In Which I Have Not Finished Mockingjay

photo from telegraph.co.uk

As you may have guessed from the title, I have not finished Mockingjay yet.  It’s all Penguin’s fault!  First on Wednesday our awesome paperback rep, Betty, brought me Half-Off Ragnarok (just a reminder, it comes out tomorrow!) by Seanan McGuire and I HAD to read that.  Seanan is one of my favorite writers that I lived without for far too long.  Heck, I even went to a convention that wasn’t in my fandom just to see her last year!  Then, on Thursday I went to the store for my book club meeting and our hardcover rep, Dave, had sent me an ARC of the next Aunt Dimity book, Aunt Dimity and the Wishing Well.  I’ve been a fan of Nancy Atherton’s for over half my life.  So, you see, I HAD to read that too (I’ll post a review a little closer to the pub date, which is April 17).  And then that brings us up to today, so I just haven’t had a chance to finish Mockingjay, but I’ll get to it tomorrow night I expect.
Here are a few other things that are on my To-Read pile:
 Red Sonja Vol 1: Queen of Plagues by Gail Simone
I’ve actually never read a Red Sonja comic before, something about the chainmail bikini always put me off a little, but I was (and still am) a huge fan of the movie, Red Sonja, with Brigitte Neilsen.  It’s terrible, but I love it.   It starred a red-haired, sword wielding, warrior princess, what’s not to love?  Ok, so it’s cheesier than a large pizza, but I never cared.  I think I saw it when I was eight or so and I was mesmerised.  (Other movies to do this to me: Labyrinth, Bedknobs & Broomsticks, and Clue.)  So, when I found out that Gail Simone was taking over Red Sonja, I got very excited.  I don’t make it to the comic store very often these days, so I waited for the trade to come out.  Simone has also got Legends of Red Sonja running right now with guest authors like Tamora Pierce and Meljean Brook!  I’m too impatient to wait for trades on those, so I’m picking up the single issues when I get a chance.
The Glass Sentence by S.E. Grove (On Sale June 12)
This is an ARC I got from Carol, one of my Penguin reps, (again with the Penguins!) a bit ago.  (Full disclosure; we have three Penguin reps and they ALL send me books!  It’s amazing.  Also, they have the best design department.  Sorry all my other publishers, but it’s true.)  This is an alt history where the history is very altered, in fact, it’s broken.  Our protagonist lives in 1891 in Boston.  However, the rest of the world is NOT in 1891.  South America is known as Late Pategonia, Britain has not yet heard of Shakespeare, Canada is full of woolly mammoths, and most of Southeast Asia seems to have skipped ahead.
Around the turn of the 19th century time… shattered.  The different land masses were cast adrift from one another in time, although they stayed (mostly) anchored in space.  Only very brave explorers and cartologer risked travel between the ages.  Sophia’s uncle, Shadrack, is the most famous cartologer in Boston and her parents were explorers.  Maybe they still are, but they’re lost somewhere in another age.
When Shadrack is kidnapped, Sophia is the only one willing to go after him.  She’s facing danger from the different ages, of course, but she’s also facing danger from the government at home as new restrictive and xenophobic laws are being passed to restrict travel.  If she leaves, she may never be able to come home again.