A House Between Sea and Sky by Beth Cato

I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting from A House Between Sea and Sky, but it was a delightful read. It’s full of surprises and fun characters. I largely just enjoyed the ride. It’s fun to see a twist on mythologies I’m familiar with. I won’t spoil it, but I guessed fairly early on the provenance of The House. Finding out I was right only made it more fun. A House Between Sea and Sky is another one of those I don’t really have a lot of thoughts about, so I’ll leave it here. It was a fun, chill read. Exactly what I needed with the holiday chaos around me. 

Favorite Lines

"Men were the worst creatures to unexpectedly meet in the dark." - Fayette Wynne Narration

"While help could be fine sometimes, there was no freedom like that of wandering among full bookshelves." - Fayette Wynne Narration  

A Feast for Starving Stone by Beth Cato

A Feast for Starving Stone was alright. There was slightly more world-building, mostly on what exactly the gods were capable of. Mostly it was a run-around, Solenn and Ada running from one battle to the next. Rather chaotic, in all honesty. I wasn’t as enamored with the story this time around.

More books in series need a “previously on” chapter that you can read if you need a refresher and skip if you don’t. A+ for including this, Beth Cato. Love it.

I really, really feel like Solenn has been knee-capped by Queen Abonde’s refusal to allow even the knowledge of the Coteries’ existence to come out. How the fuck is Solenn supposed to actually make any sort of headway if she’s not allowed to explain why she wants the things she wants to the humans? “You have six months to get some shit done, but you’re not allowed to tell anyone except your guards that they’re eating sentient creatures. Oh, and by the way, even touching our dead bodies is offensive.” Like, what? Abdone eventually apologies for this nonsense, but I’m still annoyed about it.

I really liked the kraken stuff. It makes complete sense that a creature so divorced from land animals would have a completely different way of looking at the world. It was neat.

I don’t really have much else to say. A Feast for Starving Stone was just alright.

Favorite Lines

"The Gods are like people, really. Just more powerful," - Adamantine Garland

"Ignorance in search of enlightenment has no need of apology," - Captain Emt

     "I killed man because of cheese once," Claudette mused.

     "Only once?" Ada murmured as they continued through the village. The rain had stopped.

     "I'm only counting deaths, not maimings."

     "An important clarification." - Caludette & Adamantine Garland  

A Thousand Recipes for Revenge by Beth Cato

A Thousand Recipes for Revenge was nothing like I thought it might be (not that I had a super concrete idea or anything). First of all, the magic system is nothing I’ve ever seen before. Really interesting and made more interesting by events during the story. Ada and Solenn are fun characters. I connected more with Solenn than Ada, but that doesn’t take anything away from Ada’s character.

I feel like it’s somewhat hard to talk about a good chunk of this book without spoiling things. However, the second half contains a good amount of action that was fairly well done, I thought. There’s also a fair few surprises that are both fun and not-so-great for our protagonists.

I was expecting Aveyron to turn into a wolf. Which I suppose is a bit of a spoiler, but… yeah. There’s a point where Aveyron is transforming and it’s not to a wolf. Surprise!

Honestly, I really enjoyed A Thousand Recipes for Revenge. All the characters, not just Ada and Solenn, were rich and fully formed. I really want to know more about the mythology of this universe. This small taste was a lot of fun. Here’s hoping Solenn ultimately succeeds at the thing she’s attempting. 

Favorite Lines

"As my father says, some people are burned at the stake, others do the burning, and far more watch." - Aveyron Silvacane de Camarga

"The creature would have been adorable if not for its stabby nature." - Solenn's narration

"After all, what is a white lie but truth decomposed?" - Aveyron Silvacane de Camarga