Fantasy & Science Fiction Book Club
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Fantasy & Science Fiction Discussion Group
Final Thursday Every Month Via Google Meet 6:30pm |
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UPDATE: This month's meeting is being pushed back to Thursday, May 5th due to a scheduling conflict that cannot be avoided. Thank you for your understanding & see you next week!
So, What's The Book About?
This is a stunning novel that tells the story of Fatima, a concubine in the royal court of Granada, the last emirate of Muslim Spain, and her dearest friend Hassan, the palace mapmaker.
Hassan has a secret--he can draw maps of places he's never seen and bend the shape of reality. When representatives of the newly formed Spanish monarchy arrive to negotiate the sultan's surrender, Fatima befriends one of the women, not realizing that she will see Hassan's gift as sorcery and a threat to Christian Spanish rule. With their freedoms at stake, what will Fatima risk to save Hassan and escape the palace walls? As Fatima and Hassan traverse Spain with the help of a clever jinn to find safety, The Bird King asks us to consider what love is and the price of freedom at a time when the West and the Muslim world were not yet separate.
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: in-store, online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. Our booksellers will be happy to help you get the book in the format that you prefer!
Buy Online
Starting Monday, April 4th, we will be open to the public Mon-Sat from 11am-7pm so you can pickup orders at the register. However, you can also pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We're available for pickup Mon-Sat from 9am-7pm (starting April 4th). We simply ask that you call ahead when coming to get your order. We also offer free media mail shipping for orders $30+ and free local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us!
Finally, you can add the event to your calendar from ours (check the event page) to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Reviews & Interviews
Building a Home of Stories in 'The Bird King' -- NPR.org
G. Willow Wilson Reimagines the Last Days of Moorish Spain -- The New York Times Author Talks: G. Willow Wilson with N.K. Jemisin -- NYPL G. Willow Wilson, The Bird King -- Politics & Prose
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This month's book club pick is The Deep by Rivers Solomon. We will be meeting on Thursday, October 28th at 6:30 in an online video chat. You can RSVP to the event & get the chat link here. Rivers Solomon is the author of An Unkindness of Ghosts, and was a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award finalist for Best New Writer. They graduated from Stanford University with a degree in comparative studies in race and ethnicity and hold an MFA in fiction writing from the Michener Center for Writers. Though originally from the United States, they currently live in Cambridge, England, with their family. Find them on Twitter @CyborgYndroid. So, what's the book about?
Yetu holds the memories for her people--water-dwelling descendants of pregnant African slave women thrown overboard by slave owners--who live idyllic lives in the deep. Their past, too traumatic to be remembered regularly is forgotten by everyone, save one--the historian. This demanding role has been bestowed on Yetu.
Yetu remembers for everyone, and the memories, painful and wonderful, traumatic and terrible and miraculous, are destroying her. And so, she flees to the surface escaping the memories, the expectations, and the responsibilities--and discovers a world her people left behind long ago. Yetu will learn more than she ever expected about her own past--and about the future of her people. If they are all to survive, they'll need to reclaim the memories, reclaim their identity--and own who they really are.
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: in store, online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. Our booksellers will be happy to help you get the book in the format that you prefer!
Buy Online
We are open to the public again (Mon-Sat from 11am-7pm) so you can pickup orders at the register. However, you can also pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We offer free media mail shipping for orders $30+ and free local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us!
Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! You can also add it to your personal calendar--check out the event page to see our Google event calendar where you can RSVP! Reviews & Interviews
'The Deep' Sings With Many Voices -- NPR.org
Book Review - The Deep by Rivers Solomon -- medium.com An Interview with Rivers Solomon -- pen.org Interview: Rivers Solomon -- lightspeedmagazine.com 
This month's pick for book club is The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune. We will be meeting on Thursday, September 30th in an online video chat. You can RSVP to the event & get the chat link here. The Author -- TJ Klune TJ Klune is an LGBT author of fantasy and romance. He has been nominated for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature and won the Lambda Literary Award for Best Gay Romance. The House in the Cerulean Sea is a New York Times bestseller. You can find links to his work at his website and on social media at @tjklune. So, what's the book about? Lambda Literary Award-winning author TJ Klune’s bestselling, breakout contemporary fantasy that's "1984 meets The Umbrella Academy with a pinch of Douglas Adams thrown in." (Gail Carriger) Linus Baker is a by-the-book caseworker in the Department in Charge of Magical Youth. He's tasked with determining whether six dangerous magical children are likely to bring about the end of the world. Arthur Parnassus is the master of the orphanage. He would do anything to keep the children safe, even if it means the world will burn. And his secrets will come to light. The House in the Cerulean Sea is an enchanting love story, masterfully told, about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place—and realizing that family is yours. "1984 meets The Umbrella Academy with a pinch of Douglas Adams thrown in." —Gail Carriger, New York Times bestselling author of Soulless
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: in store, online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. Our booksellers will be happy to help you get the book in the format that you prefer!
Buy Online
We are open to the public again (Mon-Sat from 11am-7pm) so you can pickup orders at the register. However, you can also pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We offer free media mail shipping for orders $30+ and free local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us!
Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! You can also add it to your personal calendar--check out the event page to see our Google event calendar where you can RSVP! Reviews & Interviews
The House in the Cerulean Sea -- Kirkus Review
Finding Family & Breaking Rules in The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune -- Tor.com Book Review: The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune -- The Queer Review Q&A: TJ Klune, Author of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' -- The Nerd Daily An Interview with Alex Award Winner TJ Klune, author of The House in the Cerulean Sea -- The YALSA Hub
So, what's the book about?
In Upright Women Wanted, award-winning author Sarah Gailey reinvents the pulp Western with an explicitly antifascist, near-future story of queer identity. Esther is a stowaway. She's hidden herself away in the Librarian's book wagon in an attempt to escape the marriage her father has arranged for her--a marriage to the man who was previously engaged to her best friend. Her best friend who she was in love with. Her best friend who was just executed for possession of resistance propaganda. The future American Southwest is full of bandits, fascists, and queer librarian spies on horseback trying to do the right thing.
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. Our booksellers will be happy to help you get the book in the format that you prefer!
Buy OnlineWe are open to the public again (Mon-Sat from 11am-7pm) so you can pickup orders at the register. However, you can also pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We offer free media mail shipping for orders $30+ and free local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us! Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! You can also add it to your personal calendar--check out the event page to see our Google event calendar where you can RSVP! Reviews & Interviews
In A Dark Future, These 'Upright Women' Bring Hope -- NPR.com
'Upright Women Wanted' Is a Stunning, Queer Western Set in the Future -- Southern Review of Books Review: Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey -- thenerddaily.com Interview with an Author: Sarah Gailey -- Los Angeles Public Library Q & A with Sarah Gailey -- ReadMoreCo
So, what's the book about?
In the early 1900s, a young woman embarks on a fantastical journey of self-discovery after finding a mysterious book in this captivating and lyrical debut. In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place. Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. If you're looking for an audiobook, our partners at Libro.fm have it available for easy access on our affiliate website. You can get it here. You can also get it in e-book format, as well! We have a new e-book partner called My Must Reads & you can buy the e-book here.
We are open to the public again (Mon-Sat from 11am-7pm) so you can pickup orders at the register. However, you can also pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We offer free media mail shipping for orders $30+ & local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us! Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! Reviews & Interviews
THE TEN THOUSAND DOORS OF JANUARY| Kirkus Reviews-- Kirkus
Gary K. Wolfe Reviews The Ten Thousand Doors of January-- LocusMag INTERVIEW WITH ALIX E. HARROW-- The Fantasy Hive Interview With an Author: Alix E. Harrow-- LA Public Library  Click the cover to buy online!
This month's pick for book club is Witchmark by C.L. Polk. We will be meeting on Thursday, June 24th in an online video chat. You can RSVP to the event & get the chat link here.
C.L. Polk is an award-winning Canadian author. Their pronouns are they/them. After leaving high school early, they have worked as a film extra, sold vegetables on the street, and identified exotic insect species for a vast collection of lepidoptera before settling down to write fantasy novels. Mx. Polk lives in Calgary, Alberta in a tiny apartment with too many books & a yarn stash that could last a decade. They drink good coffee because life is too short. You can find them on Twitter or Patreon. You can also subscribe to their free newsletter here.
So, what's the book about?
Witchmark is the first novel in the Kingston Cycle & the winner of the World Fantasy Award. It was nominated for the Lambda, Locus, Nebula & Aurora Prizes, as well. It's been described as a stunning, addictive fantasy that combines intrigue, magic, betrayal, and romance. Here's the publisher summary: Miles Singer trades luxury, comfort, and his real name in exchange for surgical training and seven year’s service in Aeland’s Royal Army. Now home after a haunting, terrible war, Miles takes a job as a physician in Kingston’s cash-strapped veteran’s hospital, hiding the magical gift of healing that would land him in a witchcraft asylum, or worse–returned to the bosom of his power-hungry family. His quiet life is shattered when an emergency lands a poisoned witch in his caseload, brought into his hospital by the most handsome man he’s ever seen–a man who, after uncovering Miles’ powers, proposes that they investigate the murder of Miles’ patient…together. As they follow the trail of the witch’s poisoner, the sister Miles fled returns to convince him to take his place among the noble families who control the fate of Aeland–as a magical battery and a second-class citizen. As Miles resists his sister’s demands and his detective partner’s charm, Miles stumbles on the national secret that cost his patient his life...
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. If you're looking for an audiobook, our partners at Libro.fm have it available for easy access on our affiliate website. You can get it here. You can also get it in e-book format, as well! We have a new e-book partner called My Must Reads & you can buy the e-book here.
We are open to the public again (Mon-Sat from 11am-5pm) so you can pickup orders at the register. However, you can also pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We offer free media mail shipping for orders $30+ & local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us! Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! Reviews & Interviews
A Different Shade of Magic: Witchmark by C.L. Polk -- Tor.com
Witchmark by C.L. Polk -- BookPage Author Interview: C.L. Polk on Witchmark -- The Illustrated Page Sleeps with Monsters: C.L. Polk Answers Seven Questions -- Tor.com 
This month's pick for book club is Red Rising by Pierce Brown. We will be meeting on Thursday, May 27th at 6:30pm in an online video chat. You can RSVP to the event here.
Pierce Brown graduated from college in 2010, fancying the idea of continuing his studies at Hogwarts. Unfortunately, he doesn't have a magical bone in his body. So while trying to make it as a writer, he worked as a manager of social media at a startup tech company, toiled as a peon on the Disney lot at ABC Studios, did his time as an NBC page, and gave sleep deprivation a new meaning during his stint as an aide on a U.S. Senate campaign. Now he lives Los Angeles, where he scribbles tales of spaceships, wizards, ghouls, and most things old or bizarre. What's the book about? Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and lush wilds spread across the planet. Darrow and Reds like him are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class. Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies . . . even if it means he has to become one of them to do so. If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. If you're looking for an audiobook, our partners at Libro.fm have it available for easy access on our affiliate website. You can get it here. You can pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We also offer free media mail shipping & local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us! Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! Reviews & Interviews
Interview with Pierce Brown, author of Red Rising - January 27, 2014 -- The Qwillery
RED RISING | Kirkus Reviews -- Kirkus Review: Red Rising (Red Rising Trilogy 1) -- Geeks Under Grace Interview with Pierce Brown, author of RED RISING trilogy -- Hodder & Stoughton
Suzanne Walker is a Chicago-based writer and editor. Her academic work has been published in Classical World and Barriers and Belonging. She has spoken widely on topics ranging from disability representation in sci-fi/fantasy to applying the themes of science fiction to everyday political activism. You can follow her on twitter: @suzusaur.
What's the book about? It's a story of love and demons, family and witchcraft. Nova Huang knows more about magic than your average teen witch. She works at her grandmothers' bookshop, where she helps them loan out spell books and investigate any supernatural occurrences in their New England town. One fateful night, she follows reports of a white wolf into the woods, and she comes across the unexpected: her childhood crush, Tam Lang, battling a horse demon in the woods. As a werewolf, Tam has been wandering from place to place for years, unable to call any townhome. Pursued by dark forces eager to claim the magic of wolves and out of options, Tam turns to Nova for help. Their latent feelings are rekindled against the backdrop of witchcraft, untested magic, occult rituals, and family ties both new and old in this enchanting tale of self-discovery.
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email.
You can pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We also offer free media mail shipping & local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us! Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! Reviews & Interviews
Review: Mooncakes by Suzanne Walker & Wendy Xu -- The Nerd Daily
Graphic Novel Review: Mooncakes, by Suzanne Walker & Wendy Xu -- The Queerblr Interview: Wendy Xu & Suzanne Walker reflect on transforming MOONCAKES into a graphic novel -- Comicsbeat.com
Keep reading to find the summary, reviews of the book, interviews with the author, and info about how to buy your book from us in various formats.
The Summary
When global climate change and economic crises lead to social chaos in the early 2020s, California becomes full of dangers, from pervasive water shortage to masses of vagabonds who will do anything to live to see another day. Fifteen-year-old Lauren Olamina lives inside a gated community with her preacher father, family, and neighbors, sheltered from the surrounding anarchy. In a society where any vulnerability is a risk, she suffers from hyperempathy, a debilitating sensitivity to others' emotions.
Precocious and clear-eyed, Lauren must make her voice heard in order to protect her loved ones from the imminent disasters her small community stubbornly ignores. But what begins as a fight for survival soon leads to something much more: the birth of a new faith . . . and a startling vision of human destiny.
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. This title is also available from our audiobook partner, Libro.fm, as a DRM-free audiobook--buy it here.
You can pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We also offer free media mail shipping & local delivery (within Boone town limits). Getting your book to you as conveniently as possible is important to us! Finally, you can RSVP on the Facebook event to get reminders & updates about any changes to the event! Do that here! Reviews & Interviews
Octavia Butler’s Prescient Vision of a Zealot Elected to “Make America Great Again”
-- The New Yorker Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler (Book Review) -- Black & Bookish Parable of the Sower -- Publisher's Weekly An Interview with Octavia Butler, 2004 -- by Joshunda Sanders for Africana.com & In Motion Magazine Octavia Butler: Writing Herself Into The Story -- for Code Switch by NPR
Keep reading to find the summary, reviews of the book, interviews with the author, and info about how to buy your book from us in various formats. The Summary
The Emperor needs necromancers.
The Ninth Necromancer needs a swordswoman. Gideon has a sword, some dirty magazines, and no more time for undead nonsense. Tamsyn Muir’s Gideon the Ninth unveils a solar system of swordplay, cut-throat politics, and lesbian necromancers. Her characters leap off the page, as skillfully animated as arcane revenants. The result is a heart-pounding epic science fantasy. Brought up by unfriendly, ossifying nuns, ancient retainers, and countless skeletons, Gideon is ready to abandon a life of servitude and an afterlife as a reanimated corpse. She packs up her sword, her shoes, and her dirty magazines, and prepares to launch her daring escape. But her childhood nemesis won’t set her free without a service. Harrowhark Nonagesimus, Reverend Daughter of the Ninth House and bone witch extraordinaire, has been summoned into action. The Emperor has invited the heirs to each of his loyal Houses to a deadly trial of wits and skill. If Harrowhark succeeds she will be become an immortal, all-powerful servant of the Resurrection, but no necromancer can ascend without their cavalier. Without Gideon’s sword, Harrow will fail, and the Ninth House will die. Of course, some things are better left dead.
If this sounds like something you would like to read, you can get your copy of the book from the store for 15% off when you order with us: online, over the phone (828.386.1219), or via email. This title is also available from our audiobook partner, Libro.fm, as a DRM-free audiobook--buy it here.
You can pickup your book using our pickup basket at the front door or the drive thru window. We also offer free media mail shipping & local delivery (within Boone town limits). Reviews & Interviews
"Smart, Snarky 'Gideon The Ninth' Swears Her Way Through The Stars" -- NPR Books
"Gideon the Ninth is about lesbian necromancers in space. Obviously, it's perfect." -- Vox "Wet Hot Necrogoth Summer: A Non-Spoiler Review of Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir" -- Tor.com "Interview with Tamsyn Muir: The gay goth space opera of our dreams" -- BookPage "The Horror of it All! A Conversation with Tamsyn Muir" -- Clarkesworld |
AuthorsMax Ruthless (they/them) Event LinkJoin us on Google Meet to chat each month:
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