A Year In Read-View 2025

When I write up these reading reflections I always check what I wrote the year before (mostly so I can remember the formatting of these blog posts!). Weirdly, the intro I had been writing in my head for this was almost exactly the same as last year's. I read XX number of comics/books, which was up/down from last year; my novel/non-fiction reading was XX books, up/down from the year before, mostly because my morning reading time on the train has been replaced with writing on the train (mostly); and oh look, I managed to write a thing(s), please read it (someone other than me has to!).

What does this say about my last two years? No idea. I read some things, wrote some other things, overall it was an ok year for reading - nothing terrible stood out. Rinse. Repeat. I've stopped trying to track my reading habits and feeling shame for not reading a large number of books over the year. If I really want to read something I'll make time for it (like the Silo series this year), otherwise it sits in the ever growing pile in my personal library until I'm ready. These posts are less of a boast about my reading habits, they're intended for me to sit and reflect on what I have read, how I felt about them then and now. If it encourages you to read one or more of them, great, I'd love to discuss your thoughts and feelings about it! But if you're not inspired that's also fine, you do you.

With all that said, I am actually really, really happy with my new novella Magic Wands and Turtle Demons, part of what I hope will be an ongoing series. Iphys is one of the most fun characters I've had the pleasure to write in recent years (sorry James) and I hope someone else enjoys her too.

Books red in 2025

A Fire Upon the Deep / Vernor Vinge
Too Like the Lightning / Ada Palmer
Seven Surrenders / Ada Palmer
I'm Starting to Worry About This Black Box of Doom / Jason Pargin
Ardent Violet and the Infinite Eye / Alex White|
The Spare Man / Mary Robinette Kowal
Tell Me an Ending / Jo Harkin
Wool / Hugh Howey
Shift / Hugh Howey
Dust / Hugh Howey
Menage a Magick / Lora Leigh
Nonmonogamy and Neurodiversity: A More Than Two Essentials Guide / Alyssa Gonzalez
The Anxious Person's Guide to Non-Monogamy: Your Guide to Open Relationships, Polyamory and Letting Go / Lola Phoenix

Most anticipated read

Ardent Violet and the Infinite Eye by Alex White

While I'm always excited for a new Jason Pargin book, I was actually pretty nervous reading his latest. As someone who was/is extremely online, Pargin masters the netspeak of today and Black Box of Doom skates the edges of the fringe very closely. I keep thinking 'is this the book where Pargin tells us about Jan 6th and how we need to 'Make John Die Again'? Thankfully no, but it was a pretty anxious ride. Instead, I'm going to highlight an author I've come to absolutely adore, one that I never, ever see on the bookshelves - Alex White.

Arden Violet and the Infinite Eye, is the second in the Starmetal Symphony series, the first being August Kitko and the Mechas from Space which I read back in 2023. White manages to weave an epic space opera over the survival of humanity with giant sentient mecha, and have this enormous love of music tying everything together. It has rhythmic jazz piano running throughout, mixed with norse metal drums, pop stylings, and Bollywood-ish vocals. This clash of music and culture really works and this is becoming one of my favourite new series. Oh and it's queer as hell.

Most interesting read

Too Like the Lightning & Seven Surrenders by Ada Palmer

I can't remember why I picked up the first book in the Terra Ingota series, but I'm now in too deep to go back. Ada Palmer is an interesting author, prior to writing Too Like the Lightning (her first novel by the way) she was primarily an academic researching and teaching about the Renaissance. This is important because the Terra Ignota series is steeped heavily in this history, despite being a somewhat utopian sci-fi. I'm not going to lie, it takes some dedication to get into this series.

The series is a telling of the end of the utopian period in this far future, narrated by an extremely unreliable narrator, all in a neo-Enlightenment style. This 18th century European language clashes hard against the time period being described. Gender becomes very confusing early on as Mycroft Canner, our narrator, insists on using and prescribing gender on a society that has completely done away with it. Additionally, the text often references European philosophers such as Voltair, and Hobbes, as well as Greek epics such as The Iliad and The Odyssey.

The only thing I can offer is that two books in I am completely hooked. Palmer offers up some extremely fascinating and exciting ideas, especially around non-geographic nation states which honestly, I'm 100% behind (ask me about Tuvalu and how it's working towards something similar sometime!). I look forward to rejoining Mycroft and finishing the series this year.

Unexpected gem

A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge

One of the rare times I've read a book recommend to me by a friend, and honestly I wouldn't have picked it up otherwise. This is vintage hard sci-fi. Like, maths professor writes about weird aliens and Usenet, sci-fi. Published in 1992 some of the vague Internet/Usenet interactions are weirdly still relevant ie. calling their communications network the "Net of a Million Lies". There is so much going on in this book, each part could be an entire series on its own, and together you're given this massive universe to sit and think about. Ultimately, this is a story about ultra high technology clashing with the Middle Ages. Oh except the Middle Ages is run by a species of weird dog-like creatures called 'Tines" that run around in packs of four or more that operate as a hive mind; and they're not the weirdest creatures in this book.

I'm not sure I'd recommend this as a light read, but I do think there are several really fun RPGs that could come out of this story alone. Anyone want to do a D&D inspired Tines campaign?

Comics read in 2025

Most anticipated read

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou: Deluxe Edition by Hitoshi Ashinano

I've been collecting the deluxe editions of this manga mainly because it's just so damn beautiful! While there is a story, this is primarily about the art. Intricate and beautiful backgrounds and simple but warm characters fill the pages of this manga and I just drink it all in. How I long to enjoy a nice cup of tea at Cafe Alpha.

Most interesting read

Girls' Last Tour by Tsukumizu

The story of two young girls travelling through the desolate ruins of a highly advanced human civilisation during a post-apocalyptic winter. Driving in their Kleines Kettenkraftrad HK 101 half-track motorcycle, the two girls climb up through the layers of this strange and mysterious world left behind. This is desolate, sad, reflective, but also adorable and kind.

Unexpected gem

The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague by Miyuki Tonogaya

Also known as 'Ice Guy and the Cool Girl' this is an extremely sweet slice of life, come love story about the decent of a snow sprit and his huge, adorable crush on his coworker Fuyutsuki, an ordinary woman who is oblivious to his romantic feelings. This is just feel good, cute manga.

A Year In Read-View 2025

Books red in 2025

Most anticipated read

Ardent Violet and the Infinite Eye by Alex White

Most interesting read

Too Like the Lightning & Seven Surrenders by Ada Palmer

Unexpected gem

A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge

Comics read in 2025

Most anticipated read

Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou: Deluxe Edition by Hitoshi Ashinano

Most interesting read

Unexpected gem

The Ice Guy and His Cool Female Colleague by Miyuki Tonogaya

Magic Wands and Turtle Demons - Part Four