ertchin | Reading

Seven books new to me. Three fantasies, one horror (unless it's not), two SF, and one anthology that is both fantasy and SF. At least two are series books.

Books Received, October 10 — October 16

Poll #35202 Books Received, October 10 — October 16, 2026

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 29

View Respondents

Which of these look interesting?

View Answers

Love, Witches, and Wahala by Christine Cowan (November 2026)
4 (13.8%)

We Used to Be Heroes by Thomas Elrod (May 2027)
10 (34.5%)

Year’s Best Canadian Fantasy and Science Fiction: Volume Four edited by Stephen Kotowych (October 2026)
12 (41.4%)

Massif by Garth Nix (October 2026)
18 (62.1%)

As We Fall Through Time by Claire North (October 2026)
11 (37.9%)

We Won’t Be Here When It Ends by Mark Oshiro (April 2027)
5 (17.2%)

A Magical Girl Rehired by Seolyeon Park (December 2026)
8 (27.6%)

Some other option (see comments)
0 (0.0%)

Cats!
22 (75.9%)

james_davis_nicoll

Great news, everyone! New evidence points towards complex life being very robust.

I Am No Longer Pessimistic About the Survival of Complex Life on Earth, Thanks to Science!

james_davis_nicoll

In which a shrinking community of human survivors learn much about their alien conquerors... none of it good.

The Faith of Beasts (The Captive's War, volume 2) By James S. A. Corey

james_davis_nicoll

...Or are the two lists indistinguishable in your mind?

Do You Distinguish Between “Best” and “Favorite” Books?

james_davis_nicoll

Hard-working mercenaries trade an unreliable employer for an evil employer.

The Black Company (Book of the North, volume 1) by Glen Cook

james_davis_nicoll

Three giant solitaire gamebooks (800 pages!) plus 400 pages of full-color graphic novels and comics of Cthulhu Mythos cosmic horror from Blue Fox Publishing.

Bundle of Holding: Blue Fox Cthulhu

james_davis_nicoll

In which conniving Shu discovers that when one hijacks someone else's body, one gets that body's excruciating and possibly terminal illnesses as a free extra.

Though I Am an Inept Villainess, volume 2 by Satsuki Nakamura, Ei Ohitsuji & Kana Yuki

james_davis_nicoll

A prophecy followed from dream to reality, in an other-worldly Venice.

Everybody’s Perfect by Jo Walton

james_davis_nicoll

This new Monster Hunters of the Week Bundle presents .PDF ebooks of the Monster of the Week Revised Edition tabletop roleplaying game line from Evil Hat Productions.

Bundle of Holding: Monster Hunters

james_davis_nicoll

I completely forgot to post this here on Wednesday.... Ah, well, that is what backdating is for.

Why does Aimi dream of a surreal alien planet when she sleeps? How are creatures from her dreams appearing in the waking world?

Wakusei Closet, volume 1 By Tsubana

james_davis_nicoll

A collection of the best by SF curmudgeon Lester del Rey.

The Best of Lester del Rey (Ballantine’s Classic Library of Science Fiction, volume 18) by Lester del Rey

tablesaw

Not much happening, a day of downtime after running from a busy vacation into work, with Psyche preparing for more travel. A Dutch Bros run in the morning and a long conversation about trust and coping with the state of the world.

I finally completed my first entry into the Fall Themeless Boswords contest. I got a clean solve in a decentish (sub 15) time. Then I spent some time on computer hygiene. That's still ongoing as I take a little time to investigate my backups before upgrading to Ubuntu 26.1.

We watched the first episode of Carrie, which made me curious about what's in the book as people argue about it online. The show seems fine. I don't think it'll be my favorite Flanagan, but who knows.

As I finish the evening, I'm watching Shatter Dead on a rogue streaming marathon. It's an exploitation zombie film shot on video in the '90s, but it's got a lot of style and sense.

james_davis_nicoll

Twelve works new to me, of which six are fantasy, one is horror, two are non-fiction, one is SF and two are tabletop fantasy roleplaying game related. At least four are series.

Books Received, October 3 to October 9, 2026

Poll #35156 Books Received, October 3 to October 9, 2026

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 34

View Respondents

Which of these look interesting?

View Answers

Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Fifth Edition by Dave Allen, Declan Aylward, Eoin Burke, Michael Congreve, TS Luikart, Dominic McDowall, Andres Montelongo, Pádraig Murphy, Clive Oldfield, Russell Thurman, Simon Wileman, et al (Spring 2027)
5 (14.7%)

Liftoff: The Mercury Seven Astronauts and the Nazi Who Took Them to Space by Rebecca E. F. Barone (August 2027)
15 (44.1%)

The Warrior Vampire by Kate Baxter (April 2027)
1 (2.9%)

The Avalon Society by Jacqueline Carey (June 2027)
12 (35.3%)

Downright Scoundrels Needed by Sarah Gailey (March 2027)
15 (44.1%)

This Is Not an Exorcism by Ivy Fang (July 2027)
11 (32.4%)

The Bindery Guild by Carrie Kwiatkowski (May 2027)
7 (20.6%)

To Death, We Dance by Megan Lally (May 2027)
3 (8.8%)

Dark Lotus Blooming by Rosalie M. Lin (August 2027)
4 (11.8%)

Empire at the Edge of the World by Giles Milton (April 2027)
6 (17.6%)

The Sun Has a Shadow by Dami Salako (May 2027)
10 (29.4%)

Mist and Fire by Adam Yngvesson, Jonathan Huusko, Śraddhāpa Shan Welsh, Mattias Dristig et al (May 2026)
4 (11.8%)

Some other option (see comments)
1 (2.9%)

Cats!
27 (79.4%)

james_davis_nicoll

From Analog's publisher

text below cut
( Read more... )

james_davis_nicoll

House Hippo infestations? Crocodiles in the Great Lakes?

Canadian House Hippos and Other Obscure Fauna

james_davis_nicoll

Keziah Nam's quest to deliver justice is complicated by an unexpected crush and her personal demon, Steve.

Ghosted by Talia Tucker

james_davis_nicoll

Mystic wanderer Matt Black gets drawn into Edmund the witch's belated effort to process past trauma.

A Red Heart of Memories (Spores Ferry, volume 1) by Nina Kiriki Hoffman

tablesaw

Back from vacation, but only now had time to start to decompress.

Last Monday, I realized I'd come down with a cold and crashed hard. We postponed our plans a day while I got over the worst of it, and then headed to L.A. for the rest of the week. Eleven features and thirteen shorts. With all of the movies, the spending time with friends and family, and just getting a little extra sleep to make sure I wasn't getting folks sick (staying masked for social events, etc.), I didn't really have time to think about journaling much.

Drove back late Monday night, then muddled through work on Tuesday before falling asleep early. Now I'm mostly trying to catch up on letterboxd reviews of everything we saw.

james_davis_nicoll

This all-new Cthulhu Awakens Bundle presents .PDF ebooks for Cthulhu Awakens, the standalone Adventure Game Engine tabletop game from Green Ronin Publishing of Cthulhu Mythos roleplaying across the Weird Century.

Bundle of Holding: Cthulhu Awakens

james_davis_nicoll

What happens when certain trends — from technology to pollution to wealth inequality — are left unchecked?

Five SF Novels That Ask, “What If This Trend Continues Indefinitely?”

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Robert Hutchinson

June 2026

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Page Summary

james_davis_nicoll - Books Received, October 10 — October 16
james_davis_nicoll - I Am No Longer Pessimistic About the Survival of Complex Life on Earth, Thanks to Science!
james_davis_nicoll - The Faith of Beasts (The Captive's War, volume 2) By James S. A. Corey
james_davis_nicoll - Do You Distinguish Between “Best” and “Favorite” Books?
james_davis_nicoll - The Black Company (Book of the North, volume 1) by Glen Cook
james_davis_nicoll - Bundle of Holding: Blue Fox Cthulhu
james_davis_nicoll - Though I Am an Inept Villainess, volume 2 by Satsuki Nakamura, Ei Ohitsuji & Kana Yuki
james_davis_nicoll - Everybody’s Perfect by Jo Walton
james_davis_nicoll - Bundle of Holding: Monster Hunters
james_davis_nicoll - Wakusei Closet, volume 1 By Tsubana
james_davis_nicoll - The Best of Lester del Rey (Ballantine’s Classic Library of Science Fiction, volume 18) by Lester de
tablesaw - Quiet Day
james_davis_nicoll - Books Received, October 3 to October 9, 2026
james_davis_nicoll - I suspect this will get ratioed
james_davis_nicoll - Canadian House Hippos and Other Obscure Fauna
james_davis_nicoll - Ghosted by Talia Tucker
james_davis_nicoll - A Red Heart of Memories (Spores Ferry, volume 1) by Nina Kiriki Hoffman
tablesaw - Beyond Beyond Fest
james_davis_nicoll - Bundle of Holding: Cthulhu Awakens
james_davis_nicoll - If This Goes On

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