This will be a shorter list than last month, since I got to a point in my knitting project (now finished!) where I had to actually pay attention to what I was doing. However, I did get a lot more reading of actual books done while I was avoiding having to figure out how to do some of the finishing steps I'd never done before!
Books-
Golden Terrace volumes 1 & 2, by Cang Wu Bin Bai - Currently my favorite c-novel reading experience! Peach Flower House did a great job with the production, and E. Danglars' translation was nicely distraction-free. (I suffer from a professional hazard when reading translated novels of falling into editing mode if there are too many grammar/word choice mistakes.) Anyway, production values aside, I really liked the story as well. I liked both of the main characters, the pacing didn't get too bogged down anywhere for me, and I really liked the little bonus reincarnation AU at the end for two of the previous generation characters who only got suggestive mentions in the main plot.
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The Red Palace, by June Hur - For fans of historical Korean dramas, a Joseon-era mystery! A palace nurse teams up with a prodigal young inspector to solve a murder. (Well, several murders, in the end.) Full of all the fraught issues of status and legitimacy expected of the time period/genre, but with excellently competent main characters, and finally a noble dad who learns a lesson about being an entitled jerk.
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Hen Fever, by Olivia Waite - A delightful historical f/f novella set in a town with a viciously competitive chicken breeding contest every year. Leads are the overlooked spinster daughter of the local doctor, whose only consolation is winning whatever category she enters every year, and one of the new residents of the local manor house, all survivors of the Crimean War with various forms of PTSD. Packs a lot into its relatively short length.
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The Spare Man, by Mary Robinette Kowal - A cruise ship murder mystery IN SPACE! I went into this with extremely high expectations, already being a fan of MRK, and while for the most part I liked it a lot, there was one aspect of the worldbuilding that was just
so incredibly rooted in responding to our specific moment in time that I found it distractingly at odds with the futuristic setting. So not MRK's strongest work, but still enjoyable if you can get through the intro section where that aspect is most prevalent.
TV Shows-
Darby & Joan (English, BritBox or Acorn, I forget which) - A British/Australian mystery series featuring two leads "of a certain age." A retired nurse travels to Australia determined to figure out why her husband died there when he told her he was in Spain. She ends up running into (almost literally) a retired police detective, and they team up, solving several other mysteries along the way as they road-trip their way through the clues she's managed to gather.
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The New Employee (Korean, Viki) - A short workplace BL. Always glad to see BLs that aren't about high school or college students, and it was definitely nice to have two leads who had already figured out their sexuality. The plot was kind of eh, but the sheer power of the titular new employee's smile was enough to carry most of the show.
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The Makanai (Japanese, Netflix) - Two young women move to Kyoto to become apprentice maiko. One of them washes out of all the classes that rely on elegant movement, but falls into the much more fitting and fulfilling position of household cook. Overall a very low-key show, beautifully shot, full of food and daily life details in an interestingly unusual setting. Will definitely make you hungry, but handily
Just One Cookbook has gathered all the recipes featured in the show.
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Dearest (Japanese, Netflix) - A mystery with a romance plot. In the fine tradition of Japanese mysteries (as opposed to police procedurals), the plot of this one is both darker and weirder than you'd probably expect, and the ending is more open-ended and less definitively justice-oriented than most Western mystery fans will be primed for. None of which I think of as a bad thing! I also greatly enjoyed the romance plot, because I am a sucker for second-chance many years later romances.
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I Will Be Your Bloom (Japanese, Netflix) - Yes, this was me just rewatching
Kimi no Hana ni Naru after Netflix picked it up to feed the algorithm and hopefully encourage them to pick up more Japanese licenses. (Amusingly, the leader of the boyband in this is the younger brother in
Dearest.) My only annoyance with the Netflix version is their subtitles insist on translating "hana maru" as "gold star" instead of the slightly less obvious to non-Japanese audiences but much more thematically important "flower mark."
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New Life Begins (Chinese, Viki) - A fantasy not-really-China historical in which vassal states send women to marry into the imperial family ever x years. The female lead arrives ready to do so badly during the wife audition process that she'll be sent home, but of course ends up married to the intentionally least impressive Sixth Prince. Plot happens, featuring much domesticity, food, and political reform. The larger ensemble cast of other wives is also great, so if you've been looking for a show with actual female friendships and no women dying for the plot, this is for you! (Content note: one short-ish plot arc featuring a difficult pregnancy and post-partum depression.) I actually got a little misty during the last episode when they did some looking back on how far all the characters had come through the course of the show.
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