woodwardiocom

The Haunting Of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

I've seen both film adaptations of this fine horror novel. The first is by far the better, and cleaves close enough to the book that reading it held few surprises. Eleanor's desperate conflicting desires to be alone, and to belong, are well-exploited by the house. Recommended. (The current Penguin edition is very pretty. With black page-edges and endpapers, opening the book casually gives the impression it's solid black throughout...)

The Stone Sky by N.K. Jemisin

Third in her Hugo-winning trilogy, this book has a chance of becoming the first trilogy to win Hugos for all three volumes. In a world sliding into post-apocalyptic winter, our characters must explore the ruins of civilizations long-fallen, in search of redemption for sins past. Creepy, evocative, recommended.

The Dwarves by Markus Heitz

First in a German series of novels, I was hoping for a something to scratch my dwarf itch, but the main character is a dwarf who (until the book begins) has been raised by humans and never laid eyes on a dwarf. Ergo, dwarfiness felt scarce. The whole thing is also just a bit adolescent. Not especially recommended.

The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi

Very obviously first in a new space opera series, in which the technology binding together an interstellar civilization is in danger of imminent collapse. Interesting politics ensue. Recommended, but it's by no means complete in itself.

The Chronicles of Conan v1 and The Savage Sword of Conan v1 by Roy Thomas et al

I've been on a small Conan kick recently, and picked up the first volumes of Marvel's two 1970s Conan series. A lot of the modern image of "Conan" comes more from these comics than from Howard's original stories, and they are thus appropriately colorful, violent, and imaginative. They are also, predictably, racist and rape-y. Further, despite in-story claims to the contrary, I'm noticing that Coanan leads a very lonely life, and never seems to like or trust anyone for more than a tale or two. It's a bit depressing.