The Middle Distance

With everything going on I completely missed my first quarter wrap-up, so here are the first and second wrap-ups combined. Here is my book bingo card, I was hoping to be further along at this point, but with everything going on it just didn't happen.  I'm currently reading a Star Trek tie-in novel, The Ice Trap, so that will probably find its way into the next quarter's wrap-up. Books I completed in the first and second quarter are:

Aurora by David Koepp - a thriller about most of planet losing electricity for a long period of time after a major sun flare.  It was an interesting idea, and it was pretty good.  My only complaint is that the author skips over what I thought would be the most interesting part, a group of neighbours coming together to survive during this time period.  After a lot of build up and groundwork, he kind of does a time skip to where they are already a well functioning group, and I would have really liked to have seen the process.

The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman - mixed feelings on this fantasy story, I liked the concept and the characters, but the story was very chaotic, there was almost too much going on, too many antagonists, and some stuff is left unexplained.  It is the first in a series, but I'm not sure if I will pick up the second book or not.  

The Shots You Take by Rachel Reid - M/M hockey romance, I did mostly like this one, but you really have to suspend some major disbelief in order to enjoy it.  It takes place at and just after the funeral of one of the main character's beloved father, and as someone who has lost a parent I just don't believe for a minute that you would have the energy to give a shit whether your ex showed up at the funeral or not, but of course that wouldn't make for a very compelling story.  Also, the one character has to forgive some really shitty past behaviour from their love interest, it makes sense in the story b/c he wasn't "out" and didn't acknowledge his feelings, but it may turn some people off.

Magician: Apprentice by Raymond E. Feist - old school fantasy, with all the classic elements, species, etc, although there is also a bit of a possibly sci-fi twist.  I did like the two main POVs, Pug and Tomas, they're boys we're following from the time they are around 12 to 16, as their world is preparing for war.  I will say, like a lot of classic fantasy written by men, there are a scant few women characters and they're not written all that well, although they aren't overly sexualized, so I guess that is a plus.  This one is also the first in a series, but we'll see if I continue it or not.

Red Heir by Lisa Henry and Sarah Honey - this one is a light, fun fantasy,  Two red-headed young men are sharing a prison cell when a group of adventurers comes to rescue the lost heir that is supposed to have red hair, they don't know who is the right person so they take them both.  The story is mostly the group getting out of scraps and the two red heads bickering, until oh no are those feelings!  There were times where I wished that the characters would go a little bit deeper, and that we would get a better understanding of their backstories, but it just wasn't that type of book, it was just meant to be a light, easy read.

The Stolen Rubens - I listened to this one on the Classic Detective Stories Podcast, it was an alright mystery.  The detective was referred to as the "human computer" and he was able to figure out how an art heist occurred.  It was obviously very Holmes inspired, but the human computer lacked charm of Holmes.

Secrets in the Snow by J. Jefferson Farjeon - another one from the Classic Detective Stories Podcast, I liked this one.  A young woman gets caught in a snowstorm. At first she comes off as a bit ditsy, but she is good at noticing things and how things are not quite right, which leads her to helping solve a mystery. 

One Night in Hartswood by Emma Denny - M/M Historical romance, I just finished this recently, it is very sweet.  The two men are travelling together but they are hiding their true identities from each other.  I wish they had reveled their identities sooner, because I felt like that was keeping them from deeply connecting on some levels, but I understand why it didn't happen because of plot reasons.