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I normally try to avoid comparing one book to another, but this book feels very much like it was purposefully grown in the same soil as Howl's Moving Castle, so I will say that it hits with very similar vibes in terms of the leads and how their relationship forms, along with a lot of the external conflict. You've got your practical leading lady with a fondness for checklists and order, the disaster magician with a bad reputation who may or may not be evil (of course he's not), and a cozy spark of romance between them. The magic in the world building is vague, but consistent, with a fairy tale-like quality to it. Add to that a supporting cast of immediately likable friends and family, with a dash of political maneuvering and a powerful magical antagonist, and you've got a solid standalone novel.

The main difference is, of course, the cats. If you are a cat person this will be a huge bonus. Not only are there are lot of cats in here, but they behave in all the way cats do, from the infuriating to the endearing. It's extremely charming for this reader, and I found myself enchanted with all the cats and their personalities. You could probably read it even if you don't like cats, but it might test your patience.

Thanks to NetGalley and Del Rey for an advance copy. All thoughts in this review are my own!

A fascinating book that looks that large variety of moths that can be found in the world. After beetles, the family Lepidoptera ('scaled insects') is one of the largest family of insects and this book covers all the major groups of moths except one: the butterflies, which have their own book.

The book starts with a general overview of the moths, showing their anatomy, general behaviour and biology. As caterpillars, moths are 'eating machines' while as adults, moths are 'reproductive machines', a specialisation that has enabled the group to spread out and occupy many ecological niches from the tropics to the polar regions. Moths are major pollinators (and pests of crops) and can be feeding on plants from the ground upwards, and even on aquatic plants. Some caterpillars are also predators, feeding on aphids. Moths are also a source of food for other animals (including humans), leading some to develop intimidating spines and venoms for defence.

The book then proceeds to list down the moths, arranged into families and subfamilies, listing down their major features, behaviours, ecology and so on of each family. Numerous superb photos of the eggs, caterpillars and adults are included, showing some moths with splendid patterns and colouration to rival that of the better known butterflies.

This book is not the final word on moths. Many moth species, including their life histories, are still not known to science and future genetic studies may rearrange the taxonomic family of moths. But until the next edition of the book is released, this one sits as a good, general guide to the moths of the world. A list of references is also given for those who wish to know more about moths from a specific region of interest.

A fascinating book that looks at the mathematics behind the operation of AM, FM and Single-Sideband radios to show how they work as transmitters and receivers. The book also goes through the history of such radios, from curiosities to hobbyists, to commercialisation and public broadcasting of radio channels and the creation of commercial radio shows.

Starting with the mathematics behind electronic components like resistors, inductors and capacitors, diodes, triodes, oscillators, amplifiers and so on, the author then uses mathematical identities and techniques (like the Fourier transform) to show how combinations of electronic components can be used to modulate an oscillating signal in various ways to produce an AM or FM signal. This modulated signal can then be received by a demodulator to extract back a representation of the information on the modulated signal.

The explanation for Single-Sideband Radio was interesting, as it is a topic mentioned during my engineering course but never fully explained. Here, the author first shows a brute-force method for a Single-Sideband Radio (using filters to remove a sideband) before showing other, more elegant techniques (using an 'all-pass' filter) for generating and receiving a Single-Sideband Radio signal. One interesting aspect here, that pops out of the mathematics, is that the receiver actually receives a 'scrambled' signal, where the phase components of the signal are shifted by different amounts depending on the original frequency. In practice, this phase shifting does not matter, as the human ear is able to compensate for it and still able to hear the signal.

While looking at the mathematics behind the various radios, the author also goes through the history of AM and FM radio. It starts with 'spark-gap' radios and crystal radios, which were sensitive and hard to operate and only appealed to hobbyist. The vacuum tube would herald the age of commercial radio, making radio receivers much easier to operate.

While the appeal of radio may now be less, due to the internet, it was an important technology that helped spread news and entertainment to the world, and it is good to have a book that shows how radios work mathematically, even if the actual components used to implement a radio now would be different from those used in the past.