Because I have a Kindle and subscribe to BookBub, many of my book purchases are based primarily on cost. If it costs less than five bucks, there’s a good chance I will read it. Closer to ten? Well, then it has to be an author I already like or something that comes highly recommended from a variety of sources. Because of this a lot of stuff I read is self published and I have read a lot of crap. However, last month, against all the odds, I read three (well five) great books almost on the trot.
The Great Way Series by Harry Connolly was, I believe, a BookBub recommendation. Or at least the first book was. But it was so compelling, with such good writing and solid world-building, that I knew I had to read the other two. The magic system was interesting, the characters were not overpowered or Mary Sue-ish and the ending was solid. I have to read other stuff by this guy.
The next book was Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold. I didn’t stumble on this one; I was specifically looking forward to it. It is the latest book in the Vorkosiverse and I really enjoy those books. This has got some stick from her fans as it involves what appears to be a kind of left turn for a major character, but I thought it was fine. Anyway I quite enjoyed it.
The last one was Jennifer Government by Max Barry. I saw this recommended in several places and even though I’m not a huge fan of dystopian fiction I thought I’d give it a go. This tale of corporate overlordism gone mad, could easily been written by Cory Doctorow, as it had that future surveillance vibe. It was very good and I’d really like to read more stories in that universe.