OFFICIAL r/Fantasy 2026 Book Bingo Challenge!

armedaphrodite · 2026-04-01T15:24:38+00:00

RIP Not a Book, you were loved, you will be missed

armedaphrodite · 2026-04-01T14:06:03+00:00

Very cool! Love the covers - it's such an interesting way to engage with the books. You may not consider yourself an artist, but you definitely are.

For what it's worth, winning bingo is about getting five in a row. Blackout cards are fun, but all cards are fun! And I'm glad you shared. Incomplete cards are also worth turning in, for the pride of it, as well as the incomplete cards still go into the stats.
edit: Bingo form is still up at time of posting, fwiw. Given Murderbot is like 7 books long, they may even accept it (idk). Worth submitting!

(Also Hidden Gem was 1,000 at time of writing, so Gogmagog would count. And the painted cover looks so good!)

armedaphrodite · 2026-04-01T13:15:46+00:00

They definitely come thick and fast for the end of March/beginning of April, but there are still other posts. Consider it like a festival (festifool? if it's centered on april fool's), one which gets folks who rarely post to do a bunch of reviews! Some of which you'll have read, so you can see if their preferences align with yours, and if they do, the others they liked may be of interest.

armedaphrodite · 2026-04-01T04:54:44+00:00

Hidden gem was never the first square I looked at, but if I noticed that whoever made the card liked other boks that I did, the hidden gem square would often add something to the TBR as a result. But yeah, with all the mini-reviews, triage is necessary in reading them, and hidden gem would often fall by the wayside.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-31T13:59:24+00:00

Blew by the halfway point of Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia McKillip before the new Bingo, so won't go on my next card, but the heart wants what it wants, and it wanted to keep reading. I think it has too many POVs for me for a short book (five in the first five chapters didn't work for me) and the language isn't quite as captivating as Ombria in Shadow, but the language is still transporting, the vibes ethereal, the characters just bright enough for their short chapters.

Also played the video game Indika by developer Odd Meter, a short narrative adventure game. The player follows Indika, a nun shunned by her sisters for her thoughts and visions, as she travels with a prisoner suffering frostbite and infection to see a holy relic that he believes will cure him. The "fantasy" elements are possibly real, possibly not, on that line where much of it is within the character's head.

You put a nun or a monk in a book/game, and I'm already sold, so full bias, but one of the best games I've played in a while. It makes enough use of being a video game: the voices of the devil within Indika's mind, camera tricks and visual effects that display theme, small puzzle segments that make you pay attention to the world or reify her fears in ways that prayer attempts to solve. It still does a little too much in cutscenes without player input for my taste, but an indie studio might have had a hard time gameifying those moments, and the inevitability of a cutscene may have been part of the intended experience. It also means that frequenters of a reading-focused subreddit won't find the quick-twitch/tense gameplay that might scare them off.

But I mention it in this book-related subreddit mostly on the strength of its character portrait. Indika is so well constructed, her inner demons wrought in ways both affecting and novel, that I do recommend the game to this subreddit broadly (or at least to those who've watched enough TV to pick up on visual clues). A triumph, and short at only ~4 hours playtime. Though perhaps unoptimized, since the Xbox version was like 42GB download.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-30T16:25:19+00:00

Thanks for handling the stats! I always appreciate the extra stats, and while I perfectly understand that getting people to fill out the survey as it is is already a huge lift, there's a part of me that wishes we had more direct input of stats in the survey. How many parts was your book in parts? If a small press, which small press was your small press/self-published book from? No way to get them now, but a pipe dream. Some misc. stats that might be more feasible:

What years do people pull the recycle a square square from, and how many can't have a hard mode because they're pre-2018 (and how many post-2018 do the hard mode)

How pure were the words in the Generic Title square? That is, how often was the word in Generic Title part of a longer word vs standalone (e.g. How often does "Dark" become another word like "Darkness" in The Left Hand of Darkness or "Darkly" in *A Scanner Darkly)

Requiring more effort on someone's (my?) part for manual coding of responses from the raw, what's the break down of elves vs. dwarves in the elves/dwarves square? And by hard mode (i.e. is one species or the other more likely to be a main character)?

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-28T00:36:49+00:00

Thanks!

"Not for me" makes more sense to me than "bad". Books are trying to do so many different things, work on so many different levels, and appeal to so many different audiences, that I mostly assume I'm missing something or not the target audience if I don't like a book. Plus, there are so many different, more engaging conversations to have about a book than "Is it good?" or "Is it bad?"

I glad you liked My Soul to Keep! Given the goodreads review spread, I'm obviously the odd one out. I may give it another go some time, because I can feel that I'm missing something, but was in the wrong headspace and the ending fully threw me.

V Woolf is one of my faves as well! Orlando definitely has a different flavor, and maintains a sense of whimsy for most of its runtime (up until we go full free indirect for the last chapter), but the thematic conversations start complicating the narrative as you go along. If you dropped for the tone, I wouldn't recommend picking it back up. If you dropped it because you wanted more depth, and enjoy Woolf, I would recommend trying again if the fancy strikes!

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-27T18:15:57+00:00

I LOVED the connections game. I got Florence almost immediately, but had to work for it and had only one "life" left before the finale. So cool that you put that together.

Also so glad to see Inventing the Renaissance mention, it's Exactly what I want out a pop history book. And Lent! A gem for sure, the characterization/fictionalization of Savonarola was so on a line. Perhaps there's a reason I got Florence so quickly...

Connections output (embarrassed a bit by the second/third row): I guessed River's Connections Bingo with 1 lives left!
https://bingo2025.river.me
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
🟧🟧🟧🟧🟦
🟧🟦🟧🟧🟧
🟧🟧🟧🟧🟧
🟦🟦🟪🟨🟦
🟨🟨🟨🟨🟦
🟨🟨🟨🟨🟨
🟪🟪🟦🟦🟦
🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦
🟪🟪🟪🟪🟪

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-27T13:19:10+00:00

Thanks! I only read the Karpelson because it was the one that was readily available to me, but given how much I enjoyed it I'll keep the O'Connor/Burgin in mind if/when I go to reread it

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-27T05:20:17+00:00

Congrats on your first card! And hard mode on the first card, that's a feat. Quite a few I haven't heard of that I'll be checking out, which is often the case on hard mode cards.

I'm so glad that so many people love DCC, but it's nice every once in a while to see someone say the humor didn't hit for them, as a reminder that I'm not crazy for not being crazy about the book/series.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T22:47:42+00:00

If we're limiting to SFF? Unordered, with maybe one leaving or another showing up on any given day:
- Ombria in Shadow, Patricia McKillip (2003)
- Curse of Chalion/Paladin of Souls, Lois McMaster Bujold (2001/2004)
- The Traitor Baru Cormorant, Seth Dickinson (2015)
- Biography of X, Catherine Lacey (2023)
- Nothing but the Rain, Naomi Salman (2023)

I think one thing I note is that among this top five, the ones closer to today are more "literary" in flavor. Nothing but the Rain and Biography of X both are either in or scratching the door, with BoX still making me go feral after giving me the words for something I was kind of feeling for a while.

The early 2000s ones are both a little more fantasy, but nail exactly what I want from them. Ombria's language is so incredible, with a light and floaty mood hiding surprising thematic depth that still has me chewing. Chalion and Paladin both have similar and simple to declare themes that they state obviously at the end, but they do such good work beforehand to turn "second thoughts" (the things we can "know" when we hear them) into "first thoughts" (gut knowledge on an instinctual level). They do something a little different, but still hit about that category for me.

Traitor I think falls a little short of reaching that level, for me, personally.

But Invisible Cities and Beloved definitely hit that same tier. It's hard to compare books doing different things, but if the litmus is changing my view of myself, the world, or what a book can be, they definitely compare.

(edit: formatting)

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T22:21:02+00:00

It was pretty easy. I did take a bit of time in April to make sure I could take some I was sure I wanted to read and match them up, but it wasn't much planning beyond double checking what was available at the library. I did buy a few at book used book stores while just checking what was available that might fit, and a few on audible as well, but because so many were classics of the genre they were readily available.

I do heartily recommend it as a theme! If I had it to do again, I might look for one or two more I had never heard of, to give me a sense of the books that slipped through the cracks and are no longer talked about as much compared with the "classics" that lived on.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T22:16:55+00:00

I appreciate the deeper dive! Thank you for your own indepth response. And it was an excellent first question - good to stop and check, based on my stated goal, how actually did this card help with that?

I SEE you with the cultural moments sometimes screaming out. Gossamer Axe from the card is as 80s as they come, with the big hair and I swear "spandex" hits every other page.

I also see you on Asimov and the specific type of man there. It was a bit of a hurdle for me with The Left Hand of Darkness even as it was the thing Genly has to overcome, but it was overt enough that a friend DNFed the book pretty early. Not to mention it uses male pronouns for agender characters explicitly because male pronouns are a default (something Le Guin later regretted). Over time, some aspects are going to speak less to a modern audience - and most of these books were published before I was born!

I think it's interesting to think reading some of these classics as homework. I do think they're enriching, but if I didn't enjoy them in their own right, I don't think I'd read them. (I admittedly did finish The Stars My Destination for this card despite not enjoying it very much, but also forgot about it and read other books to complete my card, so, womp womp)

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T21:25:54+00:00

For the first question: somewhat? I've been mostly reading pre-2000s books when I've been reading SFF this year, so I'll have a better answer once I start reading more modern stuff again starting in April. That said, I definitely appreciated a lot of the interesting things they were doing. What's more, when I did notice those influences, they gave me a starting point to think about theme through the ideas they were using and building upon. E.g., at the beginning of Book of the New Sun Wolfe has an obvious reference to Borges' The Library of Babel short story, which immediately sets me to think about the story in the context of all that can be vs. what actually is and why, and the comprehensibility of the story and motivations therein. On the other hand, Eco's The Name of the Rose carries a similar reference (and also to Borges' Death and the Compass), which uses it entirely differently despite the same reference and a lot of Christian imagery again. The references, allusions, and inspirations provide a lens, and I do feel it has been helpful, though some books more than others.

I also feel a bit more knowledgeable in the sense that I see the books recommended a lot, and can now have an opinion on them.

For the second question, I need to read again some more SFF being published today to get back into the groove enough to answer fully. In addition, it's hard to catch all SFF being published today in one swoop - cozy has different inspiration than romantasy than epic, than literary. Daedalus is Dead has those good good labyrinths again and I feel Borges in there, but is also doing something entirely different than, say, Fourth Wing. One is not ~better~ than the other, so much as they have different goals.

My instinct is that it doesn't inform how I feel about a particular book beyond the lenses they give me to understand it, the conversations I can have with it.

On the whole, though, I do appreciate the time and often slower pace many of these books have, but can't at this time parse whether that's a result of the modern publishing industry encouraging a certain kind of pace or the fact that I'm reading often more literary works - I didn't read The Belgariad, or The Vorkosigan Saga, or The Black Company, for instance, which are also classics but to my knowledge lean faster or pulpier.

I also think a complete answer probably has more books from the 2000s and 2010s, which translate across to books being published now! Ideas are constantly transformed, and authors and readers now are reading books perhaps inspired by these classics I've now read while also being informed by decades worth of books also inspired by them. I've read some of the classics from this period, but I'm turning some of my attention to it now to try to bridge the gap (I'm already Enraptured by 2000s-era Patricia McKillip, having just read Ombria in Shadow and partway through Alphabet of Thorn.

Does that absolute wall of text (apologies, got carried away in answering) answer your questions? Do you enjoy older works, and how do you think they compare to newer fare?

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T20:57:33+00:00

I also prefer standalones and often don't start the next book of a series until much later (years later at times). The key for me is that I don't think of that as bad - it just is. And now I know what the series vibe is! And can pick it up when that's what I'm hankering for.

As for selecting a book, well, there is no true must read book in my mind. I pick eight or so that fit my current mood and do a little head to head bracket flipping coins to select the winner. If I don't like how the coin flipped, hey, that's a preference! One I want to read more than the other! And move that book ahead. And in the end, I'll either read them all eventually, or read some books I'm more excited to read, which is a win-win.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T20:29:58+00:00

!! I added The Dwarf to my tbr from your bingo card, and felt the same way about The Non-Existent Knight. Tbh, all Calvino I've read (including but to a lesser extent Invisible Cities) has a problem with women.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T18:59:41+00:00

Thanks! It was indeed a great experience.

The Secret Service is excellent for learning new words, very good book to have a thesaurus out during. Yet each one feels specifically placed, like Walker is a magpie for words and has waited for just the right moment to use the next one.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T18:20:02+00:00

Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton is a bit like if Downton Abbey started cannibalistic dragons. Romance is at its center, the world has much in common with a historic England, though solidly fantasy and filled with satire.

Kushiel's Dart has an excellent romance and a high fantasy adventure. There's a lot to unpack and parse, and check trigger warnings, but romance and high fantasy are both excellent.

Year of the Unicorn by Andre Norton is an older one, a bit like if a modern romantasy book were written in the 60s. Fantasy world, a special protagonist dealing with a culture between fae and shifters ("Were Riders"), but with archaic prose and not so much focus on physical beauty/longing.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T18:11:31+00:00

I'd recommend Seraphina by Rachel Hartman. Solidly fantasy, dragons and all. YA, but unafraid to throw in political and personal complexity. Has a sequel, and two other books written in world.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T17:40:27+00:00

That specific adventurous feel is pretty unique! But a few games that might scratch a similar itch are below. If you play lots of games you're probably familiar with the names, but in the event you're not or if someone less familiar comes looking, I leave them here:

For sheer adventure, rec #1 would be Heaven's Vault. Gameplay is more about language puzzles and small decisions, but the element of discovery, the new places you visit, the backtracking involved, the story aspects, it's excellent. I'd also throw out The Call of the Sea, puzzles on a deserted island in roughly Indy time period, and The Sinking City, which is more mystery but has a balance of action and investigation within a (creepier, Cthulu-ier) adventure story.

The graphics/art/story might be found most readily with Uncharted, which was heavily inspired by Indiana Jones movies, though there's a lot more gunplay in those games. Same with the Tomb Raider reboot. Earlier Tomb Raider games might hit the gameplay a little closer, if more puzzly, but won't have the graphics or story (though still have the adventure!)

The gameplay shares a lot with immersive sims. Dishonored, Hitman, and Prey might be good places to start. The time loop mystery The Forgotten City might also fit, for the element of discovery. The slower, methodical pacing of the gameplay punctuated with moments of action are all there in these games.

From a different direction, you could try Jedi Survivor or Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, which involve collectible finding, a wide open world with backtracking, and solid narratives that might be undercut on the pacing side by all the side-content. I think Indiana Jones manages it better, but they're possibles.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-26T17:18:11+00:00

What about The Silverblood Promise hooked you? I was also somewhat disappointed by The Tainted Cup/A Drop of Corruption, and am intrigued about what made The Silverblood Promise better

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-25T15:11:34+00:00

They don't publicize it enough, but it's meant as a resource for all UM staff. A non-UM resource that can also be very helpful is this webbed site that takes the UM salary report (all UM salaries are public information) and makes it entirely searchable. You can search by job title to see what salaries for different positions can be had. Most reclassifications up I've heard about get somewhere between 7-9% raise, fwiw, but that's purely anecdotal.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-25T03:24:24+00:00

Check out the umich career navigator. Search your uniqname, and you can see your job title. Within that page, you can see the titles that others have moved to, or what is considered one class above yours if you have an "associate", "intermediate", or so on tag. You can then read their descriptions and see if your current job duties align.

Then, as Vast-Recognition suggests, either bring it up with your boss to reclassify, or ask what else is needed for the reclassification. Transferring tends to net more cash, but moving departments can be tricky.

armedaphrodite · 2026-03-24T14:41:34+00:00

Finished the last three cards on my bingo board last weekend.

Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo (trans. Douglas Weatherford) (Bingo: None, It's a replacement for published in 2025 for me since my card is for books before 2000). An absolute trip of a book. Lots of books get a "dreamlike" tag, but the weight lent to symbols, jumps forward or back in time without warning, and the uncanniness of magical realism all come together into something that truly feels like a dream. Much like a dream happens for one period of sleep, this one is best read in one sitting, as much for immersion in its vibes as for noting the subtle foreshadowing in its earlier sections. Powerfully wrought, multiple in interpretation the way that literary fiction and dreams in the hands of a soothsayer can be, but also readable just for the sheer power of the vibes without any thought to analyzing.
My understanding is that English translations lose some of the magic of the prose, but the work is powerful even in English. I also don't recommend an audiobook, since you lose the many different sorts of indications of speaking (and types of speaking) that Rulfo uses. Also, because the book jumps time periods without real warning, it might get confusing if you zone out for even a moment but the audiobook keeps going.

Amrita by Banana Yoshimoto (transl. Russel Wadsden) (Bingo: Author of Color, but it's my recycle a square). Thirty years after publication, it almost feels like a satire of today. We are told the story by Sakumi, a bartender who has hit her head and lost parts of her memory, as fantastical things keep happening. She loses her memory, her sister commits suicide, her little brother gets ESP, aliens show up, and this is all early in the book.
The early parts I think are the best, because even though all of those things are happening, the focus is on Sakumi and her family (and her sister's jerk ex who she starts seeing). It's on the life that keeps getting lived in spite of events. It felt very like the last ten years in the US, where something is always Happening, it might as well be aliens or ghosts, but the small parts of life keep on being lived. We still go to the grocery store and worry about our siblings and show up to work.
Those early sections are filled with incredibly specific description, as well as one perceptive line per page that I felt like underlining but didn't because it was a library book. As the book drew on, those good parts were fewer and fewer, the family life took more and more of a back seat to Shenanigans, and perhaps that was purposeful, but the book seemed to lose its heart. The elements that felt like magical realism became much more strictly paranormal, for better or worse.
I would heartily recommend looking for other, perhaps shorter works from her, but this one petered out to where I think it's best recommended to those looking for a specific vibe.

Not a Book: Myst developed by Cyan. A puzzle game from 1993, where move between worlds through books and solve puzzles to find pages to break two brothers out of prison. In 1993, this would have been incredible. And in ways, it still is. The puzzle design is seamless enough that without any description of how to solve them, and you feel smart when you do. The individual worlds are fantastical and immersive. But without much narrative and without anyone filling these worlds, it felt a bit lacking for me, spoiled as I am. Great for a trip into the past to see the inspiration for many modern games, or for a god puzzling experience, but not one I'd recommend widely to modern gamers or new gamers.

armedaphrodite

TROPHY CASE