December TBR and MBR
Intro
December TBR also known as the last TBR of the year 2023!
After spending a month with women in fantasy (and this experiment was glorious), it is now time to continue with the commitments I took (especially with my reading group on Goodreads) sprinkling in a few interesting books and the push to finish series for myself.
Ambitious as usual!
Finishing strong series
I feel I have been much better at closing series in 2023 than ever before. In 2024 I will also start keeping track of performance (and this is a different story).
So my goals are to finish three series:
The Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky, one of my favorite fantasy series of all times; incidentally, I love it so much that I am collecting the Broken Binding special edition and I cannot wait to purchase the rest of the set! So I have War Master’s Gate and Seal of the Worm lined up next!
Greatcoats by Sebastien de Castell: granted I need to read three out of the four books, this is re-read so I feel good about my chances; so Knight’s Shadow, Saint’s Blood and Tyrant’s Throne are more books lined up for reading in December.
Last but not least, Labyrinth’s Heart by M.A. Carrick, finishing the Rook & Rose series. This is a unique series for me; it has a lot of the tropes that I usually do not invested in (such as romance, love triangles actual or suggested), yet this story is quite well crafted in terms of political intrigue (and it takes a bit of time to develop but once I saw it, it was impossible for me to turn my back to it) and magic system (it is one of the most underrated systems I have read, mostly based on tarot and astrology). It also somewhat reminded me of the manga series called The Rose of Versailles and it makes me somewhat nostalgic.
Chasing more diversity
I want to push myself into other forms of diversity (not only gender diversity); there is one series that I have been itching to read in a while, starting with The Art of Prophecy by Wesley Chu; this is Asian inspired and works on a fascinating premise, using a traditional trope (the chosen one) and warping it. I cannot wait to get into this series, called War Arts; there is also a second book in the series, The Art of Destiny.
There is also another story that is capturing my attention: it is Sons of Darkness by Gourav Mohanty, kicking off The Raag of Rta series. A fantasy story taking all the goodness of Indian mythology; it just begs to be read!
Another alternative would be to start The Burning series by Evan Winter, a series that reflects African myths, starting with The Rage of Dragons.
Last but not least, the series that I would like to pick up sooner rather than later is Between Earth and Sky, a trilogy by Rebecca Roadhouse, taking inspiration from American culture (prior to the Europeans arriving to the coasts of the American continent), starting with Black Sun.
One more book that I can add - and it has the advantage of being a stand alone story, is Victory City by Salman Rushdie, inspired by Indian culture.
Additional goals
In the Fantasy Buddy Reads group, there is a buddy read on The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan, starting the Empire of the Wolf series. I am curious to read this series while I am exploring the Greatcoats. I am also a sucker for murder mysteries and political high stakes. I have resisted starting this series because, ironically, the book is being praised everywhere. I do not always align with the vast majority opinion on books so I am worried about starting this series. Yet, if I do not start, I will never know whether I agree or disagree with the rest of the reading community!
What are your plans for the last month of the year? Are you already preparing for next year? Is there something you really want to do for your personal achievement and satisfaction?
