Bookish Encounters

In an effort to have a day to spend with one of my partners, and to include the other one in this book club (he has a rotating conflict on Tuesdays), CBC is moving to the THIRD MONDAY of the month. Also, December's meeting was originally scheduled for Christmas Eve, which no one wanted.

Books will be announced in comments. We are currently listing 3-4 suggested books a month. READ WHAT YOU HAVE TIME FOR AND WHAT INTERESTS YOU! Don't be a no-show if you didn't read anything. Odds are good that I didn't either! We're happy to have you join the conversation regardless.

CBC is co-ed and all ages, so feel free to bring anyone who may be interested in the subject matter. However, we do read adult books, so use your best judgement if inviting youngins.

All events are virtual. I love not having to find locations and parking. Comic Book Club is on the 3rd Monday of the month, via zoom. Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84258043455?pwd=YndkODNUK09DQXdIMnlWUzBkdFMzQT09

I pick books for the next year in October-December from our Goodreads list. Please vote for books via this list: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/199258.Comic_Book_Club_Recommendations_2024_Revision_MEMBERS_ONLY
You can vote for books already on the list or add other things. My only request is you don't add anything we've already read. You can see the complete list of over 200 books we've read at https://www.amazon.com/ideas/amzn1.account.AH7BMWV5TF7LIYTIVOISDXXK3Z4A/XD4DYUA0MI0F?type=explore&ref=idea_cp_vl_ov_d

NOTE FOR EVERYONE: I DO NOT GET NOTIFICATIONS OF MESSAGES ON EVENTS. IF YOU NEED TO CONTACT ME FOR ANY REASON, PLEASE SEND ME A DIRECT MESSAGE OR EMAIL!

For the month of May, we will be reading A Master of DJinn by P. Djeli Clark. Description:

Cairo, 1912: Though Fatma el-Sha’arawi is the youngest woman working for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, she’s certainly not a rookie, especially after preventing the destruction of the universe last summer.

So when someone murders a secret brotherhood dedicated to one of the most famous men in history, al-Jahiz, Agent Fatma is called onto the case. Al-Jahiz transformed the world forty years ago when he opened up the veil between the magical and mundane realms, before vanishing into the unknown. This murderer claims to be al-Jahiz, returned to condemn the modern age for its social oppressions. His dangerous magical abilities instigate unrest in the streets of Cairo that threaten to spill over onto the global stage.

Alongside her Ministry colleagues and a familiar person from her past, Agent Fatma must unravel the mystery behind this imposter to restore peace to the city—or face the possibility he could be exactly who he seems…

The library has multiple copies:
https://sandiego.bibliocommons.com/v2/search?query=a%20master%20of%20djinn&searchType=title

Bookshop.org has it in paperback and Ebook format: https://bookshop.org/p/books/a-master-of-djinn-p-dj-l-clark/e22b31dc6a038669?ean=9781250267665&next=t

Mysterious Galaxy has it on their shelevs:
https://mystgalaxy.com/search?q=a%20master%20of%20djinn

Hope to see you there!

For May, we will be reading the novella Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire.
Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children

No Solicitations
No Visitors
No Quests

Children have always disappeared under the right conditions; slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere... else.

But magical lands have little need for used-up miracle children.

Nancy tumbled once, but now she’s back. The things she’s experienced... they change a person. The children under Miss West’s care understand all too well. And each of them is seeking a way back to their own fantasy world.

But Nancy’s arrival marks a change at the Home. There’s a darkness just around each corner, and when tragedy strikes, it’s up to Nancy and her new-found schoolmates to get to the heart of the matter.

No matter the cost.

There are several formats available at the San Diego County library:
https://sdcl.bibliocommons.com/v2/record/S182C489068?utm_source=libraryextension.com&utm_content=title_link&utm_medium=onpage_catalog_view

It is available from Mysterious Galaxy in several formats:
https://mystgalaxy.com/book/9780765385505

It is also currently on Kindle Unlimited:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0765385503?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_thcv_0&storeType=ebooks

We will be reading Tana French's The Witch Elm for the June Mystery Book Club. Description:

Toby is a happy-go-lucky charmer who’s dodged a scrape at work and is celebrating with friends when the night takes a turn that will change his life—he surprises two burglars who beat him and leave him for dead. Struggling to recover from his injuries, beginning to understand that he might never be the same man again, he takes refuge at his family’s ancestral home to care for his dying uncle Hugo. Then a skull is found in the trunk of an elm tree in the garden—and as detectives close in, Toby is forced to face the possibility that his past may not be what he has always believed.

A spellbinding standalone from one of the best suspense writers working today, The Witch Elm asks what we become, and what we’re capable of, when we no longer know who we are.

The library has it in multiple formats: https://sandiego.bibliocommons.com/v2/search?query=the%20witch%20elm&searchType=title

Bookshop.org has it in paperback and ebook format: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-witch-elm-a-novel-tana-french/719fceba64acebbc?ean=9780735224643&next=t

Hope to see you there!