You may, perhaps, have heard of the Maradaine novels by Marshall Ryan Maresca, a dozen interconnected novels spanning four different series. Perhaps you were scared off by the concept of starting a series that already has a dozen books… believe me, I understand, and someday I will read The Wheel of Time books. And maybe the 400 pages of An Unintended Voyage seemed a bit long for you to jump into, even though it’s a standalone novel set elsewhere in the world.
How about 146 pages? Maresca recently release a novella, The Mystical Murders of Yin Mara, intertwining hints from Maradaine with his extensive world-building as Phadre Golmin and Jiarna Kay travel from Maradaine to study magical and mystical theory as research assistants at Yin Mara College. Their studies are both aided and complicated by a series of murders beyond their experience, and well outside the capacity of this small city’s constabulary to solve on their own.
As is typical of a detective story, you’ll wonder how many deaths it will take our heroes to solve this conundrum. But you’ll also wonder what they’ll put at risk for that answer… their careers and those of the other researchers on their team could be in jeopardy as they chase clues across private property and ultimately air an accusation at a public event filled with high profile donors to their research.
My goodness, are you still here? You could already be reading this fabulous book instead of lingering for my conclusion. Quick, read this delightful novella before he releases another one! (You know, to clear space on your to read pile for that one too.)
Let me begin by explaining what Worldcon is: the World Science Fiction Convention is an annual convention which is hosted in a different city and/or country each year. The location is selected by the members two years in advance from the available bids; bids are usually presented at least two years in advance of that selection. Among many other things, the annual Hugo Awards, recognizing the best science fiction and fantasy achievements from the previous year are presented at Worldcon.
I’ve been aware of Worldcon since 1995, when I missed one in Glasgow by a couple months. This year was the third time Chicago has hosted a Worldcon since I moved here, and the first time I was able to attend. I was recruited to help with some of the pre-convention work, which gave me an interesting glimpse into the various pieces that make up a convention this size. (In-person attendance was just under 3,600.)
When the convention announced their programming line-up, they released an online guide that allowed users to select items of interest and save it to a personalized schedule. I saved both of our events (I was on a couple panels and helping with convention tours), plus events that I was interested in attending. If I ended up missing events – mainly due to convention shopping or meals – I unchecked them, leaving me with a fairly good idea of what I actually attended.
Shopping was similar to other local science fiction conventions we’ve attended… just larger. We picked up a few books (OK, almost 30), though to be fair, Cassandra only bought books by authors who were there, and (not counting the used books) I only bought one book by an author who wasn’t present. Going forward, I may establish this rule for book shopping at other conventions.
We bought a few things other than books: chocolate in steampunk shapes, some cursed items (from Strange Hours), and some clothing. The chocolate is as tasty as it is distinctive … they were handing out samples continuously during exhibit hall hours. There was also an ample selection of jewelry, DVDs, and toys, though none of those made our shopping lists.
As I mentioned last week, we did unintentionally acquire Covid at the convention, presumably at a reduced intensity because we were all vaccinated and wearing masks most of the time. Despite that, I wouldn’t have missed this amazing convention and the chance to catch up with some good friends – and meet new ones – in person.
Paramount’s Bold series is back at the Copley Theatre with Fun Home, a Broadway musical based on a graphic novel by Alison Bechdel. This delightful and thoughtful show portrays the main character, Alison, examining conflicted memories of her father from two earlier stages of her life: as a child and at the beginning of her college years.
There are heart-wrenching moments and side-splitting laughter. “Fun Home” is how Alison and her brothers refer to their family business, a funeral home, as they sing an enchanting song explaining why their funeral home is the best in town. Good luck keeping a straight face during that one. Or during Alison’s “Changing My Major” number, though I can’t say what brings that on without spoilers… so go see it.
The heartbreak increases the closer as the end approaches because, as Alison warned viewers at the beginning, her father committed suicide, and the story she’s exploring is her attempt at understanding why. That includes reliving her final moments with him, when she was desperately trying to get him to accept her as she was. She touches on some difficult topics that are just as important today as the era it’s set in.
I’ve written about Melissa Caruso’s delightful writing before, both about her Swords & Fire trilogy and The Obsidian Tower, the first book of her Rooks & Ruin series. Last summer, I was fortunate to receive a copy of The Quicksilver Court. Now seems like an opportune time to share it, as the third book, The Ivory Tomb, is due out later this year. (The fact that I went looking for the release date should give you a hint as to how good this series is.) This review was originally published in the October 8, 2021 issue of Booklist Online.
Kicked out of her home by her demon-possessed grandmother, Ryx has teamed up with the Rookery in The Quicksilver Court, the second book of Melissa Caruso’s Rooks and Ruin series. Ryx’s magical ability to destroy everything is contained by a jess, allowing her the freedom to interact with other people for the first time in her life. She and her Rookery allies need to hunt down and contain the demons – other than her grandmother – unleashed in The Obsidian Tower, without knowing their goals or which of the nine demons are loose in the world. They find themselves at the court of Loreice, a place vastly different than Ryx’s Morgrain home, pursuing the Zenith Society and an artifact that could destroy an entire domain by killing every living being in it. Melissa Caruso continues to seamlessly incorporate gender equality, LGBT relationships, and non-binary characters in her unique fantasy setting, exploring familiar coming of age topics as Ryx struggles with human interaction and her personal and literal demons.
I just realized that the sequel to The Raven Spell is coming out soon, which seems like a good time to share this review of the first book in the Conspiracy of Magic series. This review was originally published in the February 15, 2022 issue of Booklist.
Luanne Smith kicks off a new magical series with The Raven Spell, set in Victorian London where a pair of sisters, Edwina and Mary, run a trinket shop. Living in a large city makes it easier to hide their magic from mortals and avoid the attention of the Witch’s Constabulary, which enforces laws relating to magic. Mary’s ability to capture a person’s memories at the moment of their death, transforming the memories into a small stone, is the catalyst for this story when the sisters find a private detective, Ian Cameron, dying on the shore. When Ian survives, Edwina accidentally restores the wrong stone – with somebody else’s memories – into his mind, then embarks on a mission to help Ian retrace his lost time without magic. As Edwina grows closer to Ian, she becomes aware of the growing distance between herself and Mary and the mystery of Mary’s nighttime activities. Smith wraps up the plot neatly while leaving a clear hook to entice delighted readers back for the next book.
I’m not sure I can do justice to the Paramount Theatre’s latest production, Hand to God. It is everything live theatre is supposed to be: intense, insightful, and, in its own way, educational.
It is also, according to the Paramount’s own ad on Facebook, offensive. Their website and the ticket reminder both state that its rating is “Suggested for ages 18+ for strong adult language, sexual harassment, simulated sex, simulated statutory rape and violence.”
Perhaps not surprisingly, people were offended. Some were even offended enough to leave at intermission (and then respond to the Facebook ad, so we could all see they were offended). You know, after Act 1, when the characters have done almost every stupid thing they can, and the audience is questioning the characters’ wisdom and sanity, wondering how in the world they’ll recover from their mistakes.
The real problem, as I see it, is other than the possessed puppet, people were offended by things that happen in real life. And while we should absolutely be offended when they really happen, including them in theatre helps bring awareness to these issues. And, as expected, the characters grow and learn in Act 2.
Hand to God is playing at the Copley Theatre through July 10th. I highly recommend it.
We had eight days plus an evening, and almost four hundred miles to cover while picking interesting places to visit, ranging from Key West to Orlando. We tried to select a mix of interests, which seems to have resulted in mostly nature and science stops.
Key West: a rooster at sunrise, a butterfly at the Key West Butterfly & Nature Conservatory, a polydactyl cat at the Hemingway House, all set against the background of a rainbow crosswalk
Lego rabbits at Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach; a colorful lizard of some sort at Vizcaya Museum & Gardens; an orange flower at Mounts Botanical Garden; part of the garden at Vizcaya; artwork outside the Richter Library at the University of Miami; the fountain and new dorms at the University of Miami; sand and ocean at Miami Beach; part of the Rocket Garden at Kennedy Space Center; an alligator by the path at the Everglades National Park
The next few days weren’t quite as hectic. We started most mornings whenever we were ready, including the day we went to the Everglades National Park… that involved getting a tire replaced on our rental car, having picked up a roofing nail the evening before. (In case you hadn’t heard, there’s a bit of a shortage on rental cars; they didn’t have a replacement car available nearby.) We started at the visitor’s center just outside the gate (be sure to ask about the junior ranger activities if you have younger kids), paid our admission at the gate (good for 7 days), then drove all the way in to the Flamingo Lodge. We lucked out and saw a single manatee while exploring around the lodge, then drove back out to the Snake Bight trail for a nice, long walk in the heat. (Largely shaded, but still, hot.) Our final stop in the park was at the Anhinga Trail, which the ranger at the entrance visitor’s center had said was the best chance of seeing wildlife. The alligator by the trail clearly hasn’t read the rules that say people should stay at least 15 feet away from animals.
Our next day involved moving from Florida City to Miami Beach, with a stop at Vizcaya Museum & Gardens on the way. I had visited the gardens once, when they still hosted a renaissance festival in the spring, but had never been inside the house. What struck me about the style of the house, which was built in the early 1900s but designed to look older, was how similar in style it is to Spanish colonial buildings in Guatemala, with an open courtyard and some garden in the center of the house. Of course, it also has extensive gardens beyond the mansion, which most houses in Guatemala don’t have.
We met a friend at the University of Miami, revisiting my old stomping grounds – mainly the library, though we glanced at some of the new buildings as well. (We went off campus for a lovely lunch, which I’ll cover in my next post.) The visit to my high school was similar, rehashing memories with familiar buildings and amazement at some of the new areas of campus. (The motivation for the trip was my high school reunion.)
Then we headed north! On our way to meet up with friends in Palm Bay and Melbourne, we sidetracked to Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach (compensating for missing the Miami Beach Botanical Garden because Vizcaya and lunch ran later than we expected). By chance, they were having both a plant sale that day (no, we didn’t buy anything, it was all tropical) and a Lego exhibit. From Melbourne, we continued on to Kennedy Space Center, missing a shuttle launch by a couple days and several hours (even I wasn’t up before 4am on vacation), which was delightful and educational. Or delightfully educational? Something like that.
Orlando – Gatorland: warning sign that reads “Plese Be Safe. Do not carry children on your shoulders or stand, sit, or climb on fence railings anywhere in the park. If you fall in THE GATORS WILL EAT YOU! And that might make them sick. Thank you.”; some baby alligators including an albino; a collection of young alligators on a boardwalk; a bird perched on the back of an alligator
Our final day in Florida was spent in the Orlando area. Instead of visiting the better-known tourist traps, some of which we visited a few years before (pre-blog, sorry), we opted to visit Gatorland. With “over 2,000 American alligators” onsite, the location name is stunningly accurate. Really the only disappointing part was not trying the zipline (yes, over gators) and arriving after they had already picked a “volunteer” to hold a tarantula at the Up-Close Encounters show.
We headed home the next day and were delighted to find out that the cats are all still talking to us. Mostly to say we should feed them, but hey, we’ll take it.
Behold, a non-fiction book on my reading list! Yes, it’s a rarity. This particular book has been on my wish list since it was released, both because it’s about the US national parks and because the author, Conor Knighton, was on our Galápagos cruise along with Efrain Robles, the video journalist mentioned repeatedly in the book. When we met them, they were working, exploring nature and documenting the (50th? I don’t actually recall) anniversary cruise along with the owner of the cruise line.
In his book, Conor, reeling from a break-up, set as a goal to visit every national park (but not monument, trail, or site) over the course of one year. This book has fascinating details about each park he visited, but should not be mistaken for a travel guide; it’s clearly a deeply personal memoir of a geek searching for direction in his life. By all accounts, he found it: he convinced CBS to pay for his travels, and was rewarded with a deeply reflective experience and additional travel assignments. As I said, we met him the following year in the Galápagos, where he was working… I had to use more than half of my vacation time for that trip.
Despite being deeply personal, Leave Only Footprints is a light read with plenty of funny moments. From the way it’s written, I suspect Efrain rolled his eyes when he asked if the photos Conor requested with the Denali puppies were for Tinder. You’ll have to read it yourself to find out what the “nerdiest” thing Conor said when comparing national parks to dating. And I recommend not making a drinking game out of finding the geeky references that are thrown in, you’d probably stumble to bed before finishing the book.
Now the question… which national park should I visit next, and which ones should I add to my bucket list?
The Paramount Theatre in Aurora recently launched their Bold series at the renovated Copley Theatre, located across the street from the Paramount. They kicked off the series with Sweat, a Pulitzer Prize-winning play about a small town in the United States where most people’s goal is to work in the local plant and get their union card. The story moves through the characters’ dreams and struggles, working up to the event that landed two young men in prison and interactions with their parole officer upon their release. This is live theatre at its finest, in a small enough venue that every member of the audience feels a connection to the performers on stage. It packs a punch though, leading to conversations about unions, privilege, and the poor decisions people make out of desperation.
A week later, in an entirely different presentation style, I watched a 15-minute story called The Key on my Oculus. Virtual reality is definitely one step up the immersive ladder from a small theatre, and the story is designed with some interactive points. There’s not a lot I can say without spoilers, but the presentation and story were both riveting. The narrator leads you through their dreams and their struggle to remember the meaning of key objects in them. The story is available for free on the Oculus, or you can watch the story in a less immersive format on YouTube.
Both stories hit hard, each in their own distinctive way, and both are absolutely worth the time.
As mentioned recently, Wordle has taken the online world by storm, drawing people in with the once-a-day challenge. Like many popular games, it has spawned variants, some keeping the challenge related to language(s), and others branching out into other subjects.
There are, apparently, variants for specific fandoms, such as Lord of the Rings, Star Wars (includes dashes so you can guess droids), Taylor Swift, and Pokémon; I only recently learned of those, and would probably struggle with them. I had heard of Lewdle (the name says it all) and apparently there’s also a Sweardle (also fairly obvious). I’m not particularly good at trivia, even for fandoms I enjoy, and my usual vocabulary doesn’t seem to work well for those last two. In addition to the original game, I am enjoying these variants:
Globle, a geography game where you try to guess today’s country. The color of the guessed country indicates proximity to today’s answer. There is no limit to the number of guesses, I’ve ranged anywhere from three (on a lucky day) to twenty guesses so far.
Nerdle, a math game with a calculation to determine. There are only eight spaces, and one of them is always an equals sign, so they’re fairly simple calculations.
WordleGame, not for their English remake – I like this one for the selection of foreign languages. I occasionally remember to visit it and try the Spanish puzzle for the day.
The big one… and I mean that literally, is Quordle:
Instead of one word, you’re trying to match four. The difficulty is that all of your guesses apply to all four quadrants, so a guess that helps you on the first word may give you no new letters on the fourth one. To balance out the increased difficulty, you have nine guesses instead of Wordle’s standard six.
