In this time of physical (social) distancing, it’s unwise to travel for pleasure and exploration. Fortunately for over 500 years there’s been a wildly available way to visit many worlds: via the written word. As one of the pillars of my childhood, Arthur, sang, “Having fun, isn’t hard, when you’ve got, a library card!”

Having both a library card and the ability to read eBooks on a tablet, I decided take a break in reading the Wheel of Time (7 books+prequel completed since the late summer) to find Flow by reading all of the 2020 Hugo Best Novel nominees:

The City in the Middle of the Night, by Charlie Jane Anders (Tor; Titan)

A Memory Called Empire, by Arkady Martine (Tor; Tor UK)

Middlegame, by Seanan McGuire (Tor.com Publishing)

The Ten Thousand Doors of January, by Alix E. Harrow (Redhook; Orbit UK)

Gideon the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir (Tor.com Publishing)

The Light Brigade, by Kameron Hurley (Saga; Angry Robot UK)

Many others seem to have a similar idea, but I was fortunately able to check out one of the books while being wait-listed for the rest.

So Tuesday evening I began Middlegame, by Seanan McGuire. Gripping and delightful, it begins with the end. Clearly written by a talented wordsmith, I look forward to reading the rest of the novel and will share my thoughts here on each of the nominees.

Read (and write) on!