May 2023 archive

Witch And Famous by Angela M. Sanders

I do so love how this mystery series goes from strength to strength, as our librarian heroine Josie Way learns how to control her witchy powers while helping out the citizens of the small town of Wilfred, Oregon. Bibliomancy isn’t just about recommending the right books to the right people at the right time, but …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/31/witch-and-famous-by-angela-m-sanders/

Ava’s Demon, Book One: Reborn by Michelle Fus

The hallmark of a great graphic novel is that even in the wordless panels, you can still hear precisely what’s going on. There’s a big, climactic battle scene near the end of this book that’s entirely devoid of the written word, yet I could hear every single thing that was happening and to loud, orchestral …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/30/avas-demon-book-one-reborn-by-michelle-fus/

I Have Something To Tell You―For Young Adults: A Memoir by Chasten Glezman Buttigieg

I’d never had any interest in reading the memoirs of a political spouse till after I picked up this book. It’s an adaptation of Chasten Glezman Buttigieg’s 2021 autobiography, originally written for adults, but with a message that’s so, so necessary for younger readers, too. I mean, even for a grown person like myself who …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/26/i-have-something-to-tell-you%e2%80%95for-young-adults-a-memoir-by-chasten-glezman-buttigieg/

Tell-Tale Bones by Carolyn Haines (EXCERPT)

Read an excerpt from the newest book in Carolyn Haines’ sassy Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery series! Tell-Tale Bones is the latest spooky installment, involving cold cases and a reputedly haunted grave. We were graciously given permission to let you take a look inside this 26th book in the series, with a passage from Chapter 2! …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/24/tell-tale-bones-by-carolyn-haines-excerpt/

Peculiar Woods: The Ancient Underwater City by Andrés J. Colmenares

Oh gosh, I immediately fell in love with the beautiful colors of this whimsical comic book even before I began to enjoy the fun story it tells. The art feels very cartoony in a modern way — I wish I was more cognizant of current trends in animation so I could explain it better, but …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/23/peculiar-woods-the-ancient-underwater-city-by-andres-j-colmenares/

Black Water Sister by Zen Cho

Black Water Sister by Zen Cho

In contrast to Doreen, I do not feel perfectly suited to review Black Water Sister. I’m basically none of the things that the protagonist is, starting with Malaysian and ending with haunted by my maternal grandmother’s ghost. (To be clear, Doreen is not haunted by her grandmother’s ghost either. As far as I know.) None …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/21/black-water-sister-by-zen-cho-2/

Forest of Memory by Mary Robinette Kowal

Forest of Memory by Mary Robinette Kowal

Forest of Memory, a novella from 2016, finds Mary Robinette Kowal writing in a very different mode from her two well-known series, the Glamourist Histories and the Lady Astronaut books. Two hundred or so years into the future, material abundance and pervasive interconnection have left some very wealthy people hungering for the real, for the …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/20/forest-of-memory-by-mary-robinette-kowal/

The Literary Tarot: Classics Edition by The Brink Literacy Project

Being a small-time collector of Tarot decks who is really and truly not trying to own tooooo many of them, I absolutely could not resist picking up this set. Firstly, it’s themed on classic literature, with each card pairing contributed by a famous (or famous enough) author. Secondly, it’s overseen by the Brink Literacy Project, …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/19/the-literary-tarot-classics-edition-by-the-brink-literacy-project/

Gamer Girls: Monster Village by Andrea Towers

with fun retro gaming illustrations by Alexis Jauregui. Oh, my heart! This second book in a series about middle school girl gamers just hit me so hard in the feels that I’ll even forgive the (admittedly appropriate) cliffhanger ending. It’s been a few weeks since Nat came out to her middle school best friends as …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/17/gamer-girls-monster-village-by-andrea-towers/

What If? 2 by Randall Munroe

What If 2 by Randall Munroe

What If?, this book’s predecessor, hit the sweet spot of serious science mixed up with deadpan presentation, and proved a (periodically dangerous) garden of delights. The second book exploring “serious scientific answers to absurd hypothetical questions” does just that, boggling and amusing in nearly equal measure. If the leitmotif of the first volume is “What …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2023/05/14/what-if-2-by-randall-munroe/