Likely Stories - This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews

Maggie has been transported through a portal to her favorite series, an unfinished series, she has revisited over and over again. But you know meme of “would you like to live in your favorite book?”, like most fantasy readers Maggie's answer would have been “no, to the 9th degree of NO.” Because being in the middle of a kingdom about to live through a civil war and then an outside invasion is fun reading, living through it is a different monster altogether - if you are even able to live through it. Starving, wearing only a blanket, unable to get clothing or shelter, Maggie’s desperation reaches fever pitch and she decides to mug a throw-away villain in the series who she knows exactly where he will be on a certain day without his normal protections and with a pocket full of precious coin. The mugging ends with the purse in her hands, a dagger in her belly, and a fall into an icy river. That is when things start getting really complicated.

Living in the world of Kair Toren, through Maggie's experience, is engrossing. Her college education, her modern sensibilities, her moral compass make her a phenomenal main point-of-view character. I love watching her deal with a world she knows so well, so minutely, and yet, it continues to surprise her. I love her pulling in fan theories to navigate this well-known unknown world. Watching her tap into her understanding of psychology, as well as her personal guesses about the plot and characters.

The worldbuilding is layered with both the books she has read and what she experiences in reality. It's complicated and wonderful. The allies and enemies who gather around her are nuanced both literally (from the books) and figuratively (in real life) - romantic interests, mercenaries, found family, a thieves guild, ...the list goes on. The city is a character in and of itself.

Maggie knows the future of this world, the horrors her new circle of friends will face, and will fight the future every step of the way. But the future is fighting back, and it never plays fair.

RECENT EPISODES OF LIKELY STORIES

Likely Stories - The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

Hello, and welcome to Likely Stories, everyone. I’m Paige Connell, and I am an English teacher, so it feels like, sometimes daily, I am “fighting the good fight” against the use of AI in place of real thinking and writing, the omnipresence of technology in our communication, and the detriment that those things can produce in a new generation. But lest I sound too cranky, let me say what a refreshing delight it was to read The Correspondent by Virginia Evans (and I do mean read it in physical form versus listening or reading on my Kindle, as even I am wont to often do).

Likely Stories - Love, Sivvy by R.L. Toalson

I'm Joe Riley, and this is Likely Stories. I recently accompanied my wife, a school librarian, to the Texas Library Association convention. She won an award, and I'm proud of her, but this is not a review of her, but rather of a book she picked up there: an autographed copy of 'Love, Sivvy', a novel inspired by the life letters and diaries of young Sylvia Plath.

Likely Stories - Saints and Liars by Deborah Dwork

I consider myself a fairly courageous person, but I will confess after reading this book, I’ve decided maybe not. To purposefully travel to foreign countries to put yourself in harm’s way to protect complete strangers is a level of bravery reserved for the military, not your neighbors.Welcome to “Likely Stories.”I’m Diane Kemper.

Likely Stories - Trouble Boys by Bob Mehr

Hi, Malcolm Foster here, operations assistant at KWBU and habitual stacker of books that one day, hopefully, will eventually be read. For this week's episode of Likely Stories, I’m combining two of my passions. Music and the written word.

Likely Stories - The Academy by Elin Hilderbrand

Hi, and welcome back to another edition of Likely Stories. I’m Paige Connell, and I teach English at Midway High School. Growing up, I went to a private school for many years, though it wasn’t a boarding school, and whether it’s in real life or in pop culture, I think there’s just something about the prestige and allure of a private academy that makes people want to know all the potentially lurid details of life behind the curtain.

Likely Stories - Why I Love Horror by Becky Siegel Spatford

I have a confession to make. I hate jump-scare horror movies. I always have. I don’t enjoy being startled. It took me until adulthood before I could even watch fireworks without bracing myself for the next explosion. (Truth be told, I still kind of do). I’m not a huge fan of gory horror movies either. And yet, I absolutely love horror novels.

Likely Stories - Something We Said: Richard Pryor, a Notorious Word and Me by Elizabeth Stordeur Pryor

I’m Kevin Tankersley, and this is Likely Stories.

Likely Stories - The Land and Its People by David Sedaris

My name is Maggie McCarthy and today I will be reviewing The Land and Its People by David Sedaris.

Likely Stories - Two Old Women by Velma Wallis

I'm not a huge fan of hot weather. My summer reads tend to be set in cold climates, in wintertime- books that take me away from the heart of Texas. Two Old Women by Velma Wallis is a perfect diversion.

Likely Stories - A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L Peck

Imagine if one day you suddenly discovered that the tenets that have governed your life, through no choice of your own, have been undeniably broken. This is exactly where protagonist Soren Johanssen finds himself at the start of Steven L Peck’s novella, ‘A Short Stay in Hell.’