“capable of holding the stage like few others; he stages a performance where the only protagonist is 'his' music – still, without perhaps, one of the most gifted songwriters ever”
Milan, Italy. Performers at the Weeknd’s concert at Ippodromo SNAI La Maura. Photograph: Sergione Infuso/Corbis/Getty Images / Guardian #culture #milan
This is the 3rd and final installment of my recent reads roundup. In this section, I'll be covering my two most recent sci fi reads:
Queen’s Hope by E.K. Johnston
Get ready for some high quality heartbreak, Star Wars fans!
The Padme trilogy concludes with Queen’s Hope – a book that takes place in the aftermath of Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. We find Padmé and her loyal handmaidens pulled in different directions.
Padmé has just gotten secretly married to Anakin Skywalker. Sabé, her decoy from The Phantom Menace, is pursuing her own goals for the first time – that is, until Padmé ropes her back in to be her stand-in in the senate.
Johnston has done an outstanding job writing the relationships between Padmé and the handmaidens. It’s been amazing to see how they’ve developed through this series, together and apart. To think Sabé only appears in one movie – and it’s impossible to tell young Natalie Portman and Keira Knightley apart. Sabé finally gets to be her own person, but it’s also very heartbreaking because their lives start to move in different directions and… well, we all know what happens in the final movie.
Seriously though! My heart is broken. I loved this SO MUCH.
Their relationship is so important. With the success of the Padmé trilogy and the recently released Obi-Wan Kenobi series, I think it’s high time we brought Keira Knightley back for a Sabé spinoff!
Popsugar Reading Challenge: A book you could read in one sitting (ok, I didn’t read it in one sitting, but… someone else could, if they put their mind to it!)
Similar Books: Queen’s Shadow and Queen’s Peril by E.K. Johnston, Leia: Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray
Content Warnings: violence and injuries
2. Thronebreakers by Rebecca Coffindaffer
There’s something deeply satisfying about a sequel that sticks the landing.
Coffindaffer’s first book, Crownchasers, leaves us with an obvious villain, but I had a feeling there was a bigger bad lurking in the wings. Thronebreakers proved me right in the best possible way.
It’s harder to review this one without spoiling the first book, so let’s recap. The heirs of the prime families participated in a contest to be the next ruler of their planetary empire. The first to find the imperial seal is declared the winner. Our heroine Alysa Farshot isn’t interested in being empress, but she’s an heir, so she has to participate. Things went sideways at the end of the first book and the wrong person ended up on the throne.
Book 2 picks up where we left off: Alysa faces off against the enemy, only to realize there’s something even more sinister at work. The stakes have been RAISED. The theory I had after book 1? I WAS RIGHT!!!
This book was a masterclass in following through on the promise of the first book. The plot dominoes are set up in the first half, and the author knocks them down in the second half. The result is a deeply satisfying conclusion to a high octane adventure.
I loved this duology SO MUCH. I’ll be looking forward to whatever Rebecca Coffindaffer does next!
Popsugar Reading Challenge: a book about a found family
Similar Books: Ignite the Stars by Maura Milan, Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake.
Content Warnings: sci fi violence, grief, death, blood and injuries, medical content.
That wraps things up for my May reads! I'll be back next month with some thoughts on the audiobook of The Eye of The World.
Consigliere dei Verdi minacciato perché si oppone al nuovo stadio: "Ora il sindaco prenda una decisione"
DIRETTA TV
Nuovo stadio di San Siro
11 Aprile 2023
Oltre 500 minacce e messaggi di odio contro il consigliere del Comune di Milano Carlo Monguzzi, insultato via social e via mail per le sue posizioni contro il nuovo stadio del Milan negli spazi dell’ex ippodromo La Maura. “Ti metteremo nei piloni”
48 CONDIVISIONI
Il consigliere del gruppo “Europa Verde Beppe Sala Sindaco” del Comune di…
San Siro, Sala: 'Milan conferma scelta sull'area di La Maura'
“Il Milan conferma la volontà di procedere su La Maura. Quello che ho chiesto è che innanzitutto, siccome abbiamo una discussione aperta e formale sull’ipotesi dello stadio vicino a San Siro, se non intendono procedere me lo devono formalmente confermare”. Così il sindaco Giuseppe Sala dopo l’incontro a Palazzo Marino con la proprietà del Milan. Sull’area di La Maura “ho ribadito che prendo…
Milan's plan to finance new stadium in La Maura emerges
More information continues to emerge regarding the plans that AC Milan have in mind for the construction of their new stadium.
As reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport (via MilanNews) this morning, Milan are constructing their plans for new stadium to be built in the La Maura racecourse area. To build the facility an investment value of €500-600m is estimated, which of course will not cover the…
RT @filoni_diletta: Già tra 2 settimane il #Milan potrebbe decidere di realizzare il suo stadio a La Maura: investimento tra 600 e 700 mln entro il 2028, data che i vertici del club si sono prefissati per realizzare la nuova struttura da 70mila posti circa [@sole24ore]
I’m so glad for this one because I kept thinking about books I’d love to have as tv series and had to tell myself ‘Next week, next week’ 😄 If you’d like to see more of these prompts; (and you definitely want to!) go look at Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads and see which books she’d want to see adapted!
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Magyk by Septimus Heap – It’s been super long since I read or even remember this series! I really…
As someone who doesn't normally enjoy YA books, this was better than most. Good solid writing and a unique storyline. I recommend this one to those who enjoy YA Science Fiction and Fantasy.
“The only way you can live with your past is to recognize that every decision you make in your life will make you stronger. There’s no such thing as right or wrong, Brinn. Not in this universe.”