bryant

Books
Rules for Ruin, by Mimi Matthews. First in a duology, or possibly a series, of Victorian pseudo-Gothic spy-adjacent romances. The heroine is one of the best girls from the orphanage/boarding school where she was trained to be a lady, to take care of herself, and to spy, and you probably already know whether you're interested by reading the first half of this sentence. I like this author and I liked her take on this genre. I'm definitely in for the next one.
Into the Riverlands, Mammoths at the Gates, and The Brides of High Hill, by Nghi Vo. I caught up on the Singing Hills novellas featuring Cleric Chih and their neixin who wander around alternate not-China collecting stories this week while I wasn't feeling well. The first of these three is about the nature of stories, as Chih's travelling companions and their stories connect to myths and legends Chih knows. The second one features Chih's return to Singing Hills just in time for the funeral of their mentor and a demand from their mentor's secular relatives for his body. The ending of this one was amazing. The third is a sad story about a bride going to live with an older husband whom one expects to abuse her. Then the twist, which I did not see coming at all and was also really fantastic. After reading these three, I pre-ordered the next novella in the series, which is coming out later this year.

Music
Annie-Claude Deschênes, Les Manières De Table. French new wave from last year. Sounded very authentic but didn't really hit for me, though I would gladly include it in a new wave playlist.
Empress Of, For Your Consideration. This is the deluxe version and surprisingly all the remixes are on the first disc. I've always liked Empress Of and this was good, but again, it didn't really grab me.