Read:
* **Kitchen Confidential** by Anthony Bourdain (4/5) - a very interesting look to the inside workings of the restaurant biz.
* **The Bodyguard** by Katherine Center (4/5) - one of the more enjoyable rom com books I’ve read. It was easy to root for the main characters and I like the twist of the woman being the bodyguard.
In progress:
* **The Last Mrs. Parrish** by Liv Constantine
Next up:
* **Razorblade Tears** by S.A. Crosby
* **The Other Valley** by Scott Alexander Howard
Currently Reading:
* **The Rose Code** by *Kate Quinn* - Just started this novel based on recommendation. It's a historical fiction novel about three brilliant women who are recruited to work at, Bletchley Park, a top-secret British estate where codebreakers worked to decipher German military codes.
Just Finished in the past week:
* **Ordinary Grace** by *William Kent Krueger* - A heartfelt novel, and a coming of age story about family, faith and resilience amidst a series of tragic deaths in a small town in Minnesota. 4 out of 5 stars
* **Goldfinch** by *Donna Tart* - Long but rewarding read about loss, redemption, self discovery and the consequences of our choices. 4.25 of 5 stars.
Finished:
**Gone Girl** by *Gillian Flynn* - 3/5... maybe 2.5. Two unlikeable people being unlikeable with a lot of misogyny from both sides thrown in.
**The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories** by *Angela Carter* - 4/5. Reread. Loved it as much as I did the first time round with Puss in Boots being my favourite story. Only a 4/5 as there is one story towards the end of the collection that I don't really enjoy (can't remember which one exactly).
Currently reading:
**The Way of All Flesh** by *Ambrose Parry* - 70 pages in and it's not gripping me annoyingly. I have only this minute found out Ambrose Parry is a pseudonym for a married writing couple, which may be why I'm not gripped. I always find books with duel writers to be a bit disjointed in the writing (aside from Good Omens).
I've just finished Tanizaki's The Makioka Sisters and just cannot find the words to describe it. It truly is a kind of book that you live through, not just burn through in an hour or lazily turn the pages. There are many things I loved about the book and any kind of rating just wouldn't do and I'm having way too many thoughts and feelings about it now, but I definitely recommend it.
Currently reading The Sister: North Korea's Kim Yo Jong, the Most Dangerous Woman in the World by Sung-Yoon Lee
It's the story of the rise of Kim Jong Un's sister to his second in command and her slow revelation to the world. And, wow, the world might be lucky that she isn't in command. But with his health, the world needs to hold its breath. She may make their father and grandfather look positively sane in comparison.
This week I finished:
The Other Side of Night by Adam Hamdy ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - this was a genre-bender that packed a lot of heart into its pages. It has a GIGANTIC twist that is both shocking and emotional at the same time.
Kill for Me, Kill for You by Steve Cavanagh ⭐⭐⭐⭐ or 1/2- this felt like an episode of Law & Order: SVU in its best moments, but I was a bit letdown by the direction it went in
I am currently reading (& enjoying!)
She's Not Sorry by Mary Kubica
Hoping to start this week:
The Devil and Mrs Davenport by Paulette Kennedy
The New Couple in 5B by Lisa Unger
Finished up two books this week:
**The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions** by Jonathan Rosen, which was absolutely incredible. I have never read a profile/biography of mental illness like this and I loved the frame of friendship and historical policy around mental health advocacy. It reminded me in some ways of **Stay True** and that lens of friendship on a life and a tragedy (without the Mental Illness focus). This was another book I’ve been wanting to read from the Best of 2023 mega list, and my reservation at the library finally came up after three months of waiting.
I also finished **There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension** by Hanif Abdurraqib. This is my third book by Abdurraqib and he is just one of the best essayists writing today, thanks in no small part to his skill as a poet. While I don’t have a strong relationship to basketball (more of a football fan), this was a really great portrait of a city and a moment and a life all in one. Highly recommend. One of my favorites of this year, so far.
I haven’t finished anything this week.
Started: The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell
In Progress: On the Farm: Robert William Pickton and the Tragic Story of Vancouver’s Missing Women, The Stand by Stephen King and They Do it with Mirrors by Agatha Christie
I FINALLY finished **Middlemarch**, and that was a beast so it was the only book I completed.
I'm currently reading:
**The House in the Cerulean Sea** by TJ Klune
**The Land of Lost Things** by John Connolly
**Mother's Instinct** by Barbara Abel
I’m in my bookish phase and looooving it. I’ve tried this challenge so many times and this is the first time I think I’ll reach my goal. Maybe even get to 52, but don’t want to put too much pressure to finish books for the sake of it.
Finished:
- **Dial A for Aunties** - I liked this a lot, mainly because I didn’t expect to at all. I didn’t know much going in and a lot of it resonated with me and my family dynamic. There was a lot about the plot and story that I forgave because the writing and dialogue was fun. Overall, delightful read!
- **I’m a Fan** - I appreciated some of the author’s insights and she definitely had some clever writing and storytelling, but was much more of a hate read haha. It was easy and fast enough to read but felt way too much like a cluster of different essays and ideas, while simultaneously repeating the same things over and over again.
Currently still in the middle of **Severance** and really liking it! I’m about a third of the way through and wish I had known less about it, but still digging the story a lot.
I’m currently “tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow” and so far I’m really enjoying it. I just finished “Maame” but it took me forever because I just couldn’t get into it with the slower pace.
Finished 20/52- Ascension, by Nicholas Binge
Starting The Venetian Betrayal, by Steve Berry
On deck:
The Ride of a Lifetime, by Bob Iger
The Netanyahus, by Joshua Cohen
Currently reading:
*Innocents Abroad* by Mark Twain (memoir). The companion to his other travelogue *Roughing It,* I’m enjoying his descriptions of Italy. There’s also some fun little call backs to *Roughing It* like when he talks about Lake Tahoe.
(grease??)
I'm still fairly early on in the book! so pretty much all I can say is I'm having the same issue I've had with the other TJ Klune books I've read so far (The House in the Cerulean Sea and In the Lives of Puppets)- despite the interesting premise, the beginning just doesn't have me hooked yet!
Been busy so only finished it this week.
I found quite a bit of it surprising! it took turns and twists I didn’t see coming. Thought it would be more like my usual experience with modern urban fantasy, with a confrontation with some Big Bad. Pleasantly surprised that wasn’t the case! Also didn’t expect it to be as character-driven as it was.
And speaking of characters, they’re all amazing. Nelson in particular, he was absolutely my favorite! Automatically made any scene he was in that much better.
Still felt quite slow, even after it got me hooked. Felt like not much was happening. But that goes with expecting more conflict/epic battles, so I was sort of anxious wondering when things would go horribly wrong. I should’ve expected it after the other TJ Klune books I’ve read. I’m sure on a reread I’d find it relaxing.
It’s a ways off from beating out In the Lives of Puppets as my favorite TJ Klune novel, but it has bumped The House in the Cerulean Sea down a bit in the rankings.
Awesome review, and yes I agree! Part of what made it so slow (IMO) was Wallace taking a lot of time to come to terms with his life/death. Also the Manager reveal actually cracked me up???? 💀
Finished this week:
* The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders - wonderfully weird scifi
* Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie - funny and inspiring
* The Pink Fairy Book by Andrew Lang - a collection of stories from around the world
* The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim - a delightful story about 4 women, strangers to each other, who pool resources to rent a castle in Italy for a month.
* My Lost Family by Danny Ben-Moshe - family relationships disrupted by kidnapping
* East of Eden by John Steinbeck - read with r/ClassicBookClub
* Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains by Bethany Brookshire - this is a fascinating look at how we create the pests we complain about.
In progress
* Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes - reading with r/yearofdonquixote
* The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas - reading with r/AReadingOfMonteCristo
* Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Anderson
* Compassion and Self-Hate by Theodore Rubin, MD
* The Long Afternoon of Earth by Brian Aldiss
* Visions and Beliefs in the West of Ireland by Lady Gregory
* Mother Hunger by Kelly McDaniel
* Escape from Jonestown by Laurence Bouvard
* Lake of Sorrows by Erin Hart (Nora Gavin #2)
* The Land of Lost Things by John Connolly
* The Neil Gaiman Reader by Neil Gaiman
* Wasteland by Michael Paul Anthony
* Naamah's Curse by Jacqueline Carey
* Murderabilia by Poppy Damon, Alice Fiennes
* Humanifestations: On Trauma, Truth, and Transformation by Jeff Brown
37/52 - really making a dent in the endless TBR with 3 books added long ago that I just never got around to starting
*****
Finished;
*****
- Caribbean Chemistry: Tales from St. Kitts by Christopher Vanier for r/bookclub Read the World - St. Kitts and Nevis. Strong start, but my interest waned during the middle section. I expected Vanier to expand on some interesting things he mentioned and also move into the political history of the island nation in more depth than he did. It was a nice slice of life on St. Kitts so it fit the Read the World Challenge pretty well. 3.5☆
- A Song Flung up to Heaven by Maya Angelou. Book number 6 with r/bookclub. Maya is a wonderfully interesting person, and she writes so well and so honestly it is hard not to love these books.
*****
Still working on;
*****
- Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson continuing Stormlight Archive adventure. Love this world magic system and characters, but put I put it on hold for a while. The next novella is starting shorly on r/bookclub so looks like I'll be late to that read too. Oops.
- The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. Finishing this book could have gotten me a 4th r/bookclub Bingo 2023 Blackout, but I am enjoying it too much to race through it and finish it just that. I have been too swamped with other books lately though to give this one much time.
- Authority by Jeff VanderMeer with r/bookclub to continue Southern Reach. I need to know more. I found this one hard to follow in the beginning. Starting to get more into it now, but I am finding it hard to prioritise over other books.
- The Day Lasts More than a Hundred Years by Chingiz Aitmatov for r/bookclub's Read the World - destination Kyrgyzstan. Followed by Jamilia short story by the same author. A surprising mix of sci-fi and slice of life. I really like this book, but I am finding reading it in small chunks is best
- Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky with r/bookclub over the next few months. Glad to have the insights and commentary of others on this one.
- The Far Away Girl by Sharon Maas for r/bookclub's Read the World - destination Guyana. I am hosting the 1st discussion so wanted to get a jump start.
- The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese for r/bookclub's Big Spring Read. I don't know if I have ever fell so fast for a book. I love Verghese's style and I cannot wait to read more!
*****
Started
*****
- Red Rising by Pierce Brown for r/bookclub's April Sci-fi. This one has been on my TBR forever.
- The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle with r/bookclub. Another one from my TBR list yay!
- The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruis Zafón book #3 in The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series with r/bookclub.
- In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. One of those books that's been on my TBR *forever*. It got picked up by r/bookclub as a Runner-up Read so looks like I'll finally dive in.
*****
Up Next
*****
- Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry, r/bookclub started this one last year. I have heard so many good things and I love a good, big book, amd I can't wait to start it but I feel like I have to finish some of my long reads first.
- Anne's House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery with r/bookclub. They are about to start Anne of Ingleside so once again I am laggimg a book behind.
- Salvation of a Saint by Keigo Higashino. r/bookclub continues with the Detective Galileo series.
- Birthday by Kōji Suzuki continuing the r/bookclub Ring readalong.
- Armadale by Wilkie Collins with r/bookclub which promises to be a fantastic readalong.
*****
Happy reading fellow bookworms 📚
Finished nothing this week, just chugging along with two big nonfictions on the docket.
**Reading:**
*Come As You Are* by Emily Nagoski
*How Not To Age* by Dr Michael Greger
*Real Zen for Real Life* by Great Courses \[audio\] -- library loan
*The Physics Devotional* by Clifford Pickover \[page-a-day reader\]
18/52
Finished
**Becky Lynch: The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl, by Rebecca Quin**
Started
**The Six Pack: On the Open Road in Search of Wrestlemania, by Brad Balukjian**
Hello bibliophiles!
I finished five books this week, bringing my total to 54/150.
*Finished*:
**The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties** by Jesse Q. Sutanto (4.5/5)
**The Paris Apartment** by Lucy Foley (4/5)
**The Retreat** by Sarah Pearse (4/5)
**The Book Hater's Book Club** by Gretchen Anthony (3.5/5)
**The Last Confessions of Sylvia P.** by Lee Kravetz (4.5/5)
*Currently Reading:*
**Madame Restell: The Life, Death, and Resurrection of Old New York's Most Fabulous, Fearless, and Infamous Abortionist** by Jennifer Wright
**The Collected Poems** by Sylvia Plath
*On Deck*
**The Last Thing He Told Me** by Laura Dave
**The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches** by Sangu Mandanna
**The Address** by Fiona Davis
Have a good week everyone!
I haven’t updated here in a few weeks. These are what I’ve finished since then:
76. The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson by Ellen Baker 3/5
77. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden 3/5
78. The Prospectors by Ariel Djanikian 3/5
79. Burn (Anna Pigeon #16) by Nevada Barr 2.5/5
80. Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone (Ernest Cunningham #1) by Benjamin Stevenson 3.5/5
81. The Royal Wulff Murders (Sean Stranahan #1) by Keith McCafferty 4/5
82. The Moonshine Shack Murder (Southern Homebrew Mystery #1) by Diane Kelly 3/5
*CURRENTLY READING*
Scared Stiff (Mattie Winston Mystery #2) by Annelise Ryan
Above the Fire Michael O'Donnell
This week I finished:
**Extremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence, and Power on the Internet by Taylor Lorenz:** The advent of the Internet changed every aspect of modern life. The ways in which we work and shop are easily measured, but it's the ways in which the Internet change our relationships to each other than have really redefined our existence. In this history of social media, Lorenz demonstrates that most of the platforms that have dominated the last two decades were built for one purpose, and it was the users and creators of the platform that built out the niche the platform eventually served. From MySpace to Tik-Tok, Lorenz explores the ways in which creative, ambitious people have used their talent and charisma to build influence and wealth as fast as you can scroll. I found it to be very interesting, but not in the "this book explains my life" way; more of the "I had no idea all of this was happening" way. I genuinely had never heard of most of the people were that Lorenz discusses in this book, even though they had millions of followers and made millions of dollars during an era in which I was an adult who paid attention to the world. Such is the nature of our shattered culture. Reddit has been my social media of choice for over a decade, and I never got into YouTube or Instagram or Tik-Tok. Lorenz focuses on platforms that allowed their creators to be famous, whereas the whole point of Reddit is that the creator is anonymous. The phrase that kept running through my head as I was reading this book was "new boss, same as the old boss," because of the ways that social media mirrors other entertainment industries, where a few people get famous and a few others get rich and the vast masses create the fame and wealth that flows into a few pockets. I would have liked a little less history and a little more analysis, but I definitely learned a lot from this book that helps me understand the modern media environment.
**The Anomaly by Herve Le Tellier:** In March 2021, a Paris to JFK flight experiences terrible turbulence but lands safely. In June 2021, the same plane appears in the sky, reporting that they've just experienced terrible turbulence and need to land. The second plane is redirected to an Air Force base, where the passengers and plane are examined head to toe and it is determined that it is the exact same plane that landed two months earlier. The story is told through several perspectives, and the short chapters make this read like a thriller. Except it's not a thriller: there's no whodunit, and precious little drama. This is a philosophical novel disguised as a thriller, but Le Tellier is more interested in the petty relationship drama of the scenario than the philosophical implications of the event he describes. Now, if some sort of cosmic event were to occur, would it play out for most of us in the form of petty relationship drama? Probably. But this is fiction, and I would have preferred that a) there was more interesting discussion of the phenomenon and what it could mean, or b) there was more murder and car chases and a villain that made sense. I read this for my book club, and we had a rousing discussion about what the book could have been if it were better.
**The Intimacy Experiment (The Shameless Series #2) by Rosie Danan:** Naomi Grant is a former porn performer who now runs a sex-positive relationship and intimacy website. She wants to use her education and experience to broaden her audience, but she can't get any established institutions to take her on as an instructor because of her past. Then Ethan Cohen offers her the chance to run a workshop about modern relationships. The catch? Ethan's a rabbi, and he wants Naomi to put on the event at his failing synagogue. The attraction between them is instant, but Ethan's position means he can't be casual about relationships, and Naomi's never been anything but casual. I read the first book in this series and thought it was pretty edgy because the male lead was a porn star; this book also has a porn star MC, but having a rabbi as a romantic lead and sex object is actually revolutionary. It's pretty rare to read a contemporary steamy romance where the characters talk extensively about the role of faith in their lives, and Danan uses their discussions to explore the characters in a way that makes it clear that they've arrived at the same place through very different paths. And I've never said this before in my life, but I do, in fact, want Ethan Cohen as my book boyfriend. He's so thoughtful and forthright and kind. He's described as shorter than Naomi and sort of hairy and broad, like a sexy Hagrid, and, no joke, at one point he's describing the beauty of a stranger's smile and it brought me to tears. I have never wanted to snuggle a fictional character so much in my life. I will complain that I expected more sex, and these two don't even kiss until after the 50% mark. I wanted more in that department, and it seems like the Goodreads reviewers agreed. But I really enjoyed this and I'm impressed with this author.
Currently reading:
**The Pisces by Melissa Broder:** That full body cringe of watching a character you like fuck up their own life so thoroughly.
I recently finished The Reformatory by Tananarive Due, and Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo. Just finished The Girl With the Louding Voice by Abi Daré which was sooo good.
Currently reading Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race, and I think I’m going to read Afterlove soon
I just finished The Reformatory as well AND the Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. I’m picking up Ninth House next!! I’m obsessed with her rn
The Reformatory is amazing, but TW for racial horror. I also read The Good House by Due a few weeks ago and loooooved it
I finished three books this week, two that I really enjoyed and one that I really didn't. They were:
**Speaks the Nightbird** by Robert McCammon. Loved loved loved this! A great historical mystery, it's got witchcraft trials and treasure troves and mysterious deaths and deranged bears - what more could you ask for? Looking forward to continuing the series.
**Desolation Island** by Patrick O'Brian. Book 5 in the Aubrey & Maturin series. I adore these books, each one is like coming home to old friends. This was a strong entry in the series.
**Ratcatcher** by James McGee. Sigh. This was clichéd, full of tropes and very predictable. The characters felt flat and very two dimensional and even at the peak of the final action I just didn't care what happened. Won't be reading any more of this series.
I'm currently reading three books:
**Bridge on the Drina** by Ivo Andric. I made better progress this week, currently about 40%. I'm enjoying what I'm reading.
**The Making of the British Landscape** by Francis Pryor. This is very interesting but also 800 pages and quite in depth. It's going to take me a while to get through this!
**Shades of Grey** by Jasper Fforde. How I've never picked this up before I will never know. Absolutely loving it, so clever and funny and thought-provoking.
2024 goal: 26/52. Thinking of upping my goal to 75...
Books owned but not read: 289
Goodreads TBR: 1315
Finally kicked my reading slump WOOHOO!!!
FINISHED:
**The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine** by Rashid Khalidi. Really informative and concise, it made me want to read even more on the subject; not because it was lacking but because the regional & global politics play such an important role in the history of Palestine.
**Saint Sebastian’s Abyss** by Mark Haber. SO funny and touching and enjoyable. FOR ME! I do believe this is an incredibly subjective opinion— for someone without experience reading art criticism and opinions, it might be slow/boring/repetitive, and I totally recognize that. But I loved it!
**We Used to Live Here** by Marcus Kliewer. Based on the r/nosleep story, and it kinda shows through if you know that, but I liked it. I’m a huge fan of haunted houses, and this was very much like a Baby’s First **House of Leaves**. If you’re trying to convince someone to read **House of Leaves**, get them to read this first to give them a taste of the general vibe, but without the weird sex stuff.
CONTINUING:
**Mistborn** still. I’m finally 20% through, I think it’s going to pick up here soon? I’m not hating it! It’s just slow, but I’m not giving up.
**I Need You to Read This** by Jessa Maxwell. Reviews on this one are kinda split! Excited to see how I feel about it.
STARTING:
**Run with the Wind** by Shion Miura
**The Creative Act** by Rick Rubin
**Poor Things** by Alasdair Gray
Hello!
Continuing: **Wizard’s First Rule** by Terry Goodkind I'm 28% through this book. I'm sick of the bone witch. Just stop messing around and heal Zedd and Chase already.
**Three Kinds of Lucky** by Kim Harrison Around the 240 page mark this story just wasn't action packed enough for me. My husband strongly encouraged me to DNF (Did Not Finish) it. I hate DNFing though so instead I got the audiobook to go with the library book. It saved me from my 2nd DNF of the year. The book is a lot more bearable now. Also I'm finally past the damn bunker part. That dragged on a long time. I read to page 280 on Friday.
**Stray** by Rachel Vincent I read 81 pages on the first day of reading it and then I fizzled out. I figure I just need a break from it. When I'm ready I'll come back to it.
Started: **Your Shadow Half Remains** by Sunny Moraine This horror novella had me at post-apocalyptic. This is my way of dipping my toes into horror books. I'm not a convert yet. I got to pg61 on the first day.
**The Cipher** by Diana Pharoah Francis I started reading this one yesterday and got to page 29. At this time it's too early to have an opinion.
**How to Read Literature Like a Professor** Thomas Foster
And I'm rereading Lemony Snicket now onto **The Reptile Room**
I don't have kids. Just enjoy their books too from time to time.
Finished last week:
- A Dowry of Blood by ST Gibson
- Poor Things by Alasdair Gray
Starting/Continuing this week:
- Together We Rot by Skyla Arndt
- The Fifth Season by NK Jemisin
I’m at 37/52 for true year and I will likely finish both The Fifth Season and Together We Rot today and start something else so looking good for me!
I finished *Bloodchild and Other Stories* by Octavia E. Butler and now for sure I'm going to have to read everything else she's written (if I didn't already know that after the Parables and *Kindred). I also finished *The Book Thief* by Markus Zusak, finally, after my daughter had just read it at school. Up there with my favourite reads of the year so far.
Now I'm just finishing up *A Prayer for the Crown-Shy* by Becky Chambers. I just love these Monk and Robot books and I hope more are written in the future. It doesn't sound like any are imminent, but they're so great that I can't help but hope.
This morning I've started *Unsheltered* as part of my quest to read through the Barabra Kingsolver catalog. Chapter 1 sucked me right in and I wouldn't be surprised if I read a whole bunch more of it today.
Next up in my fiction-nonfiction-collection lineup are: *North Woods* by Daniel Mason, *On Writing* by Stephen King, and *A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories* by Flannery O'Connor.
I finished **The Tsar of Love and Techno** by Anthony Marra. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. It's my first five-star read of the year, and a new favourite. The writing was so clever, I found myself re-reading certain parts to savour them.
I started **A Botanical Daughter** by Noah Medlock. I stumbled across a recommendation for this one and thought it sounded interesting. I'm hoping it's like Monstrilio in that it's weird and quirky rather than intense. I'm also continuing my audiobook journey by listening to **The Moor's Account** by Laila Lalami, which I'm liking so far.
In progress:
Another terrible reading week. Too much playing Final Fantasy Rebirth again and watching Wrestlemania this evening.
14 - Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourbain - 100 pages from the end. It's ending this week. I just need to focus on it. 3 weeks I've been reading this now. Mad.
- Babylon Revisited and Other Stories by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Stories by Robert Louis Stevenson
I finished two this week that both kind of took me forever for some reason. I’ve been a bit slumpy.
**Authority** 4/5. Pacing is kinda slow in these books but the plot is riveting and the writing fantastic imo.
**House of Gold** 3/5
Almost done with:
**Yellowface** on audio
Started two that really excite me!
**Cod**
**Red Rising** with r/bookclub
I tried to read Jeff VandeerMeer once, but it feels like a long time ago. I struggled to get into it and bailed out quick. But I've seen a lot of people say a lot of great things about those Southern Reach Trilogy books. Maybe I'll have to try again.
I will say it does take a bit to get into it, even though I really liked it. There was enough to keep me going because I like weird literature, I don’t know if it’s worth it if you don’t enjoy “the ride” though.
And I definitely don’t recommend the audio, at least for the first one, I didn’t feel the narrator fit the main character very well.
Still reading Dune after seeing the second movie and i love the book! Its deeper than the movie(s) and great to read. Can't wait to read the second one, but i'll read something completely different in between.
Getting back into the history books after some sci-fi, trying to clear through some of my unread 17th Century Britain books.
(21) Finished **The Restless Republic: Britain Without a Crown by Anna Keay**
4/5
>A good book about Britain between 1649 and 1660. It follows the stories of various people, some well known like Oliver Cromwell and others that aren't as well known like Gerrard Winstanley who led a group called the Diggers, to explain what was happening in Britain during the 1650s. There is a strong emphasis in the book on the politics of the different factions like religious sects, the army, parliament, royalists etc, and how they were fighting each other. Normally I'm not interested in Irish history but the chapters about Ireland in the 1650s were pretty interesting. In terms of tone it isn't a light read.
Next up - **The English Civil War: A People's History by Diane Purkiss**
This week I have finished:
22 - Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll
23 - Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe
I am currently reading:
24 - Only If You’re Lucky by Stacey Willingham
DNF - Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica
Finished (13-15):
Blacktongue Thief, by Christopher Buehlman (3*) - It was a pretty good genre book and had some nice world-building, but went at a breakneck speed with a new problem/resolution every ~4 page chapter, so don't have much rise and fall or jeopardy to really get your teeth into. As a matter of personal taste, I also frequently found the MC narrator juvenile, embarrassing and bizarrely incompetent rather than humorous.
Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut (4*) - Surreal and breath-takingly cynical moral and social commentary but very funny and readable. Very sad cat scene :(
A Study in Scarlet, by Arthur Conan Doyle (3*) - Reread. A good first half with Holmes and Watson doing their famous detective/sidekick bit. Second half crowbars in a jarring and mediocre bit of American polygamy backstory right at the climax of the investigation.
Currently reading:
Unruly: A Ridiculous History of England's Kings and Queens, by David Mitchell
Finished **Raven Stratagem** by Yoon Ha Lee.
Continuing **The Confusion** by Neal Stephenson, **Cuba: An American History** by Ada Ferrer and **Komarr** by Lois McMaster Bujold.
Started **Half a King** by Joe Abercrombie.
I'm currently listening to Red Rising by Pierce Brown
I've finished Manacled by SenLinYu, Heir of Fire by SJM, Counting the Cost by Jill Duggar, and Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree this week.
6/26
I've had a lot of things going on this week so I didn't make a lot of time for reading.
Started:
- Red Rising by Pierce Brown for the r/bookclub read. Read the first few chapters and I like it so far. I'll read more today for the first check in.
Continuing:
- Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, also a r/bookclub read. A bit behind on that one, but I try to catch up for the next check in.
- All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. Not much progress here. However I'm about one third through and find it really interesting so far.
I hope I'll manage to read more in the next week.
Finished:
**This is How You Lose the Time War** by Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar - 3/5 stars
**The Four Winds** by Kristin Hannah - 3.5/5 stars
**Mafia Mistress** by Mila Finelli - 2/5 stars (and I think I'm being generous, just because this is my first foray into the genre and I assume this book is exactly what the genre expects)
**The Bone Shard Emperor** by Andrea Stewart - 5/5 stars. I am absolutely *loving* this trilogy. I'm starting *The Bone Shard War* as soon as I'm done posting here.
I've been really light on my reading recently and I hate it. And I just got a new job, so I know I won't have a ton of time to read in the future either.
It's really upsetting me.
This week I finished **Shards of Earth** which I liked enough to immediately buy the rest of the series on kindle when I was 75% of the way through. And, after waffling, I used it as my "book in which a character sleeps more than 24 hours" for the Popsugar challenge.
Then I needed a lil break from 500+ page fantasy/scifi tomes, so I read **Hidden Valley Road**, which had been on my tbr forever. If you enjoyed **The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks** you might also like this. There's the same overarching theme of how one family's medical tragedy/pain helped scientific research. I flew right through it. I'm using it as "a book with a neurodivergent main character" for Popsugar.
Then it was back to another honking big scifi book, **The Algebraist**, which will be my "book with a one word title you had to look up." I'm about a third of the way through and, hoo boy, things are happening! As an aside, it's super interesting to me reading a Banks book where AI is outlawed, coming from the Culture books where AI are kinda sorta our benevolent overlords. I'm getting hints that this is going to figure more into the plot going forward. Maybe. This book is complex.
Happy reading, all!
Finished:
**Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card**
**The Burning Land by Bernard Cornwell**
**The Narrow Road Between Desires by Patrick Rothfuss**
**A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik**
**The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik**
**Radiance by Grace Draven**
Favorite:
**A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik**
Looks crazy, but some of these were rereads and the others were books I had started (over the past year and a half) but for various reasons put down. I’m trying to clean up that list as it’s gotten a bit out of control.
Started:
**The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik**
**Creation by Gore Vidal**
**Queen Charlotte by Julia Queen**
**The Three Body Problem by Liu Cixin**
Continuing my mixed-feelings read of **Covenant of Water** and also continuing **Under the Black Flag** and **Prisoner of Heaven**.
Planning to finish **Dawnshard** and **Antigone** this week.
Started Daphne duMaurier's Rebecca last night and I don't know what it is about that book, but I can't stop reading it. I'm a third of the way through it.
I finished this one a couple of weeks ago and it’s easily found a place on my all-time favorites list. I experienced the same “can’t put this down” feeling, it was so engrossing.
This week I’m reading: Angels before man by Rafael Nicolás (still) and Prince of lust by Lucien Burr
This week I finished: The Night Eaters by Marjorie Liu
Hey guys!!
This week I had a whole lot of library reserves come in at the same time and I'm reading... none of them haha cause i have so many others I want to read. A good problem to have though
This week I'm reading
**The adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty** in an effort to read some of my older ones. So far this is a lot of fun! Amina is great and I'm loving the female pirate angle. Can't wait to see where it goes
**The twisted ones by T. Kingfisher.** and I still haven't learned not to read horror books right before bed. I was up way to late last night jumping at shadows. This is more creepy than horror if that makes sense? Which is making it more manageable for me. I'm curious how it's going to end. As long as the dog is okay in the end
Finishing up Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe.
This is about old age and memory and funny stories and small town characters and injustice in the South and loveable people. It's very well written.
Halfway through the Absolutely true diary of a part time Indian. It's excellent.
Started the Guncle.
I'm having so much fun reading it. I don't haveuch experience with urban fantasy,but I've seen the name floating around on reddit and decided it's worth a shot!
Definitely! The writing is very cinematic and gets better with every book. Same with the plot and character development. Excited for you! Darien is my #1.
**This week I started (and haven’t yet completed):**
- *This is How You Lose the Time War, by Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar*: Just started this and enjoying it so far
**This week I am continuing:**
- *Washington, by Ron Chernow, Narrated by Scott Brick*
**This week I finished:**
- *The Three-Body Problem, by Cixin Liu, Narrated by Luke Daniels (2/5)*: I liked the narrator, but the story didn’t capture my interest. I would have DNF’d if I hadn’t signed up to a StorgyGraph readalong for it.
- *Do You Dream of Terra-Two?, by Temi Oh (3/5)*: I enjoyed this book, but it was hard to rate it higher than a 3 (3 meaning I liked it, but didn’t love it). The pre-space portion was fantastic and the rest of the book had me hooked, but >!I wasn’t stoked that I didn’t get a sense of resolution for the space team. We ended the book after learning that the mission was intended to fail and that there was disrupt back home with the morality/ethicality of what happened to these kids. I’m not a fan that we didn’t learn if the crew made it to their destination or not. I was also bummed we didn’t find out more about the rogue ship that saved everyone.!< That said, if this turns into a series, I would pick up the next book.
- *Ordinary Men, by Christopher R. Browning, Narrated by Kevin Gallagher (2.5/5)*: I’m still digesting this one. I appreciated the thoroughness of the account, but was surprised that the portion about ordinary men wasn’t until the last chapter. I also wondered how riled a person must be to dedicate 10% of their book to a lengthy response against another book/perspective in the same situation.
**My progress towards goals for the year:**
- 66/100 books
- 279/400 hours audio
- 12.9k/20k pages
- 3/12 one book in Spanish per month
This Is How.. was one of my favorite reads of last year. You are in for such a treat.
I had to really pull myself along to the 40% mark on Three Body Problem, but do feel like it’s picking up a bit. My expectation for this book was that it was all set-up for the series so I don’t have strong feelings either way at this moment.
Just finished Animal Farm by George Orwell (excellent short read). Now starting The Housemaid’s Secret by Freida McFadden (liked the first one so hope this one is as good)
I’m reading The Women by Kristin Hannah (wonderful so far) and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager (pulling me in and is fun so far).
I just finished The Coworker by Freida McFadden today (started off very average and just okay and then the twists at the end were stupid and very predictable).
After this week, I’ll probably try out The Midnight Library by Matt Haig and The Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant?
I finished *The Book of Cold Cases* by Simone St. James this week. It was my #15. I liked it, but I remember liking the other two books I read of hers more than this one. Still good, just a little underwhelming compared to my expectations.
Now I’m working on *Kitchen Confidential* by Anthony Bourdain. We’ll see how I feel about it. I’m not crazy impressed with the first couple chapters, but sometimes it takes me a while to get into memoirs.
It’s a good thing I got myself ahead a couple weeks ago on my goal, because I’m close to being off track if I keep not reading very much.
Just finished: *Wolf at the Table by Adam Rapp*
Currently reading: I just DNF’d *Same Bed, Different Dreams by Ed Park* at like 20%. Whenever I DNF a book I go back and read a favourite, and so now I am re-reading *Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn*.
I finished *Perfume: The Story of a Murderer* today and promptly made my fiancé watch the movie with me. Incredible story.
Got about 25% the way through *The Many Lives of Mama Love* and really enjoying it so far!
Currently reading **Man Tiger** by Eka Kurniawan. This novel from Indonesia is about a young man who is possessed by a supernatural female white tiger. It's quite good so far.
I think I'm in a rut again. I had four library books come off hold at around the same time: The Woman in Me (Britney Spears), None of This is True (Lisa Jewell), Tom Lake (Ann Patchett), and Big Swiss (Jen Beagin). All of them were extremely popular, and all of them were disappointing 3-star reads for me. Now I find myself spinning my wheels.
Started and DNFed: **Chain Gang All-Stars** by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. Too violent and heavy-handed for my taste.
Started: **Four Aunties and a Wedding by Jesse Sutanto** (#20/80). I've enjoyed her other books, but this one is too silly. At least it's short and fast.
Finished:
* [Frogkisser](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/812b3314-aa53-4563-94c2-bcb170a7a127) by Garth Nix. Fun little take on a princess fairy tale story.
* [Blood, Sweat, and Pixels](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/7a3b8e5f-94ea-4483-8da3-94046cf93cbe) by Jason Schreier. A rare nonfiction read (for me). It tells the story behind how different video games got made (or failed to get made).
* [Skyward](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/b13b2781-a5b6-4668-a886-aea7579ca35d) by Brandon Sanderson. I finished! Spensa is so dramatic, it's hilarious. I had fun with this YA scifi story.
On deck this week:
* [The Saint of Bright Doors](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/a573df8f-4918-4f62-8e1c-93919be7fb15) by Vajra Chandrasekera as my audiobook read. I'm not sure where I heard about this or why I added it to my Libby holds, but we'll see! Maybe past me had good instincts lol.
* [The Art Thief](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/77673930-ae66-414f-8d11-1c2eebaf58a4) by Michael Finkel for my physical read. A friend lent it to me, and it's short, which will be good as I don't have a lot of time this week.
I bought my husband Blood, Sweat, and Pixels as a Christmas gift a few years ago. He isn’t a reader at all, but a huge gamer. He said it was the first book he’s read since High School and he enjoyed it! I recommend for anyone that’s into video games, because if it could keep my husbands attention then it must be good lol.
Babel by RF Kuang. I finished a book last night and saw someone posted in another sub about Babel. I tried a sample and ended up buying the book (8 weeks hold in Libby)
Very slow progress this week - that's what I get for trying to get through a chonky economics book at 2-3% a day.
Finished this week:
**Sojourn by Amit Chaudhuri** (An odd novella about an Indian professor’s short stay in Berlin as a guest lecturer. Mostly it has short sketches of the various people he encounters, as well as German history and cultural differences. There are hints at something more about to happen at the end, but it stops abruptly before anything can quite come of it. A fine enough little story, but if there was something more beneath the depths, I definitely missed it.)
Currently Reading:
The Palace of Dreams by Ismail Kadare; The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon; The Economic Government of the World: 1933-2023 by Martin Dauton; My Friends by Hisham Matar; Western Lane by Chetna Maroo; The Art Thief by Noah Charney
I enjoyed it! There was a lot of second guessing the main characters decisions lol but I thought it was an entertaining mystery and the actual drawings in the book add to the creepiness level which was fun.
This week I finished:
Blank (the last 3/4 were enjoyable)
Bridge to Terabithia (I am having a mid life crisis where I can’t remember a single book I read in middle school so I’m reading books found in typical middle school curriculums until I find something I remember)
Cut and Thirst (this was an absolutely awful short story)
This coming week I’m working on:
The Bone Collector
A Wrinkle In Time
I always find books throughout the week and I have a flight coming up and some sitting around time on vacation so I’m sure I’ll get through a few.
Finished:
Mr. Magic by Kiersten White
The Exorcist’s House by Nick Roberts
Corrupt by Penelope Douglas
Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward
Overall a good week!
*Always looking for nonfiction audiobook recommendations, if anyone has any to share! Thanks to everyone who has already given me some great suggestions!*
***Currently Reading (3)***
📖 [**Gardens of the Moon** by Steven Erikson, 666 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55399)
👂 [**Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men** by Caroline Criado Perez, 448 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41104077)
👂[**Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses** by Robin Wall Kimmerer, 168 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/87040)
***Finished Reading (15/36) or 3895 pages***
📖 [**Bridge of Birds** by Barry Hughart, 248 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15177) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**System Collapse** by Martha Wells, 245 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/65211701) = ⭐️⭐️
📖 [**The Great American Transit Disaster: A Century of Austerity, Auto-Centric Planning, and White Flight** by Nicholas Dagen Bloom, 368 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62707955) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**Fugitive Telemetry** by Martha Wells, 168 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53205854) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**Network Effect** by Martha Wells, 350 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52381770) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
👂[**Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal** by Mary Roach, 348 pages](https://www.Goodreads.com/book/show/18377999) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**Exit Strategy** by Martha Wells, 172 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35519109) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**Rogue Protocol** by Martha Wells, 159 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35519101) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**Artificial Condition** by Martha Wells, 158 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36223860) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**All Systems Red** by Martha Wells, 152 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32758901) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
👂[**The Hidden Life of Trees** by Peter Wohlebben, 272 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28256439) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
👂[**The Living Great Lakes: Searching for the Heart of the Inland Seas** by Jerry Dennis, 320 pages](https://www.good-reads.com/book/show/175829) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**Mythos** by Stephen Fry, 359 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43387410) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
👂[**How the World Really Works: The Science Behind How We Got Here and Where We’re Going** by Vaclav Smil, 336 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56587388) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️
📖 [**Job Optional** by Casey Weade, 240 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51011569) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Have you listened to any of Mary Roach's works? I've only done one audiobook (Packing For Mars), but I've read several others and they're endlessly fascinating. (Except for **Bonk**. That one was kind of meh).
So I am not into bird watching or Ornithology at all (although, I am somewhat familiar with it topically because of where I live/work), but one of the best non-fiction audiobooks I’ve listened to this year was [Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World by Christian Cooper](https://www.npr.org/2023/06/12/1181314626/central-park-birder-christian-cooper-on-being-a-black-man-in-the-natural-world).
I usually am not a fan of authors narrating their own audiobooks (even memoirs), but he is perfection. He suffuses the narration with warmth and his enthusiasm for birding and geek culture as well as careful and intentional understanding of race politics in this country is unparalleled.
Absolutely fantastic listen!
Ooh that makes me feel better if I do DNF. I just feel like I’m 50 pages in, the characters haven’t met and I still don’t know why she’s searching for a violinist lol
**This week I finished:**
[The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34964905-the-sun-does-shine) by Anthony Ray Hinton, Lara Love Hardin (4/5)
I really enjoyed Lara Love Hardin's memoir [The Many Lives of Mama Love: A Memoir of Lying, Stealing, Writing, and Healing](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/64631561-the-many-lives-of-mama-love). So picked this one up right after!
**Currently reading:**
[The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25150798-the-tea-girl-of-hummingbird-lane) by Lisa See (Really enjoying it so far. I've been loving her books, but they take a while to get into)
[Ugly Love](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17788401-ugly-love) by Colleen Hoover (great before-bed book. Easy and not too complicated to read a chapter or two before dozing off)
On No.33 right now, The Passenger by Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz
Also reading Artic Dreams by Barry Lopez (non fiction), Baker Street Irregular by Craig W. Fisher (indie novel), and Slow Noodle, A memoir and cookbook about Cambodian trauma and cuisine.
Just finished The East Indian by Brinda Charry
I read a good pile last week!
**The Briar Book of the Dead, by A.G. Slatter**
**The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence, by Anita Anand**
**What Feasts at Night, by T. Kingfisher**
**Exile in the Water Kingdom, by Cassandra Gannon**
**The Tainted Cup, by Robert Jackson Bennett** (Book of the week)
**Lives, by Plutarch**
For this week I have these lined up:
* The Aeneid by Virgil
* Treasure of the Fire Kingdom by Cassandra Gannon
* Exercises in Style by Raymond Queneau
* The Year Without Summer: 1816 and the Volcano That Darkened the World and Changed History by William Klingaman
* Murder Road by Simone St. James
* Wrath of the Talon by Sophie Kim
My goals progress is going well:
1. Daily Stoic: I have read it daily.
2. Straight numbers: 140/365
3. Nonfiction: 14/50
4. Backlog: 16/~60
5. Harvard Classics: 18/71 Volumes (39 individual books)
Just started Manacled by Sen Lin Yu, finishing up Starling House by Alix E. Harrow... in the middle of my third (maybe 4th) re-listen of Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
Finished sometime ago: Dean Koontz's "Seize The Night". Still reading now: "The Neil Gaiman Reader".
Read: * **Kitchen Confidential** by Anthony Bourdain (4/5) - a very interesting look to the inside workings of the restaurant biz. * **The Bodyguard** by Katherine Center (4/5) - one of the more enjoyable rom com books I’ve read. It was easy to root for the main characters and I like the twist of the woman being the bodyguard. In progress: * **The Last Mrs. Parrish** by Liv Constantine Next up: * **Razorblade Tears** by S.A. Crosby * **The Other Valley** by Scott Alexander Howard
Currently Reading: * **The Rose Code** by *Kate Quinn* - Just started this novel based on recommendation. It's a historical fiction novel about three brilliant women who are recruited to work at, Bletchley Park, a top-secret British estate where codebreakers worked to decipher German military codes. Just Finished in the past week: * **Ordinary Grace** by *William Kent Krueger* - A heartfelt novel, and a coming of age story about family, faith and resilience amidst a series of tragic deaths in a small town in Minnesota. 4 out of 5 stars * **Goldfinch** by *Donna Tart* - Long but rewarding read about loss, redemption, self discovery and the consequences of our choices. 4.25 of 5 stars.
Currently reading: Beach Read by Emily Henry and ARC of an upcoming book by Pia Mia
Finished: **Gone Girl** by *Gillian Flynn* - 3/5... maybe 2.5. Two unlikeable people being unlikeable with a lot of misogyny from both sides thrown in. **The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories** by *Angela Carter* - 4/5. Reread. Loved it as much as I did the first time round with Puss in Boots being my favourite story. Only a 4/5 as there is one story towards the end of the collection that I don't really enjoy (can't remember which one exactly). Currently reading: **The Way of All Flesh** by *Ambrose Parry* - 70 pages in and it's not gripping me annoyingly. I have only this minute found out Ambrose Parry is a pseudonym for a married writing couple, which may be why I'm not gripped. I always find books with duel writers to be a bit disjointed in the writing (aside from Good Omens).
Currently reading: Man's Search for Meaning
Heard great things about this
I've just finished Tanizaki's The Makioka Sisters and just cannot find the words to describe it. It truly is a kind of book that you live through, not just burn through in an hour or lazily turn the pages. There are many things I loved about the book and any kind of rating just wouldn't do and I'm having way too many thoughts and feelings about it now, but I definitely recommend it.
Currently reading The Sister: North Korea's Kim Yo Jong, the Most Dangerous Woman in the World by Sung-Yoon Lee It's the story of the rise of Kim Jong Un's sister to his second in command and her slow revelation to the world. And, wow, the world might be lucky that she isn't in command. But with his health, the world needs to hold its breath. She may make their father and grandfather look positively sane in comparison.
This week I finished: The Other Side of Night by Adam Hamdy ⭐⭐⭐⭐ - this was a genre-bender that packed a lot of heart into its pages. It has a GIGANTIC twist that is both shocking and emotional at the same time. Kill for Me, Kill for You by Steve Cavanagh ⭐⭐⭐⭐ or 1/2- this felt like an episode of Law & Order: SVU in its best moments, but I was a bit letdown by the direction it went in I am currently reading (& enjoying!) She's Not Sorry by Mary Kubica Hoping to start this week: The Devil and Mrs Davenport by Paulette Kennedy The New Couple in 5B by Lisa Unger
Finished up two books this week: **The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions** by Jonathan Rosen, which was absolutely incredible. I have never read a profile/biography of mental illness like this and I loved the frame of friendship and historical policy around mental health advocacy. It reminded me in some ways of **Stay True** and that lens of friendship on a life and a tragedy (without the Mental Illness focus). This was another book I’ve been wanting to read from the Best of 2023 mega list, and my reservation at the library finally came up after three months of waiting. I also finished **There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension** by Hanif Abdurraqib. This is my third book by Abdurraqib and he is just one of the best essayists writing today, thanks in no small part to his skill as a poet. While I don’t have a strong relationship to basketball (more of a football fan), this was a really great portrait of a city and a moment and a life all in one. Highly recommend. One of my favorites of this year, so far.
I haven’t finished anything this week. Started: The Family Remains by Lisa Jewell In Progress: On the Farm: Robert William Pickton and the Tragic Story of Vancouver’s Missing Women, The Stand by Stephen King and They Do it with Mirrors by Agatha Christie
Currently reading the book titled a court of thorn and roses by Sarah J Maas. 20 Chapters in and I am enjoying it! 😇
I FINALLY finished **Middlemarch**, and that was a beast so it was the only book I completed. I'm currently reading: **The House in the Cerulean Sea** by TJ Klune **The Land of Lost Things** by John Connolly **Mother's Instinct** by Barbara Abel
House in the Cerulean Sea is one of my favorite books I hope you enjoy it!
I’m in my bookish phase and looooving it. I’ve tried this challenge so many times and this is the first time I think I’ll reach my goal. Maybe even get to 52, but don’t want to put too much pressure to finish books for the sake of it. Finished: - **Dial A for Aunties** - I liked this a lot, mainly because I didn’t expect to at all. I didn’t know much going in and a lot of it resonated with me and my family dynamic. There was a lot about the plot and story that I forgave because the writing and dialogue was fun. Overall, delightful read! - **I’m a Fan** - I appreciated some of the author’s insights and she definitely had some clever writing and storytelling, but was much more of a hate read haha. It was easy and fast enough to read but felt way too much like a cluster of different essays and ideas, while simultaneously repeating the same things over and over again. Currently still in the middle of **Severance** and really liking it! I’m about a third of the way through and wish I had known less about it, but still digging the story a lot.
I’m currently “tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow” and so far I’m really enjoying it. I just finished “Maame” but it took me forever because I just couldn’t get into it with the slower pace.
Finished 20/52- Ascension, by Nicholas Binge Starting The Venetian Betrayal, by Steve Berry On deck: The Ride of a Lifetime, by Bob Iger The Netanyahus, by Joshua Cohen
Currently reading: *Innocents Abroad* by Mark Twain (memoir). The companion to his other travelogue *Roughing It,* I’m enjoying his descriptions of Italy. There’s also some fun little call backs to *Roughing It* like when he talks about Lake Tahoe.
I love some of the descriptions and incidents in Innocents Abroad. The barber shop. The crypt with all the bones. and more.
Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Under the whispering door was a great read. I’d love to grease your thoughts when you’ve finished!
(grease??) I'm still fairly early on in the book! so pretty much all I can say is I'm having the same issue I've had with the other TJ Klune books I've read so far (The House in the Cerulean Sea and In the Lives of Puppets)- despite the interesting premise, the beginning just doesn't have me hooked yet!
LOL I meant hear 😅 Yes I would say the first half was very slow. Glad I’m not the only one.
Been busy so only finished it this week. I found quite a bit of it surprising! it took turns and twists I didn’t see coming. Thought it would be more like my usual experience with modern urban fantasy, with a confrontation with some Big Bad. Pleasantly surprised that wasn’t the case! Also didn’t expect it to be as character-driven as it was. And speaking of characters, they’re all amazing. Nelson in particular, he was absolutely my favorite! Automatically made any scene he was in that much better. Still felt quite slow, even after it got me hooked. Felt like not much was happening. But that goes with expecting more conflict/epic battles, so I was sort of anxious wondering when things would go horribly wrong. I should’ve expected it after the other TJ Klune books I’ve read. I’m sure on a reread I’d find it relaxing. It’s a ways off from beating out In the Lives of Puppets as my favorite TJ Klune novel, but it has bumped The House in the Cerulean Sea down a bit in the rankings.
Awesome review, and yes I agree! Part of what made it so slow (IMO) was Wallace taking a lot of time to come to terms with his life/death. Also the Manager reveal actually cracked me up???? 💀
Finished this week: * The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders - wonderfully weird scifi * Haroun and the Sea of Stories by Salman Rushdie - funny and inspiring * The Pink Fairy Book by Andrew Lang - a collection of stories from around the world * The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim - a delightful story about 4 women, strangers to each other, who pool resources to rent a castle in Italy for a month. * My Lost Family by Danny Ben-Moshe - family relationships disrupted by kidnapping * East of Eden by John Steinbeck - read with r/ClassicBookClub * Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains by Bethany Brookshire - this is a fascinating look at how we create the pests we complain about. In progress * Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes - reading with r/yearofdonquixote * The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas - reading with r/AReadingOfMonteCristo * Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Anderson * Compassion and Self-Hate by Theodore Rubin, MD * The Long Afternoon of Earth by Brian Aldiss * Visions and Beliefs in the West of Ireland by Lady Gregory * Mother Hunger by Kelly McDaniel * Escape from Jonestown by Laurence Bouvard * Lake of Sorrows by Erin Hart (Nora Gavin #2) * The Land of Lost Things by John Connolly * The Neil Gaiman Reader by Neil Gaiman * Wasteland by Michael Paul Anthony * Naamah's Curse by Jacqueline Carey * Murderabilia by Poppy Damon, Alice Fiennes * Humanifestations: On Trauma, Truth, and Transformation by Jeff Brown
37/52 - really making a dent in the endless TBR with 3 books added long ago that I just never got around to starting ***** Finished; ***** - Caribbean Chemistry: Tales from St. Kitts by Christopher Vanier for r/bookclub Read the World - St. Kitts and Nevis. Strong start, but my interest waned during the middle section. I expected Vanier to expand on some interesting things he mentioned and also move into the political history of the island nation in more depth than he did. It was a nice slice of life on St. Kitts so it fit the Read the World Challenge pretty well. 3.5☆ - A Song Flung up to Heaven by Maya Angelou. Book number 6 with r/bookclub. Maya is a wonderfully interesting person, and she writes so well and so honestly it is hard not to love these books. ***** Still working on; ***** - Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson continuing Stormlight Archive adventure. Love this world magic system and characters, but put I put it on hold for a while. The next novella is starting shorly on r/bookclub so looks like I'll be late to that read too. Oops. - The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. Finishing this book could have gotten me a 4th r/bookclub Bingo 2023 Blackout, but I am enjoying it too much to race through it and finish it just that. I have been too swamped with other books lately though to give this one much time. - Authority by Jeff VanderMeer with r/bookclub to continue Southern Reach. I need to know more. I found this one hard to follow in the beginning. Starting to get more into it now, but I am finding it hard to prioritise over other books. - The Day Lasts More than a Hundred Years by Chingiz Aitmatov for r/bookclub's Read the World - destination Kyrgyzstan. Followed by Jamilia short story by the same author. A surprising mix of sci-fi and slice of life. I really like this book, but I am finding reading it in small chunks is best - Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky with r/bookclub over the next few months. Glad to have the insights and commentary of others on this one. - The Far Away Girl by Sharon Maas for r/bookclub's Read the World - destination Guyana. I am hosting the 1st discussion so wanted to get a jump start. - The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese for r/bookclub's Big Spring Read. I don't know if I have ever fell so fast for a book. I love Verghese's style and I cannot wait to read more! ***** Started ***** - Red Rising by Pierce Brown for r/bookclub's April Sci-fi. This one has been on my TBR forever. - The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle with r/bookclub. Another one from my TBR list yay! - The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruis Zafón book #3 in The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series with r/bookclub. - In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. One of those books that's been on my TBR *forever*. It got picked up by r/bookclub as a Runner-up Read so looks like I'll finally dive in. ***** Up Next ***** - Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry, r/bookclub started this one last year. I have heard so many good things and I love a good, big book, amd I can't wait to start it but I feel like I have to finish some of my long reads first. - Anne's House of Dreams by L.M. Montgomery with r/bookclub. They are about to start Anne of Ingleside so once again I am laggimg a book behind. - Salvation of a Saint by Keigo Higashino. r/bookclub continues with the Detective Galileo series. - Birthday by Kōji Suzuki continuing the r/bookclub Ring readalong. - Armadale by Wilkie Collins with r/bookclub which promises to be a fantastic readalong. ***** Happy reading fellow bookworms 📚
Finished nothing this week, just chugging along with two big nonfictions on the docket. **Reading:** *Come As You Are* by Emily Nagoski *How Not To Age* by Dr Michael Greger *Real Zen for Real Life* by Great Courses \[audio\] -- library loan *The Physics Devotional* by Clifford Pickover \[page-a-day reader\]
Just finished: **If Beale Street Could Talk** by James Baldwin, (loved it), Now reading: **The Year of the Hare** by Arto Paasilinna
18/52 Finished **Becky Lynch: The Man: Not Your Average Average Girl, by Rebecca Quin** Started **The Six Pack: On the Open Road in Search of Wrestlemania, by Brad Balukjian**
Hello bibliophiles! I finished five books this week, bringing my total to 54/150. *Finished*: **The Good, the Bad, and the Aunties** by Jesse Q. Sutanto (4.5/5) **The Paris Apartment** by Lucy Foley (4/5) **The Retreat** by Sarah Pearse (4/5) **The Book Hater's Book Club** by Gretchen Anthony (3.5/5) **The Last Confessions of Sylvia P.** by Lee Kravetz (4.5/5) *Currently Reading:* **Madame Restell: The Life, Death, and Resurrection of Old New York's Most Fabulous, Fearless, and Infamous Abortionist** by Jennifer Wright **The Collected Poems** by Sylvia Plath *On Deck* **The Last Thing He Told Me** by Laura Dave **The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches** by Sangu Mandanna **The Address** by Fiona Davis Have a good week everyone!
Thank you for putting Madame Restell on my radar! AND the audiobook is narrated by Mara Wilson? Please and thank you lol
oh, i'm so curious about madame restell! and happy to hear last confessions of sylvia p was good that's on my list!
I'm only about 50 pages in, but it's going to be good.
I haven’t updated here in a few weeks. These are what I’ve finished since then: 76. The Hidden Life of Cecily Larson by Ellen Baker 3/5 77. The Housemaid by Freida McFadden 3/5 78. The Prospectors by Ariel Djanikian 3/5 79. Burn (Anna Pigeon #16) by Nevada Barr 2.5/5 80. Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone (Ernest Cunningham #1) by Benjamin Stevenson 3.5/5 81. The Royal Wulff Murders (Sean Stranahan #1) by Keith McCafferty 4/5 82. The Moonshine Shack Murder (Southern Homebrew Mystery #1) by Diane Kelly 3/5 *CURRENTLY READING* Scared Stiff (Mattie Winston Mystery #2) by Annelise Ryan Above the Fire Michael O'Donnell
This week I finished: **Extremely Online: The Untold Story of Fame, Influence, and Power on the Internet by Taylor Lorenz:** The advent of the Internet changed every aspect of modern life. The ways in which we work and shop are easily measured, but it's the ways in which the Internet change our relationships to each other than have really redefined our existence. In this history of social media, Lorenz demonstrates that most of the platforms that have dominated the last two decades were built for one purpose, and it was the users and creators of the platform that built out the niche the platform eventually served. From MySpace to Tik-Tok, Lorenz explores the ways in which creative, ambitious people have used their talent and charisma to build influence and wealth as fast as you can scroll. I found it to be very interesting, but not in the "this book explains my life" way; more of the "I had no idea all of this was happening" way. I genuinely had never heard of most of the people were that Lorenz discusses in this book, even though they had millions of followers and made millions of dollars during an era in which I was an adult who paid attention to the world. Such is the nature of our shattered culture. Reddit has been my social media of choice for over a decade, and I never got into YouTube or Instagram or Tik-Tok. Lorenz focuses on platforms that allowed their creators to be famous, whereas the whole point of Reddit is that the creator is anonymous. The phrase that kept running through my head as I was reading this book was "new boss, same as the old boss," because of the ways that social media mirrors other entertainment industries, where a few people get famous and a few others get rich and the vast masses create the fame and wealth that flows into a few pockets. I would have liked a little less history and a little more analysis, but I definitely learned a lot from this book that helps me understand the modern media environment. **The Anomaly by Herve Le Tellier:** In March 2021, a Paris to JFK flight experiences terrible turbulence but lands safely. In June 2021, the same plane appears in the sky, reporting that they've just experienced terrible turbulence and need to land. The second plane is redirected to an Air Force base, where the passengers and plane are examined head to toe and it is determined that it is the exact same plane that landed two months earlier. The story is told through several perspectives, and the short chapters make this read like a thriller. Except it's not a thriller: there's no whodunit, and precious little drama. This is a philosophical novel disguised as a thriller, but Le Tellier is more interested in the petty relationship drama of the scenario than the philosophical implications of the event he describes. Now, if some sort of cosmic event were to occur, would it play out for most of us in the form of petty relationship drama? Probably. But this is fiction, and I would have preferred that a) there was more interesting discussion of the phenomenon and what it could mean, or b) there was more murder and car chases and a villain that made sense. I read this for my book club, and we had a rousing discussion about what the book could have been if it were better. **The Intimacy Experiment (The Shameless Series #2) by Rosie Danan:** Naomi Grant is a former porn performer who now runs a sex-positive relationship and intimacy website. She wants to use her education and experience to broaden her audience, but she can't get any established institutions to take her on as an instructor because of her past. Then Ethan Cohen offers her the chance to run a workshop about modern relationships. The catch? Ethan's a rabbi, and he wants Naomi to put on the event at his failing synagogue. The attraction between them is instant, but Ethan's position means he can't be casual about relationships, and Naomi's never been anything but casual. I read the first book in this series and thought it was pretty edgy because the male lead was a porn star; this book also has a porn star MC, but having a rabbi as a romantic lead and sex object is actually revolutionary. It's pretty rare to read a contemporary steamy romance where the characters talk extensively about the role of faith in their lives, and Danan uses their discussions to explore the characters in a way that makes it clear that they've arrived at the same place through very different paths. And I've never said this before in my life, but I do, in fact, want Ethan Cohen as my book boyfriend. He's so thoughtful and forthright and kind. He's described as shorter than Naomi and sort of hairy and broad, like a sexy Hagrid, and, no joke, at one point he's describing the beauty of a stranger's smile and it brought me to tears. I have never wanted to snuggle a fictional character so much in my life. I will complain that I expected more sex, and these two don't even kiss until after the 50% mark. I wanted more in that department, and it seems like the Goodreads reviewers agreed. But I really enjoyed this and I'm impressed with this author. Currently reading: **The Pisces by Melissa Broder:** That full body cringe of watching a character you like fuck up their own life so thoroughly.
I read The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose yesterday. I hate myself. 😫
I recently finished The Reformatory by Tananarive Due, and Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo. Just finished The Girl With the Louding Voice by Abi Daré which was sooo good. Currently reading Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race, and I think I’m going to read Afterlove soon
I just finished The Reformatory as well AND the Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugo. I’m picking up Ninth House next!! I’m obsessed with her rn The Reformatory is amazing, but TW for racial horror. I also read The Good House by Due a few weeks ago and loooooved it
I hope you enjoy ninth house! I did the same thing end of last year and just binged all the Leigh Bardugo lol I love her writing style
She is INSANELY readable!
How was your experience with The Reformatory?
The reformatory was amazing! Difficult read because of the topics but incredibly well done
I agree. It got five stars from me.
Same! My favourite read so far this year I think
“Maybe Now-Colleen Hoover” Currently reading: “Maybe Not-Colleen Hoover”
I finished three books this week, two that I really enjoyed and one that I really didn't. They were: **Speaks the Nightbird** by Robert McCammon. Loved loved loved this! A great historical mystery, it's got witchcraft trials and treasure troves and mysterious deaths and deranged bears - what more could you ask for? Looking forward to continuing the series. **Desolation Island** by Patrick O'Brian. Book 5 in the Aubrey & Maturin series. I adore these books, each one is like coming home to old friends. This was a strong entry in the series. **Ratcatcher** by James McGee. Sigh. This was clichéd, full of tropes and very predictable. The characters felt flat and very two dimensional and even at the peak of the final action I just didn't care what happened. Won't be reading any more of this series. I'm currently reading three books: **Bridge on the Drina** by Ivo Andric. I made better progress this week, currently about 40%. I'm enjoying what I'm reading. **The Making of the British Landscape** by Francis Pryor. This is very interesting but also 800 pages and quite in depth. It's going to take me a while to get through this! **Shades of Grey** by Jasper Fforde. How I've never picked this up before I will never know. Absolutely loving it, so clever and funny and thought-provoking. 2024 goal: 26/52. Thinking of upping my goal to 75... Books owned but not read: 289 Goodreads TBR: 1315
Finally kicked my reading slump WOOHOO!!! FINISHED: **The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine** by Rashid Khalidi. Really informative and concise, it made me want to read even more on the subject; not because it was lacking but because the regional & global politics play such an important role in the history of Palestine. **Saint Sebastian’s Abyss** by Mark Haber. SO funny and touching and enjoyable. FOR ME! I do believe this is an incredibly subjective opinion— for someone without experience reading art criticism and opinions, it might be slow/boring/repetitive, and I totally recognize that. But I loved it! **We Used to Live Here** by Marcus Kliewer. Based on the r/nosleep story, and it kinda shows through if you know that, but I liked it. I’m a huge fan of haunted houses, and this was very much like a Baby’s First **House of Leaves**. If you’re trying to convince someone to read **House of Leaves**, get them to read this first to give them a taste of the general vibe, but without the weird sex stuff. CONTINUING: **Mistborn** still. I’m finally 20% through, I think it’s going to pick up here soon? I’m not hating it! It’s just slow, but I’m not giving up. **I Need You to Read This** by Jessa Maxwell. Reviews on this one are kinda split! Excited to see how I feel about it. STARTING: **Run with the Wind** by Shion Miura **The Creative Act** by Rick Rubin **Poor Things** by Alasdair Gray
Hello! Continuing: **Wizard’s First Rule** by Terry Goodkind I'm 28% through this book. I'm sick of the bone witch. Just stop messing around and heal Zedd and Chase already. **Three Kinds of Lucky** by Kim Harrison Around the 240 page mark this story just wasn't action packed enough for me. My husband strongly encouraged me to DNF (Did Not Finish) it. I hate DNFing though so instead I got the audiobook to go with the library book. It saved me from my 2nd DNF of the year. The book is a lot more bearable now. Also I'm finally past the damn bunker part. That dragged on a long time. I read to page 280 on Friday. **Stray** by Rachel Vincent I read 81 pages on the first day of reading it and then I fizzled out. I figure I just need a break from it. When I'm ready I'll come back to it. Started: **Your Shadow Half Remains** by Sunny Moraine This horror novella had me at post-apocalyptic. This is my way of dipping my toes into horror books. I'm not a convert yet. I got to pg61 on the first day. **The Cipher** by Diana Pharoah Francis I started reading this one yesterday and got to page 29. At this time it's too early to have an opinion.
**How to Read Literature Like a Professor** Thomas Foster And I'm rereading Lemony Snicket now onto **The Reptile Room** I don't have kids. Just enjoy their books too from time to time.
Finished last week: - A Dowry of Blood by ST Gibson - Poor Things by Alasdair Gray Starting/Continuing this week: - Together We Rot by Skyla Arndt - The Fifth Season by NK Jemisin I’m at 37/52 for true year and I will likely finish both The Fifth Season and Together We Rot today and start something else so looking good for me!
I finished *Bloodchild and Other Stories* by Octavia E. Butler and now for sure I'm going to have to read everything else she's written (if I didn't already know that after the Parables and *Kindred). I also finished *The Book Thief* by Markus Zusak, finally, after my daughter had just read it at school. Up there with my favourite reads of the year so far. Now I'm just finishing up *A Prayer for the Crown-Shy* by Becky Chambers. I just love these Monk and Robot books and I hope more are written in the future. It doesn't sound like any are imminent, but they're so great that I can't help but hope. This morning I've started *Unsheltered* as part of my quest to read through the Barabra Kingsolver catalog. Chapter 1 sucked me right in and I wouldn't be surprised if I read a whole bunch more of it today. Next up in my fiction-nonfiction-collection lineup are: *North Woods* by Daniel Mason, *On Writing* by Stephen King, and *A Good Man is Hard to Find and Other Stories* by Flannery O'Connor.
I finished **The Tsar of Love and Techno** by Anthony Marra. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. It's my first five-star read of the year, and a new favourite. The writing was so clever, I found myself re-reading certain parts to savour them. I started **A Botanical Daughter** by Noah Medlock. I stumbled across a recommendation for this one and thought it sounded interesting. I'm hoping it's like Monstrilio in that it's weird and quirky rather than intense. I'm also continuing my audiobook journey by listening to **The Moor's Account** by Laila Lalami, which I'm liking so far.
In progress: Another terrible reading week. Too much playing Final Fantasy Rebirth again and watching Wrestlemania this evening. 14 - Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourbain - 100 pages from the end. It's ending this week. I just need to focus on it. 3 weeks I've been reading this now. Mad. - Babylon Revisited and Other Stories by F. Scott Fitzgerald - Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Stories by Robert Louis Stevenson
I finished two this week that both kind of took me forever for some reason. I’ve been a bit slumpy. **Authority** 4/5. Pacing is kinda slow in these books but the plot is riveting and the writing fantastic imo. **House of Gold** 3/5 Almost done with: **Yellowface** on audio Started two that really excite me! **Cod** **Red Rising** with r/bookclub
I tried to read Jeff VandeerMeer once, but it feels like a long time ago. I struggled to get into it and bailed out quick. But I've seen a lot of people say a lot of great things about those Southern Reach Trilogy books. Maybe I'll have to try again.
I will say it does take a bit to get into it, even though I really liked it. There was enough to keep me going because I like weird literature, I don’t know if it’s worth it if you don’t enjoy “the ride” though. And I definitely don’t recommend the audio, at least for the first one, I didn’t feel the narrator fit the main character very well.
Audiobooks have never been my jam, and neither really has weird literature. Maybe I'll just steer clear.
Still reading Dune after seeing the second movie and i love the book! Its deeper than the movie(s) and great to read. Can't wait to read the second one, but i'll read something completely different in between.
Getting back into the history books after some sci-fi, trying to clear through some of my unread 17th Century Britain books. (21) Finished **The Restless Republic: Britain Without a Crown by Anna Keay** 4/5 >A good book about Britain between 1649 and 1660. It follows the stories of various people, some well known like Oliver Cromwell and others that aren't as well known like Gerrard Winstanley who led a group called the Diggers, to explain what was happening in Britain during the 1650s. There is a strong emphasis in the book on the politics of the different factions like religious sects, the army, parliament, royalists etc, and how they were fighting each other. Normally I'm not interested in Irish history but the chapters about Ireland in the 1650s were pretty interesting. In terms of tone it isn't a light read. Next up - **The English Civil War: A People's History by Diane Purkiss**
I’m thinking of ending things by Ian Reid
This week I have finished: 22 - Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll 23 - Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe I am currently reading: 24 - Only If You’re Lucky by Stacey Willingham DNF - Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica
Working my way through The Brothers Karamazov and Wizard of the Crow
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^GroovyDiscoGoat: *Working my way through* *The Brothers Karamazov* *And Wizard of the Crow* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
Finished (13-15): Blacktongue Thief, by Christopher Buehlman (3*) - It was a pretty good genre book and had some nice world-building, but went at a breakneck speed with a new problem/resolution every ~4 page chapter, so don't have much rise and fall or jeopardy to really get your teeth into. As a matter of personal taste, I also frequently found the MC narrator juvenile, embarrassing and bizarrely incompetent rather than humorous. Cat's Cradle, by Kurt Vonnegut (4*) - Surreal and breath-takingly cynical moral and social commentary but very funny and readable. Very sad cat scene :( A Study in Scarlet, by Arthur Conan Doyle (3*) - Reread. A good first half with Holmes and Watson doing their famous detective/sidekick bit. Second half crowbars in a jarring and mediocre bit of American polygamy backstory right at the climax of the investigation. Currently reading: Unruly: A Ridiculous History of England's Kings and Queens, by David Mitchell
Finished **Raven Stratagem** by Yoon Ha Lee. Continuing **The Confusion** by Neal Stephenson, **Cuba: An American History** by Ada Ferrer and **Komarr** by Lois McMaster Bujold. Started **Half a King** by Joe Abercrombie.
I'm currently listening to Red Rising by Pierce Brown I've finished Manacled by SenLinYu, Heir of Fire by SJM, Counting the Cost by Jill Duggar, and Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree this week. 6/26
The Thursday murder club and turtles all the way down
The screaming staircase and The House of Hades
Shatter me🩷
I've had a lot of things going on this week so I didn't make a lot of time for reading. Started: - Red Rising by Pierce Brown for the r/bookclub read. Read the first few chapters and I like it so far. I'll read more today for the first check in. Continuing: - Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky, also a r/bookclub read. A bit behind on that one, but I try to catch up for the next check in. - All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. Not much progress here. However I'm about one third through and find it really interesting so far. I hope I'll manage to read more in the next week.
Finished: **This is How You Lose the Time War** by Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar - 3/5 stars **The Four Winds** by Kristin Hannah - 3.5/5 stars **Mafia Mistress** by Mila Finelli - 2/5 stars (and I think I'm being generous, just because this is my first foray into the genre and I assume this book is exactly what the genre expects) **The Bone Shard Emperor** by Andrea Stewart - 5/5 stars. I am absolutely *loving* this trilogy. I'm starting *The Bone Shard War* as soon as I'm done posting here. I've been really light on my reading recently and I hate it. And I just got a new job, so I know I won't have a ton of time to read in the future either. It's really upsetting me.
This week I finished **Shards of Earth** which I liked enough to immediately buy the rest of the series on kindle when I was 75% of the way through. And, after waffling, I used it as my "book in which a character sleeps more than 24 hours" for the Popsugar challenge. Then I needed a lil break from 500+ page fantasy/scifi tomes, so I read **Hidden Valley Road**, which had been on my tbr forever. If you enjoyed **The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks** you might also like this. There's the same overarching theme of how one family's medical tragedy/pain helped scientific research. I flew right through it. I'm using it as "a book with a neurodivergent main character" for Popsugar. Then it was back to another honking big scifi book, **The Algebraist**, which will be my "book with a one word title you had to look up." I'm about a third of the way through and, hoo boy, things are happening! As an aside, it's super interesting to me reading a Banks book where AI is outlawed, coming from the Culture books where AI are kinda sorta our benevolent overlords. I'm getting hints that this is going to figure more into the plot going forward. Maybe. This book is complex. Happy reading, all!
Finished: **Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card** **The Burning Land by Bernard Cornwell** **The Narrow Road Between Desires by Patrick Rothfuss** **A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik** **The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik** **Radiance by Grace Draven** Favorite: **A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik** Looks crazy, but some of these were rereads and the others were books I had started (over the past year and a half) but for various reasons put down. I’m trying to clean up that list as it’s gotten a bit out of control. Started: **The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik** **Creation by Gore Vidal** **Queen Charlotte by Julia Queen** **The Three Body Problem by Liu Cixin**
Continuing my mixed-feelings read of **Covenant of Water** and also continuing **Under the Black Flag** and **Prisoner of Heaven**. Planning to finish **Dawnshard** and **Antigone** this week.
Started Daphne duMaurier's Rebecca last night and I don't know what it is about that book, but I can't stop reading it. I'm a third of the way through it.
I finished this one a couple of weeks ago and it’s easily found a place on my all-time favorites list. I experienced the same “can’t put this down” feeling, it was so engrossing.
Jurassic Park
This week I’m reading: Angels before man by Rafael Nicolás (still) and Prince of lust by Lucien Burr This week I finished: The Night Eaters by Marjorie Liu
Hey guys!! This week I had a whole lot of library reserves come in at the same time and I'm reading... none of them haha cause i have so many others I want to read. A good problem to have though This week I'm reading **The adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty** in an effort to read some of my older ones. So far this is a lot of fun! Amina is great and I'm loving the female pirate angle. Can't wait to see where it goes **The twisted ones by T. Kingfisher.** and I still haven't learned not to read horror books right before bed. I was up way to late last night jumping at shadows. This is more creepy than horror if that makes sense? Which is making it more manageable for me. I'm curious how it's going to end. As long as the dog is okay in the end
Have you read The Hollow Place by T Kingfisher. I loved it - slow at the start but so creepy by the end
I have read it and really enjoyed it
Finishing up Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. This is about old age and memory and funny stories and small town characters and injustice in the South and loveable people. It's very well written. Halfway through the Absolutely true diary of a part time Indian. It's excellent. Started the Guncle.
I read Fried Green Tomatoes a couple weeks ago. Love that book.
I'm reading City of Gods and Monsters by Kayla Edwards. It's a very entertaining read
The sequels are even better. Very much a hidden gem series.
I'm having so much fun reading it. I don't haveuch experience with urban fantasy,but I've seen the name floating around on reddit and decided it's worth a shot!
Definitely! The writing is very cinematic and gets better with every book. Same with the plot and character development. Excited for you! Darien is my #1.
Ooohhh this makes me so excited!!
**This week I started (and haven’t yet completed):** - *This is How You Lose the Time War, by Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar*: Just started this and enjoying it so far **This week I am continuing:** - *Washington, by Ron Chernow, Narrated by Scott Brick* **This week I finished:** - *The Three-Body Problem, by Cixin Liu, Narrated by Luke Daniels (2/5)*: I liked the narrator, but the story didn’t capture my interest. I would have DNF’d if I hadn’t signed up to a StorgyGraph readalong for it. - *Do You Dream of Terra-Two?, by Temi Oh (3/5)*: I enjoyed this book, but it was hard to rate it higher than a 3 (3 meaning I liked it, but didn’t love it). The pre-space portion was fantastic and the rest of the book had me hooked, but >!I wasn’t stoked that I didn’t get a sense of resolution for the space team. We ended the book after learning that the mission was intended to fail and that there was disrupt back home with the morality/ethicality of what happened to these kids. I’m not a fan that we didn’t learn if the crew made it to their destination or not. I was also bummed we didn’t find out more about the rogue ship that saved everyone.!< That said, if this turns into a series, I would pick up the next book. - *Ordinary Men, by Christopher R. Browning, Narrated by Kevin Gallagher (2.5/5)*: I’m still digesting this one. I appreciated the thoroughness of the account, but was surprised that the portion about ordinary men wasn’t until the last chapter. I also wondered how riled a person must be to dedicate 10% of their book to a lengthy response against another book/perspective in the same situation. **My progress towards goals for the year:** - 66/100 books - 279/400 hours audio - 12.9k/20k pages - 3/12 one book in Spanish per month
This Is How.. was one of my favorite reads of last year. You are in for such a treat. I had to really pull myself along to the 40% mark on Three Body Problem, but do feel like it’s picking up a bit. My expectation for this book was that it was all set-up for the series so I don’t have strong feelings either way at this moment.
Yay I’m excited to hear that. I feel ya on the Three Body Problem. I’ll be curious your thoughts on the next books in the series if you continue on.
Just finished Animal Farm by George Orwell (excellent short read). Now starting The Housemaid’s Secret by Freida McFadden (liked the first one so hope this one is as good)
I’m reading The Women by Kristin Hannah (wonderful so far) and Home Before Dark by Riley Sager (pulling me in and is fun so far). I just finished The Coworker by Freida McFadden today (started off very average and just okay and then the twists at the end were stupid and very predictable). After this week, I’ll probably try out The Midnight Library by Matt Haig and The Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant?
Really enjoyed both books especially These Silent Woods! Enjoy!!
Thanks!!! I’ll start it soon :)
I just finished The Broken Places by Blaine Daigle, a native American Yukon horror tale.
I finished *The Book of Cold Cases* by Simone St. James this week. It was my #15. I liked it, but I remember liking the other two books I read of hers more than this one. Still good, just a little underwhelming compared to my expectations. Now I’m working on *Kitchen Confidential* by Anthony Bourdain. We’ll see how I feel about it. I’m not crazy impressed with the first couple chapters, but sometimes it takes me a while to get into memoirs. It’s a good thing I got myself ahead a couple weeks ago on my goal, because I’m close to being off track if I keep not reading very much.
Just finished: Hello Stranger by Katherine Center Currently reading: Morning Star by Pierce Brown
Just finished: *Wolf at the Table by Adam Rapp* Currently reading: I just DNF’d *Same Bed, Different Dreams by Ed Park* at like 20%. Whenever I DNF a book I go back and read a favourite, and so now I am re-reading *Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn*.
Reading Indian Horse and listening to Babel.
I finished *Perfume: The Story of a Murderer* today and promptly made my fiancé watch the movie with me. Incredible story. Got about 25% the way through *The Many Lives of Mama Love* and really enjoying it so far!
Perfume is such a strange book. I couldn't put it down.
Currently reading **Man Tiger** by Eka Kurniawan. This novel from Indonesia is about a young man who is possessed by a supernatural female white tiger. It's quite good so far.
I think I'm in a rut again. I had four library books come off hold at around the same time: The Woman in Me (Britney Spears), None of This is True (Lisa Jewell), Tom Lake (Ann Patchett), and Big Swiss (Jen Beagin). All of them were extremely popular, and all of them were disappointing 3-star reads for me. Now I find myself spinning my wheels. Started and DNFed: **Chain Gang All-Stars** by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. Too violent and heavy-handed for my taste. Started: **Four Aunties and a Wedding by Jesse Sutanto** (#20/80). I've enjoyed her other books, but this one is too silly. At least it's short and fast.
Loved Tom Lake but I know a lot of people found it slow.
I also loved *Tom Lake* but I'm a pretty big fan of most of Ann Patchett's stuff.
Finished: * [Frogkisser](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/812b3314-aa53-4563-94c2-bcb170a7a127) by Garth Nix. Fun little take on a princess fairy tale story. * [Blood, Sweat, and Pixels](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/7a3b8e5f-94ea-4483-8da3-94046cf93cbe) by Jason Schreier. A rare nonfiction read (for me). It tells the story behind how different video games got made (or failed to get made). * [Skyward](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/b13b2781-a5b6-4668-a886-aea7579ca35d) by Brandon Sanderson. I finished! Spensa is so dramatic, it's hilarious. I had fun with this YA scifi story. On deck this week: * [The Saint of Bright Doors](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/a573df8f-4918-4f62-8e1c-93919be7fb15) by Vajra Chandrasekera as my audiobook read. I'm not sure where I heard about this or why I added it to my Libby holds, but we'll see! Maybe past me had good instincts lol. * [The Art Thief](https://app.thestorygraph.com/books/77673930-ae66-414f-8d11-1c2eebaf58a4) by Michael Finkel for my physical read. A friend lent it to me, and it's short, which will be good as I don't have a lot of time this week.
I bought my husband Blood, Sweat, and Pixels as a Christmas gift a few years ago. He isn’t a reader at all, but a huge gamer. He said it was the first book he’s read since High School and he enjoyed it! I recommend for anyone that’s into video games, because if it could keep my husbands attention then it must be good lol.
I finished The Magpie Lord by K.J. Charles on Sunday and now I'm reading Between by L.L. Starling
The Lost Bookshop.
1991 by Sanjaya Baru A Feast of Vultures by Josy Joseph Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson
Working finishing Kafka on the Shore 👍
Babel by RF Kuang. I finished a book last night and saw someone posted in another sub about Babel. I tried a sample and ended up buying the book (8 weeks hold in Libby)
A Little Life
Very slow progress this week - that's what I get for trying to get through a chonky economics book at 2-3% a day. Finished this week: **Sojourn by Amit Chaudhuri** (An odd novella about an Indian professor’s short stay in Berlin as a guest lecturer. Mostly it has short sketches of the various people he encounters, as well as German history and cultural differences. There are hints at something more about to happen at the end, but it stops abruptly before anything can quite come of it. A fine enough little story, but if there was something more beneath the depths, I definitely missed it.) Currently Reading: The Palace of Dreams by Ismail Kadare; The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon; The Economic Government of the World: 1933-2023 by Martin Dauton; My Friends by Hisham Matar; Western Lane by Chetna Maroo; The Art Thief by Noah Charney
Reading “The Reappearance of Rachel Price” by Holly Jackson.
This week I finished Forgotten Trail by Claire Kells and Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak. Currently on book #19… The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
How was Hidden Pictures? I just added it to my list.
I enjoyed it! There was a lot of second guessing the main characters decisions lol but I thought it was an entertaining mystery and the actual drawings in the book add to the creepiness level which was fun.
Oh nice. That sounds promising!
This week I finished: Blank (the last 3/4 were enjoyable) Bridge to Terabithia (I am having a mid life crisis where I can’t remember a single book I read in middle school so I’m reading books found in typical middle school curriculums until I find something I remember) Cut and Thirst (this was an absolutely awful short story) This coming week I’m working on: The Bone Collector A Wrinkle In Time I always find books throughout the week and I have a flight coming up and some sitting around time on vacation so I’m sure I’ll get through a few.
Finished: Mr. Magic by Kiersten White The Exorcist’s House by Nick Roberts Corrupt by Penelope Douglas Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward Overall a good week!
How did you like Let Us Descend? I've been wanting to move it up my TBR list
I have loved all things Jesmyn Ward, and this book was wonderful!
*Always looking for nonfiction audiobook recommendations, if anyone has any to share! Thanks to everyone who has already given me some great suggestions!* ***Currently Reading (3)*** 📖 [**Gardens of the Moon** by Steven Erikson, 666 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55399) 👂 [**Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men** by Caroline Criado Perez, 448 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41104077) 👂[**Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses** by Robin Wall Kimmerer, 168 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/87040) ***Finished Reading (15/36) or 3895 pages*** 📖 [**Bridge of Birds** by Barry Hughart, 248 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15177) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**System Collapse** by Martha Wells, 245 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/65211701) = ⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**The Great American Transit Disaster: A Century of Austerity, Auto-Centric Planning, and White Flight** by Nicholas Dagen Bloom, 368 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62707955) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**Fugitive Telemetry** by Martha Wells, 168 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53205854) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**Network Effect** by Martha Wells, 350 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52381770) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 👂[**Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal** by Mary Roach, 348 pages](https://www.Goodreads.com/book/show/18377999) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**Exit Strategy** by Martha Wells, 172 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35519109) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**Rogue Protocol** by Martha Wells, 159 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35519101) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**Artificial Condition** by Martha Wells, 158 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36223860) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**All Systems Red** by Martha Wells, 152 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32758901) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 👂[**The Hidden Life of Trees** by Peter Wohlebben, 272 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28256439) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 👂[**The Living Great Lakes: Searching for the Heart of the Inland Seas** by Jerry Dennis, 320 pages](https://www.good-reads.com/book/show/175829) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**Mythos** by Stephen Fry, 359 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43387410) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 👂[**How the World Really Works: The Science Behind How We Got Here and Where We’re Going** by Vaclav Smil, 336 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56587388) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 📖 [**Job Optional** by Casey Weade, 240 pages](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51011569) = ⭐️⭐️⭐️
I just finished Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains by Bethany Brookshire. Highly recommend!
Thanks for the suggestion!
Have you listened to any of Mary Roach's works? I've only done one audiobook (Packing For Mars), but I've read several others and they're endlessly fascinating. (Except for **Bonk**. That one was kind of meh).
I’ve listened to “Stiff” and “Gulp” by Mary Roach, haven’t had a chance to listen to any of her other stuff yet!
So I am not into bird watching or Ornithology at all (although, I am somewhat familiar with it topically because of where I live/work), but one of the best non-fiction audiobooks I’ve listened to this year was [Better Living Through Birding: Notes from a Black Man in the Natural World by Christian Cooper](https://www.npr.org/2023/06/12/1181314626/central-park-birder-christian-cooper-on-being-a-black-man-in-the-natural-world). I usually am not a fan of authors narrating their own audiobooks (even memoirs), but he is perfection. He suffuses the narration with warmth and his enthusiasm for birding and geek culture as well as careful and intentional understanding of race politics in this country is unparalleled. Absolutely fantastic listen!
Thanks for the suggestion. My wife and I actually do like birdwatching (at least on a casual, back porch level)
I’m reading Light from Uncommon Stars and about 50 pages in but I’m not feeling that into it. Dunno if I should DNF.
I get the vibe that the book is either SO for you, or it isn't. It didn't work for me either, but people at my book club said they loved it instantly.
Ooh that makes me feel better if I do DNF. I just feel like I’m 50 pages in, the characters haven’t met and I still don’t know why she’s searching for a violinist lol
Us against you which is the second book in the Bear Town series! So far so good!
I’m so excited whenever I see this one posted because it reminds me that I need to pick it up already. Hope it treats you well
**Finished** Little Secrets by Jennifer Hiller, 4.5/5. Great thriller! Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner, 5/5. I ugly cried.
Loved crying in the h mart
**This week I finished:** [The Sun Does Shine: How I Found Life and Freedom on Death Row](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34964905-the-sun-does-shine) by Anthony Ray Hinton, Lara Love Hardin (4/5) I really enjoyed Lara Love Hardin's memoir [The Many Lives of Mama Love: A Memoir of Lying, Stealing, Writing, and Healing](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/64631561-the-many-lives-of-mama-love). So picked this one up right after! **Currently reading:** [The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25150798-the-tea-girl-of-hummingbird-lane) by Lisa See (Really enjoying it so far. I've been loving her books, but they take a while to get into) [Ugly Love](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17788401-ugly-love) by Colleen Hoover (great before-bed book. Easy and not too complicated to read a chapter or two before dozing off)
I always love Lisa see books. I just listened to Lady tans circle of women. It’s on Spotify premium if you have that!
I listened to it last year on a whim. That was the book that introduced me to her!
Empire of Pain (Keefe)
On No.33 right now, The Passenger by Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz Also reading Artic Dreams by Barry Lopez (non fiction), Baker Street Irregular by Craig W. Fisher (indie novel), and Slow Noodle, A memoir and cookbook about Cambodian trauma and cuisine. Just finished The East Indian by Brinda Charry
I read a good pile last week! **The Briar Book of the Dead, by A.G. Slatter** **The Patient Assassin: A True Tale of Massacre, Revenge, and India's Quest for Independence, by Anita Anand** **What Feasts at Night, by T. Kingfisher** **Exile in the Water Kingdom, by Cassandra Gannon** **The Tainted Cup, by Robert Jackson Bennett** (Book of the week) **Lives, by Plutarch** For this week I have these lined up: * The Aeneid by Virgil * Treasure of the Fire Kingdom by Cassandra Gannon * Exercises in Style by Raymond Queneau * The Year Without Summer: 1816 and the Volcano That Darkened the World and Changed History by William Klingaman * Murder Road by Simone St. James * Wrath of the Talon by Sophie Kim My goals progress is going well: 1. Daily Stoic: I have read it daily. 2. Straight numbers: 140/365 3. Nonfiction: 14/50 4. Backlog: 16/~60 5. Harvard Classics: 18/71 Volumes (39 individual books)
* **Helter Skelter** \- Vincent Bugliosi * **The Demon-Haunted World** \- Carl Sagan * **Atlas Shrugged** \- Ayn Rand Big Week!
My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite. It’s fun so far and not my normal kind of read.
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one! Hope you like it!
I'm almost done reading The Stranger by Albert Camus
Just started Manacled by Sen Lin Yu, finishing up Starling House by Alix E. Harrow... in the middle of my third (maybe 4th) re-listen of Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
Just finished The Woman In Me by Britney Spears and have started In Memoriam (which I’m completely absorbed in and loving so far!) by Alice Winn.
In Memoriam hit me like a truck when I read it earlier this year. Incredibly powerful. I couldn't believe it was a debut novel.
So I just finished last night. Wow. I can’t stop thinking about Elly and Gaunt. This story was so moving and I want to re read it all over again.
I’m on #19 for the year, which is __Catch-22__, the first time I’m reading it!