What I read in April 2025
The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie, 432p: I didn't love the book, but it has a few interesting topics to dive into. The second-person narrative felt strange to me, but I can understand why it’s widely praised. For me, though, the story just felt kind of cold. I didn’t connect with the characters or cared much about what happened to them, probably because the story’s told from an ancient god’s perspective, so we’re just watching the characters instead of really getting into their heads. I didn’t like the ambiguity of the ending.
Borders of Infinity (Vorkosigan Saga (Publication Order) #5.3) by Lois McMaster Bujold, 305p: Super fun read, the book is a compilation of 3 novellas: The Mountains of Mourning (1989), Labyrinth (1989) and The Borders of Infinity (1987). The stories are focused on Miles Vorkosigan in which he tells about his insane adventures in his first years working for the ImpSec (Imperial Security). In the first one he is sent to a remote location in Barrayar to solve a local dispute. In the second one he goes to an undercover mission to rescue an important researcher, and the last one he is undercover in a very remote and high security prison camp to rescue a military person and manages to find a way to escape in the most spectacular way. But what I most liked about these stories are the diverse characters: there is a hermaphrodite from Beta Colony and various genetically altered humans with different abilities who were “discarded” by society. I love how power dynamics are explored in these stories with Miles questioning everything.
The PLAN: Manage Your Time Like a Lazy Genius by Kendra Adachi, 246p: This book presents a guide to getting things done without falling into the trap of perfectionism or overwhelm. The author tries to bring a perspective more suitable to women and their struggles, since most productivity books were written by men so far. The book has a fun tone and encourages us to focus more on what matters. It's all great advice, but when she gets to the actionable steps it is basically GTD (Getting Things Done – by David Allen) with different names. So it wasn't all that revolutionary to me since I've using the GTD methodology for a while now. I was not a fan of the forced acronyms.
A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher, 8 hours, 30 minutes (audio): The story is whimsical and fun, I was hooked on the very first scene. I enjoyed spending time with Mona and her curious magical abilities with bread and biscuits. I listened to the audio book, and I really like the narrator’s voice and style.
Cetaganda (Vorkosigan Saga (Publication Order) #9) by Lois McMaster Bujold, 302p: Miles Vorkosigan and his cousin Ivan Vorpatril are sent to Cetaganda on a diplomatic mission to attend the state funeral of the planet's empress. They are supposed to just show diplomatic respect and not cause any trouble, but we know in this series that trouble always finds Miles. The story is a mix of political intrigue, assassins, secret agents, attempted assassinations, and the rich world building of a society obsessed with genetic engineering. For Cetagandans, genetic improvement means social advancement and the whole power structure is built around it. Miles, with his visible physical disability, tries to prove himself even more amidst a society that believes all physical “defects” must be eradicated. It was a fascinating read and the good sense of humour with snarky remarks about ethics and justice continues in this series.
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Post 83/100 of 100DaysToOffload challenge (Round 2)!
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By Noisy Deadlines Minimalist in progress, nerdy, introvert, skeptic. I don't leave without my e-reader.