#short book

[hernepenthenotes]

...Or was his destiny from the start

To be but just one moment

Near your heart?...

-Ivan Turgenev

[deisderiumbooks]

Pamphlet Bind

This is a little pamphlet bind, as part of my quest to bind more short fics! This one is may-june relationship by @kitschlet, which is ~1300 words.

I did a landscape oriented quarto with a pamphlet stitch, and used a hard cover method as described in Books, Boxes, and Wraps, which worked quite well. I stenciled the lotus in colorshifting acrylic, and then layered stencilled gold acrylic over it. i was a little worried the second stencil would pull up the paint from the first, but the adhesive (oramask 813) was gentle anough. I enjoyed stencilling and plan on doing more of it.

[cringeartisthebestart]

So, I decided to read that "Balan Wonderworld" book because I thought it would be an 'it's so bad it's good' book but it is unironically a good story and made me genuinely care for these characters. I cried 4 times while reading it, and I WAS NOT READY FOR THE TWIST AT THE END. IT WAS SUCH A GUT PUNCH MY POOR BOY BALAN.

Anyway, it's like 10 bucks and an easy read, and I recommend it.

Okay, I'm going to bed now. I am still reeling over the ending.

[nohuman-5]

The flowers of Evil of Charles Baudelaire book in English: PDF/PDF.

Credits to the translators, I just pass the link.

[5soswfttwtaf]

finished my second book of this month, but also of the last almost 3 years. both are short, just a bit over 100 pages, but books. fully read. by me.

i gave them both a 3,5 rating, i didn't enjoy them as much as i used to enjoy reading before the full scale war. but knowing that i finally read something-classics too!!-made me feel refreshed, and maybe not as dumb as i usually feel.

[yourpixieandbuddy]

my first book is now $4.99 and free to read for through thursday for ereaders

i’d love to see this book have a resurrection. i stopped sharing after an extremely dysphoric and anxious year (that’s on me) but it was worth more hype than it ever saw.

cry, baby [burns, pixie, stabby] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. cry, baby

thanks to tumblr for giving me a safe space to exist again

[leviticus101st]

DEMONS AT THE TABLE: ON SALE NOW

I wrote a book! This new short book: Demon's at the Table is available for purchase. A link that will take you to a LinkTree showing all of the sites you currently purchase this book for five dollars will be provided below!

https://linktr.ee/leviticus101st

If you have any other platforms you would like to have my book available on, please let me know and I will see what I can do.

[lilareviewsbooks]

Short SFF Books!

I know getting into SFF can be difficult because of the sheer size of series and books in the genres. So here’s a couple of speculative fiction picks that don’t require that much time to read :)

I’ve also made a part two for this, so check that out if you’d like some more short SFF!

This Is How You Lose The Time War, by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

209 pages

sapphic rep

standalone

This one is a classic when it comes to short sci-fis (thank you, Bigolas Dickolas), and that’s definitely for a reason! This Is How You Lose The Time War is a story in an incredibly unique format that will, to be honest, probably emotionally devastate you in some way or another. 

Time War follows Red and Blue, two agents working for opposite sides of, you know it, a time war. Their job is to travel through time to change the odds for their respective “agencies”. But, of course, they can’t resist leaving each other messages along in the way - in the most unique manners possible.

This queer novella will take your breath away. It will lead you through multiple timelines, split into two perspectives, Red and Blue, with a beautiful, lyrical writing style, which will make you so invested in our two main characters. The author duo treats us to these fantastical, vivid settings, which are sparkling with potencial and leave you wanting to dive deeper.

Silver In The Wood, by Emily Tesh

112 pages

achillean rep

duology

This is part of the Greenhollow Duology, but can absolutely be read as a standalone. It’s also one of my all time favorites! Silver In The Wood follows Tobias, a groundskeeper who lives deep in the woods. When Henry Silver moves into the house Tobias watches, things change - there’s something in the woods, and Tobias might just have to introduce Henry to it. 

It’s been a while since I read this, but I haven’t forgotten about it. I’m always thinking about this book. The vibes are simply immaculate, and so cozy. It will literally make you feel like you’re in the woods. The character work is excellent, and focuses on older protagonists, which is always a treat. The romance is well-constructed and the second book is completely optional, taking place almost as a side-quest for the main couple. 

I wish there were so many more of these, but unfortunately there are only two. But damn, are they great! Highly recommend, Silver In The Wood and its sequel, Drowned Country!

The Singing Hills Cycle, by Nghi Vo

100 to 128 pages 

non-binary and sapphic rep

series

The Singing Hills Cycle is a good one to recommend, because it’s very low-commitment. You can pick whichever one of the three books (there’s soon to be a fourth!!) draws your interest, you can start with that one, and then go from there. The series follows Chih, a wandering cleric, from the Wandering Hills Abbey, which is preoccupied with keeping records of the history of this China-inspired kingdom. Chih goes around the territory with his talking bird Almost Brilliant, collecting stories.

This series is beautiful! Every book contains in it a beautiful exploration of folklore, and bite-sized story that will always warm your heart. Chih is a wonderful character around which to revolve this story, and their commitment to keeping records and history flows off the page - which is hella important, let’s record our history, folks! The side characters that show up on a book-by-book basis are always the best, and their dialogue is always the best part.

I highly recommend listening to the audiobook - I did so for the last installment,  Into The Riverlands, and it was amazing! Just a 2 hour listen, if that sells ya!

The Murderbot Diaries, starting with All Systems Red, by Martha Wells

144 to 256 pages

queer rep of all kinds! yay!

series

The Murderbot Diaries is for those of us looking for a bigger committment. The series currently has 7 books, one of which is a full-length novel. However, you can read the first book as a standalone and decide if you’d like to continue on following Murderbot’s adventures! Most of the books are 150 - 200 pages long, and so are a pretty quick read!

This is perfect if you enjoy a snarky narration style and a compelling protagonist who’s trying to figure out how they fit into the world. Murderbot, our main character and narrator, is a SecUnit, that is, a security android, that must accompany a scientific expedition to a distant planet, to keep the explorers safe. But Murderbot has hacked its security mode, and enjoys watching TV shows and chilling by itself. But when the mission starts to go wrong, it might need to perk up and start - oh, no! - interacting with the humans.

Although I haven’t read the whole series yet, - I’m waiting for the mood to come over me, okay! - I have the first three books under my belt, and I’m so excited to continue. Murderbot has this spark and this snark which is just so entertaining to read, and so this book will have you laughing and rooting for it as it tries to figure out how to fit in in human society. Such a compelling character, and I’m happy there’s a lot of content out there for me to consume.

The Emperor’s Soul, by Brandon Sanderson

192 pages

no gay rep :(

standalone

The Emperor’s Soul is a part of Mr. Sanderson’s Elantris universe, but can be read as a standalone without knowing anything else about this world. It’s a bit of a different rec - Mr. Sanderson’s writing style is - and I mean this in the politest way possible - dry as fuck, and definitely not for everyone. But there’s something here I think is worth your time.

The magic system here is so unique and so fascinating. The Emperor’s Soul follows Shai, a Forger, who can copy objects flawlessly by re-writing their history. But, suddenly, she’s enlisted to do the impossible - Forge the Emperor.

I would give this one a try, even if it’s not like all the others one I recommended. It’s a good read, and Mr. Sanderson is, like it or not, a classic fantasy writer that’s a must-read for most fantasy fans. And, for me, this and then Mistborn were perfect stepping in points for his fiction.

I have so many of these, guys. Like, literally, so many. So, let me know if you want more of these - I’ll write up another post! And if you’d more specific recs, feel free to drop an ask :) 

Also, check out my SFF books with queer-normal worlds list, if you’re looking for more gay stuff!