Tangential question that may belong in Business instead (if so, let me know and I'll move it): Buffistas who read SF/F, what bloggers and reviewers do you trust for recs? I've got ARC's of Roz Kaveney's first novel (with blurbs from Gaiman and Pat Cadigan, among others) and want to start shilling it to reviewers, but to be perfectly honest I usually rely on recs from other Buffistas and have no idea (aside from Scalzi's Big Idea section on Whatever, which has already gotten a pitch from Deb) who I should be shilling at. Any suggestions?

I did already send a copy to Strix, who can vouch for its pretty-damn-goodness, but I need to strap on some ovaries and send a pitch to someone I *don't* already know.

Buffistas who read SF/F, what bloggers and reviewers do you trust for recs?

Mely/Coffeeandink, Kate Nepveu, Rachel Manija Brown, Abigail Nussbaum, Niall Harrison, Liz Burke, Jo Walton (with some caveats), the reviewers at Strange Horizons. I don't trust the guys on SF Signal, they tend to prioritize gee-whiz over good prose or characterization, but they do have a pretty good platform. Jim Hines is pretty good, and has a lot of people reading him.

Jesse, yes! And YES. She is a novelist but I encountered her first on TWOP.

sj,I read Jennifer Weiner a lot too. Kinda psyched to see her new one.

JZ - is this YA?

It isn't YA, but it is very good; I read it and immediately wanted the sequel. Fantastic characterization, dry wit, lovely protag(s)...very intelligent, draws on wonderful mythologies and twists some familiar religious tropes in a way that I quite enjoyed but that some might find blasphemous, which is always fun when it's well-done, and this is. The whole book is story-driven but lyrical. I really enjoyed it, and was chuffed to see Gaiman recced it; it deserves it.

It's reminiscent of American Gods in some ways, but not derivative.

Thanks - it sounds wonderful. I was mostly asking in terms of who I could suggest beyond Consuela's excellent recs.

I officially love The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. I liked it from the beginning, but after the fifth book I like it more than any YA fantasy series I've read other than the big HP. I actually think I like it more than The Chronicles of Prydain, and that's some serious childhood memory it's beating to get there.

Thanks, all!

It already got a blurb from Jo Walton with a promised full review to come, so she's covered.

Mely/Coffeeandink, Kate Nepveu, Rachel Manija Brown, Abigail Nussbaum, Niall Harrison, Liz Burke ... Jim Hines

Ooh, excellent. Thanks much. Are Mely and Abigail Buffistas emeritae/Buffista-adjacent, or am I misremembering? Are any of the others?

Definitely not YA (or, if YA, then guaranteed a spot in the top three of next year's Most Challenged Books list).

Pammy?

Pamie was the TwoP recapper who completely failed to understand what people saw in Wonderfalls and dedicated herself to spreading that same joyless ennui to her readers. Not high on my list of people whose original work I'd be interested in reading.