Deanna Mae

'January Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Gang of Ghouls: The Complete Series by E. Chase, Vampires at Sea by L. Merbaum, Strange Houses by Uketsu, The Grasshopper: Games, Life and Utopia by B. Suits, We Live Here Now by S. Pinborough, Long List Anthology by D. Steffen [ed.], Water Moon by S. S. Yambao, Unflattening by N. Sousanis, Green Frog: Stories by G. Chung, Adventurer: The Life and Times of Giacomo Casanova by L. Damrosch, The Vintner's Luck by E. Knox, Who's Who When Everyone is Someone Else by C. D. Rose, The Extra by A. Neugebauer, King Sorrow by J. Hill, Gate of Ivrel (#1) by C. J. Cherryh, The Lord Of The Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien) and covers for books I'm currently reading (The Broom of the System by D. F. Wallace, The Risen Empire (#1) by S. Westerfeld). Books read: 16. Pages read: 6,535. Average rating: 4.03

January's reading. A couple of disappointments and several DNFs, but also an excellent reread (LOTR) and a strong contender for favorite book of the year: King Sorrow. That book was absolutely fantastic!! #BookSky

Title: Year in Review. Under the heading "New Favorite Books" are 8 book covers: The Count of Monte Cristo, The World, The Failures, A Short Stay in Hell, Five Found Dead, Dhalgren, The Dark Forest, and Babel. Under the heading "New Favorite Series: are 3 books with captions: Founders Trology, Chrosus of Dragons, and Covenant of Steel. Under the heading "Most Surprising" are 8 book covers: Unravelling, Blindsight, Slow Bullets, Yume, In Ascension, And On That Bombshell, Fledgling, and An Author's Guide to Murder. At the bottom are year-end statistics: 182 books (68,841 pages) read, with a 4.07 average rating.

Collage of 182 book covers and the words "Read in 2025"

End-of-year statistics and superlatives and stuff. I ended up finishing 182 books, with an average rating of 4.07. I DNF'd around 30 books, which helps explain that high average. 😁 #BookSky

'December Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Katabasis by R. F. Kuang, Of Monsters and Mainframes by B. Truelove, Midnight's Children by S. Rushdie, A Short Stay in Hell by S. L. Peck, The Illustrated Mahabharata by DK Publishing, Demian by H. Hesse, The Fearmonger by J. Blum, Phobos by E. Robson, How Proust Can Change Your Life by A. de Botton, Dhalgren by S. Delaney, The Looking-Glass Curse by E. Chase, Strange Beasts of China by G. Yan, We Live Here Now by C. D. Rose, Remina by J. Ito, Murder at Spindle Manor (#1) by M. Stang, Hausfrau by J. A. Essbaum, Betrayals by C. Palliser, The Castle of Crossed Destinies by I. Calvino, The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkein, Permafrost by A. Reynolds). Books read: 20. Pages read: 6,787. Average rating: 4.14

December's reading. A mixed bag, in terms of genre. Some hits and a couple of disappointments. Favorite read of the month: Dhalgren. That book has done something to my brain. 😵 #BookSky

I really liked Cryptonomicon, and Anathema was a 5-star read for me. Thank you for the Varley recs! :)

Book cover for The Ordinary Princess by M. M. Kaye

Post a book you love from the 80s. No explanations, no reviews, just covers.
#BookSky #bookchallenge #readingchallenge #readingcommunity #booktok #bookish #books

I read the Gaea trilogy this year. Freaky weird, but really good. I need to get more of his backlist. :)

I loved Solenoid and I am really looking forward to Tom's Crossing. Now you've gotten me curious about a couple of the other books in that stack. 🧐

'November Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Blood on Her Tongue by J. van Veen, Lore Olympus (vol 9) by R. Smythe, Shorefall (#2) by R. J. Bennett, Doctor Who: Immortal Beloved by J. Clements, Doctor Who: The Chimes of Midnight by R. Shearman, Doctor Who: Destination: Nerva by N. Briggs, Doctor Who: No More Lies by P. Sutton, The Quantum War (#3) by D. Künsken, Don Quixote by M. Cervantes, The House of Footsteps by M. West, Locklands (#3) by R. J. Bennett, Herland by C. P. Gilman, Adventures of the Mad Monk Ji Gong by Guo Xiaoting, Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame by N. Yang, The Annotated Frankenstein by Shelley, M. & Klinger, L., Moonflower Murders by A. Horowitz, The Mystery Writer by S. Gentill). and covers for books I'm currently reading (Dhalgren by S. Delaney. Midnight's Children by S. Rushdie, The Illustrated Mahabharata, Katabasis by R.F. Kuang). Books read: 17. Pages read: 6312. Average rating: 4.00

November's reading. Some classics, some mysteries, some Big Finish. Overall an okay reading month. #BookSky

'October Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Blindsight by P. Watts, Blinding by M. Cărtărescu, The Quantum Magician (#1) by D. Künsken, Walking Practice by D. Min, Echopraxia by P. Watts, The Club Dumas by A. Pérez-Reverte, Five Found Dead by S. Gentill, The Worm Ouroboros by E. R. Eddison, The Quantum Garden (#2) by D. Künsken, Wild Seed (#1) by O. E. Butler, Alice's Adventures In Wonderland by L. Carroll & C. Riddell, The Dragonfly Gambit by A. D. Sui, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There by L. Carroll & C. Riddell, The Puzzle Master by D. Trussoni, Mind of My Mind (#2) by O. E. Butler, Clay's Ark (#3) by O. E. Butler, Patternmaster (#4) by O. E. Butler, Foundryside (#1) by R. J. Bennett) and covers for books I'm currently reading (Don Quixote by M. Cervantes, Adventures of the Mad Monk Ji Gong by Guo Xiaoting, Shorefall (#2) by RJ. Bennett, Blood on Her Tongue by J. van Veen). Books read: 18. Pages read: 5992. Average rating: 4.11

October's reading. Several rereads, lots of series reads, and a couple of surprising hits. Favorite non-reread book would be either Five Found Dead or Foundryside. #BookSky

'September Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books ( Anima Rising by C. Moore, Vallista (#15) by S. Brust, Wizard (Gaea #2) by J. Varley, Golden Lotus by S. Xiaoxiao, Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts (volumes 1-5) by Y. Tomofuji, Death and the Virgin by C. Skidmore, The Name of the Rose by U. Eco, Demon (Gaea #3) by J. Varley, The Summer Tree (#1) by G. Kay, Pulling the Wings Off Angels by K.J. Parker) and covers for books I'm currently reading (Blinding by M. Cărtărescu, The Quantum Magician (#1) by D. Künsken, Blindsight by P. Watts) Books read: 14. Pages read: 5,323. Average rating: 4.07

September's reading. A couple of surprises, one big miss, and a lot of meh. I'm really enjoying my current reads, though, so hopefully October will be better. #BookSky

'August Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Strange Pictures: A Novel by Uketsu, Slow Bullets by A. Reynolds, Wicked Beauty by K. Robert, Moment in Peking by Y. Lin, Burn for Me (#1) by I. Andrews, White Hot (#2) by I. Andrews, Wildfire (#3) by I. Andrews. Murder by Memory (#1) by O. Waite, The Traitor (#3) by A. Ryan, Sapphire Flames (#4) by I. Andrews, Emerald Blaze (#5) by I. Andrews, Ruby Fever (#6) by I. Andrews, H.P. Lovecraft's The Colour Out of Space by G. Tanabe, Idols of Perversity by B. Dijkstra, Tiassa (#13) by S. Brust, Titan (Gaea #1) by J. Varley, Hawk (#14) by S. Brust) and covers for books I'm currently reading (Golden Lotus by X. Sheng, Wizard (Gaea #2) by J. Varley, Anima Rising by C. Moore. Books read: 17. Pages read: 6494. Average rating: 4.18

August's reading. Apart from Ilona Andrews, who is always a hit for me, there weren't any standout positives or negatives. #BookSky

'July Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Four on the Floor by P. Grey, The Dragon Shifter's Mates: The Complete Series by E. Chase, The Little Stranger by S. Waters, Double Dirty Mountain Men by P. Grey, The Pariah (#1) by A. Ryan, Almanac of the Dead by L.M. Silko, Against a Dark Background by I.M. Banks, Hamilton: The Revolution by L. Miranda, Shoggoths in Bloom by E. Bear, The Martyr (#2) by A. Ryan, The Three Musketeers by A. Dumas, Fledgling by O. Butler, The Glass Garden by J. Lévai) and covers for books I'm currently reading (Moment in Peking by Y. Lin, The Traitor (#3) by A. Ryan, The Red Sphinx by A. Dumas). Books read: 13. Pages read: 5941. Average rating: 3.98

July's reading. A couple of hits, two surprising misses. Genre-wise, still all over the place. #BookSky

'June Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands by S. Brooks, Starless by J. Carey, Crime and Punishment by F. Dostoyevsky, Queen's Crusade (#1) by J. S. Burkhart, Heart Of Fire (#1) by B. McMaster, Invisible Planets by H. Rajaniemi, Empress of Forever by M. Gladstone, Death of the Author by N. Okorafor, Radiance by G. Draven, Invisible Cities by I. Calvino, Foucault's Pendulum by U. Eco, The River Has Roots by A. El-Mohtar, Iorich (#12) by S. Brust, And On That Bombshell by R. Porter, Your Dad Will Do by K. Robert, My Name is Legion by R. Zelazny, The Haunted Bookstore (#1) by Shinobumaru, The Haunted Bookstore (#2) by Shinobumaru, The Haunted Bookstore (#3) by Shinobumaru, The Best American SF & Fantasy (2022) by R. Roanhorse (ed.), Yume by S.T. Anipare, The September House by C. Orlando, Lore Olympus (vol 8) by R. Smythe and covers for books I'm currently reading (Almanac of the Dead by LM. Silko, The Pariah (#1) by A. Ryan, Against a Dark Background by IM. Banks, Four on the Floor by P. Grey). Books read: 23. Pages read: 7936. Average rating: 4.03

June's reading. A couple of hits, but overall June felt like a 'quantity over quality' month. Fingers crossed that July will be better. #BookSky

'May Reads' graphic. Includes covers for finished books (The Oceans of Cruelty by D. J. Penick, In Ascension by M. MacInnes, The Book of Dzur (#10 & 11) by S. Brust, A True Novel by M. Mizumura, Irrational Numbers by G. A. Effinger, The Author's Guide to Murder by Williams, et al, Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio by S. Pu, The Universe in Verse by M. Popova [ed.], The House Isador omnibus (vol. 1) by J. S. Burkhart, The House Isador omnibus (vol. 2) by J. S. Burkhart, Babel by R. F. Kuang, Queen Takes More by J. S. Burkhart, Hopscotch: A Novel by J. Cortázar) and covers for books I'm currently reading (Crime and Punishment by F. Dostoevsky, The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands by S. Brooks, Starless by J. Carey). Books read: 13. Pages read: 5905. Average rating: 4.17

May's reading. As usual, a variety of genres: fantasy, sci-fi, classics, a bit of poetry, and a heathy dollop of vampire smut. #BookSky

April Reads Graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Doctor Who: Horror of Glam Rock by P. Magrs, The Cyberiad by S. Lem, Death's End (#3) by C. Liu, The Count of Monte Cristo by A. Dumas, The House of Always (#4) by J. Lyons, Doctor Who: Spare Parts by M. Platt, Doctor Who: Technophobia by M. Fitton, Kraken: A Novel by C. Miéville, The Discord of Gods (#5) by J. Lyons, Death and Mr. Pickwick by S. Jarvis, Subdivision by JR. Lennon) and covers for books I'm currently reading (A True Novel by M. Mizumura, In Ascension by M. MacInnes)

April's reading. A range of genres, some Big Finish audio, and an amazing classic! #BookSky

Wow, that takes me back!

Tweet. Text reads: roommate is blasting the nutcracker on vinyl because he says the dance of the sugarplum fairies is, and I quote, "a straight fuckin banger"

😆

March Reads graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Gold by I. Asimov, The Three-Body Problem (#1) by C. Liu, Name of All Things (#2) by J. Lyons, Lost in the Garden by A.S. Leslie, The House at Watch Hill (#1) by K.M. Moning, The World by S.S. Montefiore, The Most of P.G. Wodehouse by P.G. Wodehouse, The Best American SF & Fantasy (2019) by C.M. Machado (ed.), Dr. No by P. Everett, The Memory of Souls (#3) by J. Lyons, The Dark Forest (#2) by C. Liu, Atomic Habits by J. Clear) and covers for books I'm currently reading (The Count of Monte Cristo by A. Dumas, Death's End (#3) by C. Liu)

March's reading. One really disappointing read, one meh read, but otherwise the month was a success! #BookSky

Top panel: a person is saying, "If you put holy water in a humidifier it turns the room into a gas chamber for vampires." Bottom panel: a person in a Wendy's uniform says, "Sir, this is a Wendy's"

This made me chuckle today.

Image of a completed 5000-piece Pokémon jigsaw.

Are there jigsaw puzzle fans here? I just finished the 5000-piece Pokémon jigsaw and I would love recommendations for similarly big & colorful puzzles like this. (I would love to do one of the really big ones, but my table can't handle anything bigger than this.) #jigsaw

February Reads graphic. Includes covers for finished books (The Failures (#1) by B. Liar, The Last Samurai by H. DeWitt, Ringworld (#1) by L. Niven, The Wood at Midwinter by S. Clarke, Mrs. Dalloway by V. Woolf, How Long 'Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemisin, The Art Thief by M. Finkel, Machines in the Head by A. Kavan, The Ruin of Kings (#1) by J. Lyons, Freshwater: A Comedy by V. Woolf, The Hunting of the Snark by L. Carroll) and covers for books I'm currently reading (The World by S. Montefiore, The Three-Body Problem (#1) by C. Liu, and Gold by I. Asimov)

February wrap-up. Now sure what compelled me to start 2 different series last month, but I'm rolling with past me's decision. #BookSky

I've seen a similar argument for semicolons. 🤪

The Safekeep was one of my favorite books last year!

I just... I can't even... Maybe we really are in the weasel timeline.

January Reads graphic. Includes covers for finished books (Unravelling by K. Lord, The Mythic Dream by D. Parisien, The Meiji Guillotine Murders by F. Yamada, The Book That Broke the World by M. Lawrence, The Trickster's Lover by S. MacLeod, Light From Uncommon Stars by R. Aoki, A Magical Girl Retires by P. Seolyeon, Strange Planet by N. Pyle, The SFWA European Hall of Fame by J & K Morrow, Graveyard Shift by ML Rio, and Isle of the Dead by R. Zelazny) and currently I'm currently reading (The World by S. Montefiore, The Failures by B. Liar, and The Last Samurai by H. DeWitt)

My first try at a monthly wrap-up graphic. #BookSky

Book cover: This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

This Is How You Lose the Time War is fantastic!

The Deep is beautifully written, but it is an emotional gut-punch.

I loved Our Share of Night! I'm looking forward to reading her backlist, too.

The Szechuan Dragon is in season 6. 🐉 Grady and Donna housesit for Jess while she's traveling overseas, and one night they find a corpse (with a peg leg!) in the living room. They (along with Mort and Doc Hazlitt) try to solve the case without Jess, and things go about as well as you'd expect.