Vermilion: The Adventures of Lou Merriwether, Psychopomp by Molly Tanzer ★★★★★

"I’m very glad to have met you. I never knew there was anyone like you in the whole world." 

I loved this book. 

Anything this unique makes description difficult but here goes: Early Anita Blake set in an unfamiliar paranormal post Civil War America with a je ne sais quoi of The Sky Is Yours.

The Sky Is Yours by Chandler Klang Smith ★★★★☆

"From below, the dragon does not resemble a living thing. It is an oppression, a ceiling on the world." 

Ceremony In Death (In Death #5) by J.D. Robb ★★★★☆

“I am a high priestess of the dark lord. Our numbers are legion, and I have powers that would make you weep.” 

Rapture in Death (In Death #4) by J.D. Robb ★★★★☆

Eve Dallas keeps coming across suicides with big smiles on their faces. Everything and everyone is telling her they’re just self-terminations but Lieutenant Dallas will not let it go!

Immortal in Death (In Death #3) by J.D. Robb ★★★★☆

The fatal gift of beauty. 

-Byron 

A drug that combines ecstasy, cocaine, steroids, and skin rejuvenation is hitting the fashion industry. Just because the side effects are deadly doesn’t mean models won’t kill for it.

Glory in Death (In Death #2) by J.D. Robb ★★★★☆

Someone in New York is slitting throats for ratings and it’s up to Detective Eve Dallas to put him away... even if it means stepping on her friends toes.

Naked in Death (In Death #1) by J.D. Robb ★★★★☆

Just as good as my first read if not better on audiobook. If you like romantic suspense/police procedurals/who-done-its, do not hesitate to pick this up. 

Hieroglyph: Stories and Visions for a Better Future

Girl In Wave: Wave In Girl by Kathleen Ann Goonan ★★★★★ “Unlike earlier children, we have a new power. With the invisible power of literacy we can put ourselves in the place of others... We are far too addicted to the joy of learning and life to have time to contemplate the destruction of others.” 

Brilliant! Through individualized teaching methods, and minor nanobiotechnical assistance, all children are able to read and learn with an ease previously known to few. 

By empowering children, giving them the space and freedom to learn, they build, and pass on, a better world. 

It reminded me of Vegan Stories. Children have good moral instincts about what’s wrong but we acculturate them to accept degrees of violence: adulteration.

The excellent notes section after the story pointed out that, “In 1963, Finland made a decision to make education its number one economic priority, and the highly effective educational system that emerged is the result.” 

So now I have to read Finnish Lessons 2.0 and contemplate moving there. 

Dark Sky (Keiko #2) by Mike Brooks ★★☆☆☆

Drift shrugged. “I’ve made a career out of never quite being killed by everything around me going wrong.” 
Plenty went wrong. 

Dark Run (Keiko #1) by Mike Brooks ★★★☆☆

"Buckle up, everyone. Jia’s taking us down ahead of schedule, and incidentally has lost her fucking mind."

"I heard that."

"You were meant to."