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Books read in April
May. 1st, 2026 07:07 amEyes of the Void by Adrian Tchaikovsky
The second book in The Final Architecture series, the character work is great. But for a book focusing on the unknowable, it felt like there was far to much time spent on trying to describe muddle explanations that fail to illuminate them at all.
Raised Embroidery: A Practical Guide to Decorative Needlework by Barbara and Roy Hirst
As an embroiderer who used to do medieval reenactment, I was familiar with stumpwork, a technique that added raised figures to an piece. The Hirsts take these tools and apply them to contemporary work. This gives me some great ideas for a piece I've been planning of an astronaut floating against a background of deep black velvet.
The Doctor Who Cookbook by Gary Downie
I picked this up on a whim at a dealer's table at Gallifrey One this year. Published in 1985, early in the sixth Doctor's era, Downie gathered recipes from Doctors, companions, crew, recurring actors, and many of the crew. Humorous commentary and funny drawings are great additions.
The Glimmering by Elizabeth Hand
This is a post-apocalyptic sf book from 1997. It's set on the cusp of New Years Eve 1999 on an alternate timeline where man made climate manipulation coincided with a massive solar flare to cause catastrophic changes to the atmosphere and ozone layer. The book follows two characters: a middle-aged man tackling his worsening AIDS and the failures of his family's fortunes and prestigious literary magazine and a teenager from a Christian cult on the verge of becoming a rock star as the structure of society unravels around them.
The second book in The Final Architecture series, the character work is great. But for a book focusing on the unknowable, it felt like there was far to much time spent on trying to describe muddle explanations that fail to illuminate them at all.
Raised Embroidery: A Practical Guide to Decorative Needlework by Barbara and Roy Hirst
As an embroiderer who used to do medieval reenactment, I was familiar with stumpwork, a technique that added raised figures to an piece. The Hirsts take these tools and apply them to contemporary work. This gives me some great ideas for a piece I've been planning of an astronaut floating against a background of deep black velvet.
The Doctor Who Cookbook by Gary Downie
I picked this up on a whim at a dealer's table at Gallifrey One this year. Published in 1985, early in the sixth Doctor's era, Downie gathered recipes from Doctors, companions, crew, recurring actors, and many of the crew. Humorous commentary and funny drawings are great additions.
The Glimmering by Elizabeth Hand
This is a post-apocalyptic sf book from 1997. It's set on the cusp of New Years Eve 1999 on an alternate timeline where man made climate manipulation coincided with a massive solar flare to cause catastrophic changes to the atmosphere and ozone layer. The book follows two characters: a middle-aged man tackling his worsening AIDS and the failures of his family's fortunes and prestigious literary magazine and a teenager from a Christian cult on the verge of becoming a rock star as the structure of society unravels around them.
