Some Books I Loved

 **So much to say about this excellent, excellent dark fantasy.  But first of all, why aren't more fantasy books set in the Golden Age of Spain???  Amazing** This was a great one.  I need to read more Leigh Bardugo, don't I? At its core, the plot of this one is simple, its elements familiar.  A scullery maid, Luiza, has the power to work "milagritos", minor miracles.  Repairing a dish that was broken, fixing bread that was burnt in the oven.  Her powers are discovered by her wealthy employers, and she's thrust into a world she never imagined of court politics and intrigue, where she will find loyal friendship and vile betrayal and sometimes one that looks like the other.  You know how it goes, a classic setup And yet.  There are so many things that elevate this book, take Luiza's journey and make it something truly fantastic One thing, I have to say, is Bardugo's prose.  She has an absolute knack for everything from scene descriptions to...

Hi everyone!  Ok, we're back from hiatus, really looking forward to diving in to Hispanic Heritage Month.  From supernatural horror and magical realism (which have both been staples of Latin American Literature for a while now) to plenty of modern stuff and some classics I've neglected, this should be a great month. First, here are some books I've loved in the past: * * * "Our Share of Night" by Mariana Enriquez (trans. Megan McDowell; 2019)  **A masterpiece of supernatural horror.  You're not going to totally understand what's happening, but you're going to know that whatever it is, it's viscerally uncomfortable in the best way** "Signal to Noise" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (2015) *A wonderful and personal novel about returning to your childhood home and maybe searching for some of the magic that was once there* Jorge Luis Borges  **Calling him one of the greatest short story writers ever is damning him with faint praise.  One of the greate...