Reading Diary #06: WebGenii's Reads

This is WebGenii, with an installment from my "Reading Diary". I have to be honest, I haven't been reading much lately. Tax season and house guests really cut into my April reading. But happily, I've been rewarded by a trip to the big city, which meant a trip to a bookstore.  Sigh, it's my only criticism of our small town, it has no bookstore. Even with my love of ebooks, I really miss wandering through the stacks. And I love looking through a good magazine selection*. Sigh.

So what did I reward myself with?

"Naked City", edited by Ellen Datlow, published by St. Martin's Press.   This is a collection of urban fantasy short stories by authors like Jim Butcher, Patricia Briggs and Holly Black. Now, since I began writing this diary I actually finished reading this book.  It's marketed as Urban Fantasy, but I would qualify it as urban fantasy for those frustrated by the current definition.

In this book, urban can mean any urban setting, from all time periods. And fantasy, can mean any fantastical element.  This means there is a very broad range of story types in the book. Ranging from the stereotypical urban fantasy to horror and some stories on the experimental edge. I loved it. It wasn't what I thought I was getting - it was better than that. So, if you'd normally shy away from urban fantasy - you might want to take a look at this.

Next up "The Steampunk Chronicles: The Girl in the Steel Corset" by Kady Cross, published by HarlequinTeen.  Wow, I didn't notice the imprint, my attention was caught by the terrific cover and and back jacket copy. Which is just a lesson in not letting prejudice get in the way of a good read. This looks like a Historical Romance/Steampunk/Urban Fantasy mashup. I'm only a few pages in, but I have to say the quality of the writing is way above my Harlequin prejudices.

"Passion Play" by Beth Bernobich, published by TOR.  I read a great short story by Beth Bernobich on NetGalley last year, and I told myself that I would get her next book. This is a fantasy with plenty of intrigue and I'm really curious to see how it all turns out.

What is interesting, is that the image I found on Amazon is different than the one on my copy. The publication date is also earlier than I assumed. I'm wondering if this is a reissue.

"Dreadnought", by Cherie Priest, published by TOR. Somehow, this got away from me when it first came out, so I'm looking forward to catching up.

And look what came in through the mail today:

"The Last Werewolf " by Glen Duncan published by Vintage Books. A werewolf suffers an existential crisis, while defending himself from a threat to his life...

"The White Collar Book" edited by Bruce and Carolyn Meyer, published by Black Moss Press.  This has a forward by, I kid you not - Conrad Black. This is a book of poetry and short stories about business life. Conrad Black, he wrote urban fantasy didn't he?

"The Night Sessions" by Ken MacLeod, published by PYR. A future mystery,  with our detective hero solving a religious terrorist attack in an era when terrorist attacks are history.  Flipping through the book I saw a mention of an "iThink device". Hoo boy, I've got to read this one!

"Shadow's Master" by Jon Sprunk, published by PYR.  The third book in the Shadows series has the hero face his central mystery armed only with his knives and and companions. (what? Does he throw his friends at people?)

"Jack of Ravens: Kingdom of the Serpent Book 1" and "The Burning Man: Kingdom of the Serpent Book 2" both by Mark Chadbourn and published by PYR.  Our hero Jack Churchill is inadvertently transported into the past as a mysterious evil attempts to conquer the present. His struggles to get back to the present day and the woman he loves, take him through history.

"Lance of Earth and Sky: The Chaos Knight Book Two" by Erin Hoffman, published by PYR.  Our hero, Vidarian faces a world where magic is reawakening after centuries of sleep.  At the same time, his services are needed in a new war.

*"Good" doesn't mean an expanded selection of oil worker porn.

Just to recap, the books that I mentioned today were:

• "Naked City", edited by Ellen Datlow, published by St. Martin's Press.
• "The Steampunk Chronicles: The Girl in the Steel Corset" by Kady Cross, published by HarlequinTeen.
• "Passion Play" by Beth Bernobich, published by TOR.
• "Dreadnought", by Cherie Priest, published by TOR.
• "The Last Werewolf " by Glen Duncan published by Vintage Books.
• "The White Collar Book" edited by Bruce and Carolyn Meyer, published by Black Moss Press.
• "The Night Sessions" by Ken MacLeod, published by PYR.
• "Shadow's Master" by Jon Sprunk, published by PYR.
• "Jack of Ravens: Kingdom of the Serpent Book 1" and "The Burning Man: Kingdom of the Serpent Book 2" both by Mark Chadbourn and published by PYR.
• "Lance of Earth and Sky: The Chaos Knight Book Two" by Erin Hoffman, published by PYR.

This has been WebGenii letting you know what is on my reading list.

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