Happy Monday, Boozie Book Nerds!

Apologies for the mini break. Both me and Ginny had one hell of a June.

Ginny’s Update

What Ginny Finished:

• A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher: Man, I have become such a fan of T. Kingfisher recently. Sam goes to visit her mom and finds her crass, fun-loving Mom to be nervous and quiet and it’s weird. Sam herself starts having night terrors, is freaked out by the vultures that are constantly watching the house, and also concerned about the total lack of bugs in her grandmothers old rose garden. This book has fantastic pacing and is so creepy and I loved Sam’s slow realization about what is actually happening because it feels like the way someone who lived in the real world would think
• The Lost Executioner by Nic Dunlop: This is nonfiction – Nic is a photojournalist who was focused on Cambodia during and after the end of the Khmer Rouge uprising and control of the company. This book talks about how the rise of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge affected the country, how the recovery was attempted, and how Duch, the leader of what was effectively the Cambodian Stazi, disappeared and then was found again. It’s a chilling read and really informative about a subject I was wildly unfamiliar with. 
• A Consuming Fire by John Scalzi: This is the second book in the Interdependency series, where the world is dealing with a growing knowledge of the end of the faster than light travel pathways that have been used to build and sustain the empire.

What Ginny is Currently Reading:

• A Promised Land by Barack Obama: This is Obama’s recent book detailing the lead up to the election and then an in-depth look at being the President of the US. The main thing I’m getting is that 1) Michelle Obama is an absolute badass and 2) It doesn’t matter how nice they are, anyone who wants to be the president is at least a little bit narcissistic
• The Oleander Sword by Tasha Suri: Malini is still working to become empress by defeating her brother the murderous emperor. Priya is dealing with the new power that comes from being a thrice-born. And honestly this series is like a way more interesting game of thrones. I’m still working on it.
• An Island Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana Herrera: Manuela is trying to have a sapphic adventure in the weeks before she gets married to save her families fortunes. She asks Duchess Cora to be her guide as payment for land Cora needs to complete a railroad. I feel like I’m 30% in and while I know what the plot will be and who the characters are that not much has happened? That being said, the tension between the two main characters is so present in every scene they have together which  makes that totally worth it.
• The Girl in the Green Silk Gown by Seanan McGuire: This is technically the second book in the Ghost Roads series, but the first book was more a series of short stories. Famous urban legend Rose Marshall is still being hunted by her murderer Bobby Cross. While being hunted she ends up losing some of the things protecting her, has to deal with her boyfriend (from high school 60 years ago) being a car, and the only person who can help her is the academic who has been studying her and hunting her down for years. This book was a wild ride. I really enjoyed the way the Ghost Roads are described and all of the weird rituals that exist in this world of things not quite hidden. 
• Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel: I’ve love Emily St. John Mandel since Station 11 first came out! First off, it’s probably helpful to have read both Station Eleven and the Glass Hotel first as it makes some Easter Eggs in this book so much more fun. The book spans across four different timelines and an anomaly that ties them together. Seriously, this book was wonderful, looking at the way a small even can have an impact and also the effect that knowledge your life has been impacted can have. I know that’s vague as hell but, loved this book!

Sam’s Update

What Sam is Finished:

• The House Keepers by Alex Hay – picked up an ARC at ALA last month. It was pitched as Downton meets Ocean’s 11. I inhaled this book…

What Sam is Currently Reading:

• Yumi and the Nightmare Painter by Brandon Sanderson – this is the third of Sando’s secret novels on a planet that has spirits that remind me of spren and the planet doesn’t spin. So there’s on side in constant night the other in day. I imagine this will be a love story… we’ll see how it goes!
• The Last Hero by Linden A. Lewis: This is the finale to the First Sister series so I can’t say much about the plot, but I am enjoying it. I got it back, hoping to finish this soon, it’s been too long.
• Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo – this is the second to Ninth House and I can’t remember much except there are ghosts. Trying to fall back in to where we are without having to look it up.

Until next time, we remain forever drunkenly yours,

— Sam and Ginny