Here are 98 books that Of Swine and Roses fans have personally recommended if you like
Of Swine and Roses.
Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.
My dad and Uncle (who was not my uncle!) were both WWII veterans; I was fortunate to receive an artist’s grant to gather stories from WWII veterans in Minnesota and told several at concerts honoring the anniversary of D-Day. My counseling background unexpectedly came into play as their stories left me understanding their heroism, sacrifice, shell shock, and grief. These vets grew up never leaving a circle about a hundred miles across and were suddenly thrown into a foreign country and war. I was compelled to research and write about the 1930’s, life on the farm, young romance, and trying to heal PTSD after the war.
Every now and then, I discover a book that has imagined a world and/or a character that takes me by surprise, and I can’t stop reading about them. Again, it’s all about character! In this book, I met a human cyborg enslaved by a computer program and built as a security unit rented out to corporate groups exploring planets for profit.
This sentient cyborg frees itself from enslavement, hilariously staves off the boredom of security work by watching its favorite media series, and as it watches characters in these shows, begins to learn about human behavior. I enjoyed the awkward, touching way it developed friendships and emotional connections. The character, which calls itself Murderbot, presents as if it’s on the spectrum.
Its first-person narration is snarky, occasionally hilarious, and endearing as it slowly learns what it means to have friendships. And oh, it finds all this wildly inconvenient, hates eye…
All Systems Red by Martha Wells begins The Murderbot Diaries, a new science fiction action and adventure series that tackles questions of the ethics of sentient robotics. It appeals to fans of Westworld, Ex Machina, Ann Leckie's Imperial Raadch series, or lain M. Banks' Culture novels. The main character is a deadly security droid that has bucked its restrictive programming and is balanced between contemplative self discovery and an idle instinct to kill all humans. In a corporate dominated s pa cef a ring future, planetary missions must be approved and supplied by the Company. Exploratory teams are accompanied by…
It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.
The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to run…
I love to read, and sometimes I want to be lost in a story or world for just an hour or two. Oh, I’m always sorry when a good story ends, no matter how long or short. But a good novella is like a slice of homemade chocolate cake. I might want to eat more, but if it’s perfectly done, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as that first, warm slice out of the oven.
Lindsay Buroker weaves great characters into her books and novellas. This is the best of space opera with an important “rescue” at the heart of the mystery. No worthy man, guard dog, or even android will be left behind.
The series develops into a romantic series set in outer space. This book stands on its own, with a lovely main character who has enough brains and talent to solve a mystery and enough heart to save those worth saving. It's a fun read and a great introduction to Buroker’s work.
McCall Richter works as a skip tracer, tracking down criminals, con men, and people who stop making payments on their fancy new spaceships.
Her job description says nothing about locating vast quantities of stolen maple syrup, but thanks to her helpful new android employee, she finds herself tramping through a “sugar house” on a frosty moon full of suspicious characters. The only witness to the crime? The junkyard dog next door.
Junkyard is a stand-alone novella set two years before Fractured Stars.
I love to read, and sometimes I want to be lost in a story or world for just an hour or two. Oh, I’m always sorry when a good story ends, no matter how long or short. But a good novella is like a slice of homemade chocolate cake. I might want to eat more, but if it’s perfectly done, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as that first, warm slice out of the oven.
This is one of those books with three novellas that add up to a novel. The first introduces our intrepid wizard, a man happy with a beer and his laboratory tucked deep inside his castle. He does not wish to be bothered by quests, adventures, or distressed maidens.
The stories are fun and funny, and there’s enough suspense to keep me eagerly turning the pages. The main character is a bit of a bumbling fantasy version of “Columbo.” He is a wizard who can’t use violence to win, so he must use his brains.
The romantasy is told from the male POV and doesn’t occur until the last, longest story of the set. I loved all three stories and also love Frank Tuttle’s Markhat series.
All three of Wistril's magical misadventures are included in this complete compilation of cantrips and catastrophes!
Wistril Besieged --
Wizard Wistril's wants are simple -- four meals a day, a steady supply of honey-gold Upland beer, and above all else, peace and quiet.
All but the latter are in plentiful supply at Castle Kauph. Despite secreting himself on the edge of the Wild, Wistril finds himself battling an army of relentless mercenaries while the entire population of the nearest village takes refuge in his home. Even Kern, Wistril's long-suffering, sharp-tongued apprentice, isn't sure whether the army or the houseguests will…
A Duke with rigid opinions, a Lady whose beliefs conflict with his, a long disputed parcel of land, a conniving neighbour, a desperate collaboration, a failure of trust, a love found despite it all.
Alexander Cavendish, Duke of Ravensworth, returned from war to find that his father and brother had…
I love to read, and sometimes I want to be lost in a story or world for just an hour or two. Oh, I’m always sorry when a good story ends, no matter how long or short. But a good novella is like a slice of homemade chocolate cake. I might want to eat more, but if it’s perfectly done, there’s nothing quite as satisfying as that first, warm slice out of the oven.
A wonderful mix of humor, mystery, and a delightful tendency to land tropes upside down (Vampires drink tomato juice, for example).
This volume has three stories, and it serves as a nice introduction to K.M. Shea’s whimsical style. Fits easily into the cozy paranormal genre. I’ve enjoyed many other K.M. Shea books, but this was one of my first reads of hers. I love the zany, unexpected character traits and the unique tangents of the main plots.
High School student Morgan Fae is beginning to question her sanity.
After witnessing a weird incident involving a werewolf, a substitute teacher/possible vampire, and a thermos of tomato juice, she is taken to the Magical Beings' Rehabilitation Center. The MBRC is an organization that strives to integrate magical beings into human society and hides itself in Chicago’s Union Station. It’s also a massive secret, and Morgan’s accidental initiation into it breaks every rule the place has.
Until MBRC officials can figure out how to undo the damage, Morgan is given a part-time job at the center so its residents can…
I was raised with my seven siblings on Bernard Street in Mill Creek Valley—454 acres in downtown St. Louis, which comprised the nation's largest urban-renewal project beginning in 1959. I started writing short stories about my childhood memories of the dying African-American community after retiring at age 66. The Last Children of Mill Creek was published when I was 70 years old. This memoir is about survival, as told from the viewpoint of a watchful young girl -- a collection of decidedly universal stories that chronicle the extraordinary lives of ordinary people.
With polished language and measured pace, Blow tells a fascinating coming-of-age story of growing up in a small Louisiana town. As the youngest in a family of five boys raised by a schoolteacher mother, with the help of her extended family, he unveils his struggles with sexual identity and masculinity.
Charles M. Blow's mother was a fiercely driven woman with five sons, brass knuckles in her glove box, and a job plucking poultry at a factory near their town in segregated Louisiana, where slavery's legacy felt close. When her philandering husband finally pushed her over the edge, she fired a pistol at his fleeing back, missing every shot, thanks to "love that blurred her vision and bent the barrel." Charles was the baby of the family, fiercely attached to his "do-right" mother. Until one day that divided his life into Before and After - the day an older cousin took…
I write the West Investigations series, a romantic thriller series, centered around the men and women running a private investigations firm. When I began the series I knew I wanted it to be set in an urban city, not just because I’m a city girl at heart, but because of the eclectic nature, diversity, and color that can be found in the big city. Each of the books I’ve recommended below features a big city PI that jumps off the page, grabs you, and doesn’t let go for 200+ pages.
I was shocked when I realized S.A. Lelchuck was male.
Nikki Griffin, a hardnosed San Francisco detective slash bookstore owner, is such a dynamic, fleshed-out female character I just assumed she’d been penned by a woman. Well, you know what they say about assuming. Nikki is a kick butt, take no prisoner’s PI with an agenda.
Like the PIs in the books above, she veers onto the wrong side of the tracks often. Actually, she jumps over them and runs along the wrong side of the tracks while brandishing brass knuckles and a baton.
Even when she’s breaking the law, you’re kinda okay with it because, well, Lelchuck’s bad guys are really bad.
Do you want women to do the rescuing? Are you craving a strong, independent heroine who can save herself? Did you love Killing Eve? Then this book is for you. Nikki Griffin is Villanelle - but she's on your side. * Bookseller by day. Bad ass by night.
Nikki Griffin owns a bookshop in California that has a resident cat, Bartleby. She drinks neat Jameson and rides an Aprilia motorcycle. She's a Private Investigator who spends her days talking about books and her nights fighting for women - and she could beat you in a fight, blindfolded.
The Duke's Christmas Redemption
by
Arietta Richmond,
A Duke who has rejected love, a Lady who dreams of a love match, an arranged marriage, a house full of secrets, a most unneighborly neighbor, a plot to destroy reputations, an unexpected love that redeems it all.
Lady Charlotte Wyndham, given in an arranged marriage to a man she…
I teach writing for children and I’ve analyzed the elements that make a winning story. One of these elements is the magic of three. My idea for Finley Finds his Fortune, was sparked by a desire to write a folk tale with the magic of three and also by my visit to Whitechurch, the last working watermill in England. I was awed by the power and beauty of its water wheel so I wove a water mill into my story. To do this, I had to first study how a mill works. That’s what I love about writing children’s books―that I can explore my own personal interests and passions.
As author John Scieszka himself says he’s sold “bazilions of books” so he sure doesn’t need my endorsement but this is such a funny book I couldn’t resist. Yes, it tells the familiar story of the three little pigs but it does so in a wildly unfamiliar way—from the wolf’s point of view. Alexander T. Wolf tells the reader what really happened and professes his innocence. Despite having a cold, he was baking a cake for his dear grandmother when he needed to borrow a cup of sugar from the neighboring pig. What happens next he declares was not his fault yet he’s gotten a bad rap ever since. This is an offbeat, fractured fairytale that completely reverses the message of the original tale to give a new one: there are always two sides to every story.
Storytelling is my passion. I have loved writing in the science fiction and fantasy genres since I learned to read as a kid. I’ve won multiple awards, have an optioned screenplay, and am actively working on several paid script projects. I love to swap stories with other writers and dive into new worlds.
While hungry for really any fantasy book, I got into the Dragonrealm series just after it had gone out of print, so I had a lot of fun and rushes of victory scouring all the secondhand bookstores to find any book I could, even out of order. It’s a little dated and cheesy now, considering that the main character’s name is Bedlam, but if you can find a copy, it’s a fun trip down memory lane.
When Darkhorse receives word that the son of the great warlock, Cabe Bedlam, has been lured into captivity in the land of Zuu, the magical steed determines to rescue his young friend and stop his enemies' sorcery. Original.
Having been a professional singer for about five decades and having grown up with, and studied the early recordings of operatic singers for just as long, I feel that I am in an unusual position when it comes to analyzing their art. The ability to describe a singer’s voice on paper is a unique challenge but one that I enjoy solving–especially since each voice is a law unto itself. When done correctly, analysis like this should make the reader want to go and find the recording so that they can listen for themselves. This is especially true for my expanded Kindle version of Early 20th Century Opera Singers.
This series of 3 books traces the recordings of various operas from the infancy of recording through modern-day recording and is another fascinting read. Making this even more interesting is the fact that each opera is taken on by a different writer so you always get a fresh view on the works being discussed.
This book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom as he narrates encounters with 12 distinguished American men over 80, including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the world’s most famous heart surgeon.
In these and other intimate conversations, the book…
I’ve always thought that the Venn diagram of Space Opera and Military Science Fiction should not be a circle. I thought there should be stories about people living in interstellar civilizations that didn’t involve massive wars across unimaginable distances, resulting in untold misery and suffering. So, I wrote some, starting with Quarter Share. Each of these books shows mostly normal people trying to get by in a galaxy far, far away.
Skylar Ramirez kicks off this twisty series by introducing the alcoholic Captain Brad Mendoza and his troubled executive officer. Along the way, a crooked path leads the reader deeper into a well-developed universe of money, politics, and betrayal.
Every character plays a role, but some play more than one. While these are technically military people, their mission isn’t supposed to involve flying missiles and drawn-out battles. Mostly, it’s about a bunch of troubled people finding their way back from the brink.
This one has more military than the first three, but it's still a great read.
Brad Mendoza is an idiot. He knows it, and so does everyone else in the star nation of Prometheus. A promising naval career down the drain just because he accidentally killed 504 civilians. So, it's time for him to give up and accept a dead-end command on Persephone, the worst starship in the fleet. Until he meets the beautiful and cunning Jessica Lin, his new executive officer, who harbors a terrible secret of her own. Now, with an enemy warship four times their size bearing down on them, Brad's in a race to save Jessica and his stupid ship.
