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Series Review: The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan

Greetings and welcome to Reviews That Burn: Series Reviews, part of Books That Burn. Series Reviews discuss at least three books in a series and cover the overarching themes and development of the story across several books. This review is for The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan. Full Audio Here   The Governess Affair Miss Serena Barton intends to hold the petty, selfish duke who had her sacked responsible for his crimes. But the man who handles all the duke's dirty business has been ordered to get rid of her by fair means or foul. She’ll have to prove more than his match… The Duchess War The last time Minerva Lane was the center of attention, it ended badly—so badly that she changed her name to escape her scandalous past. So when a handsome duke comes to town, the last thing she wants is his attention. But that is precisely what she gets... A Kiss for Midwinter Miss Lydia Charingford does her best to forget the dark secret that nearly ruined her life, hiding it beneath her smi...

A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers (Monk & Robot #1)

It's been centuries since the robots of Panga gained self-awareness and laid down their tools; centuries since they wandered, en masse, into the wilderness, never to be seen again; centuries since they faded into myth and urban legend.

One day, the life of a tea monk is upended by the arrival of a robot, there to honor the old promise of checking in. The robot cannot go back until the question of "what do people need?" is answered.

But the answer to that question depends on who you ask, and how.

They're going to need to ask it a lot.

Becky Chambers's new series asks: in a world where people have what they want, does having more matter?

TITLE: A Psalm for the Wild-Built
AUTHOR: Becky Chambers with Emmett Grosland (Narrator)
PUBLISHER: MacMillan Audio
YEAR: 2021
LENGTH: 147 pages (4 hours 8 minutes)
AGE: Adult
GENRE: Science Fiction
RECOMMENDED: Highly

Queer Rep Summary: Genderqueer/Nonbinary Main Character(s).

A PSALM FOR THE WILD-BUILT follows a tea monk who, after several years of traveling between villages serving tea and providing people a calm place to talk and rest, travels into the wilderness and meet a wild-built robot.

The worldbuilding is specific enough to feel grounded, but doesn't get bogged down in small details. Most of the story is told through introspection and conversation. This is a thoughtful novella about purpose, peace, and personhood. Some parts are definitely stressful for the main character, so how stressful it is for the reader will depend on how much they resonate with the tea monk's existential angst. I enjoyed it immensely and intend to read the sequel.

CW for cursing, grief (brief), alcohol (brief), fire (brief), injury/injury detail, animal death (brief), death.

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