In the first part of this year, I made the decision to write about each quarter of my reading here on the blog, which I succeeded with for the first half of the year. And then October happened, and it seemed like everything was both frenzied and dull at the same time. I read very little and wrote even less, so my third quarter post never happened. But I still find the tracking useful, so here I am, a month late, with the summary of my reading life from July – September, wherein I read a total of 15 books.

 

Seeing a Large Cat by Elizabeth Peters

This was the first book in the Amelia Peabody series that I ever read, many years ago when I was a child on a family road trip. It was the book that made me fall in love with both the Peabody Emerson family as well as Barbara Rosenblat’s audiobook narration. I still love this book. It introduces two interesting characters who become part of the ensemble cast for nearly all future books, and it introduces Ramses’ own POV narration, which adds a newness to the long-running series that I think it needed. It’s funny and absurd and everything works out mostly for the best at the end – just the ticket for this sad and strained time.

 

The Ape Who Guards the Balance by Elizabeth Peters

This book was notable for me in that it’s really the first time that Amelia’s prejudice toward Egyptians is acknowledged openly as being prejudice. Certainly she was better than most of her time (and better than many today), but when a young Egyptian man whom they had taken in as a member of their extended family falls in love with her British niece and the two wish to be married, Amelia’s first instinct is to object – and she holds to this view for some time. Her husband (who is irritated by everyone equally but does seem to be genuinely free of racial prejudice) brings her round eventually, and Amelia learns of and is ashamed by this unsavory facet of herself. It’s the first time since Book 1 that Amelia’s character grows in any real sense, and it was nice to see.

 

The Falcon at the Portal by Elizabeth Peters

Well, this book is engaging but extremely sad. If you make it this far in reading the series, I suggest you have the next book, He Shall Thunder in the Sky, close at hand.

 

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari

This is one of those books that I can’t stop talking about (probably to the mild aggravation of friends and family). Harari has written an ambitious book about the history of humankind, from 100,000 years ago to the present. Among the most interesting things for me personally were these two bits: there were half a dozen or more different human species that lived at the same time as homo sapiens (not just the Neanderthals as most of us think); and the agricultural revolution may have been ultimately good for 21st century humans, but for most of its duration it actually caused a decrease in the quality of life for most people (not to mention animals). The way Harari frames certain concepts was also fascinating. For example, he writes that what enabled humans to bind together in large groups necessary for modern civilization was our shared belief in myths, and by myths he basically means anything that is not physical. This could be religion, but it’s also abstract ideas like liberalism, democracy, economic systems, and human rights. Without these shared myths, large groups of humans cannot work together across distance and time. I’m excited to read the graphic adaptation that was just published October 27.

 

Half Way Home by Hugh Howey

I’ve not read anything else by Hugh Howey and I wasn’t particularly impressed by this one. I’m having a hard time even recalling the concept, and I ended up skimming the last third.

 

He Shall Thunder in the Sky be Elizabeth Peters

This volume concludes the events that began in Falcon at the Portal (albeit three years later for our characters) and sees the villains brought to justice. Satisfying and cathartic.

 

 

Cursed: An Anthology of Dark Fairy Tales edited by Marie O’Regan

I enjoyed this short story collection, though I’d be hard pressed to tell you what any of the stories were about. I’m going to blame pandemic brain.

 

The Companion by Katie Alender

I really enjoyed this gothic-esque YA thriller and wrote a full review of it here.

 

Heist Society & Perfect Scoundrels by Ally Carter

These were just what I needed in a book for this time: fun, fluffy heist stories of a found family with plenty of banter and love. And of course, happy endings. I own these two and was glad I could re-read them when I needed them.

 

Tribe: On Homecoming and Belonging by Sebastian Junger

Junger’s short book provides his explanation for why so many white colonists in America willingly abandoned their Western society and culture and went to live with Native American tribes – but there are no records of the reverse ever happening. He weaves this question together with the fact that many American soldiers returning from war have PTSD not only because of the extreme violence they witnessed and participated in, but because of the struggle of leaving behind a communal society (soldiers in war) and trying to reintegrate into an extreme individualist one (modern American society at peace). Certainly he is not arguing that war is good – but the more communal cultures of both the armed forces and Native American tribes exert an inexorable pull on humans. It’s a fascinating book that provides a lot to discuss.

 

Lord of the Silent by Elizabeth Peters

Another solid entry in this reliably good series.

 

The Last Confession of Autumn Casterly by Meredith Tate

Autumn Casterly has disappeared, and the only person who believes she hasn’t just run off is her younger sister Ivy. Trapped on the brink of death somewhere, Autumn’s consciousness follows Ivy as she tries to find Autumn. Seasoned readers will know what happened to Autumn years ago that started her down a spiral of dangerous behavior – drug use and dealing, violence – but most of them will still be surprised by the culprits responsible for her kidnapping in the present. This is a thoughtful, often painful read that shines a light on complex sister relationships.

 

The Fortress by S. A. Jones

Jonathon Bridge offers himself as a supplicant to the Fortress, a protected society of women that exists alongside our modern day world. His wife is requiring this of him in order to remain married after learning of the sexual violence in his workplace and the ways Jonathon was complicit in it (including multiple infidelities). The Fortress has three rules for supplicants: They are forbidden to ask questions, to raise a hand in anger, and to refuse sex. This was a buzzy title at PLA in February, and I picked up it partly because I’ve always been intrigued by matriarchal societies and partly because I wanted to see how it would resolve the issues of consent that its premise raises. It doesn’t. This is a book full of rape that the author and her characters refuse to name as such. The book is interesting to talk about, I suppose, but it’s a really distasteful read without anything meaningful to say.

 

The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson

I was really irritated after reading the first book in this trilogy, which contains two mysteries – neither of which are resolved in that first volume. Thankfully, this third and final volume wraps everything up nicely. I think I actually enjoyed the second book most, but this is a solid series for mystery readers – one I recommend reading now, when you don’t have to wait a year to learn whodunnit.