sophistry | (no subject)

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At lunchtime, I am making a run to the bookshop - having read The Graveyard Book, which I adored for the same reasons I adore Neverwhere, has me craving... more of the same, basically. So! YA recs of the 'if you liked _______, you'll love ________' sort in the next 20 minutes, GO GO GO.

Or, you know. Later on, as well. But I am coming out of that shop with something to fill the gaping hole in my heart left by Silas and Bod and Miss Lupescu, and without recs, I will (as I inevitably do, without ever learning from my mistakes) probably just buy whatever one has the prettiest cover.

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I have been reading the Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson, and I am... undecided. The story is no doubt vast and rich, and the writing is exceptional, but the characters, especially the women... Hmmm. I would say it is worth a read, but maybe from a library?

I have read the Baroque Cycle! Or rather, I have read about half the Baroque Cycle - I gave up somewhere in the middle of the second book, simply because Stephenson was spending many trillions of pages on characters I didn't particularly care about, and less and less on the characters I did. Dear Mr. Stephenson: all I want are three giant volumes of Newton/Daniel/Leibniz academic UST. I feel this is not a lot to ask.

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.

I did not care at ALL about Jack "It's all about me!" Shaftoe and Bob and Abigail or yet MORE bad shit happening or the Mary Sue of all Sues, but I am now on the final book because of the promise of this is where the Newton/Liebniz brain-sexitiems is to be found.

Oh man, don't tempt me into trying it again. Must resiiiist. Besides, if I am going to once more sacrifice that amount of time to a Neal Stephenson book the size and weight of a large-ish infant, the book in question is going to be Anathem.

I want to finish it now, because I am invested in Newton, but I have also just read Unseen Academicals by Terry Pratchett which I really, really enjoyed.

Also, this might sound odd, but The Spanish Bride by Georgette Heyer (I know, I know) is actually really, really good. They use it at Sandhurst to teach the Peninsula War.

Unseen Academicals is on my list, but much as I love PTerry, I think he is by far at his best when focusing on his 'classic' Discworld characters,* so I think I'll probably wait until that one's out in paperback before picking it up.

*Or, you know, the Discworld books are like comfort food for me, and I prefer reading primarily about the characters I already know and love. One of those.

Me too, but this one is actually really brilliant - a good return to form, I think. Some of the new characters are shallow, but Mister Nutt is wonderful, really, and the Wizards and Vetinari are back in fighting form.

The third book is INDEED where Newton/Daniel/Liebniz returns with a vengeance! I slogged through the second book, but it was worth it for the third. *tempts*

Also, as to your actual request, here are some recommendations!

Un Lun Dun, China Mieville - I did not actually love this the same way I loved China Mieville's adult stuff, but it is really good and inventive and thoroughly, thoroughly Neverwhere-ish - very much a 'if you liked this, you will like that' book.

The Queen's Thief books, Megan Whalen Turner - unreliable narrators! twisty alterna-greek politics! awesome queens! WHAT IS NOT TO LOVE

Flora Segunda, Ysabeau Wilce - you may love the wild and crazy worldbuilding and awesomely complicated family dynamics and untrustworthy demonic spirits and unique language, or you may bounce hard off the language within three pages, I cannot tell. I would recommend reading the first three pages in the bookstore to see if you like the narrative voice, and, if you do, buy it!

The Book Thief, Marcus Zusak - WILL TWIST YOUR HEART AND NEVER LET IT GO

Tamsin, Peter Beagle - my absolute favorite ghost story. Teenaged girl meets (and develops a tremendous crush on) the Cromwell-era ghost who lives in her new house and is introduced through her to the mythological side of Dorset

DIANA WYNNE JONES - okay, specifically, if you are in a Neverwhere/Gaiman-ish mood, I would go for Eight Days of Luke (Gaiman stole American Gods off it!), A Tale of Time City (thoroughly practical protagonist pulled into an inventive otherworld - in this case, the city at the center of time - with bonus day-saving action!), Deep Secret (you have to see if you can recognize the mockery of Gaiman having breakfast) or the Dalemark Quartet (BECAUSE IT IS AWESOME.)

I actually did pick up Un Lun Dun - before getting this comment, even - and it is sitting on my bedside table as we speak. The rest are noted! And if I can scrape up the energy to toddle across town to Chapters after work sometime this week, I will definitely be looking for them for a Reasonable Price.

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