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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
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Watch a Sneak Peek of the Series Finale of 'Resident Alien' (Exclusive)
Watch a Sneak Peek of the Series Finale of 'Resident Alien' (Exclusive) originally appeared on Parade. Well, here we are. The series finale of Resident Alien is now upon us. The sci-fi comedy premiered on SyFy back in 2021 after production was delayed because of COVID, then found an avid fandom after laughing over Alan Tudyk's madcap stranded-on-earth alien as he takes on human form to blend in while trying to repair his spaceship. The series found an even larger audience once Netflix started streaming the show. Even though the show has an ever-growing fan base, it wasn't enough for a fifth season renewal for this underrated comedy sci-fi series. So here we are, at the very last episode of Season 4 – and Resident Alien in general. Here's everything you need to know about the series finale of Resident Alien. As you watch the episode, remember this: The Utes don't say "Goodbye," they say, "Punikyavaatusamu 'ara" or "See you sometime." 🎬 SIGN UP for Parade's Daily newsletter to get the latest pop culture news & celebrity interviews delivered right to your inbox 🎬 What happened in last week's episode of Resident Alien? In "Tunnel Vision," last week's action-packed episode of Resident Alien, Harry (Alan Tudyk) and Mike (Corey Reynolds) head into the mine in search of the Mantid. But unbeknownst to them, the Mantid is no longer Agent Jules Gardner (Jewel Staite). Instead, the Mantid has taken on the form of Deputy Liv Baker (Elizabeth Bowen)! We hoped she wasn't dead, but only Max (Judah Prehn) was able to see Liv for what she really was. Before he could head into the mines to warn Harry, Asta (Sara Tomko) stopped him and Sahar (Gracelyn Awad Rinke) from entering and said she'd go instead. As she found a way in, Max ignored her (as he seems to ignore all the adults in his life lately) and headed in to find Harry. Sahar, meanwhile, headed back to the town festival to find Mayor Ben (Levi Fiehler) or Kate (Meredith Garretson). Before Asta could find Harry, she came across Mantid Liv. When she did get to Harry, the Mantid had shapeshifted in Asta. Now there were two Astas, and Harry and Mike couldn't tell who the real one was. Luckily, Max found them all and pointed out Mantid Asta. Cue fight alien fight scene. It looked like the Mantid had the advantage over Alien Harry until Asta sprayed him with the Manticide, knocking her. An angered Harry then went ballistic on him, eventually killing the Mantid with a miner's ax. Of course, Kate tazed the Mantid with the alien taser for good measure, but the damage is done. Asta was infected by the Mantid. Related: Unaware of Asta's injury, Harry and Mike went in search of Liv. Harry saw a ghostly Asta point them in the direction where Liv was, knowing she was near death. They eventually found Liv with Robert (Paul Piaskowski), along with the Mantid's egg sac, which was ready to hatch. As the Mantids came out of their shell, it looked like the end for our heroes. Fortunately, Peter Bach (Terry O'Quinn) arrived just in time and torched the egg sac to nice, charred, crispy burnt ends. Father and son are finally reunited. Without a word, Harry headed to Asta's bedside to try to save her by giving her a transfusion of his alien blood to combat the Mantid infection. And, miraculously, Asta survived. While having dinner at the diner later, she and Harry realize it's time for both of them to leave Patience. Harry needs to find Heather (Edi Patterson) and his other kids, while Asta needs to find her heart's desire. The final shot of the episode is of Asta sleeping. She is awakened, and she mysteriously says, "They're here." Related: What happens in the series finale of Resident Alien? In "The End is Here," the series finale of Resident Alien, Harry faces one final threat – and one that forces him to use more than just his alien strength. A little alien told me that Dr. Ethan (Michael Cassidy) might make a return to town! Will Harry and Asta actually leave Patience? What will Harry do without pizza and pie to fill his belly?! When does the series finale of Resident Alien air? The series finale of Resident Alien will be simulcast on , Aug. 8, at 10:00 p.m. ET on USA and SyFy. The episode will be available to stream a week later on Peacock. You can also view the episode via the SyFy or USA Network apps. Related: How can I watch previous episodes of Resident Alien? Resident Alien is available to stream on Peacock and Netflix. Both streamers have Seasons 1-3. Season 4 episodes will be available on Peacock a week after they premiere on USA Network. You can also stream episodes via the SyFy or USA Network apps. Does Parade have a sneak peek of the season finale of Resident Alien? We do. Here is our final sneak peek of the series finale of Resident Alien. Check out images from the season finale of Resident Alien Take a look at some select images from the season finale of Resident Alien. 'Resident Alien' Series Finale USA NetworkWatch a Sneak Peek of the Series Finale of 'Resident Alien' (Exclusive) first appeared on Parade on Aug 8, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 8, 2025, where it first appeared. Solve the daily Crossword
Geek Girl Authority
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Girl Authority
RESIDENT ALIEN Recap: (S04E05) The Human Condition
Resident Alien Season 4 Episode 5, 'The Human Condition,' sees Harry grapple with his new normal. He struggles to claim his identity. He's no longer an alien, but he doesn't feel fully human, either. Our titular 'resident alien' exists in this liminal space now. However, in the end, he learns to embrace every part of himself, even if they seem incongruent. Harry's episodic arc is the highlight for me. Meanwhile, Asta and D'arcy's journeys mirror each other — Asta wants to prove to Dan that she's a responsible adult, while D'arcy is trying to do the same for Asta. And that cliffhanger begs the question: Where the hell did Harry go? RELATED: Read our recap of the previous Resident Alien episode, 'Truth Hurts' Resident Alien, 'The Human Condition' We open with Harry (Alan Tudyk) going for a morning run. That's what humans do, right? Unfortunately, he's running in the middle of the road in Patience and holding up traffic. After this, he hangs up the requisite human motivational signage. He's becoming a Live, Laugh, Love girlie. This feels like a natural trajectory for him. Harry even has social media, and he's caught the attention of the foot fetishists. (Will he pop up on wikiFeet?) Then, Harry eats a frozen dinner. He monologues about feeling 'alonely.' He feels bereft. There's something missing. Meanwhile, Liv (Elizabeth Bowen) hosts the Alien Cracker podcast in a closet at work. She talks about the hunt for Robert, Peter Bach's song, and some banger cheese/cracker pairings. Mike (Corey Reynolds) walks in on her recording. He approves of this. Perhaps her search for Robert will bear fruit regarding Joseph's whereabouts. RESIDENT ALIEN — 'The Human Condition' Season 4 Episode 5 — Pictured: Alan Tudyk as Harry Vanderspeigle — (Photo by: James Dittiger/USA Network) Finding a Mate Later, Harry stops by The 59. Dan (Gary Farmer) performs with his band. Dan! Oh, how I've missed my TV dad. Harry hangs out with Mike. One woman, Lydia (Kimberley Shoniker), has her eye on Harry. Mike encourages him to chat with her. In true Harry fashion, though, he makes it weird and mentions 'vagina' one too many times. Mike pulls Harry aside and encourages him to build a rapport with a potential girlfriend. However, don't take too long — she might 'friend zone' him. RELATED: TV Review: Resident Alien Season 4 Asta (Sara Tomko) reunites with D'arcy (Alice Wetterlund), who's behind the bar. D'arcy tries to butter Asta up because she wants to adopt a dog. Asta is immovable, though. Then, Asta chats with her dad. We learn that Dan's bandmate wants them to play at a popular music festival. Dan would have to leave town for the week. However, he told said bandmate that he couldn't do it. Who's gonna run the diner while he's gone? Asta volunteers to take over for him. Sure, she also works at the clinic, but she can balance both. Dan doesn't want to put that on her. At that moment, Harry presents Asta with flowers before proposing to her in front of everyone in the pub. Oh, boy. So 'Alonely' Later that evening, Asta asks Harry why he proposed to her. Harry's lonely. He wants a partner. With Heather and the kids, Harry felt complete. Now, there's a gaping hole in him. Asta encourages him to bond with Bridget. RELATED: 10 Out-of-This-World Predictions for Resident Alien Season 4 Next, Harry heads inside his cabin, where he finds Bridget (Andrea Geones) with Dale (Linden Porco) and two more alien friends. I love that we're seeing more alien species this season. They're all playing poker. Harry joins in. At the same time, Kate (Meredith Garretson) plays a soundbite from Liv's podcast for Ben (Levi Fiehler). Kate believes they should talk to Liv. Not Mike, Liv. She might have inside info regarding the Greys and their missing baby. RESIDENT ALIEN — 'The Human Condition' Season 4 Episode 5 — Pictured: Corey Reynolds as Sheriff Mike Thompson — (Photo by: James Dittiger/USA Network) Meanwhile, Harry isn't having fun with Bridget and his pals. Being aliens, they can all communicate telepathically. Harry is fully human now and feels left out. Dale and the others teleport out of the cabin, leaving Bridget to bicker with his dad. Bonding With Bridget The following day, Dan finds Asta hard at work in the diner, preparing it for opening. She reveals she told his band that he's accompanying them to the music festival. Then, Asta hands Dan his suitcase. It's symbolic, really. Dan finally allows Asta to tend to the diner in his stead. RELATED: All Is Not Well in Patience in Resident Alien Season 4 Trailer Elsewhere, Harry and Bridget go fishing on the lake. Bridget takes on the form of Liza (Taylor Blackwell). Harry admits it's easier to bond with Bridget if he looks human. Meanwhile, D'arcy enters Pet Haven, an animal shelter in Jessup. She asks if her application to adopt Ruby, a dog, has been approved. Unfortunately, it was rejected. Why? Her references fell through, and she has an arrest record. RESIDENT ALIEN — 'The Human Condition' Season 4 Episode 5 — Pictured: Taylor Blackwell as Liza Vanderspeigle — (Photo by: James Dittiger/USA Network) D'arcy spirals, realizing this shelter is telling her that she can't even take care of a dog. At the same time, Asta finds herself on the receiving end of Mrs. Brown's (Naomi Simpson) judgment as she works at the diner in her nurse's uniform. Jay (Kaylayla Raine) appears, revealing that Dan asked her to work on her day off to help Asta. Asta is irritated — she's tired of Dan not viewing her as an adult. Dinner Plans Later, Mike has a meeting with Lena (Nicola Correia-Damude) and Jules (Jewel Staite). Jules reveals that the FBI has reassigned the murder investigation to the Seattle Field Office because it appears the serial killer is no longer in Patience. Mike utilizes this opportunity to mention the Mantid, much to Lena's abject horror. Jules is bewildered. Mike believes these killings can't be linked to a human, though. Lena abruptly ends the meeting. RELATED: New TV Shows This Week (June 29 – July 5) Next, Ben asks Liv to dinner with him and Kate. Just her. No John. Ben doesn't disclose why, confusing Liv as to why she can't bring her spouse. She accepts the invite, though. Afterward, Liv tells Mike about it. He insists on tagging along. RESIDENT ALIEN — 'The Human Condition' Season 4 Episode 5 — Pictured: (l-r) Nicola Correia-Damude as Detective Lena Torres, Jewel Staite as Jules Gardner, Corey Reynolds as Sheriff Mike Thompson — (Photo by: James Dittiger/USA Network) On the lake, Harry and Bridget argue because the latter is essentially a teenage boy. Bridget grabs a fish from the lake and threatens to take a bite out of it. Harry puts his foot down. Then, Bridget leaps into the lake and swims back to the cabin. So, Harry breaks into Max's (Judah Prehn) room and declares his plan to adopt him. Who knew we'd get to this point after four seasons? Oh, how far our resident alien and Max have come. Max asserts he doesn't like Harry. Harry insists they're friends, though, and he could give Max a good life. Max kicks Harry out of his room. RELATED: The Premise and How Star Trek Fans Created Fanfic as We Know It Rescuing Ruby Later, D'arcy eats at the diner. Asta has been swamped at the diner. Jay informs Asta that she must return to the clinic to reset a broken leg. Asta assumes Ellen is covering for her until she spots Ellen (Diana Bang) sitting in a booth with a plate of food before her. Judy (Jenna Lamia) appears in her Sunday best. We learn that she attempted to adopt Ruby for D'arcy. It didn't go well. (Although Judy's refusal to commit to an accent is hilarious.) Then, Liv arrives at the Hawthornes for dinner. Unsurprisingly, Mike is hot on her heels. He comes armed with chicken and a fancy knife set. Ben and Kate are taken aback by his arrival. Kate pulls Ben aside. Mike's presence throws a wrench in their plans. However, they're still aiming to address the alien-sized elephant in the room with Liv. RESIDENT ALIEN — 'The Human Condition' Season 4 Episode 5 — Pictured: Elizabeth Bowen as Deputy Liv Baker — (Photo by: James Dittiger/USA Network) Next, D'arcy and Judy attempt to break into the animal shelter to 'rescue' Ruby. When Judy fails to unlock the doors with the keypad, D'arcy attempts to use Judy's credit card to jimmy the lock. Unfortunately, she drops the card … inside the building. And, as it turns out, that was her card. Judy sticks her arm through the mail slot to attempt to retrieve the credit card. She also tries to unlock the door this way. RELATED: Read our SurrealEstate recaps Candle Quarrel Well, Judy gets her arm stuck in the slot. D'arcy tries to pull her arm out. Then, D'arcy breaks a window, triggering the alarm. Judy encourages D'arcy to leave her behind. Save yourself, D'arce. D'arcy and Judy are always a fun combo. Meanwhile, Harry finds an unexpected guest in his cabin — Peter Bach (Terry O'Quinn). Peter acknowledges that Harry is now a human, while Harry notes that Peter is more of a robot these days. At the same time, Ben decides to get Liv alone to ask her about aliens. He and Kate bring out the main course for dinner. Ben asks Mike if he wants to see his candle collection. Mike rejects the offer, claiming he hates candles. Naturally, this launches Ben into a pro-candle rant. We know how much Ben loves his candles. This scene is hilarious. RELATED: Revival : Check Out 9 First-Look Photos From Melanie Scrofano-Led Series Human and Alien Next, Harry tells Peter about Robert. Robert helped him and Bridget out tremendously while imprisoned on the Greys' Moon base. The last time he saw Robert was in Las Vegas (in episode two). Peter advises Harry on the ways of humanity. He encourages Harry to embrace both of his identities — he's fully human and alien, even if he can't tap into his alien energy anymore. Then, Peter leaves to find his son. Then, after dinner, Mike discovers a tiny camera concealed in a potted plant on the mantle. He assumes Ben and Kate are swingers. Ben 'accidentally' spills wine on Liv and urges her to follow him so he can remove the stain. It's all a cover to get her alone to ask her about alien abductions. Liv insists she's not a swinger, though. Ben and Kate discover the camera. They assume it's from the alien Girl Scout — well, the Greys. Kate blurts out that the camera is from the aliens who abducted their baby. The truth is out now. RELATED: Geek Girl Authority Crush of the Week: Asta Twelvetrees Wild Night Later, D'arcy tells Asta that she has a court appearance coming up for attempting to break into the animal shelter. Asta must stay later at the diner to wait for the refrigerator dude. She asks D'arcy if she can do the bank drop for the diner that night, since D'arcy must do the same for The 59. D'arcy offers to give Asta a hand. She vows she's responsible enough to do this. RESIDENT ALIEN — 'The Human Condition' Season 4 Episode 5 — Pictured: (l-r) Alice Wetterlund as D'Arcy Bloom, Jenna Lamia as Judy Cooper — (Photo by: James Dittiger/USA Network) After this, D'arcy and Judy hang out at the bar. Judy reassures D'arcy that she's too cool for school. She's not irresponsible. D'arcy drinks with Judy, insisting it'll be an early night for her. However, she wakes up the next morning, still at the bar, a bevy of empty glasses before her. She had a wild night. Unfortunately, the money Asta gave her from the diner is gone. Who Will Finish the Pie? Harry has a lovely time fishing with Bridget, who's still in his Liza form. He took Peter's advice to heart and has a better relationship with his son. Then, Harry reunites with Asta at the diner for his slice of morning pie. Asta laments 'failing' at this diner thing. She wanted to prove to her dad she could handle it, but it's too much. Harry compliments his friend and gives her a much-needed morale boost. It's sweet. RELATED: Read our Resident Alien recaps Suddenly, Harry vanishes into thin air, just as he's about to take a bite of pie. Asta calls out his name. Well, that can't be good. Resident Alien drops new episodes every Friday at 10 pm ET (new time!) on Syfy and USA Network. Syfy Renews THE ARK for Season 3 Contact: [email protected] What I do: I'm GGA's Managing Editor, a Senior Contributor, and Press Coordinator. I manage, contribute, and coordinate. Sometimes all at once. Joking aside, I oversee day-to-day operations for GGA, write, edit, and assess interview opportunities/press events. Who I am: Before moving to Los Angeles after studying theater in college, I was born and raised in Amish country, Ohio. No, I am not Amish, even if I sometimes sport a modest bonnet. Bylines in: Tell-Tale TV, Culturess, Sideshow Collectibles, and inkMend on Medium. Critic: Rotten Tomatoes, CherryPicks, and the Hollywood Creative Alliance.
Irish Times
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Forget the guide book: Immerse yourself in these location-based novels
ITALY I always like to match my reading to my trips. I'm back with Elena Ferrante for an upcoming holiday in Naples, and loving the simmer of Italian heat, culture and family life throughout the Neapolitan Novels. As a long-term EM Forster fan, I'd say that A Room with a View is perfect for gorgeous first impressions on Florence, mixed with depth, humour and clandestine love. Elizabeth Bowen 's Italian stories, scattered through the Collected Stories, are divine, full of boating on lakes and individualistic characters rubbing along badly. One of my favourite Bowen novels, The Hotel, is set on the Italian Riviera, and features her usual collection of snobs, maverick young ladies, odd encounters and stunning descriptions. Sharper than Forster, she conjures the light and leisure of Italian holidays perfectly. Nuala O'Connor Nuala O'Connor's latest novel is Seaborne (New Island) An exceptional memoir of a year in Rome is André Aciman 's My Roman Year. In 1966, teenager André was a refugee from Alexandria, a victim of President Nasser's campaign to 'Arabise' Egypt. He hates Rome initially, but gradually falls in love with the city, first with the historical centre, but also with the less picturesque parts – and with various Romans. With André you cycle around the city, you gasp at the sudden dramatic appearance of the Colosseum in the bus window, you savour the smell of bergamot. Even if you're not in the eternal city. But it would be wonderful to read it while there. Heading to Trieste? Nothing is better than Jan Morris 's Trieste and the Meaning of Nowhere. All her travel books are brilliant. Éilís Ní Dhuibhne Éilís Ní Dhuibhne's latest book is Selected Stories (Blackstaff Press) READ MORE UNITED STATES Music-loving visitors to the United States will enjoy Imani Perry 's Black in Blues, a remarkably beautiful book exploring black culture from Thelonius Monk to Toni Morrison. Bob Dylan 's Chronicles: Volume One is not only the best book about Bob Dylan, it is the best book about New York. Other masterful evocations of the Apple include Frank O'Hara 's Lunch Poems and Patti Smith 's Just Kids. The United States' greatest wordsmiths have been songwriters, and most had immigrant roots. As your flight crosses the Atlantic, it would be lovely to listen to Van Morrison 's stunning new album, Remembering Now, a moving and thrilling memoir that unfurls into glorious life the soul, blues, jazz and gospel that have been the United States' richest artistic gifts, the soundtrack of its better angels. Joseph O'Connor Joseph O'Connor's latest novel is The Ghosts of Rome (Harvill Secker) NETHERLANDS I became a fan of Gerbrand Bakker when I read The Twin about 10 years ago. His new novel The Hairdresser's Son (also translated by David Colmer) examines loneliness and grief as quiet-living Simon puzzles over the long-standing mystery of his father's disappearance. William Golding's The Lord of the Flies regularly appears on '100 best books' lists, and for its 70th anniversary, in 2024, the Dutch illustrator and author Aimée de Jongh reimagined it as a beautiful and evocative graphic novel. De Jongh's version celebrates the original text yet is also entirely original and fresh. Set in the Dutch countryside in 1961, Yael van der Wouden 's Women's Prize-winning debut, The Safekeep , is both a psychological thriller and love story, a marvellously unsettling portrait of desire, possessiveness and the creep of obsession. Henrietta McKervey Henrietta McKervey's latest novel is A Talented Man (Hachette Books Ireland) FRANCE The writing of the Nobel laureate Annie Ernaux tracks her experiences as a working-class woman and offers a more prosaic version of France than we are used to. Try Happening to begin with. Leila Slimani 's Goncourt-winning Lullaby was a shocking novel about a nanny who kills the children in her care, but it also examines the Parisian bourgeoisie, class divisions and the dilemma of domestic labour in the age of equality. Hervé Le Tellier 's The Anomaly is a mind-bending speculative mystery that sees a planeful of people duplicated during a storm. Le Tellier explores the different paths the duplicate characters' lives take, and what it might mean. This too won the Prix Goncourt. Finally, the crime writer Clémence Michallon 's The Quiet Tenant is a psychological thriller about a woman held captive by a serial killer. Edel Coffey Edel Coffey's latest novel is In Her Place (Sphere) PORTUGAL José Saramago 's career can be roughly divided into pre-Nobel, when his novels intimately examined Portuguese history, and post-Nobel, when they evolved into less geographically specific parables. His sole work of nonfiction, Journey to Portugal, translated by Amanda Hopkinson and Nick Caistor, is a fine meditative travelogue set in post-Salazar Portugal in 1979. The other giant of contemporary Portuguese literature is António Lobo Antunes . A trained psychiatrist who spent three years as an army medic in the colonial war in Angola, Lobo Antunes is one of literature's greatest living stylists, a radiographer of late-20th century Portugal, especially the messy reflux of decolonisation. A good starting point is his 1988 novel, The Return of the Caravels, translated by Gregory Rabassa. Fernando Pessoa 's 'autobiography without facts', The Book of Disquiet, translated by Richard Zenith, might be a hackneyed suggestion, but few books capture the essence of a city for a visitor so well as it does of Lisbon. Oliver Farry Oliver Farry is a foreign correspondent and book reviewer CROATIA I firmly believe that, had she not died in 2018, Dasa Drndic would feature in the Nobel conversation today. Monumental novels such as Trieste (translated by Ellen Elias Bursac), Belladonna and EEG (translated by Celia Hawkesworth) encapsulate so much about personal and European history in the 20th century and resonate loudly today. Exciting younger writers have also broken through. Tea Tulic 's debut novel, Hair Everywhere, translated by Coral Petkovich, is surprising and tender in depicting a family upended by cancer. Olja Savicevic has had two excellent novels translated into English: Farewell, Cowboy and Singer in the Night (both translated by Celia Hawkesworth). Those looking to lose themselves in an epic historical family saga should certainly look out for The Brass Age by Slobodan Snajder (also translated by Celia Hawkesworth). Rónán Hession Rónán Hession's latest novel is Ghost Mountain (Bluemoose) SPAIN Spain is associated with light, colour and the pleasures of the palate. It is also a country that suffered a devastating civil war in the 20th century and decades of dictatorship. The tensions and legacies from that period are still present in contemporary Spanish society. Javier Marías , who died in 2022, was one of the most perceptive and able chroniclers of the deep divisions in Spain that resulted from the brutal repression and all-pervasive surveillance of the fascist years. In novels such as The Infatuations (2013), Thus Bad Begins (2016), Berta Isla (2018) and Tomás Nevinson (2021), Marías offers a forensic exploration of how a society is indelibly marked by political violence and by the consequent temptations of compliance and betrayal. One of the enduring delights of Marías's writing is his utterly distinctive voice, which at once draws the reader into his sensitive and richly detailed description of his home country. Michael Cronin Michael Cronin is professor of French at Trinity College Dublin For Lanzarote, you could do much worse than grab Margaret Drabble 's The Dark Flood Rises, which is largely set on that island. Éilís Ní Dhuibhne GREECE I recently researched a novel set in Greece that I didn't write, so I have ideas, with the caveat that these are anglophone books about living in Greece rather than Greek literature in translation. Sofka Zinovieff 's Eurydice Street is an attentive, observant account of moving to Athens with a young family. Charmian Clift 's two memoirs, Mermaid Singing and Peel Me a Lotus, will take you to Hydra in the 1960s with Leonard Cohen passing through. Patrick Leigh Fermor 's Letters invite you to a bohemian English villa, under construction and then hosting European artists and writers, in postwar Kardamyli. And of course there are the Durrell brothers – Lawrence for preference. Sarah Moss Sarah Moss's latest novel is Ripeness (Picador) MALTA Brian Blouet 's The Story of Malta (Ninth Edition), first published in 1967, remains the best introduction to the intriguing history of this country, from the wonders of its neolithic temples to its successive colonisation by different groups, most famously the Knights of St John, who defended it from the Ottomans in a famous 1565 siege. Blouet, coincidentally a neighbour of mine when I was growing up, first came to Malta as an RAF pilot in the 1950s, when it was still part of the British Empire. Malta might not be the first place that comes to mind when you think of queer history, but Beloved Malta: Stories of Sexual and Gender Identity offers a riveting alternative history of the country that is ironically enabled by the immaculate records kept by the Knights of St John. Today Malta is one of the most LGBTQ-friendly countries in the world despite the persistent influence of the Catholic Church. Daniel Geary Daniel Geary is professor of American history at Trinity College Dublin MEXICO I loved You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue , translated by Natasha Wimmer. It's zippy and humid, which makes it ideal for when the sun is getting to you. The twists and turns of its paragraphs and sentences mimic not just the palaces where its characters – Cortés, Moctezuma and a cohort of conquistadores having a bad trip – find themselves lost but also the dreamy unfurling of the alternative history that it narrates. I won't spoil what happens, but if you read it on holidays in Mexico you'll look up from the end of it with a heartbroken ache at what you see around you. 'Plot twist' doesn't cover it: it's more enigmatic than that – a wrenching of the mood, maybe. Really quite something. Might ruin the holiday, albeit in a fruitful way. Tim MacGabhann Tim MacGabhann's latest book is The Black Pool: A Memoir of Forgetting (Sceptre) AUSTRALIA In case we begin to believe that Australia is a country with a few big cities let us remind ourselves that it is a continent only slightly smaller than Europe, so clearly a few books won't cover it. But it is far away, so if you're undergoing the journey, you can read many books. I'd suggest The Fatal Shore by Robert Hughes for a drenching in essential history, and True Stories, or Everywhere I Look, by Helen Garner , one of Australia's great essayists – and there are many. I've said before that her work is put together with sentences that begin on the low ground but rise into expressions of joy, marvellous pictures as clear as a well-dusted photo album. I'd pack any anthology of short stories, because they have the capacity to illuminate in shades; be sure they include some of the more modern work, including those of First Nations voices. In fact, sorting books for the journey – did I say long journey? – is part of the pleasure. Include some poetry; that's for somewhere over the ocean spread, when you've asked yourself 'Why am I here?' while realising that, all things considered, it does make sense to travel to Australia by ship. You could then have Jon Cleary for dessert. Although not considered a literary gem, his Scobie Malone thrillers give a well-crafted glimpse into suburban Australian life, its concerns and foibles. Evelyn Conlon Evelyn Conlon's latest book is After the Train: Irishwomen United and a Network of Change (UCD Press), edited with Rebecca Pelan BULGARIA Usually when I visit a country I like to read some of its classic works. If you're heading to the Black Sea, why not read Ivan Vazov 's Under the Yoke, a passionate, rather sentimental novel about the Bulgarian fight for freedom in the late 19th century? You'll get it on your ereader. And the contemporary writer Georgi Gospodinov 's The Physics of Sorrow will give you an insight into more recent times in that intriguing country. Éilís Ní Dhuibhne TURKEY 'From a very young age, I suspected there was more to my world than I could see: somewhere in the streets of Istanbul, in a house resembling ours, there lived another Orhan so much like me that he could pass for my twin, even my double.' So begins Orhan Pamuk 's Istanbul: Memories and the City, translated by Maureen Freely, an enchanting memoir that's both scholarly and confessional. Drawing on a broad range of writers, from Baudelaire to Resat Ekrem Kocu, Pamuk evokes the city's complex history and politics, its derelict grandeur and collective melancholy – hüzün – weaving in his own coming-of-age story amid Istanbul's post-imperial decay. Ruby Eastwood Ruby Eastwood is a postgraduate student at Trinity College Dublin and a book reviewer
