Snowflake Challenge #7

[florianschild]

In your own space, create a list of at least three things you'd love to receive, something you've wanted but were afraid to ask for - a wishlist of sorts. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your wishlist if you feel comfortable doing so. Maybe someone will grant a wish. Check out other people's posts. Maybe you will grant a wish. If any wishes are granted, we'd love it if you link them to this post.

I wish I may, I wish I might...

1. Recommendations for good Baby-Sitter's Club fic set when the characters are adults. My favorite when I was a girl was Claudia, but any ships and characters are fine! I'm totally new to the fandom so I'll go in any direction.
2. Book recommendations that feature an older sibling acting as a surrogate parent or raising younger siblings. Bonus points if it's angsty!
3. Book recommendations for books that reward second time reading. Essentially, books that take on a new meaning or have hidden easter eggs that you find once you have the full context.
4. Fanart or fanart recs for any of my fandoms (The Rifter, Halfway Human, Half Bad, Dragon's Winter, and/or Dark Rise).
5. Please read The Rifter or Halfway Human and come squee about them with me. If you've already read them, that counts too. (be mindful of TWs - I love sad books with crapsack worlds.)

Comments

[lilly_c]

I'm not familiar with those fandoms, hopefully someone will be.

[grav_ity]

for #3, I would recommend MURDERBOT (which, to be fair, I recommend MURDERBOT for everything, but also: they are so good, they reward you for paying attention, and they are MUCH funnier the second time. The audiobooks are particularly good, narrated by Kevin R Free.)

[florianschild]

Oh for real? I read the first novella and I enjoyed it but it didn't strike me as something I would want to reread. Maybe I should try one of the full length novels!

Thank you so much for the recommendation though!

[grav_ity]

*hyperfocus activated*

OKAY, so they are quite serialized, which means if you just jump into Network Effect, you might not get the full impact (it'll still be good, though! NE is where the series shifts a bit, it's just also very reliant on the backstory). So...depending on how you feel about completionism, it may or may not serve you better.

Free's narration is truly great (I don't love "voices" in audiobooks, and he doesn't do them, but you can still tell who is talking, because he shifts a bit). I listen at 1.5 speed.

[florianschild]

Oooh ok you've piqued my interest in the audiobooks for sure because I generally don't like voices either.

I didn't actually realize the sequels were novellas as well, I thought only the first one was. I'm not opposed to novellas and I definitely prefer to read in order. So I guess the next one is Artificial Condition? It looks like my library has the audiobooks so I'll give it a shot!

[hamsterwoman]

As a drive-by data point -- Artificial Condition was the installment that took me from "this is nice but I'm not super invested" about Murderbot to actually being a fan of the series.

(And yeah, definitely recommend reading the novellas before jumping into Network Effect. Internal chronology order and series publication order are not totally the same, but I think either is fine.)

[dray]

Buckle up; they're quite charming reads skinned with crapsack terrible worlds and crapsack terrible villains!

[panisdead]

I enjoyed (Not) Like Uber but for Babysitting in "Baby-sitter's Club." There are also a few recs at fancake under that fandom tag.

[florianschild]

Oh this was perfect! I loved it! Thank you so much!

[sarajayechan]

"Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt! It's the prequel to the oft-school-assigned "Dicey's Song", it's all about the oldest daughter raising her siblings and trying to keep them all together after their mother abandons them. And it's SUPER angsty.

[florianschild]

Oh wow, I think I actually read this series as a kid and totally forgot about it! Thank you so much!

[sarajayechan]

You're welcome!

[hamsterwoman]

2. Book recommendations that feature an older sibling acting as a surrogate parent or raising younger siblings. Bonus points if it's angsty!

Is it still of interest if the younger sibling is grown at the point where the book takes place? (but the surrogate parent role of the older sibling is of course still an important part of their relationship)

3. Book recommendations for books that reward second time reading.

We have already talked about Terra Ignota elsewhere, so let me just say that it is definitely a series that does this.

Another one of my favorite examples is the Vlad Taltos series by Steven Brust, which I have a write-up on here. This is another series I generally don't rec to people unprompted, because the individual books are fun, but getting to the point of synergy where I feel it becomes Amazing takes a while. But every time I reread these books, I find something new in them.

[florianschild]

Is it still of interest if the younger sibling is grown at the point where the book takes place?

Yes, definitely! I enjoy the dynamic at any age!

I'm somewhat overwhelemed by the thought of a 20 book series lol. Especially the idea of REDREADING a 20 book series! But I love your writeup so I'll add The Book of Jhereg to my TBR.

Thank you so much!

[hamsterwoman]

I'm somewhat overwhelemed by the thought of a 20 book series lol. Especially the idea of REDREADING a 20 book series!

Haha, very fair, and one of the reasons I don't generally rec it to people. But I will say that the Vlad books go quick -- they are short and snappily written, with lots of dialogue, and also most books function pretty well as stand-alones (unlike Terra Ignota, for example). I reread my favorites before I read the other installments in the series, and even after shorter stretches there's rewarding stuff on rereads. If you do end up reading it, would love to see your thoughts!

Yes, definitely! I enjoy the dynamic at any age!

Great! My favorite book last year was Lady Eve's Last Con by Rebecca Fraimow (the one I quoted for day 6 of snowflake), which is sci-fi heist-y F/F, but one of the central driving relationships is the one between the protagonist and her younger sister that she basically raised on a succession of spaceships/stations after their mother died. The sister is mostly not on page, but even when she is not, the strength of the relationship permeates the whole book, and the "older sibling" is also one of the things that the protagonist has in common with her love interest.

This importance of the sibling relationship and the older caretaker sibling were two of the ways in which this book reminded me of another book that I like a lot, Rose Lerner's True Pretenses. This is non-genre romance (Regency, het), which is not a genre I generally read or enjoy pretty much ever, but that book is an exception.

Oh, I should add that both of these are definitely on the lighter side vs angsty -- I mean, there's the difficulty inherent in the circumstances, and also some sibling-conflict angst, but the general tone is more lighthearted. (Which is a balance that I myself prefer, but figured I should mention that as a caveat since you were specifically welcoming angst :)

[florianschild]

Awesome! A sci-fi heist-y F/F recommendation sounds pretty amazing honestly. And I haven't heard of that novel so I will for sure check it out and see if it's something I might enjoy. Thank you so much for the recs.

Angst isn't a requirement, but it does tend to get a book bumped way up the priority list lol.

[lightbird]

Not sure how angsty you want re books about an older sibling taking charge of a younger sibling. There is a beautifully written book by Korean author Oh Jung-hee called The Bird, but fair warning, it is very, very sad and things do not turn around at the end.

You may have already read some or all of Jenny Han's YA books from the To All the Boys I've Loved Before series, but it focuses on three sisters whose mother died and although they live with their father, they very much look after each other.

[florianschild]

The Bird sounds so good, definitely my cup of angsty tea! I also like reading works that have been translated but it's not something I do enough. So thank you very much!

I've actually never read To All the Boys I've Loved Before, but I know *about* it from bookstagram and the like. I didn't know it had that dynamic though. Thank you for that rec as well!

[silveradept]

They're pitched for a younger age, but there's Laura Zimmerman's Just Do This One Thing For Me involving unwillingly keeping the scams and shady side-hustles your mother has been engaging in going so that Social Services doesn't split you and your sibling apart, and also Margaret Peterson Haddix's Don't You Dare Read This, Mrs. Dunphrey, where a high school student chronicles how her life has gone completely off the rails when both of the parents disappear.

[florianschild]

They both so really good and just right for the request. I don't mind if they're marketed as YA. Thank you so much!

[used_songs]

Some of my favorite books, all very rereadable:

House of Leaves
Mexican Gothic
Series: Three Body Problem, Dark Forest, and Death's End

[florianschild]

House of Leaves has been on my TBR for a while, but I need to get over my fear of it haha. Thank you for the suggestions!

[venusinthenight]

I recced this BSC fic back in 2022:

Dreams Come True in Your Small Town (1935 words) by DesertVixen
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Baby-Sitters Club - Ann M. Martin
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Mary Anne Spier/Charlie Thomas
Characters: Charlie Thomas (Baby-Sitters Club), Mary Anne Spier
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Grown Up in Stoneybrook, Fluff, Christmas, The way to a man's heart is with cookies

Summary: One of Mary Anne's dreams comes true...

[florianschild]

Thank you so much, I'll definitely check this out!

[volkameria]

For #3, much of John Scalzi's work is just as enjoyable, if not moreso, when reread. I've mostly read his more comedic works, but Starter Villain is a quick, fun read that benefits from both going into it blind *and* knowing all the twists.

[florianschild]

Your disclaimer (benefits from going into it blind) is very appealing to me! I'm going to see if I can get my hands on this one. Thank you very much!

[gingicat]

Who are the authors of those two books? Searching my library catalog is not working.

[florianschild]

Oh sorry, I didn't realize I completely forgot to mention that! :D

The authors are Ginn Hale (author of The Rifter) and Carolyn Ives Gilman (author of Halfway Human).

[gingicat]

Sadly, still striking out at the library. :( They don't have any books by either author.

[florianschild]

I'm not too surprised tbh. Both books are pretty unknown. Does your library offer a Hoopla membership? Both are available on Hoopla if you're ok with reading ebooks!

If you do manage to find them, I hope you enjoy. I do like to suggest that if you're sensitive to trigger warnings you check them for both books.

[gingicat]

I looked on Libby, and will happily check Hoopla.

[gingicat]

I see what you mean about warnings!

[florianschild]

Heh, yes indeed. As an angst/whump lover, I tend to read books with darker themes.