Cybernetic Tea Shop is a novella about and AI robot and an AI repair tech that lives a nomadic life in the distant future. I really liked the tea and the tea shop, but something about it felt a bit flat flat for me. The vibe was bleak, and the concept of love between an AI being and a human is one that I don't feel resonates with me. Perhaps the philosophy of what makes a being capable of love and desire is beyond my abilities and I struggled to sit with that ambiguity.
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We'll Prescribe You Another Cat is the sequel of... We'll Prescribe You A Cat, which I read last year (or the year before?) and loved. Though cozy, both books deal with the heavy subject of cat breeders and animal abuse. I cried a lot with this series, but the author gracefully navigated a hard subject. I appreciated that the reality of animal breeders, and adopting a rescue animals was such a prominent part of it.
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Maiden Railways is a manga anthology that are all tied to the theme of trains. I love trains, I adore manga, so I REALLY wanted to enjoy this, but I was so lost! Something about the action sequences kept flying over my head, and I kept confusing characters and going back and forth to tie the threads of the stories together. So it became a bit of a chore. I did love the Savarin Thursdays vignette.
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I got Hokusai: An Artists' Tribute in a Kickstarter (I'm a sucker for art books) and decided to read it as part of a Hokusai/Edo themed weekend where I watched Miss Hokusai and played Paranormasight (yes, I am a dork.) It was so cool to see the participating artists' perspective on Hokusai's influence and seeing the process tutorials. I adored all of them and appreciated the chance to expand my own knowledge about Hokusai and his legacy. Like many others, I knew he was a deeply influential artist and made The Great Wave. And that he famously said at 95, “If heaven had granted me five more years, I could have become a real painter.” But I am glad I read this book to appreciate him even more.
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Another sequel I really enjoyed lately was The Keeper of Magical Things! The romance was very cute, and I was happy to be back in the world of The Teller of Small Fortunes. I loved the little town, the villagers, and their little dwelling. And the catdragon! It was a nice, low stakes read, and I was a bit sad when I read the final sentence. I do hope Julie Leong writes more in this universe!
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Everyone is alone when they die. Just as you can’t choose the moment you meet someone, you also can’t choose the moment you die—people, animals, everyone. Please don’t cling to your need to avoid regret.
– Syou Ishida (We'll Prescribe You Another Cat)