Stay the Course? [2024 Recap//2025 Goals]

 

Hello, everyone! 2024 has officially ended, and 2025 is here. As always, that means it's time to look back at the past year and at my 2024 goals to see what I've done (and what I didn't quite manage to do), and it's also time to look ahead at the new year and think about what I might want to accomplish in 2025. 2024 wasn't a perfect year, but it was a sight better than 2023, and it included a lot of good things — excellent stories, lessons learned, time spent with friends and family, and a few milestones I didn't expect to hit quite so soon. I'm hopeful that 2025 will be more of the same.

One thing that I know will be different in 2025, though, is that I have decided to officially retire my Dreams & Dragons blog once I finish my 2024 close-out posts (those being this post, December 2024 Doings, and my 2024 End of Year Book Celebration). This is not something I'm doing lightly, as this blog has been a part of my life since 2011. It was one of my first opportunities to share my thoughts and stories online, and I've grown a great deal in the process of maintaining it. However, the Blogger platform is getting steadily more frustrating to work with, and the overall look and content of the blog is outdated enough that it either needs to be majorly overhauled or retired . . . and I am choosing the latter. To be clear, the blog and the posts on it will remain online for people to read! However, I will not be posting there anymore, and I will probably turn off comments on that site and put a note on it that it's no longer active. If you currently follow me on Dreams & Dragons, I encourage you to subscribe to my Wordpress blog, Light & Shadows, instead! On the other hand, if you mostly follow me on Light & Shadows, you'll see very little change except that my biannual Best Of reading lists will be replaced with longer Book Celebrations, which are more fun for me to write and allow me to highlight more noteworthy books, and my seasonal releases lists may expand past five more frequently. Hopefully, no one will be too disappointed by those changes — if you are, I apologize, but I do believe this is the best choice.

And now, with that announcement out of the way, let's take a look back at the past year and what happened in it.

2024 Recap // 2025 Goals

2024 Recap

Year of Staying the Course? (Not Quite . . .)

• My theme for 2024 was "staying the course" — in general, my goals were supposed to be about consistency, about continuing with what I was doing even when it was hard, unless I received a clear indication that doing so was the wrong choice.
• I do feel like I did a pretty decent job of sticking with that theme for the first several months of the year. I kept up with the vast majority of my commitments, whether those were writing, work, grad school, or social things.
• Unfortunately, I also was getting so stressed about all those things that I wasn't sleeping well and was making myself physically sick. Those things, plus reminders from multiple sources on the importance of rest and not over-committing or trying to do too much, seemed to be a pretty strong signal that I needed to make some adjustments.
• So, I did not accomplish all of my goals this year, and my theme kind of had a midyear switch to something more like "Rethink" or "Rest" — but I do not regret that as much as I might have otherwise.

Writing

• Once again, my goal for 2024 was to actively and regularly work towards specific writing goals in at least ten of the twelve months in the year. I would say I largely accomplished this — I had specific writing goals every month of 2024 except July — although I only really succeeded in those goals eight months out of twelve. I was writing very consistently! Just not always on the projects I intended to prioritize.
• My total wordcount for the year was 312,374 words, about 30,000 words more than last year. That doesn't include edits on Illusion's Reign, which would put the actual count even higher. All in all, a very satisfactory number — especially since I mostly did a much better job at keeping up with deadlines and not leaving things until the last minute! That allowed me to have a much less stressful release for Illusion's Reign, and it gave me some nice rest periods here and there when I could either take a break from writing or work primarily on just-for-fun projects.
• Of course, my biggest win of 2024 was when Song of the Selkies won Book of the Year at the Realm Awards! That's the kind of accomplishment that wasn't even on my radar as a possibility, and I am still in awe that it actually, y'know, happened.
• I also made it to two other book selling events, specifically a craft fair in spring and Eat Local, Read Local in October. Those both went fairly well. I didn't make it to Doxacon, but given everything else I had going on around that time, that's probably for the best.
• Regarding specific project goals:
  • I wrote, edited, and published Illusion's Reign, the second Daughters of Atirse book, with the 2024 Aristal Challenge Project. I did not finish drafting it by the end of March, but I did wrap it up in June, which isn't bad at all given how long it ended up being and how much mental energy grad school took up.
    
  • I also wrote and submitted a story for the first DOSA Files anthology. I wanted to write a sequel for the second anthology, but I ran out of time (partially because I deluded myself into thinking I'd have time around the holidays). Still, I'm pleased I managed the first one!
    
  • I started the planning process on a new story, Project Kingfisher. This wasn't in my original goal list for 2024, but I realized that it had an actual deadline, and I came up with an idea that I liked, so I decided to start it with the intent of having a longer planning period. Hopefully that'll make the actual book a little easier to write; we'll see if that works.
  • I did not write Bastian Dennel, PI #4. I apologize to those who were looking forward to it; it's still going to happen, but Project Kingfisher knocked it down a slot in the priority list. I also didn't get to another Daughters of Atirse book, though that was a long shot anyway.
    
  • I mostly kept up with my Defenders of Serys D&D campaign. Things got a little iffy in the last couple months, when my players caught up with my plot slightly faster than expected, but otherwise I mostly stayed ahead of what I needed to get done.
• As far as backlog posts and keeping up with my blogging/social media schedule . . . Well, I posted some of my backlog, but not all. And I mostly kept up with blogging, though I did take a few breaks here and there. I did less well with keeping up with social media, but honestly, I am not stressing out about that. I still do my weekly goal posts, and I am not going to fail as an author just because I miss posting Wednesdays several weeks in a row.

Reading (and Other Stories)

• As usual, I'll discuss my 2024 reading goals in my Best of/End-of-Year Book Celebration posts. If you want an early look, you can check out my tracking form results.
• In summary, though: I read 94 books, plus a few that I didn't record because they were beta reads, just making my goal of 93 books. I didn't quite hit most of my other goals (though I did make progress towards them), and I mostly did well with tracking what I was reading . . . until around the end of July, when I apparently forgot that I was supposed to be adding stuff to my Google Form? (And then I had to go back and put everything in this past week to make this post. Good grief, past me.)
• Thankfully, I kept up much better on tracking what I was watching and playing, again using Google forms. I watched far less stuff in 2024 than I did in 2023 — about 41 distinct movies, episodes, or videos. Roughly 66% of those were episodes of a TV or streaming show. And between Christmas movies and watching Yona of the Dawn, about half of what I watched happened in October, November, and December.
• The reason for that drop in what I watched was absolutely because I got into gaming instead — or, more specifically, I got into Honkai Star Rail and Genshin Impact because a couple of my friends kept talking about certain characters and I was Intrigued. This was, I believe, an excellent decision; I've had a grand time, and it has largely helped me lower my stress level and spend less time procrastinating on YouTube.

Life

• I did three grad school classes this year, which is one fewer than I originally intended. I decided to take half of the fall semester off so I wouldn't have grad school work when I was busy with publishing Illusion's Reign. I think that was the right choice, especially since two of those three classes were rather frustrating (though for different reasons).
• Work continues to go well. We had some excitement this year in the form of our associate pastor being transferred to a new church and the kids' ministry director stepping into the associate pastor position, but that transition was pretty smooth.
• I kept up with learning German on Duolingo. Irish, not so much — I was getting confused by the grammar, so I kind of just dropped it. However, Duolingo introduced a music course, and I've been doing that! I think that's going well — I definitely feel like I'm learning something.
• I returned to Realm Makers, which was super fun and exciting even outside of the Realm Awards. I loved getting to see friends and spend time with fellow authors, and the speakers were all very helpful. In addition, one of my not-too-far-away friends and I have been a lot more deliberate about planning get-togethers, including visits to Longwood Gardens, the zoo, an escape room, and our annual Ren Faire trip.
• On the flip side, I ended my monthly board game Connect Group. Since about 2021, I've been running a monthly connect group/life group that mostly just meets to play board games. However, in the last year or so, it had become a source of more stress than blessing, especially as I frequently ended up with a lot of uncertainty around whether or not anyone else would show up. So, I made the decision to end it, and that decision was affirmed from several directions (which I appreciated).
• I successfully weeded and reorganized my bookshelves. Well, a lot of the organization remained the same, but some stuff has been moved around. And I did get rid of a whole box and a half of books. A lot of that was just deciding that I could give up my Wheel of Time books because I didn't think I was actually going to read them, but that's still progress, and it substantially decreased the number of books I owned but hadn't read.
• My D&D group completed the campaign we started back in college. It took us until September or so, but the villain has been defeated, and everyone got a good ending. We also had a mini-campaign run by one of the other players (giving our DM a chance to play), and now we've started a new campaign! We've only had two sessions of that so far, but it's been really fun.
• I made approximately one Baking Yesteryear recipe per month. There were a few months in which I didn't make anything, but I also had a few months in which I made multiple things, so I think those evened out. Also in the field of making things, I gave bookbinding and tablet weaving a try. Both are things I'd like to do more in future, though not as regularly as crochet, embroidery, and knitting — they are, unfortunately, somewhat less portable.
• As for my goal of finding a way to exercise once a week . . . that didn't really happen. I tried walking on the treadmill during D&D for a while, but then I needed that time for working on other things, and it just kind of fell apart. Ah well.

All in all, while this year wasn't quite what I planned, it was still a pretty good year, and I'm generally happy with what I accomplished. Now it's time to look forward to 2025 and think about what it might hold . . .

2025 Goals

Year of Adjust and Assess

• In setting my theme for 2025, I mainly want to carry over what I've already started doing in the second half of 2024: looking for things in my life that aren't working well or that could be working better and finding ways to improve them, especially in regards to balancing work and rest. While I think I'm in a healthier place now than I was at the start of 2024, I am aware that I may have swung the pendulum a touch too far in the other direction. So, I want to use this year to try to get back to a good balance between the two.
• To that end, the theme I'm using to set my 2025 goals is Adjust and Assess: make adjustments, see what's working, keep what's going well and fix or drop what isn't. In my head, this looks like a combination of the scientific method and the agile development methods I learned in college, but applied to habits and actions. In practice . . . we'll see how things go.

Writing Goals

• My overall writing goal for the past few years has worked well, so I'm keeping it with some tweaks: I want to actively and regularly work towards specific writing goals in at least nine of the twelve months of 2024. As per usual, these can be wordcount goals or project goals depending on what best serves what I need to get done. I am making one change here, though, and dropping the number of months with specific writing goals from ten to nine. My thought is that I can then take July and December (my two busiest months) as months in which I'm not focusing my energy on a specific writing goal, plus I'll have one extra rest month to use when I need it.
• Additionally, I want to test a few new things in my writing process, namely taking a longer planning period on new projects, allowing myself to write story-related things that aren't in the story, and having two or three active (non-D&D) projects at once, possibly in staggered stages of the writing process. Technically, I'm already testing these with Project Kingfisher and a just-for-fun personal project, but I'm making it official here. I usually have a very short planning period, stay very focused on the actual project while it's active, and try to stick to one project at a time, but I want to see if making some changes helps (by allowing more flexibility, especially when I'm tired) or hinders (by allowing more opportunities for distraction). Now seems like a good time to do it, since I don't have as tight a deadline as I normally do.
• As for specific project goals:
  • I want to plan, draft, and probably do a first edit on Project Kingfisher. This is already partially in progress, and it's supposed to be fairly short, so I'm hoping to have it finished by Easter. (Famous last words, I know.)
  • I want to plan, draft, and maybe publish Bastian Dennel, PI #4. This is a repeat goal from last year that I didn't accomplish, but BDPI is top priority after Project Kingfisher. I may try to work on it concurrently with Project Kingfisher, in accordance with my goal of testing some new things in my writing process.
  • I want to rewrite/edit Once Upon a Dream and prep it for publication. I've been meaning to get around to this for a long while, and I think 2025 might be the year. It's already a pretty strong story, if I recall correctly; I just need to expand and adjust a few things. My hope is that I can publish either BDPI #4 or Once Upon a Dream in October or November of this year.
  • I want to write some short stories for anthologies/writing challenges. If there's another DOSA Files anthology, I'll aim to put something out in that — I still have my story for the second anthology that I didn't quite finish, after all. Additionally, there's a yearly short story challenge in October that I've done the last three years, and I'd like to do it again if it runs in 2025. If other opportunities pop up that seem interesting, I may try those too!
  • I want to allow myself to work on just-for-fun writing projects more. This is something I started doing while I was in a break month in the last half of 2024, and I think it's been helpful to have something to work on that doesn't have a deadline, publication plans, or so on — something that's just for me to have fun with. Of course, writing about Bastian Dennel, Ceana and her family, and the Project Kingfisher cast is also fun, and I love working on those stories . . . but it's also nice to have something that's just for me and a friend or two, something that I know doesn't have to be perfect (and that I can work on at times when I might not feel comfortable working on an Official Project).
  • Finally, I want to keep up with my Defenders of Serys D&D campaign. I also want to do some less-complicated plots . . . the last few have all ended up being far more complex than I intended them or needed to make them, and with one exception, I'm not sure if it was worth it. But in any case, I need to get back to the place where working on D&D is actually fun again — it's my main opportunity to see these friends, and I don't want to burn out on it.
• I am not making specific goals about attending author events this year; while I think it was helpful last year, it's not something I'm going to prioritize in 2025. That's not to say it won't happen — at minimum, I hope to do Eat Local, Read Local again — but I'm not making it a major goal.

Reading Goals

• My 2025 reading goal is 93 books. This was a good number for 2024, so I'm going to stick with it.
• I always set a goal about reading a certain number of older books and non-speculative fiction books, and this year is no exception, but I am doing something a little different. For 2025, my goal is to either read 12 books written before 1975, at least nine of which were originally aimed at adults, OR give the Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries a fair trial, read at least one Chesterton novel, and read the Brother Cadfael books I currently own and have not previously read. For purposes of being specific, "a fair trial" is here defined as "getting far enough in the series to meet Harriet Vane." While my alternate goal will mean I read a lower number of pre-1975 books than I otherwise would (particularly because Brother Cadfael was written post-1975), I think it will accomplish a similar end result while also clearing some things off my to-read list.
• (I would normally set a goal here about the number of non-speculative-fiction books I want to read; I'm not going to do that this year. I think I am sufficiently in the habit of at least considering non-spec-fic books that I can let it go.)
• Finally, in 2025, I want to either to catch up with Sanderson's Cosmere and Secret Project releases OR try books in three new non-Sanderson epic fantasy series. I intended to catch up on Sanderson in 2024, and it didn't happen, though I did read some. Whichever version of this goal I go for, this would come out to reading either three or four epic-length fantasy books, which I think is reasonable. If I could accomplish both, that would be better still, but we'll see.
• I want to keep tracking what I read, watch, and play. Tracking what I watch has gone fairly well. I may experiment with StoryGraph for tracking what I read in more detail than Goodreads allows, but at least for the first month or two, I'll also be keeping up with a Google form (though I may streamline that form a bit). And I hope to improve my gaming form to provide more useful statistics about what I actually do.

Life Goals

• I need to finish another three grad school classes. I am planning to repeat what I did in 2024 and only doing half a semester in fall, since that's often busy with both book releases and holidays; hopefully that works out well. (I also still need to register for spring classes, oops . . .)
• I want to keep up with learning German and music on Duolingo. This is pretty achievable, and I'll probably do it whether or not I include it on this list, but the same can be said of my goal of reading a certain number of books by the end of the year.
• I want to return to Realm Makers and continue making a point of planning offline get-togethers with friends. These were highlights of 2024 for me, and I want to do more of them. Sometimes the planning part can be frustrating, especially when ideal visit time overlaps with a busy season . . . but getting to see friends in person, not just online, is worth it, and I need to remember that. (Also, I need something that will make me Go Places and Do Things instead of just spending all my time in the same places, doing the same things.)
• I want to try one new recipe, craft/craft technique, or design/photography technique per month. I set a similar goal last year (with my Baking Yesteryear recipes) and in 2022 (when I aimed to learn three new skills in various areas over the course of the year). I think this will give me some good motivation to (once again) try new things while allowing flexibility for months in which I don't have a lot of time to bake but I do have time to craft, or so on.

What were your 2024 highlights? What goals, themes, or resolutions do you have for 2025? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Hi all! My brain has been mostly drowned in Christmas preparations (and the bit that's staying afloat is clinging to my and my friend's writing projects for dear life), but winter is here, or will be tomorrow, and that means it's time for a new season of reads.

 

Winter 2024–2025 Reads

1. Wind and Truth by Brandon Sanderson (December 6). In other years, this might've been my most-anticipated read of the season, and I quite possibly would've already read it (or would be ravenously watching the library listing in hopes that it would come in sooner rather than later). Because I'm kind of behind on Sanderson books, I'm less hyped at the moment, but I am still excited to read this once I'm properly caught up! I have heard mostly good things from the friends who have read it, and I'm looking forward to finding out where the rest of the story goes.

2. Rescuing a Supervillain by H.L. Burke (December 23). In contrast to Wind and Truth, I already have read this one, since I got an early copy from H.L. Burke's recent Kickstarter. This is such a sweet, fun story; I absolutely loved it. Sam (a temporarily-benched superhero) and Bea (a cat-shifter thief trying to escape her former team) are such good characters, and I like their arcs both individually and together. Also! There are cats! Who doesn't love cats?

3. Captive Dance by Kendra E. Ardnek (January 10). This is the sequel to Pumpkin War, but I am much more excited about Captive Dance than I was about its predecessor. Why? Because it's a Twelve Dancing Princesses retelling with what sounds suspiciously like an antagonists-to-lovers romance, and I think it's going to be so fun. After all, the Twelve Dancing Princesses is one of my favorite fairy tales, and I'm very much looking forward to seeing what Kendra does with it!

4. The Shapeshifter Drives a Bargain by Claire Trella Hill (February 3). This is another Tales of Karneesia story, a short romantasy from the world of The Erlking's Daughters. This series is a little hit-or-miss for me — some I really enjoy; some I'm a bit meh on. That said, this combination of Beauty and the Beast with Rumplestiltskin sounds interesting; I'm interested to see what Claire has planned for that. Hopefully it'll be good!

5. Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett (February 11). Confession, I still need to read book two in this series . . . but I very much liked book one, and I'm looking forward to seeing our prickly, nerdy scholar friend navigate the challenges of Faerie. Hopefully I'll be caught up with the series by the time this comes out!

What book releases are you excited for this winter? Am I missing any? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

 

Hello, friends! Today is release day for the final Secrets of Ormdale novel, Valley of Dragons. I was once again able to get an ARC of this book, and let me tell you, this is such a good conclusion to the series. I may or may not have stayed up until after one in the morning the night I finished it because I got so invested in the story, and that's something I haven't done in a long time. So, obviously, I have to share my thoughts!

Thoughts on Valley of Dragons

1. The story came full-circle in the best possible way. Secrets of Ormdale closes as it opens: with Edith learning something about her family that she never would have imagined, discovering the darkness hiding behind "the way it's always been," and choosing to find ways to push back against that darkness. However, the story still feels as fresh and exciting as it did in book one, and Baehr ties all the plot threads together marvelously.
2. As always, I love the blend of cozy vibes with intrigue and Gothic adventure. While the stakes are as high or higher than they've ever been and Edith and her friends and family still face danger, Baehr maintains a sense of warmth and coziness throughout the story. We still have the love and support between family members and friends; we still have humor to lighten dark moods; we still have kindness on display and confidence that good will win in the end. That coziness doesn't undercut the danger and excitement at any point (again, I read this into the wee hours of the morning because I had to know what happened next), but
3. It's lovely to see how the characters have changed since they were first introduced. As the last book in this series, Valley of Dragons has to wrap up all the character arcs satisfactorily . . . and I'm happy to say that it's not just satisfying; it's downright delightful. All of our favorites have grown so much, and while I'm not going to spoil anything, I will say that the end of this book finds them all flourishing, freed of what once bound them and able to pursue both new dreams and new responsibilities. I especially loved how Baehr worked out the arcs for Edith's cousins and for Simon Drake. They arguably had the most weighing them down and forcing them into particular molds at the story's start, and now we see them becoming who they were always meant to be. And speaking of that . . .
4. Edith and Simon continue to be the best couple. Their feelings may be out in the open now, but that doesn't mean their journey is any less difficult, as they both (but especially Simon) wrestle with the tension between love and duty. Baehr portrays that conflict and dynamic in a very realistic way, and I genuinely wondered how she was going to resolve it. Again, I won't give away any secrets, but I will say that I really liked how it was handled and how the characters dealt with certain related events and discoveries.
5. Even the antagonists are treated with compassion. Aside from the character arcs, this may be one of my favorite things about this book. Over and over again, Baehr and her characters find the balance between compassion and justice — appropriately, as so many of the antagonists in this series are victims of the same lies, traditions, and cycles of pain they've used to hurt others. Where redemption is possible, it's offered and often pursued, and I loved the fact that this made for so many happy endings. But those who refuse still face the full consequences of their actions, and that's equally satisfying.
   

I can hardly believe this series is over . . . but, happily, Baehr has teased that more stories from Ormdale may be on the way! I can hardly wait to find out what comes of that. In the meantime, are you excited to read Valley of Dragons? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Hello! First up, a quick reminder for my friends in the Northern Virginia area: tomorrow, October 19, I will be at Eat Local, Read Local at Cascades Library! The event runs from 10:00am to 2:00pm and includes loads of local authors, food trucks, live music, and fun. I'll have copies of all or most of my books, including Song of the Selkies and Illusion's Reign available for purchase, and I'll also be signing previously-purchased books if you bring them by. I hope to see you there!

Now, moving on to the actual post topic: while I don't celebrate Halloween (except, occasionally, as an excuse for cosplay), I do very much enjoy the opportunity to indulge in some spookier reads. I've always enjoyed books that have at least a little edge of creepiness, and that's become even more true in the last couple years as I've gotten into some Gothic-inspired (and actually-Gothic) stories. Besides the fact that it can be fun to be scared at times, these stories (the well-written ones, at least) are often astonishingly hopeful, celebrating not death, not the dead, but death's defeat by life. And as we're now solidly in spooky season, now seems like an excellent time for me to recommend some of my favorites.

Spooky Season Reads

Lockwood & Co by Jonathan Stroud. This series has pretty much everything you could ask for in a spooky season story: truly terrifying ghosts, dangerous mysteries, secrets, people tampering with that which man should not, and a conclusion that affirms life's triumph over death. As a bonus, we have truly excellent characters (and character development), humor to keep the darkness from becoming overpowering, and an equal balance of friendships and romance. Also, while this is a mainline-published series, the themes and conclusion make it an astonishingly Christian in the best way.

Dracula by Bram Stoker. This list has to include at least one of the classics, and no one should be surprised at which one I chose. My enjoyment of Dracula is well-established by now — I love the characters, the creeping terror and slow-growing realization of wrongness, the sacrificial love displayed by so many of the heroes . . . it's just so good. Granted, I firmly believe that the best way to read this book is the Dracula Daily method (or the Re: Dracula method if you prefer your books in audio form), but reading the whole thing at once is also a good option.

Black and Deep Desires by Claire Trella Hill. This is probably my overall favorite book on the list, and the only reason it's not at the top is because Lockwood & Co and Dracula have more of what I like about spooky season reads specifically. However, Black and Deep Desires is delightfully creepy and Gothic, full of crumbling houses, monsters, mysteries, midnight ventures through secret passages, haunting dreams, and so forth — plus a story of love, friendship, and healing from trauma and abuse, plus a stubborn, bookish, Shakespeare-quoting vampire. It's a delight, and I'm currently planning to reread it as soon as I finish my current read.

The Abhorsen original trilogy by Garth Nix. I am disregarding everything except the original three in this recommendation — the other books are fine, but the first three are the best. (And the first book is my personal favorite, though some of my friends prefer the second book . . . I digress.) These don't have quite as much of a creepy edge as some of the others on this list, despite being basically a zombie story in a fantasy setting, but the storyworld and the themes still make them a good choice for a spooky season read.

 

Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson. This book shares some similarities with the Abhorsen books, especially Sabriel in terms of the world and magic system, which is delightfully spooky and dangerous. It doesn't go quite as hard on my favorite themes of this season, but it's still a good ghostly read.

Do you enjoy Gothic or spooky reads? What are your favorites? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Hello everyone! You may remember me raving about H.S.J. Williams's wonderful novel Moonscript when it released a few years ago. You may also recall that the sequel to Moonscript, Collusion, finally came out just over a week and a half ago — and that I was absolutely hyped about it. I was so excited, in fact, that I started reading it the very day I got my paperback (putting a Sanderson novel on pause, which I very rarely do), and now I'm here to tell y'all that it is so, so good and y'all need to read it. Well, if you haven't read Moonscript, you should read that first . . . but then you should read Collusion (and, naturally, I'm about to tell you why).

You NEED to Read Collusion

1. The characters are excellent — especially Errance. I raved about this in Moonscript, and I will rave about it here too. Collusion holds so many amazing characters, and even the minor ones shine. However, Errance is the best of them all. He's still healing from all he went through in the first book, and Williams handles that trauma well . . . but at the same time, for all his doubts and fears, all the points where he's broken, he's also courageous and loving and determined to take care of his own, and he holds to what is true even when he's struggling in his faith. I love him so much, and I loved seeing his growth over the course of this book. That said, Errance isn't the only star here. I still love brave, resilient, loving Tryss (and I maintain that we would be excellent friends were she real). And, of course, Coren is absolutely my favorite character after Errance — still as clever and as much of a schemer and talker as ever, and still using his cleverness (and his wisdom!) for the good of others.
2. The antagonists are wonderfully complex. One of the biggest changes from Collusion to Moonscript is the nature of the antagonists. Both have excellent villains, but where Moonscript gave us the utterly evil and terrifying Voice of the Darkness, Collusion's villains are a bit more human, a bit more tangled, and a bit more like people you'd see in our own world. They're just as well characterized as the more heroic figures, and at various points, I found myself wanting to stab them for what they'd done and desperately hoping they might get a redemption arc (if not in this book, in a future one). I can't say more without spoilers, but I think you get the idea.
3. There are so many actually-married couples.  I've been saying for at least a few years now how much I want to see (and like to see) stories that don't stop just because the main couple got married. Wonderfully, Williams has given me (and like-minded readers) exactly what we wanted. Most of the major couples we met in Moonscript are now married, either with kids or thinking about kids, but that doesn't stop them from having adventures and being amazing. In fact, those relationships are, in multiple cases, where they find the support and encouragement they need to keep going on the right path and to be who they're meant to be — and I absolutely love to see it. And, on a related note . . .
4. Family is front and center. Y'all know that family-centric books are like catnip to me, and we see so many different family relationships highlighted here. Errance and Tryss are looking towards parenthood and figuring out what challenges that might hold (with Errance, naturally, worrying about how to be a good father when he's so broken), and we also have Leoren being an Awesome Elf Dad (I would say "best elf dad" but there are too many people in the running for that role for me to actually pick). Errance and Tellie have maintained a sibling-ish relationship even as they've grown, which is lovely to see. The best of the family relationships, though, is Errance and Coren, who spend a lot of the book in each others' company and have some amazing interactions. They make me very happy.
5. The story takes on dark topics without losing sight of the light. I've already touched on Errance's trauma, and I will say again that Williams handles that very well. A lifetime of pain and suffering will take its toll, and many of the internal scars Errance bears have yet to fade. However, healing is still possible, and we see that again and again through this book. On a broader view, Collusion deals with many societal evils, ones that plague our world as well as the storyworld, notably issues of trafficking and sexual slavery. Williams doesn't shy away from the darkness of these issues or the complexity of solving them, but she also handles them tastefully and makes sure to keep hope in sight. Again and again, this story reminds us that whether we're dealing with a broken heart or a broken world, that which is shattered may yet be mended by the One who made all things.
   

Have you read Collusion yet, or is it on your to-read list? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Hello, everyone! Much as I hate to admit it, fall is rapidly approaching . . . but at least that means we have a new season of reads to spotlight! Some of you may be saying "Isn't it a week early for this list, Sarah?" — and you are correct, but next week is the Silmaril Awards ceremonies, and the week after is the Lost Kerchiefs release celebration, so we're doing our Fall Reads round up now. As is mostly usual, I'll post the full list here, but if you just want my top five, you can hop over to Light and Shadows for that. So, without further ado, let's find out what this season has in store for us!

Before we get into that, though, a couple quick reminders! First, ARCs are available for Illusion's Reign and the other Lost Kerchiefs stories! So, if you're interested in getting your hands on any of those early in exchange for a review, make sure you sign up ASAP. The blog/social tour form should be available soon as well, so keep an eye out for that. Second, today is the final day to vote in the Silmaril Awards! Go cast your vote for who you think is the most epic hero and heroine, most silver tongue, most nefarious villain, and so on — awards ceremonies begin on Monday!

Fall 2024 Reads

1. Her Fake Superhero Boyfriend by H.L. Burke (September 9). This is another superhero rom-com from H.L. Burke, this time featuring a variation on one of my favorite romance tropes (which goes by many names, but I usually describe as "the rogue and the princess"). I've read this one already, and I absolutely loved it — it was fun to see KC again and get to know him better after having met him in Wishing on a Supervillain, and Mira was such a sweet and fun heroine. Definitely would recommend this one, especially if you enjoyed Wishing!

2. The Handmaid's Blood by Kendra E. Ardnek (September 23). The highlight of the fall reads list is usually the Arista Challenge release group, and this year is no different! We start off the Lost Kerchiefs with a short story retelling from Kendra, focusing on the princess's handmaiden who takes her place. This is another of Kendra's hero/villain swap retellings, and I look forward to seeing how that twist plays out here.

3. Wind Charmer by Meredith Leigh Burton (September 24). Our second Lost Kerchiefs story! This one looks like it'll be the closest to the original Goose Girl fairy tale out of all the retellings, though Meredith has, of course, put her own unique spin on the tale, including interpreting the princess as being on the autism spectrum. I'm definitely curious to see how this version of the story will turn out.

4. Friend and Faux by Erudessa Gentian (September 25). This is a contemporary AnimeLit retelling of the Goose Girl — AnimeLit meaning that it borrows tropes and themes often found in anime and manga, similar to Japanese light novels. I'm not super familiar with the genre, but I'm sure it'll be interesting to see how Erudessa has used it to reimagine this fairy tale!

5.  Arabella's Song by Meagan Myhren-Bennett (September 26). This retelling blends The Goose Girl with the Pied Piper, which is not a combination I ever would've expected. Honestly, this might be the Lost Kerchief (other than my own) that I'm most looking forward to, simply because I really want to know how Meagan is going to blend those two stories! It also sounds like she's making more use of Falada than most Goose Girl retellings do, though, which should also be cool.

6. Illusion's Reign by Sarah Pennington (September 27). It's my book! I have been hard at work putting the final polishes on Illusion's Reign over the last couple weeks, and I am so excited to share Onora's story with y'all. I am also excited to be done with proofreading (bane of my existence), but that's neither here nor there. I love Onora, and I can't wait for y'all to meet her . . . and her cat. I do quite love her cat. Y'all will find out why when the book comes out. If you haven't already, make sure you preorder the ebook before release! The price will go up by a dollar or so once the book actually comes out.

7. Collusion by H.S.J. Williams (September 27). Behold! A book that is not a Goose Girl retelling! I realized when making this list that Collusion and Illusion's Reign are release-day twinsies, and I genuinely could not be more delighted. I loved Moonscript when it came out several years ago, and I've been eagerly anticipating the sequel ever since. I admit that there is a fair chance this book will wreck me — Hannah is very good at writing angst — but I also have no doubt that it will come out to light and beauty and hope in the end.

8. Goose Princess by Tricia Mingerink (September 30). Back to the Lost Kerchiefs! Speaking of long-awaited sequels, Goose Princess is the final Beyond the Tales book from Tricia Mingerink. It's another blended fairy tale, combining The Goose Girl and The Wild Swans, which I've thought for a long while would be a natural fit together. And, of course, series fans will be happy that Alex just might get his happily-ever-after.

9. Curse of Silence by Erin Halbmaier (October 1). Our final Lost Kerchiefs story is a mystery retelling of The Goose Girl, which should be a lot of fun! Plus, we have a childhood-friends-to-lovers romance, and that's always a delight.

10. Splintered Life by W.R. Gingell (October). While the exact launch date for the second Shattered Worlds Kickstarter hasn't been announced yet (at least not that I can find), we know it's coming in October, and we do have a prelaunch page. In any case, I am very much looking forward to more of Viv and Luca! I read Splintered Mind, the first book in the series, earlier this month, and I loved it, though the vibe is a little different from the City Between and Worlds Behind series. I will definitely be backing this as soon as it comes available!

11. Wyldling Armor by A. R. Grimes (October 8). Ok, full disclosure, I have not read the first two books in this series . . . but it's a portal fantasy series, and I've been meaning to get back to reading more of those, so it's on my TBR. The concept sounds really cool, and I think the series might touch on some of the themes I really like to see in portal fantasy, so it should be worth a look, at least.

12. The Death of Clara Willenheim by Charlotte Lesemann (October 29). This is not precisely fantasy (though there is apparently a ghost in it) and is therefore not my usual fair . . . but I have been enjoying Gothic stories more of late, and I'm always down for a good mystery. The blurb is definitely enough to make me curious as well — we have an imprisoned heroine, secret passages, and more.

13. One Must Die by multiple authors (October 31). Another mystery story! This one looks and sounds delightfully steampunky as well — it's been a while since I found a good steampunk story. Some early reviewers are comparing it to Clue, and the book has an interesting conceit wherein each of the involved authors wrote a version of the story from a different character's point of view. That sounds like it was probably hard to coordinate and edit . . . but if it was well-done, it could be super cool! I'll be keeping an eye on this one for sure.

14. Valley of Dragons by Christina Baehr (November 15). We wrap up the season with the final Secrets of Ormdale novel! I cannot believe that this series is already ending, but I also cannot wait for the ending. The hints and snippets Christina has shared on her socials are simply tantalizing, and after the last couple books, I desperately need a good happy ending for our heroine (and hero). I have no doubt that Christina will deliver just that.

What book releases are you excited for this fall? Am I missing any? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

 

Hello, all! I debated a bit about whether or not to post this week — I am still on hiatus, technically, and it's also the week before Realm Makers, which means I am quite busy getting ready for that! However, this is release weekend for City of Serpents, the fourth book in the the Secrets of Ormdale series by Christina Baehr, and I enjoyed my ARC so much that I couldn't not talk about it! Granted, if you haven't read the series, you should probably start with book one, Wormwood Abbey (as you will be hopelessly confused otherwise), and if you have read the series, you probably don't need much convincing to read the new installment . . . but if nothing else, maybe I can convince you to read it a little sooner? In any case, I have thoughts!

Thoughts on City of Serpents

1. If you liked the rest of the Ormdale books, you'll like this one. City of Serpents introduces a new setting and some new characters, but it still contains all the things we've come to love and expect from an Ormdale novel. Within its pages, you'll find dragons, strong family relationships and friendships, and dire danger balanced with cozy comfort. You'll find villains who are, in some ways, all too realistic, even if they're with dragons. And, of course, you'll find Edith, our favorite cleric's daughter/novelist-turned-dragon-keeper, who has turned her detective-novelist's mind towards some schemes of her own.
2. I also enjoyed meeting quite a few new characters. My favorite of these is, unfortunately, a spoiler, though I will say that this person was alluded to in Castle of the Winds (and that allusion did not prepare me for how delightful the actual person would be). In terms of characters I can talk about, though, the main newcomers are Edith's cousin, Stephen, and his son, Crispin, both of whom are very fun. Edith's interactions with Crispin are especially lovely and fun, while Stephen simultaneously provides some extra humor (via teasing Edith and his general personality) and a bit of a sobering effect (via his knowledge and role in the narrative). You'll get what I mean once you meet him.
3. I was a little nervous about the start of the story . . . Mostly because Edith was being very determined to Do Things Alone (understandable, given what happened in the last book, but still stressful) and other people were, in my opinion, being a bit hard on her and Not Helping. Thankfully, both of these issues clear up after those first few chapters — and, really, I shouldn't have doubted in the first place. Edith is too sensible for that kind of nonsense, and Christina Baehr is too good an author to send her main character down that path.
4. This is the most historical-feeling of the Ormdale books thus far. Yes, all the books are historical fantasy, but the remote locations of the previous books meant they leaned strongly to the fantasy side of the genre. On the other hand, City of Serpents deals very heavily with very specific movements, social issues, attitudes, and people of its era. It almost feels like what you'd get if you crossed Ormdale with Suzannah Rowntree's Miss Dark books. (Side note, if anyone wants to actually write that fanfiction, please send me a link; I think it would be delightfully fun.)
5. The story is a little bit darker than some of the others in the series. That shouldn't really be a surprise, given what I said in my last point — but it is worth noting. All of the Ormdale books have dealt in some way with the effects of abuse, but it's usually been on a smaller scale. This one, on the other hand, deals with injustices committed on a larger scale, and that plus the villain's modus operandi and the reminder of just when in history this story is set combine to make City of Serpents a touch darker. However, rest assured that even amid the shadows of the London streets, we never lose sight of the light.
   

Are you excited to read City of Serpents? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

Hello, all! As promised, I return briefly from my semi-hiatus to spotlight a new season's upcoming reads worth getting excited about. While summer isn't quite as exciting for me as Spring 2024 was, there are still quite a few stories I'm very much looking forward to. (And, I mean, Spring 2024 is going to be really hard to beat.) So, let's get started and see what summer 2024 has in store for us.

 

Summer 2024 Reads

1. Splintered Mind by W.R. Gingell (June 3). W.R. Gingell is giving us another spinoff of her City Between series, and let me tell you, I am so, so hyped. This one is also set in Australia (Melbourne, to be exact), and it apparently involves madmen and tentacle monsters and a heroine who sounds delightfully practical and grounded (exactly what one needs in a world so full of weirdness as Between). As a bonus, you can enjoy this series without having read City Between, so it's a great jumping-in point for newcomers. Gingell is launching this via Kickstarter, and there are a few days left to back the project — but if you miss the deadline, the book will release wide later in the year, so you'll still have a chance to get it.

2. Hearts of Stone and Steel by Jenelle Leanne Schmidst (June 25). I am, of course, very much looking forward to returning to the world of Turrim for Book 3 of the Turrim Archive! Especially considering where Book 2 left off . . . yeah. The adventure and the stakes just keep getting bigger, and I know the story will keep getting better along with it. (Also: there is a ROBOT on that cover, and I want to know what's up with that.)

3. DOSA Files Anthology (June 27). Y'all should already be aware of this one, since it includes one of my stories — but for those who missed it, the DOSA Files is an anthology of short stories set in the world of H.L. Burke's Supervillain Rehabilitation Project series and spinoffs. It includes stories from ten different authors, and I can confirm that the ones I've read are so much fun. The Kickstarter ran most of last month, and the book will be available for wide release in just a few days! The blog tour for this book is going on right now, and it includes interviews, giveaways, and more, so make sure you check it out.

4.  When a Dragon Comes Calling by Claire Trella Hill (June 28). Speaking of spinoffs set in the same world as something I love: When a Dragon Comes Calling is the first in a series of romance-focused fantasy novels set in the same world as The Erlking's Daughter (which you may remember me raving about back in March/April). It's a short little snack of a novella, but sometimes that's exactly what you want. Claire Trella Hill is currently two for two in terms of writing books that I absolutely love, and so I have high hopes for this one as well — it's next on my TBR list after I finish reading Murderbot.

5. City of Serpents by Christina Baehr (July 14). Can y'all believe that there's only two books left in the Secrets of Ormdale series? I can't, but I am so looking forward to the next installment! What will happen when Edith's cozy Gothic life meets the shadows of a mystery-type story and the strangeness of mad science? I don't know, but I'm sure it's going to be delightful and exciting. I'm also looking forward to learning more about Janushek, who's been a very interesting character so far. And, of course, I'm excited to see even more new dragons and to find out how Edith will deal with them!

6. Beauty from Embers by Pamela Hart (July 16). Here we have another Kickstarter, this one launching in mid-July (though you can sign up now to be notified when it opens). While this looks very Asian-fantasy-esque, the blurbs suggest that's it's more of a science fantasy — with some strong allegorical elements as well, both of which sound appealing to me. Beauty from Embers is book two, but I do plan to pick up Beauty from Ashes, the first book in the series, at some point.

7. Iron Rose by Abigail O'Bryan (August 6). This appears to be O'Bryan's debut. It's a Beauty and the Beast retelling, which is always exciting — however many takes I see on this tale, I'm always curious when I come upon a new one. This story seems like it'll lean dark, which isn't always my preference, but it should also lean epic, and I definitely like that. I'll be keeping my eye on this one!

8. A Bond of Ice and Sunshine by Sarah Beran (August 9). This is a sequel to My Fair Mermaid, which released as part of last year's Stolen Songs Arista Challenge group. It focuses on Freddy and Eliza, and as I predicted, it's a Snow Queen story  . . . unexpectedly mixed with King Thrushbeard, a fairy tale I do not see retold often enough. Needless to say, I'm very much looking forward to seeing how Sarah Beran blends these two tales (and to seeing Freddy get the happily-ever-after he was hoping for in the last book; he is an absolute ray of sunshine, and he deserves the happiest of endings).

9. The Mhrann's Mantle by E.G. Moore (August 12). While I haven't read the series this is part of, this story does sound pretty interesting — from what I can tell, it's a science fantasy story (maybe?) with some Asian inspiration and, if I'm not mistaken, it's a spy story. All of those elements sound intriguing, and I hope that they'll combine well. And I will probably be looking into the rest of the series too . . .

10. Come by Water by Claire Trella Hill (August 30). We wrap up the season with another release by Claire Trella Hill! This is another romantic fantasy Tales from Karneesia story, but this one is a retelling of Tam Lin, and I am so looking forward to it! Much like King Thrushbeard, Tam Lin is a story I feel like I don't see retold half as often as I'd like, and I'm very excited to read Claire's take on the tale!

What book releases are you excited for this summer? Am I missing any? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

 

Hey'a, all! So, we all know that many bookworms are a bit like dragons, in that we tend to hoard books and dislike even the suggestion that we might get rid of a single volume. Unfortunately, at some point, weeding the collection does become necessary — namely, when one runs out of both shelf space and space to put more shelves, which is my current situation. This means that, over the past few weeks, I've been working on going through my books, figuring out what I'm keeping and what's going to our local used bookstore (and also figuring out how to organize what I'm holding onto). It's still a work in progress, but I've gotten enough of the way through to have some thoughts to share with other bookworms tackling the same sort of project.

On Getting Rid of Books

1. It's ok to get rid of books that everyone else loves (even if they're classics). One of the big choices I've made in the process of weeding my shelves was deciding to get rid of a few series that are wildly popular, but which I'm kind of meh about. Some of these are books that I did like at one point, but which I enjoy less now. Others are books that I thought I should like, even if I hadn't read them yet, because they were popular, influential, and practically classics. The common thread was that they were books I was keeping because I felt like I was socially obliged to own them, not because I really still wanted them. But I'm not a public library, so why should social obligation force me to hang onto books I don't expect to read often (or at all) when I could instead clear more space for the stories I love?
2. There's always the library. Speaking of libraries, this is probably the most helpful thing for me to keep in mind when figuring out whether to keep or pass on a book. After all, in most cases, getting rid of a book doesn't mean losing access to it — not when I have library cards at three or four different libraries. If I decide I want to reread something or give a particular series another try, I can most likely borrow it either in physical or digital form. Maybe I won't be able to pick up a book on a whim, but that's not the end of the world. Granted, this is less true for indie books than it is for traditionally published ones . . . but most of the books that the first point applies to are traditionally-published. Plus, a lot of my indie collection is duplicated in digital thanks to ebook sales and giveaways.
3. Books are meant to be read. This is the other most helpful thing for me to keep in mind. The chief purpose of a book is to be read. If I'm keeping a book because I think I'll reread it, even if I might not do so in the immediate future, that's great. But if I don't think I'll read or reread it, then holding onto it is kind of silly — like someone who lives in an apartment building keeping a lawnmower. It's better to pass the book on to someone else who'll enjoy it and want to reread it again and again, whether I do that directly or via a used bookstore. And if I'm wrong and it turns out I do want to read or reread it after all? Again, that's what the library is for.
4. It's ok to keep books for sentimental reasons even if you're not likely to reread them. While this might seem to contradict the previous point, I think it is a valid exception. I have some books on my shelves that I don't think I'll reread in the near future but which I don't think I'd ever give up if I had a choice. For example, I have a pair of fairy tale retellings that, to be frank, I don't like half as much now as I did when I first encountered them — but I had them signed by the author at one of the first author events I ever attended, so they're special to me and I'm reluctant to part with them. As another example, I still own a fair number of my favorite books from when I was a kid, before I discovered fantasy — books I've outgrown, but to which I still attach fond memories — but I keep them on a separate shelf from the rest of my collection, so they aren't competing with current favorites for space. Even if these books aren't being read, the fact that I have them still brings me pleasure in the form of reminders of good memories, and that's a valid reason to hold onto them.
5. Having a separate shelf for owned-but-unread books would probably be a good idea . . . if I had the space. I feel like this would help both with future efforts at book-weeding and with making sure I actually, y'know, read the books in question. The shelf would serve as a reminder of what books I still needed to read, and it would also give me a single place to look when I'm trying to decide what to read next. I could start there and check to see if any of my unread books fit my mood at the time, then move them to their proper places after I finish. However, doing this would require having at least one shelf clear of other books, and I'm not sure that's going to happen even after I finish weeding. We'll see.

What's your process for getting rid of books (if you have one)? What do you think of keeping all owned-but-unread books in one place? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!