Kimi
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Apr 19, 10:02pm
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The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison (a pseudonym of Sarah Monette)
I read someone (I think in the Guardian, but I'm not quite sure) describing this as their favourite book, so sought it out. The premise: the unwanted, unregarded son of the late emperor's fourth marriage, to a high-born goblin, ends up being the heir when his father (an elf) and all his older brothers are killed in an airship accident - or was it an accident?
These are not your Tolkien elves (or goblins). They all actually seem quite human, with the expected ambitions, pettinesses and snobbery, but have physical differences.
There's a lot to like: a sympathetic and engaging main character, in the classic-for-a-good-reason role of outsider thrust into an unfamiliar world; quite a well-thought out society; and a mystery to be solved. It kept my interest, and I was certainly cheering Maia (the main character) along. My only real issue was that I had a lot of trouble remembering who everyone, apart from Maia and a small core of characters surrounding him, was. All those invented, unfamiliar (though perfectly pronounceable) names ran together a bit. Only fairly late in the book did I have a firm grip on who everyone was.
But still, an enjoyable, warm-hearted and ultimately engaging story.
March by Geraldine Brooks
Having devoured The Secret Chord and People of the Book, I was keen to read this one. It's Brooks' imagining of just what happened to Mr March during his long absence from home in Little Women when he's away serving as a chaplain in the civil war.
It's very well written, as expected, but oh! so very dark. That's hard to avoid when the setting itself is such a dark time, but I could have done with a little more light, and perhaps a little less detail of some of the more gory injuries. Still, an interesting reflection on what *might* have happened to Mr March, and a thought-provoking picture of the near-angelic Marmee of Alcott's work.
I'm halfway through Madeline Miller's Song of Achilles, and will say more when I've finished, but for now: absorbing and magnificent. Mr Kimi's been reading her Circe at the same time, so it's been fun comparing notes.
The Passing of Mistress Rose
My historical novels
Do we find happiness so often that we should turn it off the box when it happens to sit there?
- A Room With a View
(This post was edited by Kimi on Apr 20, 1:44am)
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