BUFFBOBA

Despite spring rolling in with the energy of an enraged, back-alley loan shark (and coming for me like I owe it money), it’s been an exciting and humorous time in Boba’s world of reading!

As always, I’ve been keeping up with Pirateaba’s ‘The Wandering Inn’, and we saw a most excellent story arc come to a close. It was the best of times, and— well, not the worst of times (Pirateaba has a way of punching you right where your feelings are the most sensitive in the biggest arcs)—but definitely some less-than-stellar times. I’m already chomping at the bit for the next chapters.

More excitingly, for me, as a long-time reader, was the announcement of physical books! As a fan since, gosh, 2017? I’m absolutely over the moon! It looks like the first book drop is coming in August, and if you like progression fantasy that’ll have you cackling out loud and also sometimes getting you a little misty eyed, stay tuned and consider finding it your local book store or online.

I also took this month to branch out of my comfort zone a little. We all know how much Boba loves a good fantasy book—especially if there’s smoochin’ involved—but I got quite the strong book recommendation from the book club I’m in, and after I was gifted the first book in the series by my supervisor at work, I had no excuses not to give it a go.

Finlay Donovan Mysteries by Elle Cosimano

Sometimes, life gets a little messy. The main character in this book? Her life is m e s s y. And I love her so much for it.

The premise is, largely, a very emotionally messy single mom stumbles her way into accidentally being an assassin for hire. What could go wrong?

I’m normally not someone who considers herself a murder-mystery-enjoyer. I like orcs, and elves, and shiny swords and—like I said—smoochin’. But the relatively intense pacing for what is a very modern setting (which distinctly lacks castles and dragons and carriages) made up for the lack of pointy ears for this fantasy lover.

I found myself endeared to Finlay, who struggles to keep her shit together when everything is working against her. Sure, the world might not be ending, but if she slipped up her world would. I was surprised at how much everything felt like it mattered, even if it wasn’t some kind of fantastical crisis.

I’m four books in, at this point, and trying to pace myself on the last few available because the series is currently on-going. But, I’m a glutton for a good story and I’m probably lying to myself if I say, “I won’t order the last two books right away.”

Books in this series read so far:
Finlay Donovan Is Killing It
Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead
Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun
Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice

Next up in the series:
Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave
Finlay Donovan Crosses the Line

And since I can only stand being outside of my comfort zone for tiny increments of time, I immediately had to jump into a story setting that felt more familiar.

How to Lose a Goblin in Ten Days by Jessie Sylva

There we go. That’s more like it. Back in the saddle. Bring on the wand waving and the sword slinging!

This book promised goblin smooches, magic, hobbits, and…. Property disputes? Well. It was good, in theory.

This cozy romance was, admittedly, charming. It was an easy read that I could chew through in an evening between making dinner, doing chores and, y’know, doing bonus-parent things. It was queer focused and featured a non-binary lead (which I loved greatly) and was… Alright.

I don’t know if it was because I’d just come down from a high-stakes action-packed mystery series or not, but the stakes in this book felt… Unremarkable. They were there, to be sure, but they felt as if they hadn’t been introduced or fleshed out in time enough for them to feel relevant or important. And the whole story came together at the end too fast to have felt… Meaningful.

The characters were cute and endearing, but I felt as if I were missing… Something. Like they were there, but not quite fleshed out enough for me to really remember them as strong leads in my mind. I felt like there were some character development points that felt unfinished, or unrefined. I didn’t really get that sense of “aha! There’s that character growth!” that I look for in stories like this one.

It wasn’t bad, and if I were to go back in time, I’d buy it again. I just didn’t find myself with that same sort of longing for more at the end of a book that I really loved. If you’re looking for a read that’s relaxing, with low-stakes, and has a bit of cute smoochin’, I’d definitely recommend it. I’m glad that it’s a part of my collection.

So what’s next on the reading list?

Currently I’m reading the Monk and Robot stories, by Becky Chambers, and I think after that I might pick up Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. My reading whims change like the winds though, so stay tuned. Who knows what books will fall into my lap (or my shopping bags, teehee) before next month.

How did I do?

I wanted to talk about the books that I’m reading without giving too much away. Maybe my synopses will get more detailed or longer in the future, but I’m super weary of spoiling anything for a book that might prompt someone to not want to read it.

If you have any book recommendations, feel free to throw them in a comment or into the buff bookclub channel in the community discord!

Much love everyone!
Cheers!