M. K. Martin
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mkmartinwriter.com
M. K. Martin
@mkmartinwriter.com
#Writer - mostly #SFF * #Editor * #Veteran * SJW * Linguistics * Will work for tea, but not before 9:30 am
'She Who Became the Sun' by Shelley Parker-Chan.

Zhu is prophesied to be a great leader, but when he dies, his sister seizes the chance to steal his fate.

'Zhu' becomes a monk, then a soldier, before rising through the ranks of the Chinese rebels.

#HistoricalFiction #LGBTQ #Military 📚⏳

32/?
December 11, 2025 at 10:33 PM
'The City We Became' by N. K. Jemisin.

NYC has a soul - or rather will if it (personified) can get its 5 boroughs (also personified) together.

But evil forces are trying to destroy this city before it can BECOME & not all the boroughs are cooperating.

#Fantasy #Contemporary #LGBTQ 🪐📚

31/?
December 11, 2025 at 10:33 PM
'Artificial Condition' by Martha Wells.

Murderbot is a free agent. Now what? They decide to investigate their past & return to the scene of where they murdered dozens of people. But to do so, they have to pose as a security consultant & interact with *gasp* humans!

#SciFi #Space #LGBTQ 🪐📚

30/?
December 11, 2025 at 10:33 PM
'Idaho' by Emily Ruskovich.

A family touched by horrific tragedy as told through multiple POVs & non-linear timeline. Lovely prose. No spoilers, but the killer is exactly who it says they are at the start, which disappointed for me as I expected a who-done-it.

#LitFic #Contemporary #BookClub

29/?
December 11, 2025 at 10:33 PM
'Nettle & Bone' by T. Kingfisher.

This isn't the story of how a princess marries a prince—it's the story of how she murders one

When Marra learns Vorling is abusing her sister & likely killed her other sister, she enlists a motley crew to deal with him

#Fantasy #FoundFamily #SweetRomance 📚🪐

28/?
December 11, 2025 at 10:33 PM
'All Systems Red' by Martha Wells.

After Murderbot hacks their governor module, they must continue their role as a Sec Unit for a group of planetary surveyors.

But when the clients are endangered, Murderbot finds they have come to...care?...about those silly humans.

#SciFi #Space #LGBTQ 🪐📚

27/?
December 11, 2025 at 2:07 PM
'What if We Kissed While Sinking a Billionaire's Yacht?' - Multiple authors, edited by Chrys Gorman.

This anthology (yes I am in it) explores the effects of #ChristoFascism in the US and how different people survive, resist, and fight back.

#Anthology #ShortStory #Poem #AntiFa 💙📚

26/?
December 11, 2025 at 2:07 PM
'Someone You Can Build a Nest In' by John Wiswell.

One of my fav reads this year. Amazing!

All amorphous blob Shesheshen wants is to hibernate in peace, but monster hunters have other ideas - they want her heart, even though she doesn't have one!

#Fantasy #Monster #FoundFamily #LGBTQ 📚🪐

25/?
December 11, 2025 at 2:07 PM
'Rosie Frost: Ice on Fire' by Geri Halliwell-Horner.

Rosie's back, but rather than finally learn the truth about her mother's death, she encounters more mysteries on Bloodstone, including a tech billionaire whose contest might not be as altruistic as it seems.

#MiddleGrade #Academy #CliFi 📚💙

24/?
December 11, 2025 at 2:07 PM
'Seaborne' by Nuala O'Connor.

A haunting imagination of the life & times of famous pirate, Anne Bonny beginning with her years in Ireland, through her family's move to North Carolina & eventual escape from an unhappy marriage to Captain Jack Rackham's ship.

#HistoricalFiction #LGBTQ 📚⏳

23/?
December 11, 2025 at 2:07 PM
'On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous' by Ocean Vuong.

This novel feels like an epistolary memoir from Little Dog to his late mother. The family managed to emigrate to the US from Vietnam after the war. Little Dog falls in love with Trevor but neither can tell anyone.

#LitFic #LGBTQ #Immigrant 🖋️📚

22/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'The Book That Wouldn't Burn' by Mark Lawrence.

AKA The Book That Wouldn't End.

This was looong & after the initial fast paced scenes, pretty slow. Lot of world building. Timey-whimey stuff.

Livira is oddly good at everything. Evar has convenient amnesia. Felt very plotty.

#EpicFantasy 🪐📚

21/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'How Not to Write a Novel' by Sandra Newman & Howard Mittelmark.

Filled with humorous examples of What Not to Do, this book demystifies the publishing industry & is an invaluable tool for folks not looking for fame & fortune in the writing industry, such as myself 😢

#NonFic #WritingAdvice 💡📚

20/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'The Hollow Places' by T. Kingfisher.

After Kara moves in with her Uncle Ed, who runs a museum of oddities, she discover there's a passage behind the wall into another world - where They want to 'play' with her.

And They may have followed her home...

#Horror #Lovecraftian #LGBTQ 🩸📚

19/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'What Feasts at Night' by T. Kingfisher.

Book 2 finds sworn soldier Easton back home in Gallacia very much against kar better judgement. Rumors abound of a moroi, stealing the locals' breath at night. But Easton doesn't believe in silly superstitions...does ka?

#Horror #Folklore #LGBTQ 🩸📚

18/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'Tangled in Time: The Burning Queen' by Kathryn Lasky.

In the past Rose is forced to serve Queen Mary, putting her at great risk being exposed as a witch due to her time traveling & burned. In the present Rose & Gran are sheltering a migrant girl from ICE

#MiddleGrade #Historical #Fantasy 🪐📚

17/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'The Art of Making Memories: How to Create and Remember Happy Moments' by Meik Wiking.

A cheerful ramble on the nature of memory and how mindfulness practices and linking memory to physical sensations can help create 'flashbulb moments'.

#NonFic #SelfHelp #HappySocialists 💡📚

16/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'Tangled in Time: The Portal' by Kathryn Lasky.

After the death of her mother, Rose goes to live with her eccentric granny. One day Rose discovers that Gran's greenhouse is a portal to Tudor England, where she meets the young Princess Elizabeth & her half siblings.

#MiddleGrade #Fantasy 🪐📚

15/?
December 10, 2025 at 11:45 PM
'Godkiller' by Hannah Kaner.

If you're familiar with The Witcher, you know the basic premise of Godkiller: broody, grim people kill dangerous monsters and get treated like sh*t. Also there's a bratty princess type who needs rescuing.

Full disclosure: I didn't finish this.

#Fantasy #LGBTQ 🪐📚

14/?
December 10, 2025 at 1:55 PM
'Alien Clay' by Adrian Tchaikovsky.

The Mandate exiles Anton, a brilliant ecologist and revolutionary organizer, to Kiln.

At first, Anton tries to keep his head down, but after his team is abandoned to the mercy of the local flora/fauna, things start to CHANGE.

#SciFi #Dystopia #Aliens 🪐📚

13/?
December 10, 2025 at 1:55 PM
'League of Dragons' by Naomi Novik

The 9th/last book in the series - The Russian campaign has weakened both Napoleon & the British allies. But the Corsican isn't going down without a fight! He manages to steal Temeraire's egg & retreats to Paris to regroup.

#AltHistory #Military 🪐📚⏳

12/?
December 10, 2025 at 1:55 PM
'Blood of Tyrants' by Naomi Novik

The 8th book in the series - Suffering amnesia after being washes overboard, Lawrence arrives in Japan. As Temeraire desperately searches for him, Lawrence struggles to survive in a country where his mere presence is against the law

#AltHistory #Military 🪐📚⏳

11/?
December 10, 2025 at 1:55 PM
'Crucible of Gold' by Naomi Novik.

The 7th book in the series - Lawrence's mission is to calm the Twsana - rightfully furious at the kidnapping & enslavement of their people in Brazil. To complicate matters, Napoleon plans an alliance with the Incan empress.

#AltHistory #Military 🪐📚⏳

10/?
December 10, 2025 at 1:55 PM
'Tongues of Serpents' by Naomi Novik.

The 6th book in the series - Lawrence's death sentence is commuted to transportation. He & Temeraire are sent to Australia where they discover the Chinese are working with smugglers to thwart British-backed East India Company.

#AltHistory #Military 🪐📚⏳

9/?
December 10, 2025 at 1:55 PM
'Victory of Eagles' by Naomi Novik.

The 5th book in the series - Lawrence & Temeraire can't sit by when the British gov decides to unleash the deadly plague against Napoleon's dragons. But their humanitarian act is also treason. Now Lawrence faces a death sentence

#AltHistory #Military 🪐📚⏳

8/?
December 10, 2025 at 1:55 PM