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The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
Must read! Loved this. You can't help rooting for Maia, the slate-grey goblin who woke up one day emperor of a white elf empire ( Read more... ) -
Tower Lord, Raven's Shadow, Book 2, by Anthony Ryan
Tor Books reviews unfairly calls this book _Tower Bored_, claiming the rhythm is off. Well, yeah, it goes without saying that with multiple points of view, there won't be a single, driving story arc, but does that mean it's boring? Are GRRM's Game of Thrones books, which use the same device, boring? (Rhetorical. All together now, "Hell no." ) He ( Read more... ) -
Blood Song, Raven's Shadow, Book 1, by Anthony Ryan
This book begins with an Arabic-type historian chronicling the capture and upcoming execution of his empire's worst enemy, the Hope Killer. The Hope Killer has invaded the Empire at the head of a huge army at the behest of a seemingly mad king-- the war was unwinnable from the outset, the death toll the only predictable outcome. The historian would ( Read more... ) -
Review: Outlander, the tv series
Adapting books into screenplays isn't easy, and adapting behemoth tomes is hell, but this shouldn't have been hell to watch ( Read more... ) -
Ginger Cilantro Steamed Salmon
Why steam in paper if you can use filo dough and eat it after the juices have soaked in? Why? ( Read more... ) -
Random
Jayne is not a greyhound. A rabbit swerved in front of us on the path and Jayne took off like an arrow, but no. A slow arrow. Now, if they'd both been pulling sleds ( Read more... ) -
Romance books
Why I can't stomach romance books, an open letter.
Dear Writers of Romance, and Readers of Romance,
Men who kiss within seconds of meeting, only to discover--mere moments into the kiss-- that the kissee is The One, are also known by another term: psychopaths. Run away and or set the pen/keyboard down. And try some character exposition. -
More Proof Gut Bacteria Are Our Shiny Overlords
What do gut bacteria NOT affect?
Mighty Male Microbes
Both genetic and environmental factors contribute to an individual's susceptibility to autoimmune disease, but the specific environmental influences are not well characterized. Markle et al. (p. 1084, published online 17 January; see the Perspective by Flak et al.) explored how microbial ( Read more... ) -
The Bonobo Superheroine
So, you know how I sometimes post about tv shows that only I appear to enjoy? Here I go again ( Read more... ) -
Aubergine, Squirrelbread, Spinach and Feta Tart
First, I was gonna make these aubergine/ kalamata/ feta patties (K hates kalamatas and it's a lot of work for hate), then it was going to be aubergine/ feta/ pesto/ pine nut quiche, then it was going to be Lebanese-inspired okra feta tart (okra can from Exotic World bought recently turned out to be good only until last year and frothed when opened ( Read more... )