Fiction | Lost in a Good Book

Beneath the Sugar Sky (#3) by Seanan McGuire

04 Mar 2025 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, Novella Tags: Audiobook, fantasy, fiction, four stars, michelle dockrey, novella, seanan mcguire, Wayward Children

Published: 9 January 2018 (print)/9 January 2018 (audio)
Publisher: tor.com/Macmillan Audio
Pages: 174/4 hrs and 11 mins
Narrator: Michelle Dockrey
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Fantasy
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars

When Rini lands with a literal splash in the pond behind Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children, the last thing she expects to find is that her mother, Sumi, died years before Rini was even conceived. But Rini can’t let Reality get in the way of her quest – not when she has an entire world to save! (Much more common than one would suppose.) If she can’t find a way to restore her mother, Rini will have more than a world to save: she will never have been born in the first place. And in a world without magic, she doesn’t have long before Reality notices her existence and washes her away. Good thing the student body is well-acquainted with quests…

A tale of friendship, baking, and derring-do. Warning: May contain nuts.

I love how we get introduced to characters in book one, and then as the series progresses we get their own individual stories, but scattered in between the original story arc keeps going as well. It is incredibly clever, and all the while revealing more about the rules of the worlds and the understanding of the system.

With the second book devoted to Jack and Jill’s story I was curious to see if the next book would pick another character we’d met and show their origins but I was delightfully surprised. We are back in the school as Rini literally lands at their door on a mission to save her mother, a character who died in book one.

This is why McGuire’s books are so fantastic, her rules on Logic and Nonsense, not to mention life and death are fascinating and primed for storytelling when put in the right hands. The nonsensical world works well with the nonsensical mission. Rini is as wild as her mother and the random nature of events only support the irregular world she’s come from.

I was delighted we got to revisit Nancy, especially in her own element, and it was great seeing characters deal with different land so unlike their own or their desired places. Given the world of Confection is a sugary light-hearted delight, there isn’t a lot of darkness or heavy themes, even with Rini’s possible demise. That isn’t to say there aren’t some wonderful things explored like understanding other people’s experiences and tolerance, but it is a much lighter story. Coming from Down Among the Sticks and Bones having something so sugary and nonsensical was probably the best call, and it is certainly a great reminder of the variety of doors and alignments people can be.

What makes these books so fantastic is they are relatively short reads but McGuire packs so much amazing story into so few pages. It’s truly a gift to be able have such real and complicated characters with such an involved plot and world while still keeping the page count short.

You can purchase Beneath the Sugar Sky via the following

Dymocks | Booktopia

Wordery | Blackwell’s | Angus & Robertson

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible

Time of My Life by Mary Frame

09 Jan 2025 Leave a comment

by Amy in 3 Stars, Audiobook, Fiction Tags: Audiobook, mary frame, rachanee lumayno, three stars, time loop

Long Lost Reviews is a monthly meme created by Ally over at Ally’s Appraisals which is posted on the second Thursday of every month. The aim is to start tackling your review backlog. Whether it’s an in-depth analysis of how it affected your life, one sentence stating that you only remember the ending, or that you have no recollection of reading the book at all.

Published: 04 January 2021 (print)/10 August 2021 (audio)
Publisher: Self Published/Self Published
Pages: 270/6 hours, 32 minutes
Narrator: Rachanee Lumayno
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
★ ★ ★ – 3.5 Stars

Today is the worst day of Jane Stewart’s life. And she’s reliving it over and over (and over and over) again.

She’s late to the same make-or-break meeting.

She’s fired from the same soul-crushing job.

And—the cherry on top—she’s dumped by the same lying, selfish dirtbag.

But no matter how many times she relives the same disasters and no matter what she tries to change them, it all ends in the same abysmal mess. Because, apparently, being stuck in a time loop on the worst day of her life hasn’t cured her crippling social anxiety. Go figure.

The one bright spot? Her long-time crush wants to be more than friends…if only she can get them past their first date. And so her happily ever is doomed before it can even begin unless she can find a way to save her job, her heart, and, oh yeah, the space-time continuum.

I love a time loop story, and I like too one that plays with form, though there is something to be said for the classics too. This story dives into a bit of both.

Frame skips over multiple loops almost instantly which was interesting. Part of the fun of time loops is seeing the multiple early loops play out, but after a few the story skips and a lot of it is telling of what Jane has done instead.

There are a lot of deviations from the original day too, Jane changing up her routine almost instantly. Which is fine, but I was hoping for more exploration of the same day for a bit, it’s a core feature of the time loop I think to see characters adapt. This could easily be a time saving thing, and a chance to explore further down the line.

It isn’t all bad, I enjoyed the format in a few place where we see repeats of the same situation play out, but I still think it was an interesting choice to start skipping so soon. Jane comes to terms with it so quickly and it’s curious to see her shift in mindset.

The addition of magical realism – clearly proven early inclusion of magical realism – was also interesting. I like having a cause for these kind of situations. Mysteries are nice, but when something strange happens that has these kind of effects it’s fun.

I enjoyed the resolution to the loop. It was sweet but not over the top and it felt natural which is what you want with a story that has a little bit of magic in it.

Lumayno was a good narrator and it was an easy listening experience that let you fall into the story right away. It’s a relatively short story but one that tells a well-rounded narrative while still being light.

You can purchase Time of My Life via the following

Wordery | Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible

Somewhere in the Crowd by Katrina Logan

03 Sep 2024 Leave a comment

by Amy in 1 Star, Fiction Tags: contemporary fiction, eurovision, fiction, katrina logan, one star

Published: 20 April 2023
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Pages: 304
Format: Paperback
Genre: Fiction
★ – 1.5 Stars

Four friends. Twelve years. One Eurovision . . .

Eurovision is always the highlight of Millie’s year. So when she and her best friend James get the chance to see the final live in Oslo, it’s a dream come true – until they get swept up the excitement and try to break backstage, along with carefree German singer Ingrid and charismatic Australian backpacker, Noah.

Getting thrown out of the stadium wasn’t exactly the plan, but it might just spark the friendship – and the pact – of a lifetime. The four of them are going to reunite for every final, every year, every Eurovision.

Over the years, the unlikely four celebrate iconic Eurovision moments all across Europe – and, most importantly, are there for each other during all their highs and lows, heartaches and triumphs. But real life takes them down increasingly different paths, their promise becomes harder and harder to keep. Can the magic of Eurovision bring them together one last time…?

A joyous and uplifting novel inspired by the iconic song contest, about friendship, love and finding where you belong

I picked this up initially because the cover caught my eye and then I realised it was about Eurovision and it sounded great. Unfortunately, it didn’t really turn out that way. Looking at the ratings afterwards it is a clear hit or miss, either 1-2 stars or 4-5 stars. I felt generous at 1.5.

The main problem was it was boring. I couldn’t stick with the character after a while. They were fine, the premise was fine, but there was nothing to keep me engaged. I skimmed the rest of the book, establishing I’d made the right decision as it didn’t really improve. I came back in properly at the end, the final few chapters, but it was the same. I hadn’t missed anything, not much had actually happened, and that was fine.

Eurovision is the pull but it is not the focus. Either they couldn’t mention anything actually happening for legal reasons? Or maybe being at Eurovision was the meeting point, but it isn’t actually about Eurovision itself, despite the claim. Even if they couldn’t mention the concert, surely the whole city wasn’t void of something interesting to explore or mention. From that angle there is no reason to include Eurovision at all, they could all agree to meet at a park once a year. I meant to check if it was based on a real year, with a few fake acts thrown in, but by the end I didn’t care much either way.

The friendship group never made sense either, it did feel this minor connection to a single year at Eurovision was the thing holding them all together. Perhaps if they didn’t meet at Eurovision there would be no common factor to keep these people in contact.

In terms of actual story, the book follows four friends as they live their lives after meeting one year at the Eurovision Song Contest. From there we see snippets of the rest of their year, from relationships to jobs, and other life events. Then they come together once more and have another Eurovision adjacent experience. The characters are flat and while seem interesting feel undeveloped on the page, there is certainly no reason to invest in them.

The scope of the book is twelve years, so a lot of life events happen. Which is why it’s fascinating to me how it can be so unengaging. It is also a fascinating inside to these four people’s lives where they can actually traverse Europe and meet up once a year, from what I picked up everyone is living nomadic and simple lives where spur of the moment decisions are frequent as are decisions to change countries on a whim. Which is perfectly fine, except I kept thinking about the cost of doing all of this versus the lives I’ve been shown.

It might be a book that speaks to you, if you love Eurovision you could be in the 4-5 star range, but if you’re concerned you’re at the opposite end, maybe skip this on and find another book that has a story around the annual celebration.

You can purchase Somewhere in the Crowd via the following

Blackwell’s | Dymocks | Wordery

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

01 Aug 2024 Leave a comment

by Amy in 4 Stars, Audiobook, Fiction Tags: Audiobook, fiction, four stars, gabrielle zevin, jennifer kim, julian cihi, video games

Published: 5 July 2022 (print)/12 October 2022 (audio)
Publisher: Random House /Vintage Digital
Pages: 397/13 hrs and 52 mins
Narrator: Jennifer Kim and Julian Cihi
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Fiction
★ ★ ★ ★ – 4 Stars

On a bitter-cold day, in the December of his junior year at Harvard, Sam Masur exits a subway car and sees, amid the hordes of people waiting on the platform, Sadie Green. He calls her name. For a moment, she pretends she hasn’t heard him, but then, she turns, and a game begins: a legendary collaboration that will launch them to stardom. They borrow money, beg favours, and, before even graduating college, they have created their first blockbuster, Ichigo: a game where players can escape the confines of a body and the betrayals of a heart, and where death means nothing more than a chance to restart and play again. This is the story of the perfect worlds Sam and Sadie build, the imperfect world they live in, and of everything that comes after success: Money. Fame. Duplicity. Tragedy.

Spanning thirty years, from Cambridge, Massachusetts, to Venice Beach, California, and lands in between and far beyond, Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is a dazzling and intricately imagined novel that examines the multifarious nature of identity, games as art form, technology and the human experience, disability, failure, the redemptive possibilities in play, and above all, our need to connect: to be loved and to love. Yes, it is a love story, but it is not one you have read before.

I had heard praises for this book for so long, but I never knew it was about videos games until I actually started reading. I wish I’d picked it up sooner now. As a massive fan of Ready Player One I was curious about how this would be a similar love letter to video games but Zevin does a wonderful job. Not only showing how important, creative, and wonderful video games can be, but also how the human condition is balanced so precariously around friends, family, grief, and chance.

Zevin’s writing is incredibly vivid, this books reads like it is playing out before you on a screen. The other day, months after having read it, I was thinking of a scene and couldn’t remember the movie I had seen it in, before realising it was actually a scene from this book. There is fantastic foreshadowing but you never know it is foreshadowing which makes it even more incredibly heartbreaking.

The story is character driven but is also following a captivating story through their lives. It’s fractured and broken and strewn across the chapters and it is slowly pieced together as you read and switch perspectives. It’s skilfully told, interwoven stories and periods in their lives that reflect and mirror and resonate as you read. It’s fascinating to see the layers of their lives and the games they create, how their past and presents shape them and how those around them impact on who they become. Moments in their lives that shaped them, which tell a story of their own, are laid out before you and as the pieces fit together and you learn more, it becomes both beautiful and tragic.

An important thing to note is I don’t think you need to know anything about videos games to appreciate the story, or their role in it. There is enough context and explanation for you to know what is going on. The gaming aspect is very much behind the scenes while not being too actual game or tech heavy. It’s a love letter to videos games without being solely about video games. It goes through real history with a false history alongside and looks at the emotional and human connections that come through gaming.

I adore the characters. They are incredible realistic. They are flawed, compassionate, and human. Seeing their journey over the years and how the influence each other, adore each other, hate each other. It was wonderful to see the complexities of the human experience play out in a way that feels relatable.

Sam and Sadie are complex people and I loved seeing them grow from their youth to adults. From the beginning they are fully developed, alive on the page, and we follow their lives and their growth so intimately they only become more solidified as their experience shapes them. Secondary characters like Marx and Dove as great too, and Zevin balances our opinions of them through Sadie and Sam’s eyes well so it’s a constant see saw of how we think of them.

I read this as an audio and the format of transcripts, point of view swaps, and time skips aren’t hindered at all and you still completely experience and understand the wonderful story being told. There’s strings that connect that you aren’t aware of until they’re pulled together at the end when it falls in pace, but you are never left lost by the time jumps and the format. A truly beautiful story that is about an area not usually given the respect it deserves.

As the story progresses through the years you are reminded that the world was a much simpler place pre 2000, but at the same time post millennium has advantages too. It’s a perfect balance between the love of games and the knowledge of how impactful they can be coupled with an emotional journey through life and love and the universe.

You can purchase Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow via the following

QBD | Dymocks

Wordery | Blackwell’s

Fishpond | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible

Repeat by Neal Pollack

23 Jul 2024 Leave a comment

by Amy in 3 Stars, Audiobook, Fiction Tags: Audiobook, jeff cummings, neal pollack, three stars, time loop

Published: 24 March 2015 (print)/24 March 2015 (audio)
Publisher: Amazon Lake Union Publishing/Brilliance Audio
Pages: 229/7 hrs and 06 mins
Narrator: Jeff Cummings
Format: Audiobook
Genre: Fiction
★ ★ ★ – 3 Stars

Back on my time loop stories and this is a curious one. So many time loops are single days, usually the worst days of a character’s life but Pollack has brought the story of Brad, and makes him relive the first forty years of his life, resetting the night before his fortieth birthday.

I liked the story, it wasn’t the best time loop story I’d read but at the same time it was captivating, even if it was a rough read. Brad is a terrible person, through cycle after cycle he becomes amazingly an even worse person. Of course there has to be a lesson learnt otherwise I think we’d all reach into the book and strangle Brad on our own. His language and humour is crude, and Pollack drives his character and personality really well in that as understanding as we are, you certainly suffer no sympathy for him.

The fact Brad goes through over “forty, fifty, sixty or seventy five” versions of his forty years, he never learns his lesson. One would think having forty years to work with you’d reflect a bit more, single day loops learn their lessons faster but as Brad ends up hundreds of years old he’s not trying his hardest to escape.

I was fascinated by how long it takes Brad to learn his lesson, and even then I was surprised by the conclusion. I expected Pollack to change more than he did, and even then he made the right choice. Brad changes but at the same time he doesn’t, which given the emotional and crushing journey he’s been on, it might have been the only way.

Pollack drops hints towards the end of the novel about how Brad came to be in his cycle. An inherently cruel time loop given forty years is an incredibly long time. I was curious at how he’d cycle through so many loops with such a long time span but he does a decent job introducing us to a new loop at interesting moments or towards the end and have the story backfill from there.

There are a few inconsistencies but they are forgivable, and as deserving as Brad is for his situation, you do feel sorry for him after a while but never too much. He is someone who feels his problems are the fault of everyone else, and while he knows he plays a part in his own misfortune, I never felt he was grateful for what he had. Especially when he had so many loops to improve the life he had he chooses so many different paths instead it makes you wonder what his commitment is to the family he leaves behind. Brad’s focus is so much on improving his life rather than himself.

There is an unsubtle author self-insert which was interesting, but Pollack included it well narratively speaking. It provides an external perspective on how the world sees Brad after thousands of years. Especially given the capacity for the human brain and the undue stress he places it under. I was glad Pollack address the brain’s capacity to keep memories straight and every version clear given the overlap. That was an interesting approach and one you can’t address in single day loops.

Overall it was an interesting read and a fascinating premise. I can’t say I wasn’t expecting more from having such an extensive loop, but at the same time I was intrigued by the chance to redo your life and how many choices would stay and which would change. Sometimes even with hundreds of chances to redo your life you can’t fully change the character of a person.

You can purchase Repeat via the following

Booktopia | Amazon | Amazon Aust | Audible