{"id":15985,"date":"2024-01-01T10:00:21","date_gmt":"2024-01-01T17:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=15985"},"modified":"2024-12-29T12:50:13","modified_gmt":"2024-12-29T19:50:13","slug":"books-of-the-year-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=15985","title":{"rendered":"Book(s) of the year 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to the end of the year. Or the beginning of the year. It&#8217;s been a lot of fun. Due to work commitments I have done exactly zero Standard ebooks this past year and thus all my reading has been in the modern era. I did add a new non-sci-fi series so there was a bit of branching out.<\/p>\n<p>But without any further ado&#8230;<br \/>\nHere is\u00a0 2023-doo-dee-doo:<\/p>\n<h4>January (10)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>The Way to Glory<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2005)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Whispers Under Ground<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2012)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Some Golden Harbour<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2006)<br \/>\nBook 5 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Wrong Stars<\/em><\/strong> Tim Pratt (2017)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Axiom<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Broken Homes<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2014)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Foxglove Summer<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2015)<br \/>\nBook 5 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>When the Tide Rises<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2008)<br \/>\nBook 6 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Risen Empire<\/em><\/strong> Scott Westerfeld (2003)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Succession Duology<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Killing of Worlds<\/em><\/strong> Scott Westerfeld (2003)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Succession Duology<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>In the Stormy Red Sky<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2009)<br \/>\nBook 7 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>February (8)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Babel<\/em><\/strong> R. F. Kuang (2022)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Kushiel&#8217;s Dart<\/em><\/strong> Jacqueline Carey (2001)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Kushiel&#8217;s Legacy<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Rubicon<\/em><\/strong> J.S. Dewes (2023)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>What Distant Deeps<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2010)<br \/>\nBook 8 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Hanging Tree<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2017)<br \/>\nBook 6 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Road of Danger<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2012)<br \/>\nBook 9 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Sea Without a Shore<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2014)<br \/>\nBook 10 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Lies Sleeping<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2017)<br \/>\nBook 7 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>March (13)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Death&#8217;s Bright Day<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2016)<br \/>\nBook 11 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Tales from the Folly<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2020)<br \/>\nBook 0 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Though Hell Should Bar the Way<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2018)<br \/>\nBook 12 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain<\/em><\/strong> Nghi Vo (2020)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Singing Hills Cycle<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Rivers of London: Body Work<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch, Andrew Cartmel (2016)<br \/>\nVol. 1, Issues 1\u20135 &#8211; graphic novel<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Dreaming Stars<\/em><\/strong> Tim Pratt (2018)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Axiom<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Castlemaine Murders<\/em><\/strong> Kerry Greenwood (2003)<br \/>\nBook 13 of <em>Phryne Fisher Mysteries<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Forbidden Stars<\/em><\/strong> Tim Pratt (2019)<br \/>\nBook 8 of <em>The Axiom<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>False Value<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2020)<br \/>\nBook 8 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>To Clear Away the Shadows<\/em><\/strong> David Drake (2019)<br \/>\nBook 13 of <em>Lt. Leary<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Richard Bolitho: Midshipman<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1975)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Midshipman Bolitho and the Avenger<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1978)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Band of Brothers<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (2006)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>April (10)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Stand into Danger<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1980)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>City of Last Chances<\/em><\/strong> Adrian Tchaikovsky (2022)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>In Gallant Company<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1977)<br \/>\nBook 5 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Amongst Our Weapons<\/em><\/strong> Ben Aaronovitch (2022)<br \/>\nBook 8 of <em>Rivers of London<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Sloop of War<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1977)<br \/>\nBook 6 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>We Are Legion (We Are Bob)<\/em><\/strong> Dennis Taylor (2016)<br \/>\nBook 1 of * Bobiverse* \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>In Fury Born<\/em><\/strong> David Weber (2006)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Sloop of War<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1967)<br \/>\nBook 7 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Command a King&#8217;s Ship<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1973)<br \/>\nBook 8 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Tsalmoth<\/em><\/strong> Steven Brust (2023)<br \/>\nBook 16 of <em>Vlad Taltos<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>May (15)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Fair Trade<\/em><\/strong> Sharon Lee &amp; Steve Miller (2022)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Jethri Goblyn<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Into the Riverlands<\/em><\/strong> Nghi Vo (2022)<br \/>\nBook 3 of * The Singing Hills Cycle* \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Drowned Country<\/em><\/strong> Emily Tesh (2022)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Greenhollow Duology<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Some Desperate Glory<\/em><\/strong> Emily Tesh (2023)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Passage to Mutiny<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1976)<br \/>\nBook 9 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Lost War<\/em><\/strong> Justin Lee Anderson (2022)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Eidyn<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Atlas Paradox<\/em><\/strong> Olivia Blake (2022)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Atlas Series<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Mutineer&#8217;s Moon<\/em><\/strong> David Weber (1991)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Dahak<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Armageddon Inheritance<\/em><\/strong> David Weber (1993)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Dahak<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Kushiel\u2019s Chosen<\/em><\/strong> Jacqueline Carey (2011)<br \/>\nBook 21 of <em>Kushiel&#8217;s Legacy<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Kushiel\u2019s Avatar<\/em><\/strong> Jacqueline Carey (2011)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Kushiel&#8217;s Legacy<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Cyteen<\/em><\/strong> C. J. Cherryh (1988)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Union<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>With All Despatch<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1988)<br \/>\nBook 10 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Form Line Of Battle!<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1969)<br \/>\nBook 11 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Enemy In Sight!<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1970)<br \/>\nBook 12 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>June (11)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>The Flag Captain<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1971)<br \/>\nBook 13 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Untethered Sky<\/em><\/strong> Fonda Lee (2023)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Signal\u2014Close Action<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1974)<br \/>\nBook 14 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Witch King<\/em><\/strong> Martha Wells (2023)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The The Inshore Squadron<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1978)<br \/>\nBook 15 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe<\/em><\/strong> Alex White (2018)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Salvagers<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Atrocity Archives<\/em><\/strong> Charles Stross (2004)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Laundry<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>West of Honor<\/em><\/strong> Jerry Pournelle (1976)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Falkenberg<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Mercenary<\/em><\/strong> Jerry Pournelle (1977)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Falkenberg<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Prince of Mercenaries<\/em><\/strong> Jerry Pournelle (1989)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Falkenberg<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>A Bad Deal for the Whole Galaxy<\/em><\/strong> Alex White (2018)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Salvagers<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>July (10)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Dune<\/em><\/strong> Frank Herbert (1965)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Rosemary and Rue<\/em><\/strong> Seanan McGuire (2009)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>October Daye<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>A Tradition of Victory<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1981)<br \/>\nBook 16 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Translation State<\/em><\/strong> Ann Leckie (2023)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>Imperial Radch<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>A Local Habitation<\/em><\/strong> Seanan McGuire (2010)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>October Daye<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Time for the Stars<\/em><\/strong> Robert A. Heinlein (1956)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Better Part of Valor<\/em><\/strong> Tanya Huff (2002)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Confederation<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Heart of Valor<\/em><\/strong> Tanya Huff (2007)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Confederation<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Valor&#8217;s Trial<\/em><\/strong> Tanya Huff (2008)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>Confederation<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Truth of Valor<\/em><\/strong> Tanya Huff (2010)<br \/>\nBook 5 of <em>Confederation<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>August (11)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>An Artificial Night<\/em><\/strong> Seanan McGuire (2010)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>October Daye<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Queen of the Flowers<\/em><\/strong> Kerry Greenwood (2004)<br \/>\nBook 14 of <em>Phryne Fisher Mysteries<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Success to the Brave<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1983)<br \/>\nBook 17 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Frugal Wizard&#8217;s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England<\/em><\/strong> Brandon Sanderson (2023)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Blighted Stars<\/em><\/strong> Megan E. O&#8217;Keefe (2023)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Devoured Worlds<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Phule&#8217;s Paradise<\/em><\/strong> Robert Asprin (1990)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Phule&#8217;s Company<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Fletcher&#8217;s Fortune<\/em><\/strong> John Drake (1992)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Fletcher<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Legends &amp; Lattes<\/em><\/strong> Travis Baldree (2022)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Imperium Restored<\/em><\/strong> Walter Jon Williams (2022)<br \/>\nBook 6 of <em>Dread Empire&#8217;s Fall<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Phule&#8217;s Company<\/em><\/strong> Robert Asprin (1990)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Phule&#8217;s Company<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Colours Aloft!<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1986)<br \/>\nBook 18 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>September (9)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>The Mystery at Dunvegan Castle<\/em><\/strong> T. L. Huchu (2023)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Edinburgh Nights<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Lords of Uncreation<\/em><\/strong> Adrian Tchaikovsky (2023)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>The Final Architecture<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Nevernight<\/em><\/strong> Jay Kristoff (2017)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Nevernight Chronicles<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Godsgrave<\/em><\/strong> Jay Kristoff (2017)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Nevernight Chronicles<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Darkdawn<\/em><\/strong> Jay Kristoff (2019)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>The Nevernight Chronicles<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Late Eclipses<\/em><\/strong> Seanan McGuire (2011)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>October Daye<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Starter Villain<\/em><\/strong> John Scalzi (2023)<br \/>\n\u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Honour This Day<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1997)<br \/>\nBook 19 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Book That Wouldn&#8217;t Burn<\/em><\/strong> Mark Lawrence (2023)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Library Trilogy<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>October (13)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Killing Gravity<\/em><\/strong> Corey J. White (2017)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Voidwitch Saga<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Void Black Shadow<\/em><\/strong> Corey J. White (2018)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Voidwitch Saga<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Static Ruin<\/em><\/strong> Corey J. White (2018)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Voidwitch Saga<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>One Salt Sea<\/em><\/strong> Seanan McGuire (2011)<br \/>\nBook 5 of <em>October Daye<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Goblin Emperor<\/em><\/strong> Katherine Addison (2014)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Goblin Emperor<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Witness for the Dead<\/em><\/strong> Katherine Addison (2021)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Cemeteries of Amalo<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Go Tell the Spartans<\/em><\/strong> Jerry Pournelle &amp; S.M. Stirling (1991)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>Falkenberg<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Grief of Stones<\/em><\/strong> Katherine Addison (2021)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Cemeteries of Amalo<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Prince of Sparta<\/em><\/strong> Jerry Pournelle &amp; S.M. Stirling (1993)<br \/>\nBook 5 of <em>Falkenberg<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Fifth Ward: First Watch<\/em><\/strong> Dale Lucas (2017)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Fifth Ward<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Fifth Ward: Friendly Fire<\/em><\/strong> Dale Lucas (2018)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Fifth Ward<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Live Free or Die<\/em><\/strong> John Ringo (2010)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>Troy Rising<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Citadel<\/em><\/strong> John Ringo (2010)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>Troy Rising<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>November (8)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>The Hot Gate<\/em><\/strong> John Ringo (2011)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>Troy Rising<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Last Devil to Die<\/em><\/strong> Richard Osman (2023)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>A Thursday Murder Club Mystery<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>M\u00e9lusine<\/em><\/strong> Katherine Addison (2005)<br \/>\nBook 1 of <em>The Doctrine of Labyrinths<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Fractured Dark<\/em><\/strong> Megan E. O&#8217;Keefe (2023)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Devoured Worlds<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Virtu<\/em><\/strong> Katherine Addison (2006)<br \/>\nBook 2 of <em>The Doctrine of Labyrinths<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Only Victor<\/em><\/strong> Alexander Kent (1990)<br \/>\nBook 20 of <em>Bolitho<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Ashes of Honor<\/em><\/strong> Seanan McGuire (2012)<br \/>\nBook 6 of <em>October Daye<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>The Mirador<\/em><\/strong> Katherine Addison (2007)<br \/>\nBook 3 of <em>The Doctrine of Labyrinths<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>December (9)<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><em>Chimes at Midnight<\/em><\/strong> Seanan McGuire (2013)<br \/>\nBook 7 of <em>October Daye<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>System Collapse<\/em><\/strong> Martha Wells (2023)<br \/>\nBook 7 of <em>The Murderbot Diaries<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Corambis<\/em><\/strong> Katherine Addison (2009)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>The Doctrine of Labyrinths<\/em> \u2013 ebook;<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Scholar<\/em><\/strong> L.E.Modesitt Jr. (2011)<br \/>\nBook 4 of <em>The Imager Portfolio<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Princeps<\/em><\/strong> L.E.Modesitt Jr. (2012)<br \/>\nBook 5 of <em>The Imager Portfolio<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Imager&#8217;s Battalion<\/em><\/strong> L.E.Modesitt Jr. (2013)<br \/>\nBook 6 of <em>The Imager Portfolio<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Antiagon Fire<\/em><\/strong> L.E.Modesitt Jr. (2013)<br \/>\nBook 7 of <em>The Imager Portfolio<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Rex Regis<\/em><\/strong> L.E.Modesitt Jr. (2014)<br \/>\nBook 8 of <em>The Imager Portfolio<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<li><strong><em>Madness in Solidar<\/em><\/strong> L.E.Modesitt Jr. (2015)<br \/>\nBook 9 of <em>The Imager Portfolio<\/em> \u2013 ebook; reread<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr \/>\n<h4>Show me the numbers!<\/h4>\n<p>Total read: <strong>127<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\">46 rereads<br \/>\n10.6 books\/month<br \/>\n2.5 books\/week<br \/>\n.35 books\/day<\/p>\n<p>Books by women: (15\/45 authors)<br \/>\nNon SF\/Fantasy: 23<br \/>\nOldest 1956 (<em>Time for the Stars<\/em> Robert A. Heinlein)<br \/>\n1 print (a graphic novel)<\/p>\n<p>40 different series<br \/>\n11 non-series books<\/p>\n<h3>Of Note<\/h3>\n<p>Some books that made an impression:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ben Aaronovitch&#8217;s Rivers of London series\u2014 I mentioned the first one last year and continued to consumed this series in huge gulps, always wanting more. It helps we&#8217;ve been watching a lot of British TV lately but I love Aaronovitch&#8217;s sense of wry humour and the premise of a magical cop is handled in a way that defies the trite &#8220;The perfect blend of CSI and Harry Potter&#8221;\u00a0 promo line they keep using.<\/li>\n<li>I continued to read some of Adrian Tchaikovsky&#8217;s stand-alone fiction and really enjoyed<em> City of Last Chances<\/em>.<\/li>\n<li><em>The Lost War<\/em> by Justin Lee Anderson wrote a great story then upended it completely in the last few pages. The sequel is just out and I am actually trepidatious about reading it because it has the potential to go so wrong&#8230; or be absolutely fantastic if he gets it right.<\/li>\n<li><em>Babel<\/em> by R. F. Kuang\u2014 I made Leslie read this one. Enough said.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Some other books that made an impression (not that I like the so much as they were noteworthy):<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Rivers of London: <em>Body Work<\/em> Ben Aaronovitch, Andrew Cartmel \u2014 a graphic novel. Probably the first graphic novel I have ever read completely and the only hard copy book of the year. Still not my jam.<\/li>\n<li><em>The Frugal Wizard&#8217;s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England<\/em> Brandon Sanderson\u2014One of Sanderson&#8217;s big releases from his whole kickstarter thing. Meh. Not bad but I really didn&#8217;t see they anything other than a quick little project that was acceptable. It didn&#8217;t help that I read the ebook and it was chock-a-bloc full of graphics making it tedious to read on my poor little Kobo. That&#8217;s another trend that I don&#8217;t particularly admire.<\/li>\n<li>The much hyped and marketed <em>Starter Villain<\/em> by John Scalzi\u2014It was a fun premise, well written and in no way a chore to read. But of any substance whatsoever? No. Scalzi himself alluded to it as sort of a post-Covid relief valve. I enjoyed it; but I was kind of\u00a0 amused by the hype surrounding a throw-away book of the type that used to have me referring to my reading habits as &#8220;trashy sci-fi.&#8221; I do hope he writes more, but I think they should save the over-the-top accolades and marketing dollars for others.<\/li>\n<li><em>Rosemary and Rue<\/em> by Seanan McGuire and the rest of the series (I am up to book 8)\u2014I started this based on a conversation with someone and it was well-written enough to become a habit. But is a habit a good enough excuse to continue on? So far McGuire is winning by continuing to suck me in&#8230; but I imagine the $22.99 price point for the latest in the series might be a stopper (more on this later).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Some non-SF and my continued whinging<\/h3>\n<p>This year I started in on the 30+ book series of Richard Bolitho. It&#8217;s another Napoleonic era, Age of Sail series that starts with a young Richard Bolitho as midshipman and follows his career. I am only up to Book 20 so I have a few more to go and I believe he moves on to the title characters nephew as the protagonist in the last few books&#8230;doesn&#8217;t look good for Richard&#8217;s health long term \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<p>The problem is that many of the books are geo-blocked in Canada. It really really grinds my gears that <em><strong>any<\/strong><\/em> book is geo-blocked, but when only <em>some<\/em> of the books in a series are available&#8230;well&#8230;that&#8217;s just bloody unacceptable. Needless to say I tried hard to get around it legitimately (i.e. actually pay for them ) but it proved impossible and I ended up downloading a bunch of crappy OCR&#8217;d versions and doing my best to clean them up. Ironically and irritatingly, a bunch of the later books finally showed up as available here in Canada so I bought them and chucked out all my work on the half-assed versions. Now if they will just release the rest&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>I also added two more Phryne Fisher mysteries to the total to bring me up to book 15 and completely my list on non-SF\/Fantasy reading.<\/p>\n<h3>Two more bitches<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Prices:<\/strong> $23 dollars for an ebook? What the serious fuck?. Pricing a book used to be 5 x pp&amp;b ( five times the print, paper and binding costs). If manufacturing a book cost $2\/unit then the retail price would be around $10. This covered all the other\u00a0 creation costs and paid the author a &#8220;fair&#8221; royalty. I know things have changed but creating an ebook is under a hundred dollars for <em>unlimited<\/em> copies&#8230;and probably much cheaper than that for the big guys. This is an outright money grab, trying to create &#8220;hardback&#8221;\/ new release pricing around a purely digital product that in most cases YOU DON&#8221;T EVEN OWN!\u00a0 The hardcover is only $37 for goodness sake&#8230; the pricing makes no sense! Sigh.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Romantasy:<\/strong> Seriously? Goodreads had it as an actual category in their Choice Awards this year&#8230; I can&#8217;t even.<\/p>\n<h3>Conclusions<\/h3>\n<p>Not much to say about books this year. I am trying to read more new books and more new authors. I think the tendency towards writing dense sci-fi and fantasy continues and when I am in the mood for it, it&#8217;s some pretty great stuff. But as much as I twit about Scalzi, it&#8217;s nice to read some good old fashioned, well-written schlock. Especially as we all recover from the mass trauma that was &#8220;Humanity during Covid.&#8221; So let&#8217;s hope there is plenty of that to read as well (although I realize I have decades of old stuff to catch up on so there is always something &#8220;schlocky to read \ud83d\ude09 )<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s to a lot of great books in 2024!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p>My fellow book counters: Dr. la ass dean <a href=\"https:\/\/moreblaze.blogspot.com\/2024\/01\/2023-its-over.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2023 book and music list<\/a> and the one, the only, the original, Earl J. Woods&#8217; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.earljwoods.com\/2023\/12\/last-but-not-least-books-i-read-in-2023.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Last But Not Least: Books I Read in 2023<\/a> .<\/p>\n<p>Links to previous years\u2019 book count posts:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=2941\">2012 <\/a>(85)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=5733\">2013 <\/a>(95)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=7902\">2014 <\/a>(106)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=10026\">2015 <\/a>(92)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=11024\">2016 <\/a>(101)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=11814\">2017 <\/a>(120)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=12492\">2018 <\/a>(142)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=13441\">2019 <\/a>(123)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=14227\">2020 <\/a>(112)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=14841\">2021 <\/a>(124)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/?p=15654\">2022 <\/a>(136)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to the end of the year. Or the beginning of the year. It&#8217;s been a lot of fun. Due to work commitments I have done exactly zero Standard ebooks this past year and thus all my reading has been in the modern era. I did add a new non-sci-fi series so there was a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[48],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15985"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15985"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15985\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16256,"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15985\/revisions\/16256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/macblaze.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}