I just read _Made Things_, by Adrian Tchaikovsky. Not like Discworld, not funny, but very good. It has been described as faintly similar to The Borrowers, but the point of similarity is small beings in a big dangerous world. Tone is faintly similar to Truckers/ Diggers / Wings but again, not the same. Homunculi of various types, on their own, need to get more magic to create more of their kind.
I just started reading (and gone through the first chapter of) Ukraine: Forging a Nation by Yaroslav Hrytsak.
It isn't an easy read so far, but it helps that I've had a firm grounding in the Russian language and history (thanks to reading two histories of Russia).
I've no political axe to grind, by the way. I am merely curious and wish to know.
I gave up on the Ukraine book. It was far too difficult ... and I'm not one to easily give up on books, but it was depressing. God, it was depressing. It was so depressing I found myself skipping whole pages in self-defense.
I'm currently reading The Portable Door by Tom Holt. (Thank you, Dug, for the recommendation).
And ... it's fine. I mean, it's my first Tom Holt book. The book itself lurches between bouts of soul-crushing despair and soul-raising euphoria. I sometimes find myself wishing I could pick up the clottish main character, Paul Carpenter, and shake him by the lapels and point out that Sophie likes him too if he would stop being so self-absorbed and determined to be miserable. But it is what it is.
I just got as far as chapter 7, which means
that I found out that Tanner's mother is a goblin, and so is he.
I like Tom holts books some of his earlier ones are my favourites, made me laugh, I like the newer ones as well portable door is the start of the newer series. He also wrote
Goatsong- his history series four all together I think?
The Walled Orchard about life in 5th century Greece
Not keen on these ones did not read just sample
Lucia in Wartime:1
Lucia Triumphant: 2
