
For those of you unfamiliar with this column, the Friday Fragments lists what I’ve read over the past week. Most of the time I don’t include details of either short fiction (unless part of a book-length collection) or magazines. The Fragments are not meant to be a recommendation list. If you’re interested in a not-at-all-inclusive recommendation list, you can look on my website under Neat Stuff.
Once again, this is not a book review column. It’s just a list with, maybe, a bit of description or a few opinions tossed in. And it’s also a great place to tell me what you’re reading.
Completed:
Moon Flash by Patricia A. McKillip. Many people are surprised to find she wrote SF as well as Fantasy. In memory of her recent demise, I decided to re-read this. Although it has a sequel, it is its own story.
The Moon and the Face by Patricia A. McKillip. Sequel to Moon Flash, although its own story.
Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire. Audiobook. Re-listen. Plot and characterization take second place to description in this tour of the compass points. Fourth in her Wayward Children series.
In Progress:
The Riddlemaster of Hed by Patricia A. McKillip. Re-read. First in the “Riddle of the Stars” fantasy trilogy. A long-time favorite of mine.
Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance by Lois McMaster Bujold. Audiobook. Spies, intrigue, and hints of romance in this sideline novel in her popular Barrayar setting/Vorkosigan saga.
Also:
Okay, for those of you who read this far, awkward moment.
I started Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers as an audiobook (with the same reader as the prior two of hers in her “Wayfarers” series). Unlike the prior two, in which plot is slim but made lively by vivid characters, from whose problems the worldbuilding is worked in, this one—for me—lacked either characters or plot, but seems to be the author’s world-building notes presented via talking head characters. I’m a long-time SF/F reader, so very few of the world-building details are new enough to me to hold my interest. I am willing to eventually give the book another try, but if anyone has read it and can brief me, either in the comments or via e-mail, I’d be interested in feedback.