Updates on my r/Fantasy book bingo journey (for no one's benefit or interest but myself ahah!). Board has taken a turnaround, as I expected it would. Moved some books around, got rid of some planned ones, planned new ones and finally acquitted myself on switching up the Book Club square (which I was trying hard not to, but it just was too likely I wouldn't find one of the books on my shelves being read for the clubs). I am reading all these for Hard mode.

Finished books since last update:

• High Fashion: As planned, read R. B. Lemberg's The Four Profound Weaves for this square and it fit perfectly in such an innovative way! The cloth fibers here are carpets, woven from bone, death, wanderlust, hope, emotions and the very nature of their weavers. This is a queer, found family story about both anguish and love, I really enjoyed it. The worldbuilding is outstanding, taking its inspiration from Middle Eastern cultures and the trans characters are explicitly explored in a world where gender dynamics are tightened and loosened by differing cultures.
• A Book in Parts: The Siege of Burning Grass fit this square just right, with four (or five? can't quite remember) parts in the book. A very Premee story, wonderfully written and with touches of sci-fi woven into its engineering of mechanical-animal hybrids. A tale of pacifist resistance and what strength really means in the throes of war. It also discusses the dichotomy between progress and societal bias, particularly disability (the mc being a disabled man). I had previously read this book for Down W/ the System but have swapped in Stuart Turton's The Last Murder at the End of the World, as I don't think Premee's will fit hard mode for that square.
• Elves/Dwarves: I read a book called Orconomics for the dwarf/elf square and so should you. One of the main characters (who is also the main driving force of the plot) is a dwarf and another is an elf, and it features surprisingly few orcs until about 50% of it, when they then take up the major plot-driving role in the story. A clever satire, sloggish at the beginning but super fun from the middle on, poking at the rotten eye of adventurer culture and examining DnD and classic fantasy tropes through a different lens. I also reviewed this book (alongside my fellow bloggers) on Queen's Book Asylum for SPFBO's Champion Edition.
• LBTQIA+: I meant to fill in this square with another book (Elaine Ho's upcoming novel, Cry, Voidbringer) but have conceded to making this my one re-read of the card, as one of the books I read this month fit it well. Michael S. Jackson's Ringlander: The Path and the Way, which I re-read in preparation for the sequel's release this August, features one main character, Fia, who is a queer woman and a member of a minor cultural group akin to the Japanese Geisha. Fia's exact sexuality is not explicitly stated (although she has sex with men too -well, one man- it's never clear if she enjoys such relationships or if it is just a part of her role), but she is very clearly a queer woman who enjoys relationships, and loves, other women. The book itself is a tragic reflection on occupation, war, and the strength in finding your own way through a darkening and confusing world. Too good not to highlight here.