2025 book 89

 Stephen Spotswood’s Murder Under Her Skin

Not sure if it was the book or my brain, but I wasn’t as into this second one. It involves the murder of the tattooed lady from the circus Parker used to work at, and her old mentor the knife-thrower has been arrested, so of course they have to go set things straight! But the mystery felt like it was just spinning its wheels until near the end, when I correctly guessed almost all of it. I mean, it was fine, and I do plan on reading the rest of the series, but first I’m going to get back to my ARCs. B+.

2025 book 88

 Stephen Spotswood’s Fortune Favors the Dead

Oh hooray, it’s a new mystery series (to me) to get into!  This one involves a young woman who is the assistant detective to a famous lady detective in 1945 New York. (The narrator is the assistant, she has a circus background, she is very queer, and I love her.) Solid mystery involving the death of a wealthy woman in a locked room after a seance, and really great characters. I really liked this and can’t wait read the next one. A/A-.

2025 book 87

 Janelle Brown’s What Kind of Paradise 

I feel like I’ve read several books with this basic premise—a girl raised in isolation with her paranoid father who is obviously keeping secrets from her—but this is a pretty solid entry in the genre. It’s set during the 90s dot-com boom, which was a fun nostalgia trip. I liked this enough to read in one sitting, but did find parts of it overwrought. I think this author usually does mystery/thrillers, but this feels like more of a coming of age story with some weird/bad stuff happening offscreen, and also thoughts on technology. Shrug emoji? A-/B+.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in June.

2025 book 86

 Rachel Hartman’s Among Ghosts

I’m a huge fan of Hartman’s, and this was another great one from her! It involves a boy who can see ghosts, and dragons and spies and assassins, and a bunch of extremely cool girl ghosts, and nuns, and stories, and it’s funny and sweet and sad and wonderful! (I started trying to explain the plot but got lost in the weeds a little, but the story itself is straightforward.) I think this is a standalone but I do hope these characters pop up again sometime. A.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in June.

2025 book 85

 Karen Dukess' Welcome to Murder Week

This was fun! It’s about a thirty something woman who discovers that her recently deceased (and mostly estranged) mother had purchased a murder-mystery-themed vacation for the two of them in a small town in England. Since she’s unable to get a full refund, she decides what the hell, and is off to solve a mystery with her teammates, a cool gay man (trying to figure out his life) and a romance novelist (and new divorcee). (There’s also a couple of Jewish middle-aged sisters from Pittsburgh, one of whom is a lesbian, and obviously now I want to take a vacation like this, lol.) But of course there are ACTUAL mysteries afoot—why did her mom book this trip?? Is the hot distillery owner into her or is he playing a part? Will they solve the fake murder and win the competition???? Very sweet and satisfying story, I think this will be a great summer read! A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in June.

2025 book 84

 Sherwood Smith’s Treason’s Shore

The conclusion to the Inda series was fine? Again, lots of great character moments, but I still don’t care about sea battles and the ending dragged a lot. I did like this series but will be glad to move onto something else. B/B+.

2025 book 83

 Sherwood Smith’s King’s Shield

I was a little less into the third book in the Inda series, because it’s a lot of journeying to war and then fighting in war. It’s also more straightforward than the first two books. Still, I am very invested in the characters and there are some really great moments in here between all the trudging around on horses. Looking forward to the next one. A-/B+.

2025 book 82

 Sherwood Smith’s The Fox

This book was like 800 pages long and soooo much happened but also some parts were soooo slow? There is a lot of business with fighting pirates and I did get tired of it after a while. But I remain invested in all these characters and can’t wait for book three (I’m hoping for more court politics and diplomacy in that one). A-.

2025 book 81

 Sherwood Smith’s Inda

I’ve really enjoyed the other books by Smith I’ve read, so decided to try one of her earlier series. It’s interesting to see which sorts of plots/settings she’s interested in that have recurred across series (ie nilitary academies), as well as the way she always turns the story in its head! The story here involves the eponymous Inda, the younger son of a prince, being sent to military academy in the midst of all sorts of political intrigue. But there are lots of other POV characters and I loved the women in this world (I also love Inda!). I do love stories with this level of political plotting and I hope the good guys triumph soon (but it’s a four book series so who knows lol). A/A-.

2025 book 80

 Sydney Graves’ The Arizona Triangle

This was WAY too dark and fucked up for me. I was more or less enjoying it for a while, it’s about a PI who’s hired to find her missing childhood best friend, but the reveal was so upsetting and gross that I deeply regret reading this. 

2025 book 79

 Sharon Shinn's Summers at Castle Auburn

I needed a comfort reread and this one is always satisfying--a great coming of age story as a girl who spends summers at the titular castle with her (legitimate) older sister slowly learns about court intrigue, how the world works, and about justice. Also there is a lot of friendship and a little bit of romance. And herbcraft and healing! Good stuff!

2025 book 78

 Shelly Jay Shore’s Rules for Ghosting

Reread for book club. I actually liked this a little more the first time I read it—there is SO MUCH going on here (see my previous review) and yet somehow it feels really slow at times (too much of Ezra’s ruminations). Still, a sweet story with a lot to discuss. Interested to see book club reactions! 

2025 book 77

 Kevin Wilson’s Run for the Hills

I generally like Wilson’s work, and while this wasn’t my /favorite/ of his, it was definitely an enjoyable way to spend some time! The plot here is basically a woman is running her farm when a guy comes and is like, the dad who left when you were a kid? He did the same thing to me, and I’m your older brother! Also, he did the same thing a few more times! Let’s take a road trip cross country and meet our siblings! And they do. It’s funny and sweet and sad, really great characters. I wished for a little more from the end but in all this was a really nice read. A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in May.

2025 book 76

 Sherwood Smith’s The Sage Empress II

Solid second half of the story of the Sage Empress’ rise to power—great characters for sure, though I did think this was a little slower. Still, all I want these days is to be in some other world and this was an enjoyable one to spend time in. A-.

2025 book 75

 Sherwood Smith’s Sage Empress

I’m guessing the girl in this book is going to grow up to be the Sage Empress mentioned so often in the Phoenix Feather books, but there’s a sequel still to go! Anyway, this has lots of what I like—court politics, action, friendship, learning—as a little girl from a noble family grows up watching the court around her, at least until things take a turn and she’s suddenly on a different path (this did feel a little repetitive of the Phoenix Feather books but I still enjoyed it). Looking forward to the second half of the story. A/A-.

2025 book 74

 Sherwood Smith’s Tribute

This is set in the same world as the Phoenix Feather series, which I liked a lot, but hundreds of years earlier. The primary characters are a little girl who leaves home to be trained as a musician, and her elderly music master teacher (love a book with old ladies as main characters!) though various princes and princesses become POV characters eventually. I was loving this even before lots of unexpected action happened in the second half, but it all leads to a really nice ending. Just what I needed to read right now. A.

2025 book 73

Roisin Dunnet’s A Line You Have Traced

This was tough going at first—NOT saying it’s a bad book, but it does feature a dystopia and the specter of the Holocaust, so like… oy. Anyway, this is the story of three women—one, in the 1930s, who keeps seeing an angel appear (she and her family are clearly Jewish but the word “Jewish” does not appear and I found it VERY weird); the second, her descendant, hanging out with friends in contemporary times and imaging time travelers are observing her; the third, in a far future dystopia where humanity is maybe doomed, unless she can save them? It was interesting to see how these stories came together, and the writing is stellar. This is kind of an atmospheric/vibes sort of book, cool but also mildly confusing and maybe a bummer? I definitely get the David Mitchell comparisons. B+.

2025 book 72

 Jan Jones’ In The Kitchen With The Lead Piping 

I wasn’t as interested in the mystery in this third book in this series, but there were lots of amusing shenanigans along the way. This one involves all the characters helping out in various ways at a new wedding venue run by another cousin, when a caterer (with a sleazy past) is found dead the next day. And several characters are suspects! Again, not a particularly interesting mystery, and I wasn’t interested in one of the romances (it felt rushed and shoehorned in), but I enjoyed the characters and the vibes a lot. B+.

2025 book 72

 Jan Jones’ The Unpleasantness at the Belladonna Club

And this title is a Dorothy Sayers reference—I like the cut of this author’s jib! The second book in this series focuses more on the cop from book one (though his cousin and the librarian are definitely still on the scene) and his artist landlady looking at the murder of the village’s most unpleasant woman. I thought the mystery in this one was excellent, and was pleasantly surprised that there actually wasn’t a romance (though the possibility is there for the future). I also love all the villager side characters, really an enjoyable series. A/A-.

2025 book 71

 Jan Jones’ A Body in the Library

I saw someone online recommending this the other day, and I thought the Agatha Christie title tribute was a good sign. This was a super solid cozy mystery set in a small British town, complete with a young widowed librarian heroine (yes, a body does turn up in her library) solving the crime with the help of her handsome neighbor (who is cousins with the officer investigating the case so it makes some sense for a change). I did guess the solution and did think that (and the romance) wrapped up a little too quickly, but I totally enjoyed this and will be reading the next one. Fingers crossed the cool local lesbians will be featured more prominently! A-.

2025 book 70

 Melina Marchetta’s The Place on Dalhousie

UGH I love these books and characters SO MUCH. This one involves the other boy from the high school crew (though all the characters are 25 now), the young woman he gets pregnant, and her stepmother, and the house the latter two are sort of feuding over. But also it’s about friendship and family and love and trying to be a good person. Just what I needed. 

2025 book 69

Melina Marchetta's The Piper's Son 

Obviously once I reread Saving Francesca,I have to reread the two follow-ups as well. This one is set a few years later and focuses on one of the boys in their friend group and his family, broken by grief (his pregnant 42-year-old aunt is also a POV character and I love her). I just love how funny and bittersweet and heartening these books are. 

2025 book 68

 Melina Marchetta’s Saving Francesca

I got into one of those moods where I started like five different books and none were grabbing me, and the only cure is to reread something I love. So here we’re revisiting a story about a teenage girl whose mother has severe depression, and meanwhile the girl is dealing with a new school and her own mental health issues. But also there is so much love in this book, I love stories where people come together and form friendships and communities. Really gets me in the gut.

2025 book 67

 Alexandra Rowland’s Yield Under Great Persuasion 

I really enjoy Rowland’s Seven Gods books—I think I didn’t read this one immediately because it starts with the protagonist waxing rapturously about a dude’s cock and I was like…hm. But I was in the mood for something fun and so here we are! This one involves a cranky asshole who’s been sleeping with this dude he’s resented since they were kids (who’s in love with him!) and how he learns to be LESS of a cranky asshole thanks to divine intervention, lol. I really loved the gods in this one, more books with funny gods improving lives, please. Anyway this was cute and funny and I cried a couple times but it all works out. Seriously, please recommend me some more books like this. A/A-.

2025 book 66

Sulari Gentill’s A Decline in Prophets

I am still enjoying the characters in this series a lot, but the pacing is kind of weird? This one involves a bunch of murders on a ship as our crew takes a journey, and a sect of spiritualists and/or a catholic bishop may be involved. I just feel like things could be tighter. I mean I enjoy all the bits with Rowly hanging out with his friends and family, so it’s the other parts of the plot I’m having issues with, haha. The mysteries are all over the place and things sort of drag. B/B+.

2025 book 65

Sulari Gentill's A Few Right Thinking Men

Hello, it's a new-to-me historical mystery series! This one is set in 1931 Australia, and centers on the younger son of a very rich and prominent family, except he's a painter and his house in Sydney is full of other artists. When his uncle (the one relative who approves of him) is murdered, he has to figure out what's up (with the help of his friends, of course)! There's also a whole thing with tensions between the local Communists (including some of his friends) and various conservative/fascist groups, which does take over a lot of the plot. I really liked the writing and characters here, even if the mystery was more of a historical political thriller. Looking forward to checking out more of this series. A-.

2025 book 64

 T. Kingfisher's Hemlock & Silver

This won't be released till August, but it was my BIRTHDAY this past weekend which means I get to read an ARC I'm excited about, and Kingfisher riffing on Snow White was the one! The protagonist here is a thirty-something woman who studies poisons and antidotes, and then the king callsnon her to see if she can figure out what's up with his daughter Snow, who is mysteriously ill. There is a lot of the trademark Kingfisher humor and also creepiness, but there is also a talking cat, so two thumbs up for sure. I will say that the narrative voice/protagonist/love interest will feel familiar to readers of Kingfisher's other works—that’s fine with me, I like all that, but I have seen people talk about some of her books hitting similar beats and this is definitely one of them. The plot/mystery is solid, though, and I enjoyed this a lot. A-.

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 A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in August.

2025 book 63

 Leonie Swann's Big Bad Wool

The sequel to Three Bags Full is more of the same, as the flock of sheep starts investigating some mysterious happenings in the first near their chateau. I love the vibes of this, the sheep are great and there are some funny bits! Plus a bunch of goats! But also there is a serial killer on the loose and it’s mildly grim, and it’s not necessarily a satisfying mystery. But again, it’s mainly the vibes at work here making this an entertaining read. B+.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on May 6th.

2025 book 62

 John Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids

Still enjoying some classic sci-fi by Wyndham thanks to Rainbow Rowell's recommendation! This one involves a dude who is one of the few people left with sight after a mysterious meteor shower, and also there are killer plants. But really it’s the narrative voice and the characters that kept me interested! My only disappointment is that I really did want to read a book about the new society being built, and not necessarily just the more immediate days after the collapse of civilization. Which somehow felt relevant/current even as it was all science fiction-y. Sigh. A-.

2025 book 61

 Stephen Graham Jones' The Buffalo Hunter Hunter

I'm not usually one for horror, but I do like a revenge story, and I'm here for a Blackfeet vampire killing a bunch of white buffalo hunters. This has an interesting framing device--an academic is reading the recently discovered diary of her great-something-grandfather, a Lutheran pastor who was being told this story by the mysterious Good Stab. I think that helps it not be so creepy, though it is very tense and definitely gory. Things are pretty slow at the start

2025 book 60

 Connie Willis' Inside Job

Cute and mildly silly novella involving a guy who runs a magazine that debunks psychics and mediums and stuff, with the help of his beautiful rich actress employee, and what happens when they investigate a woman who may actually be channeling a spirit without meaning to. I like Willis' lighter stuff and this was a fun read. B+.

2025 book 59

 Patricia McKillip’s Od Magic

Sometimes you just want to read a beautifully written and satisfying story with a variety of interesting and likable characters dealing with power and magic and politics. 

2025 book 58

 Antonia Hodgson's The Raven Scholar

Normally I’d be like, a book with a bunch of trials to determine the future ruler is sooo 2010, but that's really just the backdrop to everything ELSE going on in this book. There’s plotting and politics! There’s a murder mystery! There’s interpersonal dynamics! There’s revenge missions! There's mystical spirits! There's factions all named after animals! There's twists I did NOT see coming. Not to make this sound silly or overly dramatic—it’s actually really good, great writing and an engrossing story. The protagonist is the eponymous Raven Scholar, a commoner raised up by the current emperor due to her extreme nerdiness, but on the eve of his retirement/the start of the trials to find his successor, things are falling apart for her. Soon she’s in the middle of all sorts of intrigue and I was here for it. (I should note all the major characters are adults—the protagonist is in her thirties.) This is the first in a trilogy and I cannot wait for book two, I hope this is a huge hit. A.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in April.

2025 book 57

 TJ Alexander's A Gentleman's Gentleman

Aaaahhhh this was so sweet and good!!!! It's about a young Earl who needs to hire a valet so he can go to London for the season to find a wife or he loses his Earl-dom/inheritance, but he's super not interested in a wife, because he's gay, and is equally uninterested in having a valet, because he's trans. But soon the handsome and capable valet is on board and it's a really nice slow-burn romance. There are occasionally silly scenes (the trellis scene in particular really challenged my suspension of disbelief as to how humans act) but on the whole this was a delight with really great characters. Fingers crossed for a sequel featuring Miss Montrose. A/A-.

2025 book 56

 Alison Lurie's Real People

I'm not sure why I wanted to read this book/bought it, but it was sitting on my kindle so I figured I'd see what the deal was. It's a novel written as the diary of a woman, a short story writer, at at artist's retreat. It was published in 1969 so it's an interesting view of the times for sure, and I do love an epistolary/diary story. I did enjoy this, though I was never super invested in the plot or characters. The look at the creative process and the compromises an author may or may not make was pretty compelling. Pretty lightweight though. B+.

2025 book 55

 Anna-Marie McLemore's The Influencers

I was so into this book! I was mad when I had to put it down to go to bed last night! It’s that perfect blend of fun soapy story and mystery and cultural commentary—a smart beach read maybe? And timely, as it’s about a family whose mother is a famous influencer, and the five daughters whose lives she used for content, now adults, and they’re all suspects when the mother's new husband is killed. But it’s not a thriller type book—it bounces between the POVs of the mother, the sisters, the collective we of their audience (I loved this device), and others, including a mysterious dude dubbed “Luke Sweatshirt” by the internet. It also gets into issues like racism (the girls are biracial with a white mom). Really solid and entertaining read, I know McLemore is mainly a YA author but I hope they write more for adults because this hit the spot. Definitely making my book club read this. A.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in April.

2025 book 54

 Bob The Drag Queen's Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert

I love Bob the Drag Queen and would have been interested in any novel he wrote, but this is unexpected: it’s set in a world where historical figures have come back to life (this is never really discussed or explained in any way, which I liked), and the narrator is a washed-up record producer who’s called up to make an album with Harriet Tubman and her band of freed slaves to tell her story to a new generation. Apparently the audiobook has some actual songs and a stage show is in the works, and it’s an awesome concept and I bet it will be really cool to see. As a novel, maybe less so—the writing is a little clunky for sure, though there were parts I laughed out loud at—it’s unsurprisingly funny, considering the author. A-/B+.

2025 book 53

 Jesmyn Ward's Salvage the Bones

So here’s the thing, I chose this for book club this month without knowing much about it, besides that it won a million awards. But here’s the other thing, I have read way less in the literary type genre since 2020 bc I’m already depressed about the world, and I don’t want to read depressing books. I was kind of dreading actually starting this once fellow book clubbers said it was “stressful” and “like homework” and “has a lot of dog fighting, like the whole book is dog fighting.” That’s not entirely true, but this book was definitely rough on my delicate vegetarian sensibilities. There’s also a whole thing where the protagonist (a pregnant 15 year old) is doing mythology for her summer reading and she talks about Medea a LOT, and I think this could have been used a little more sparingly. Not to bitch too much about this book, which deserves all the awards it won! The descriptions of Hurricane Katrina are especially visceral and the last section kind of made me love the story. But I will be looking for something fluffy to read next. A-.

2025 book 52

 Grace Curtis' Idolfire

OK, this is the third book by Curtis I've read, and WHY do I not hear more people talking about her? She is GREAT! This was great!!! It's about two young women, each on a quest to a legendary city--one to reclaim a stolen god and save her dying town, the other to claim her place as an heir to her throne--who end up journeying together. And normally I HATE books where people are journeying the whole time, but this unfolds so well that I was into it. This is all interspersed with sections addressed to the leader of the legendary city, gradually explaining what happened in the past. Just a really cool book with awesome characters, I really enjoyed this and am giving it an A.

2025 book 51

 KJ Charles' Death in the Spires

Excellent mystery involving a group of Oxford students in the late 1800s—ten years after the leader of their gang was murdered, one receives a blackmail letter at his office, and is determined to finally solve the mystery and confront his old friends (and lover). Really great characters and pacing, solid conclusion, I did want a little more from the end but was generally very satisfied. A/A-.

2025 book 50

 C.S.E. Cooney's Saint Death's Herald

The sequel to Saint Death's Daughter is more of the delightful same, if your definition of delight involves a sweet lil necromancer. (Mine does!) I will say this bogged down in the middle a bit for me (it’s frustrating to be like, ugh, just KILL that guy already) but by the second half I was all in. Really great and interesting characters, particularly the undead tiger rug. And very cool magic and gods. Two thumbs up. Can’t wait for more. A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in April.

2025 book 49

 CSE Cooney's Saint Death's Daughter

This was one of my favorite books of 2022, so I'm happy to reread it, especially since a sequel is out soon! I honestly didn't remember anything about it besides loving it, so it was a joy to revisit the story of a girl from a family of necromancers/assassins who work for the royal family. Very cool characters and concepts, I like books that have well-thought-out religion stuff going on. Also here for an undead puppy, haha!

2025 book 48

 Jeanne Thornton's A/S/L

I really liked Thornton's Summer Fun, so was psyched for this, which is described as being about three teens in the 90s who are trying to create a video game together, but it falls apart, and now it’s eighteen years later… I kept waiting for something to HAPPEN? Not that messy, mentally ill queer ladies living their lives is NOTHING, but this book drags. I did really like Sash's sections, but Abraxa stressed me out. I actually put this down at like 35 percent bc I was so frustrated with it. ALSO the adult sections are set in 2016 and reading about the 2016 election ALSO stressed me out (if I had a nickel for every 2025 novel I’d read by a trans woman set in 2016, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice). Thornton does nail the ethos of chat rooms and internet friendships, though, lol. I loved all of that. This was interesting for sure, but didn’t totally work for me. B+.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on April 1.

2025 book 47

 Emma Knight's The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus

Christina recommended this to me and I was in the mood for something pleasant and engaging, which this was. It mostly centers on a young Canadian woman who's at college in Edinburgh, trying to figure out why her parents' marriage fell apart, befriending the family of his former best friend, etc. Her actress best friend is also prominent and various other characters have little POV sections as well. I enjoyed the characters and their relationships, this was an enjoyable read but somewhat inconsequential. A-/B+.

2025 book 46

 Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Paladin of Souls

After rereading Curse of Chalion, of course I had to reread this one, which takes place a few years later, and finds the dowager decided to go on a pilgrimage basically to get out of the house. But soon she’s tapped by the gods to unravel a complicated supernatural situation—and maybe find a little romance. Really satisfying and I always love Bujold's World of the Five Gods—I’ll probably reread the Penric books soon too. 

2025 book 45

 Lois McMaster Bujold’s The Curse of Chalion

I saw two mentions of this in one day which of course made me want to reread it! It’s everything I love in one book, magic and gods and court politics and great characters trying to fix the world. Plus it’s beautifully written. One of my faves.

2024 book 44

 Sharon Shinn's Alibi

This felt like a departure for Shinn—it has romance and a little mystery, but it’s set in a future world with teleportation (and there are some other mentions of differences/shit that has gone down). I loved the chatty narrative voice—the narrator is an English professor who takes a side gig tutoring the ill son of a wealthy and prominent man, and the scenes of her with her students were some of my faves. Not everything worked for me—the villain is absolutely ridiculously villainous, and some of the descriptions the narrator uses are weird (one friend is described more than once as “exotic” looking with his “rum and coffee” skin, and I thought everyone had agreed SEVERAL years ago that we didn’t compare skin tones to food). I did really enjoy the main character and all her friendships though, just really grabbed me. A-/B+.

2024 book 43

 Rachel Aaron's Hell of a Witch

I wasn’t really vibing with the second book in this series. The plot was kind of inconsequential and the one main character was doing that thing where she’s like “I can’t be with him, he’s a DISTRACTION” for the whole book, even though it’s obvious they’ll get together. I do find the worldbuilding interesting, though, especially since we get some POV sections from the bad guys. I’ll give the third book a try. B.

2024 book 42

 Rachel Aaron's Hell for Hire

I’ve read and enjoyed Aaron's previous series, but somehow missed that she had a new one! Good timing here because the third was released on Friday. Anyway, this is an urban fantasy sort of deal, involving a (dude) witch with a talking cat familiar who hires a team of bodyguards who turn out to be all demons (there’s a whole thing here where ancient king Gilgamesh killed the gods and rules up in heavens and most demons are enslaved), and the head (lady) demon in charge has a Mysterious Past. I look forward to their slow building romance, lol. Anyway, great characters here, a fun read, cool magic, a talking cat, I’m ready for book two. A-.

2025 book 41

 Sara Gran’s Little Mysteries

Normally I’m not into books of short stories, but I really enjoy Sara Gran and think her Claire DeWitt is one of the most interesting fictional detectives around. And this was SO GOOD, every story is satisfying in a different way, and beautifully written, and so smart. Just an absolute stunner of a book. A.

2025 book 40

 Seanan McGuire's Installment Immortality

Now that I’m all caught up on McGuire's main three fantasy series, I’m trying to stay that way—this is the latest volume of her Incryptid series. There is a handy recap at the beginning, which is great, because there are a lot of characters who are all related and it hard to remember who’s who. Anyway, the protagonist here is their ghost babysitter, on a mission to stop the usual bad guys from trapping and torturing ghosts. It’s fine. Sometimes the dialogue is too exposition-heavy (like I don’t need to know all these details about ghosts, ok), but I do enjoy the characters and am invested in what’s going on with Arthur especially. There’s a novella at the end featuring pregnant Verity dealing with a houseguest and a blob monster that I enjoyed a lot. B+?

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.

2025 book 39

 Holly Gramazio's The Husbands

Rereading this for book club and I liked it just as much the second time! I really wasn’t sure how the concept would hold up, but I just find the narrative voice really readable (am interested to see what book club thinks—one person didn’t finish because she thought the protagonist was too passive—should be an interesting discussion).

2025 book 38

 Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell

I don’t know why I decided to reread this—I do like to reread books when my brain needs a reset or some comfort, but I hadn’t read this since it first came out and all I remembered were the footnotes, haha. I loved it less this time, I mean it’s just really slow and there’s a lot of business with the Napoleonic Wars and it takes way too long to resolve things with Lady Pole and Arabella (who were more interesting than some of the other characters, to me). It was one of those books that was cool while I was reading but I was never rushing to pick it back up (which is why it took me all week). Not to sound down on it, obviously it’s a great book, I’m just way more tired than I was in 2004.

2025 book 37

 Ann Cleeves' Telling Tales

I was in the mood for a mystery and this was on my kindle—I don’t remember what made me buy it! It’s the second in the Vera Stanhope series but I never felt like I was missing anything—there are a variety of POV characters before she comes onto the scene to deal with a reopened murder case. I was really into this at first, but by the second half it was dragging and I didn’t find the ending particularly satisfying. (Vera Stanhope is also over it by then so maybe the pacing is deliberate.) It left me feeling kind of bummed. B+.

2026 book 36

 Nevil Shute's On the Beach

For some reason I was in the mood to reread this. It was written in the late 50s and is set in the early 60s, and deals with a nuclear war having wiped out the northern hemisphere, and the people in the southern hemisphere are just trying to live their lives, knowing radiation and doom are heading their way. The main characters are an American submarine captain, an Australian naval officer assigned to his ship (and his wife), and a young woman of their acquaintance. Obviously very sad but also lovely somehow?

2025 book 35

 T. Kingfisher’s A Sorceress Comes to Call

Sometimes you just want to reread a funny and creepy fairy tale/Regency house party kind of story featuring evil sorceresses and cool women who breed geese. Just as satisfying the second time. 

2025 book 34

 John Scalzi's When The Moon Hits Your Eye

I wanted to read something fun and diverting, so sure, let’s try the new Scalzi novel about the moon turning into cheese. The story follows a wide cast of characters, and some are more interesting/effective than others. I also was kind of over it by the end—maybe this could have been a novella? Not my favorite by Scalzi but definitely a diversion! B+.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.

2025 book 33

 Amal El-Mohtar's The River Has Roots

Lovely fairy tale about two sisters who live near the borders of the fairy lands—a lot of times when I read a novella, I always wish there was more, but this was the perfect length. Definitely one for the T. Kingfisher fans, really satisfying, mildly dark. A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.

2025 book 32

 John Wyndham's The Chrysalids

This was originally published in 1955, but honestly feels troublingly current. It’s set in the far future Labrador, after some great Tribulation destroyed large swathes of the planet, and the survivors there are a weird group of fundamentalists who destroy everything and everyone that isn’t correct. The main character is one of a group of telepathic children, who as they grow up realize the danger they’re in. Interesting twists and turns; I wasn’t as interested in the lengthy speeches about the future of humanity, but I did enjoy the narrative voice a lot. B+.

2025 book 31

 Celia Lake's The Fossil Door

This Celia Lake book involves the son of the couple from the previous book being assigned to a mission with a woman of Indian descent to figure out why one of their magic portals isn’t working. Things I liked: the characters, the secondary Jewish characters (I want more info on this community), the slow build romance. Things I didn’t like: this book was way too long and slow, it could have been half the length and told the same story. I might check back in with these books but I definitely need a break. B.

2025 book 30

 Celia Lake's Pastiche

Celia Lake has a million books set in her historical fantasy version of England, and I like the ones I’ve read, though they do nag at my completionist tendencies (there are a bunch of recurring characters, but the series are organized by theme and maybe by era, and I just want to read them all chronologically!!). Anyway, this is one of the earlier ones, timewise, set in 1906, and involves a couple from an arranged marriage gradually falling in love and becoming partners. It’s nice! It’s low stakes, there’s a vague thing where they’re investigating some art, but mostly just living their lives, him being emotionally constipated, her dealing with a chronic illness. I did think the end dragged but this was a nice light read. A-/B+.

2025 book 29

 Emily St. James' Woodworking

This is a funny/bittersweet/touching novel about a teacher in South Dakota coming to terms with being trans, but the only trans person she knows in real life is one of her students (who is also a POV character). I loved both women and their relationship, really stellar writing for both of them. I had some mixed feelings about the plot in the second half, but ended up really liking how it wrapped up. A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.

2025 book 28

 Katherine Addison’s The Tomb of Dragons

Hooray for a new book about Thara Celehar and his investigations, large and small! And more importantly, his friendships. Not to mention the titular dragons. I was also very pleased to see some characters from The Goblin Emperor appear. Everything about this was great and I really hope Addison revisits this world/these characters. A.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.

2025 book 27

 Katherine Addison's The Grief of Stones

I forgot that the plot of this one has some fairly grim stuff going on, as our investigator tackles a murdered marquise and a fishy school for girls. I do really like the focus on his mental health/spirituality, and the friendships he's building. So not the most fun read, but still a good one.

2025 book 26

 Katherine Addison's The Witness for the Dead

Back on my Katherine Addison bullshit, since the third book in this trilogy comes out soon! This series focuses on a secondary character from The Goblin Emperor, whose calling is to basically solve mysteries and crimes involving the dead, since he can speak to them. Addison plots this first one really well—there’s an overarching mystery involving the death of an opera singer, but lots of other interesting things pop up along the way. Also just really humane characters, which I for one really need right now. 

2025 book 25

 J. Winifred Butterworth's A Bloomy Head

Thank you to Olivia Waite for reviewing this in the NYT, bc I’m not sure I’d have ever found out about it otherwise, and it’s exactly the sort of book I love. It’s a historical romance between a young widow/cheese maker and the (trans) army doctor her brother brings home from war, as she nurses him back to health. But also, it’s a mystery—what’s with all these beheaded bodies? And also, the widow has a million siblings, who each have their own drama going on (and I sincerely hope for a book about each of them). Really great characters and a satisfying story. I loved the narrative voice here, I own another book by this author under a different pen name (it also involves cheese) and I will be bumping that up my list. A.

2025 book 24

 Katherine Addison's The Orb of Cairado

New novella set in the world of The Goblin Emperor! This one involves a scholar who was ousted from the university for a theft he did not commit. When his best friend—the pilot of the airship from TGE—dies, he ends up on an unexpected adventure, and may help solve a murder. Solid story and cool characters, I also enjoyed the academic politics at play. A-.

2025 book 23

 Katherine Addison's The Goblin Emperor

A new novella set in this world just came out, which was a perfect excuse to reread a book I always find satisfying. It’s the story of a half-elf/half-goblin prince, raised in isolation, who suddenly becomes emperor when his father and older brothers die in an airship crash. Lots of learning to lead, finding allies and friends and family, lots of hope. 

2025 book 22

 Nisi Shawl's Making Amends

This was an interesting sci-fi story set in the far future involving the establishment of a prison planet, but it didn’t totally work for me. It’s really a set of stories, so it’s a bit disjointed, and it’s weirdly horny, which just isn’t my thing. I thought the last few stories were the strongest, and the communities and identities and discoveries were really cool. I actually wish there were a few more stories centered on those characters/societies, I would have loved more exploration of that. B/B+.

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Content warning for rape.

2025 book 21

 Deanna Raybourn's Kills Well With Others

I don't know that Killers of a Certain Age needed a sequel, but I liked the characters and was happy to see them again. The plot here isn’t as a strong, though, and the flashbacks felt like a retread of the first book (I also would prefer not have to read about Nazis in my fun lady spy books). It just kind of dragged for me. I did enjoy the relationships between the characters, though, and the end was very fun. B/B+.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.

2025 book 20

 Allegra Goodman's Isola

Goodman's latest is totally engrossing, the story of a wealthy orphan girl growing up in 1500s France, with occasional visits from her clearly sketchy guardian. Eventually he plans to lead a journey to New France (Canada lol) and drags her with him. But when she falls in love with his secretary, he punishes them by leaving them stranded on a deserted island. (That all is in the description but doesn’t happen till halfway through—everything before that is just as interesting though.) I love reading survival stories from the comfort of my couch and this was a compelling one, and it turns out to be based on a true story!!!! Parts of it reminded me of The Vaster Wilds but it’s less grim (comparatively). Gonna give this an A.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released on February 4th.

2025 book 19

 Gayle Forman's After Life

I was intrigued by the premise of this—it’s about a teenage girl who comes home from school, only to discover she’s been dead for seven years, and how her death has affected everyone she cared about (and other interesting characters). It reminded me of that tv show Les Revenants. I did like this but I kind of wished it had gone deeper? I was here for the cool lesbian sister and the teacher characters though. A-.

2025 book 18

 Emily Tesh's The Incandescent

Usually I try and wait a little closer to release date to read an ARC, but a) Tesh's Some Desperate Glory was one of my favorites of 2023, and b) lots of people are talking about this/reading it, and I didn't want to wait! Also, like, times are tough, let me read a book about queer ladies who work at a magic school. And I enjoyed this a lot! The main character is the Head of Magic at a British boarding school, and she has a sort of enemies-to-lovers thing with the woman who is basically the head of magical security. They fight demons together!! I did think the middle sagged a little—like, please stop being STUPID—but I loved how things wrapped up and adored these characters. Very satisfying read. A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in May.

2025 book 17

 Jane Austen's Persuasion

Another good site action for today as Austen requires a little more focus than some other books (for me, anyway). This is a great example of why I hate modern Austen retellings—they always miss how FUNNY she is. The narrative voice in this is hilarious and judgy. It’s awesome. 

2025 book 16

 Naomi Kritzer's Liberty's Daughter

Today is for rereading favorite books about people trying to make the world a better place. This one involves a teenager in a near-future world, living in a weird libertarian community that’s hundreds of miles out to sea. She ends up getting caught up in politics/class struggles and having some adventures along the way. Perfect distraction. 

2025 book 15

 Anne Tyler's Three Days in June

I always enjoy an Anne Tyler book but this one was so sweet! It’s about a cranky-ish 60-something woman and starts in the day before her daughter's wedding, when she’s having job issues, and then her ex-husband shows up to crash at her place with a cat he’s fostering. Like, lol. It’s not all madcap zaniness though, as she reflects on her relationships and what she wants out of life. I was here for the cat though. A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in February.

2025 book 14

 Sarah Beth Durst's The Spellshop

This was cute. It’s about a librarian in an imperial city that’s currently under revolt, and the library is on fire, so she and her assistant (a sentient plant) flee—with five crates of spellbooks, to keep the, from burning. They end up in the cottage where she was born and eventually start doing magic to help the dying island, even though it’s illegal. There’s also a hot and helpful neighbor with a herd of merhorses and a lot of friendly townspeople. The plot was kind of eh for me—trying to manufacture conflict in a cozy fantasy romance is hard—and though I agreed with the political sentiments, they felt shoehorned in, but I liked all the parts with magic and friendship. B+.

2025 book 13

 Agatha Christie's Lord Edgeware Dies

I just wanted to read a classic mystery but Agatha Christie did me dirty again. First of all, every character in this book is horribly and casually antisemitic, including Poirot. Second of all, one of the characters uses two racial slurs (including the n-word) for absolutely no reason. The mystery is fine but like YIKES. B.

2025 book 12

 Molly O’Neill’s Greenteeth

Cool story about a lake creature/fairy who is chilling when the villagers throw a witch into her home! Rude! Soon the two are on a quest, accompanied by a goblin merchant, to defeat a great evil. This was blurbed by T.Kingfisher and it does have some of those fairytale vibes, though the tone is a little different. This was slow at points—I kept waiting for Chekhov’s sword to come into play—but was overall entertaining and I really enjoyed the protagonist. A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in February.

2025 book 11

 Olivia Waite's Murder by Memory

I am the target audience for this book, which is a cozy sci-fi murder mystery featuring a lesbian aunt/detective who knits, on board a sentient spaceship! I have enjoyed the romances I’ve read by Waite, so was psyched to see her writing something in a genre I like even more (there is no romance in this one, though a hint that one might develop in later books in the series). Anyway, things start with our detective waking up in someone else's body, and that body may have been involved in a MURDER! This perfectly maps a classic Golden Age mystery onto science fiction and I loved it. My only complaint is that it's a novella and I did wish there was more to it! But so fun, I can’t wait for more. A/A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in March.

2025 book 10

 Naomi Novik's The Golden Enclaves

I haven’t read this since it was first released, and though I remembered all the major plot points, there were still so many good bits to rediscover. Plus the first time I read it, I was kind of rushing to see what would happen, and I wasn’t confused by the ending this time, haha. Really satisfying and very engrossing series, I need more books like this. 

2025 book 9

 Naomi Novik's The Last Graduate

Ugh, I do love this book, everything that’s great about the first one (friendships and alliances, grumpy heroine, etc) is amped up here, and I’m crying from NICENESS at parts! And it still has one of the best cliffhanger endings ever. 

2025 book 8

 Naomi Novik's A Deadly Education

I have a zillion news books and arcs that I’m excited to read, but also I’m depressed so I’m rereading a favorite series instead. Shrug emoji. I love books where people build community and makes friends and alliances, and also I love a grumpy but soft-hearted heroine. This book actually made me feel better!! 

2025 book 7

 Kaveh Akbar's Martyr!

So Christina started this and told me she was enjoying it, and since I wanted to read something more literary after a slightly silly vampire book, I thought I’d try it—the description made it seem so cool and it was so so many best-of lists. But it’s about a depressed literary guy and it’s kind of slow. I’m not particularly interested in books about sad literary guys contemplating mortality. But occasionally the POV switches to more interesting characters, particularly his mother, and then things start getting good. I did end up liking this, but it definitely made me more depressed than I already was. A-/B+.

2025 book 6

 Katherine Villyard's Immortal Gifts

Mixed feelings on this one. On the one hand, a cool Jewish vampire dude who loves cats (and has a Wiccan veterinarian wife). On the other, it kind of implies that much of the world's antisemitism, including the Holocaust and our current neo-Nazi nightmare, is due to one ancient and crazed antisemitic vampire. I also wish this has been edited a little bit more—a couple times things are repeated, and I think some of the Judaism 101 could have been cut back (do we need to be defining latkes or chuppahs?). And the protagonist makes some truly bizarre choices. Yet I kept reading because I liked the characters' relationships, and I liked the sort of philosophical discussions of being Jewish and being a vampire. The end was melodramatic, but also hilarious and sweet? Y’all, I don’t even know. B+?

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in February.

2025 book 5

 Sharon Lynn Fisher's Grimm Curiosities

I saw people talking about this on Bluesky and it sounded cute, but there is a LOT going on. It's set in Victorian England, and the romance is between a young woman who is trying to run her family's antique shop after the death of her father, and the young man whose father is the local baron. They're brought together because her mother and his sister both are suffering the same probably-magical ailment. Also, there are some mysterious books that another wealthy young man is trying to buy. ALSO, there are ghosts AND other mysterious things revealed along the way. Also, there are legit fears for her reputation since it is the 1850s. I will say whenever I was reading about the characters and their feelings, I was rooting for them, but then some other character would be like "you're in LOVE with her!" and I'd remember this whole book takes place over like a week, and then would feel weird about the romance. The second half dragged a lot for me, and the end was extremely silly. Not really my jam, but if the author writes a book about the secret lesbian side characters, I might read it. Lol. B.

2025 book 4

 Linda Holmes' Back After This

Hooray for a new Linda Holmes book! This one involves a podcast producer (obviously something Holmes knows a lot about) who /finally/ gets a chance to host her own show, except the show is gonna be about her taking advice from a dating coach and going in twenty blind dates. Complicating matters is a meet-cute with a cute guy chasing after a dog, and then she keeps running into the guy. (I loved this dog!!) The protagonist is occasionally frustrating and I think Holmes did a better job fleshing out the secondary characters in her previous books, but this was still a very fun read. A-.

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A review copy was provided by the publisher. This book will be released in February.

2025 book 3

 Rachel Neumeier’s Silver Circle: Shattered Skies

Solid conclusion to this series. This wasn’t my favorite series by Neumeier—I think it was just a little too dark/gross at times—but I always enjoy her characters and worldbuilding and emphasis on diplomacy and good leadership. A-.

2025 book 2

 Rachel Neumeier’s Silver Circle: Rising Winds

This suffers a little from being the second book in a trilogy—there are some cool moments and reveals, but there is also a lot of setting things up for the big finale. There’s also a lot going on and a lot of POV characters, so by the time it gets back around to say, Ethan, it’s easy to forget what’s been happening. But I have faith that book three will be satisfying! A-/B+.

2025 book 1

 Rachel Neumeier’s Silver Circle: Scattered Sparks

Apparently when Neumeier went to write the conclusion to the Black Dog series, there was so much going on that it turned into three books. And this one is a solid first volume—lots of attacks are being directed toward our black dogs, and they have to figure out how to survive—and take down the witch who’s gunning for them. Good pacing here and I am invested in these characters at this point. I’m also glad I read all the novellas, I think a reader would be very confused if they didn’t. A-.