I haven't managed to finish a book in a while. Yeah, just keep starting new ones instead of finishing anything. Ha. So instead of a review this week, here's a bunch of books that drilled into my brain in the best possible way.

More excellent storytelling in episodes 3 and 4 of Tremontaine, which comes as no great surprise - lots going on for everyone involved, but particularly for Rafe who gets a lot of action both in and out of bed.

In episode 3, 'Heavenly Bodies', we see Micah make a great step forward in mathematical terms and Kaab's realisation that her new friends' greater understanding of the world around them could spell disaster for her family's control of the chocolate trade. The Duchess is trying to get Kaab's family involved in whatever it is she's up to and Kaab takes the opportunity to be in there while it's being discussed, even if it gets her in trouble with her uncle afterwards.

Meanwhile in episode 4, 'A Wake in Riverside', Kaab discovers there's more to Riverside than she previously knew (particularly in terms of the luxuries to which those who live there have never been exposed) and also that one of the first people she encountered in the city has come to a bad end. Alongside this, Rafe really ought to learn never to mix business with pleasure and the Duke really ought to know better than to make arrangements to bring his lover into the same house as his wife, no matter how convenient this idea might be for himself.

I'm still listening to the audio version of these episodes and enjoying them very much - for those who are not tempted by the serial version, there will apparently be an omnibus edition or two available at the end of the run. And aren't the illustrations for each chapter fantastic? They're the work of an Australian artist, Kathleen Jennings.

Fast read and very enjoyable. The plot is completely engaging, and though it wasn't exactly unpredictable, it certainly kept me glued to the screen.

The world building was great (though I understand that the Brazilian cultural details weren't what they might have been) with the low-high tech city of matriarchs, the accepted bi-poly, and the complicated social and political life. I've never read anything quite like it. As with much of my favourite Post-Apoca YA, I liked that it wasn't a completely broken world, but rather one that needed changes and amendments, not to be completely torn down and rebuilt. Legislative Reform!

I also really liked June, and how I spent half the book going, "Oh, honey, don't," but I could still absolutely see where she was coming from and how she ended up making so many terrible life choices (and so many good ones). It did feel a little that her art got dropped in the last act, which was too bad, as I love the art as protest thing the first part of the book was working with. The pacing also felt a tad wonky in places, but mostly it clipped along nicely.

As per usual, this challenge is brought to you by the lovely The Broke and the Bookish. So far, I'm having fun penning these answers to these challenges, and I'm only my third entry in.

Okay, this is a topic I haven't seen before: ten author duos that I would like to see collaborate on a book together. Oooooh. I could think of a few, probably spanning a few genres and age groups really. Okay, fine, let's have at this one.

1. David Levithan and Patrick Ness: You know what, I love these two authors so much for their writing style and the fact that they delve so well into their often whimsical, yet realistic stories, that this should just happen. Just make this happen, I don't care what the book is about. (Though preferentially, I'm kind of wanting a YA gender bending dystopian epic from them. Pretty pleaaaaaase.)

2. Alaya Dawn Johnson and Sherri L. Smith: I could definitely see these two authors coming together for an awesome project. They both write diverse characters (whether characters of color or GLBT or both) quite well and both of them have written futuristic dystopian projects before (Johnson with "The Summer Prince" and "Love is the Drug" and Smith with "Orleans.") Maybe we could have an epic time-traveling adventure with strong POC characters (Smith also wrote "Flygirl" - that was very nicely done in the vein of historical fiction, imo). I would love to see what they could do together, though, regardless of the theme.

3. Pierce Brown and Neal Shusterman: OMG, this is another mashup of authors I would like to see happen, because Shusterman does creepy very well, and Pierce Brown does epic sci-fi/fantasy well. I could see them getting together to do something that's sinister, thrilling, and mind-blowing.

4. Jennifer Crusie and Jessica Lemmon: Because I could see the combination of fun, quirky humor and romance that these two ladies have had from previously reading their works, and I'd honestly be totally for that happening. (Maybe if you want a third author tagging along, add Lucy March - that would be fun.)

5. Kristen Callihan and Megan Hart: Kristen Callihan is the author of the "Darkest London" series, while Megan Hart is known for a number of different projects across genres, but she writes adult fiction. Something tells me that I think both of them could do magical realism very well with dark undertones and intense character study. And they both write romantic/erotic scenes very well. So it's a mash-up that makes sense to me (and I really enjoy both of their works).

6. Sarah Dessen and Emery Lord: This match makes sense to me because both of them do slice of life teen fiction very well and I'd like to see what project they could do together.

7. Jennifer Brown and A.S. King: I imagine the book they would pen together would be huge along the lines of examining teens being put in a very, very sticky or tough situation. They do tough subject matters for young adults very well, and I wouldn't be surprised to hear them doing something together. (Well, maybe pleasantly surprised.)

8. E. Lockhart and Alaya Dawn Johnson: This is the second time I mention Alaya Dawn Johnson, and the first time I'm mentioning E. Lockhart. Why do I put these two authors together (because for all intents and purposes, their genres are pretty far apart - one writing more quirky or dramatic teen fiction, the other leaning more towards sci-fi fantasy teen fiction)? Because I could totally see them doing something funny, intense, and dynamic together in a young adult work. Maybe a couple of quirky leads undertaking an epic adventure together with some gender bending dynamics? It could happen.

9. Rick Riordan and David Levithan: Because honestly, this is another mash-up that should happen, because I could definitely see a mythological based story mashing up with some of the speculative fiction that Levithan creates. It would be a fun story to see/tell.

10. Stephen King and Gillian Flynn (or Megan Abbott): Because there's not enough words to describe how messed up that story line would be if you put these two (three) in a room together. I would be terrified and intrigued at the same darned time.

Okay, I've had my fun, but you know what, I'd really like to see some of these actually happen. Can't say whether they will or won't but it could make for some excellent reading.

Last post for tonight before I dive back into my book, but I went to the library again for another haul because some books I put on hold came in (and I still have more, but they won't be in until sometime in the next week or so, I think).

Sarah Dessen's "Dreamland" is a re-read, but I haven't read it in years. I remember it was the first book by the author that I both read and loved.

"Don't Look Back" I've tried to read before, but I kept having to return it to the library because it was such in high demand. Same with "The Start of Me and You". But now I have both of them back, and I'm not going to let my reading time lapse this go-around. I want to read them.

"He's Gone" by Deb Caletti is one I had as a NetGalley read, but I decided to get the hardcover to see how it went.

And "Love is the Drug" is one I've partly read by Alaya Dawn Johnson. I'm going to be honest, I like "Love is the Drug" a LOT more than "The Summer Prince," so far. The writing seems a lot smoother to follow and the premise really intruginig (and honestly, I wish I'd loved "The Summer Prince" more, but I had a lot of problems with it despite the intrigue of the world and set-up.) But I'm going to see how it goes for the long haul before I tell my end thoughts.

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