SFF-KIT: August 2020: Female Authors

Welcome to this month's SFF-Kit, Female Authors




Year-in, year-out I find my genre reading to be dominated by male authors and wanted to make a bit of an effort to correct that imbalance. Unfortunately 2020 had other ideas.
But at least I still get to do this thread to help restore at least some equilibrium and hopefully inspire me to do better in future.

There's plenty to choose from whether you want to go the classic route, young adult or children's books, urban fantasy or someone who happens to be the current flavour of the month.
Hopefully you all have something to hand and can join in with this month's topic. If you're having trouble deciding then here's a few resources you can take a gander at for some inspiriation:

SF Mistressworks List
100 Must read SFF novels by female authors

You may even be surprised to discover an author you've heard of but didn't realise was female maybe because of using initials or even a male pseudonym (C. S. Friedman or James Tiptree Jr. spring to mind).

Whatever you choose to read I hope you enjoy and let us know about it. Also don't forget to update the Wiki.

I am going to be reading Peripeteia by Sarah Lyons Fleming. This is the second book in a very fun (if you like this kind of stuff) zombie trilogy.

I'll be reading A Pale Light in the Black by my current favorite female sci fi writer. (Okay, make Martha Wells is number one, but young Ms Wagers is giving her a run for her money.

I've got a few books of the Mistressworks list on my TBR so may pick up one of those.

>1 AHS-Wolfy: I recognise Naomi Novik, but who are the other ladies?

>4 MissWatson: I recognise Naomi Novik, but who are the other ladies?

Top row (l-r) Ursula K. Le Guin, C. J. Cherryh, Octavia E. Butler, Lois McMaster Bujold
2nd row (l-r) Martha Wells, Naomi Novik, Nnedi Okorafor, N. K. Jemisin

Thought I'd mix it up a bit and (as alluded to in the header) highlight some of the classic and flavour of the month authors as well as throw a couple of others in for good measure. Couldn't leave LMB out after the couple of years her Vorkosigan series was featured for a group read.

Great selection. Thankfully, there are lots of choices these days.

>5 AHS-Wolfy: Thank you! It is so nice to be able to put a name to the face and vice versa.

I have had Binti on my list for this one since the beginning of the year.

>5 AHS-Wolfy: Yes, thank you for these pictures! I've got more than a few dozen SFF authors; one that keeps getting pushed back to the shelves is Rowan by the late Anne McCaffery. I think it's high time to read it. Especially because I saw her and her son a couple of times at DragonCon, and since that event has gone strictly on-line, I should read it in honor of her and the worlds she brought to the SFF genre.

>9 threadnsong: Anne McCaffrey was going to be in the gallery originally because she crosses the science fiction and fantasy genres so readily. Also left out Janny Wurts who's a regular contributor over on the other main group I frequent on a regular basis but decided to limit it so as not to make the thread too picture heavy. So many others I could've included too which is obviously a good thing.

>9 threadnsong: The Rowan is one McCaffrey that I've not outgrown. I also like the follow up, Damia. I read a couple more in the series but the first two are the best imo.

I'll probably read the next Murderbot novella by Martha Wells.

I plan to read The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin and probably I'll reread The Masterharper of Pern by Anne McCaffrey...

Right now I'm planning on Masks and Shadows by Stephanie Burgis.

I'm planning on reading The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin. It's been on my wishlist for ages, and I want to read most of Le Guin's work but never seem to get around to it. I have my eyes on some of her short story collections also.

Happy August every one. I hope you all enjoy the month.

I am reading The Warrior's Apprentice for this month. Author Lois McMaster Bujold

If you're still undecided on what to read the Hugo Awards were announced last night. Here's the female winners as possible contenders for you to read:

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine won best novel
This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone won best novella
Emergency Skin by N. K. Jemisin won best novelette
As the Last I May Know by S. L. Huang won best short story
LaGuardia by Nnedi Okorafor won best graphic story or comic
Catfishing on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer won Lodestar award for best young adult book

Leigh Brackett also won a couple of awards in the 1945 Retro Hugo's

Congratulations to all.

Full list of winner and nominees can be found here.

I very much enjoyed Masks and Shadows by Stephanie Burgis! Recommended for fans of historical fantasy. Next up is Honor's Knight by Rachel Bach, book 2 in the Paradox space opera trilogy.

I fiished A Pale Light in the Black which was awesome.

>17 AHS-Wolfy: Thanks for the heads-up! I've spent less time reading books and about books than usual and wasn't aware that the Hugo results were out!

>18 christina_reads: & >19 majkia: Thanks for getting us off to a good start. Glad you both enjoyed your selections.

>20 chlorine: I mainly picked up on them because of the aftermath on social media. Hope you can avoid same if you check on them further.

As host for the month I really should update on my own progress as yesterday I made a start on my first selection, The Element of Fire by Martha Wells. My first sampling of her work and also debut novel although my copy is a revised edition from 2006.

Hoping that this thread will give me some ideas for authors to help fill the "book not set on earth" bingo square. I read very little sci fi or fantasy - apart from falling for Terry Pratchett's Discworld. I have a dislike of sci fi that breaks the rule of physics, or keeps on breaking new ones. I'm prepared to take one leap of faith, but the rest of it has to then stack up.

In adaptation news: Wild Seed: Viola Davis developing adaptation of Octavia Butler novel at Amazon, scripted by Nnedi Okorafor and Wanuri Kahiu.

Details can be found here.

>22 Helenliz: In my mind, books that break the rules of physics are automatically classified as fantasy rather than sci fi! lol! But I know what you mean...

>16 Kristelh: Enjoy The Warrior's Apprentice! I love the Vorkosigan series.

I have started The Obelisk Gate. At first, I felt that I let too much time pass since reading the first book, The Fifth Season (which I read last summer), but now as I have read a bit I am remembering more.

>14 chlorine: I was really impressed by The Lathe of Heaven.

I have finished Mil euros por tu vida, a short story by Elia Barceló who has received prizes for her science fiction in Spain. Aimed at a juvenile audience, I think, but still quite good. An author to keep in mind.

Finished The Warrior's Apprentice and really enjoyed it. Might be my favorite so far.

I finished Every Heart a Doorway which was okay. For some reason I'm not that big a fan of Seanan. No idea why, as she writes very well, and is imaginative.

I finished The lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin and really enjoyed it. Without too many spoilers I think it's safe to say that the plot is about a man whose dreams impact reality. I really enjoyed the plot and the character's interplay.
I haven't read that many books by Le Guin but this one was different from what I expected from her, more evocative of a subject that Philip K. Dick would have tackled. I'm glad to have discovered this aspect of her writing but since I didn't get my Le Guin fix I'm starting The wind's twelve quarters, one of her short story collections.

>29 majkia:, I feel pretty much the same about Seanan. I read Every Heart a Doorway and did not feel compelled to read anymore.

The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H. G. Parry (452 pp.)

This was not a book that absorbed me, maybe due to Rob's brother-relationship angst, although that turned out to be rather central to the story, and I often set it down for a day or two. But by the last third of the book I was fully into it and finished it quickly last night. This is an author who loves Dickens and your enjoyment will be enhanced if you also are familiar with him, especially David Copperfield, Oliver Twist and Great Expectations, but it isn't necessary. Nonetheless I feel I should warn Richard away. Rob's brother Charles is a summoner--he can call characters forth from books, and his family has spent his entire life protecting him from discovery. What happens when he discovers a street from Victorian England existing in an inter dimensional pocket in the middle of Wellington, New Zealand, and populated with such characters? And when there is an evil nemesis intent on changing reality? That's the book! An excellent first novel by this New Zealand writer.

I finished Remnant Population by Elizabeth Moon : a very interesting book from start to end with an unusual protagonist.

>33 h-mb: I discovered Elizabeth Moon a few years back, starting with the world-building she continued with her "Sheepfarmer's Daughter" series in "Deeds of Paksenarrion. Was this one of her more sci-fi books?

>22 Helenliz: You might like a couple of the books by Ursula Le Guin, Voices or Gifts. They're more fantasy-based (another world kind of thing, regular laws of physics), and she has always had an insight into humanity that is awe-inspiring. Of course, she (or was it her parents as well?) was an anthropologist, so there's that.

And it's been a while since I read them, but The Left Hand of Darkness and The Crystal Singer - maybe you'd like them since they're sci-fi without too much physics bending?

>34 threadnsong: Yes, it's a first contact story with a seventy old woman as first character.

>32 ronincats: Book bullet for me!

I've updated the wiki with the completed reads that were missing and added an entry of my own with The Element of Fire. My first sampling of Martha Wells' work that won't be my last.

>35 threadnsong: Crystal Singer is good.

I have finished The Obelisk Gate and since I am understanding what is happening better in this 2nd book, I liked it better than The Fifth Season. I think this trilogy is one I will have to reread once I am done just to see how things in the first book fit in once I know what is going on!

Rather than plunge right into the 3rd book, The Stone Sky, I have decided to read Sargasso of Space by Andre Norton first. The straightforward space adventure plots of the 1950s appeal to me even though I recognize that Jemisin's books are better written than Norton's.

I have completed Peripeteia by Sarah Lyons Fleming and have given this book a high rating for sheer readability and fun. This is the second trilogy of hers that I have read, both dealing with the post-apocalyptic world of survival during a zombie infestation.

>38 AHS-Wolfy: That is on my wishlist and I'm glad to know you enjoyed it!

I wanted something light so I read Romancing the inventor by Gail Carriger. This romance novella takes place in the same universe as her Parasol protectorate series, and features Geneviève Lefoux as the inventor.
I tend to think that I don't like romance but I really liked the romance aspects in the Parasol Protectorate. This short book was simply adorable and fun. There's another one in the series, Romancing the werewolf, that I'll get to but not right now.

I found it interesting that this book is self published, even though the Parasol Protectorate series was published by a traditional editor. For those interested I found this post by Hugh Howey explaining the benefits of self publishing: https://hughhowey.com/the-state-of-self-publishing/

I have finished Sargasso of Space by Andre Norton, the first book of the Solar Queen series. Great space opera and did not feel dated to me, despite the fact that it is 65 years old now, unlike the 2 Time Traders books by Norton I read earlier this year.

The story is told from the perspective of a new cargo apprentice, traveling on his first Trade ship. I liked Dane and look forward to reading more about him and his shipmates.

I just finished The Relentless Moon, the most recent book in Mary Robinette Kowal's Lady Astronaut series, and enjoyed it thoroughly, especially the epilogue (though I can't say why without MASSIVE spoilers).

I read one of my ROOTs - Marianne, the Magus and the Manticore by Sheri S. Tepper. While I had fun reading this fantasy, overall the book disappointed me - based on my experience with Tepper's later books I had expected something with more to it.

I've just started Valor's Choice by Tanya Huff. Not sure I've read anything of hers before.

September thread is up!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/323646

So, for this month I was ready to continue with the Murderbot novellas, moving on to number three (Rogue Protocol). Then I realized I never read any space opera last month. My solution was to make it a double-header: I counted Rogue Protocol for July, belatedly, and finished the novellas with Exit Strategy.

While I think LT readers have rated Exit Strategy higher than Rogue Protocol, my personal preference was for Rogue Protocol. The pacing was outstanding, and Wells handled the ending flawlessly. But that said, I liked Exit Strategy very much--it just didn't quite reach the heights of Rogue Protocol for me.

I recently finished Sally Gardner's The Silver Blade, which is historical fantasy set during the French Revolution. It was good but not a keeper for me.

Thanks all for keeping the thread ticking along. Here's some related video news for any US fans of Ursula K. Le Guin. PBS's documentary about her is free to watch this for the remainder of this week. It's avaialable to view here. Even though I can't watch it (I've actually already caught it a while ago) I'm hopeful that some of you will.

I bought an audiobook edition of Anne McCaffrey's The Masterharper of Pern last year so this month's KIT was the perfect excuse to finally listen to it. I enjoyed my return to the Pern series so much that I borrowed Dragonsinger and Dragonsong audiobooks from my library once I finished The Masterharper of Pern! Robinton & Menolly are two of my favorite characters from this series and it was nice to revisit them in audiobook format (I have read my paperback editions of these books several times over the years)...

>50 AHS-Wolfy: Thanks for the link - the documentary was excellent!

>51 leslie.98: I love the Harperhall series, reread it frequently.

>52 leslie.98: Thanks for the feedback. Glad that somebody was able to watch and enjoy it. Today is last chance to catch it there if I recall correctly.

>54 AHS-Wolfy: Oh drat. I'll have to miss it. I love Ursula LeGuin, though, and maybe PBS will show that series again? Maybe??

Finished The Rowan by Anne McCaffery and it began to pick up steam about a third of the way through. I haven't posted a review of it yet (and dinner is calling), but I can see how she was able to make the change from the more fantasy elements of the Dragonriders series (even though she classified them as "science fiction") to pure space travel and science fiction.

In her work, I am not sure if this book ties into the backstory for the Dragonriders, or if this is a standalone work. >51 leslie.98: Leslie - are you familiar with her greater opus?

>50 AHS-Wolfy: Thank you for the link--an excellent program!!

>52 leslie.98: The Rowan is actually the first of the Tower and Hive series, which ended up being 5 books in all and were some of her later work, although the first is based on some early stories. There is no connection to the Pern books. McCaffrey's earliest work was science fiction, starting with Restoree and, as she provides a technological explanation for her dragons in Pern, those also are definitely considered science fiction rather than fantasy.

>56 threadnsong: be sure to read the follow up book, Damia. I've read four of the five, I think, but the first two were the best imo.

>57 ronincats: Happy to oblige. Was just something that popped up on a twitter feed and thought it worth the share. Glad some people managed to see it in time.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this month's theme and I hope you all had fun and enjoyed your various reads. Time now to take it International as I leave you in the care of @LisaMorr.

>59 AHS-Wolfy: thanks for hosting August!

>57 ronincats: & >58 fuzzi: Thanks for responding for me as I was a) offline and b) clueless! I have read (and own) most of the original Pern series but haven't even ventured into the 'New Adventures in Pern' books co-written by Anne & her son Todd much less any of her other works...

>61 leslie.98: I decided to not read the "new" Pern books after trying First Fall. I think I might have finished the dolphin book, but then I quit reading new additions to the series. The original trilogy and the Harper Hall were her best books, imo. Oh, and I have reread Nerilka's Story several times, really like that one.

I was very disappointed in the first Catalyst book, never tried the second.

I would recommend Crystal Singer and Killashandra, the third not so much.

>57 ronincats: and >62 fuzzi: Thank you both for your input and knowledge of her backstory for this book. I re-introduced myself to Pern based on a conversation with Todd at DragonCon years ago (bragging rights. He started the conversation so of course I had to take that as a sign to re-visit Pern!) and then attending her panel. She was quite fond of the idea of having cats in space. I did like her explanation of how the human settlement of Pern began, which tied into her describing the DragonRiders series as science fiction and not fantasy.

I have read The Crystal Singer and liked it a great deal, and I'll have to add Killisandra and Damia to my list. The first set of short stories, I think it was First Fall was just jaw-dropping.