Where are you in FantasyLand? April 2024

I've never started the thread before, so I hope this works.

I've just been in Elfhame with Jude Duarte and The Cruel Prince, where she's coping with being a mortal in a cruel faerie court, and navigating the intrigues over who will be the new High King. A few plot episodes made suspension of disbelief a challenge, but it was carried off. The worldbuilding and character conflict are well done. I hadn't read Black before reading her first adult novel recently, which made me want to read more.

>1 rshart3: Perfect!

I wandered back into the World of the Five Gods with Penric and Desdemona and I am working on my 4th or 5th novella in a week, happily ensconced.

I'm back in East Carmine, discovering the mystery in Red Side Story.

>5 ScarletBea: I enjoyed Shades of Grey, and did not know that there is a sequel. Thanks for mentioning it.

>6 vwinsloe: Yes, published in February, 15 years later!

>4 elorin: Me too. :) I'm starting on Knot of Shadows.

Somewhere on an alternate Earth, in The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi.

At the new home of the Indigo Cloud court in The Serpent Sea.

I left Lirael in the Old Kingdom, travelled by way of The School of Good and Evil, (visited Agatha Raisin in Carsley where she was investigating The Walkers of Dembley) and have just left The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy in Illyria.

And now I’m about to join Lockwood & Co. in an alternative London to investigate The Whispering Skull.

Actually, instead of London, I'm in Ragnor Bella with Jemis Dartwing puzzling about a Stargazy Pie. I assumed it was invented for the story but it seems to be an existing Cornish dish (fish-heads sticking out and all - gazing at the stars, hence (apparently) the name).

In Eden, Kentucky exploring Starling House.

>13 ScoLgo: We may meet, because I'm there too!

I'm visiting Terre d'Ange after an extended absence. I read and loved the first Kushiel trilogy ages ago but hadn't felt an urge to continue with the other trilogies until now. Hopping into Kushiel's Scion.

>14 Sakerfalcon: Me and Opal are about to open the trap door! Hope nothing scary happens...

in Howl's Moving Castle after quite some years for a reread, and then to go on to Castle in the Air and House of Many Ways, neither of which I've ever read. I'm definitely liking Howl's Moving Castle better this second go-round (having rated it just 2½** way back when, I dunno why).

ETA: Been in this group for years, but almost exclusively lurking.

I finished The Wisdom of Crowds, which was an excellent wrap-up to Joe Abercrombie's Age of Madness trilogy. I'm back to SF with Exhalation, by Ted Chiang.

I'm just back from Faerie (more or less), having finished The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black. She does a great mix of tough-protagonist adventure with powerful myth & fairytale archetypes. A strong ending to the Folk of the Air trilogy.

Spent a bit in Uberwald but back in Ankh Morpork again reading The Truth.
Finishing up A Soul to Keep in the Veil.

I'm in a large world with many kingdoms and queendoms, looking for A Day of Fallen Night

>17 CurrerBell: ... and just finished Howl's Moving Castle for a 3*** star reread (having rated it 2½** some decade or so ago). There's just a bit too much magic, to the point of getting confusing. I'm going to go on, though, to Castle in the Air and House of Many Ways (neither of which I've previously read) to give the entire trilogy a chance. Maybe knowing Howl and Sophie a little better will make the rest of the trilogy more interesting.

>22 CurrerBell: in my opinion the rest of the books in the series aren’t really up to the standard of Howls moving castle, and Sophie and Howl aren’t that central to the sequels.

Nominally in London, within a magical shop where our human protagonists work, in Night for day by Roselle Lim. They are proxies in an endless war among immortals, which I was able to guess is not a great place to be.

>23 amberwitch: Hmmm, well, I'm still going to give them a try. I'm trying to do some good solid ROOTing this year, and I'm going to pass my "Howl's Castle" and "Chrestomanci" books (the latter of which I've already read) on to a school teacher in my congregation. I'll be pulling some other books together for her as well – my "Artemis Fowl" series along with most of my Rich Riordans (with the exception of the Pandava quintet, which I'm keeping for myself).

A conundrum: I have Thieves' World Volume One on the Kindle. It consists of the first three Thieves' World anthologies. I just finished the first book. Do I count it as a completed book and log it on my list of books read or do I wait until I have finished the trilogy? If I wait, do I count it as 1 book finished or 3? Opinions welcomed.

>26 elorin: Your choice. Since I've been doing the 75 book challenge for years (but only twice got past 75 in a year) I count as many as I can so I would count it them as 3. They do exist as three separate books out in the world, anyway, don't they? (Genuine question, not rhetorical.)

I recently listened to an Agatha Raisin audiobook adaptation which consisted of two books; I logged one in March and one in April, since I listened to them separately and not back to back.

It's been years since I read Thieves' World; maybe I should look for that collection.

>27 humouress: They do exist as three separate books. I'm fixing the touchstone now.

I'm somewhere on the coast of England in The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch. I had no inkling this was a fantasy novel, but a sea monster just rose above the waves and terrified the narrator so, maybe?

>29 Cecrow: Oooo, I've been avoiding The Sea, The Sea on my TBR for quite a long time. Now you've piqued my interest. Do let us know what you think.