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Speculative fiction recommendations featuring fabric or fiber arts?
I've decided to try fantasy bingo this year. The most obviously challenging category for me on the reddit list is the challenge to find a book I will enjoy featuring fiber or fabric crafting or artistry.
Does anyone have suggestions?
I have read and enjoyed Surrender None by Elizabeth Moon which fits but I want to read something new and save rereads for the end of the year if I get stuck. Surrender None fits at least two bingo categories as it is also a story about disrupting systems.
Spinning Silver - Naomi Novik
Sandry's Book - Tamora Pierce
Daughter of the Forest - Juliet Marillier (a telling of the fairytale of the brothers turned to swans)
Not a good book, IMO: Vampire Knitting Club, except the MC can't knit... Idk if it counts
I've read all these though none recently.
I'm reading The Remarkable Retirement of Edna Fisher and this lady keeps knitting all the time. (Edna is in a nursing home when told she's The Chosen One™ is my pitch) Quite enjoyable so far
Thank you.
Yeah I'm gonna try once again to do bingo as well so maybe we can check in in the book threads!
Sounds like a plan.
@rheingoldriver is doing bingo I believe.
yes I am!! normally the first place to look for any square is the recommendation list and then when I'm really stuck I'll browse the list in the focus thread when we get there, because I think people figure out what works for a square a lot more as the year goes on so usually the focus thread has the best recs. Are you doing hard mode? That makes a big difference for this square, I think "mc does fiber arts" is a LOT harder than "fashion is important to the plot"
For NM, my #1 rec is really just Mask of Mirrors & sequels as mentioned in the OP for this square - that trilogy is one of my favorite of all time and fits perfectly for NM. For HM, I currently have penciled in, Olivia Atwater's Ten Thousand Stitches - I extremely loved Half a Soul but then I wasn't up for the character change in book 2 so I didn't continue the trilogy, but if it's anything like book 1 it'll be delightful!
Also I think (though I don't have mod confirmation) that masks are a subset of fashion, and I would count e.g. Baru Cormorant here, because masks are super important to that plot. Also Empire of Exiles by Erin M. Evans features plot-relevant masks, though not quite as prominently, I read that book for my Empire card last year and loved it.
Another one for NM is An Alchemy of Masques and Mirrors which I think is fun to read for the same card as A Mask of Mirrors because the titles are so similar, but the books are extremely different. Alchemy is book 1 in Risen Kingdoms by Curtis Craddock, and that whole trilogy is a ton of fun (though book 1 is the best). MC is forced by her culture to pay a lot of attention to fashion.
And if you've read Sandry's Book already (and also her Circle Opens entry) but are otherwise ok with MG, for HM The Darkangel by Meredith Ann Pierce would fit. This book was extremely traumatic to me as a kid, I thought it was by Tamora Pierce (lol!) and it was waaaaaaaaaaaaay too scary for me at 10 years old. But looking back I think it was probably pretty good and I was just too young for it.
Thanks for the advice!
I'm personally more interested in crafting than I am in fashion but I am not overall trying for hard mode in any committed way.
Baru Cormorant is a book I have read and 'enjoyed' aka was gripped by the plot and emotion. I'm saving re-read as a wild card for the end if I need it.
@rheingoldriver, Cetaganda by Bujold would work. Also as I mentioned up top, Surrender None by Elizabeth Moon. @Definitelynotafae
If you liked Baru and haven't read Alchemy yet then I'd probably recommend trying An Alchemy of Masques and Mirrors. It has a very twisty plot, and the MC has to grapple with physical disability in a world that's very unfriendly to women. She does math and science and solves mysteries and generally is very awesome; the fashion is not that the book is centered around fashion, but that she often has to make sure that she's properly dressed (which includes being stitched into her clothing because it's based on pre-zippers-existing France and she's nobility) before doing things. It's a steampunk definitely-not-France vs definitely-not-Spain with airships and all around a good time.
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll try it.
I got burned by priory of the orange tree and I really was worried about this book category.
The City of Woven Streets by Emmi Itäranta.
Thank you!
So it sounds like you need a book for bingo purposes, but if your interest extends outwards into general fictional expressions of the fabric arts, I recommend Loom by Lucasarts.