2026 Susan (quondame) Reads #3

Weapon of Mass Instruction by Buenos Aires artist Raul Lemesoff

I'm Susan, and I'm back for the long haul of summer. To be fair, June was very pleasant So. Cal. weather - not quite my favorite June gloom, but a good compromise. Our solar power makes AC guilt free, so that will be a help once July and August bear down.

I retired very early in 2001 from an overcompensated software engineering job. I have since led a life dedicated to avoiding unnecessary effort. I live with my husband, my adult daughter, and 3 ill assorted small dogs, one for each of us.

I read mostly fantasy with some science fiction and have been very enthusiastic for a few historical fiction writers’ works—Dunnett, O'Brian, and Heyer. Lately I have sought out nonfiction about trauma recovery. I have a strong preference for works by women, authors who have come out as LGBTQ+, and POC.

If I read extreme praise about a book from people I trust, I’ll give it a try.

I am interested in fashion, mostly historical, fiber arts, and food. I have been involved in historical recreation, both Regency and medieval.

You may ignore all posts about my fanfic writing, but, if you have any taste for comfortable fantasy, you should not ignore recommendations for the works of Victoria Goddard.

This spot is for shared reads I join outside of LibraryThing, at present the Discord severs for Hands of the Emperor Support Group (HSG) bookclub, and the read alongs on the Tales by the Fire.

January HSG/bc is Ammonite
260116 I'm 75% into this - it's OK? maybe it seemed more when it came out.

TbtF is currently reading Plum Duff in anticipation of the sadly delayed Bubble & Squeak.

February HSG/bc will be Embassytown which I re-read too short a time a go to want to relearn what it's about.

March HSG/bc is Strange the Dreamer

West LA Women's BC is The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches and a my hold on a hardback copy just reached the library so if I pick it up tomorrow, March 6, I might finish it by Monday March 9 and so attend the meeting.
April's selection Heart the Lover is available on Hoopla, so that will work.

OK April!
The Sign of the Dragon is the selection for the main Discord HOTE Book club
Muse of Nightmares is the followup to the March selection

May
WLAWBC We didn't find all that much to talk about in Provenance other than two members who hadn't read other Imperial Radch books wanting more about the aliens. I don't recall heave alien activity in the Ancillary books, but well, my memory isn't, fortunately, definitive.
Discord/HOTE Support Group/Book Club
The Poet Empress does not compel my interest. The vibe hits me as too YA.

June - well Slow Gods, the Discord/HSG book club read wasn't available in e-form from any of my libraries in time, though I have it now, and the TP was too big and edged for me.
My RL book club read The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle which I entirely mis-remembered and hadn't re-read proximate to the meeting, which didn't work well.
I did read it in June though.

July - Discord/HSG book The Wolf and His King is available, if a week later than optimal, and I'm now almost caught up.
I have Cursed Daughters for RL book club, and may get it read in time for Monday's (260713) meeting.

As of 7/19/2026

Books I have started and put down for over a week:

Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die
Bound to Please
The Carmina Burana: Songs from Benediktbeuern*
Ivory Vikings
The Middle Kingdoms
Navigating the Stars
The Remembered Soldier
The Warburgs
The Wayfinder
Worn

Books I'm currently reading:

Americanah
Black Dog Short Stories
Red: The (Fairly) True Tale of Red Riding Hood
Yellowface

===========

*This is a large trade paperback with 250+ songs (Carmina) from before 1250, and I may get through 1 or 2 a day. Disappointingly this only include English translations with Latin/Middle High German text online(Link not currently working)

Books checked out as of 1/01/2026

Let's see how many of these are left on the list by the end of 2026, should I live so long....

The Axeman's Carnival
Clinch
Conundrum
Death of the Author
The Default World
Direct Descendant
Geometries of Belonging
Greenglass House
Into the Drowning Deep
Lessons in Magic and Disaster
Lightborne
Navigating the Stars
Nobody's Fool
Ocean's Godori
Overcoming Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts
The Quantum Thief
Quatrain
The Remembered Soldier
Return to Nevèrÿon
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Snowflake Bentley
The Spear Cuts Through Water
Trainspotting
Terminal Alliance
Thief's Magic
Worn

Books checked out as of 07/19/2026

This list updates as I checkout and return books. Reading is sometimes mentioned in >4 quondame:

Americanah
The Axeman's Carnival
The Blue Book of Nebo
The Default World
Evil Genius
The Far Pavilions
The Killing Spell
Letter to a Christian Nation
Lightborne
The Long List Anthology, Volume 7
Letter to a Christian Nation
Missing Sam
Muse of Nightmares
Navigating the Stars
Newcomers
Nobody's Fool
Of Loss and Lavender
The Ornithologist’s Field Guide to Love
Parties Scenes From Contemporary New York
The Peanut Man
Quatrain
Red: The (Fairly) True Tale of Red Riding Hood
The Scandalous Letters of V and J
The Signal Flame
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
Sister Svangerd and the Not Quite Dead
Slow Gods
The Subtle Art of Folding Space
Thinking, Fast and Slow
To Ride a Rising Storm
Trainspotting
The Wayfinder
The Wolf and His King
The Works of Vermin
Yellowface

2026 Acquisitions:

260106    Station Eleven
260106    The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny
260110    65 Titles Fierce Women Humble Bundle
260206    The Tiger in the House
260215    The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
260227    The Enid Blyton Book of Brownies
260303    Half-Truths and Semi-Miracles
260310    Bereket
260401    The Hands of the Emperor
260423    Darksight Dare
260505    Platform Decay
260621    Urbanite
260701    The Mysteries
There was this sale.....
260714    Black Dog
260714    Black Dog Short Stories
260714    Pure Magic
260714    Black Dog Short Stories II
260714    Shadow Twin
260714    Black Dog Short Stories III

Italic is for Kindle Unlimited - I may no longer have this on my Kindle.
Bold is for titles new to me - the other's I bought because I want them on my Kindle.
Bold Italic is Audio book

Updates on my fanfic for 2026, tucked away here to be easily ignored, though there may be links back!

In tiny dribbles and dabs I did get a couple of scenes written in January - too literally 1 sentence a day often. Or none. About 1800 words for the month. Most of which will probably go poof under real editing, alas.

260212
I came up with ~660 words of Kip and Navalia risking a bit of trouble to get a look at a party they weren't exactly invited to.

I did a bit of a flash fic bit in response to a despondent Kip suicide fic. When no one want to join Kip in retirement, he doesn't handle it well. I have Vou'a not handle that Kip's choice well. So not fixing anything for him, just forestalling that out. That's pretty much it for February.

(Sorry I almost skipped this, but well, here it is!) I do hope to add more, but perhaps you'll be spared.

260412
869 words on the Old Business, New Business fic, in which Fitzroy seeks Tovo's help.
A Tales by the Fire Discord discussion which arose from a comment I made of what part of the audio HOTE was harder than reading lead to re-threshing what improbably impenetrable blockheads Kip's family and friends are that they are just as dense in the last section of HOTE as they were before he was made Chancellor right in front of them.
Since addressing that denseness - though I don't find it as unlikely as some - was the reason I jumped on the request for a restaurant fic, as it was set while the Household was living in Gorjo City - and I hadn't gotten my agenda portion in shape when the date came to put it on A03 Sept 1, I put up the restaurant portion and then slowly stopped working on it. But even though it's an argument piece, I should still put it out there, if only so I can point to it next time the topic comes up.

260416 35 Song lost (Golden Glazed)

260418 297 of Golden Glaze The walls close in

260421 103 of Golden Glase my name enslaves me

260422 904 of Golden Glaze, inside the tattered man's mind

260424 662 of Golden Glaze, a different version of the view so no progress, just options.

260425 808 of Golden Glaze, skipping past the unpleasantness to something also deeply unpleasant. (I've got 2923 - 215 for quotes, but I had to work to pick them!)
Mostly just blathery options, but some ideas are outing.

260426 1000 of Golden Glaze. Quintus is onto Fitzroy's obsession.

260427 533 of GG Fitzroy back into the tower, more details from heart-stone to bed chamber.

260501 570, Ōtaha. Week one of Come what may challenges. The theme is pirates.
A few days out from the Vangavaye-ve on his long journey home, Kip sees an Ōtaha, frigatebirds attacking a tropicbird to pirate it's catch.

260521 452, Crackship. I kept trying to get Zemius and Pali to sit next to each other at the fanoa-ship bash, but Dora insisted on being the vp character and having other things to observe. So I put them in the Imperial Archives during the Jubalee.
I recalled posting a couple of items for plot-what-plot, but I extracted them from earlier written fics they don't contribute to word count. Though I did edit Tovo's views on his own relationship with Vou'a to be more in his voice.

260527 1483 Song.(GG/Shards 260615 posted to AO3 as When the world don't listen) This is an AU's AU, in which the Empire Falls, but it's a soft fall before Fitzroy becomes emperor. Kip is not doing well. His sister, Navalia, notices. Really, in the last 3-4 days, I've written over 3100, restarting this 2-3 times. I finally gave up on Kip's POV since he kept thinking of the larger situation and various family members, and gave it to Navalia to tell, since she can focus on her baby brother.

260529 103 Filk Friendship Like No Other on Love Like No Other - a day late when I should be doing guess the prompt.

260530 903 901 Anniversary (HOTE Support Group 5th Anniversary Challenge) Kip shares some Palace tradition with Eidora. 260531 I edited a paragraph. It lost words

260603 28 Guess the prompt as a wrap up for "Come what May":
Fitzroy your new verse doesn’t parse
The audience for it is sparse
You must gather your sass
To break this impasse
Or rebrand the whole work as farce

I managed at least one entry for each week.

260614 2711 I did one possible CYH Fitzroy/Kip reunion scene, with a very steamy reunion. Mostly playing with ideas, interactions, feelings, but fewer of the last that I would have expected.

And again: Welcome!

What a great topper, Susan.

Happy new thread. xx

154) Rihasi

Finishing up Salvage the Bones was a trial, so I took breaks in this book. Well, really I was trying to find if a young woman who was responsible for a major duel was given a name, and just couldn't get myself out again. At least it

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #15: Read a book where a word in the title or the author's name starts with PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM

>9 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul!

155) The Midwatch Institute for Wayward Girls

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #5: Read a book which would have fit a TIOLI challenge in at least two months so far this year

156) The Mysteries

I though a Bill Watterson book would be a tasty gift for Mike. This did not hit that spot. Not sure what spot it would hit.

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #15: Read a book where a word in the title or the author's name starts with PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM

I was a bit concerned that my lack of enjoyment in recent reading reflected some inner mood rather than the texts, but I'm enjoying Contrapposto quite a bit, which tells me that yes, given a character who is believably motivated by their interests, in this case, art, I am prepared to relish reading about them.

Happy New Thread, Susan! 🧵

Happy new thread, Susan. I love the topper.

>13 quondame: Well, thanks for taking the hit on that one, Susan. I'd been wondering if it was worthwhile. I do miss Calvin and Hobbes, so I guess I'll just go read some of those instead.

GREAT TOPPER, Susan! I wish you happy reading and writing as you comment on both. So Many Books --- sink right into what you enjoy!

>15 vancouverdeb: Thanks, Deborah!

>16 BLBera: Thanks, Beth. I've no doubt started with a few AI generated images over recent years, but I'm trying to not do that.

>17 laytonwoman3rd: You're welcome, Laura. It was very short.

>18 LizzieD: Thank you, Peggy. I seem to need an easier style in order to enjoy or even appreciate books these days - no chewing the gristle to extract the flavor with these old mental jaws.

157) Contrapposto

I had this one on a 7 day land and dove in since it

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #1: Read a book with a one-word title beginning with a letter from the first half of the alphabet (A through M) and containing NO numbers

Happy new thread, Susan! I love that topper too!

Happy New Threasd, Susan. I saw the 'Weapon of Mass Instruction' on one of my times in Buenos Aires a few years back. I'll hae to look through my photos.

I see you have The Axeman's Carnival on your tbr list. I loved this book, the little magpie, Tama, steals your heart.

The Eggers sounds interesting. I haven't read anything by him for a while. I will look for this one.

Happy new thread :)

>21 atozgrl: Thank you, Irene!

>22 avatiakh: Thanks, Kerry! Oh it must have been fun watching that go by or settling in for some serious instructions. Good to know about The Axeman's Carnival as the title wasn't drawing me in.

>23 BLBera: Contrapposto is good reading. I just like my pov characters to be more focused.

>24 Narilka: Thank you, Gale!

158) Nine Goblins

I should have read this one for June #6, but I think it

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #16: Read a "beach book"

Happy new thread, Susan!

>27 drneutron: Thanks, Jim!

159) Kate, who Tamed the Wind

Read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #3: Read a book whose title contains a word that is opposite to a word in the starter book title

160) Portrait of a Wide Seas Islander

When I realized that The Traveler, in spite of it's subtitle, really didn't fit the challenge criteria and then figured that any journey for a 90yr old is challenging I

Re-read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #2: Read a book, fiction or non-fiction, about someone who has gone on a challenging journey by themselves

161) Mind-Boggling Numbers

Read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #6: Read a book in honor of my mother's 80th birthday

162) The Traveler

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #7: True-ly it's July- Read a book based on a true story or real person

>10 quondame: I do not know if that is in the Tuyo series of books, but I am hoping to get to Tuyo soon as I was able to check it out from the Amazon Prime Lending Library.

>32 quondame: Adding that one to the BlackHole. Thank you for the review and recommendation!

Happy new-ish thread!

>33 alcottacre: Hi Stasia! Yes, Rihasi is a book in the Tuyo series - currently the latest chronologically except for a few segments in Sekaran. Bereket, the most recently published, is a Rihasi prequel, in that the title character has a supporting role in Rihasi.

163) Bereket

Bereket works well as a re-read; not expecting problems to be beyond the characters' ability to handle them makes the evenness less of an issue.

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #1: Read a book with a one-word title beginning with a letter from the first half of the alphabet (A through M) and containing NO numbers

164) Half-Truths and Semi-Miracles

This popped up when I was searching my Kindle app for something else, but I figured I could

Re-read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #14: Read a book with the word "half" (or the fraction or the decimal) in the title

Pearl Ruled - Counting Thyme - I could maybe do 150 pages about a pre-teen displaced from San Diego to NYC because her 5yr. old brother is in a medical trial, but contemplating 320 pages of what bored me in 0.5 chapters, caused me to drop this.

Cursed Daughters is not proving to be a satisfying read. In the book, there have been over 7 generations Falodun women who either never married the father of their children, or were separated from him after only a few years. The youngest, Eniiyi, greatly resembles her mother's cousin who was buried the day of Eniiyi's birth.
I'm 62% in and sick to death of reading about nothing but these women's problems with men. A couple of them seem to have or have had something else going on in their lives, but the book skips everything but entanglements with men. That seems to be the real Curse - that without a man to claim, each thinks she has failed at life.

165) Cursed Daughters

I read this for my local RL book club.

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #15: Read a book where a word in the title or the author's name starts with PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM

Happy new thread, Susan. Love the topper! >6 quondame: I forgot that Enid Blyton was into Brownies until I read the book title in your list of acquisitions. >13 quondame: I've got the Watterson on a library hold but I haven't seen many favourable reviews of it.

>40 Familyhistorian: Thanks, Meg!

I don't think The Mysteries could have a wide audience. It's a bit on moralistic depression.

166) To Err is Cumin

Cumin is a favorite spice, but this book and the series it's part of aren't up to it for zest.

Read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #13: Read a F or NF book that has an herb or a spice in the title

I wish you were having more compelling books this month, Susan. You're cranking them out though!

>43 LizzieD: Me too! But there was The Traveler and a couple of very pleasant re-reads. As long as I'm chasing TIOLI and those challenges are as rigid as they are, well, it's going to be pretty much hit-or-miss.

167) The Blessing Way

I have read all of the 'original' Hillerman Leaphorn & Chee books at least twice,
but it has been long enough to forget most everything so I

Re-read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #12: Read a book by an author featured in the 2020 American Authors challenge

I took advantage of the Kindle sale on Rachel Neumeier's Black Dog series books and got 6 of the 11 - the other 5 weren't part of the sale, at least in the US.

I had the first PT visit about my left shoulder and hip. A flurry of visits following the yearly PCP visit for the year is still in store. I'm expecting a sleep study kit any day now - if they confirm my sever sleep apnea diagnosis, Kaiser will cover certain meds that I would have to shell out $110s/mo for otherwise.

>46 quondame: I hope the PT was helpful, Susan. Best wishes with the sleep apnea study.

Sorry that you are not having a great time with your reading this month, Susan. I remember reading The Blessing Way and not being blown away enough to seek out the follow up books.

>48 PaulCranswick: The Blessing Way is not a fair representation of the series - my recollection is that Joe Leaphorn wasn’t intended to be the main character. I’d certainly have recommended the books back when I was buying the HBs as they came out. Now there is much more Native American centered fiction available, and it’s authored by Native Americans, that missing them won’t leave such a gap.

>49 quondame: I have bought a few books by Stephen Graham Jones which I hope to get to soon.

>47 vancouverdeb: The PT was mostly just range of motion testing and assignment of exercises. We'll see how I tolerate them over the next 3 weeks.

Mike and I went to see Minions & Monsters and it was great fun. Total nonsense and reveling in it. And the placement of freckles was delightful!

I loved the Hillerman books as they came out in mass pbs. My recollection is that one would feature Leaphorn and the next would feature Jim Chee. Of course, both characters appear in most of them, but it's been a long time since I read one.
I read so many mysteries in the 70s and 80s that sit on my shelves. I fear that I won't get back to them, but I can't bear to let them go.
Hmmm. I'll check out the available *Black Dog* series if they're still deals. I'd like to get back to Tuyo too. What a ridiculous person I am!

I wish you well with your health challenges at the moment. When a thing is treatable, even if it could be serious if untreated, it becomes a temporary source of tedium. I'll hope that's the worst you need put up with PT and dealing with the apnea.

>52 LizzieD: I have a few HBs of Hillerman's, ones I think were gifts to my father before his death in 2005, and more paperbacks, but when I did my last re-read, as many were checked out from SM library - the first 9 in omnibus volumes and a few more. Kindle Unlimited seems to be where I'd go if I was intent on another re-read.

Today, Thursday the 16th, is, afaik, the last day of the Black Dog sale. For now.

My main health issue is total lack of energy. Not a help when every prescription is for more activity. I believe my apnea is pretty much handled by the CPAP, but the PCP says that a diagnosis - my sleep studies were carried out at a different provider - will mean the weight-loss medication she wants me to take will be covered. I could use losing half my body weight, and did lose some on Ozempic until it went to >$700/mo.

Hmm, it seems I've had a busy day's worth of things done since Sunday.
A trip to the deli. A RL book club meeting. A PT office visit. A movie outing.
Nothing that wouldn't have been a relaxing day in my long gone youth, but which seems like an eventful week now.

168) This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me

I only occasionally rate Ilona Andrews books higher than , but I appreciate the, up til now, easy reading style and pacing that makes them great potato-chip reads. I don't think attempting something more epic than urban fantasy was at all inspired.

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #15: Read a book where a word in the title or the author's name starts with PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM

169) Olive and the Dragon

Neither Americanah nor Yellowface are what I feel as enjoyable reads, so I had to take a break.

170) Martina the Beautiful Cockroach

Read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #18: Read a book by a Cuban author, or an author of Cuban descent, or set in or about Cuba

171) The Wolf and His King

I read this for the Discord HSG July Book Club.

Meets June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #15: Read a book where a word in the title or the author's name starts with PHILADELPHIA FREEDOM

172) The Peanut Man

I found this author when searching for books to meet challenge #18 so I chose this one to

Read for June TIOLI Challenge Challenge #11: Read a book where the one of the author’s names ends in a “Y”