even the book itself seemed to be utterly bored with itself at that point. I considered skipping chapters... which turned out not to be needed. Once I was able to push through and get into the meat of the story, it was better.

I believe I either went on a bit of rant about in Linyaari and their inability to do ambassador-ing correctly in my review of Acorna's Quest. Well, apparently the species they have treated with in the past also have this problem. Just gonna up an believe a species they just met instead of trying to get some explanation from long-time trading partners about the allegations. Nope, everyone in that sector of space is stupid. There is such thing as too much trust and too much ethics and a severe lack of questions. Thanks for enabling the capture and torture of your supposed allies, guys. Real helpful. Ugh. I was just so, so frustrated with this.

Although I don't think the ending of the book really needed to be drawn out, I did find it kind of rushed. I will concede that it was very clever of Acorna and crew to lure the antagonists into Federation space instead of trying to fight them. I was expecting a fight, really. They were certainly out-gunned. But everything just unfolded quickly and smoothly and the bed guys were apparently punished, so yay.

I'm clearly not overly enthralled with this series. This one felt better than the last, but I think it might be time to call it quits. We'll see. 

Favorite Line

"Some people can hear nothing but their own inner voices shouting at them so loudly that they come to believe the shouting at them so loudly that they come to believe the shouting is coming from others." - Neeva 

The Raven Song by Luanne G. Smith

It’s been 3 years and some change since I read the first of this duology ( The Raven Spell ). I remember very little from it, so The Raven Song may as well have been a standalone novel. I honestly found it very middling.

I feel like, although a main character of this book, Edwina wasn’t super present in it. She’s not given any time to properly grieve and any time she’s alone is pretty much skipped over. Her entire story is centered around pining for Ian and being kidnapped for fairy reasons. Even her frustration at Mary is short-lived and then explained away rather randomly in the end, in my opinion. I don’t remember how I felt about Edwina in The Raven Spell but I don’t feel like I know her well enough to have much of an opinion now.

I am definitely well over the “man intimidates and kidnaps women for power” thing. I found Carlin incredibly dull as an antagonist. Even keeping his name a secret felt incredibly contrived. There was just no reason for it.

I’m not sure how I feel about the info-dump ending. Sure, everything was tied up neatly, but that was a lot of information just thrown at us and Edwina, for that matter. I do believe she is very right about the new Prophetess needing things explained sooner than tradition dictates. It’s clear the secrecy around it doesn’t actually keep the secret very well. After all, Carlin managed to hear rumors and he’s not even connected to anything.

So yeah… The Raven Song was entirely middling. Entertaining enough, but with quite flat characters. 

Through Gates of Garnet and Gold by Seanan McGuire

I’m really not sure what to say about this one. I really enjoyed it. Was a nice respite from the world we live in. It was neat to see more about the Land of the Dead and learn how the statues came to be.

I knew, even before she was revealed, that Jill was going to be the antagonist. Just had that feeling as Nancy told the others what was happening… Jill’s revelation was completely unsurprising.

I’m always sad these are so short, but at the same time, I’m very glad things aren’t drawn out too much. Through Gates of Garnet and Gold was a solid entry into the Wayward Children series… also felt a little like an ending, given the very end I won’t be spoiling. It’s fine if that’s the case, too. 

Favorite Lines

"A child is a vessel for wanting—and snot. Lots of snot in you average kid." - Sumi

"Toddlers have to wear coats in the winter, children need to get enough vitamin C to skip scurvy, and teenagers sometimes need to talk about our feelings. It’s the medicinal part of being a person." -  Sumi

"No one gets to decide for you what living looks like," snapped Nancy. "Life is supposed to be made up of the choices you make for yourself."

Moon Over Soho by Ben Aaronovitch

While not exactly super surprising, I did very much enjoy Moon Over Soho. I thought it was nice to see consequences from the last book carry over into this one. It's always nice when we aren't just reset back to "normal" immediately. I know that's a little weird to say for a sequel, as I think the consequences should always stick... but yeah.

As usual, I very much enjoyed the world-building. Got a few answers to a couple of questions I had from Rivers of London, The Masquerades of Spring, and some of the short stories preceding Moon Over Soho chronologically. It was also fairly well done. Not a giant info dump, just Nightingale organically telling Peter stuff when appropriate.

I also enjoyed the progression of the characters. Getting to know Peter better and learning about Lesley through her family and recovery. Dr. Walid amused me, in line with several coroner types from CSI-like shows. I even quite like Ash and hope we see more of him in future.

I was kind of amused at the notion of Nightingale assuming his former colleagues would just not teach anyone else magic just because there was some sort of Agreement. It does (from short story readings) seem like other government types in other countries assumed the same. It seemed completely silly to me for some surviving wizards to keep that knowledge to themselves. Of course the knowledge is going to be passed on. It's so obvious to me. Heck, Peter's pretty much got two apprentices of his own in Lesley and Abigail (one assumes Abigail, anyway) and he's not even a "proper" wizard yet. I kind of assume Lesley's going to come under Nightingale's tutelage, but one never knows.

I thought Simone being super connected to Peter's case was also fairly obvious. He fell too fast, too hard for her to not be involved somehow. I actually though she might be a shapeshifter of some kind. I was definitely wrong on that count, but that's where my head was originally at.

Anyway, I thought Moon Over Soho was a solid follow up to Rivers of London. Built out more of the world nicely and was just solid over all. 

Favorite Lines

"He was calling it an atonic seizure because, even if he didn’t know why it had happened, it was important to give it a cool name." - Peter Grant

"For a terrifying moment I thought he was going to hug me, but fortunately we both remembered we were English just in time. Still, it was a close call." - Peter Grant  

In Other News

I finished my Moosemon Project, part of my Armor Digimon Project Line over on OviPets. Took me just about a year to complete. 

Acorna's Quest by Anne McCaffrey & Margaret Ball

I honestly found Acorna's Quest to be frustrating. A good chunk of it is annoying, buoyed only by the interesting part and my completionist need to get through it. There is a slight spoiler in the last paragraph of this, regarding the very end of the book. But also... this is the kind of book where the bad guys don't fare well so... like I said, the spoiler is slight.

First, the interesting part was aboard the ship/space-station Haven. I liked Markel and enjoyed him meeting Acorna and Calum. The whole Haven storyline was, as ever it seems these days, weirdly prescient. Although both "government overthrows" on Haven didn't take very much time at all, it was still much more fun reading than the rest of the book...

The rest... ugh. So, I wrote this whole long thing on my phone about how the Linyaari are incredibly stupid, partially naive, and too ethical to be allowed... which is all true. They apparently don't know how to do "First Contact" very well at all, either time they attempted it. They have apparently never met any species even close to like them (or us) in intelligence and so just treat us as lesser beings. Apparently attempting to find someone in charge never occurs to them. And then! the whole thing about never even having tried fighting the Khleevi... oy vey. I was just very, very annoyed with them from the get-go. I definitely feel like Acorna's going to have a heck of a time adjusting to the Linyaari way of life.

Speaking of the Linyaari's failure to try and find someone in charge, let's talk about Karina. I hate her. So, so much. Woman's insane. It's not the pseudo-psychic thing, it's the parasocial relationship she's apparently formed based on *checks notes* Acorna acknowledging a single email out of 65 that were apparently sent. What. The Actual. Fuck. Ma'am. No. Thinking you have an actual relationship (psychic or otherwise) with someone based on that alone is just... psychotic. Really. I also sincerely hate that a man supposedly as smart as Hafiz Harakamian could fall for her. That it at least super started out as physical doesn't really make it less icky, but the whole thing gives me the ick so... yeah. I can only hope Karina isn't around in later books.

I also didn't enjoy Pal and Thariinye posturing around Acorna. I've never liked the Pal/Acorna pairing and the way he more-or-less tries to steamroll her agency here doesn't make it better. I have truly had it with this particular flavor of relationship.

I also did not need Ed Minkus and Des Smirnoff to show up again. They really only served to get Dr. Hoa on board with getting rid of the Khleevi... which I feel like someone else could have done. The Khleevi honestly felt like more of a threat before they actually showed up to be slaughtered. The running around about them didn't end up feeling like such a big deal, honestly. Probably another reason why I didn't enjoy this book very much. I guess it felt like more setup to get Acorna back to her people... a lot of telling and not a lot of showing. Ultimately, not my cup of tea. 

Favorite Lines

(The silly twit doesn't think, she stirs brain-bits around like a nut-and-root stew, you never know what's going to bob up next.) - One of the Linyaari about Karina

"It is not a waste if we are able to help people desperately in need," - Acorna 

The Masquerades of Spring by Ben Aaronovitch

I said in my very brief review of “Aboard the RMS Antiqua” that I found Berrycloth-Young to be overly verbose. He definitely is, but it actually helps roll this story right along. The rhythm of his writing (speaking from a Watsonian viewpoint) is almost hypnotic. I like it a lot. I actually like Gussie a lot, too.

I quite enjoyed The Masquerades of Spring. It was a fun romp with some historically realistic touches which were, at times, a bit hard to read. Such as it is with our own history, not colored by magic. I didn’t enjoy reading about the racism and homophobia, but I appreciated their inclusion instead of them being glossed over like it never happened.

It was neat seeing Nightingale in a completely different context to his “future” appearance in The Rivers of London. Younger versions of characters are often fun to see and get to know. Having him at the helm of this investigation made me almost feel sorry for Gussie, what with the go-go-go attitude about the whole thing.

Despite the running around that happens here, I found The Masquerades of Spring fairly cozy. Big enough stakes without being too big. Plus seeing some of how things work on my side of the pond was a treat, even if it was actually a very small amount.

I feel like The Masquerades of Spring might be a good jumping on point for the series, but not at the same time. The tones between it and The Rivers of London don’t quite match up. But then, Gussie and Grant are just two completely different characters and the time-frames are so different… not to mention the lack of gore here. I also realize I’m reading the Rivers of London in a slightly odd order so… there’s that. Anyway… The Masquerades of Spring was fun. I definitely recommend giving it a read. 

2025 In Books

So basically the only rule for this list is that I had to read or finish the books in 2025. Everything else is my opinion. Of course, if you're interested in my deeper thoughts on these books, check out my reviews.

Number of times I smashed my Reading Goal: 1 time

Number of Books Read: 71 read, bringing my lifetime total to 1,148 books

Number of Pages: 26,648

Shortest Book: Aboard the RMS Aquitania by Ben Aaronovitch - 5 pages, barely a short story

Longest Book: The Shapeshifters by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes - 968 pages

Average Book Length: 375 Pages

Favorite New Read: A House Between Sea and Sky by Beth Cato - Really interesting, mostly cozy fantasy.

Favorite Reread: The Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey - The copy I have is an anthology of the first 3 books in the overall Pern series, which I just adore.

Favorite Non-Fiction: I did not read any non-fiction this year.

Favorite Series: InCryptid by Seanan McGuire. Finished off that series this year. It's just a really fun series, you guys.

Favorite Author: Seanan McGuire - This hasn't changed since last year, even though I didn't read a lot from her this year... again.

Most Read Author: Laurell K. Hamilton - Been going through the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series, which ended up being more books than the Pern series by 6 books! I'm not even close to done with it yet!

Least Favorite Book: Token of Darkness by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes - I didn't like it the first time and rereading did not change that.

Most Disappointing Read: Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan - I really wanted to like the books, ya'll. I really did. I probably would have if I'd read them when I was younger but... Percy Jackson just wasn't for me.

DNF Pile: Dragon's Code by Gigi McCaffrey & The Big Meow by Diane Duane

Favorite New-to-Me Character: Leah from The Prince of Nowhere by Emily Drake. She was such a fun character I wish had been in a better book.

Favorite Reread Character: Nathaniel Graison from Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter by Laurell K. Hamilton - Nathaniel is the sweetest cinnamon roll of a man, despite his horrible unbringing. I would protect him with my life.

Currently Reading: Acorna's Quest by Anne McCaffrey & Margaret Ball, The Masquerades of Spring by Ben Aaronovitch and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: Illustrated Edition by J.K. Rowling, Illustrated by Jim Kay & Neil Packer 

Finished Series: I finished 7 series this year.

Non-Book Stuff

I just wanted to brag that I finished 15 OviPets projects this year. I had several projects that were 1 or 2 traits with tattoos involved. Gotta love them Slime projects. Heh.

 

I also finished 2 full Pokedexes this year in Pokemon Legends: Arceus and Pokemon Scarlet. I'm proud of myself. 😁