A Year in Four Books... and one BIG announcement

Well, there we have it. Whichever of you had placed a bet on me making it to blog post three before failing to meet my (self-imposed) deadline, congratulations. There was some drama on the farm this week and a number of setbacks, so I suppose we should just be glad it's only one day late, eh?

As we enter December of 2021, I thought I would point the spotlight at two of the best books I've read, two I didn't finish, and one significant piece of news I got since my last post. See what I did there? 2-2-1?

'Best Book(s) of 2021' Award:

Usually I find it difficult to separate books I've enjoyed, but looking back at my reading list for this year, there are two clear standouts, neither of which are going to be shocking or revelatory, and both of which have been extensively lauded in the years since their publication (for very good reason). Without further ado:

1) Circe by Madeline Miller

Honestly, this wasn't just one of the best books I read this year, but one of the best ever. Miller's prose is utterly, heart-achingly beautiful, her pacing superb. It is everything I love. This is Greek mythology retold from a fresh, oft-ignored perspective, a story of love, of healing, of finding one's own power and using it. It is breathtaking, enthralling, and like Circe herself, half-divine. It's a commentary on the way history and myth record the stories of men, and play down the successes and struggles of women. It is many things, but ultimately, I believe it is a manifesto for grabbing the reins, summoning your strength, and taking charge of your own story - for at the end of the day, it's the only one you ever truly have control over.

2) Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

I'd had this one on my to-read list for the longest time, and kept opting for newer books, or ones I deemed to be more relevant to whatever I was working on at the time. In the end, it was a recent recommendation from author Patrick Rothfuss (The Name of the Wind, another of my all-time favs) who said, "If I live a thousand years, I'll never write a book as good as Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik," I could hardly put it better myself. It is a phenomenal work of fantasy; a subversive mix of fairytale and folklore. It is magical, mythical, musical, melancholic and mysterious. It is the story of three girls of vastly different social standing, and the various forms of evil each of them face. I loved it.

'Books I Didn't Finish' Award

*Disclaimer* I am not saying these books are bad. In fact, they are very well-reviewed and were received with great critical and commercial acclaim. By all accounts, I am the outlier, the anomaly. Your mileage may vary, and I hope ( and expect) many of you will enjoy them.

1) Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke

I heard your gasp of outrage all the way from here, just so you know. It was the same reaction my writing group had when I told them I had to set this masterpiece down (for now). As an author of fantasy for adults, this should almost be required reading. However...

Remember that long to-read list I mentioned earlier? Well, I just couldn't justify the size of this book, and how long it would take me to get through. I could devour five normal-sized books in the same amount of time. And honestly, it just wasn't gripping me, pulling me in. I found it a little too dry, the prose a touch too weighty. I was reading a page, then realising I needed to return to the start and read it over again to take it in, and not in a good way. I would return to the book after a day and feel as though I needed a TV-show-style 'recap' of where I last left the story... and it had been less than 24 hours! Chances are, I will come back to this book one day, and I really enjoyed Clarke's Piranesi. But for now, it's until next time.

2) Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James

Another highly-rated hit which, on paper, seemed to be right up my street: a Game of Thrones-esque fantasy, sword-and-sorcery epic, inspired by African mythology and cultural folklore, featuring a rugged, lone-wolf tracker and shapeshifter on a quest to solve the mystery of a missing child. Unfortunately, as it turned out, it just wasn't my cup of tea. The obscenity - the vulgarity - of some of the material was too much for me, and left a bad taste in my mouth, much in the same way as the graphic violence in Bret Easton Ellis' American Psycho did. This was another HUGE novel, and I found the plot to be overwrought and meandering. It felt like a slog, an uphill battle. I wanted to like this so badly, but I just couldn't.

One BIG Piece of News!

At long last, The Scribes is officially OUT ON SUBMISSION! I couldn't be more delighted, and can't wait to see what comes next for the book I'm so proud of and have worked on for so long. I never dared to dream I'd ever get an agent, let alone get to this stage, so I'm literally effervescent with excitement. If you're one of the shortlist of editors my fantastic agent has sent The Scribes to, thank you for reading, and please acquire it! If you're an editor who hasn't received it but think a multiversal fantasy in the vein of Into the Spider-Verse, Loki, A Darker Shade of Magic and The Ten Thousand Doors of January sounds like something you'd like to find in your inbox, please reach out!

That's all for this week folks! Have a great fortnight, don't buy your Christmas gifts from Amazon, and get your vaccines/boosters so we can all see out the year safe and happy.