awesomelies | Reading

james_davis_nicoll

...or more precisely, on one of its many, many moons!

Consider Setting Your Space Operas on Saturn

james_davis_nicoll

A utopia (of sorts) is endangered by a discontented, powerful, malcontent.

Aristoi by Walter Jon Williams

james_davis_nicoll

Bundle of Holding's 13th annual feast of top-quality tabletop roleplaying game ebooks.

Bundle of Holding: Cornucopia 2025

ffutures

This is the annual Bundle of Holding mixed bag of games from an assortment of companies to celebrate the USA's Thanksgiving Day.

https://bundleofholding.com/presents/Cornucopia2025

For some reason a lot of this year's choices deal with apocalypses, giant sea monsters, and various sorts of prejudice.

I'm never quite sure what to say about these mixed bundles since they don't fit into neat categories. Basically, you've got seven different RPGs ranging from horror to extreme silliness - I'm looking at you, Sentai and Sensibility - and if only one or two appeal to you, or you already have some of them, it may be a good idea to look at cherrypicking the ones you want. If you want more buying the bundle will probably be cheaper.

james_davis_nicoll

2023: King Charles III is the most unpopular British King in the last 60-odd years, Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Cabinet Secretary Simon Case’s comic routine is poorly received, and Sunak’s government ushers in a golden age of soaring STD rates.

Poll #33874 Clarke Award Finalists 2023

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 19

View Respondents

Which 2023 Clarke Award Finalists Have You Read?

View Answers

Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman
4 (21.1%)

Metronome by Tom Watson
0 (0.0%)

Plutoshine by Lucy Kissick
2 (10.5%)

The Anomaly (translation of L'anomalie) by Hervé Le Tellier
0 (0.0%)

The Coral Bones by E. J. Swift
0 (0.0%)

The Red Scholar's Wake by Aliette de Bodard
15 (78.9%)

Bold for have read, italic for intend to read, underline for never heard of it.

Which 2023 Clarke Award Finalists Have You Read?
Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman
Metronome by Tom Watson
Plutoshine by Lucy Kissick
The Anomaly (translation of L'anomalie) by Hervé Le Tellier
The Coral Bones by E. J. Swift
The Red Scholar's Wake by Aliette de Bodard

james_davis_nicoll

Just as the Great Fire of Rome was a boon for the building trade, so too will a modern catastrophe be a boon for used book stores.

The Coming Golden Age of Used Books

james_davis_nicoll

Mother's Benefits become the means by which British governments provide British women with the same benevolent management Britain once provided to India, Ireland, and Africa.

Benefits by Zoë Fairbairns

ffutures

This is a crossover between the Harry Potter books, the Buffy The Vampire Slayer TV series, and the film Bedazzled (1967, not the 2000 remake), with some other crossovers and Easter eggs, so far including Dogma (1999) and Time Bandits (1981). All characters belong to their respective creators / owners / megacorporations of doom and not to me, please don't sue...

( VI - Summer of '99 )

Now posted with a few edits to archives:

On Twisting the Hellmouth - https://www.tthfanfic.org/Story-34251/MarcusRowland+Harry+Potter+Undazzled.htm
On Fanfiction.net - https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14336114/1/Harry-Potter-Undazzled
On Archive of Our Own - https://archiveofourown.org/works/54407350

james_davis_nicoll

Three books new to me. All are fantasies, two are series.

Books Received, November 15 to November 21, 2025

Poll #33866 Books Received, November 15 to November 21, 2025

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 46

View Respondents

Which of these upcoming books look interesting?

View Answers

Mother of Death and Dawn by Carissa Broadbent (March 2026)
4 (8.7%)

Tides of Fortune by Lauryn Hamilton Murray (June 2026)
1 (2.2%)

Everybody’s Perfect by Jo Walton (June 2026)
35 (76.1%)

Some other option (see comments)
0 (0.0%)

Cats!
32 (69.6%)

james_davis_nicoll

I would definitely found an SF magazine.

Most mags struggle with handling submissions but I had a moment of insight: all I need to do is tell writers to send me _good_ stories. Their crap, they can submit elsewhere. Bang! Workload down by 99%.

james_davis_nicoll

A young scholar and his diverse companions are dispatched on an intelligence-gathering mission deep into enemy territory.

The Door on the Sea (The Raven and the Eagle, volume 1) by Caskey Russell

james_davis_nicoll

A park guide's life is upended by a pandemic and her charming, idiot son.

The Animals in That Country by Laura Jean McKay

ffutures

This is a new bundle of the second edition of The Magical Land of Yeld, a fantasy RPG intended as a good introduction to the genre for children, from Atarashi Games

https://bundleofholding.com/presents/Yeld2E

When I originally got the details of this I didn't realise that it is a stand-alone system, not yet another D&D spinoff. This is a much simpler system, and ought to be much more usable by kids, while still fun to play. It's not a genre I expect to use, but if you have kids or spend much time with them it may be worth a look. There's quite a lot of material, and it's pretty cheap.

james_davis_nicoll

"Could it be that (Superman) hides behind the darkest disguise of all? Could it be that he is a woman?"

"(...) What made you ask that?"

"Because he has compassion. He aids people in trouble. He helps the weak. "

It is possible the bad guy in The Secret of Superman has issues.

james_davis_nicoll

This new Yeld 2E Bundle presents the 2024 Second Edition of The Magical Land of Yeld, the all-ages tabletop fantasy roleplaying game from Atarashi Games about young heroes (called Friends) finding their way home.

Bundle of Holding: Yeld 2E

james_davis_nicoll

Civilization has crashed, humanity may be virtually extinct, but library books must be returned to their proper facility!

The Color of the End: Mission in the Apocalypse, volume 2 by Haruo Iwamune (Translated by John Neal)

james_davis_nicoll

Castaways are trapped in a terrible Randall Garrett story!

The Queen Bee by Randall Garrett

james_davis_nicoll

Along with a lot of the interwebs...

james_davis_nicoll

Not over this budget, anyway.

It boggles me that Canada had to endure 13 days of ambiguity about the budget vote. What next, an election cycle that lasts five whole weeks? The suspense would be palpable.