Ashley's bookshelf: all en-US Fri, 16 May 2025 10:38:49 -0700 60 Ashley's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame]]> 217388174 A new Queer, Asian-inspired fantasy novella about a renowned dragon slayer who never takes her armor off in public, Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame reads like She Who Became the Sun meets The Mandalorian, with dragons!

The fiercely independent nation of Quanbao is isolated, reclusive, and something of a mystery to the rest of the world. It is rumored that there, dragons are not feared as is right and proper but instead loved and worshiped.

Yeva is perhaps a strange emissary to these people. Not only because their face has never been seen in public, but because they are a hero born to a birthright that makes them suited for their task—hunting dragons.

And so the dragon hunter must woo Quanbao's queen—the Lady Sookhee—to understand what secrets she is hiding. A woman reasonably suspicious of Yeva's intentions, and the imperial might of the throne she represents, Sookhee bears the burden of the safety of her entire people. How can she trust this stranger newly arrived to her court, a weapon forged in blood and fire, to understand what her people need and how best to safeguard their future?

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.]]> 176 Neon Yang 1250357349 Ashley 0 to-read 3.79 2025 Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame
author: Neon Yang
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/16
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Devils (The Devils, #1) 233800039
Brother Diaz has been summoned to the Sacred City, where he is certain a commendation and grand holy assignment awaits him. But his new flock is made up of unrepentant murderers, practitioners of ghastly magic, and outright monsters. The mission he is tasked with will require bloody measures from them all in order to achieve its righteous ends.

Elves lurk at our borders and hunger for our flesh, while greedy princes care for nothing but their own ambitions and comfort. With a hellish journey before him, it's a good thing Brother Diaz has the devils on his side]]> Joe Abercrombie 125088005X Ashley 0 currently-reading 4.60 2025 The Devils (The Devils, #1)
author: Joe Abercrombie
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.60
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/15
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> The Everlasting 226850464 DELUXE EDITION—a beautiful hardcover edition featuring dark teal sprayed edges, a foil stamp on the casing, and full-page illustrations!

A LEGEND. A LIE. A LOVE STORY.

From Alix E. Harrow, the New York Times bestselling author of Starling House (Reese's Bookclub, October '23) comes The Everlasting, a moving and genre-defying quest following the reluctant knight whose legend built a nation and the desperate scholar sent back through time to ensure she meets her tragic fate—even if it breaks his heart.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.]]> Alix E. Harrow 1250799104 Ashley 0 to-read 5.00 2025 The Everlasting
author: Alix E. Harrow
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:
Ooh, is this an expansion of "The Six Deaths of the Saint"? Yes please!
]]> Morsel 231127441 The Blair Witch Project meets The Ritual, with a generous helping of The Menu, in Morsel, a delicious folk horror novella perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher, Cassandra Khaw, and Paul Tremblay.

Lou did what the children of parents with back-breaking, poor paying jobs are supposed to pulled up her bootstraps, went to college, and got an office job with coworkers who won’t stop talking about their multi-level marketing scheme disguised as self-betterment.

Determined to lift her ill mother out of poverty before it's too late, and in the spirit of climbing the corporate ladder, Lou accepts an assignment in the rural hills of Ohio. She quickly finds herself stranded in the middle of nowhere with a sabotaged truck, a dog she’s determined to keep safe, and something stalking her through the ancient Appalachian woods.

If she can’t escape the woods in time, she’ll come face to face with the fact that her job isn’t the only thing that wants to eat her alive.

Morsel is a chilling testament to the burden of generational poverty and the all-consuming nature of capitalism, where the monster and the monstrous, in the end, are not the same.]]> 208 Carter Keane 1250392454 Ashley 0 to-read 0.0 Morsel
author: Carter Keane
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Subtle Art of Folding Space]]> 231127269 The Subtle Art of Folding Space , is the exhilarating debut science fiction novel from Nebula and Hugo-winning author John Chu channels unhinged physics, generational trauma, and the comfort of really good dim sum. This isn't your usual jaunt through quantum physics.

Ellie’s universe, and this one, is falling apart. Her ailing mother is in a coma; her sister, Chris, accuses her of being insufficiently Chinese between assassination attempts; and a shadowy cabal of engineers is trying to hijack the skunkworks, the machinery that keeps the physics of each universe working the way it’s supposed to.

Daniel, Ellie's cousin, has found an illicit device in the skunkworks—one that keeps Ellie's comatose mother alive while also creating destabilizing bugs in the physics of this universe. It's not a good day.

If she can confront her mother’s legacy and overcome her family’s generational trauma, she just might find a way to preserve the skunkworks and reconcile with her sister…but digging into her family’s past is thornier than it seems, and the secrets she uncovers will force Ellie to choose between her family and the universe itself.]]> 240 John Chu 1250425409 Ashley 0 to-read 4.00 The Subtle Art of Folding Space
author: John Chu
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Operation Bounce House 233717212 A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it in this epic, fast-paced novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl.

All colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do is run the family ranch with his sister, maybe play a gig or two with his band, and keep his family’s aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking as long as possible. As a fan of Earth television and culture, he figures it will be a good thing when the transfer gate finally opens all the way and restores instant travel and full communication between Earth and his planet, New Sonora. But there’s a complication.

Even though the settlers were promised they’d be left in peace, Earth’s government now has other plans. The colossal Apex Corporation is hired to commence an “eviction action.� But maximizing profits will always be Apex’s number one priority. Why spend money printing and deploying their own AI soldiers when they can turn it into a game? Why not charge bored Earthers for the opportunity to design their own war machines and remotely pilot them from the comfort of their own homes?

The game is called Operation Bounce House.

Oliver and his friends soon find themselves fighting for their lives against machines piloted by gamers who’ve paid a premium for the privilege. With the help of an old book from his grandfather and a bucket of rusty parts, Oliver is determined to defend the only home he’s ever known.]]> 400 Matt Dinniman 0593820304 Ashley 0 to-read 0.0 2026 Operation Bounce House
author: Matt Dinniman
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Art of a Lie 228943527 In 18th-century England, a widowed confectioner is drawn into a web of love, betrayal, and intrigue and a battle of wits in this masterful historical novel from the author of the “delicious puzzle-box of a novel� (The New York Times) and USA TODAY bestseller The Square of Sevens.

Following the murder of her husband in what looks like a violent street robbery, Hannah Cole is struggling to keep her head above water. Her confectionary shop on Piccadilly is barely turning a profit, her suppliers conspiring to put her out of business because they don’t like women in trade. Henry Fielding, the famous author-turned-magistrate, is threatening to confiscate the money in her husband’s bank account because he believes it might have been illicitly acquired. And even those who claim to be Hannah’s friends have darker intent.

Only William Devereux seems different. A friend of her late husband, Devereux helps Hannah unravel some of the mysteries surrounding his death. He also tells her about an Italian delicacy called iced cream, an innovation she is convinced will transform the fortunes of her shop. But their friendship opens Hannah to speculation and gossip and draws Henry Fielding’s attention her way, locking her into a battle of wits more devastating than anything she can imagine.]]> 320 Laura Shepherd-Robinson 1529053722 Ashley 0 to-read 4.60 The Art of a Lie
author: Laura Shepherd-Robinson
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.60
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Dead Husband Cookbook 220481352 She has the recipe for the perfect murder...

Maria Capello is a celebrity chef like no other. A household name, an inspiration, an icon. Her dozens of cookbooks and weekly television show, broadcast from her beautiful Italian-style kitchen, not to mention her line of bestselling supermarket sauces. And of course there's her history. Once just the timid wife of famous chef Damien Capello, she stepped into the spotlight after Damien's mysterious disappearance twenty years before. An event she's never spoken about publicly until now, when it is announced that she is looking for a publisher for her memoirs.

Why is Maria willing to finally break her silence? Why does she turn down seven-figure offers from large publishing houses and sign up with a small press? And why does she do so on the condition that it is edited by Thea Woods? Thea is a lifelong fan but has never met Maria and can't figure it out, plus she had been planning to hand in her notice that very day. But when she is invited to Maria's remote farm to work on the manuscript, she can't resist. After all, she may finally learn whether the rumours are that Maria killed Damien for his recipes and the legendary 'secret ingredient'...

A deliciously rich thriller, perfect for readers of Bella Mackie's How To Kill Your Family and Alexia Casale's The Best Way to Bury Your Husband]]> 352 Danielle Valentine 1728276918 Ashley 0 to-read 4.10 2025 The Dead Husband Cookbook
author: Danielle Valentine
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> A Most Puzzling Murder 212431569
Destiny Whip is a former child prodigy, world-renowned enigmatologist and very, very alone. A life filled with loss has made her a recluse, an existence she’s content to endure until a letter arrives inviting her to interview for the position of Scruffmore family historian. Not only does an internet search for the name yield almost nothing, it’s a role she never applied to in the first place!

After she decodes the invitation’s hidden message with ease, the promise of her family secrets being revealed is too powerful a draw for the orphaned Destiny, who soon finds herself on Eerie Island. It’s a place whose inhabitants are almost as inhospitable as the tempestuous weather. The Scruffmores themselves turn out to be not much better, a snarled mess of secrets and motives connected by their mistrust for one another.

Their newly arrived guest proves to be just as much an enigma to them as they are to her. While Destiny slowly works to unravel the mysteries hidden throughout the ominous castle, she struggles to interpret disturbing nightly visions of what is to come. In the midst of cryptic ciphers, hidden passages, and the family’s magical heritage and line of succession, Destiny is certain of two things: one of the Scruffmores is going to die and she’s running out of time to stop it.

Interspersed with riddles and puzzles that both Destiny and the reader must solve, A Most Puzzling Murder is a one-of-a-kind mystery that will leave you guessing and gasping until the very last page!]]> 480 Bianca Marais 0778368602 Ashley 0 to-read 4.08 2025 A Most Puzzling Murder
author: Bianca Marais
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> When the Moon Hits Your Eye 211004190
It's a whole new moooooon.

One day soon, suddenly and without explanation, the moon as we know it is replaced with an orb of cheese with the exact same mass. Through the length of an entire lunar cycle, from new moon to a spectacular and possibly final solar eclipse, we follow multiple characters -- schoolkids and scientists, billionaires and workers, preachers and politicians -- as they confront the strange new world they live in, and the absurd, impossible moon that now hangs above all their lives.]]> 326 John Scalzi 0765389096 Ashley 0 currently-reading 3.83 2025 When the Moon Hits Your Eye
author: John Scalzi
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Two Can Play 217108838
An enemies-to-lovers spicy romance set in the world of video gaming from the bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis—available only in audio!

Viola Bowen has the chance of a lifetime: to design a video game based on her all-time favorite book series. The only problem? Her co-lead is Jesse F-ing Andrews, a.k.a. her arch-nemesis. Jesse has made it abundantly clear over the years that he wants nothing to do with her–and Viola has no idea why.

When their bosses insist a wintery retreat is the perfect team-building exercise, Viola can’t think of anything worse. Being freezing cold in a remote mountain lodge knowing Jesse is right next door? No, thank you.

But as the snow piles on, Viola discovers there’s more to Jesse than she knew, and heat builds in more ways than one.]]> 5 Ali Hazelwood Ashley 0 on-hold-for-now, dnf 3.55 2024 Two Can Play
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.55
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: on-hold-for-now, dnf
review:
DNFed this audiobook after one minute bc I hated the narrator. Treating this as not published until I can read something with my eyeballs.
]]> <![CDATA[Below Zero (The STEMinist Novellas, #3)]]> 59651553 It will take the frosty terrain of the Arctic to show these rival scientists that their chemistry burns hot.

Mara, Sadie, and Hannah are friends first, scientists always. Though their fields of study might take them to different corners of the world, they can all agree on this universal truth: when it comes to love and science, opposites attract and rivals make you burn�

Hannah’s got a bad feeling about this. Not only has the NASA aerospace engineer found herself injured and stranded at a remote Arctic research station—but the one person willing to undertake the hazardous rescue mission is her longtime rival.

Ian has been many things to Hannah: the villain who tried to veto her expedition and ruin her career, the man who stars in her most deliciously lurid dreams…but he’s never played the hero. So why is he risking everything to be here? And why does his presence seem just as dangerous to her heart as the coming snowstorm?

To read Mara and Sadie’s stories look for the novellas Under One Roof and Stuck with You available now from Berkley!]]> 112 Ali Hazelwood 0593437837 Ashley 4
[3.5 stars, rounded up]]]> 3.57 2022 Below Zero (The STEMinist Novellas, #3)
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: half-starsies, novellas, shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025, not-reviewed-2025, romantical, sexytimes
review:
Strongly feel this one should have been a full novel. It needed more room. More thoughts .

[3.5 stars, rounded up]
]]> <![CDATA[Stuck with You (The STEMinist Novellas, #2)]]> 59651555 Nothing like a little rivalry between scientists to take love to the next level.

Mara, Sadie, and Hannah are friends first, scientists always. Though their fields of study might take them to different corners of the world, they can all agree on this universal truth: when it comes to love and science, opposites attract and rivals make you burn�

Logically, Sadie knows that civil engineers are supposed to build bridges. However, as a woman of STEM she also understands that variables can change, and when you are stuck for hours in a tiny New York elevator with the man who broke your heart, you earn the right to burn that brawny, blond bridge to the ground. Erik can apologize all he wants, but to quote her rebel leader—she’d just as soon kiss a Wookiee.

Not even the most sophisticated of Sadie’s superstitious rituals could have predicted such a disastrous reunion. But while she refuses to acknowledge the siren call of Erik’s steely forearms or the way his voice softens when he offers her his sweater, Sadie can’t help but wonder if there might be more layers to her cold-hearted nemesis than meet the eye. Maybe, possibly, even burned bridges can still be crossed�.

To read Mara and Hannah’s stories look for the novellas Under One Roof, available now, and Below Zero, coming soon from Berkley!]]> 127 Ali Hazelwood Ashley 4 3.56 2022 Stuck with You (The STEMinist Novellas, #2)
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: novellas, not-reviewed-2025, shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025
review:
Probably my favorite of this novella collection. I enjoyed their dynamic and how much joy they got in liking each other. The elevator setting was used perfectly. More thoughts .
]]> <![CDATA[Cruel Winter with You (Under the Mistletoe Collection, #1)]]> 220389458 New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood.

All newly minted pediatrician Jamie Malek wants is to borrow a roasting pan for Christmas dinner. Unfortunately, that requires her to interact with Marc—her best friend’s troublemaking brother, who’s now a tech billionaire. He’s the one who got away. She’s the one who broke his heart. Outside, a howling blizzard. Inside, a crackling fire. Suddenly, being snowbound with the man she never expected to see again might not be such a bad way to spend a winter’s night.

Ali Hazelwood’s Cruel Winter with You is part of Under the Mistletoe, a stirring collection of December romances that thrill and tingle all the way. They can be read or listened to in one swoony sitting.]]> 73 Ali Hazelwood 1662528396 Ashley 3
[3.5 stars]]]> 3.68 2024 Cruel Winter with You (Under the Mistletoe Collection, #1)
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: christmas, half-starsies, not-reviewed-2025, novellas, essays-and-stories, romantical, audiobooks
review:
Maybe I was just in a bad mood from being sick, but this didn't really work very well for me. It was fine! Moving on. More thoughts .

[3.5 stars]
]]> Not in Love 198971010 A forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science—from New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood.

Rue Siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at Kline, one of the most promising start-ups in the field of food science. Her world is stable, pleasant, and hard-fought. Until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down.

Eli Killgore and his business partners want Kline, period. Eli has his own reasons for pushing this deal through—and he’s a man who gets what he wants. With one burning exception: Rue. The woman he can’t stop thinking about. The woman who’s off-limits to him.

Torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, Rue and Eli throw caution out the lab and the boardroom windows. Their affair is secret, no-strings-attached, and has a built-in deadline: the day one of their companies will prevail. But the heart is risky business—one that plays for keeps.]]> 379 Ali Hazelwood 0593550420 Ashley 5
[4.5 stars, rounded up]]]> 3.69 2024 Not in Love
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025, not-reviewed-2025, not-quite-five-stars-but-sooo-close, a-dog-is-in-this, a-cat-is-in-this, romantical, sexytimes
review:
I really liked these two bozos; I'm glad they worked it out. Liked the setting and the plot as well. Tiny is a Good Boy. More thoughts .

[4.5 stars, rounded up]
]]> Check & Mate 123211777 In this clever and swoonworthy YA debut from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis, life's moving pieces bring rival chess players together in a match for the heart.

Mallory Greenleaf is done with chess. Every move counts nowadays; after the sport led to the destruction of her family four years earlier, Mallory's focus is on her mom, her sisters, and the dead-end job that keeps the lights on. That is, until she begrudgingly agrees to play in one last charity tournament and inadvertently wipes the board with notorious "Kingkiller" Nolan Sawyer: current world champion and reigning Bad Boy of chess.

Nolan's loss to an unknown rook-ie shocks everyone. What's even more confusing? His desire to cross pawns again. What kind of gambit is Nolan playing? The smart move would be to walk away. Resign. Game over. But Mallory's victory opens the door to sorely needed cash-prizes and despite everything, she can't help feeling drawn to the enigmatic strategist....

As she rockets up the ranks, Mallory struggles to keep her family safely separated from the game that wrecked it in the first place. And as her love for the sport she so desperately wanted to hate begins to rekindle, Mallory quickly realizes that the games aren't only on the board, the spotlight is brighter than she imagined, and the competition can be fierce (-ly attractive. And intelligent...and infuriating...)]]> 357 Ali Hazelwood 0593698525 Ashley 4 4.09 2023 Check & Mate
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/17
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: shop-on-your-own-shelves-2020, romantical, young-adult, sportsball, friendship-and-siblinghood, a-game-is-afoot
review:
This doesn't get a five bc I liked the chess better than the romance. Would LOVE for this to be a movie. More thoughts .
]]> Deep End 212806981 A competitive diver and an ace swimmer jump into forbidden waters in this steamy college romance from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis.

Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself.

Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. It’s how he wins gold medals and breaks records: complete focus, with every stroke. On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes.

So they start an arrangement. And as the pressure leading to the Olympics heats up, so does their relationship. It was supposed to be just a temporary, mutually satisfying fling. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water...]]> 447 Ali Hazelwood 0593550447 Ashley 4 Whet would actually have been the more accurate title. I liked this, it was really well done, but it was a really well done version of something I was never going to love, just bc of preferences.

More thoughts .]]> 4.09 2025 Deep End
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025, not-reviewed-2025, romantical, sexytimes, a-dog-is-in-this, grief-trauma-and-recovery
review:
Whet would actually have been the more accurate title. I liked this, it was really well done, but it was a really well done version of something I was never going to love, just bc of preferences.

More thoughts .
]]> <![CDATA[Anji Kills a King (The Rising Tide, #1)]]> 217387849 An unlikely assassin struggles to escape a legendary bounty hunter in this breakneck fantasy debut that will grab you by the throat—perfect for fans of Joe Abercrombie, R.F. Kuang, and Christopher Buehlman.

She killed for a cause. Will she die for it too?

Anji works as a castle servant, cleaning laundry for a king she hates. So when a rare opportunity presents itself, she seizes the chance to cut his throat. Then she runs for her life. In her wake, the kingdom is thrown into disarray, while a bounty bigger than anyone could imagine lands on her head.

On her heels are the fabled mercenaries of the Menagerie, whose animal-shaped masks are magical relics rumored to give them superhuman powers. It’s the Hawk who finds Anji a surly, aging swordswoman who has her own reasons for keeping Anji alive and out of the hands of her fellow bounty hunters, if only long enough to collect the reward herself.

With the rest of the Menagerie on their trail, so begins an alliance as tenuous as it is temporary—and a race against death that will decide Anji’s fate, and may change the course of a kingdom.]]> 368 Evan Leikam 125036924X Ashley 0 4.02 2025 Anji Kills a King (The Rising Tide, #1)
author: Evan Leikam
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/14
shelves: audiobooks, arcs-and-giveaways, currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Night Ends with Fire (The Night Ends with Fire, #1)]]> 201129898 Infused with magic and romance, this sweeping fantasy adventureĚýinspired by the legend of Mulan follows a young womanĚýdetermined to choose her own destiny—even if that means going against everyone she loves.

The Three Kingdoms are at war, but Meilin’s father refuses to answer the imperial draft. Trapped by his opium addiction, he plans to sell Meilin for her dowry. But when Meilin discovers her husband-to-be is another violent, ill-tempered man, she realizes that nothing will change for her unless she takes matters into her own hands.

The very next day, she disguises herself as a boy and enlists in her father’s place.

In the army, Meilin's relentless hard work brings her recognition, friendship—and a growing closeness with Sky, a prince turned training partner. But has she simply exchanged one prison for another?ĚýAs her kingdom barrels toward destruction, Meilin begins to have visions of a sea dragon spirit that offers her true power and freedom, but with a deadly price.

With the future of the Three Kingdoms hanging in the balance, Meilin will need to decide whom to trust—Sky, who inspires her loyalty and love; the sea dragon spirit, who has his own murky agenda; or an infuriating enemy prince who makes her question everything she once knew—about her kingdom and about her own heart.]]> 432 K.X. Song 0593815726 Ashley 0 3.80 2024 The Night Ends with Fire (The Night Ends with Fire, #1)
author: K.X. Song
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/12
shelves: illumicrate-and-fairyloot, currently-reading
review:
This book is so pretty I don't even care what it's about.
]]> The Violin Conspiracy 61813078
“I loved The Violin Conspiracy for exactly the same reasons I loved The Queen’s Gambit : a surprising, beautifully rendered underdog hero I cared about deeply and a fascinating, cutthroatĚýworld I knew nothing about—in this case, classical music.â€� —Chris Bohjalian, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant and Hour of the Witch

Growing up Black in rural North Carolina, Ray McMillian’s life is already mapped out. But Ray has a gift and a dream—he’s determined to become a world-class professional violinist, and nothing will stand in his way. Not his mother, who wants him to stop making such a racket; not the fact that he can’t afford a violin suitable to his talents; not even the racism inherent in the world of classical music.Ěý
Ěý
When he discovers that his beat-up, family fiddle is actually a priceless Stradivarius, all his dreams suddenlyĚýseem within reach, and together, Ray and his violin take the world by storm. But on the eve of the renowned and cutthroat Tchaikovsky Competition—the Olympics of classical music—the violin is stolen, a ransom note for five million dollars left in its place. Without it, Ray feels like he's lost a piece of himself.ĚýAs the competition approaches, Ray must not only reclaim his precious violin, but prove to himself—and the world—that no matter the outcome, there has always been a truly great musician within him.]]> 342 Brendan Slocumb 0593315421 Ashley 4
[3.5 stars]]]> 4.04 2022 The Violin Conspiracy
author: Brendan Slocumb
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/05/09
shelves: audiobooks, not-reviewed-2025, musical, mysteries, fiction, class-gender-race, bildungsroman, half-starsies, to-read
review:
This was a good book that I picked up because I wanted a mystery/thriller. This is not a mystery/thriller, it is contemporary fiction/coming of age, with a very small mystery aspect. Wanting one thing and getting another did affect my enjoyment, but if you go in with the right expectations, this could be very enjoyable. Loved the exploration of racism/bigotry in the world of classical music.

[3.5 stars]
]]> <![CDATA[Red Closet: The Hidden History of Gay Oppression in the USSR]]> 61817696
Each vignette helps paint the hitherto unknown picture of how Soviet oppression of gay people originated and was perpetuated from Stalin’s rule until the demise of the USSR. This book comes at a time when homophobia is again rearing its ugly head under Putin’s rule.]]> 288 Rustam Alexander 152616745X Ashley 0 to-read 4.16 2023 Red Closet: The Hidden History of Gay Oppression in the USSR
author: Rustam Alexander
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Sleep Tight 218482309
Dark and twisting at every turn, fans of Catriona Ward will love this chilling new tale from the deviously inventive horror author that Peter Farris calls the “clear heir to Stephen King.�

Beware the one who got away . . .

Father Silence once terrorized the rural town of Twisted Tree, disguising himself as a priest to prey on the most vulnerable members of society. When the police finally found his “House of Horrors,� they uncovered nineteen bodies and one survivor–a boy now locked away in a hospital for the criminally insane.

Nearly two decades later, Father Silence is finally put to death, but by the next morning, the detective who made the original arrest is found dead. A new serial killer is taking credit for the murder and calling himself the Outcast.

The detective’s daughter, Tess Claibourne, is a detective herself, haunted by childhood trauma and horrified by the death of her father and the resurgence of Father Silence’s legacy.

When Tess’s daughter is kidnapped by the Outcast, Tess is forced to face her worst fears and long-buried memories. With no leads to follow, she travels back to Twisted Tree to visit the boy who survived and see what secrets might be buried in the tangled web of his broken mind.

With captivating prose and an old-school horror flair, Sleep Tight is a must-read, haunting tale from a true master of the genre.]]> 336 J.H. Markert Ashley 3
[2.5 stars, rounded up]]]> 3.78 2024 Sleep Tight
author: J.H. Markert
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/05/08
date added: 2025/05/08
shelves: book-of-the-month, half-starsies, shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025, thrillers-suspense, horror, murder-most-foul, mysteries, mixed-media, cults
review:
Paper thin characters, a perfectly fine plot, a cliché unreliable alcholic/addict female MC, and it just gave me a little bit of ick—particularly using certain things as markers of evil (piercings, tattoos, music). It was giving Boomer, kids get off my lawn, etc. though not sure author is Boomer. It kept me entertained enough, but didn't reach me emotionally except to occasionally annoy. Prob won't read from this author again.

[2.5 stars, rounded up]
]]> Rules for Ghosting 202468408 Rule #1: They can't speak.
Rule #2: They can't move.
Rule #3: They can't hurt you.

Ezra Friedman sees ghosts, which made growing up in a funeral home a bit complicated. It might have been easier if his grandfather’s ghost didn’t give him such scathing looks of disapproval as he went through a second, HRT-induced puberty, or if he didn't have the pressure of all those relatives—living and dead—judging every choice he makes. It’s no wonder that Ezra runs as far away from the family business as humanly possible.

But when the floor of his dream job drops out from under him and his mother uses the family Passover seder to tell everyone that she’s running away with the rabbi’s wife, Ezra finds himself back in the thick of it. With his parents� marriage imploding and the Friedman Family Memorial Chapel on the brink of financial ruin, Ezra agrees to step into his mother's shoes and help out . . . which means long days surrounded by ghosts that no one else can see.

And then there's his unfortunate crush on Jonathan, the handsome funeral home volunteer who just happens to live downstairs from Ezra's new apartment . . . and the appearance of the ghost of Jonathan's gone-too-soon husband, Ben, who is breaking every spectral rule Ezra knows.

Because Ben can speak. He can move. And as Ezra tries to keep his family together and his heart from getting broken, he quickly realizes that there's more than one way to be haunted—and more than one way to become a ghost.]]> 400 Shelly Jay Shore 0593723945 Ashley 0 currently-reading 3.87 2024 Rules for Ghosting
author: Shelly Jay Shore
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/08
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Behooved 217582922 A charming slow-burn romantasy featuring a duty-bound noblewoman with a chronic illness, a prince who would rather be in a library than on a throne, and a magical ride through a world of cozy enchantment

Bianca knows her duty comes before her heart. So when the threat of war looms, she agrees to marry the neighboring kingdom’s heir. But not all royal weddings are a fairytale, and Prince Aric, Bianca’s betrothed, is cold, aloof, and seems to hate her on sight.

To make matters worse, on their wedding night, an assassination attempt goes awry—leaving Aric magically transformed into a horse. Bianca does what any bride in this situation would she mounts her new husband and rides away to safety.

Sunset returns Aric to human form, but they soon discover the assassination attempt is part of a larger plot against the throne. Worse, Bianca has been framed for Aric’s murder, and she’s now saddled with a husband who is a horse by day and a frustratingly attractive man by night.

As an unexpected romance begins galloping away with their hearts, Bianca and Aric must rely on each other to unravel the curse and save the throne.

"Behooved is bewitchingly charming, a romantic fairy-tale adventure that will sweep you off your feet (or hooves)!"—Sarah Beth Durst, New York Times bestselling author of The Spellshop

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.]]> 343 M. Stevenson 1250375096 Ashley 2
full review soon bc ARC]]> 3.50 2025 Behooved
author: M. Stevenson
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.50
book published: 2025
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2025/05/07
shelves: arcs-and-giveaways, not-reviewed-2025, audiobooks
review:
this was SO DISPPOINTING

full review soon bc ARC
]]> <![CDATA[Seasons of Glass and Iron: Stories]]> 230873492 Full of glimpses into gleaming worlds and fairy tales with teeth, Seasons of Glass and Stories is a collection of acclaimed and awarded work from Amal El-Mohtar.

With confidence and style, El-Mohtar guides us through exquisitely told and sharply observed tales about life as it is, was, and could be. Like miscellany from other worlds, these stories are told in letters, diary entries, reference materials, folktales, and lyrical prose.

Full of Nebula, Locus, World Fantasy, and Hugo Award-winning and nominated stories, Seasons of Glass and Stories includes "Seasons of Glass and Iron," "The Green Book," "Madeleine," "The Lonely Sea in the Sky," "And Their Lips Rang with the Sun," "The Truth About Owls," "A Hollow Play," "Anabasis," "To Follow the Waves," "John Hollowback and the Witch," "Florilegia, or, Some Lies About Flowers," "Pockets," and more.]]> 96 Amal El-Mohtar 1529443407 Ashley 0 to-read 0.0 2026 Seasons of Glass and Iron: Stories
author: Amal El-Mohtar
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Howl: An Anthology of Werewolves from Women-in-Horror]]> 223497505
The synchronicity of woman and wolf has long been buried. Ruled by the moon and her cycles of blood, rage, and transformation, the desire and pull to shapeshift and transmute runs deep beneath her skin. She is a beacon of duality, the divine and the monstrous, the deep glow of wolfsbane and the indent of fresh bite marks on skin.

We fear her because we are her: the feral, the wild, the mad.

From Angela Carter's The Company of Wolves to Rachel Harrison's Such Sharp Teeth, women have been dancing with the wolf and teasing it out of the woods for centuries. We feed the untamed, hoping to release the beast inside, giving us strength, sisterhood, and the confidence to howl. The animal releases us from shame and permits us to seek out and accept our truth. With the wolf, we are free; with freedom, we are empowered.

In a world where silver is the least of our worries, Howl seeks to give voice to the wolves and women of contemporary horror as they shed their skin, unhinge their jaws, and bare their teeth for all to see.

From award-winning editors Lindy Ryan and Stephanie M. Wytovich comes Howl, a brand-new anthology of original stories and poems from women of contemporary horror who give voices to wolves as they shed their skin, unhinge their jaws, and bare their teeth for all to see.

Featuring Delilah S. Dawson, Christina Henry, Gwendolyn Kiste, Ai Jiang, and many more, with an introduction by Rachel Harrison.]]> Lindy Ryan 1645481425 Ashley 0 to-read 0.0 Howl: An Anthology of Werewolves from Women-in-Horror
author: Lindy Ryan
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle]]> 48847746
“Essential reading.”—Bustle � NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY BOOKRIOT

Burnout. Many women in America have experienced it. What’s expected of women and what it’s really like to be a woman in today’s world are two very different things—and women exhaust themselves trying to close the gap between them. How can you “love your body� when every magazine cover has ten diet tips for becoming “your best self�? How do you “lean in� at work when you’re already operating at 110 percent and aren’t recognized for it? How can you live happily and healthily in a sexist world that is constantly telling you you’re too fat, too needy, too noisy, and too selfish?

Sisters Emily Nagoski, PhD, and Amelia Nagoski, DMA, are here to help end the cycle of feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Instead of asking us to ignore the very real obstacles and societal pressures that stand between women and well-being, they explain with compassion and optimism what we’re up against—and show us how to fight back. In these pages you’ll learn

� what you can do to complete the biological stress cycle—and return your body to a state of relaxation
� how to manage the “monitor� in your brain that regulates the emotion of frustration
� how the Bikini Industrial Complex makes it difficult for women to love their bodies—and how to defend yourself against it
� why rest, human connection, and befriending your inner critic are keys to recovering and preventing burnout

With the help of eye-opening science, prescriptive advice, and helpful worksheets and exercises, all women will find something transformative in these pages—and will be empowered to create positive change. Emily and Amelia aren’t here to preach the broad platitudes of expensive self-care or insist that we strive for the impossible goal of “having it all.� Instead, they tell us that we are enough, just as we are—and that wellness, true wellness, is within our reach.]]> 304 Emily Nagoski 1984818325 Ashley 0 to-read 3.94 2019 Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle
author: Emily Nagoski
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> We Burned So Bright 231126885
Now, the world is ending for real. A wandering blackhole is coming for Earth and in a month everything and everyone they’ve ever known will be gone.

Suddenly, after 40 years together, Don and Rodney are out of time. They’re in a race against the clock to make it from Maine to Washington State to take care of some unfinished business before it’s all over.

On the road they meet those who refuse to believe death is coming and those who rush to meet it. But there are also people living their final days as best they know how–impromptu weddings, bright burning bonfires, shared meals, new friends.

And as the blackhole draws near, among ball lightning and under a cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky, Don and Rodney will look back on their lives and ask if their best was good enough.

Is it enough to burn bright if nothing comes from the ashes?]]> 400 T.J. Klune 1250881234 Ashley 0 i-don-t-know
unless i hear spoilers that for some reason just kidding the world doesn't end

i don't need that shit, i'm still traumatized from the ending of Seeking a Friend for the End of the World]]> 0.0 2026 We Burned So Bright
author: T.J. Klune
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/06
shelves: i-don-t-know
review:
this is probably going to be a no from me, dawg

unless i hear spoilers that for some reason just kidding the world doesn't end

i don't need that shit, i'm still traumatized from the ending of Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
]]> <![CDATA[The Place Where They Buried Your Heart]]> 226744164 On an otherwise ordinary street in Chicago, there is a house. An abandoned house where, once upon a time, terrible things happened. The children who live on this block are told by their parents to stay away from that house. But of course, children don't listen. Children think it's fun to be scared, to dare each other to go inside.
Jessie Campanelli did what many older sisters do and dared her little brother Paul. But unlike all the other kids who went inside that abandoned house, Paul didn't return. His two friends, Jake and Richie, said that the house ate Paul. Of course adults didn't believe that. Adults never believe what kids say. They thought someone kidnapped Paul, or otherwise hurt him. They thought Paul had disappeared in a way that was ordinary, explainable.
The disappearance of her little brother broke Jessie's family apart in ways that would never be repaired. Jessie grew up, had a child of her own, kept living on the same street where the house that ate her brother sat, crouched and waiting. And darkness seemed to spread out from that house, a darkness that was alive—alive and hungry.]]> 320 Christina Henry 0593953959 Ashley 0 i-don-t-know 4.00 The Place Where They Buried Your Heart
author: Christina Henry
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/06
shelves: i-don-t-know
review:

]]> Witches of Dubious Origin 224082679 When a librarian discovers she’s descended from a long line of powerful witches, she’ll need all of her bookish knowledge to harness her family’s magic, in this enchanting cozy fantasy from New York Times bestselling author Jenn McKinlay.

Zoe Ziakas enjoys a quiet life, working as a librarian in her quaint New England town. When a mysterious black book with an unbreakable latch is delivered to the library, Zoe has a strange feeling the tome is somehow calling to her. She decides to consult the Museum of Literature, home to volumes of indecipherable secrets, some possessing magic that must be guarded. The collection is known as the of Books of Dubious Origin.

Here, Zoe discovers that she is the last descendant of a family of witches and this little black book is their grimoire. Zoe knows she must decode the family’s spell book and solve the mystery of what happened to her mother and her grandmother. However, the book's potential power draws all things magical to it, and Zoe finds herself under the constant watch of a pesky raven, while being chased by undead Vikings, ghost pirates, and assorted ghouls.

With assistance from the eccentric staff of the Books of Dubious Origin—including their annoyingly smart and handsome containment specialist, Jasper Griffin—Zoe must confront her past and the legacy of her family. But as their adventure unfolds, she’ll have to decide if she’s ready to embrace her destiny.]]> 384 Jenn McKinlay 0593819756 Ashley 0 to-read 4.50 2025 Witches of Dubious Origin
author: Jenn McKinlay
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Eat the Ones You Love 203579211
During a grocery run to her local shopping center, Shell Pine sees a â€HELP NEEDEDâ€� sign in a flower shop window. She’s just left her fiancĂ©, lost her job, and moved home to her parentsâ€� house. She has to make a change and bring some good into her life, so she goes inside and takes a chance. Shell realizes right away that flowers are just the good thing she's been looking for, as is Neve, the beautiful florist who wrote the sign asking for help. The thing is, Neve needs help more than Shell could possibly imagine.

An orchid growing out of sight in the heart of the mall is watching them closely. His name is Baby, and the beautiful florist belongs to him. He’s young, he’s hungry, and he’ll do just about anything to make sure he can keep growing big and strong. Nothing he eats � nobody he eats � can satisfy him, except the thing he most desires. Neve. He adores her and wants to consume her, and will stop at nothing to eat the one he loves.

This is a story about possession, and monstrosity, and working retail. It is about hunger and desire, and other terrible things that grow.]]> 288 Sarah Maria Griffin 1250910692 Ashley 3
Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: eyes]]> 3.72 2025 Eat the Ones You Love
author: Sarah Maria Griffin
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2025/05/05
shelves: arcs-and-giveaways, audiobooks, not-reviewed-2025, creature-feature, friendship-and-siblinghood, horror, lgbtqia, miscellaneous-reading-challenges, speculative, you-wrote-about-what-now
review:
full review soon bc ARC. no idea what i am going to say.

Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: eyes
]]> Vampires of El Norte 63892214 Vampires and vaqueros face off on the Texas-Mexico border in this supernatural western from the author of The Hacienda.

As the daughter of a rancher in 1840s Mexico, Nena knows a thing or two about monsters—her home has long been threatened by tensions with Anglo settlers from the north. But something more sinister lurks near the ranch at night, something that drains men of their blood and leaves them for dead.

Something that once attacked Nena nine years ago.

Believing Nena dead, NĂ©stor has been on the run from his grief ever since, moving from ranch to ranch working as a vaquero. But no amount of drink can dispel the night terrors of sharp teeth; no woman can erase his childhood sweetheart from his mind.

When the United States attacks Mexico in 1846, the two are brought abruptly together on the road to war: Nena as a curandera, a healer striving to prove her worth to her father so that he does not marry her off to a stranger, and Néstor as a member of the auxiliary cavalry of ranchers and vaqueros. But the shock of their reunion—and Nena’s rage at Néstor for seemingly abandoning her long ago—is quickly overshadowed by the appearance of a nightmare made flesh.

And unless Nena and Néstor work through their past and face the future together, neither will survive to see the dawn.]]> 371 Isabel Cañas 0593436725 Ashley 0 currently-reading 3.87 2023 Vampires of El Norte
author: Isabel Cañas
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/04
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Hero of Ages (The Mistborn Saga, #3)]]> 60784453 Now with over 10 million copies sold, The Mistborn Series has the thrills of a heist story, the twistiness of political intrigue, and the epic scale of a landmark fantasy saga.

Who is the Hero of Ages?

To end the Final Empire and restore freedom, Vin killed the Lord Ruler. But as a result, the Deepness--the lethal form of the ubiquitous mists--is back, along with increasingly heavy ashfalls and ever more powerful earthquakes. Humanity appears to be doomed.

Having escaped death at the climax of The Well of Ascension only by becoming a Mistborn himself, Emperor Elend Venture hopes to find clues left behind by the Lord Ruler that will allow him to save the world. Vin is consumed with guilt at having been tricked into releasing the mystic force known as Ruin from the Well. Ruin wants to end the world, and its near omniscience and ability to warp reality make stopping it seem impossible. She can't even discuss it with Elend lest Ruin learn their plans!

Other Tor books by Brandon Sanderson

The Cosmere

The Stormlight Archive
The Way of Kings
Words of Radiance
Edgedancer (Novella)
Oathbringer
Dawnshard (Novella)
Rhythm of War

The Mistborn trilogy
Mistborn: The Final Empire
The Well of Ascension
The Hero of Ages

Mistborn: The Wax and Wayne series
Alloy of Law
Shadows of Self
Bands of Mourning
The Lost Metal

Collection
Arcanum Unbounded

Other Cosmere novels
Elantris
Warbreaker

The Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians series
Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians
The Scrivener's Bones
The Knights of Crystallia
The Shattered Lens
The Dark Talent
Bastille vs. the Evil Librarians

The Rithmatist series
 The Rithmatist

Other books by Brandon Sanderson

The Reckoners
Steelheart
Firefight
Calamity]]> 608 Brandon Sanderson 1250868319 Ashley 5 4.73 2008 The Hero of Ages (The Mistborn Saga, #3)
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.73
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2025/05/04
shelves: not-reviewed-2025, religion, fantasy, violent-and-epic, cosmere, political-plots-and-maneuverings, war
review:

]]> The Late-Night Witches 221754287 An enchantingly warm and funny novel about family, love lost and found, discovering who you are, and how difficult it is to slay a vampire from the beloved national bestselling author of the TikTok sensation In the Company of Witches.

Cassie Beckett’s life is anything but magical. With a wild younger sister, three unruly kids, and an absent husband, she’s really not looking forward to the witching month of October. At least the gorgeous, foggy Prince Edward Island is always quiet.

That is, until the vampires arrive.

As the creatures sink their teeth into Cassie’s tenuous grip on normalcy, she’s forced to come face-to-face with long–disregarded family secrets. The legacy gifts her with power, but also a lofty rid the island of vampires, or let them win. (Both options suck, in more ways than one.)

Armed with her family, newfound friends, and a baby in a spectacularly garlicky onesie, Cassie must learn what it is to be a witch and how to fight for what she loves before time runs out. Because on Halloween night, the stakes will be higher than ever before...and it’s up to Cassie to finish what the witches that came generations before her started.]]> 400 Auralee Wallace 0593818555 Ashley 0 to-read 3.25 The Late-Night Witches
author: Auralee Wallace
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.25
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Awakened 217182468 A coven of trans witches battles an evil AI in the magical coming-of-middle-age romp about love, loss, drag shows, and late capitalism.Ěýâ€�

On a morning much like any other, 30-something queer Brooklynite Wilder makes the miraculous discovery: suddenly, as if by magic, they can understand every language in the world. Dazed and disconnected, Wilder is found and taken in by a small coven of trans witches who have all become Awakened with mystical powers of their own. Quibble, a handsome portal traveler, Artemis, the group’s caretaker and seer, and Mary Margaret, a smart-ass teen with telekinetic powers all work to make the cagey and suspicious Wilder feel comfortable, both within their group and with the knowledge that magic is, in fact, real. Ěý

Just as Wilder is finding their footing, a malicious AI threatens to dismantle the delicate balance of the coven and the world as they know it. Newly assembled and tenuously bound, the group scrambles to stay united as they parse the difference between difficult and dangerous, asking themselves continuously: is any consciousness—be it artificial, material, or magical—too dangerous to exist?

Awakened is an exhilarating, hilarious and thought-provoking reflection on the ways that we are responsible for creating our own realities , a story of finding community, and a meditation on what it means to have a body (and if it might be far worse never to have had one at all).]]> 384 A.E. Osworth 1538757699 Ashley 0 to-read 3.67 2025 Awakened
author: A.E. Osworth
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/04
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Stiletto (The Checquy Files, #2)]]> 25695756
When secret organizations are forced to merge after years of enmity and bloodshed, only one person has the fearsome powers—and the bureaucratic finesse—to get the job done. Facing her greatest challenge yet, Rook Myfanwy Thomas must broker a deal between two bitter adversaries:

The Checquy—the centuries-old covert British organization that protects society from supernatural
threats, and�
The Grafters—a centuries-old supernatural threat.

But as bizarre attacks sweep London, threatening to sabotage negotiations, old hatreds flare. Surrounded by spies, only the Rook and two women, who absolutely hate each other, can seek out the culprits before they trigger a devastating otherworldly war.

STILETTO is a novel of preternatural diplomacy, paranoia, and snide remarks.]]> 583 Daniel O'Malley 0316228044 Ashley 4 July 2016: It blows my mind that this dude can write female friendship so well.

[4.5 stars this time]

July 2016: I liked this, even though it is pretty different from The Rook. Maybe because it's different? Nobody likes a re-tread. Spoilers for The Rook to follow, though, so don't read if you're planning on starting this series.

Myfanwy, the main character from The Rook, is here, and she even gets some POV, but the majority of narrative real estate belongs to Felicity and Odette. Felicity Clements is a Pawn from the Checquy, and Odette Lelefield is a Grafter. We see the story from both their perspectives as the talks begin to merge The Checquy with the Grafters (or the Broederschap, as they prefer to be called). Merging the two organizations is a fraught process, as both sides have been raised from birth to not only hate the other, but to consider them inhuman monsters or demons. Changing those attitudes is a tall order, to put it mildly. Meanwhile, mysterious and frightening antagonists have infiltrated London and are causing violent deaths and mass injuries, not just to the Grafters and the Checquy, but also to civilians, threatening to bring the two organizations to what would be a devastating war.

I liked seeing the narrative from both sides, especially seeing the Checquy from the perspective of the Grafters. Odette and Felicity were also pretty interesting characters who I ended up caring for, but who I still don't like as much as I like Myfanwy. (It's really hard not to like Myfanwy after spending a book with her relearning her life.)

The book was about one hundred pages too long, though. O'Malley needed to kill some darlings. [spoilers removed]

I hope O'Malley writes at least one more book in this world. I want to see how things look post merger, and how things play out with Myfanway and Odette and Felicity.]]> 4.10 2016 Stiletto (The Checquy Files, #2)
author: Daniel O'Malley
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2016/07/30
date added: 2025/05/03
shelves: anglophilia, bloody-and-gross, fantasy, espionage, i-vant-to-drink-your-blood, murder-most-foul, paranormal-and-supernatural, speculative, urban-fantasy, political-plots-and-maneuverings, creature-feature, audiobooks, not-reviewed-2025
review:
July 2016: It blows my mind that this dude can write female friendship so well.

[4.5 stars this time]

July 2016: I liked this, even though it is pretty different from The Rook. Maybe because it's different? Nobody likes a re-tread. Spoilers for The Rook to follow, though, so don't read if you're planning on starting this series.

Myfanwy, the main character from The Rook, is here, and she even gets some POV, but the majority of narrative real estate belongs to Felicity and Odette. Felicity Clements is a Pawn from the Checquy, and Odette Lelefield is a Grafter. We see the story from both their perspectives as the talks begin to merge The Checquy with the Grafters (or the Broederschap, as they prefer to be called). Merging the two organizations is a fraught process, as both sides have been raised from birth to not only hate the other, but to consider them inhuman monsters or demons. Changing those attitudes is a tall order, to put it mildly. Meanwhile, mysterious and frightening antagonists have infiltrated London and are causing violent deaths and mass injuries, not just to the Grafters and the Checquy, but also to civilians, threatening to bring the two organizations to what would be a devastating war.

I liked seeing the narrative from both sides, especially seeing the Checquy from the perspective of the Grafters. Odette and Felicity were also pretty interesting characters who I ended up caring for, but who I still don't like as much as I like Myfanwy. (It's really hard not to like Myfanwy after spending a book with her relearning her life.)

The book was about one hundred pages too long, though. O'Malley needed to kill some darlings. [spoilers removed]

I hope O'Malley writes at least one more book in this world. I want to see how things look post merger, and how things play out with Myfanway and Odette and Felicity.
]]> <![CDATA[The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy (Dearly Beloathed, #1)]]> 219848373 A slow burn, enemies-to-lovers romance featuring a scholarly healer and a gentleman assassin, set in an exquisite fantasy world.

Osric Mordaunt, member of the Fyren Order of assassins, finds himself in dire need of an expert healer. As fate would have it, that very healer is Aurienne Fairhrim, a member of his enemy Order, the Haelen.

Aurienne is desperate for funding to heal the sick, so desperate that when Osric breaks into her office to offer her a bribe for her healing services, she must accept. Even if she loathes him.

A forced collaboration ensues: the brilliant Woman in STEM is coerced into working with the PhD in Murders - much to Aurienne's disgust. Despite being enemies thrown together, as Osric and Aurienne work together to solve not only his illness, but the mysterious reoccurrence of a deadly Pox, they find themselves ardently denying their attraction which seems to only fuel the heat between them.

Romance tropes include:
Enemies to lovers
High interaction slow burn
Hypercompetent idiots
He falls first and harder
Evisceration as a love language]]> 384 Brigitte Knightley 0593819454 Ashley 0 lol got an ARC 4.34 2025 The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy (Dearly Beloathed, #1)
author: Brigitte Knightley
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/03
shelves: arcs-and-giveaways, illumicrate-and-fairyloot, currently-reading, not-reviewed-2025
review:
lol got an ARC
]]> You Weren't Meant to Be Human 149072897
Festering masses of worms and flies have taken root in dark corners across Appalachia. In exchange for unwavering loyalty and fresh corpses, these hives offer a few struggling humans salvation. A fresh start. It’s an offer that none refuse.

Crane is grateful. Among his hive’s followers, Crane has found a chance to transition, to never speak again, to live a life that won’t destroy him. He even met Levi: a handsome ex-Marine and brutal killer who treats him like a real man, mostly. But when Levi gets Crane pregnant—and the hive demands the child’s birth, no matter the cost—Crane’s desperation to make it stop will drive the community that saved him into a devastating spiral that can only end in blood.

You Weren’t Meant to Be Human is a deeply personal horror; a visceral statement about the lives of marginalized people in a hostile world, echoing the works of Stephen Graham Jones and Eric LaRocca.]]> Andrew Joseph White Ashley 0 4.72 2025 You Weren't Meant to Be Human
author: Andrew Joseph White
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.72
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: to-read, illumicrate-and-fairyloot
review:

]]> We Could Be Rats: A Novel 224004895 A moving story about two very different sisters, and a love letter to childhood, growing up, and the power of imagination—from the bestselling author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead and Interesting Facts About Space.

Sigrid hates working at the Dollar Pal but having always resisted the idea of growing up into the trappings of adulthood, she did not graduate high school, preferring to roam the streets of her small town with her best friend Greta, the only person in the world who ever understood her. Her older sister Margit is baffled and frustrated by Sigrid’s inability to conform to the expectations of polite society.

But Sigrid’s detachment veils a deeper turmoil and sensitivity. She’s haunted by the pains of her past—from pretending her parents were swamp monsters when they shook the floorboards with their violent arguments to grappling with losing Greta’s friendship to the opioid epidemic ravaging their town. As Margit sets out to understand Sigrid and the secrets she has hidden, both sisters, in their own time and way, discover that reigniting their shared childhood imagination is the only way forward.

What unfolds is an unforgettable story of two sisters finding their way back to each other, and a celebration of that transcendent, unshakable bond.]]> 256 Emily R. Austin 1668058154 Ashley 0 3.33 2025 We Could Be Rats: A Novel
author: Emily R. Austin
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.33
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: to-read, own-but-haven-t-read, book-of-the-month
review:

]]> Blind Date with a Werewolf 224065202 When the deadly werewolf Asil is gifted five blind dates by some anonymous “friends,� his reclusive life will never be the same, in this enthralling novel in stories from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Mercy Thompson series.


Includes two all-new stories as well as three previously published stories.

Dear

We are worried about you. A werewolf alone is a sad thing, especially at Christmastime. So we have a challenge for five dates in three weeks. We have taken the work out of it and connected you with five people from online dating sites. You should also know that we have informed the whole pack and instigated a betting pool. Have fun!

Sincerely,
Your Concerned Friends
]]> Patricia Briggs 0593952626 Ashley 0 to-read-romance 5.00 2025 Blind Date with a Werewolf
author: Patricia Briggs
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: to-read-romance
review:

]]> Slayers of Old 223855177 Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Golden Girls in this humorous contemporary standalone fantasy about a group of former Chosen Ones coming out of retirement to save the world one last time

Three former Chosen Ones have joined together to spend their retirement in peace and quiet, running Second Life Books and Gifts in Salem, MA. A calm, peaceful, tourist-filled oasis, where they never have to worry about saving the world. Until some of the locals start summoning ancient creatures best left where they were . . . and they discover that their bookstore basement just may be the portal to the underworld. These ex-heroes may have thought they were done . . . but if they want to finish their retirement in peace, they’ll have to join together to save the world one last time.

Why leave saving the world to the young?ĚýCozy mysteryĚýreaders looking for an extra dash of magic will eat this story fun, funny, and heartwarming, it's a novel about community, second chances, and the healing power of scones.]]> Jim C. Hines 0756419697 Ashley 0 to-read 4.25 2025 Slayers of Old
author: Jim C. Hines
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Keeper of Magical Things 223854454 An almost-mage discovers friendship—and maybe something more—in the unlikeliest of places in this delightfully charming novel from the USA Today bestselling author of The Teller of Small Fortunes.

Certainty Bulrush wants to be useful—to the Guild of Mages that took her in as a novice, to the little brother who depends on her, and to anyone else she can help. Unfortunately, her tepid magic hasn’t proven much use to anyone. When Certainty has the chance to earn her magehood via a seemingly straightforward assignment, she takes it. Nevermind that she’ll have to work with Mage Aurelia, the brilliant, unfairly attractive overachiever who’s managed to alienate everyone around her.

The two must transport minorly magical artifacts somewhere safe: Shpelling, the dullest, least magical village around. There, they must fix up an old warehouse, separate the gossipy teapots from the kind-of-flaming swords, corral an unruly little catdragon who has tagged along, and above all: avoid complications. The Guild’s uneasy relationship with citizens is at a tipping point, and the last thing needed is a magical incident.

Still, as mage and novice come to know Shpelling’s residents—and each other—they realize the Guild’s hoarded magic might do more good being shared. Friendships blossom while Certainty and Aurelia work to make Shpelling the haven it could be. But magic is fickle—add attraction and it might spell trouble.]]> 368 Julie Leong 0593815947 Ashley 0 to-read 5.00 2025 The Keeper of Magical Things
author: Julie Leong
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Looking for Group 222476129 From the USA Today bestselling author of BOYFRIEND MATERIAL and HUSBAND MATERIAL comes a charming New Adult LGBTQIA+ romance perfect for fans of Heartstopper.

Drew's always prided himself on being the "right" kind of nerd. He plays sports, has a solid group of friends, and never had any problem talking to girls. Sure, he spends time playing Heroes of Legend, the biggest MMORPG on the planet, but it's just a fun hobby, not his identity. Falling for someone in a video game? Not his style.

Until it is.

Enter witty, kind, razor-sharp, and a healer who's saved Drew's virtual skin more times than he can count. She's also, turns out, a boy in real life. The realization knocks Drew off-balance, but it doesn't take long for him to figure out the simple truth—he likes Kit, no matter Kit's gender.

The real challenge? Kit's reality is leagues apart from Drew's. Being online is his life, and while he's willing to come out of his shell an inch at a time, there's such a wide gulf between them that Drew's left can love truly bridge the distance…or are they fated to remain in separate worlds forever?]]> 384 Alexis Hall 1728250897 Ashley 0 to-read-romance 3.69 2016 Looking for Group
author: Alexis Hall
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/01
shelves: to-read-romance
review:

]]> Psychopomp 215959310
But when her secret hallucinations predict a tunnel explosion that kills her entire crew, she is offered a surprise second chance to complete her Pomp training, which she accepts in hopes of paying off the penal debt that is keeping her from going home. But the more she trains, the more her paranoia takes hold. What if the tunnel collapse wasn’t an accident? And what if everyone—her new crew, the station staff, even her lover—are all part of the deadly conspiracy?]]> Maria Dong 1958598526 Ashley 4 arcs-and-giveaways full review soon bc ARC 3.46 2025 Psychopomp
author: Maria Dong
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.46
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/03
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: arcs-and-giveaways
review:
full review soon bc ARC
]]> When the Wolf Comes Home 211004893
As they attempt to evade the boy's increasingly desperate father, horrifying incidents of butchery follow them. At first, Jess thinks she understands what they're up against, but she's about to learn there's more to these surreal and grisly events than she could've ever imagined.

And that when the wolf finally comes home, none will be spared.]]> 304 Nat Cassidy 125035434X Ashley 5
full review later bc ARC]]> 4.38 2025 When the Wolf Comes Home
author: Nat Cassidy
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/30
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: audiobooks, arcs-and-giveaways, bloody-and-gross, creature-feature, fantasy, fuel-for-existential-crises, grief-trauma-and-recovery, horror, speculative, thrillers-suspense
review:
this man writes books for me, can he even miss

full review later bc ARC
]]> <![CDATA[The Rose Field (The Book of Dust #3)]]> 228587642 The Secret Commonwealth left off, this story finds Lyra alone in a city haunted by daemons, searching for her beloved Pan. Malcolm Polstead isn't far behind, searching for Lyra. And they are both racing toward the desert of Karamakan, following the trail of roses said to hold the secret of Dust.

Their allies and enemies are converging on the mysterious red building at the heart of the desert: Marcel Delamare and the military might of the Magisterium; the radical Men from the Mountains; scientists, scholars and spies; troops of witches and other people of the air. And awaiting them all is a previously unseen and chilling new threat that will change everything.

The intertwining odysseys of Malcolm and Lyra, their journeys both internal and external, will test their limits and challenge even their most dearly held beliefs.

As ever, Philip Pullman is using the language of fantasy to illuminate our world and to explore the deepest questions of what it means to be alive and awake to all the splendors and horrors around us. The extraordinary novels of The Book of Dust speak powerfully to today's readers and will take their place alongside the forever-favorites of His Dark Materials.]]> 672 Philip Pullman 0593306635 Ashley 0 to-read 0.0 2025 The Rose Field (The Book of Dust #3)
author: Philip Pullman
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Untitled (Shadow of the Leviathan, #3)]]> 102615935 Robert Jackson Bennett Ashley 0 to-read 4.80 Untitled (Shadow of the Leviathan, #3)
author: Robert Jackson Bennett
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.80
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Drop of Corruption (Shadow of the Leviathan, #2)]]> 213618143 The brilliant detective Ana Dolabra may have finally met her match in the gripping sequel to The Tainted Cup—from the bestselling author of The Founders Trilogy.

In the canton of Yarrowdale, at the very edge of the Empire’s reach, an impossible crime has occurred. A Treasury officer has disappeared into thin air—abducted from his quarters while the door and windows remained locked from the inside, in a building whose entrances and exits are all under constant guard.

To solve the case, the Empire calls on its most brilliant and mercurial investigator, the great Ana Dolabra. At her side, as always, is her bemused assistant Dinios Kol.

Before long, Ana’s discovered that they’re not investigating a disappearance, but a murder—and that the killing was just the first chess move by an adversary who seems to be able to pass through warded doors like a ghost, and who can predict every one of Ana’s moves as though they can see the future.

Worse still, the killer seems to be targeting the high-security compound known as the Shroud. Here, the Empire's greatest minds dissect fallen Titans to harness the volatile magic found in their blood. Should it fall, the destruction would be terrible indeed—and the Empire itself will grind to a halt, robbed of the magic that allows its wheels of power to turn.

Din has seen Ana solve impossible cases before. But this time, with the stakes higher than ever and Ana seemingly a step behind their adversary at every turn, he fears that his superior has finally met an enemy she can’t defeat.]]> 465 Robert Jackson Bennett 0593723821 Ashley 5 "Because all the characters in this story—like all of humanity, apparently—have a little blank spot in their heads that says, 'Kings. What a good idea.' The idea is powerful, and seductive, and should not be underestimated. To be a civilization of any worth, however, means acknowledging the idea—and then condemning it as a laughably, madly stupid."
-from the Author's Note, emphasis mine

The mystery elements and worldbuilding of this series continue to be enthralling and fascinating, although I will say, while I didn't have details figured out, I figured out the big whodunnit around the 60% mark. That in no way hindered my enjoyment. Also I was very proud of self.

But what I really liked about this book is the way that it continues to build the moral tension of the story here. We are straightforwardly on Ana and Din's side in book one as they perpetrate justice by solving unsolvable mysteries in the empire they live in (which, granted, is a very fucking weird empire—the emperor isn't even awake most of the time, let alone emperoring). But in this book, while we are still on Ana and Din's side, things are getting more thematically complicated, because belief in the story of a King (or an emperor/empire) is at the heart of nearly every single character's actions. And referencing the Author's Note at the end (which I quoted above), it's pretty clear we are not meant to think that Ana and Din are 100% reliable in this matter. Their eyes are clouded, too; not even genius can overcome the seductive call of turning oneself over to the fantasy of a King. I can't help but think that is going to be very thematically important in the third and final book.

Anyway, the blending of fantasy, mystery, and character elements in this series continues to be absolutely chef's kiss for me, and I can't wait to see where RJB goes from here, and where Ana and Din (and their Empire) end up.

r/Fantasy BINGO 2025: Biopunk (Hard Mode: no electricity)]]> 4.54 2025 A Drop of Corruption (Shadow of the Leviathan, #2)
author: Robert Jackson Bennett
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.54
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/28
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: r-fantasy-bingo, anti-colonial-and-anti-imperialist, bloody-and-gross, can-you-hear-the-people-sing, class-gender-race, fantasy, lgbtqia, murder-most-foul, neurodivergent-protagonist, political-plots-and-maneuverings, retellings-and-reimaginings, sherlockian, speculative, urban-fantasy
review:
"Because all the characters in this story—like all of humanity, apparently—have a little blank spot in their heads that says, 'Kings. What a good idea.' The idea is powerful, and seductive, and should not be underestimated. To be a civilization of any worth, however, means acknowledging the idea—and then condemning it as a laughably, madly stupid."
-from the Author's Note, emphasis mine


The mystery elements and worldbuilding of this series continue to be enthralling and fascinating, although I will say, while I didn't have details figured out, I figured out the big whodunnit around the 60% mark. That in no way hindered my enjoyment. Also I was very proud of self.

But what I really liked about this book is the way that it continues to build the moral tension of the story here. We are straightforwardly on Ana and Din's side in book one as they perpetrate justice by solving unsolvable mysteries in the empire they live in (which, granted, is a very fucking weird empire—the emperor isn't even awake most of the time, let alone emperoring). But in this book, while we are still on Ana and Din's side, things are getting more thematically complicated, because belief in the story of a King (or an emperor/empire) is at the heart of nearly every single character's actions. And referencing the Author's Note at the end (which I quoted above), it's pretty clear we are not meant to think that Ana and Din are 100% reliable in this matter. Their eyes are clouded, too; not even genius can overcome the seductive call of turning oneself over to the fantasy of a King. I can't help but think that is going to be very thematically important in the third and final book.

Anyway, the blending of fantasy, mystery, and character elements in this series continues to be absolutely chef's kiss for me, and I can't wait to see where RJB goes from here, and where Ana and Din (and their Empire) end up.

r/Fantasy BINGO 2025: Biopunk (Hard Mode: no electricity)
]]> <![CDATA[The Expert of Subtle Revisions]]> 214986234 A thrilling historical mystery about a young woman searching for her father, a young man trying to solve an impossible problem, and the quest for the power to transcend time.

In Half Moon Bay, California, 2016, a young woman waits for her father's sailboat to arrive at port. They have agreed to meet on this day and time. Yet he never shows.

He has told her this event might come. And if it did, she was ready. Go to the library in Berkeley, find a certain book, follow the instructions. But what if the instructions lead to more questions than answers?

In 1933, a young man arrives in Vienna to begin a new post as a professor of mathematics at the university. There he finds himself part of the Engelhardt Circle, a group of intellectuals that have recently been targeted by a growing, anti-academic mob. The circle includes the preeminent minds of their time and a cast of characters desperate to get invited into their midst, many of whom will stop at nothing to get there. As fascism rises, and polarization increases, moderate voices are drowned out.

There are whispers of a machine, a music box, which can transport someone through time. But no one can confirm if it's a rumor or true. And the only people who know firsthand are not talking.

Between the young woman, who lives off the grid and spends her free time editing Wikipedia entries and picking fights with people online, and the circle of intellectuals debating space and time in Vienna on the eve of World War II, lie years of history that might easily be erased—unless old secrets are unraveled. Kirsten Menger-Anderson's beautiful meditation on time, love, and obsession shows us how we never truly know what happened in the past, and often how the past eerily mirrors the future.]]> 256 Kirsten Menger-Anderson 0593798309 Ashley 0 i-don-t-know 4.01 2025 The Expert of Subtle Revisions
author: Kirsten Menger-Anderson
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: i-don-t-know
review:

]]> The Names 217245618
In the wake of a catastrophic storm, Cora sets off with her nine-year-old daughter, Maia, to register her son's birth. Her husband, Gordon, a local doctor, respected in the community but a terrifying and controlling presence at home, intends for her to name the infant after him. But when the registrar asks what she'd like to call the child, Cora hesitates...

Spanning thirty-five years, what follows are three alternate and alternating versions of Cora's and her young son's lives, shaped by her choice of name. In richly layered prose, The Names explores the painful ripple effects of domestic abuse, the messy ties of family, and the possibilities of autonomy and healing.

With exceptional sensitivity and depth, Knapp draws us into the story of one family, told through a prism of what-ifs, causing us to consider the "one . . . precious life" we are given. The book’s brilliantly imaginative structure, propulsive storytelling, and emotional, gut-wrenching power are certain to make The Names a modern classic.]]> 336 Florence Knapp 0593833902 Ashley 0 4.26 2025 The Names
author: Florence Knapp
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: to-read, own-but-haven-t-read, book-of-the-month
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Story of ABBA: Melancholy Undercover]]> 217387861 Through exclusive interviews and over a decade of deep research, renowned music journalist Jan Gradvall explores the secrets to ABBA’s success.

There has never been a group like ABBA. More than half a century after their songs were recorded, ABBA still make people the world over dance and sing their hearts out. In 2013, when the band had not been interviewed for over thirty years, Jan Gradvall was granted unique access to them for the next decade and the result is The Story of ABBA: Melancholy Undercover. Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad all share their personal stories, their thoughts and their opinions about ABBA’s music more openly than ever before. Weaving in and out of their story, well-known international music critic Jan Gradvall reveals the context in which their unique sound developed and shows how the story of ABBA is also the story of Sweden and the globalization of pop culture.

From their earliest hits in Sweden like “People Need Love� and “Ring, Ring� to their chart-topping international hits like “Dancing Queen,� “Gimme, Gimme, Gimme� and “Mama Mia!� to ABBA Voyage � their first album in forty years � and the two-million-ticket-selling eponymous concert-experience in London, it is undeniable that, in the history of pop culture and music, there has never been a group like ABBA. With remarkable intimacy, Gradvall’s sensational book brings readers closer than ever to one of the world’s most notoriously private groups.]]> 336 Jan Gradvall 1250379857 Ashley 0 3.46 The Story of ABBA: Melancholy Undercover
author: Jan Gradvall
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.46
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/29
shelves: to-read, audiobooks, arcs-and-giveaways
review:

]]> <![CDATA[What If We Get It Right?: Visions of Climate Futures]]> 144421737 What if we act as if we love the future?

Sometimes the bravest thing we can do while facing an existential crisis is imagine life on the other side. This provocative and joyous book maps an inspiring landscape of possible climate futures.

Through clear-eyed essays and vibrant conversations, infused with data, poetry, and art, Ayana Elizabeth Johnson guides us through solutions and possibilities at the nexus of science, policy, culture, and justice. Visionary farmers and financers, architects and advocates help us conjure a flourishing future, one worth the effort it will take—from all of us, with whatever we have to offer—to create.

If you haven’t yet been able to picture a transformed and replenished world—or see yourself, your loved ones, and your community in it� this book is for you. If you haven’t yet found your role in shaping this new world, or you’re not sure how we can actually get there, this book is for you.

With grace, humor, and humanity, Ayana invites readers to ask and answer this ultimate question, What if we get it right?

On imagination, possibility, and transformation with

Paola Antonelli
Xiye Bastida & Ayisha Siddiqa
Jade Begay
Régine Clément
Abigail Dillen
Brian Donahue
Kelly Sims Gallagher
Rhiana Gunn-Wright
Corley Kenna
Bryan C. Lee Jr. & Kate Orff
Franklin Leonard & Adam McKay
Bill McKibben
Kate Marvel
Samantha Montano
Leah Penniman
Colette Pichon Battle
Kendra Pierre-Louis
Judith D. Schwartz
Jigar Shah
Bren Smith
Oana Stanescu
Mustafa Suleyman]]> 496 Ayana Elizabeth Johnson Ashley 4
[4.5 stars]]]> 4.47 2024 What If We Get It Right?: Visions of Climate Futures
author: Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.47
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/07
date added: 2025/04/29
shelves: audiobooks, read-for-second-book-club, not-quite-five-stars-but-sooo-close, non-fiction, science-and-stuff, class-gender-race, mixed-media
review:
This is an incredibly important read, and one that is not only palatable to someone who usually avoids this topic due to anxiety, but hopeful and affirming. Not giving the full five stars but only because this is more of a collection of podcast episodes than a book with an overarching narrative.

[4.5 stars]
]]> The Buffalo Hunter Hunter 214565614 A chilling historical horror novel set in the American west in 1912 following a Lutheran priest who transcribes the life of a vampire who haunts the fields of the Blackfeet reservation looking for justice.

A diary, written in 1912 by a Lutheran pastor is discovered within a wall. What it unveils is a slow massacre, a chain of events that go back to 217 Blackfeet dead in the snow. Told in transcribed interviews by a Blackfeet named Good Stab, who shares the narrative of his peculiar life over a series of confessional visits. This is an American Indian revenge story written by one of the new masters of horror, Stephen Graham Jones.]]> 448 Stephen Graham Jones 1668075083 Ashley 5
But that ending!

[4.5 stars, rounded up]

Read Harder Challenge 2025: Read a 2025 release by a BIPOC author.

Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: animals (in title)]]> 4.19 2025 The Buffalo Hunter Hunter
author: Stephen Graham Jones
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/25
date added: 2025/04/29
shelves: read-for-second-book-club, audiobooks, read-harder-challenge-2025, a-cat-is-in-this, aboriginal-indigenous-native, americana, anti-colonial-and-anti-imperialist, bloody-and-gross, class-gender-race, creature-feature, epistolary, historical-fiction, horror, i-vant-to-drink-your-blood, not-quite-five-stars-but-sooo-close, speculative
review:
I did this book a disservice by listening to the audio, and not listening very well. (The audiobook was very good, to be clear. I loved all three narrators.) I need to revisit this with my eyeballs and a pen. Reserving the full five stars for then.

But that ending!

[4.5 stars, rounded up]

Read Harder Challenge 2025: Read a 2025 release by a BIPOC author.

Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: animals (in title)
]]> Water Moon 211479192 A woman inherits a pawnshop where you can sell your regrets, and then embarks on a magical journey when a charming young physicist wanders into the shop, in this dreamlike and enchanting fantasy novel.

On a backstreet in Tokyo lies a pawnshop, but not everyone can find it. Most will see a cozy ramen restaurant. And only the chosen ones—those who are lost—will find a place to pawn their life choices and deepest regrets.

Hana Ishikawa wakes on her first morning as the pawnshop’s new owner to find it ransacked, the shop’s most precious acquisition stolen, and her father missing. And then into the shop stumbles a charming stranger, quite unlike its other customers, for he offers help instead of seeking it.

Together, they must journey through a mystical world to find Hana’s father and the stolen choice—by way of rain puddles, rides on paper cranes, the bridge between midnight and morning, and a night market in the clouds.

But as they get closer to the truth, Hana must reveal a secret of her own—and risk making a choice that she will never be able to take back.]]> 384 Samantha Sotto Yambao 0593724992 Ashley 2
[2.5 stars, rounded down]

Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: water words]]> 3.78 2025 Water Moon
author: Samantha Sotto Yambao
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2025
rating: 2
read at: 2025/04/09
date added: 2025/04/29
shelves: illumicrate-and-fairyloot, fantasy, romantical, world-lit, wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey, great-cover-terrible-book, speculative, shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025, miscellaneous-reading-challenges
review:
First I was intrigued, then I couldn't pay attention, then I was very confused. Don't really recommend this one.

[2.5 stars, rounded down]

Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: water words
]]> <![CDATA[Daindreth's Assassin (Daindreth's Assassin #1)]]> 227839155 An assassin falls for the archduke she was sent to kill, but killing him might be the only way to save his soul.

Magic has two immutable rules—every spell requires a sacrifice and every curse can be broken.

Amira Brindonu is a sorceress turned assassin, bound in a curse that forces her to obey her father, even to the point of high treason. When he orders her to kill the future emperor, she fails, but discovers a secret that could bring the whole of the empire to its knees.

The archduke is stricken by a curse that could sentence him and his people to damnation, but Amira could be the only key to breaking it. In a desperate last-ditch effort, the archduke takes Amira prisoner and makes a pact to protect her from her curse if she will help free him of his own.

As time begins to run out, Amira soon learns that there are enemies that blades can’t touch and there are fates worse than death. Caught in a web of sorcery, intrigue, and her growing feelings for the archduke, the assassin must decide just how much she is willing to give to save the only man she’s ever loved.

Every curse can be broken, but can two cursed people save each other? ]]> 345 Elisabeth Wheatley 1393797628 Ashley 0 4.11 2021 Daindreth's Assassin (Daindreth's Assassin #1)
author: Elisabeth Wheatley
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves: to-read, own-but-haven-t-read-audio
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Monstrous Murders (The Alewives of Colmar, #3)]]> 228642645 As winter draws to a close, something suspicious lurks outside the walls of Colmar.

Appel, Gritta, and Efi, the three alewives of Colmar, are enjoying a calm month of brewing and friendship after solving the deeply unsettling riddle of the severed hands. But peace is not destined to last for long. The disappearance of two novice monks in the care of Friar Wikerus spark tales of a supernatural beast on the loose, and when a lowly street sweeper is terrorized one night, fear stalks the town like a monster.

Theories of demons and beasts run wild. Could this foretell another great mortality like the one they only recently survived? Could it be an evil spirit sent to punish the wicked citizens of Colmar? The alewives would rather not involve themselves, but everything changes when a body turns up near their canal. The threat is too close to home to ignore. Once more, Appel, Gritta, and Efi must put their sleuthing skills to good use � while ensuring they don't also fall prey to the supernatural menace.

Book 3 in the award-winning Alewives of Colmar mystery series, The Monstrous Murders is everything readers have come to expect; witty banter, deep friendship, twisty clues, and frothy brews.]]> 284 Elizabeth R. Andersen Ashley 0 to-read 5.00 The Monstrous Murders (The Alewives of Colmar, #3)
author: Elizabeth R. Andersen
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> When the Tides Held the Moon 213075628 In Coney Island, true love rises to the surface. With lush illustrations and buoyant prose, Venessa Vida Kelley forges an unforgettable New York fairytale.

Benigno “Benny� Caldera knows an orphaned Boricua blacksmith in 1910s New York City can’t call himself an artist. But the ironwork tank he creates for famed Coney Island playground, Luna Park, astounds the eccentric sideshow proprietor who commissioned it. He invites Benny to join the show’s eclectic cast and share in their shocking secret: the tank will cage their newest exhibit, a live merman stolen from the salty banks of the East River.

More than a mythic marvel, Benny soon comes to know the merman Río as a kindred spirit, wise and more compassionate than any human he’s ever met. Despite their different worlds, what begins as a friendship of necessity deepens to love, leading Benny’s heart into uncharted waters where he can no longer ignore the agonizing truth of Río’s captivity—and his own.

Releasing Río could mean losing his found family, his new home, and his soulmate forever. Yet Benny’s courageous choice may just reveal a love strong enough to free them both.]]> 464 Venessa Vida Kelley 1645661539 Ashley 0 to-read, aardvark 4.41 2025 When the Tides Held the Moon
author: Venessa Vida Kelley
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves: to-read, aardvark
review:

]]> Greenteeth 214175074
Temperance doesn’t know why her village has suddenly turned against her, only that it has something to do with the malevolent new pastor. Though they have nothing in common, these two must band together on a magical quest to defeat the evil that threatens Jenny’s lake and Temperance’s family � as well as the very soul of Britain.]]> 287 Molly O'Neill 031658424X Ashley 0 to-read, own-but-haven-t-read 3.89 2025 Greenteeth
author: Molly O'Neill
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/26
shelves: to-read, own-but-haven-t-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol]]> 53331570 “At last, the feminist history of booze we’ve been waiting for!� —Amy Stewart, author of The Drunken Botanist

From Los Angeles Times bestselling author Mallory O’Meara comes a lively and engrossing feminist history of women drinking through the ages

Strawberry daiquiris. Skinny martinis. Vodka sodas with lime. These are the cocktails that come in sleek-stemmed glasses, bright colors and fruity flavors—these are the Girly Drinks.

From the earliest days of civilization, alcohol has been at the center of social rituals and cultures worldwide. But when exactly did drinking become a gendered act? And why have bars long been considered “places for men� when, without women, they might not even exist?

With whip-smart insight and boundless curiosity, Girly Drinks unveils an entire untold history of the female distillers, drinkers and brewers who have played a vital role in the creation and consumption of alcohol, from ancient Sumerian beer goddess Ninkasi to iconic 1920s bartender Ada Coleman. Filling a crucial gap in culinary history, O’Meara dismantles the long-standing patriarchal traditions at the heart of these very drinking cultures, in the hope that readers everywhere can look to each celebrated woman in this book—and proudly have what she’s having.]]> 384 Mallory O'Meara 1335282408 Ashley 4 4.17 2021 Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol
author: Mallory O'Meara
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/04/25
shelves: audiobooks, not-reviewed-2025, microhistory, non-fiction, history, feminism-and-sexuality, science-and-stuff
review:
Celebrating reading this by going to a Tiki bar with book club.
]]> <![CDATA[Vanishing Treasures: A Bestiary of Extraordinary Endangered Creatures]]> 208430625 From the award-winning author Katherine Rundell comes a “rare and magical book� (Bill Bryson) reckoning with the vanishing wonders of our natural world.

The world is more astonishing, more miraculous, and more wonderful than our wildestĚýimaginings. In this brilliant and passionately persuasive book, Katherine Rundell takes us on a globe-spanning tour of the world's most awe-inspiring animals currently facing extinction.

Consider the seahorse: couples mate for life and meet each morning for a dance, pirouetting and changing colors before going their separate ways, to dance again the next day. The American wood frog survives winter by allowing itself to freeze solid, its heartbeat slowing until it stops altogether. Come spring, the heart kick-starts itself spontaneously back to life. As for the lemur, it lives in matriarchal troops led by an alpha female (it’s not unusual for female ring-tailed lemurs to slap males across the face when they become aggressive). Whenever they are cold or frightened, they group together in what’s known as a lemur ball, paws and tails intertwined, to form a furry mass as big as a bicycle wheel.

But each of these extraordinary animals is endangered or holds a sub-species that is endangered. This urgent, inspiring book of essays dedicated to 23 unusual and underappreciated creatures is a clarion call insisting that we look at the world around us with new eyes—to see the magic of the animals we live among, their unknown histories and capabilities, and above all how lucky we are to tread the same ground as such vanishing treasures.

Beautifully illustrated, and full of inimitable wit and intellect, Vanishing Treasures is a chance to be awestruck and lovestruck, to reckon with the beauty of the world, its fragility, and its strangeness.]]> 224 Katherine Rundell 0385550820 Ashley 0 to-read 4.17 2024 Vanishing Treasures: A Bestiary of Extraordinary Endangered Creatures
author: Katherine Rundell
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Say You'll Remember Me 217182552 disastrously close. A gorgeous veterinarian giving Greek god vibes—all while cuddling a tiny kitten? Immediately yes. That is until Xavier opens his mouth and proves that even sculpted gods can say the absolute wrong thing. Like, really wrong. Of course, there’s nothing Samantha loves more than proving an asshole wrong�

. . . unless, of course, he can admit he made a mistake. But after one incredible and seemingly endless date—possibly the best in living history—Samantha is forced to admit the truth, that her family is in crisis and any kind of relationship would be impossible. Samantha begs Xavier to forget her. To remember their night together as a perfect moment, as crushing as that may be.

Only no amount of distance or time is nearly enough to forget that something between them. And the only thing better than one single perfect memory is to make a life—and even a love—worth remembering.]]> 368 Abby Jimenez 1538759195 Ashley 4 4.12 2025 Say You'll Remember Me
author: Abby Jimenez
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/24
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: romantical, fiction, a-cat-is-in-this, a-dog-is-in-this
review:
i have lots of thoughts but i do not want to write a review. might anyway. will definitely talk about this in my monthly wrap up on my YT channel.
]]> Silver Elite 217245572 NATIONAL BESTSELLER � In the first book of a sizzling dystopian romance series, psychic gifts are a death sentence and there are rules to survival: Trust no one. Lie to everyone. And whatever you do, don’t fall for your greatest enemy.

“Dani Francis is a rockstar, and I’m so happy she’s bringing dystopia back! . . . I’m absolutely obsessed, and I need the next book in the series injected into my vein right now.”—Ali Hazelwood, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Bride

TRUST NO ONE.

Wren Darlington has spent her whole life in hiding, honing her psychic abilities and aiding the rebel Uprising in small ways. On the Continent, being Modified means certain death—and Wren is one of the most powerful Mods in existence. When one careless mistake places her in the hands of the enemy and she’s forced to join their most elite training program, she’s finally handed the perfect opportunity to strike a devastating blow from inside their ranks.

LIE TO EVERYONE.

But training for Silver Block can be deadly, especially when you’re harboring dangerous secrets and living in close quarters with everyone who wants you dead.

AND WHATEVER YOU DO, DON’T FALL FOR YOUR GREATEST ENEMY.

As the stakes grow ever higher, Wren must prove herself to Silver Block. But that’s easier said than done when your commanding officer is the ruthless and infuriatingly irresistible Cross Redden, who doesn’t miss anything when it comes to her. And as war rages between Mods like her and those who aim to destroy them, Wren must decide just how far she’s willing to go to protect herself . . . and how much of the Continent is worth saving.]]> 528 Dani Francis 059387546X Ashley 0 i-don-t-know 4.10 2025 Silver Elite
author: Dani Francis
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: i-don-t-know
review:

]]> A Box Full of Darkness 231681636 Simone St. James, the New York Times bestselling author of The Sun Down Motel, returns with her scariest, most shocking novel yet in this pulse-pounding story about siblings who return to the house they fled 18 years before, called back by the ghost of their long-missing brother and his haunting request: Come home.

Strange things happen in Fell, New York. A mysterious drowning at the town’s roadside motel. The unexplained death of a young girl whose body is left by the railroad tracks. For the Esmie siblings—Violet, Vail, and Dodie—the final straw was the shocking disappearance of their little brother. It started as a normal game of hide-and-seek. The three closed their eyes and counted to ten while Ben went to hide. But this time, they never found their brother—he was gone and the ongoing search efforts turned up no clues.

As their parents grew increasingly distant, Violet, Vail, and Dodie were each haunted by visions and frightening events that made them leave town and never look back. Violet still sees dead people—spirits who remind her of Sister, the menacing presence that terrorized her for years.

And now after two decades running from their past, it’s time for a homecoming. Because Ben is back, and he’s ready to lead them to the answers they’ve longed for and long feared. If the ghosts of Fell don’t get to them first.

A Box Full of Darkness is another propulsive thriller from the author of The Broken Girls and The Book of Cold Cases, a surprising horror story from a writer who is “particularly gifted at doling out twists� (The New York Times).]]> 352 Simone St. James 0593200411 Ashley 0 to-read 0.0 2026 A Box Full of Darkness
author: Simone St. James
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> My Big Fat Fake Marriage 211003835 Something has to give... Could it be her heart?

Connie has always distrusted nice guys. In her experience, they’re just waiting to reveal some horrible secret. And then she meets big, adorable, Henry Samuel Beckett—editor extraordinaire, lover of bow ties, sweet and so cheery she struggles to believe he’s real.

Until Henry Samuel Beckett—or Beck, as he’s known to most—tells her the secret underneath his sunny surface: He’s been single all his life. But in a moment of panic, he’s told everyone at his publishing house that he’s married. And when Connie, an aspiring writer herself, can’t help defending him, she ends up being the fake wife he doesn’t actually have.

When they head off on a writing retreat, surrounded by people convinced this must be a ruse, both of them can't help but agree. Until they share their first kiss, their first touch, their first time in only one bed. Side by side, every night, as the simmering tension builds…Connie starts to wonder if this might be real after all.]]> 304 Charlotte Stein 1250867975 Ashley 3 Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC. It hasn't affected the contents of my review.

I think this will be the last book I read by this author for some time, so take my review with a grain of salt. I love Charlotte Stein's authorial voice, and this book was no exception. She can also be extremely hilarious, and has made me giggle and laugh out loud in all three books I've now read from her. But a couple things that seem to be regular features of her writing I'm realizing are not things I enjoy, namely a focus on very insecure characters, to the point that it makes them act in ways I find unbelievable, and an occasional overwrought overthinkyness to the main character's inner monologue that I do not vibe with. The positives for me are so good they almost make me want to read more of her books, but honestly, I don't like the back and forth of loving things and really disliking them all in one book. This is most definitely a me problem at this point!

This book otherwise, even though I am personally very much not attracted to the type of mustachioed goober that is the male MC, was borderline delightful. But my own personal hangups are preventing me from giving it a higher rating.

All that said, Imogen Wilde is a delightful narrator, so do the audio if you like romance audiobooks.

Buzzword Reading Challenge: events ("marriage")]]> 3.55 My Big Fat Fake Marriage
author: Charlotte Stein
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.55
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/13
date added: 2025/04/23
shelves: arcs-and-giveaways, audiobooks, miscellaneous-reading-challenges, romantical, sexytimes
review:
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC. It hasn't affected the contents of my review.

I think this will be the last book I read by this author for some time, so take my review with a grain of salt. I love Charlotte Stein's authorial voice, and this book was no exception. She can also be extremely hilarious, and has made me giggle and laugh out loud in all three books I've now read from her. But a couple things that seem to be regular features of her writing I'm realizing are not things I enjoy, namely a focus on very insecure characters, to the point that it makes them act in ways I find unbelievable, and an occasional overwrought overthinkyness to the main character's inner monologue that I do not vibe with. The positives for me are so good they almost make me want to read more of her books, but honestly, I don't like the back and forth of loving things and really disliking them all in one book. This is most definitely a me problem at this point!

This book otherwise, even though I am personally very much not attracted to the type of mustachioed goober that is the male MC, was borderline delightful. But my own personal hangups are preventing me from giving it a higher rating.

All that said, Imogen Wilde is a delightful narrator, so do the audio if you like romance audiobooks.

Buzzword Reading Challenge: events ("marriage")
]]> <![CDATA[The Strength of the Few (Hierarchy, #2)]]> 230272137 This highly anticipated follow-up to The Will of the Many—one of 2023’s most lauded and bestselling fantasy novels—follows Vis as he grapples with a dangerous secret that could change the course of history across alternate dimensions.


OMNE TRIUM PERFECTUM.

The Hierarchy still call me Vis Telimus. Still hail me as Catenicus. They still, as one, believe they know who I am.

But with all that has happened—with what I fear is coming—I am not sure it matters anymore.

I am no longer one. I won the Iudicium, and lost everything—and now, impossibly, the ancient device beyond the Labyrinth has replicated me across three separate worlds. A different version of myself in each of Obiteum, Luceum, and Res. Three different bodies, three different lives. I have to hide; fight; play politics. I have to train; trust; lie. I have to kill; heal; prove myself again, and again, and again.

I am loved, and hated, and entirely alone.

Above all, though, I need to find answers before it’s too late. To understand the nature of what has happened to me, and why.

I need to find a way to stop the coming Cataclysm, because if all I have learned is true, I may be the only one who can.]]> 736 James Islington 1982141239 Ashley 0 to-read, pre-ordered 5.00 2025 The Strength of the Few (Hierarchy, #2)
author: James Islington
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/23
shelves: to-read, pre-ordered
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Off the Spectrum: Why the Science of Autism Has Failed Women and Girls]]> 217182393 A cognitive neuroscientist reveals how autistic women have been overlooked by biased research—and makes a passionate case for their inclusion.

Who comes to mind when you think of an autistic person? It might be yourself, a relative or friend, a public figure, a fictional character, or a stereotyped image. Regardless, for most of us it’s likely to be someone male. Medical and social systems systematically under-diagnose, under-research, and under-serve autistic women—to devastating effect.

In Off the Spectrum cognitive neuroscientist Gina Rippon sheds light on how old ideas about autism leave women behind and how the scientific community must catch up. Generations of researchers, convinced autism was a male problem, simply didn’t bother looking for it in women, creating a snowball effect of biased research.

To correct this “male spotlight� problem Rippon outlines how autism presents differently in girls and women—such as how they tend to camouflage autistic traits, or how their intense interests may take a form considered more socially acceptable. When autism studies don’t recruit female subjects, Rippon argues, it’s not only autistic women who are failed; it’s the entire scientific community. Correcting a major scientific bias, Off the Spectrum provides a much-needed exploration of autism in women to parents, clinicians, and autistic women themselves.]]> 352 Gina Rippon 1541605020 Ashley 0 to-read 3.95 2025 Off the Spectrum: Why the Science of Autism Has Failed Women and Girls
author: Gina Rippon
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Untitled (The Bone Season, #7)]]> 24526797 Samantha Shannon 1408879514 Ashley 0 to-read 3.93 Untitled (The Bone Season, #7)
author: Samantha Shannon
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.93
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Untitled (The Bone Season, #6)]]> 24526790 Samantha Shannon 1408879476 Ashley 0 to-read 4.41 2026 Untitled (The Bone Season, #6)
author: Samantha Shannon
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Mask Falling (The Bone Season, #4)]]> 201559379
The mysterious Domino Program has plans for Paige, but she has ambitions of her own in this new citadel. With Arcturus at her side, she embarks on an adventure that will lead her from the catacombs of Paris to the glittering hallways of Versailles.

As Scion widens its bounds and the free world trembles in its shadow, Paige strives to understand her bond with Arcturus, which grows stronger by the day. But there are those who know the revolution began with them--and could end with them . . .]]> 544 Samantha Shannon 1639734619 Ashley 4
[4.5 stars]]]> 4.50 2021 The Mask Falling (The Bone Season, #4)
author: Samantha Shannon
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/15
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: not-quite-five-stars-but-sooo-close, fantasy, dystopian, sci-fi, anglophilia, anti-colonial-and-anti-imperialist, can-you-hear-the-people-sing, espionage, grief-trauma-and-recovery, paranormal-and-supernatural, political-plots-and-maneuverings, romantical, speculative, urban-fantasy
review:
How much more can one woman endure, I ask you. Urghhh, and this is only book four!

[4.5 stars]
]]> <![CDATA[The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings, #2)]]> 222910 Alternate Cover Edition ISBN 0345296060 (ISBN13: 9780345296061)

One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them

Frodo and his Companions of the Ring have been beset by danger during their quest to prevent the Ruling Ring from falling into the hands of the Dark Lord by destroying it in the Cracks of Doom. They have lost the wizard, Gandalf, in a battle in the Mines of Moria. And Boromir, seduced by the power of the Ring, tried to seize it by force. While Frodo and Sam made their escape, the rest of the company was attacked by Orcs. Now they continue the journey alone down the great River Anduin—alone, that is, save for the mysterious creeping figure that follows wherever they go.]]> 447 J.R.R. Tolkien Ashley 5 “It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end� because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing� this shadow. Even darkness must pass.�]]> 4.57 1954 The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings, #2)
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.57
book published: 1954
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: audiobooks, not-reviewed-2025, fantasy, violent-and-epic, classics, treasure-and-adventure, war, anglophilia, friendship-and-siblinghood, political-plots-and-maneuverings, speculative
review:
“It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end� because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing� this shadow. Even darkness must pass.�
]]> Truly Like Lightning 53317497 From the New York Times–bestselling author David Duchovny, an epic adventure that asks how we make sense of right and wrong in a world of extremes

For the past twenty years, Bronson Powers, former Hollywood stuntman and converted Mormon, has been homesteading deep in the uninhabited desert outside Joshua Tree with his three wives and ten children. Bronson and his wives, Yalulah, Mary, and Jackie, have been raising their family away from the corruption and evil of the modern world. Their insular existence—controversial, difficult, but Edenic—is upended when the ambitious young developer Maya Abbadessa stumbles upon their land. Hoping to make a profit, she crafts a wager with the family that sets in motion a deadly chain of events.

Maya, threatening to report the family to social services, convinces them to enter three of their children into a nearby public school. Bronson and his wives agree that if Maya can prove that the kids do better in town than in their desert oasis, they will sell her a chunk of their priceless plot of land. Suddenly confronted with all the complications of the twenty-first century that they tried to keep out of their lives, the Powerses must reckon with their lifestyle as they try to save it.

Truly Like Lightning, David Duchovny’s fourth novel, is a heartbreaking meditation on family, religion, sex, greed, human nature, and the vanishing environment of an ancient desert.]]> 445 David Duchovny 0374277745 Ashley 0 i-don-t-know 3.80 2021 Truly Like Lightning
author: David Duchovny
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: i-don-t-know
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Inadequate Heir (The Bridge Kingdom, #3)]]> 211081102 Return to the world of The Bridge Kingdom in this sensuous fantasy full of romance and intrigue that is perfect for fans of From Blood and Ash and A Court of Silver Flames.

A soldier raised as heir to an empire, Zarrah is motivated by two truths. The first is that the Veliant family murdered her mother. And the second is that her pursuit of vengeance will put every last one of them in their graves.

The Endless War between Maridrina and Valcotta has raged for generations, leaving thousands of Zarrah’s people dead and countless more orphaned. So when she’s given command of the contested city of Nerastis, Zarrah is prepared to do whatever it takes to destroy the Maridrinian forces who oppose her. And to kill the Veliant prince who leads them.

Yet a chance encounter with an anonymous, and handsome, Maridrinian causes Zarrah to question whether the violence she’s perpetrated is justice or a crime. And as she continues to meet the nameless man each night, she finds common ground - and fiery passion - in his arms.

But when identities are revealed, Zarrah must decide whether to embrace a chance at peace…or march to the drums of war.]]> 673 Danielle L. Jensen 0593975243 Ashley 0 4.06 2022 The Inadequate Heir (The Bridge Kingdom, #3)
author: Danielle L. Jensen
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: currently-reading, not-reviewed-2025
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Traitor Queen (The Bridge Kingdom, #2)]]> 211081092
A queen now in exile as a traitor, Lara has watched Ithicana be conquered by her own father, helpless to do anything to stop the destruction. But when she learns her husband, Aren, has been captured in battle, Lara knows there is only one reason her father is keeping him alive: as bait for his traitorous daughter.

And it is bait she fully intends to take.

Risking her life to the Tempest Seas, Lara returns to Ithicana with a plan not only to free its king, but for liberating the Bridge Kingdom from her father's clutches using his own weapons: the sisters whose lives she spared. But not only is the palace inescapable, there are more players in the game than Lara ever realized, enemies and allies switching sides in the fight for crowns, kingdoms, and bridges. But her greatest adversary of all might be the very man she's trying to free—the husband she betrayed.

With everything she loves in jeopardy, Lara must decide who—and what—she is fighting for: her kingdom, her husband, or herself.]]> 416 Danielle L. Jensen 0593975219 Ashley 4 On to the next! 4.17 2020 The Traitor Queen (The Bridge Kingdom, #2)
author: Danielle L. Jensen
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025, romantical, sexytimes, espionage, war, fantasy, self-published-and-indie, political-plots-and-maneuverings, not-reviewed-2025
review:
On to the next!
]]> <![CDATA[The Sapling Cage (Daughters of the Empty Throne, #1)]]> 205668510 In the gripping first novel in the Daughters of the Empty Throne trilogy, author Margaret Killjoy spins a tale of earth magic, power struggle, and self-invention in an own-voices story of trans witchcraft.

Lorel has always dreamed of becoming a witch: learning magic, fighting monsters, and exploring the world beyond the small town where she and her mother run the stables. Even though a strange plague is killing the trees in the Kingdom of Cekon and witches are being blamed for it, Lorel wants nothing more than to join them. There’s only one problem: all witches are women, and she was born a boy.

When the coven comes to claim her best friend, Lorel disguises herself in a dress and joins in her friend’s place, leaving home and her old self behind. She soon discovers the dark powers threatening the kingdom: a magical blight scars the land, and the power-mad Duchess Helte is crushing everything between her and the crown. In spite of these dangers, Lorel makes friends and begins learning magic from the powerful witches in her coven. However, she fears that her new friends and mentors will find out her secret and kick her out of the coven, or worse.]]> 343 Margaret Killjoy 1558613315 Ashley 0 to-read 4.02 2024 The Sapling Cage (Daughters of the Empty Throne, #1)
author: Margaret Killjoy
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Wolf Worm 231126842
The year is 1899 and Sonia Wilson is a scientific illustrator without work, prospects, or hope. When the reclusive Dr. Halder offers her a position illustrating his vast collection of insects, Sonia jumps at the chance to move to his North Carolina manor house and put her talents to use. But soon enough she finds that there are darker things at work than the Carolina woods. What happened to her predecessor, Halder’s wife? Why are animals acting so strangely, and what is behind the peculiar local whispers about “blood thiefs?�

With the aid of the housekeeper and a local healer, Sonia discovers that Halder’s entomological studies have taken him down a dark road full of parasitic maggots that burrow into human flesh, and that his monstrous experiments may grow to encompass his newest illustrator as well.]]> 288 T. Kingfisher 1250829828 Ashley 0 to-read 5.00 2026 Wolf Worm
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[This Inevitable Ruin (Dungeon Crawler Carl, #7)]]> 216017751 The time has come! Book seven in the bestselling Dungeon Crawler Carl series is here!

They call it Faction Wars.

The ninth floor.

Nine armies, each led by rich and powerful aliens from across the galaxy. Each team has one objective: to capture and hold the castle at the very center of the battlefield. Strategy, alliances, pitched battles, and, of course, betrayal... It all makes for great fun and even greater television.

After all, none of these powerful aliens really die when they’re playing war.

Except this time. This time, winner takes all. Those who fall, stay in the ground.

As the AI continues its rapid decline, Carl and company take advantage of the chaos. For the first time ever, the crawlers are fighting back. They are now one of the nine teams. And this season, there’s a tenth army on the playing field. The NPCs, who are normally used as nothing but cannon fodder, have become fully self-aware and formed a team of their own.

For Donut and Katia, the stakes are even higher. Only one of them will be allowed to leave this level.

If they all want to survive, they’re going to need a little help from a veteran or two.

This is it.
This is what they’ve been fighting toward.
This is war.

This inevitable ruin.]]> 724 Matt Dinniman Ashley 5
[4.5 stars]

r/Fantasy BINGO 2025: Gods and Pantheons (Hard Mode: Multiple Pantheons)]]> 4.63 2024 This Inevitable Ruin (Dungeon Crawler Carl, #7)
author: Matt Dinniman
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.63
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2025/04/18
shelves: audiobooks, not-reviewed-2025, not-quite-five-stars-but-sooo-close, a-cat-is-in-this, a-dog-is-in-this, a-game-is-afoot, addictive, anti-colonial-and-anti-imperialist, bloody-and-gross, can-you-hear-the-people-sing, espionage, fantasy, friendship-and-siblinghood, grief-trauma-and-recovery, here-be-dragons, political-plots-and-maneuverings, r-fantasy-bingo, sci-fi, satire, space-opera, speculative, survivalist, take-me-to-your-leader, treasure-and-adventure, violent-and-epic, virtual-worlds
review:
This was just a little bit too long, and had a little too much battling for my personal tastes, but it made me tear up at the end, and also laugh hysterically, so rounding up to five.

[4.5 stars]

r/Fantasy BINGO 2025: Gods and Pantheons (Hard Mode: Multiple Pantheons)
]]> The Busybody Book Club 218153882 A dysfunctional book club must pull together when one of their members goes missing in this bighearted new mystery from the USA Today bestselling author of Nosy Neighbors.

The five members of the St. Tredock Book Club disagree on everything, from the books they read to the biscuits they eat. But when one of the group suddenly disappears and a dead body is discovered at his house, these bibliophiles must put their differences aside to solve the mystery.

Having recently moved to Cornwall, Nova Davies started the book club to impress her new colleagues at the community center, but so far it’s a disaster. To make matters worse, six thousand pounds is stolen from the community center during one of her meetings, putting both her job and the whole center at risk.

Suspicion for the theft falls on book club member Michael, especially when a dead body is discovered at his house and Michael disappears. The police think he’s simply run away, but the other members have their own theories. Agatha Christie superfan Phyllis is determined to prove he’s a murderer as well as a thief, while secret romance reader Arthur believes Michael’s eloped with his mistress, and teenage sci-fi fan Ash thinks dark forces are at play.

While trying to find Michael and recover the money, each book club member has their own secrets to protect. With inspiration from their favorite fictional sleuths, they won’t rest until they’ve cracked the case and everyone is safe at home where they belong.]]> 336 Freya Sampson 0593550552 Ashley 0 to-read 3.88 2025 The Busybody Book Club
author: Freya Sampson
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> A Theory of Dreaming 231428895
But some dreams are dangerous, especially when they come true. The entire university - and soon the entire nation - is waiting for her to fail. With the Fairy King defeated and Myrddin's legacy exposed, Effy can no longer escape into fantasy. Who is she without her stories?

With Effy under threat, Preston is surprised to discover a rage simmering inside him, ringing in his ears like bells. He begins to dream of a palace under the sea, a world where he is king - visions that start to follow him even in waking.

As the war between Llyr and Argant explodes, Effy and Preston find themselves caught in the crossfire: Effy losing her dreams and Preston losing himself in his.

Are dreams ever truly just dreams?]]> 384 Ava Reid 1529948339 Ashley 0 to-read 4.00 2025 A Theory of Dreaming
author: Ava Reid
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Hana Khan Carries On 55502888 From the author of Ayesha at Last comes a sparkling new rom-com for fans of "You've Got Mail," set in two competing halal restaurants.

Sales are slow at Three Sisters Biryani Poutine, the only halal restaurant in the close-knit Golden Crescent neighborhood. Hana waitresses there part time, but what she really wants is to tell stories on the radio. If she can just outshine her fellow intern at the city radio station, she may have a chance at landing a job. In the meantime, Hana pours her thoughts and dreams into a podcast, where she forms a lively relationship with one of her listeners. But soon she'll need all the support she can get: a new competing restaurant, a more upscale halal place, is about to open in the Golden Crescent, threatening Three Sisters.

When her mysterious aunt and her teenage cousin arrive from India for a surprise visit, they draw Hana into a long-buried family secret. A hate-motivated attack on their neighborhood complicates the situation further, as does Hana's growing attraction for Aydin, the young owner of the rival restaurant--who might not be a complete stranger after all.

As life on the Golden Crescent unravels, Hana must learn to use her voice, draw on the strength of her community and decide what her future should be.]]> 348 Uzma Jalaluddin 0593336364 Ashley 4 3.94 2021 Hana Khan Carries On
author: Uzma Jalaluddin
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/15
date added: 2025/04/16
shelves: shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025, romantical, retellings-and-reimaginings, class-gender-race, mixed-media
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything: A Memoir]]> 217387890 Actor-dancer Alyson Stoner's revelatory and incisive memoir—from family violence and betrayal, to eating disorders and religious trauma—may begin in Hollywood, but its chilling relatability will resonate with anyone navigating identity, privacy, purpose, and mental health in a digital age.

Raised on soundstages and studio lots from the time they were six, shuffling between auditions for Disney Channel, Cheaper by the Dozen, or a Missy Elliott music video, Alyson experienced their defining moments of childhood inside the bizarre fishbowl of Hollywood. From being eight with an 80-hour work week, differentiating fan inquiries from kidnapping plots, and TV execs telling them they’re “not anorexic enough� to stop working and get help, they struggled to find stability and sanity in a chaotic world.

In Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything, Alyson shares their powerful story for the first time, detailing a turbulent home life with addict parents, harrowing accounts from rehab, the messy process of discovering their sexuality in church, rebuilding a life after an early professional peak, and charting a path of self-discovery and advocacy. With striking introspection, Alyson connects the dots across the entertainment industry ecosystem, child development, and media culture, exposing the “toddler to trainwreck pipeline� of child stars and sparking timely conversations about success and society’s enchantment with fame.

Bold, entertaining, warm, and galvanizing all at once, Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything is more than a personal it’s a beacon for industry reform, a roadmap for breaking the bonds of generational trauma, and a testament to the freedom and strength that come from finally trusting your own voice and power.]]> 320 Alyson Stoner 1250353491 Ashley 0 to-read 5.00 Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything: A Memoir
author: Alyson Stoner
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Disney High: The Untold Story of the Rise and Fall of Disney Channel's Tween Empire]]> 203578896 The first unauthorized look at the inner workings―and ultimate breakdown―of the Disney Channel machine

For many kids growing up in the 2000s, there was no cultural touchstone more powerful than Disney Channel, the most-watched cable channel in prime time at its peak. Today it might best be known for introducing the world to talents like Hilary Duff, Raven-Symoné, Zac Efron, Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, the Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato, and Zendaya.

It wasn't always destined for greatness: When Disney Channel launched in 1983, it was a forgotten stepchild within the Walt Disney Company, forever in the shadow of Disney’s more profitable movies and theme parks. But after letting the stars of their Mickey Mouse Club revival―among them Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, and Ryan Gosling―slip through their fingers, Disney Channel reinvented itself as a powerhouse tween network. In the new millennium it churned out billions of dollars in original content and triple-threat stars whose careers were almost entirely controlled by the corporation. Suddenly everyone wanted a piece of the pie―and there were constant clashes between the studio, network, labels, and creatives as Disney Channel became a pressure cooker of perfection for its stars.

From private feuds and on-set disasters, to fanfare that swept the nation and the realities of child stardom, culture journalist Ashley Spencer offers the inside story of the heyday of TV’s House of Mouse, featuring hundreds of exclusive new interviews with former Disney executives, creatives, and celebrities to explore the highs, lows, and everything in between.]]> 336 Ashley Spencer 1250283450 Ashley 4 4.01 2024 Disney High: The Untold Story of the Rise and Fall of Disney Channel's Tween Empire
author: Ashley Spencer
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: audiobooks, nostalgia, television, film, non-fiction, not-reviewed-2025, economics-and-business-and-junk
review:
If you were a Disney Channel kid, you should read this! Very well researched and written, and the audiobook is read by LaLaine. Will absolutely be spending this upcoming weekend binging old DCOMs.
]]> Woodworking 217311813 An unforgettable and heartwarming debut following a trans high school teacher from a small town in South Dakota who befriends the only other trans woman she knows: one of her students.

Erica Skyberg is thirty-five years old, recently divorced—and trans. Not that she's told anyone yet. Mitchell, South Dakota, isn't exactly bursting with other trans women. Instead, she keeps to herself, teaching by day and directing community theater by night. That is, until Abigail Hawkes enters her orbit.

Abigail is seventeen, Mitchell High’s resident political dissident and Only Trans Girl. It’s a role she plays faultlessly, albeit a little reluctantly. She's also annoyed by the idea of spending her senior year secretly guiding her English teacher through her transition. But Abigail remembers the uncertainty—and loneliness—that comes with it. Besides, Erica isn’t the only one struggling to shed the weight of others� expectations.

As their unlikely friendship evolves under the increasing scrutiny of their community, both women—and those closest to them—will come to realize that sometimes there is nothing more radical than letting the world see who you really are.

Detransition Baby meets Fleishman is in Trouble in this remarkable debut novel from an incisive contemporary voice. A story about the awkwardness of growing up and the greatest love story of all, that between us and our friends, Woodworking is a tonic for the moment and a celebration of womanhood in all its multifaceted joy.]]> 351 Emily St. James 163893147X Ashley 5
Read Harder Challenge 2025: Read literary fiction by a BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and/or disabled author.]]> 4.42 2025 Woodworking
author: Emily St. James
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/14
date added: 2025/04/14
shelves: read-harder-challenge-2025, class-gender-race, fiction, friendship-and-siblinghood, lgbtqia, lit-fic
review:
Don't know if I'm up to reviewing this right now, but I absolutely loved this book.

Read Harder Challenge 2025: Read literary fiction by a BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and/or disabled author.
]]> The Possession of Alba Díaz 221502398 When a demonic presence awakens deep in a Mexican silver mine, the young woman it seizes must turn to the one man she shouldn’t trust� from bestselling author Isabel Cañas.

In 1765, plague sweeps through Zacatecas. Alba flees with her wealthy merchant parents and fiancé, Carlos, to his family’s isolated mine for refuge. But safety proves fleeting as other dangers soon bare their teeth: Alba begins suffering from strange hallucinations, sleepwalking, and violent convulsions. She senses something cold lurking beneath her skin. Something angry. Something wrong.

Elías, haunted by a troubled past, came to the New World to make his fortune and escape his family’s legacy of greed. Alba, as his cousin’s betrothed, is none of his business. Which is of course why he can’t help but notice her every time she enters a room or the growing tension between them� and why he notices her deteriorate when the demon’s thirst for blood grows stronger.]]> 384 Isabel Cañas 0593641078 Ashley 0 to-read 4.62 2025 The Possession of Alba Díaz
author: Isabel Cañas
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.62
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Night Watchman 46206688
Thomas Wazhashk is the night watchman at the jewel bearing plant, the first factory located near the Turtle Mountain Reservation in rural North Dakota. He is also a Chippewa Council member who is trying to understand the consequences of a new “emancipation� bill on its way to the floor of the United States Congress. It is 1953 and he and the other council members know the bill isn’t about freedom; Congress is fed up with Indians. The bill is a “termination� that threatens the rights of Native Americans to their land and their very identity. How can the government abandon treaties made in good faith with Native Americans “for as long as the grasses shall grow, and the rivers run�?

Since graduating high school, Pixie Paranteau has insisted that everyone call her Patrice. Unlike most of the girls on the reservation, Patrice, the class valedictorian, has no desire to wear herself down with a husband and kids. She makes jewel bearings at the plant, a job that barely pays her enough to support her mother and brother. Patrice’s shameful alcoholic father returns home sporadically to terrorize his wife and children and bully her for money. But Patrice needs every penny to follow her beloved older sister, Vera, who moved to the big city of Minneapolis. Vera may have disappeared; she hasn’t been in touch in months, and is rumored to have had a baby. Determined to find Vera and her child, Patrice makes a fateful trip to Minnesota that introduces her to unexpected forms of exploitation and violence, and endangers her life.

Thomas and Patrice live in this impoverished reservation community along with young Chippewa boxer Wood Mountain and his mother Juggie Blue, her niece and Patrice’s best friend Valentine, and Stack Barnes, the white high school math teacher and boxing coach who is hopelessly in love with Patrice.

In the Night Watchman, Louise Erdrich creates a fictional world populated with memorable characters who are forced to grapple with the worst and best impulses of human nature. Illuminating the loves and lives, the desires and ambitions of these characters with compassion, wit, and intelligence, The Night Watchman is a majestic work of fiction from this revered cultural treasure.]]> 453 Louise Erdrich 0062671189 Ashley 4 I finished a book!! 4.06 2020 The Night Watchman
author: Louise Erdrich
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/06
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: award-winners, shop-on-your-own-shelves-2025
review:
I finished a book!!
]]> <![CDATA[Murder by Memory (Dorothy Gentleman, #1)]]> 211004175
A mind is a terrible thing to erase...

Welcome to the HMS Fairweather, Her Majesty’s most luxurious interstellar passenger liner! Room and board are included, new bodies are graciously provided upon request, and should you desire a rest between lifetimes, your mind shall be most carefully preserved in glass in the Library, shielded from every danger.

Near the topmost deck of an interstellar generation ship, Dorothy Gentleman wakes up in a body that isn’t hers—just as someone else is found murdered. As one of the ship’s detectives, Dorothy usually delights in unraveling the schemes on board the Fairweather, but when she finds that someone is not only killing bodies but purposefully deleting minds from the Library, she realizes something even more sinister is afoot.

Dorothy suspects her misfortune is partly the fault of her feckless nephew Ruthie who, despite his brilliance as a programmer, leaves chaos in his cheerful wake. Or perhaps the sultry yarn store proprietor—and ex-girlfriend of the body Dorothy is currently inhabiting—knows more than she’s letting on. Whatever it is, Dorothy intends to solve this case. Because someone has done the impossible and found a way to make murder on the Fairweather a very permanent state indeed. A mastermind may be at work—and if so, they’ve had three hundred years to perfect their schemes…]]> 112 Olivia Waite 1250342244 Ashley 4 Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC. It hasn't affected the contents of my review.

Another cozy mystery series I actually like! I love that they are going more mainstream, and becoming less formulaic and more creative as the genre expands. This one is set in space! Our main character is Dorothy Gentleman, ship's detective. She is awoken from a two year "sleep" (characters on this ship have their memories stored in books so when they die they can be reawakened in new bodies). This is a fun alternative to characters being in cryosleep or something similar while their ship journeys a thousand years to a new planet. It's also a great set-up for a murder mystery, where the victims don't always remain dead and can be murdered more than once.

This is a pretty short little book, even for a novella, but it packs a lot in there! Dorothy has to figure out who has destroyed her (and others') memory books, what the dead woman in her room has to do with it all, and makes full use of her new body, who turns out to be very much involved in the events of the plot. What better disguise?

Absolutely will be reading further books in this series, and I actually liked this a lot better than Waite's romance novels! Definitely recommend for mystery fans, sci-fans, and particularly for fans of cozy sci-fi mysteries. This hit the spot for sure.

[4.5 stars]

Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: memory words]]> 3.71 2025 Murder by Memory (Dorothy Gentleman, #1)
author: Olivia Waite
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/10
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves: arcs-and-giveaways, audiobooks, novellas, miscellaneous-reading-challenges, cozy, lgbtqia, murder-most-foul, mysteries, not-quite-five-stars-but-sooo-close, sci-fi, speculative
review:
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC. It hasn't affected the contents of my review.

Another cozy mystery series I actually like! I love that they are going more mainstream, and becoming less formulaic and more creative as the genre expands. This one is set in space! Our main character is Dorothy Gentleman, ship's detective. She is awoken from a two year "sleep" (characters on this ship have their memories stored in books so when they die they can be reawakened in new bodies). This is a fun alternative to characters being in cryosleep or something similar while their ship journeys a thousand years to a new planet. It's also a great set-up for a murder mystery, where the victims don't always remain dead and can be murdered more than once.

This is a pretty short little book, even for a novella, but it packs a lot in there! Dorothy has to figure out who has destroyed her (and others') memory books, what the dead woman in her room has to do with it all, and makes full use of her new body, who turns out to be very much involved in the events of the plot. What better disguise?

Absolutely will be reading further books in this series, and I actually liked this a lot better than Waite's romance novels! Definitely recommend for mystery fans, sci-fans, and particularly for fans of cozy sci-fi mysteries. This hit the spot for sure.

[4.5 stars]

Buzzword Reading Challenge 2025: memory words
]]> How to Fake It in Society 231117094 Casey McQuiston meets Queer Bridgerton in this stunning, artistic romance by genre powerhouse KJ Charles, author of The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting

"KJ Charles is, in my opinion, a titan of her genre.�
TALIA HIBBERT

It is 1821 and Nicolas-Marc, Comte de Valois de La Motte is making a splash in London Society. The son of Jeanne de Valois de La Motte, infamous for stealing a priceless diamond necklace meant for Marie Antoinette, Nico hopes to restore his wronged mother's reputation, if only he can raise the funds. But he must operate with great secrecy, because the Bourbon dynasty murdered his mother, and he fears for his life.

At least, that's what he tells Titus Pilcrow. Titus was a simple shopkeeper, making and selling artists' paints, when he found himself suddenly married to an immensely wealthy woman who wanted to disinherit her nephew on her deathbed. As word spreads of his fortune, Titus finds himself a target of every scammer and beggar in London . . . including one Nicolas-Marc, Comte de Valois de La Motte.

Nico is on his last legs, out of money, and on the run from some terrifying gangsters. When Titus offers Nico a space in his household, it's the perfect chance for him to exploit London's newest golden purse - until he falls in love with the man he needs to cheat. Still, Nico is sure they can have a happy ending together. If he can just find his way out of his own web of lies . . .

"KJ Charles is one of the best romance novelists writing today. Historical romance at its finest."
SARAH MACLEAN]]> K.J. Charles 1035037866 Ashley 0 to-read-romance 5.00 How to Fake It in Society
author: K.J. Charles
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution]]> 223736225 An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States, Lepore offers a sweeping, lyrical, and democratic constitutional history, telling the stories of generations of Americans who have attempted everything from abolishing the Electoral College to guaranteeing environmental rights, hoping to mend America by amending its constitution.]]> 768 Jill Lepore 1631496085 Ashley 0 i-don-t-know 5.00 2025 We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution
author: Jill Lepore
name: Ashley
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: i-don-t-know
review:

]]> Overdue 224035849 Is it time to renew love or start a new chapter?

Ingrid Dahl, a cheerful twenty-nine-year-old librarian in the cozy mountain town of Ridgetop, North Carolina, has been happily dating her college boyfriend, Cory, for eleven years without ever discussing marriage. But when Ingrid’s sister announces her engagement to a woman she’s only been dating for two years, Ingrid and Cory feel pressured to consider their future. Neither has ever been with anybody else, so they make an unconventional decision. They'll take a one-month break to date other people, then they'll reunite and move toward marriage. Ingrid even has someone in mind: her charmingly grumpy coworker, Macon Nowakowski, on whom she’s secretly crushed for years. But plans go awry, and when the month ends, Ingrid and Cory realize they’re not ready to resume their relationship� and Ingrid’s harmless crush on Macon has turned into something much more complicated.

Overdue is a beautiful, slow-burn romance full of lust and longing about new beginnings and finding your way.]]> 416 Stephanie Perkins Ashley 0 to-read-romance 4.10 2025 Overdue
author: Stephanie Perkins
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read-romance
review:

]]> The Killer Question 223233321 Get ready for the sudden-death round...

Mal and Sue Eastwood were once the kindly landlords of a local village pub, The Case is Altered. They ran a weekly pub quiz and were well liked by their customers and colleagues alike, always happy to lend a helping hand. But now The Case stands empty, its windows boarded up. What could have happened to Mal and Sue?

Did The Case close because it was failing? Was it because of the body pulled from the nearby river? Or perhaps it had something to do with the quiz? It had always been a quiet affair, five teams of locals battling it out for a small prize pot. Until one day a mysterious new team of outsiders arrived, and started winning every round...

Only by sifting through the quiz sheets, the WhatsApps, and Mal and Sue's hidden past may the truth be revealed. Someone's not playing fair, so get the drinks in and see if you can get a perfect score.]]> 416 Janice Hallett 1800817193 Ashley 0 to-read 4.25 2025 The Killer Question
author: Janice Hallett
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Librarians 223120401 Murder disrupts the peaceful, predictable daily routine of life for four quirky librarians who must protect their life-altering secrets in the first contemporary mystery from USA Today bestselling author Sherry Thomas.

Sometimes a workplace isn’t just a workplace but a place of safety, understanding, and acceptance. And sometimes murder threatens the sanctity of that beloved refuge....

In the leafy suburbs of Austin, Texas, a small branch library welcomes the public every day of the week. But the patrons who love the helpful, unobtrusive staff and leave rave reviews on Yelp don’t always realize that their librarians are human, too.

Hazel flees halfway across the world for what she hopes will be a new beginning. Jonathan, a six-foot-four former college football player, has never fit in anywhere else. Astrid tries to forget her heartbreak by immersing herself in work, but the man who ghosted her six months ago is back, promising trouble. AndĚýSophie, who has the most to lose, maintains a careful and respectful distance from her coworkers, but soon that won't be enough anymore.

When two patrons turn up dead after the library’s inaugural murder mystery–themed game night, the librarians� quiet routines come crashing down. Something sinister has stirred, something that threatens every single one of them. And the only way the librarians can save the library—and themselves—is to let go of their secrets, trust one another, and band together....

All in a day’s work.]]> 368 Sherry Thomas 0593640454 Ashley 0 to-read 3.75 2025 The Librarians
author: Sherry Thomas
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Shattering Peace (Old Man's War, #7)]]> 222376623 After a decade, acclaimed science fiction master John Scalzi returns to the galaxy of the Old Man's War series with the long awaited seventh book, The Shattering Peace

THE PEACE IS SHATTERING

For a decade, peace has reigned in interstellar space. A tripartate agreement between the Colonial Union, the Earth, and the alien Conclave has kept the forces of war at bay, even when some would have preferred to return to the fighting and struggle of former times. For now, more sensible heads have prevailed � and have even championed unity.

But now, there is a new force that threatens the hard-maintained peace: The Consu, the most advanced intelligent species humans have ever met, are on the cusp of a species-defining civil war. This war is between Consu factions... but nothing the Consu ever do is just about them. The Colonial Union, the Earth and the Conclave have been unwillingly dragged into the conflict, in the most surprising of ways.

Gretchen Trujillo is a mid-level diplomat, working in an unimportant part of the Colonial Union bureaucracy. But when she is called to take part in a secret mission involving representatives from every powerful faction in space, what she finds there has the chance to redefine the destinies of humans and aliens alike... or destroy them forever.]]> 288 John Scalzi 0765389193 Ashley 0 to-read 4.62 2025 The Shattering Peace (Old Man's War, #7)
author: John Scalzi
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.62
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Frozen People 220239095 Cold cases are a lot easier to solve when you can travel back in time to find new evidence—unless, that is, you get stuck in the nineteenth century.

Ali Dawson and her cold case team investigate crimes so old they’re frozen—or so their inside joke goes. Ali’s work seems like a safe desk job, but what her friends—and even her beloved son—don’t know is that her team has a secret: They can travel back in time to look for evidence.

So far Ali has made trips only to the recent past, so she’s surprised when she’s asked to investigate a murder that took place in 1850. The killing has been pinned on an aristocratic patron of the arts and antiquities, a member of a sinister group called "The Collectors." She arrives in the Victorian era during a mini ice age to find another dead woman at her feet and far too many unanswered questions. But when her son is arrested, Ali attempts to return home only to find herself trapped in 1850.]]> 304 Elly Griffiths 0593834372 Ashley 0 to-read 3.90 2025 The Frozen People
author: Elly Griffiths
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Impossible Fortune (Thursday Murder Club, #5)]]> 222292420 Who's got time to think about murder when there's a wedding to plan?

It’s been a quiet year for the Thursday Murder Club. Joyce is busy with table plans and first dances. Elizabeth is grieving. Ron is dealing with family troubles, and Ibrahim is still providing therapy to his favourite criminal.

But when Elizabeth meets a wedding guest who’s in trouble, kidnap and death are hot on their heels once more. A villain wants access to an uncrackable code, and will stop at nothing to get it. Plunged back into action once more, can the gang solve the puzzle and a murder in time?]]> 368 Richard Osman 0593653254 Ashley 0 to-read, pre-ordered 0.0 2025 The Impossible Fortune (Thursday Murder Club, #5)
author: Richard Osman
name: Ashley
average rating: 0.0
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read, pre-ordered
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Abortion: Our Bodies, Their Lies, and the Truths We Use to Win]]> 210246742 A clear and concise guide to the politics of post-Roe America, for readers eager to understand the attacks on our bodies and freedom—and to do something about it

In this, her most urgent book yet, New York Times–bestselling author Jessica Valenti dispels misinformation and cuts through the headline overwhelm to illuminate the full-scale assault conservative lawmakers have launched on women’s freedom—and fundamental human rights. Valenti provides the language to talk about abortion with confidence and the facts to convince.

American voters overwhelmingly support abortion rights and have for decades. In the years since Roe v. Wade was overturned, that support has been growing, as nearly seventy-percent of Americans want abortion to be legal in the first three months of pregnancy, and sixty-three percent want abortion medication to be legal. Abortion is among the key tools conservatives use to roll back decades of advances for women, but here Valenti arms readers with the truth needed to fight back and win, not only at the dinner table but at the polling station and all the way to the Supreme Court.]]> 256 Jessica Valenti 0593800230 Ashley 5 ]]> 4.70 2024 Abortion: Our Bodies, Their Lies, and the Truths We Use to Win
author: Jessica Valenti
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.70
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: feminism-and-sexuality, non-fiction, political-plots-and-maneuverings, read-for-book-club, not-reviewed-2025, audiobooks
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Horneater (The Stormlight Archive, #4.5)]]> 222842956 Brandon Sanderson Ashley 0 to-read 4.30 2026 Horneater (The Stormlight Archive, #4.5)
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2026
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Weight of It All 219349040
He joins a gym.

Reed Henske is a personal trainer who isn’t sure he’ll ever be ready to date again. He’s sick of guys who are only interested in the perfect body image, never seeing him for who he really is.

As Reed tortures Henry with things like diet and exercise, Henry enamours Reed with recipes and laughter. As the friendship lines start to blur, Henry is convinced there’s no way Thor-like Reed could ever be interested in a guy like him.

Reed just has to convince Henry that life isn’t about reaching your ideal bodyweight. It’s about finding your perfect counterweight.]]> 254 N.R. Walker Ashley 3
Said premise: Henry is thirty-five years old, and has just been dumped by his boyfriend of eight years, who left him stating that Henry had become old and fat (even though they are the same age). Henry is heartbroken and devastated, and not just because he's been dumped. Without Graham (who he amusingly refers to as Voldemort for a large portion of the book) in his life, he realizes that he has let his life stagnate, and he has settled for complacency rather than trying for happiness and self-knowledge. It's pretty on the nose. That is really my main complaint. Nothing subtle at all about this book. But honestly, I can forgive that when I get to picture this guy being a total sweetheart:



So Henry goes to the gym and signs up with a personal trainer named Reed, ostensibly to win Graham back (see above Hemsworth gif for visual reference on Reed; the book is set in Australia, so just go ahead and picture him the whole time). And this is a romance, so yes, they fall for each other. But to the book's credit, it's not romance that makes Henry's life better. It's his effort to change, to reach out to people, and to be open and honest with others and with himself.

Henry was an overall endearing and relatable protagonist who could be a bit annoying at first (very insecure, and uses humor and whining about exercise at times to compensate), and Reed was almost *too* perfect. But like I said, totally willing to forgive all of that due to fun premise and heartwarming romance.

This is no mindblowing romance, and the writing isn't that great (like I said, I like a bit more subtlety in my books), but it was exactly what I was in the mood for: a sweet m/m romance with a ton of talk about food, and fun side characters (Henry's best friend, Anika, is a highlight).

[3.5 stars]

Read Harder Challenge 2017: An LGBTQ+ romance novel.]]> 4.36 2016 The Weight of It All
author: N.R. Walker
name: Ashley
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2016
rating: 3
read at: 2017/01/28
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: addictive, lgbtqia, manly-men-and-their-manparts, sexytimes, read-harder-challenge-2017, self-published-and-indie, romantical, world-lit
review:
After I read on Cannonball Read, I immediately downloaded this book. I was just super in the mood for it. The premise, the descriptions of food, smoochies, clichés . . . just the whole thing. And it didn't really disappoint, though the writing style isn't my favorite.

Said premise: Henry is thirty-five years old, and has just been dumped by his boyfriend of eight years, who left him stating that Henry had become old and fat (even though they are the same age). Henry is heartbroken and devastated, and not just because he's been dumped. Without Graham (who he amusingly refers to as Voldemort for a large portion of the book) in his life, he realizes that he has let his life stagnate, and he has settled for complacency rather than trying for happiness and self-knowledge. It's pretty on the nose. That is really my main complaint. Nothing subtle at all about this book. But honestly, I can forgive that when I get to picture this guy being a total sweetheart:



So Henry goes to the gym and signs up with a personal trainer named Reed, ostensibly to win Graham back (see above Hemsworth gif for visual reference on Reed; the book is set in Australia, so just go ahead and picture him the whole time). And this is a romance, so yes, they fall for each other. But to the book's credit, it's not romance that makes Henry's life better. It's his effort to change, to reach out to people, and to be open and honest with others and with himself.

Henry was an overall endearing and relatable protagonist who could be a bit annoying at first (very insecure, and uses humor and whining about exercise at times to compensate), and Reed was almost *too* perfect. But like I said, totally willing to forgive all of that due to fun premise and heartwarming romance.

This is no mindblowing romance, and the writing isn't that great (like I said, I like a bit more subtlety in my books), but it was exactly what I was in the mood for: a sweet m/m romance with a ton of talk about food, and fun side characters (Henry's best friend, Anika, is a highlight).

[3.5 stars]

Read Harder Challenge 2017: An LGBTQ+ romance novel.
]]> <![CDATA[Star Dust (Fly Me to the Moon, #1)]]> 35523816
Anne-Marie Smith wanted normal: a loving husband, two beautiful kids, and a well-kept house. But when she catches her husband cheating, she decides that normal isn’t worth it. Now in a new city with a new job, she’s trying to find her new normal—but she knows it doesn’t include the sexy playboy astronaut next door.

Commander Kit Campbell has a taste for fast: fast cars, fast planes, and even faster women. But no ride he’s ever taken will be as fast as the one he’s taking into orbit. He’s willing to put up with the prying adoration of an entire country if it will get him into space.

But Anne-Marie and Kit’s inconvenient attraction threatens both normal and fast. As the space race heats up, his ambitions and their connection collide and combustion threatens their plans� and their hearts.]]> 313 Emma Barry Ashley 0 3.68 2015 Star Dust (Fly Me to the Moon, #1)
author: Emma Barry
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read-romance, own-but-haven-t-read-kindle
review:

]]> Dragon Blood Omnibus 31626734
There are those who still have dragon blood flowing through their veins, distant descendants of the mighty creatures of old. These rare humans have the power to cast magic, the power to heal, and the power to craft alchemical weapons capable of starting wars� or ending them. But they are feared for those powers, and in recent centuries, they have been hunted nearly to extinction.

The few remaining survivors must find a way to change how humanity perceives them or be lost to the world forever.

The Dragon Blood Collection includes three full-length novels of action, magic, and romance:
Balanced on the Blade’s Edge
Deathmaker
Blood Charged

Length: 27 hrs and 34 mins]]> 28 Lindsay Buroker Ashley 0 3.62 2014 Dragon Blood Omnibus
author: Lindsay Buroker
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: to-read, own-but-haven-t-read-kindle, own-but-haven-t-read-audio
review:

]]> Lingus 29283773 Librarian's note: This is an alternate cover edition for ASIN: B013M3IUSU.

Most people would describe Katherine Berger as a responsible girl with a big heart, a loyal friend who takes care of those close to her, and the possessor of a wicked sense of humor. There was something about her that most people didn't know. "My name is Kat Berger, and I love porn."

When twenty-five-year-old Kat is dragged to a porn convention by her best friend, she's both embarrassed and nervous. The last thing she ever expected was to meet someone who makes her laugh like no other. This is a story about acceptance and friendship, and a love born out of the most unexpected of places.]]> 414 Mariana Zapata Ashley 0 3.58 2012 Lingus
author: Mariana Zapata
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: i-don-t-know, own-but-haven-t-read-kindle
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Good That Men Do (Star Trek: Enterprise #11)]]> 227818 Pax Galactica. Enemies become allies. Old secrets are at last revealed. Long-held beliefs and widely accepted truths are challenged. Man turns to leisurely pursuits.

In this golden age, two old friends are drawn together. They seek to understand, and wonder how what they have long believed, what they have been taught, was never so.

Over two hundred years ago, the life of one of Starfleet's earliest pioneers came to a tragic end, and Captain Jonathan Archer, the legendary commander of Earth's first warp-five starship, lost a close friend. Or so it seemed for many years. But with the passage of time, and the declassification of certain crucial files, the truth about that fateful day -- the day that Commander Charles "Trip" Tucker III didn't die -- could finally be revealed.

Why did Starfleet feel it was necessary to rewrite history? And why only now can the truth be told?

]]> 446 Andy Mangels 0743440013 Ashley 0 3.94 2007 The Good That Men Do (Star Trek: Enterprise #11)
author: Andy Mangels
name: Ashley
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/09
shelves: on-hold-for-now, own-but-haven-t-read-kindle
review:

]]>