Debbie's Spurts

I love these series of articles despite what they do to the TBR pile.

Lots of new and familiar authors.  Most I haven't tried.  I think these were when I was a very broke person just starting working for a living without a good book budget.

Ones that wouldn't fit the "big" pictures at top of post:

  Overshoot - Mona Clee 

  The Stars as Seen from This Particular Angle of Night: An Anthology of Speculative Verse - ,Carolyn Clink, et. al.

  How Like a God - Brenda W. Clough 

  Legacy - Molly Cochran  

  The Magic School Bus at the Waterworks - Joanna Cole

  Sunglasses After Dark - Nancy A. Collins  

  The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit - Storm Constantine  

  Love and War - Tonya C. Cook, et. al.

  Mask Of The Wizard - Catherine Cooke  

  The Black Horn - Clare Cooper

Author of article also mentions (but not sure of works or where to start with them):

• Susan Carroll
• Ellin Carter
• Ann Cathey
• Deborah Chester
• Pam Chillemi-Yeager
• Mary E. Choo
• Patricia B. Cirone
• G. O. Clark
• Marcia Cohee
• Marion Cohen
• Valerie Nieman Colander
• Sherry Coldsmith
• Isabel Cole
• J. L. Comeau
• Judith R. Conly
• P. E. Cook
• Susan Coon
• H. J. Cording
• Vonnie Winslow Crist
• Annette S. Crouch
• P. E. Cunningham
• Chris Curry

I love how article's author puts it: 

"For me, that requires the intended audience to include teens, that the genre be science fiction in the narrow sense, that the protagonist be a young adult, and that they get to do something that actually matters in the course of the book."

I think that last is a big part of why some YA books, particularly SF ones, miss the mark with me.  I need something to matter, to make me care about the characters or turn the page to see what happens next; something to invest in.  Endless angst and who winds up with who and vain things don't cut it for me.  And, yes, I realize the Heinleins looking back are problematic -- particularly in gender issues -- but at the time they actually were progressive and did have females doing something other than being queen bee mean girls or underdogs needing rescue, being prizes or objects or worse merely encoujraging admirers.

The Ballad of Black Tom - Victor LaValle   is currently free on publisher TOR's (Macmillan) site at https://ebookclub.tor.com. Only free October 9 through midnight October 12.  

They tout it as "H.P. Lovecraft’s legacy has been the subject of intense debate. And this book has its finger on the pulse of that discussion."

Yeah, I'm late posting this but once again I did not get my email notice and only spotted it in today's emailed newsletter.

Publisher page for book details is https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780765386618 

This book ... ah ... wow.

I wish RL would back off and let me read.

*whisper* even Book Shelf BINGO taking a backseat (and I'm the team captain).

Only five?  And Mike and Hal not making the cut?

Article also mentions a free online read at https://uncannymagazine.com/article/fandom-for-robots/ :

"Bonus short fiction - 

“Fandom for Robots” by Vina Jie-Min Prasad (Uncanny Magazine) is a fantastic Nebula-nominated story that gets inside the head of a vintage robot called Computron who starts writing fanfic for a TV show because its favourite character (a robot) is handled so badly by all the humans in fandom. A clever, fun piece about the value of #ownvoices perspectives and how robots can be compelling characters to read about even (especially) when they don’t sound remotely like humans. –Tansy"

Attention, Kindle and e-book lovers!

I have good news for you. If you are interested in checking out my first novel, Heartstrings, the e-book will be one sale for one week starting next Friday.

Just starting this one for Book Shelf BINGO.

I think it's the last, #12, in the series (or at least the last so far published).

This reader's personal opinion, ©2018, all rights reserved, not to be quoted, clipped or used in any way by goodreads, Google Play, amazon.com or other commercial booksellers* 

No apocalypse, dystopia, Walking Dead type of zombies here. More along the lines of a werewolf bite creating more werewolves. Our world, our time — and zombies just like us so long as they get plenty of human brains to eat (vague mention of something about the enzymes ). Start turning more into movie-usual shambling disintegrating zombies if starved. Also not as slapstick as titles and covers indicate.

I'd been curious about these for a while seeing what everyone was saying on my book site feeds. Luckily, I got into the main character and enjoyed Angel's viewpoint on everything that was happening to her post-being-a-zombie. She had both a sense of humor and a serious side about everything going on despite a life that screened stereotypical white trash: high school dropout, dysfunctional and abusive home life, drug problems, wring crowd, etc.

I love the story arc and that becoming a zombie meant she thought about and fixed some aspects (well, sort of no drug problems now because don't work on zombies except now she's addicted to brains and safe from abusers with new zombie strength). She did come across way younger than the 21 the book said she was. She didn't ditch everyone she knew, even the ones clearly bad for her.

Overall, a very funny book. Too easy on how drug addiction and abuse handled and the ending a little hokey, but I'm looking forward to the next in series.  I like being in Angel's head and watching her growth

*©2018.  All rights reserved except permission is granted to author or publisher (except Penumbra Publishing) to reprint/quote in whole or in part. I may also have cross-posted on Libib, LibraryThing, and other sites including retailers like kobo and Barnes and Noble. Posting on any site does not grant that site permission to share with any third parties or indicate release of copyright.  

Ratings scale used in absence of a booklikes suggested rating scale:

★★★★★ = All Time Favorite 
★★★★½ = Extraordinary Book. Really Loved It.
★★★★☆ = Loved It.
★★★½☆ = Really Liked.
★★★☆☆ = Liked.
★★½☆☆ = Liked parts; parts only okay. Would read more by author.
★★☆☆☆ = Average.   Okay. 
★½☆☆☆ = Disliked or meh? but kept reading in hopes would improve.
★☆☆☆☆ = Loathed It. Possibly DNF and a torturous read.
½☆☆☆☆ = So vile was a DNF or should have been. Cannot imagine anyone liking.  (Might also be just an "uploaded" word spew or collection that should not be dignified by calling itself a "published book." If author is going batshit crazy in the blogosphere over reviews -- I now know why they are getting bad reviews.  Or maybe author should take remedial classes for language written in until basic concepts like using sentences sink in. Is author even old enough to sign a publishing contract or do they need a legal guardian to sign for them?)

Global buddy read and discussion.  Public libraries participating in Overdrive will have ebook 100% available for download, no waiting list.