What Fiction are you reading this week, September 26, 2021?

[myccrider]

18. I've always juggled 3 or 4 books at a time, personal quirk ;-p

Just started a new Elizabeth Bear book - Machine - about a far future human civilization that has joined a galactic government. An ancient human generation ship has been discovered heading out of the galaxy at an appreciable fraction of the speed of light. There’s no response to attempts to contact possible survivors, so a rescue mission has been sent to see if anyone can be saved and to preserve a unique human artifact/history. The woman in charge of the mission finds that things are very strange on board.
So it’s a mystery in space with aliens, advanced technology, fully conscious AIs, methane breathers and an odd, powerful android who is apparently in charge of the frozen colonists and won’t or can’t let anyone try to save them because "the Machine" won’t allow it. Interesting, so far.

I just reread the Murderbot series, just because. Am impatiently waiting for the next installment, too, that’s not due for many, many months.

Also started a new fantasy/romance series by T. Kingfisher (pen name for well-known children’s fantasy author Ursula Vernon). Light, easy, humorous, enjoyable reading. First book was Paladin’s Grace about a fantasy world where multiple gods have different organizations of people to carry out their edicts. The Rat is all about charity, law, medicine and sneaky diplomacy. The Saint of Steel was about fighting evil (of which there is plenty, including goblins, haunts, demon possessions, etc.) with berserker paladins, but the Saint died and left a bunch of severely broken and depressed paladins who go bonkers every once in a while. Each book is about one of the middle aged paladins finding a middle-aged partner while solving a problem crime. I’m on the second book, Paladin’s Strength, about one of the paladins being sent to solve a mystery/crime involving magic beheadings and reanimations and running into a nun whose whole sisterhood was kidnapped to be put into fighting pits…because they’re also werebears! Just got to the aftermath of the surprise of Clara going all bear when they’re attacked by brigands.