SERIES: HUH? WHY TF ARE THESE BOOKS ON MY COUCH? WEEKLY ROUNDUP

About three or four times a week, while sitting on the couch where I conduct all my very important business, I look to one side or the other and go, Huh? How did that book get there?

Because at any given moment, there’s 5-10 books scattered on and around my couch, windowsill, coffee table, floor, external hard drive case, etc., and I do not know where they came from. Guaranteed. It’s a universal constant.

Some of them make sense, like current reads. Others, I’d be hard-pressed to tell you why they’re there. I blame ADHD. Still, it’s always exciting trying to remember wtf is going on!

So without further ado, this is the first in a series of posts about the books lying around my house. I thought this would be a fun way to do book reviews & discussion that incorporates new books, old favorites, and whatever else I dig out from between my couch cushions.

Here’s what I found among the clutter this week:

Harrow the Ninth: This one’s easy to explain: it came in the mail a few weeks ago, and it’s been on the back of my couch ever since. I’ve been looking forward to this book since before Gideon came out. So naturally, now that I can finally hold it in my greedy hands, I haven’t read it. I don’t know why. Maybe I want to put it off, delay the gratification. Or maybe Tamsyn Muir’s writing is so intimidatingly good I’m scared it might drive me to burn my trash manuscripts and go underground, muttering the whole while about why do I even try.

A Song Below Water: Another book that came in the mail! I’ve read the first few chapters and I’m a fan. I don’t usually read contemporary fantasy, but this one has sirens!! And it’s set in Portland, Seattle’s cooler cousin. This book will remain in the general couch area until I finish it.

Anais Nin at the Grand Guignol: Truly, I have no explanation for how this book became propped up on my windowsill, its cover staring forlornly at the gas barbeque in my backyard. I bought it a long-ish time ago for two reasons: the cover art, and the promise of horniness within. It also introduced me to Anais Nin, a celebrated woman who wrote a lot of porn.

The Four Profound Weaves: I recently ordered this book from Tachyon Publishing, and I have to say, I was DELIGHTED. My package came with a 2019-2020 Tachyon catalog and a THANK YOU NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR. I cried a little. I told my friends about it, and they said yes, you idiot, that’s why you buy direct from indie publishers. Welcome to since always. So, learned my lesson there. The book itself sounds incredible, with aging trans protagonists and magical weaving and death.

A Night in the Lonesome October: This one was still on my coffee table from LAST October, when I read a chapter per day. It’s a cult classic and Zelazny’s last book before his death—an eclectic supernatural mashup narrated by a dog. I loved it?! I plan to read it again this year, so good thing I didn’t put it away where it belongs. So convenient!

5 Year Journal: This is my five year journal. Please note the masterful sticker placement.

I hope you enjoyed whatever this was. Stay tuned for more, um…whatever this was!