I read over my break (of course)

Midnight at the Dragon Cafe, by Judy Fong Bates. This was a good story, if a bit simple. The author was writing of her childhood from an adult perspective, but with the simplistic analysis of a six-year-old. It wasn't exactly depressingly written, but I can't say it was an optimistic story either.

His Majesty's Dragon, Throne of Jade, Black Powder War, and Empire of Ivory, by Naomi Novik. It's been a while since I read the first three (just as I was starting this blog, actually), so I read them again so I could read the fourth one. The first one is definitely the best, and the writing gets a bit worse in each one; the style stays very similar, but it becomes more vague. I like the characters, but I feel, especially after the last one, that I don't really know what's going on. I suppose there will have to be a few more, although I can't imagine a plausible positive next move.