Whitney's bookshelf: read en-US Mon, 28 Apr 2025 16:58:25 -0700 60 Whitney's bookshelf: read 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Lords of Pain (Royals of Forsyth University, #1)]]> 56986379 I never claimed to be a good girl, but I definitely never asked for this.

Killian, Tristian, and Rath.

These three men are a part of my past--one that I'd rather never look in the eye again. In high school, they knew my secrets and I knew theirs. They had power and I had nothing. The night everything fell apart, my stepbrother allowed his two best friends to take their rage out on me while he watched. While they laughed.

But what happened that night wasn’t my biggest secret. So I ran, planning on never coming back.


Three years later I’m standing on their doorstep like a stray. They’re more powerful than ever now, having risen to the rank of Lords at Forsyth University. But I’m still on the run and there's another monster chasing me down.

What could bring me back into their lives, their homes, and ultimately, their beds?

Fear.
Shame.
Desperation.

Killian, Rath, and Tristian aren’t the only ones who want me. There’s someone far more dangerous out there who's been stalking me since I left town the first time. Someone who makes the evil I know feel less dangerous than the evil I don’t.

But being their Lady is more than just fancy clothes and reputation.

I might be under their protection, but I’m also at their mercy.

And there's nothing a Lord loves more than taking control.]]> 356 Angel Lawson Whitney 0 to-read 4.01 2021 Lords of Pain (Royals of Forsyth University, #1)
author: Angel Lawson
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Phantasma (Wicked Games, #1) 204593914 Welcome to Phantasma. There are only two rules to the game: Stay alive. And don’t fall in love.

When Ophelia’s sister disappears, there is only one way to save her. Ophelia must enter Phantasma, a deadly contest inside a haunted mansion, and claim its prize—a single wish.

Phantasma is a maze of twisting corridors and lavish ballrooms, of demons and temptations. Ophelia will face nine challenges, each more dangerous than the last. There can only be one winner, and the other contestants will stop at nothing to eliminate their rivals.

Every day the house creates new monsters. But just as Ophelia’s fears threaten to overwhelm her, a mysterious stranger offers her a bargain.

Charming, arrogant and infuriatingly attractive, Blackwell claims he can guide her through the lethal trials ahead. All he asks in return is ten years of her life.

Ophelia knows she shouldn’t trust him. Blackwell doesn’t seem dangerous, but appearances can be deceptive. Worse still, she feels a dark and irresistible attraction drawing them closer and closer.

Her life is on the line. But in Phantasma, the only thing deadlier than losing the game is losing your heart . . .]]> 497 Kaylie Smith 1538769255 Whitney 0 currently-reading 4.05 2024 Phantasma (Wicked Games, #1)
author: Kaylie Smith
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/27
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Seven Sinful Nights 195462812
This is a DARK Regency historical romance. It contains scenes of violence, explicit sex scenes including dubcon, exhibitionism, discussion of past deaths, and coarse language. Seven Sinful Nights was previously published in the Villain I'd Like to F... anthology.]]> 136 Nicola Davidson Whitney 0 fat-rep, to-read 3.94 2023 Seven Sinful Nights
author: Nicola Davidson
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: fat-rep, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Point of No Return: An Enemies to Lovers Romance (Point of No Return Duet)]]> 201535823 Charlotte Orlova

His name is the most powerful name in all of Westos� and now it’s going to be mine.

My mother made it clear the day she married me off that I was never supposed to fall for him. Seduce him, use him, convince him to trust me maybe. But falling for the enemy is off limits because there’s only one way this by killing him.

There’s just one problem� My husband is nothing like I expected. And he’s not the monster my mother made him out to be. He’s cunning, calculated, and reserved, but beneath that cold exterior, there’s something else� Something that makes me question everything I’ve ever known about our families.

Skar Benenati

My name means power, but� power doesn’t come without sacrifice.

Now that my father is dying, the future of the Benenati empire rests on marrying the enemy. Marry her, guarantee her cooperation, but don’t let her get close. If only things were that simple.

(Point of No Return is a steamy, enemies to lovers, billionaire romance. It is the first STANDALONE in a series of two INTERCONNECTED books. If you are a fan of banter, spice, and easy-to-follow fantasy, then this is the book for you! Please check the trigger warnings before reading. For a complete list, visit the author's website.)]]> 503 J. Claire Whitney 4
this relationship near the end reminded me so much of warnette.... and i am a simple woman

this book left me thirsty for more world-building. i'm not a big fan of urban fantasy but this had that vibe of being set in a different world but still having modern technology and it was so close to working for me but by the end i still didn't quite understand the political and family context of the enemies to lovers? so that tension was lost on me at some points. but this writing style ended up being surprisingly addicting and not at all cheesy or overly simplistic. the romance was slow burn but with definite payoff at the end. i wish more of the action and blood and betrayal at the end could have been sprinkled throughout because the last 100 pages was so tense and engrossing whereas the middle of the book felt a little aimless. but now i know the author is capable of it so i'm excited to get to book two later this year!

]]> 3.98 Point of No Return: An Enemies to Lovers Romance (Point of No Return Duet)
author: J. Claire
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.98
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/13
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: smutty, read-in-2025, romance, kindle-unlimited
review:
3.5 stars

this relationship near the end reminded me so much of warnette.... and i am a simple woman

this book left me thirsty for more world-building. i'm not a big fan of urban fantasy but this had that vibe of being set in a different world but still having modern technology and it was so close to working for me but by the end i still didn't quite understand the political and family context of the enemies to lovers? so that tension was lost on me at some points. but this writing style ended up being surprisingly addicting and not at all cheesy or overly simplistic. the romance was slow burn but with definite payoff at the end. i wish more of the action and blood and betrayal at the end could have been sprinkled throughout because the last 100 pages was so tense and engrossing whereas the middle of the book felt a little aimless. but now i know the author is capable of it so i'm excited to get to book two later this year!


]]> <![CDATA[It Lasts Forever and Then It's Over]]> 177148776 128 Anne de Marcken 0811237850 Whitney 0 to-read 3.69 2024 It Lasts Forever and Then It's Over
author: Anne de Marcken
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Our Infinite Fates 210395729 They've loved each other in a thousand lifetimes. They've killed each other in every one.

Evelyn remembers all her past lives. She also remembers that in every single one, she’s been murdered before her eighteenth birthday by Arden, a supernatural being whose soul―and survival―is tethered to hers.

The problem is that she’s quite fond of the life she’s in now, and her little sister needs her for bone marrow transplants in order to stay alive. If Evelyn wants to save her sister, she’ll have to:

1. Find the centuries-old devil who hunts her through each life―before they find her first.
2. Figure out why she’s being hunted and finally break their curse.
3. Try not to fall in love.

The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue meets This is How You Lose The Time War in this fantastical love story that defies death as two souls reincarnate through the centuries.]]> 352 Laura Steven 1250333881 Whitney 0 to-read 3.74 2025 Our Infinite Fates
author: Laura Steven
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> An Abundance of Katherines 16109785
On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy-loving best friend riding shotgun - but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl.

Love, friendship, and a dead Austro-Hungarian archduke add up to surprising and heart-changing conclusions in this ingeniously layered comic novel about reinventing oneself.]]> 228 John Green Whitney 5 read-before-booktube 3.44 2006 An Abundance of Katherines
author: John Green
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.44
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2012/11/10
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves: read-before-booktube
review:

]]> The Flatshare 48715812 here.

Tiffy and Leon share an apartment. Tiffy and Leon have never met.

After a bad breakup, Tiffy Moore needs a place to live. Fast. And cheap.

Desperation makes her open-minded, so she answers an ad for a flatshare. Leon, a night-shift worker, will take the apartment during the day, and Tiffy can have it nights and weekends. He’ll be there only when she’s at the office. In fact, they’ll never even have to meet.

Of course, since they live together, sometimes they do need to share information. Tiffy and Leon start writing each other notes—first about what day is garbage day, then politely establishing which leftovers are up for grabs and debating the evergreen question of whether the toilet seat should stay up or down. Soon, they're sharing details of their lives: their work, their families, their romances. And it's amazing how much they learn about their flatmate just by sharing a space.

Even though they are complete opposites, Tiffy and Leon soon become friends. And then maybe more.

But falling in love with your roommate is probably a terrible idea . . . especially if you've never met. What happens when you finally bump into each other?

A joyful, quirky romantic comedy, The Flatshare is a feel-good novel about finding love in the most unexpected of places—under the same roof.]]> 328 Beth O'Leary 1250295637 Whitney 4 romance, physical-tbr 3.98 2019 The Flatshare
author: Beth O'Leary
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2022/04/05
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves: romance, physical-tbr
review:
It’s been a while since I’ve read a romance book with no smut and I didn’t find it unbearably stupid or boring. It was the perfect build-up with tension between the characters but also their own development happening behind the scenes. This book was serious and heartfelt but also laugh out loud funny, and I’m so happy I read it. The stylistic choice to make the man’s writing style super choppy felt like a cheap way of differentiating woman pov vs man pov because I felt like it didn’t have a strong purpose in the end, and a normal writing style would have been less distracting. This book also confirmed that I do not know a single decent man whose name is Justin. Except maybe that one Canadian guy
]]> Les Miserables 36377471 One of the first modern novels, Les Misérables took the unprecedented step of featuring a working-class hero and examining society's role in fostering crime and criminal behavior. Its portrait of altruism in the face of misery, poverty, and injustice is memorable for its vivid characterizations and its gripping plot, which unfolds in the manner of a detective story. An instant success around the world upon its initial publication, the book has inspired countless dramatic adaptations, including one of the world's longest-running musicals, and is routinely ranked among the top 100 novels of all time.]]> 1376 Victor Hugo 0486822184 Whitney 0 currently-reading 4.38 1862 Les Miserables
author: Victor Hugo
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.38
book published: 1862
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Normal People 41057294
A year later, they’re both studying at Trinity College in Dublin. Marianne has found her feet in a new social world while Connell hangs at the sidelines, shy and uncertain. Throughout their years in college, Marianne and Connell circle one another, straying toward other people and possibilities but always magnetically, irresistibly drawn back together. Then, as she veers into self-destruction and he begins to search for meaning elsewhere, each must confront how far they are willing to go to save the other.

Sally Rooney brings her brilliant psychological acuity and perfectly spare prose to a story that explores the subtleties of class, the electricity of first love, and the complex entanglements of family and friendship.]]> 273 Sally Rooney 1984822179 Whitney 4 read-in-2025, favs-of-2025
this was my first book by sally rooney and i'm just impressed she held my attention with a book about miscommunication and it didn't make me want to walk into the ocean

i was intimidated by this book because of its immense popularity but i found it to be SO readable. this book is like tolerate it by taylor swift but both characters are in love and just don't know how to say it. i'm sure a lot of people would find this irritating but i think it was so beautiful to see the dance these two characters composed around each other. they're like a rorschach painting that can never be un-intertwined.

this book had me hooked and i'm happy i read it! not earth shattering but a great character study and a writing style i will definitely return to.]]> 3.81 2018 Normal People
author: Sally Rooney
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/23
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves: read-in-2025, favs-of-2025
review:
4.5 stars

this was my first book by sally rooney and i'm just impressed she held my attention with a book about miscommunication and it didn't make me want to walk into the ocean

i was intimidated by this book because of its immense popularity but i found it to be SO readable. this book is like tolerate it by taylor swift but both characters are in love and just don't know how to say it. i'm sure a lot of people would find this irritating but i think it was so beautiful to see the dance these two characters composed around each other. they're like a rorschach painting that can never be un-intertwined.

this book had me hooked and i'm happy i read it! not earth shattering but a great character study and a writing style i will definitely return to.
]]> Twisted Love (Twisted, #1) 55817097 He has a heart of ice...but for her, he'd burn the world.

Alex Volkov is a devil blessed with the face of an angel and cursed with a past he can’t escape.

Driven by a tragedy that has haunted him for most of his life, his ruthless pursuits for success and vengeance leave little room for matters of the heart.

But when he’s forced to look after his best friend’s sister, he starts to feel something in his chest:

A crack.
A melt.
A fire that could end his world as he knew it.

***

Ava Chen is a free spirit trapped by nightmares of a childhood she can’t remember.

But despite her broken past, she’s never stopped seeing the beauty in the world…including the heart beneath the icy exterior of a man she shouldn’t want.

Her brother’s best friend.
Her neighbor.
Her savior and her downfall.

Theirs is a love that was never supposed to happen—but when it does, it unleashes secrets that could destroy them both…and everything they hold dear.

Twisted Love is a brother’s best friend/opposites attract romance with a hint of suspense. It's book one in the Twisted series but can be read as a standalone.

WARNING: This book contains a possessive, morally gray alphahole; explicit sexual content, and profanity. No cheating or menage, but if you're looking for a traditionally sweet, loveable hero, this is not the book for you. Recommended for 18+. ]]> 360 Ana Huang Whitney 1
this book wanted to be twilight and after by anna todd SO bad. how you gonna write a "badass" main male character who needs a knife to eat pasta and also grand gestured at the end by SINGING at the main character's opening night of her art show ]]> 3.74 2021 Twisted Love (Twisted, #1)
author: Ana Huang
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2021
rating: 1
read at: 2025/03/21
date added: 2025/03/22
shelves: to-read, the-worst, romance, read-in-2025, kindle-unlimited, cringe
review:
now what in the fresh hell

this book wanted to be twilight and after by anna todd SO bad. how you gonna write a "badass" main male character who needs a knife to eat pasta and also grand gestured at the end by SINGING at the main character's opening night of her art show
]]> Beartown (Beartown, #1) 33413128
People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.

Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected.

Beartown explores the hopes that bring a small community together, the secrets that tear it apart, and the courage it takes for an individual to go against the grain. In this story of a small forest town, Fredrik Backman has found the entire world.]]> 432 Fredrik Backman Whitney 5
it's real, real thin ice to me when a man writes a book giving commentary on rape culture but framed through the lens of locker room talk and sports and toxic masculinity was enough of a bandaid that i was nodding in respect by the end of this. even though my smooth caveman hind brain had to put up with a LOT of community politics about a sport i've watched not a single minute of.

this was my first book by backman and i definitely realize what makes him so popular. his use of throughlines in each chapter and tying all the characters back to a central theme was really masterful. the first 100 pages of this is a complicated explanation of the townspeople and a VERY wide cast of characters being introduced, which i knew would come back around eventually. and it did. this book bounces perspectives between each person and keeps it fast paced.

god, i'm so out of practice writing eloquent reviews. this book has great family ties. great development of characters. benji and amat and maya have my whole heart. objectively, this book is very well written. subjectively, it took a lot of mental gymnastics to resonate with a book about sports. so it was a me problem, not any of backman's.

i definitely recommend this but please receive the same warning that i did that backman will rip your heart out]]> 4.27 2016 Beartown (Beartown, #1)
author: Fredrik Backman
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/22
date added: 2025/03/22
shelves:
review:
4.5 stars

it's real, real thin ice to me when a man writes a book giving commentary on rape culture but framed through the lens of locker room talk and sports and toxic masculinity was enough of a bandaid that i was nodding in respect by the end of this. even though my smooth caveman hind brain had to put up with a LOT of community politics about a sport i've watched not a single minute of.

this was my first book by backman and i definitely realize what makes him so popular. his use of throughlines in each chapter and tying all the characters back to a central theme was really masterful. the first 100 pages of this is a complicated explanation of the townspeople and a VERY wide cast of characters being introduced, which i knew would come back around eventually. and it did. this book bounces perspectives between each person and keeps it fast paced.

god, i'm so out of practice writing eloquent reviews. this book has great family ties. great development of characters. benji and amat and maya have my whole heart. objectively, this book is very well written. subjectively, it took a lot of mental gymnastics to resonate with a book about sports. so it was a me problem, not any of backman's.

i definitely recommend this but please receive the same warning that i did that backman will rip your heart out
]]> Hungerstone 212342605 HungerstoneĚýis a thrillingly seductive sapphic romance for fans of S.T. Gibson’sĚýA Dowry of BloodĚýand Emilia Hart’sĚýWeyward.

For what do you hunger, Lenore?

Lenore is the wife of steel magnate Henry, but ten years into their marriage, the relationship has soured and no child has arrived to fill the distance growing between them. Henry's ambitions take them out of London and to the imposing Nethershaw manor in the countryside, where Henry aims to host a hunt with society’s finest. Lenore keeps a terrible secret from the last time her husband hunted, and though they never speak of it, it haunts their marriage to this day.

The preparations for the event take a turn when a carriage accident near their remote home brings the mysterious Carmilla into Lenore's life. Carmilla who is weak and pale during the day but vibrant at night; Carmilla who stirs up a hunger deep within Lenore. Soon girls from local villages begin to fall sick before being consumed by a bloody hunger.

Torn between regaining her husband's affection and Carmilla's ever-growing presence, Lenore begins to unravel her past and in doing so, uncovers a darkness in her household that will place her at terrible risk . . .

Set against the violent wilderness of the moors and the uncontrolled appetite of the industrial revolution,ĚýHungerstoneĚýis a compulsive feminist reworking ofĚýCarmilla, the book that inspiredĚýDracula: a captivating story of appetite and desire.]]> 336 Kat Dunn 1638932166 Whitney 0 to-read 4.01 2025 Hungerstone
author: Kat Dunn
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Sex in History 946351 496 Reay Tannahill 0812885406 Whitney 0 currently-reading 3.90 1980 Sex in History
author: Reay Tannahill
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1980
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/22
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness]]> 35883430 From a powerful new voice on racial justice, an eye-opening account of growing up Black, Christian, and female in middle-class white America.

Austin Channing Brown's first encounter with a racialized America came at age 7, when she discovered her parents named her Austin to deceive future employers into thinking she was a white man. Growing up in majority-white schools, organizations, and churches, Austin writes, "I had to learn what it means to love blackness," a journey that led to a lifetime spent navigating America's racial divide as a writer, speaker and expert who helps organizations practice genuine inclusion.

In a time when nearly all institutions (schools, churches, universities, businesses) claim to value "diversity" in their mission statements, I'm Still Here is a powerful account of how and why our actions so often fall short of our words. Austin writes in breathtaking detail about her journey to self-worth and the pitfalls that kill our attempts at racial justice, in stories that bear witness to the complexity of America's social fabric--from Black Cleveland neighborhoods to private schools in the middle-class suburbs, from prison walls to the boardrooms at majority-white organizations.

For readers who have engaged with America's legacy on race through the writing of Ta-Nehisi Coates and Michael Eric Dyson, I'm Still Here is an illuminating look at how white, middle-class, Evangelicalism has participated in an era of rising racial hostility, inviting the reader to confront apathy, recognize God's ongoing work in the world, and discover how blackness--if we let it--can save us all.]]> 185 Austin Channing Brown Whitney 0 currently-reading 4.36 2018 I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness
author: Austin Channing Brown
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/22
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Lessons with the Mothman (Monster Smash Agency)]]> 221794598
Victoria is looking for facts not feelings. She wants to understand why the monster species are so much more satisfied than humans, than her. But the handsome mothman who volunteers to aid her study wants to stimulate more than her intelligence. She's willing to explore their physical chemistry, but she wants no part of his designs on her heart.

Some lessons can't be taught, and love is certainly one of them.]]> 295 Kathryn Moon Whitney 4
i was terrified of this book lowkey because every mothman book i've ever read has been CRINGE! but honestly this title is misleading because elias, our title mothman, is actually a fae? even though i found myself pretending that he didn't have weird dick probes and an actual mane still

the thing i love about kathryn moon books and i keep CRAWLING back is the fact that each one feels so fresh and unique despite still sticking to a comforting and rhythmic romance pace!!! this one had so many surprising elements that i'd never read before in books like a female main character who found it difficult to climax but it was never the intention to *fix* her. and the male main character was love bombing because he's never experienced it before and UGH it was just so interesting and had such emotional character depth despite being a literal moth porn story.

i will say i loved the role play elements of the smut and i thought it fit in so nicely with the main characters' angst and character dynamics. was not a fan of the tentacle threesome at the end. sadly, i keep finding myself wishing kathryn moon would write some regular smegular romance at this point because i LOVE her writing and her characters but i often find myself pretending-i-do-not-see-it when she introduces minotaurs and krakens and everything into her stories

but anyway this slayed after a meh second installment in the series ]]> 4.09 2025 Lessons with the Mothman (Monster Smash Agency)
author: Kathryn Moon
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/19
date added: 2025/02/22
shelves: we-did-the-monster-smash, smutty, read-in-2025
review:
(in a whorish tone) ok kathryn....... i see you

i was terrified of this book lowkey because every mothman book i've ever read has been CRINGE! but honestly this title is misleading because elias, our title mothman, is actually a fae? even though i found myself pretending that he didn't have weird dick probes and an actual mane still

the thing i love about kathryn moon books and i keep CRAWLING back is the fact that each one feels so fresh and unique despite still sticking to a comforting and rhythmic romance pace!!! this one had so many surprising elements that i'd never read before in books like a female main character who found it difficult to climax but it was never the intention to *fix* her. and the male main character was love bombing because he's never experienced it before and UGH it was just so interesting and had such emotional character depth despite being a literal moth porn story.

i will say i loved the role play elements of the smut and i thought it fit in so nicely with the main characters' angst and character dynamics. was not a fan of the tentacle threesome at the end. sadly, i keep finding myself wishing kathryn moon would write some regular smegular romance at this point because i LOVE her writing and her characters but i often find myself pretending-i-do-not-see-it when she introduces minotaurs and krakens and everything into her stories

but anyway this slayed after a meh second installment in the series
]]> Growing Up Native American 635517 336 Patricia Riley 0380724170 Whitney 3 read-in-2025, short-story
i did find several authors i'd like to read more from, though, and all of these for sure had great takeaways and things to learn about indigenous culture and the ways they are still marginalized and forgotten.]]> 3.88 1993 Growing Up Native American
author: Patricia Riley
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1993
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/10
date added: 2025/02/16
shelves: read-in-2025, short-story
review:
this collection was a good starting point into native american literature, which is my kind way of saying i think there's better out there. i wasn't a fan that so many of these stories were exerpts and lost a lot of context from the full story.

i did find several authors i'd like to read more from, though, and all of these for sure had great takeaways and things to learn about indigenous culture and the ways they are still marginalized and forgotten.
]]> Icebreaker (UCMH, #1) 61767292
Nothing will stand in her way, not even the captain of the hockey team, Nate Hawkins.

Nate’s focus as team captain is on keeping his team on the ice. Which is tricky when a facilities mishap means they are forced to share a rink with the figure skating team—including Anastasia, who clearly can’t stand him.

But when Anastasia’s skating partner faces an uncertain future, she may have to look to Nate to take her shot.

Sparks fly, but Anastasia isn’t worried . . . because she could never like a hockey player, right?]]> 447 Hannah Grace Whitney 4
i liked the rivals to lovers vibes in this because the girl is the one being standoffish while the guy is the one trying to make it work. i found stassie super relatable with her control issues and feeling of the world on her shoulders, and i was grateful that she had an already-established relationship with a therapist for years before this book even started. i also like how friends with benefits was done at the start of this and it was very sex positive in that light.

even though this was pretty long for a romance book's standards and i saw some of the plot points coming from miles away, it was still a very fun book and definitely had the wintry vibes i was hoping for. if you get the ick about happily ever afters and flash forwards a few years then maybe skip the epilogue like i wish i would have, but this made me want to watch ice princess. and then add the sequels to my tbr lol.

the 12 year olds still shouldn't be reading this because of the sheer volume of fucking but i'd rather they pick up this than colleen hoover or dark romance!!!]]> 3.75 2022 Icebreaker (UCMH, #1)
author: Hannah Grace
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/11
date added: 2025/01/13
shelves: from-library, kindle-unlimited, read-in-2025, romance, smutty
review:
emotionally mature characters who actually talk to each other and are honest and are IN THERAPY covers up a world of hurt because was this book cheesy and more of a college party romance than sports? yes. is nathan a man written by a woman who you only see in his hockey gear like twice, let alone playing in a game? also yes. but even though this did have some cheesy scenes (eg. the main characters fucking on halloween while the guy is in a gru from despicable me costume), the way that they actually FUCKING TALKED TO EACH OTHER ABOUT THEIR PROBLEMS was soooo refreshing.

i liked the rivals to lovers vibes in this because the girl is the one being standoffish while the guy is the one trying to make it work. i found stassie super relatable with her control issues and feeling of the world on her shoulders, and i was grateful that she had an already-established relationship with a therapist for years before this book even started. i also like how friends with benefits was done at the start of this and it was very sex positive in that light.

even though this was pretty long for a romance book's standards and i saw some of the plot points coming from miles away, it was still a very fun book and definitely had the wintry vibes i was hoping for. if you get the ick about happily ever afters and flash forwards a few years then maybe skip the epilogue like i wish i would have, but this made me want to watch ice princess. and then add the sequels to my tbr lol.

the 12 year olds still shouldn't be reading this because of the sheer volume of fucking but i'd rather they pick up this than colleen hoover or dark romance!!!
]]> Migrations 42121525
Epic and intimate, heartbreaking and galvanizing, Charlotte McConaghy's Migrations is an ode to a disappearing world and a breathtaking page-turner about the possibility of hope against all odds.]]> 256 Charlotte McConaghy 125020402X Whitney 4
i am a lover of books with an unapologetic, slightly unhinged female lead, and this did not disappoint. as a huge fan of moby dick as well, i loved the plot point of boarding a ship in search of an elusive bird, practically (and sometimes almost literally) a suicide mission. i also loved the found family aspects of the crew on this ship and the tentative friendships she creates. the setting of being trapped at sea created a dreary, claustrophobic atmosphere.

mainly, i love how much franny loved the ocean and the nature around her. this covers a vast array of topics like family and flightiness and trauma and mourning humanity's detrimental effects on nature while also unavoidably being a human. this was definitely thought provoking and i loved being in franny's head.

the reason it's not five stars is i wish i went into it expecting that it was a futuristic book because the discussions around all the animals being extinct and how much the world has changed/in danger made it a bit at arms' length for me, and i can't quite place why that would make it feel so unrealistic because honestly, it might be a glimpse into our future.

but i still can't deny that i read this in one sitting and highly enjoyed the unraveling of franny's past. for someone who doesn't typically read psychological thrillers -- even though this definitely isn't one -- it scratches that itch of an unreliable main character with willful detachment and a fuck-everybody attitude. ]]> 4.11 2020 Migrations
author: Charlotte McConaghy
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/11
date added: 2025/01/13
shelves:
review:
objectively, a very addictive and well-written book. if you want to read a climate chang story that reads like a eulogy for nature combined with the stream of consciousness of a deeply troubled woman outrunning her past, this would be a great one for you!

i am a lover of books with an unapologetic, slightly unhinged female lead, and this did not disappoint. as a huge fan of moby dick as well, i loved the plot point of boarding a ship in search of an elusive bird, practically (and sometimes almost literally) a suicide mission. i also loved the found family aspects of the crew on this ship and the tentative friendships she creates. the setting of being trapped at sea created a dreary, claustrophobic atmosphere.

mainly, i love how much franny loved the ocean and the nature around her. this covers a vast array of topics like family and flightiness and trauma and mourning humanity's detrimental effects on nature while also unavoidably being a human. this was definitely thought provoking and i loved being in franny's head.

the reason it's not five stars is i wish i went into it expecting that it was a futuristic book because the discussions around all the animals being extinct and how much the world has changed/in danger made it a bit at arms' length for me, and i can't quite place why that would make it feel so unrealistic because honestly, it might be a glimpse into our future.

but i still can't deny that i read this in one sitting and highly enjoyed the unraveling of franny's past. for someone who doesn't typically read psychological thrillers -- even though this definitely isn't one -- it scratches that itch of an unreliable main character with willful detachment and a fuck-everybody attitude.
]]> The End of Summer 32566181
Tillie Walden's classic debut graphic novel returns in this special edition that includes the new prequel story, 'Lars & Nemo'.]]> 108 Tillie Walden 1910395269 Whitney 4
another annual reread and DAMN i still love this book. it's so layered and the thing i love most about it is i don't quite understand it, but that's what keeps me coming back for more. it's so subtle but the architecture and the metaphor of a 3-year winter and the dreariness of the years dragging on while these kids are growing up and the broken family dynamics......... man i just can't get enough of this. one of these days i'm gonna just have to read it 3 times back to back instead of the once.

reread 2023

this book feels like a deep cut since it's tillie's debut and it's sooo underrated. honestly it gives me the same thrill of watching the polar express around the holidays because on the surface it's a wintery story but there's so many little details that are sinister and confusing. every read i think i'll notice something new. this time around it was easier to distinguish which characters are which, but the panels so do much back and forth movement with the framing of past vs present that i think it'll take me a few more reads to fully catch the essence of this story.

still, i love rereading it in winter even though it is dreary.

--

This book has the most beautiful storyline and drawings. The best part was the architecture and the mood of this book, which were both so stunning it's hard to translate in a review. Gorgeous yet melancholy is the closest I can describe it. The magical elements of this were sweet, like a horse-sized cat the main character rides around on, and the family ties were also interesting. My only complaint, which is more of a suggestion than a complaint, is I wish the drawings were colored in to help distinguish between characters more easily. There's a large family in this book, and around the last half of the book it was hard to understand what occurred because it was hard to see who was who. But I literally cannot wait to reread this on a dreary snowy day and re-experience it. It would be such a neat animated movie, too. Basically I loved it but wish the middle and end were more comprehensible, but I'm sure on future rereads I'll understand better.]]> 3.44 2015 The End of Summer
author: Tillie Walden
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.44
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/11
date added: 2025/01/13
shelves: graphic-novels, read-in-2020, read-in-2023, read-in-2025
review:
reread 2025

another annual reread and DAMN i still love this book. it's so layered and the thing i love most about it is i don't quite understand it, but that's what keeps me coming back for more. it's so subtle but the architecture and the metaphor of a 3-year winter and the dreariness of the years dragging on while these kids are growing up and the broken family dynamics......... man i just can't get enough of this. one of these days i'm gonna just have to read it 3 times back to back instead of the once.

reread 2023

this book feels like a deep cut since it's tillie's debut and it's sooo underrated. honestly it gives me the same thrill of watching the polar express around the holidays because on the surface it's a wintery story but there's so many little details that are sinister and confusing. every read i think i'll notice something new. this time around it was easier to distinguish which characters are which, but the panels so do much back and forth movement with the framing of past vs present that i think it'll take me a few more reads to fully catch the essence of this story.

still, i love rereading it in winter even though it is dreary.

--

This book has the most beautiful storyline and drawings. The best part was the architecture and the mood of this book, which were both so stunning it's hard to translate in a review. Gorgeous yet melancholy is the closest I can describe it. The magical elements of this were sweet, like a horse-sized cat the main character rides around on, and the family ties were also interesting. My only complaint, which is more of a suggestion than a complaint, is I wish the drawings were colored in to help distinguish between characters more easily. There's a large family in this book, and around the last half of the book it was hard to understand what occurred because it was hard to see who was who. But I literally cannot wait to reread this on a dreary snowy day and re-experience it. It would be such a neat animated movie, too. Basically I loved it but wish the middle and end were more comprehensible, but I'm sure on future rereads I'll understand better.
]]> Daydream (Maple Hills, #3) 199798652
When his procrastination lands him in a difficult class with his least favorite professor, Henry Turner knows he’s going to have to work extra hard to survive his junior year of college. And now with his new title of captain for the hockey team—which he didn’t even want—Henry absolutely cannot fail. Enter Halle Jacobs, a fellow junior who finds herself befriended by Henry when he accidentally crashes her book club.

Halle may not have the romantic pursuits of her favorite fictional leads, but she’s an academic superstar, and as soon as she hears about Henry’s problems with his class reading material, she offers to help. Too bad being a private tutor isn’t exactly ideal given her own studies, job, book club, and the novel she’s trying to write. But new experiences are the key to beating her writer’s block, and Henry’s promising to be the one to give them to her.

They just need to stick to their rule book.

Oh, and not fall in love.]]> 433 Hannah Grace 1668026252 Whitney 0 to-read 3.91 2024 Daydream (Maple Hills, #3)
author: Hannah Grace
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Wildfire (Maple Hills, #2) 101145836
Maple Hills students Russ Callaghan and Aurora Roberts cross paths at a party celebrating the end of the academic year, where a drinking game results in them having a passionate one-night stand. Never one to overstay her welcome (or expect much from a man), Aurora slips away before Russ even has the chance to ask for her full name.

Imagine their surprise when they bump into each other on the first day of the summer camp where they are both counselors, hoping to escape their complicated home lives by spending the summer working. Russ hopes if he gets far enough away from Maple Hills, he can avoid dealing with the repercussions of his father’s gambling addiction, while Aurora is tired of craving attention from everyone around her, and wants to go back to the last place she truly felt at home.

Russ knows breaking the camp’s strict “no staff fraternizing� rule will have him heading back to Maple Hills before the summer is over, but unfortunately for him, Aurora has never been very good at caring about the rules. Will the two learn to peacefully coexist? Or did their one night together start a fire they can’t put out?]]> 387 Hannah Grace 1668026279 Whitney 0 to-read 3.81 2023 Wildfire (Maple Hills, #2)
author: Hannah Grace
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Thornlight (Foxheart, #2) 54619463
As the darkness keeps coming, these three girls will each undertake their own perilous journeys to try to save their home—and each quest reveals an electrifying surprise. Perhaps they’ve been fighting the wrong monster all along.

Fast-paced, memorable, and surprising,ĚýThornlightĚýis a perfect introduction to Claire Legrand’s work and will appeal to fans of Kelly Barnhill and Jessica Townsend.]]> 464 Claire Legrand 0062696661 Whitney 0 to-read 4.04 2021 Thornlight (Foxheart, #2)
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Song of Ash and Moonlight (The Middlemist Trilogy, #2)]]> 202204709 New York Times bestselling author of Furyborn, Claire Legrand, enchants with a lush, sweeping, steamy enemies to lovers fantasy romance perfect for fans of Bridgerton and A Court of Thorns and Roses.

THE OLD WAR IS OVER. A NEW ONE IS JUST BEGINNING.

The curse plaguing the Ashbourne and Bask families has finally been broken, but Farrin, the eldest Ashbourne daughter, still struggles to find peace. Unflappable and tireless, her composure masks a seething sorrow. Since her mother abandoned the family, Farrin has been their rock—managing her father's temper, running the estate, keeping tight control over her dangerous musical power, and ignoring her own need for rest, distraction, and most of all, love.

In Ryder Bask, Farrin's stubborn strength has met its match. The man infuriates her. He's coarse, arrogant, annoyingly handsome. He's as tired of their feuding parents as she is, and he brims with some secret anger that mirrors Farrin's frustrated rage.

But Farrin must work with every ally she can—even the man she has been raised to hate. With every rising dawn, the Middlemist weakens further. Anointed magicians are disappearing. A fiery Olden creature is stalking Farrin. Strange visions haunt the High Queen Yvaine. And as Farrin and Ryder race to find stolen loved ones, they begin to realize a horrifying

The gods are not dead. They're waking up. And someone is hunting them.]]> 592 Claire Legrand 1728232023 Whitney 0 to-read 3.86 2024 A Song of Ash and Moonlight (The Middlemist Trilogy, #2)
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Foxheart (Foxheart, #1) 28259112 Orphan. Thief.Ěý Witch .

A classic fantasy-adventure reminiscent ofĚý Howl's Moving Castle Ěý´Ú°ů´ÇłľĚý New York Times –bestselling author Claire Legrand.

Twelve-year-old Quicksilver lives as a thief in the sleepy town of Willow-on-the-River. Her only companions are her faithful dog and partner in crime, Fox—and Sly Boots, the shy boy who lets her live in his attic when it’s too cold to sleep on the rooftops. It’s a lonesome life, but Quicksilver is used to being alone. When you are alone, no one can hurt you. No one can abandon you.

Then one day Quicksilver discovers that she can perform magic.Ěý¸é±đ˛ą±ôĚýmagic. The kind that isn’t supposed to exist anymore. Magic is forbidden, but Quicksilver nevertheless wants to learn more. With real magic, she could become the greatest thief who ever lived. She could maybe even find her parents. What she does find, however, is much more complicated and surprising. . . .

Acclaimed author Claire Legrand’s stunning and original novel explores the danger of lies and the power of truth, the strength found in friendship, and the value of loving and being loved . . . even if it means risking your heart. Full of magic, adventure, and an original and compelling cast of characters,Ěýąó´Çłćłó±đ˛ą°ůłŮĚýwill appeal to fans of Neil Gaiman and Diana Wynne Jones.]]> 480 Claire Legrand 0062427733 Whitney 0 to-read 3.96 2016 Foxheart (Foxheart, #1)
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Year of Shadows 13129136 Olivia wants a new life—and it might take ghosts to get it. A heartfelt, gently Gothic novel from Claire Legrand.

Olivia Stellatella is having a rough year.

Her mother’s left, her neglectful father—the maestro of a failing orchestra—has moved her and her grandmother into the city’s dark, broken-down concert hall to save money, and her only friend is Igor, an ornery stray cat.

Just when she thinks life couldn’t get any weirder, she meets four ghosts who haunt the hall. They need Olivia’s help—if the hall is torn down, they’ll be stuck as ghosts forever, never able to move on.

Olivia has to do the impossible for her shadowy new friends: Save the concert hall. But helping the dead has powerful consequences for the living…and soon it’s not just the concert hall that needs saving.]]> 416 Claire Legrand Whitney 0 to-read 4.10 2013 The Year of Shadows
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Winterspell (Winterspell, #1) 18475593 The clock chimes midnight, a curse breaks, and a girl meets a prince…but what follows is not all sweetness and sugarplums.

New York City, 1899. Clara Stole, the mayor’s ever-proper daughter, leads a double life. Since her mother’s murder, she has secretly trained in self-defense with the mysterious Drosselmeyer.

Then, on Christmas Eve, disaster strikes.

Her home is destroyed, her father abducted—by beings distinctly not human. To find him, Clara journeys to the war-ravaged land of Cane. Her only companion is the dethroned prince Nicholas, bound by a wicked curse. If they’re to survive, Clara has no choice but to trust him, but his haunted eyes burn with secrets—and a need she can’t define. With the dangerous, seductive faery queen Anise hunting them, Clara soon realizes she won’t leave Cane unscathed—if she leaves at all.

Inspired by The Nutcracker, Winterspell is a dark, timeless fairy tale about love and war, longing and loneliness, and a girl who must learn to live without fear.]]> 454 Claire Legrand 1442465980 Whitney 0 to-read 3.59 2014 Winterspell (Winterspell, #1)
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.59
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls]]> 10893214 Coraline, Splendors and Glooms, and The Mysterious Benedict Society.

Victoria hates nonsense. There is no need for it when your life is perfect. The only smudge on her pristine life is her best friend Lawrence. He is a disaster, lazy and dreamy, shirt always untucked, obsessed with his silly piano. Victoria often wonders why she ever bothered being his friend. (Lawrence does, too.)

But then Lawrence goes missing. And he is not the only one. Victoria soon discovers that The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls is not what it appears to be. Kids go in but come out different. Or they don't come out at all.

If anyone can sort this out, it's Victoria, even if it means getting a little messy.]]> 352 Claire Legrand 1442442913 Whitney 0 to-read 3.86 2012 The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Crown of Ivy and Glass (The Middlemist Trilogy, #1)]]> 61492435
Worst of all, Gemma is the only Ashbourne to possess no magic. Instead, her body fights it like poison. Constantly ill, aching with loneliness, Gemma craves love and yearns to belong.

Then she meets the devastatingly handsome Talan d'Astier. His family destroyed themselves, seduced by a demon, and Talan, the only survivor, is determined to redeem their honor. Intrigued and enchanted, Gemma proposes a bargain: She'll help Talan navigate high society if he helps her destroy the Basks. According to popular legend, a demon called The Man With the Three-Eyed Crown is behind the families' blood feud—slay the demon, end the feud.

But attacks on the Middlemist are increasing. The plot against the Basks quickly spirals out of control. And something immense and terrifying is awakening in Gemma, drawing her inexorably toward Talan and an all-consuming passion that could destroy her—or show her the true strength of her power at last.]]> 554 Claire Legrand 172823199X Whitney 0 to-read 3.14 2023 A Crown of Ivy and Glass (The Middlemist Trilogy, #1)
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.14
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Some Kind of Happiness 13260524 THINGS FINLEY HART DOESN’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT

� Her parents, who are having problems. (But they pretend like they’re not.)
� Being sent to her grandparents� house for the summer.
� Never having met said grandparents.
� Her blue days—when life feels overwhelming, and it’s hard to keep her head up. (This happens a lot.)

Finley’s only retreat is the Everwood, a forest kingdom that exists in the pages of her notebook. Until she discovers the endless woods behind her grandparents� house and realizes the Everwood is real--and holds more mysteries than she'd ever imagined, including a family of pirates that she isn’t allowed to talk to, trees covered in ash, and a strange old wizard living in a house made of bones.

With the help of her cousins, Finley sets out on a mission to save the dying Everwood and uncover its secrets. But as the mysteries pile up and the frightening sadness inside her grows, Finley realizes that if she wants to save the Everwood, she’ll first have to save herself.

Reality and fantasy collide in this powerful, heartfelt novel about family, depression, and the power of imagination.]]> 374 Claire Legrand 1442466014 Whitney 0 to-read 4.28 2016 Some Kind of Happiness
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Sawkill Girls 38139409 Beware of the woods and the dark, dank deep. He’ll follow you home, and he won’t let you sleep.

Who are the Sawkill Girls?

Marion: the new girl. Awkward and plain, steady and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find.

Zoey: the pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken—or maybe everyone else is.

Val: the queen bee. Gorgeous and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like silk and eyes like knives, a heart made of secrets and a mouth full of lies.

Their stories come together on the island of Sawkill Rock, where gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around campfires.

Where girls have been disappearing for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no one has dared to fight� until now.]]> 447 Claire Legrand 0062696602 Whitney 0 to-read 3.67 2018 Sawkill Girls
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Nettle & Bone 56179377
Seeking help from a powerful gravewitch, Marra is offered the tools to kill a prince—if she can complete three impossible tasks. But, as is the way in tales of princes, witches, and daughters, the impossible is only the beginning.

On her quest, Marra is joined by the gravewitch, a reluctant fairy godmother, a strapping former knight, and a chicken possessed by a demon. Together, the five of them intend to be the hand that closes around the throat of the prince and frees Marra's family and their kingdom from its tyrannous ruler at last.]]> 243 T. Kingfisher 1250244048 Whitney 0 to-read 4.07 2022 Nettle & Bone
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Swordheart 42747739 426 T. Kingfisher 1614504636 Whitney 0 to-read 4.06 2018 Swordheart
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy, #1)]]> 102549
Written during the dark hours immediately before and during World War II, C.S. Lewis’s Space Trilogy, of which Out of the Silent Planet is the first volume, stands alongside such works as Albert Camus’s The Plague and George Orwell’s 1984 as a timeless classic, beloved by succeeding generations as much for the sheer wonder of its storytelling as for the significance of its moral concerns.

While searching for a place to rest for the night, Dr. Elwin Ransom is abducted by a megalomaniacal physicist and his accomplice and taken to the red planet of Malacandra (Mars) as a human sacrifice for the alien creatures that live there. Once on the planet, however, Ransom eludes his captors, risking his life and his chances of returning to Earth, becoming a stranger in a land that is enchanting in its difference from Earth and instructive in its similarity.

First published in 1943, Out of the Silent Planet remains a magnificent and suspenseful tour de force in which epic battles are fought between the forces of light and those of darkness. It is the incredible beginning to C.S. Lewis’s spectacular Space Trilogy, which also includes Perelandra and That Hideous Strength .]]> 158 C.S. Lewis 0743234901 Whitney 3 read-in-2025
but i found this a very entertaining and touching read from the perspective of a linguist going to another planet and experiencing space and other worlds as someone with a deep appreciation for beautiful things. i typically associate sci-fi with very technical and mechanical writing, but this had so much heart and humanity and honest anxiety about being a fish out of water. ransom's descriptions of the universe and our place in it was so thought-provoking, i didn't even mind that there's probably a christian allegory or undertones somewhere in here.

i don't think i'll be continuing this series but i think this has confirmed i definitely need to reach for more of cs lewis's works! i loved his writing. ]]> 3.99 1938 Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy, #1)
author: C.S. Lewis
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1938
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/03
date added: 2025/01/08
shelves: read-in-2025
review:
the first half of this book totally could have been five stars, but i found the second half a lot more boring and incomprehensible. i may need a better imagination to be able to enjoy sci-fi to its full capacity because the descriptions of this planet and its politics were soooo convoluted, i was struggling.

but i found this a very entertaining and touching read from the perspective of a linguist going to another planet and experiencing space and other worlds as someone with a deep appreciation for beautiful things. i typically associate sci-fi with very technical and mechanical writing, but this had so much heart and humanity and honest anxiety about being a fish out of water. ransom's descriptions of the universe and our place in it was so thought-provoking, i didn't even mind that there's probably a christian allegory or undertones somewhere in here.

i don't think i'll be continuing this series but i think this has confirmed i definitely need to reach for more of cs lewis's works! i loved his writing.
]]> <![CDATA[Rose in Chains (The Evermore Trilogy, #1)]]> 221179254 This beautiful DELUXE EDITION hardcover featuring gorgeous sprayed edges with stenciled art is only available for a limited first print run and while supplies last. This is a stunning special edition you will want to add to your collection.

YOUR NEXT ROMANTASY OBSESSION!

The war is over, the dark forces have won, and the hero who was supposed to save them is dead.

Captured as her castle is overrun by the enemy, Briony Rosewood knows that the world as she knows it is changed forever. The dark forces of Bomard have won and her people, the Eversuns, face imminent servitude, imprisonment or death. Her brother, fated to be heir twice over and unite the warring kingdoms, is dead.

Stripped of her Mind Magic and her freedom, Briony and the other survivors are quickly auctioned off to the highest bidders in an auction � and as the heir-apparent’s sister, she fetches the highest price.

After a fierce bidding war, she’s sold to none other than Toven a high ranking Bomardsun � and her long-time and ill-fated infatuation. Scion of a family known for their cruel control of Heart Magic, the Hearsts are ruthlessly ambitious, and Briony knows they will use her however they can to further their own interests.

Yet despite the horrors of her new world and the role she must learn to play within it, all is not lost. Help � and hope � may yet arise in the most unlikely of places…]]> 464 Julie Soto 1538771225 Whitney 0 to-read 4.48 2025 Rose in Chains (The Evermore Trilogy, #1)
author: Julie Soto
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection]]> 220341389 John Green, the #1 bestselling author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and a passionate advocate for global healthcare reform, tells a deeply human story illuminating the fight against the world’s deadliest disease.

Tuberculosis has been entwined with humanity for millennia. Once romanticized as a malady of poets, today tuberculosis is a disease of poverty that walks the trails of injustice and inequity we blazed for it.

In 2019, John Green met Henry, a young tuberculosis patient at Lakka Government Hospital in Sierra Leone while traveling with Partners in Health. John became fast friends with Henry, a boy with spindly legs and a big, goofy smile. In the years since that first visit to Lakka, Green has become a vocal and dynamic advocate for increased access to treatment and wider awareness of the healthcare inequities that allow this curable, treatable infectious disease to also be the deadliest, killing 1.5 million people every year.

In Everything is Tuberculosis, John tells Henry’s story, woven through with the scientific and social histories of how tuberculosis has shaped our world and how our choices will shape the future of tuberculosis.]]> 208 John Green 0525556575 Whitney 0 to-read 4.49 2025 Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection
author: John Green
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.49
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Onyx Storm (The Empyrean, #3) 209439446
Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves—her dragons, her family, her home, and him.

Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth. But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath.]]> 527 Rebecca Yarros 1649374186 Whitney 0 to-read 4.17 2025 Onyx Storm (The Empyrean, #3)
author: Rebecca Yarros
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Katabasis 210223811 Two graduate students must set aside their rivalry and journey to Hell to save their professor’s soul, perhaps at the cost of their own.

Alice Law has only ever had one goal: to become one of the brightest minds in the field of Magick. She has sacrificed everything to make that a reality—her pride, her health, her love life, and most definitely her sanity. All to work with Professor Jacob Grimes at Cambridge, the greatest magician in the world—that is, until he dies in a magical accident that could possibly be her fault.

Grimes is now in Hell, and she’s going in after him. Because his recommendation could hold her very future in his now incorporeal hands, and even death is not going to stop the pursuit of her dreams. Nor will the fact that her rival, Peter Murdoch, has come to the same conclusion.]]> 400 R.F. Kuang Whitney 0 to-read 4.01 2025 Katabasis
author: R.F. Kuang
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil]]> 215020997
This is a story about hunger.
1532. Santo Domingo de la Calzada.
A young girl grows up wild and wily—her beauty is only outmatched by her dreams of escape. But María knows she can only ever be a prize, or a pawn, in the games played by men. When an alluring stranger offers an alternate path, María makes a desperate choice. She vows to have no regrets.

This is a story about love.
1827. London.
A young woman lives an idyllic but cloistered life on her family’s estate, until a moment of forbidden intimacy sees her shipped off to London. Charlotte’s tender heart and seemingly impossible wishes are swept away by an invitation from a beautiful widow—but the price of freedom is higher than she could have imagined.

This is a story about rage.
2019. Boston.
College was supposed to be her chance to be someone new. That’s why Alice moved halfway across the world, leaving her old life behind. But after an out-of-character one-night stand leaves her questioning her past, her present, and her future, Alice throws herself into the hunt for answers . . . and revenge.

This is a story about life�
how it ends, and how it starts. ]]> 560 Victoria E. Schwab 1035064642 Whitney 0 to-read 4.40 2025 Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil
author: Victoria E. Schwab
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Listeners 56988057
January 1942. The Avallon Hotel & Spa has always offered elegant luxury in the wilds of West Virginia, its mountain sweetwater washing away all of high society’s troubles.

Local girl-turned-general manager June Porter Hudson has guided the Avallon skillfully through the first pangs of war. The Gilfoyles, the hotel’s aristocratic owners, have trained her well. But when the family heir makes a secret deal with the State Department to fill the hotel with captured Axis diplomats, June must persuade her staff—many of whom have sons and husbands heading to the front lines—to offer luxury to Nazis. With a smile.

Meanwhile FBI Agent Tucker Minnick, whose coal tattoo hints at an Appalachian past, presses his ears to the hotel’s walls, listening for the diplomats� secrets. He has one of his own, which is how he knows that June’s balancing act can have dangerous consequences: the sweetwater beneath the hotel can threaten as well as heal.

June has never met a guest she couldn’t delight, but the diplomats are different. Without firing a single shot, they have brought the war directly to her. As clashing loyalties crack the Avallon’s polished veneer, June must calculate the true cost of luxury.]]> 400 Maggie Stiefvater 0593655508 Whitney 0 to-read 4.00 2025 The Listeners
author: Maggie Stiefvater
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Emperor of Gladness 219848315 Oprah’s Book Club Pick � Ocean Vuong returns with a bighearted novel about chosen family, unexpected friendship, and the stories we tell ourselves in order to survive

“Stunning . . . A heartfelt and powerful examination of those living on the fringes of society, and the unique challenges they face to survive and thrive.� —Oprah Winfrey

“Magnificent . . . In writing this book, Vuong may have joined the ranks of an elite few great novelists.� —Leigh Haber, Los Angeles Times

The hardest thing in the world is to live only once�

One late summer evening in the post-industrial town of East Gladness, Connecticut, nineteen-year-old Hai stands on the edge of a bridge in pelting rain, ready to jump, when he hears someone shout across the river. The voice belongs to Grazina, an elderly widow succumbing to dementia, who convinces him to take another path. Bereft and out of options, he quickly becomes her caretaker. Over the course of the year, the unlikely pair develops a life-altering bond, one built on empathy, spiritual reckoning, and heartbreak, with the power to alter Hai’s relationship to himself, his family, and a community at the brink.

Following the cycles of history, memory, and time, The Emperor of Gladness shows the profound ways in which love, labor, and loneliness form the bedrock of American life. At its heart is a brave epic about what it means to exist on the fringes of society and to reckon with the wounds that haunt our collective soul. Hallmarks of Vuong’s writing � formal innovation, syntactic dexterity, and the ability to twin grit with grace through tenderness � are on full display in this story of loss, hope, and how far we would go to possess one of life’s most fleeting mercies: a second chance.]]> 416 Ocean Vuong 059383187X Whitney 0 to-read 4.34 2025 The Emperor of Gladness
author: Ocean Vuong
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Tea Dragon Tapestry (Tea Dragon, #3)]]> 51323376
Over a year after being entrusted with Ginseng's care, Greta still can't chase away the cloud of mourning that hangs over the timid Tea Dragon. As she struggles to create something spectacular enough to impress a master blacksmith in search of an apprentice, she questions the true meaning of crafting, and the true meaning of caring for someone in grief.

Meanwhile, Minette receives a surprise package from the monastery where she was once training to be a prophetess. Thrown into confusion about her path in life, the shy and reserved Minette finds that the more she opens her heart to others, the more clearly she can see what was always inside.

Told with the same care and charm as the previous installments of the Tea Dragon series, The Tea Dragon Tapestry welcomes old friends and new into a heartfelt story of purpose, love, and growth.]]> 135 Kay O'Neill 1620107740 Whitney 5 4.50 2021 The Tea Dragon Tapestry (Tea Dragon, #3)
author: Kay O'Neill
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/31
date added: 2024/12/31
shelves: childrens, graphic-novels, favs-of-2024, lgbtqiap, read-in-2024
review:
what a lovely ending to this cozy fantasy trilogy! this art style is one of the most gorgeous i've read and almost reminds me of animal crossing/video game graphics. the story is so simple to follow but packed with so much love and meaning. i especially loved that all of the previous storylines in other books fully blended together in this one, and all the series culminated into this heartwarming ending. i would highly recommend this series, as they get better with each volume and now i'm totally going to miss these characters! i guess i'll have to make a cup of tea to keep me company :')
]]> <![CDATA[The Tea Dragon Festival (Tea Dragon, #2)]]> 42369064 135 Kay O'Neill 1620106558 Whitney 5
i have very little to add from my original review other than i still adored this so stinking much and i'm so glad i now own a copy of my own! this is definitely a worthwhile prequel more touching and with a stronger story than book one and i loved the setting and moral of it so much.

--
originally read: 2019

Thanks to Oni Press for the advanced review copy!

Katie O'Neill can do no wrong. This book was so stinking cute from the art style to the positivity to the inclusivity and the dragons. I think I enjoyed it better than book one. This world is so magical and transporting and uplifting, and I love how people of different genders and sexualities and disabilities are seamlessly folded in. There were certain panels in this book that spoke to me so much as an adult even though this is written for children, it's that good. I highly recommend this for any age range, and if you at all enjoyed the first book, I think this companion would highly interest you.]]> 4.40 2019 The Tea Dragon Festival (Tea Dragon, #2)
author: Kay O'Neill
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/31
date added: 2024/12/31
shelves: sent-from-pub, read-in-2019, graphic-novels, favs-of-2019, childrens, lgbtqiap, read-in-2024
review:
reread: 2024

i have very little to add from my original review other than i still adored this so stinking much and i'm so glad i now own a copy of my own! this is definitely a worthwhile prequel more touching and with a stronger story than book one and i loved the setting and moral of it so much.

--
originally read: 2019

Thanks to Oni Press for the advanced review copy!

Katie O'Neill can do no wrong. This book was so stinking cute from the art style to the positivity to the inclusivity and the dragons. I think I enjoyed it better than book one. This world is so magical and transporting and uplifting, and I love how people of different genders and sexualities and disabilities are seamlessly folded in. There were certain panels in this book that spoke to me so much as an adult even though this is written for children, it's that good. I highly recommend this for any age range, and if you at all enjoyed the first book, I think this companion would highly interest you.
]]> <![CDATA[The Tea Dragon Society (Tea Dragon, #1)]]> 34895950 Princess Princess Ever After comes The Tea Dragon Society, a charming all-ages book that follows the story of Greta, a blacksmith apprentice, and the people she meets as she becomes entwined in the enchanting world of tea dragons.

After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives—and eventually her own.]]> 71 Kay O'Neill 1620104415 Whitney 5
this is some of the most impressive art in a graphic novel and even though it's a very simplistic children's story, this book is soooo cozy and sweet and is a great escape. told in chapters that change with the season, i loved following greta into her world and the friends and creatures she meets. definitely excited to continue on and finally finish this series!

--
original review: 2018

4.5 stars

I loved this!! So gorgeous and sweet, can't wait to own my own copy :)]]> 4.34 2017 The Tea Dragon Society (Tea Dragon, #1)
author: Kay O'Neill
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/31
date added: 2024/12/31
shelves: graphic-novels, childrens, read-in-2018, read-in-2024
review:
reread dec 2024

this is some of the most impressive art in a graphic novel and even though it's a very simplistic children's story, this book is soooo cozy and sweet and is a great escape. told in chapters that change with the season, i loved following greta into her world and the friends and creatures she meets. definitely excited to continue on and finally finish this series!

--
original review: 2018

4.5 stars

I loved this!! So gorgeous and sweet, can't wait to own my own copy :)
]]> <![CDATA[Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel]]> 41812473 Will's older brother, Shawn, has been shot.
Dead.
Will feels a sadness so great, he can't explain it. But in his neighborhood, there are THE RULES:

No. 1: Crying.
Don't.
No matter what.

No. 2: Snitching
Don't.
No matter what.

No. 3: Revenge
Do.
No matter what.

But bullets miss. You can get the wrong guy. And there's always someone else who knows to follow the rules...]]> 208 Jason Reynolds Whitney 5
read this!!!]]> 4.29 2020 Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel
author: Jason Reynolds
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/31
date added: 2024/12/31
shelves: read-in-2024, graphic-novels, favs-of-2024, black-mc
review:
after having read the full version of this novel i thought this would be a simplistic reversioning of it to another format, but i can't emphasize enough how much the art and storytelling elevated the story all over again for me. this was really a masterful translation with GORGEOUS watercolor art and i would highly recommend both this and the original novel. this was so deeply emotional and has definitely secured its place as one of my favorite graphic novels. it's such a striking story about violence and grief and the "rules" Black men have to follow and whether or not the main character will break free from those expectations. gorgeously written and gorgeously illustrated, i have no notes. zero.

read this!!!
]]> <![CDATA[My Little Dog's Tail and Other Poems]]> 132795404 0 Cyclone Millsap Whitney 4 poetry, read-in-2024
i thought this was so cute and fun and i enjoyed the majority of the poems. especially resonated with "old chimney," and since this book is hard (or impossible?) to find, i'll share it here:

A dusty lane winds up the hill
Where locust trees are blooming still;
An ancient home has gone to rot;
A chimney's all that marks the spot.

And gazing at its ruggest cast
I hear some voices of the past -
Of Pop and Mom, us girls and boys,
Expecting Santa with his toys.

I hear again the blizzards blow
That wrapped this form with shawls of snow.
The old cat purrs, the kettle steams,
As once again the red fire beams.

Old Chimney, still unbowed by time,
To you I dedicate this rhyme,
For there within your ruggest cast
Abides the spirit of the past -
Sweet, like locusts blooming still
Around this shrine upon a hill.]]> 4.00 My Little Dog's Tail and Other Poems
author: Cyclone Millsap
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.00
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/30
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves: poetry, read-in-2024
review:
very honored to be the first and only person to review and rate this book but this little 70s poetry collection was an impulse buy from my library bookstore, and it's a collection of sweet poems from a local retired grandpa with clever rhyme schemes and subjects ranging from children growing up to fishing and other natural wonders.

i thought this was so cute and fun and i enjoyed the majority of the poems. especially resonated with "old chimney," and since this book is hard (or impossible?) to find, i'll share it here:

A dusty lane winds up the hill
Where locust trees are blooming still;
An ancient home has gone to rot;
A chimney's all that marks the spot.

And gazing at its ruggest cast
I hear some voices of the past -
Of Pop and Mom, us girls and boys,
Expecting Santa with his toys.

I hear again the blizzards blow
That wrapped this form with shawls of snow.
The old cat purrs, the kettle steams,
As once again the red fire beams.

Old Chimney, still unbowed by time,
To you I dedicate this rhyme,
For there within your ruggest cast
Abides the spirit of the past -
Sweet, like locusts blooming still
Around this shrine upon a hill.
]]> Galatea 18162954 An enchanting short story from Madeline Miller that boldly reimagines the myth of Galatea and Pygmalion.

In ancient Greece, a skilled marble sculptor has been blessed by a goddess who has given his masterpiece � the most beautiful woman the town has ever seen � the gift of life. Now his wife, he expects Galatea to please him, to be obedience and humility personified. But she has desires of her own and yearns for independence.

In a desperate bid by her obsessive husband to keep her under control, Galatea is locked away under the constant supervision of doctors and nurses. But with a daughter to rescue, she is determined to break free, whatever the cost...]]> 27 Madeline Miller 1408848147 Whitney 4 read-in-2024, short-story
i thought this story was great on its own but loved it even more with a quick explanation afterward. i can totally see the influence from other feminist works. it was so lovely getting to experience some new writing from her, even just for a short story!]]> 3.93 2013 Galatea
author: Madeline Miller
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/30
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves: read-in-2024, short-story
review:
i agree with other reviewers. madeline, write the full novel!!!

i thought this story was great on its own but loved it even more with a quick explanation afterward. i can totally see the influence from other feminist works. it was so lovely getting to experience some new writing from her, even just for a short story!
]]> Cecilia 198429764 A surreal novella about the intensity and eroticism of girlhood friendships, the ecstasy of desire and disgust, and matriarchal mythmaking.

Seven, who works as a cleaner at a chiropractor’s office, reencounters Cecilia, a woman who has obsessed her since their school days. As the two of them board the same bus—each dubiously claiming not to be following the other—their chance meeting spurs a series of intensely vivid and corporeal memories. In the defamiliarization that follows, the narrator begins to experience queerness itself as an alienation from normative time.

Smart, subversive, and gripping, Cecilia is a winding, misty road trip through bodily transformation, inextricable histories of desire and violence, diaspora, and obsessive love.]]> 145 K-Ming Chang Whitney 4
for a book that mentions piss more than any book i've ever read in my life, possibly my entire library combined, this was an unexpected slay.

it's been SO long since i've walked into a bookstore and bought something i've never heard of for full price, but this was the very definition of that. and i was so surprised that one of my favorite themes in books, recalling the bittersweet memories of childhood, was front and center here.

cecilia is gross and startling but also smart and thought-provoking. having a childhood crush that descends into obsession and shame is relatable (one reviewer said this book would be a good read for anyone who facebook stalks their crush), but this book's hyperbole felt like a descent into madness. i couldn't put this book down and for every line that confused me, there were three that made me feel so seen.

even as someone who rarely reads literary fiction, i can't wait for friends to read this so i can re-experience it and discuss it. this review doesn't sell the book half as good as it actually is but i would highly recommend this if you can stomach weirdness and love books about longing and girlhood/adolescence, especially about queer women!]]> 3.20 2024 Cecilia
author: K-Ming Chang
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.20
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/29
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves: favs-of-2024, lgbtqiap, read-in-2024, novella, sapphic
review:
4.5 stars

for a book that mentions piss more than any book i've ever read in my life, possibly my entire library combined, this was an unexpected slay.

it's been SO long since i've walked into a bookstore and bought something i've never heard of for full price, but this was the very definition of that. and i was so surprised that one of my favorite themes in books, recalling the bittersweet memories of childhood, was front and center here.

cecilia is gross and startling but also smart and thought-provoking. having a childhood crush that descends into obsession and shame is relatable (one reviewer said this book would be a good read for anyone who facebook stalks their crush), but this book's hyperbole felt like a descent into madness. i couldn't put this book down and for every line that confused me, there were three that made me feel so seen.

even as someone who rarely reads literary fiction, i can't wait for friends to read this so i can re-experience it and discuss it. this review doesn't sell the book half as good as it actually is but i would highly recommend this if you can stomach weirdness and love books about longing and girlhood/adolescence, especially about queer women!
]]> Mrs. Dalloway 14942 194 Virginia Woolf 0151009988 Whitney 0 to-read 3.80 1925 Mrs. Dalloway
author: Virginia Woolf
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.80
book published: 1925
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Dandelion Wine 50033
Woven into the novel are the following short stories: Illumination, Dandelion Wine, Summer in the Air, Season of Sitting, The Happiness Machine, The Night, The Lawns of Summer, Season of Disbelief, The Last--the Very Last, The Green Machine, The Trolley, Statues, The Window, The Swan, The Whole Town's Sleeping, Goodbye Grandma, The Tarot Witch, Hotter Than Summer, Dinner at Dawn, The Magical Kitchen, Green Wine for Dreaming.]]> 239 Ray Bradbury 0671037706 Whitney 0 to-read 4.07 1957 Dandelion Wine
author: Ray Bradbury
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.07
book published: 1957
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> One Hundred Years of Solitude 320 417 Gabriel García Márquez Whitney 0 to-read 4.10 1967 One Hundred Years of Solitude
author: Gabriel García Márquez
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1967
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1)]]> 119322
Can one small girl make a difference in such great and terrible endeavors? This is Lyra: a savage, a schemer, a liar, and as fierce and true a champion as Roger or Asriel could want--but what Lyra doesn't know is that to help one of them will be to betray the other.]]> 399 Philip Pullman 0679879242 Whitney 3
standing ovation to the besties who read this as a kid because WHAT the hell did i just read?!

this straddled the line between so many genres (fantasy? steampunk? urban fiction? sci fi?) that it became soooo muddled and i understood hardly anything. for example, there's witches and talking polar bears but also aircraft and photography BUT ALSO science and atoms and to top it all off, wells fargo bank and texas?! huuuhhhh????

i can see why the kids would love this because lyra was such a fun, smart and empathetic main character. also, the addition of daemons (basically animal sidekicks) was such a cute touch, even though it was never really explained why all humans have them.

i would be so fascinated to see how the movie adaptation tackled this because it felt like nothing happened in the first half, and what did happen in the second half was so aimless, almost like the plot of saving these kidnapped children was a side plot to the actual questions posed at the start.

if this was trying to be some kind of religious or political allegory it definitely flew RIGHT over my head. but overall i didnt hate this, i just think my adult brain was too logical to find this interesting.]]> 4.02 1995 The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1)
author: Philip Pullman
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1995
rating: 3
read at: 2024/12/28
date added: 2024/12/28
shelves: childrens, witchy, read-in-2024, goodreads-top-100
review:
2.5 stars

standing ovation to the besties who read this as a kid because WHAT the hell did i just read?!

this straddled the line between so many genres (fantasy? steampunk? urban fiction? sci fi?) that it became soooo muddled and i understood hardly anything. for example, there's witches and talking polar bears but also aircraft and photography BUT ALSO science and atoms and to top it all off, wells fargo bank and texas?! huuuhhhh????

i can see why the kids would love this because lyra was such a fun, smart and empathetic main character. also, the addition of daemons (basically animal sidekicks) was such a cute touch, even though it was never really explained why all humans have them.

i would be so fascinated to see how the movie adaptation tackled this because it felt like nothing happened in the first half, and what did happen in the second half was so aimless, almost like the plot of saving these kidnapped children was a side plot to the actual questions posed at the start.

if this was trying to be some kind of religious or political allegory it definitely flew RIGHT over my head. but overall i didnt hate this, i just think my adult brain was too logical to find this interesting.
]]> Bury Your Gays 195790870 From Chuck Tingle, author of the USA Today bestselling Camp Damascus, comes a new heart-pounding story about what it takes to succeed in a world that wants you dead.

Misha is a jaded scriptwriter who has been working in Hollywood for years, and has just been nominated for his first Oscar. But when he's pressured by his producers to kill off a gay character in the upcoming season finale�"for the algorithm"―Misha discovers that it's not that simple.

As he is haunted by his past, and past mistakes, Misha must risk everything to find a way to do what's right―before it's too late.]]> 295 Chuck Tingle 1250874653 Whitney 0 to-read 4.12 2024 Bury Your Gays
author: Chuck Tingle
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Chocolate Touch 88455 128 Patrick Skene Catling 0688161332 Whitney 4 3.82 1952 The Chocolate Touch
author: Patrick Skene Catling
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1952
rating: 4
read at: 2024/01/12
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: childrens, read-before-booktube, read-in-2024
review:
omg this book brought back so many memories!! only took me like half an hour to read and was surprisingly not fatphobic despite a "stop eating candy!" moral. i'm just a sucker for classic children's books with illustrations though.
]]> Somebody's Daughter 54860610 One of the most prominent voices of her generation debuts with an extraordinarily powerful memoir: the story of a childhood defined by the ever looming absence of her incarcerated father and the path we must take to both honor and overcome our origins.

For as long as she could remember, Ashley has put her father on a pedestal. Despite having only vague memories of seeing him face-to-face, she believes he's the only person in the entire world who understands her. She thinks she understands him too. He's sensitive like her, an artist, and maybe even just as afraid of the dark. She's certain that one day they'll be reunited again, and she'll finally feel complete. There are just a few problems: he's in prison, and she doesn't know what he did to end up there.

Through poverty, puberty, and a fraught relationship with her mother, Ashley returns to her image of her father for hope and encouragement. She doesn't know how to deal with the incessant worries that keep her up at night, or how to handle the changes in her body that draw unwanted attention from men. In her search for unconditional love, Ashley begins dating a boy her mother hates; when the relationship turns sour, he assaults her. Still reeling from the rape, which she keeps secret from her family, Ashley finally finds out why her father is in prison. And that's where the story really begins.

Somebody’s Daughter steps into the world of growing up a poor Black girl, exploring how isolating and complex such a childhood can be. As Ashley battles her body and her environment, she provides a poignant coming-of-age recollection that speaks to finding the threads between who you are and what you were born into, and the complicated familial love that often binds them.]]> 224 Ashley C. Ford 1250305977 Whitney 0 audiobook, read-in-2023
if i'm being honest i listened to this on audio so i hardly remember it, other than i did enjoy it.]]> 4.02 2021 Somebody's Daughter
author: Ashley C. Ford
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at: 2023/11/26
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: audiobook, read-in-2023
review:
i read this last year, but totally forgot to mark it on here!

if i'm being honest i listened to this on audio so i hardly remember it, other than i did enjoy it.
]]> I’m Glad My Mom Died 59366244
Jennette McCurdy was six years old when she had her first acting audition. Her mother’s dream was for her only daughter to become a star, and Jennette would do anything to make her mother happy. So she went along with what Mom called “calorie restriction,� eating little and weighing herself five times a day. She endured extensive at-home makeovers while Mom chided, “Your eyelashes are invisible, okay? You think Dakota Fanning doesn’t tint hers?� She was even showered by Mom until age sixteen while sharing her diaries, email, and all her income.

In I’m Glad My Mom Died , Jennette recounts all this in unflinching detail—just as she chronicles what happens when the dream finally comes true. Cast in a new Nickelodeon series called iCarly , she is thrust into fame. Though Mom is ecstatic, emailing fan club moderators and getting on a first-name basis with the paparazzi (“Hi Gale!�), Jennette is riddled with anxiety, shame, and self-loathing, which manifest into eating disorders, addiction, and a series of unhealthy relationships. These issues only get worse when, soon after taking the lead in the iCarly spinoff Sam & Cat alongside Ariana Grande, her mother dies of cancer. Finally, after discovering therapy and quitting acting, Jennette embarks on recovery and decides for the first time in her life what she really wants.

Told with refreshing candor and dark humor, I’m Glad My Mom Died is an inspiring story of resilience, independence, and the joy of shampooing your own hair.]]> 304 Jennette McCurdy 1982185821 Whitney 0 4.42 2022 I’m Glad My Mom Died
author: Jennette McCurdy
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2023/10/12
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: audiobook, favs-of-2023, read-in-2023, memoir
review:
i listened to this in a day and totally understand why it went super viral around the release. jennette narrates the audiobook and i could not put it down, even when it got super hard to read and you really get to know what was happening behind the scenes of the roles she's known for. i wish we'd gotten to know more of what she plans to do in the future and how her recovery is going, but honestly that might just be something she's continuing to figure out. highly recommend if you're on the fence about this!
]]> Tender Is the Flesh 49090884
His wife has left him, his father is sinking into dementia, and Marcos tries not to think too hard about how he makes a living. After all, it happened so quickly. First, it was reported that an infectious virus has made all animal meat poisonous to humans. Then governments initiated the “Transition.� Now, eating human meat—“special meat”—is legal. Marcos tries to stick to numbers, consignments, processing.

Then one day he’s given a a live specimen of the finest quality. Though he’s aware that any form of personal contact is forbidden on pain of death, little by little he starts to treat her like a human being. And soon, he becomes tortured by what has been lost—and what might still be saved.]]> 209 Agustina Bazterrica 1982150920 Whitney 4 read-in-2024
i can totally see why people might think this is gore just for the sake of gore, and i agree that if this book were written by a man, he would need to be jailed. though this was short and left some to be desired with a full explanation of the class divides and how this story applies globally, i was just wowed at the theme of dehumanization that dominates this.

this book is purposefully disgusting but it was never unbearable for me to read because you were able to retreat behind the safety of the main character's own disgust. i liked that it only feeds you enough information about the protagonist to hint at why he does what he does and what drives him. it ended up at a conclusion i wasn't expecting at ALL and it was wild.

one small detail in this is how even though this book was written back in 2017, i was shocked how relevant the scenes with the up and coming generations were. all the kids and teens in this book were cynical and cruel and joked about traumatic events, which is so reminiscent of gen alpha to me. even though it could be disturbing, i think it's definitely a relevant discussion to kids growing up alongside some rotted practices so much so that they become desensitized and sick humor is the only way they cope.

i'm so happy i buddy read this with bonnie because i had SO much to say about all the little jabs it makes about capitalism and the ways that each event in this book is such a subtle domino effect to the next shitshow. some of these chapters are so haunting, it makes me fearful of this book getting in the hands of the wrong people. one can only hope we are VERY far from any of this becoming a reality.]]> 3.75 2017 Tender Is the Flesh
author: Agustina Bazterrica
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: read-in-2024
review:
i'm mostly just proud of myself for reading a lit fic book so when i say "GOD WE'RE SO BACK" i by no means condone a human meatpacking industry

i can totally see why people might think this is gore just for the sake of gore, and i agree that if this book were written by a man, he would need to be jailed. though this was short and left some to be desired with a full explanation of the class divides and how this story applies globally, i was just wowed at the theme of dehumanization that dominates this.

this book is purposefully disgusting but it was never unbearable for me to read because you were able to retreat behind the safety of the main character's own disgust. i liked that it only feeds you enough information about the protagonist to hint at why he does what he does and what drives him. it ended up at a conclusion i wasn't expecting at ALL and it was wild.

one small detail in this is how even though this book was written back in 2017, i was shocked how relevant the scenes with the up and coming generations were. all the kids and teens in this book were cynical and cruel and joked about traumatic events, which is so reminiscent of gen alpha to me. even though it could be disturbing, i think it's definitely a relevant discussion to kids growing up alongside some rotted practices so much so that they become desensitized and sick humor is the only way they cope.

i'm so happy i buddy read this with bonnie because i had SO much to say about all the little jabs it makes about capitalism and the ways that each event in this book is such a subtle domino effect to the next shitshow. some of these chapters are so haunting, it makes me fearful of this book getting in the hands of the wrong people. one can only hope we are VERY far from any of this becoming a reality.
]]> Here the Whole Time 48997636 The charm and humor of To All the Boys I've Loved Before meets Dumplin' in this body-positive YA love story between two boys who must spend 15 days living with each other over school break.

What would you do if you had to spend the next 15 days with your lifelong crush?

Felipe gets it -- he's fat. Not chubby. Not big-boned. Fat. And he doesn't need anyone to remind him, which is, of course, what everyone does. That's why he's been waiting for this moment ever since the school year began: school break. Finally, he'll be able to spend some time far away from school and the classmates who tease him incessantly. His plans include catching up on his favorite TV shows, finishing his to-be-read pile, and watching YouTube tutorials on skills he'll never actually put into practice.

But things get a little out of hand when Felipe's mom informs him that Caio, the neighbor kid from apartment 57, will be spending the next 15 days with them while his parents are on vacation. Felipe is distraught because A) he's had a crush on Caio since, well, forever, and B) Felipe has a list of body image insecurities and absolutely NO idea how he's going to entertain his neighbor for two full weeks.

Suddenly, the days ahead of him that once promised rest and relaxation (not to mention some epic Netflix bingeing) end up bringing a whirlwind of feelings, forcing Felipe to dive head-first into every unresolved issue he has had with himself -- but maybe, just maybe, he'll manage to win over Caio, too.]]> 288 Vitor Martins 1338620827 Whitney 4 4.08 2017 Here the Whole Time
author: Vitor Martins
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2023/07/30
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: read-in-2023, lgbtqiap, fat-rep
review:
nothing like a book you can zoom through in one sitting in only two hours!! this book was sooo funny and surprisingly relatable. it was real without being too painful or dark, and had a great progression of the two characters' relationship despite the book's short length. i also loved the main character's mom and all the conversations in this book were so real and sweet. Also normalizing therapy??? this is definitely a solid recommendation for anyone, but especially gay teens who may be going through bullying for their size.
]]> <![CDATA[Snow Place Like LA (A Christmas Notch, #1.5)]]> 63138613 Cowritten by #1 New York Times bestselling author Julie Murphy and USA Today bestselling author Sierra Simone--a steamy second chance Christmas in July rom-com.

After Angel and Luca connected on the set of Duke the Halls and had a whirlwind romance in the literal snow globe of Christmas Notch, Vermont, Luca found himself falling in love. Hard. He'd never been one to believe in fate or true love, but one thing was certain: Angel was his person. He knew it as well as he knew the history of American figure skating. But when Angel left for an art school semester abroad without a word, Luca's already brittle heart was broken. No one ghosted Luca. Unless he was in a haunted house.

But with the spring semester long over, Angel is back home in Los Angeles for the summer, and unfortunately for Luca, this big town is turning out to be smaller than either of them ever expected.]]> 192 Julie Murphy 0063325527 Whitney 2 3.23 2023 Snow Place Like LA (A Christmas Notch, #1.5)
author: Julie Murphy
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.23
book published: 2023
rating: 2
read at: 2024/12/25
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: holidays, lgbtqiap, novella, read-in-2024, romance, smutty
review:
i agree with other reviews that this novella is fine but forgettable. i liked book one in this series a lot but found this addition kind of unnecessary, especially since it was m/m romance written by two women (but hey at least it's not incestuous like some of sierra simone's other m/m romance!) the writing was sometimes (a lot of the times) millennial cringe with overly-explained pop culture references and punchlines, but this just felt like an excuse to write gay porn with no real purpose or furtherment to the series' plot.
]]> <![CDATA[Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute]]> 57370115
Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption—yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids� table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.)

These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her.

Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?]]> 336 Talia Hibbert Whitney 3
this book was 15% suspicious and 85% cute

any characters that talia write just shine off the page, and celia and brad were no exception. i thought they were hilarious and realistic, and it made me a bit emotional to read that brad's OCD and the way he manages it was an inspiration from her own journey after being diagnosed. like, HELLO!

i will admit i thought this book was going to deliver way more on the outdoorsy/campy part, but we really only got two scenes of the actual survival part and the rest was more like typical YA high school drama. which i still enjoyed, but i wish we had more enemies to lovers forced proximity moments. in general i didn't understand the program they were part of though, but i liked the emotional pull they both felt toward it. the characters were definitely what carried this story and not the plot (proven by the amount of times i glanced at my page progress as i read this in anticipation of the end, even though i read it in only 2-3 sittings)

celine to me had the biggest growth in this book and i liked watching her progression from bitter and closed off to questioning herself. i think it's such an important part of growing up and this book discussed it so seamlessly and realistically. although talia has a great writing style with funny moments, sometimes i felt this "stooped" a little too far into corny turns of phrase to appease a YA audience. some parts of it also felt kind of hyperbolic (like the "OMG SHE'S MY ARCH NEMESIS" type language and a pretty unrealistic major injury in the end).

but this book has proved that regardless of genre and audience, i will be in line at the library to read anything talia writes.]]> 3.68 2023 Highly Suspicious and Unfairly Cute
author: Talia Hibbert
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/09/17
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: read-in-2023, fat-rep, from-library
review:
3.5 stars

this book was 15% suspicious and 85% cute

any characters that talia write just shine off the page, and celia and brad were no exception. i thought they were hilarious and realistic, and it made me a bit emotional to read that brad's OCD and the way he manages it was an inspiration from her own journey after being diagnosed. like, HELLO!

i will admit i thought this book was going to deliver way more on the outdoorsy/campy part, but we really only got two scenes of the actual survival part and the rest was more like typical YA high school drama. which i still enjoyed, but i wish we had more enemies to lovers forced proximity moments. in general i didn't understand the program they were part of though, but i liked the emotional pull they both felt toward it. the characters were definitely what carried this story and not the plot (proven by the amount of times i glanced at my page progress as i read this in anticipation of the end, even though i read it in only 2-3 sittings)

celine to me had the biggest growth in this book and i liked watching her progression from bitter and closed off to questioning herself. i think it's such an important part of growing up and this book discussed it so seamlessly and realistically. although talia has a great writing style with funny moments, sometimes i felt this "stooped" a little too far into corny turns of phrase to appease a YA audience. some parts of it also felt kind of hyperbolic (like the "OMG SHE'S MY ARCH NEMESIS" type language and a pretty unrealistic major injury in the end).

but this book has proved that regardless of genre and audience, i will be in line at the library to read anything talia writes.
]]> Glass Sword (Red Queen, #2) 26531536 If there’s one thing Mare Barrow knows, it’s that she’s different.

Mare Barrow’s blood is red—the color of common folk—but her Silver ability, the power to control lightning, has turned her into a weapon that the royal court tries to control.

The crown calls her an impossibility, a fake, but as she makes her escape from Maven, the prince—the friend—who betrayed her, Mare uncovers something startling: she is not the only one of her kind.

Pursued by Maven, now a vindictive king, Mare sets out to find and recruit other Red-and-Silver fighters to join in the struggle against her oppressors.

But Mare finds herself on a deadly path, at risk of becoming exactly the kind of monster she is trying to defeat.

Will she shatter under the weight of the lives that are the cost of rebellion? Or have treachery and betrayal hardened her forever?

The electrifying next installment in the Red Queen series escalates the struggle between the growing rebel army and the blood-segregated world they’ve always known—and pits Mare against the darkness that has grown in her soul.]]> 444 Victoria Aveyard 006245532X Whitney 5
i haven't DEVOURED a series this hard since i reread acotar last year. these books have really done me in. i love the world. i love mare (even though that's a controversial statement - but as someone who has i-love-meanies syndrome, i'm rooting for her. and she reminds me of nesta). i love knowing that there's still two books full of conflict and drama and nothing is what it seems on the surface. i love the cliffhangers and betrayals.

this is some literature my dude. i immediately dove into book three and put holds for the rest of the books at my library. i'm gonna be sad when it's all over]]> 3.69 2016 Glass Sword (Red Queen, #2)
author: Victoria Aveyard
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2023/10/05
date added: 2024/12/27
shelves: superior-enemies-to-lovers, read-in-2023, favs-of-2023
review:
i really don't have anything negative to say about this which means fuck it, five stars.

i haven't DEVOURED a series this hard since i reread acotar last year. these books have really done me in. i love the world. i love mare (even though that's a controversial statement - but as someone who has i-love-meanies syndrome, i'm rooting for her. and she reminds me of nesta). i love knowing that there's still two books full of conflict and drama and nothing is what it seems on the surface. i love the cliffhangers and betrayals.

this is some literature my dude. i immediately dove into book three and put holds for the rest of the books at my library. i'm gonna be sad when it's all over
]]> <![CDATA[Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! (A Click Clack Book)]]> 24885865 New York Times bestselling and Caldecott winning team who brought you Click, Clack, Moo and Click, Clack, Peep!

It's the night before Christmas and all through the farm, not a creature is stirring, not even a...duck?

Farmer Brown is busy decorating his home in preparation for Santa's arrival on Christmas Eve! All seems calm in the barnyard, but Farmer Brown isn't the only one who is getting ready...

Ho
Ho
OH NO!

Once again, Duck has gotten the whole barnyard STUCK in quite a predicament! Will anyone be able to un-stuck Duck and save Christmas?]]> 40 Doreen Cronin 1442496738 Whitney 5
we stan duck.

the plot twist ??????

the take on "not a creature was stirring"

when will doreen see the pulitzer stage]]> 3.76 2015 Click, Clack, Ho! Ho! Ho! (A Click Clack Book)
author: Doreen Cronin
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/24
date added: 2024/12/25
shelves: childrens, read-in-2024, holidays
review:
now THIS is literature

we stan duck.

the plot twist ??????

the take on "not a creature was stirring"

when will doreen see the pulitzer stage
]]> <![CDATA[Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type]]> 766955
Farmer Brown
has a problem.
His cows like to type.
All day long he hears
Click, clack, MOO.
Click, clack, MOO.
Clickety, clack, MOO.
But Farmer Brown's problems REALLY begin when his cows start leaving him notes....
Doreen Cronin's understated text and Betsy Lewin's expressive illustrations make the most of this hilarious situation. Come join the fun as a bunch of literate cows turn Farmer Brown's farm upside down.]]> 32 Doreen Cronin 0689832133 Whitney 5 read-in-2024, childrens 4.28 1999 Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type
author: Doreen Cronin
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1999
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/24
date added: 2024/12/25
shelves: read-in-2024, childrens
review:
cows with sentience feels like chick-fil-a propaganda but i can't help but stan
]]> The Polar Express 420282 “Seeing is believing, but sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we can't see.�

Late one Christmas Eve after the town has gone to sleep, the boy boards the mysterious train that waits for him: the Polar Express bound for the North Pole. When he arrives, Santa offers the boy any gift he desires. The boy modestly asks for one bell from the harness of the reindeer. The gift is granted. On the way home the bell is lost. On Christmas morning, the boy finds the bell under the tree. The mother of the boy admires the bell, but laments that it is broken—for you see, only believers can hear the sound of the bell.

In strange and moving shades of full color art, Chris Van Allsburg creates an otherwordly classic of the Christmas season. 'The Polar Express' evokes the same sense of mystery as his previous imaginative books 'The Garden of Abdul Gasazi' (1979), 'Jumanji' (1981), and 'The Wreck of the Zephyr' (1983).

Awarded the prestigious Caldecott Medal in 1986,Ěý'The Polar Express 'has soldĚýmore than 7 million copies, become a classic holiday movie, andĚýbeen translatedĚýinto stage productions that take place across the United States during the holiday season.]]> 32 Chris Van Allsburg 0395389496 Whitney 5 4.32 1985 The Polar Express
author: Chris Van Allsburg
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.32
book published: 1985
rating: 5
read at: 2024/12/24
date added: 2024/12/25
shelves: childrens, holidays, read-in-2024
review:
it is SO nice rereading this as an adult who loves and watches the movie every year because the art and story already feels SO familiar. i love the concept in children's books of being whisked away somewhere magical but then dropped right back off at home. the polar express is one of my favorite christmas movies for that reason and i loooove how the adaptation pulls so much directly from this dialogue and adds so many more cool speculative elements about the magic of the train. count me in next christmas eve!!! i want on, mr conductor :)
]]> Make the Season Bright 206180603
It's been five years since Charlotte Donovan was ditched at the altar by her ex-fiancée, and she’s doing more than okay. Sure, her single mother never checks in, but she has her strings ensemble, the Rosalind Quartet, and her life in New York is a dream come true. As the holidays draw near, her ensemble mate Sloane persuades Charlotte and the rest of the quartet to spend Christmas with her family in Colorado—it is much cozier and quieter than Manhattan, and it would guarantee more practice time for the quartet’s upcoming tour. But when Charlotte arrives, she discovers that Sloane’s sister Adele also brought a friend home—and that friend is none other than her ex, Brighton. All Brighton Fairbrook wanted was to have the holliest, jolliest Christmas—and try to forget that her band kicked her out. But instead, she’s stuck pretending like she and her ex are strangers—which proves to be difficult when Sloane and Adele’s mom signs them all up for a series of Christmas dating events. Charlotte and Brighton are soon entrenched in horseback riding and cookie decorating, but Charlotte still won’t talk to her. Brighton can hardly blame her after what she did. After a few days, however, things start to slip through. Memories. Music. The way they used to play together—Brighton on guitar, Charlotte on her violin—and it all feels painfully familiar. But it’s all in the past and nothing can melt the ice in their hearts...right?]]> 342 Ashley Herring Blake 0593550595 Whitney 0 dnf, sapphic
i hate to say it because i've loved some of AHB's other books but i think this may be my last adult romance i try from her. i find her writing style SO dry and buzzword-y and on page one it info dumps so much that you can basically predict where the book is gonna go.

i knew this was second chance lovers going into it but it felt like it was veering hard toward a miscommunication trope and i didn't like the characters' personalities (esp the "i don't feel emotions and i'm a workaholic" girl)

i tried to stick it out but this book also was setting up that it would have the characters involved in a christmas themed speed dating weird unrealistic town thing where singles all do activities together and it just felt so forced and i hated that the main couple was lying to all their friends that they didn't know each other, it was just awk and annoying

i may just be jaded in general at romances now that there are SO many to choose from but i was not a fan and didn't care to read this just to say i read a holiday romance because i found it so irritating every page rather than cozy]]> 3.60 2024 Make the Season Bright
author: Ashley Herring Blake
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/24
date added: 2024/12/25
shelves: dnf, sapphic
review:
DNF on page 96.

i hate to say it because i've loved some of AHB's other books but i think this may be my last adult romance i try from her. i find her writing style SO dry and buzzword-y and on page one it info dumps so much that you can basically predict where the book is gonna go.

i knew this was second chance lovers going into it but it felt like it was veering hard toward a miscommunication trope and i didn't like the characters' personalities (esp the "i don't feel emotions and i'm a workaholic" girl)

i tried to stick it out but this book also was setting up that it would have the characters involved in a christmas themed speed dating weird unrealistic town thing where singles all do activities together and it just felt so forced and i hated that the main couple was lying to all their friends that they didn't know each other, it was just awk and annoying

i may just be jaded in general at romances now that there are SO many to choose from but i was not a fan and didn't care to read this just to say i read a holiday romance because i found it so irritating every page rather than cozy
]]> <![CDATA[Little Women (Little Women, #1)]]> 1934 This is an alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780451529305.

Generations of readers young and old, male and female, have fallen in love with the March sisters of Louisa May Alcott’s most popular and enduring novel, Little Women. Here are talented tomboy and author-to-be Jo, tragically frail Beth, beautiful Meg, and romantic, spoiled Amy, united in their devotion to each other and their struggles to survive in New England during the Civil War.

It is no secret that Alcott based Little Women on her own early life. While her father, the freethinking reformer and abolitionist Bronson Alcott, hobnobbed with such eminent male authors as Emerson, Thoreau, and Hawthorne, Louisa supported herself and her sisters with "woman’s work,� including sewing, doing laundry, and acting as a domestic servant. But she soon discovered she could make more money writing. Little Women brought her lasting fame and fortune, and far from being the "girl’s book� her publisher requested, it explores such timeless themes as love and death, war and peace, the conflict between personal ambition and family responsibilities, and the clash of cultures between Europe and America.

]]> 449 Louisa May Alcott Whitney 3
i can already hear the voices of people coming to this book's defense re:the publishing era and louisa being forced into changing the plot of certain things, but this was just a disappointment in the end and i felt like the women in part 2 weren't even the same as the first part. also part 2 was boring and i'm sad i spent THREE (!!!) weeks on this book just to feel like it was okay.

the 2019 movie redeemed a lot of it for me and one day i may reread this and research it better beforehand so i'm better prepared for what to expect but i was hoping this would blow me away and sadly i remain sitting]]> 4.16 1868 Little Women (Little Women, #1)
author: Louisa May Alcott
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1868
rating: 3
read at: 2024/12/23
date added: 2024/12/25
shelves: goodreads-top-100, read-in-2024, holidays
review:
if i were a 15 year old girl in 1870 then maybe this book would be a full five stars. hell, if part one was a standalone from part 2, it probably would've gotten 5 stars. but i join the hoard of people who are so disappointed in how this book resolves.

i can already hear the voices of people coming to this book's defense re:the publishing era and louisa being forced into changing the plot of certain things, but this was just a disappointment in the end and i felt like the women in part 2 weren't even the same as the first part. also part 2 was boring and i'm sad i spent THREE (!!!) weeks on this book just to feel like it was okay.

the 2019 movie redeemed a lot of it for me and one day i may reread this and research it better beforehand so i'm better prepared for what to expect but i was hoping this would blow me away and sadly i remain sitting
]]> Orlando 18839 Orlando 'The longest and most charming love letter in literature', playfully constructs the figure of Orlando as the fictional embodiment of Woolf's close friend and lover, Vita Sackville-West. Spanning three centuries, the novel opens as Orlando, a young nobleman in Elizabeth's England, awaits a visit from the Queen and traces his experience with first love as England under James I lies locked in the embrace of the Great Frost. At the midpoint of the novel, Orlando, now an ambassador in Constantinople, awakes to find that he is now a woman, and the novel indulges in farce and irony to consider the roles of women in the 18th and 19th centuries. As the novel ends in 1928, a year consonant with full suffrage for women. Orlando, now a wife and mother, stands poised at the brink of a future that holds new hope and promise for women.]]> 336 Virginia Woolf 0141184272 Whitney 0 to-read 3.88 1928 Orlando
author: Virginia Woolf
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1928
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Villette 31173 Villette, Charlotte Brontë reached the height of her artistic power. First published in 1853, Villette is Brontë's most accomplished and deeply felt work, eclipsing even Jane Eyre in critical acclaim. Her narrator, the autobiographical Lucy Snowe, flees England and a tragic past to become an instructor in a French boarding school in the town of Villette. There she unexpectedly confronts her feelings of love and longing as she witnesses the fitful romance between Dr. John, a handsome young Englishman, and Ginerva Fanshawe, a beautiful coquette. The first pain brings others, and with them comes the heartache Lucy has tried so long to escape. Yet in spite of adversity and disappointment, Lucy Snowe survives to recount the unstinting vision of a turbulent life's journey - a journey that is one of the most insightful fictional studies of a woman's consciousness in English literature.]]> 573 Charlotte Brontë Whitney 0 to-read 3.78 1853 Villette
author: Charlotte Brontë
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.78
book published: 1853
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Loud: Accept Nothing Less Than the Life You Deserve]]> 195791316 256 Drew Afualo 0374614059 Whitney 0 to-read 4.33 2024 Loud: Accept Nothing Less Than the Life You Deserve
author: Drew Afualo
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Spellshop 217206125 The Spellshop is Sarah Beth Durst’s romantasy debut–a lush cottagecore tale full of stolen spellbooks, unexpected friendships, sweet jams, and even sweeter love.

Kiela has always had trouble dealing with people. Thankfully, as a librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, she and her assistant, Caz—a magically sentient spider plant—have spent the last decade sequestered among the empire’s most precious spellbooks, preserving their magic for the city’s elite.

When a revolution begins and the library goes up in flames, she and Caz flee with all the spellbooks they can carry and head to a remote island Kiela never thought she’d see again: her childhood home. Taking refuge there, Kiela discovers, much to her dismay, a nosy—and very handsome—neighbor who can’t take a hint and keeps showing up day after day to make sure she’s fed and to help fix up her new home.

In need of income, Kiela identifies something that even the bakery in town doesn’t have: jam. With the help of an old recipe book her parents left her and a bit of illegal magic, her cottage garden is soon covered in ripe berries.

But magic can do more than make life a little sweeter, so Kiela risks the consequences of using unsanctioned spells and opens the island’s first-ever and much needed secret spellshop.

Like a Hallmark rom-com full of mythical creatures and fueled by cinnamon rolls and magic, The Spellshop will heal your heart and feed your soul.]]> 377 Sarah Beth Durst 1250333970 Whitney 0 to-read 3.97 2024 The Spellshop
author: Sarah Beth Durst
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Honey Witch 196726166 The Honey Witch of Innisfree can never find true love. That is her curse to bear. But when a young woman who doesn’t believe in magic arrives on her island, sparks fly in this deliciously sweet debut novel of magic, hope, and love overcoming all.
Ěý
Twenty-one-year-old Marigold Claude has always preferred the company of the spirits of the meadow to any of the suitors who’ve tried to woo her. So when her grandmother whisks her away to the family cottage on the tiny Isle of Innisfree with an offer to train her as the next Honey Witch, she accepts immediately. But her newfound magic and independence come with a price: No one can fall in love with the Honey Witch.
Ěý
When Lottie Burke, a notoriously grumpy skeptic who doesn’t believe in magic, shows up on her doorstep, Marigold can’t resist the challenge to prove to her that magic is real. But soon, Marigold begins to care for Lottie in ways she never expected. And when darker magic awakens and threatens to destroy her home, she must fight for much more than her new home—at the risk of losing her magic and her heart.]]> 368 Sydney J. Shields 0316568864 Whitney 0 to-read 3.56 2024 The Honey Witch
author: Sydney J. Shields
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.56
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Fate Breaker (Realm Breaker, #3)]]> 166999534 A dark fate descends. A shattered alliance must rise.

The Companions are torn apart and the realm hangs in the balance, at the edge of ruin. Taristan and Queen Erida rise triumphant from the battlefield, while Corayne barely escapes with her life; her Companions left behind to uncertain fates.

But not all hope was lost: Corayne managed to steal Taristan's Spindleblade.ĚýWithout it, Taristan can’t rip open any more Spindles. Without it, he can’t end the world.

Now, from every corner of the realm, the Companions race to reunite while they rally old allies and seek unexpected new ones, in one final push against darkness.

But Taristan and Erida are all but invincible. With their cruel god, What Waits, on their side, they will sacrifice anything and anyone to his hunger.

Everything has come to this. In the final clash between good and evil, a ragged alliance makes its bravest stand against a ruthless enemy . . . and the demon god who would consume the realm entire.]]> 625 Victoria Aveyard 0063116065 Whitney 4
this really read like a movie in my head because the universe was so vast and the cast of characters so deeply explored throughout the first books. i will say that although red queen was action packed in nearly every chapter with twists and turns, this series was more of a slow build, excruciatingly slow at parts, but all culminates in this volume and at the massive battle scene at the end. i could really see the lord of the rings inspiration throughout, and this volume was especially strong.

this isn't a full five stars for me because although i like the characters a lot and the world was so cool, i still didn't feel like i fully understand each person and the action was somewhat under-explained still. the villains remained one-dimensional. the romance in this was so subtle as to barely even have a kissing scene. this is totally personal preference but i wish it went a bit deeper than world building.

this ended in a way where i could totally see a spin off about dom and sorasa and i totally hope that's the case because they were my two favorite characters!! victoria, don't let me down]]> 4.14 2024 Fate Breaker (Realm Breaker, #3)
author: Victoria Aveyard
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/12/01
date added: 2024/12/01
shelves: superior-enemies-to-lovers, read-in-2024, from-library, favs-of-2024
review:
i swear if i wasn't a month on zoloft this book would've had me weeping because over the months i've been reading this series, i've grown soooo familiar with these characters and attached to this world.

this really read like a movie in my head because the universe was so vast and the cast of characters so deeply explored throughout the first books. i will say that although red queen was action packed in nearly every chapter with twists and turns, this series was more of a slow build, excruciatingly slow at parts, but all culminates in this volume and at the massive battle scene at the end. i could really see the lord of the rings inspiration throughout, and this volume was especially strong.

this isn't a full five stars for me because although i like the characters a lot and the world was so cool, i still didn't feel like i fully understand each person and the action was somewhat under-explained still. the villains remained one-dimensional. the romance in this was so subtle as to barely even have a kissing scene. this is totally personal preference but i wish it went a bit deeper than world building.

this ended in a way where i could totally see a spin off about dom and sorasa and i totally hope that's the case because they were my two favorite characters!! victoria, don't let me down
]]> <![CDATA[The Raven Boys: The Graphic Novel (The Raven Cycle: The Graphic Novels #1)]]> 221473217 The first book in Maggie Stiefvater'sĚý#1 NYT bestselling series The Raven Cycle, now gorgeously illustrated as a graphic novel!

Blue Sargent comes from a family of psychics. Only, she has never had the same clairvoyant abilities they had and has always felt too ordinary within the magic that surrounded her. Enter Gansey, a rich student from Aglionby, the town’s all-boys private school teeming with wealth, privilege, and trouble. Blue's always made it a point to stay away from its students, the Raven Boys.

But when Gansey asks her to join him and three other Raven Boys on his quest to find a long-forgotten Welsh king rumored to be sleeping beneath the mountains of their quiet Virginia town, Blue doesn’t hesitate. She jumps at the chance to finally be a part of something real and full of magic, a world she was born into yet one that always stood just out of reach. Soon enough, she’s swept into a strange and shifting world woven into theirs, one far more dangerous than anything they could have dreamt up.

Now reimagined as a stunning full-color graphic novel adapted by Stephanie Williams and illustrated by Sas Milledge, The Raven Boys unravels a thrilling plot around a cast of characters impossible to forget.]]> 256 Stephanie Williams 0593621174 Whitney 0 to-read 4.75 2025 The Raven Boys: The Graphic Novel (The Raven Cycle: The Graphic Novels #1)
author: Stephanie Williams
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.75
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Sweet Bean Paste 33376821
Until, that is, Tokue comes into his life. An elderly woman with disfigured hands and a troubled past, she makes the best sweet bean paste Sentaro has ever tasted. The unlikeliest of friendships blossoms, but it will take all of their resolve � and plenty of pancakes � to protect themselves when Tokue's dark secret comes to light.]]> 216 Durian Sukegawa 1786071959 Whitney 0 to-read 4.07 2013 Sweet Bean Paste
author: Durian Sukegawa
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Rebecca 17899948 Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again...

The novel begins in Monte Carlo, where our heroine is swept off her feet by the dashing widower Maxim de Winter and his sudden proposal of marriage. Orphaned and working as a lady's maid, she can barely believe her luck. It is only when they arrive at his massive country estate that she realizes how large a shadow his late wife will cast over their lives--presenting her with a lingering evil that threatens to destroy their marriage from beyond the grave.

First published in 1938, this classic gothic novel is such a compelling read that it won the Anthony Award for Best Novel of the Century.]]> 449 Daphne du Maurier 0316323705 Whitney 5 read-in-2024, favs-of-2024
needless to say i loved this book and it was astounding to me that despite this book being written nearly a century ago, the main character's thoughts were sometimes as if they were plucked from my own head. one of the most relatable protagonists i've ever encountered, which made me all the more sympathetic to everything that happened to her.

never in my life have i read a classic in one sitting like i did for this. when i wasn't reading it, i was excited for the next time i'd get to sit down and enjoy it. i can't pinpoint about this what made it so addicting because the action doesn't get very significant until the end, but i was absolutely glued to this plot.

this is the kind of book that i finished and then immediately flipped to chapter one and started reading again. i can see why this is a lot of people's favorite, as it now is one of mine. even writing this review makes me want to start from the beginning and experience it all over again.]]> 4.28 1938 Rebecca
author: Daphne du Maurier
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1938
rating: 5
read at: 2024/11/19
date added: 2024/11/23
shelves: read-in-2024, favs-of-2024
review:
this book is for the girls who get sad when they leave a hotel room because they get attached to places. this book is for girls who relate to "give me back my girlhood, it was mine first." this book is for the pathological people pleasers and girls who draw hearts in the byline, always taking up too much space or time.

needless to say i loved this book and it was astounding to me that despite this book being written nearly a century ago, the main character's thoughts were sometimes as if they were plucked from my own head. one of the most relatable protagonists i've ever encountered, which made me all the more sympathetic to everything that happened to her.

never in my life have i read a classic in one sitting like i did for this. when i wasn't reading it, i was excited for the next time i'd get to sit down and enjoy it. i can't pinpoint about this what made it so addicting because the action doesn't get very significant until the end, but i was absolutely glued to this plot.

this is the kind of book that i finished and then immediately flipped to chapter one and started reading again. i can see why this is a lot of people's favorite, as it now is one of mine. even writing this review makes me want to start from the beginning and experience it all over again.
]]> A Witch's Guide to Burning 123186554 Dhaliwal creates a land ruled by magic and fire, where the sky is thick with witches

A witch’s work is never done when she works for the people. With the success of her town relying on her magic, demands are high. But what happens when a witch can't keep up with the magical requests? She is burnt, of course—in a cruel ritual that extinguishes her magic and erases all her memories, making her just like everybody else. But when a burning ceremony is interrupted by rain in Chamomile Valley, a witch is left writhing at the stake. It's up to a witch doctor and her toad friend to save the singed witch and nurse her back to health. Can they help her before her magic is lost forever?

Aminder Dhaliwal’s A Witch’s Guide to Burning is a whimsical and humorous allegory for burnout in a society in desperate need of self-care. With a lavish blend of prose, illustration, and comics, Dhaliwal crafts an enthralling hybrid adventure story like you’ve never seen before. Follow Singe and her companions Yew-Veda and Bufo Wonder as they journey across dangerous landscapes, battling demons along the way in an extraordinary tale about sacrifice and healing.]]> 400 Aminder Dhaliwal 1770466991 Whitney 4
not a full five stars because i didn't entirely understand the action at the end and this was sometimes a bit dry, but i applaud the art and narration style because i've never read anything like it. it's one of the most story-forward graphic novels i've ever read and the dialogue and typography was so unique.

i definitely recommend this if you want a witchy book with some deeper themes about self-love!]]> 4.11 2024 A Witch's Guide to Burning
author: Aminder Dhaliwal
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/11/12
date added: 2024/11/12
shelves: from-library, graphic-novels, read-in-2024, witchy
review:
this was so sweet and fun! it reminded me of animal crossing kind of, being a guide book on how to recover from hard times and lean on your friends with some witchy vibes and a talking toad. this was witty and cute but also had some tough themes and definitely stood as a metaphor for giving yourself grace and recovering from hard times.

not a full five stars because i didn't entirely understand the action at the end and this was sometimes a bit dry, but i applaud the art and narration style because i've never read anything like it. it's one of the most story-forward graphic novels i've ever read and the dialogue and typography was so unique.

i definitely recommend this if you want a witchy book with some deeper themes about self-love!
]]> Extasia 58212203
All you must know is that today she will become one of the four saints of Haven. The elders will mark her and place the red hood on her head. With her sisters, she will stand against the evil power that lives beneath the black mountain--an evil which has already killed nine of her village's men.

She will tell no one of the white-eyed beasts that follow her. Or the faceless gray women tall as houses. Or the girls she saw kissing in the elm grove.

Today she will be a saint of Haven. She will rid her family of her mother's shame at last and save her people from destruction. She is not afraid. Are you?]]> 496 Claire Legrand 0062696637 Whitney 4
i couldn't have asked for a more man hating, sisterhood-promoting, who's-afraid-of-little-old-me feminist rage anthem to read around a time like this.

framed in a world that hates women and uses religion to shame and abuse them, this really hit close to home and i found myself really rooting for the main character so hard. i can see how other people could get mad at her for not pushing back and taking control of her life earlier in the book, but every time she felt a softness for the people who hurt her and not wanting to completely burn the world down (like i and many of the other characters would have), it just made her all the more realistic to me.

i'm such a sucker for books with purple prose and this was written soooo lyrically that it also stole my heart. claire is just such a talented writer! everything from the main character's emotions to the sapphic relationship to the state of the world was written with such care, i was tabbing so many quotes i LOVED. this one, given the election timing, hit so close to home:

He watched them strike me and thought, Yes, that is correct.
I could choke on my disappointment. I could weep fire for a thousand years.


the reason it's not five stars is two plot things that just didn't sit right with me and affected the pace of the book. first, this book's main mission is for the protagonist to assemble 5 items to be able to summon the devil, and it takes her 400 pages to aimlessly look for things she should be able to scrape together in an afternoon. so i have no clue why it wasn't explained why it took her so long to do a simple task. and second, i didn't love the plot twist at the end because it opened up plot holes than it closed. although i liked this book as a study of what the world would look like if the alt-right wing broke off from society and treated women how they really want to, the dystopia elements of this collided with the witchcraft focus in a weird way that didn't blend seamlessly.

i would definitely recommend this and it secured claire legrand as an auto-buy author for me because i fear she can do no wrong!!

even though, come on. devil-worshiping women deserve to meet the devil once as a little treat]]> 3.51 2022 Extasia
author: Claire Legrand
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2024/11/10
date added: 2024/11/10
shelves: witchy, sapphic, read-in-2024, lgbtqiap, favs-of-2024
review:
god, what a book to be reading during the 2024 election.

i couldn't have asked for a more man hating, sisterhood-promoting, who's-afraid-of-little-old-me feminist rage anthem to read around a time like this.

framed in a world that hates women and uses religion to shame and abuse them, this really hit close to home and i found myself really rooting for the main character so hard. i can see how other people could get mad at her for not pushing back and taking control of her life earlier in the book, but every time she felt a softness for the people who hurt her and not wanting to completely burn the world down (like i and many of the other characters would have), it just made her all the more realistic to me.

i'm such a sucker for books with purple prose and this was written soooo lyrically that it also stole my heart. claire is just such a talented writer! everything from the main character's emotions to the sapphic relationship to the state of the world was written with such care, i was tabbing so many quotes i LOVED. this one, given the election timing, hit so close to home:

He watched them strike me and thought, Yes, that is correct.
I could choke on my disappointment. I could weep fire for a thousand years.


the reason it's not five stars is two plot things that just didn't sit right with me and affected the pace of the book. first, this book's main mission is for the protagonist to assemble 5 items to be able to summon the devil, and it takes her 400 pages to aimlessly look for things she should be able to scrape together in an afternoon. so i have no clue why it wasn't explained why it took her so long to do a simple task. and second, i didn't love the plot twist at the end because it opened up plot holes than it closed. although i liked this book as a study of what the world would look like if the alt-right wing broke off from society and treated women how they really want to, the dystopia elements of this collided with the witchcraft focus in a weird way that didn't blend seamlessly.

i would definitely recommend this and it secured claire legrand as an auto-buy author for me because i fear she can do no wrong!!

even though, come on. devil-worshiping women deserve to meet the devil once as a little treat
]]> Stoner 8551582
John Williams’s luminous and deeply moving novel is a work of quiet perfection. William Stoner emerges from it not only as an archetypal American, but as an unlikely existential hero, standing, like a figure in a painting by Edward Hopper, in stark relief against an unforgiving world.
--nyrb.com]]> 305 John Williams 1590173937 Whitney 0 to-read 4.38 1965 Stoner
author: John Williams
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.38
book published: 1965
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Marked (House of Night, #1) 30183 Also see: Alternate Cover Editions for this ISBN [ACE]
ACE #1

After a Vampire Tracker Marks her with a crescent moon on her forehead, 16-year-old Zoey Redbird enters the House of Night and learns that she is no average fledgling. She has been Marked as special by the vampyre Goddess Nyx and has affinities for all five elements: Air, Fire, Water, Earth and Spirit. But she is not the only fledgling at the House of Night with special powers. When she discovers that the leader of the Dark Daughters, the school’s most elite club, is misusing her Goddess-given gifts, Zoey must look deep within herself for the courage to embrace her destiny—with a little help from her new vampyre friends (or Nerd Herd, as Aphrodite calls them).]]> 306 P.C. Cast 0312360266 Whitney 3 read-in-2024, cringe
the only reason i was able to enjoy this book is because i went into it with the expectation that it would be absolutely ridiculous, over-dramatic early 2000s teen writing, and it 100% is. this book is very dated and uses slurs, fatphobia, and slut shaming nearly on every page. and also randomly, a lot of the plot is centered on the protagonist's indigenous descent giving her extra spiritual powers, and it felt like using cherokee culture as a costume for their main character.

i wouldn't really recommend it as i think it aged terribly, but it was interesting to see all the branches off of twilight's success. i can totally see why i wouldn't have been allowed to read this as a tween because it was surprisingly mature with talks of blowjobs and religion and the challenges of being a teenager. it was quite addicting and i read it in a day even though the last half of the book really has no plot. however, the way the rest of the series is TWELVE BOOKS is not necessary

]]> 3.82 2007 Marked (House of Night, #1)
author: P.C. Cast
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at: 2024/11/04
date added: 2024/11/04
shelves: read-in-2024, cringe
review:
i'm obsessed with the fact that this book could have chosen anywhere in the world to build a dark, culty vampire boarding school and the authors chose TULSA, OKLAHOMA. like girl what do you mean you've been chosen to be a vampire and you have to escape in the night to go train on how to be a vampire and they have you sitting in spanish and drama class in the middle of oklahoma?!

the only reason i was able to enjoy this book is because i went into it with the expectation that it would be absolutely ridiculous, over-dramatic early 2000s teen writing, and it 100% is. this book is very dated and uses slurs, fatphobia, and slut shaming nearly on every page. and also randomly, a lot of the plot is centered on the protagonist's indigenous descent giving her extra spiritual powers, and it felt like using cherokee culture as a costume for their main character.

i wouldn't really recommend it as i think it aged terribly, but it was interesting to see all the branches off of twilight's success. i can totally see why i wouldn't have been allowed to read this as a tween because it was surprisingly mature with talks of blowjobs and religion and the challenges of being a teenager. it was quite addicting and i read it in a day even though the last half of the book really has no plot. however, the way the rest of the series is TWELVE BOOKS is not necessary


]]> And Then There Were None 16299
"Ten little boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then there were nine. Nine little boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then there were eight. Eight little boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay there then there were seven. Seven little boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in half and then there were six. Six little boys playing with a hive; A bumblebee stung one and then there were five. Five little boys going in for law; One got in Chancery and then there were four. Four little boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then there were three. Three little boys walking in the zoo; A big bear hugged one and then there were two. Two little boys sitting in the sun; One got frizzled up and then there was one. One little boy left all alone; He went out and hanged himself and then there were none."

When they realize that murders are occurring as described in the rhyme, terror mounts. One by one they fall prey. Before the weekend is out, there will be none. Who has choreographed this dastardly scheme? And who will be left to tell the tale? Only the dead are above suspicion.]]> 264 Agatha Christie 0312330871 Whitney 3
ok i didn't guess the killer but in my defense, i only cared about the characters who were interesting and the murderer was HOOOOONK MI MI MI MI

this is one of the only mysteries i've ever read and i picked it up because 1) i do want to dip a toe into the genre, and this felt like a place to start 2) this is just a popular book/classic in general and 3) it's my mom's favorite book of all time

every time i told someone i was reading this, the response was "isn't that the book that had the racist title?" and not gonna lie, there's not much here to redeem it. it felt very sherlockian where the whole story unfolds then the epilogue actually explains the who dunnit.

it was good. but i'm still convinced there was a secret 11th person living on the roof or something that they just didn't search the house good enough to find]]> 4.28 1939 And Then There Were None
author: Agatha Christie
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1939
rating: 3
read at: 2024/11/03
date added: 2024/11/04
shelves: read-in-2024, goodreads-top-100
review:
3.5 stars

ok i didn't guess the killer but in my defense, i only cared about the characters who were interesting and the murderer was HOOOOONK MI MI MI MI

this is one of the only mysteries i've ever read and i picked it up because 1) i do want to dip a toe into the genre, and this felt like a place to start 2) this is just a popular book/classic in general and 3) it's my mom's favorite book of all time

every time i told someone i was reading this, the response was "isn't that the book that had the racist title?" and not gonna lie, there's not much here to redeem it. it felt very sherlockian where the whole story unfolds then the epilogue actually explains the who dunnit.

it was good. but i'm still convinced there was a secret 11th person living on the roof or something that they just didn't search the house good enough to find
]]> <![CDATA[Blade Breaker (Realm Breaker, #2)]]> 41398739 The fate of the world rests on a blade's edge.

Fighting beside her band of unlikely companions, Corayne is learning to embrace her ancient lineage and wield her father's powerful sword.

But while she successfully closed one of the Spindles, her journey is far from over.

Queen Erida's army marches across Allward with her consort, Taristan, right beside them, opening more portals into nightmarish worlds, razing kingdoms to the ground.

Corayne has no choice but to assemble an army of her own if she's to save the realm as she knows it. But perilous lands await her and the companions, and they face assassins, otherworldly beasts, and tempestuous seas all as they rally a divided Ward to fight behind them.

But Taristan has unleashed an evil far more wicked than his corpse armies. Something deadly waits in the shadows; something that might consume the world before there's any hope for victory.]]> 578 Victoria Aveyard 0062872664 Whitney 4
this book finally got to the bulk of the action i was hoping for with the main characters actually starting to fight the villain instead of putting out fires he started... and traveling aimlessly around the world just to introduce 30 kingdoms. i do think that foundation helped in this book because there's so many different players and people of different backgrounds. however. it's becoming increasingly clear in this book that victoria is creating "fantasy" kingdoms that are almost exactly just pulled from history, like the Mongols and the Ottoman empire and even mirroring current countries like Scotland. I wish it were more imaginative and not just pulled directly from real human history.

but really the shining cast of characters are the companions, and in this one you really get to see the machinery start working together and everyone truly becomes a team. even though i am VERY brave in continuing a series with very little romance, you can start to see the characters all splitting off in this one toward their closest partners and i thought it was so sweet.

i maintain my gripe that the villains in this feel very surface-level and you don't know a lot about why they want to ruin and rule the world other than they're just kinda sad and were told by other people that they should. there was a looooot of one of the villain's POV to this story that i don't think added any more depth to their character.

also, there's a character in this that's a witch and just kind of shows up randomly to save the day all the time, and i wish her magic was better explained because right now she just saves their asses over and over. idk why they don't just use her to solve all their problems instead of forcing a 16 year old human to suffer but i digress.

also victoria aveyard it is the year of our lord 2024, why are we still killing our gays?!

anyway, i have the third one on hold at the library and i will be taking another solid two months to complete that one as well. let's cross fingers we get some more action! (and more slutty elf braids)]]> 3.95 2022 Blade Breaker (Realm Breaker, #2)
author: Victoria Aveyard
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2024/10/21
date added: 2024/10/24
shelves: read-in-2024, favs-of-2024, from-library
review:
this book was still super slow for the first 200 pages the same way that book one was very expository, but damn if a 6'5 warrior immortal puts the front pieces of his long blond hair into slutty little braids. fine, you get four stars

this book finally got to the bulk of the action i was hoping for with the main characters actually starting to fight the villain instead of putting out fires he started... and traveling aimlessly around the world just to introduce 30 kingdoms. i do think that foundation helped in this book because there's so many different players and people of different backgrounds. however. it's becoming increasingly clear in this book that victoria is creating "fantasy" kingdoms that are almost exactly just pulled from history, like the Mongols and the Ottoman empire and even mirroring current countries like Scotland. I wish it were more imaginative and not just pulled directly from real human history.

but really the shining cast of characters are the companions, and in this one you really get to see the machinery start working together and everyone truly becomes a team. even though i am VERY brave in continuing a series with very little romance, you can start to see the characters all splitting off in this one toward their closest partners and i thought it was so sweet.

i maintain my gripe that the villains in this feel very surface-level and you don't know a lot about why they want to ruin and rule the world other than they're just kinda sad and were told by other people that they should. there was a looooot of one of the villain's POV to this story that i don't think added any more depth to their character.

also, there's a character in this that's a witch and just kind of shows up randomly to save the day all the time, and i wish her magic was better explained because right now she just saves their asses over and over. idk why they don't just use her to solve all their problems instead of forcing a 16 year old human to suffer but i digress.

also victoria aveyard it is the year of our lord 2024, why are we still killing our gays?!

anyway, i have the third one on hold at the library and i will be taking another solid two months to complete that one as well. let's cross fingers we get some more action! (and more slutty elf braids)
]]> The Couple Across the Street 123222081
When Clare becomes a widow, her response is something that shocks her � relief. All she wants to do is move on and figure out how to continue her life, alone, no matter the guilt that brings.

So when Vic, her closest friend, comes to her, showing the signs of trouble in her own marriage, she is more than supportive in helping her leave Rob.

But Vic doesn’t get the chance to do that. Because as they go over to Vic's house to collect her things, they find a body. Rob’s.

It appears someone else had an axe to grind. But for Clare, already reeling from secrets from her own late husband’s dark past, she’s about to find out this murder isn’t as straightforward as it may appear…]]> 282 Anita Waller 1804153303 Whitney 0 to-read 3.66 2023 The Couple Across the Street
author: Anita Waller
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/10/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> North Woods 71872930
When a pair of young lovers abscond from a Puritan colony, little do they know that their humble cabin in the woods will become home to an extraordinary succession of inhabitants . An English soldier, destined for glory, abandons the battlefields of the New World to devote himself to apples. A pair of spinster twins survive war and famine, only to succumb to envy and desire.ĚýA crime reporter unearths a mass grave, but finds the ancient trees refuse to give up their secrets. A lovelorn painter, a conman, a stalking panther, a lusty beetle; as each one confronts the mysteries of the north woods, they come to realize that the dark, raucous, beautiful past is very much alive.

Traversing cycles of history, nature, and even literature, North Woods shows the myriad, magical ways in which we’re connected to our environment and to one another, across time, language and space. Written along with the seasons and divided into the twelve months of the year, it is an unforgettable novel about secrets and fates that asks the timeless how do we live on, even after we’re gone?]]> 372 Daniel Mason 0593597036 Whitney 0 to-read 4.11 2023 North Woods
author: Daniel Mason
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/10/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence]]> 56465 Unwarranted fear is a curse.
Learn how to tell the difference.

A date won't take "no" for an answer. The new nanny gives a mother an uneasy feeling. A stranger in a deserted parking lot offers unsolicited help. The threat of violence surrounds us every day. But we can protect ourselves, by learning to trust—and act on—our gut instincts.

In this empowering book, Gavin de Becker, the man Oprah Winfrey calls the nation's leading expert on violent behavior, shows you how to spot even subtle signs of danger—before it's too late. Shattering the myth that most violent acts are unpredictable, de Becker, whose clients include top Hollywood stars and government agencies, offers specific ways to protect yourself and those you love, including how to act when approached by a stranger, when you should fear someone close to you, what to do if you are being stalked, how to uncover the source of anonymous threats or phone calls, the biggest mistake you can make with a threatening person, and more. Learn to spot the danger signals others miss. It might just save your life.
]]> 352 Gavin de Becker 0747538352 Whitney 3 read-in-2024
i can appreciate that everyone recommends this from the rooftops. i don't think it's a complete waste of time, but this book makes it seem like "all of this knowledge is intuitive to you!" then also gives liiiiists of acronyms to remember. as if your mind is going to go through a checklist of "is this person dangerous?" every time someone is acting sketch.

i appreciated when this book used real life examples of cases to go through the steps to recognizing when someone is dangerous, but a lot of these chapters are more about issues only celebrities face and i ended up wishing this book could've just been a memoir or a nonfiction book about some of the cases the author has worked with rather than a how-to book. as someone with a terrible memory, this book would need to be studied to capture its full effect and i was only reading a chapter every few nights before bed, so i doubt much of it will be retained.

idk i'm conflicted. i think gavin's an interesting person and i like his field of work but this just felt dated and i'm not sure how useful it is in a split second interaction with someone.]]> 4.16 1997 The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us from Violence
author: Gavin de Becker
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1997
rating: 3
read at: 2024/10/09
date added: 2024/10/18
shelves: read-in-2024
review:
i wish i could read an updated version of this because so many stories in this felt like common sense to avoid, so this must've been written way back before stranger danger was the norm.

i can appreciate that everyone recommends this from the rooftops. i don't think it's a complete waste of time, but this book makes it seem like "all of this knowledge is intuitive to you!" then also gives liiiiists of acronyms to remember. as if your mind is going to go through a checklist of "is this person dangerous?" every time someone is acting sketch.

i appreciated when this book used real life examples of cases to go through the steps to recognizing when someone is dangerous, but a lot of these chapters are more about issues only celebrities face and i ended up wishing this book could've just been a memoir or a nonfiction book about some of the cases the author has worked with rather than a how-to book. as someone with a terrible memory, this book would need to be studied to capture its full effect and i was only reading a chapter every few nights before bed, so i doubt much of it will be retained.

idk i'm conflicted. i think gavin's an interesting person and i like his field of work but this just felt dated and i'm not sure how useful it is in a split second interaction with someone.
]]> Fat Chance, Charlie Vega 53399306 Coming of age as a Fat brown girl in a white Connecticut suburb is hard.
Harder when your whole life is on fire, though.

Charlie Vega is a lot of things. Smart. Funny. Artistic. Ambitious. Fat.

People sometimes have a problem with that last one. Especially her mom. Charlie wants a good relationship with her body, but it's hard, and her mom leaving a billion weight loss shakes on her dresser doesn't help. The world and everyone in it have ideas about what she should look like: thinner, lighter, slimmer-faced, straighter-haired. Be smaller. Be whiter. Be quieter.

But there's one person who's always in Charlie's corner: her best friend Amelia. Slim. Popular. Athletic. Totally dope. So when Charlie starts a tentative relationship with cute classmate Brian, the first worthwhile guy to notice her, everything is perfect until she learns one thing--he asked Amelia out first. So is she his second choice or what? Does he even really see her? UGHHH. Everything is now officially a MESS.

A sensitive, funny, and painful coming-of-age story with a wry voice and tons of chisme, Fat Chance, Charlie Vega tackles our relationships to our parents, our bodies, our cultures, and ourselves.]]> 352 Crystal Maldonado 0823447170 Whitney 0 fat-rep, to-read 3.96 2021 Fat Chance, Charlie Vega
author: Crystal Maldonado
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/10/12
shelves: fat-rep, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Sweet Vengeance (Sweet Demons, #1)]]> 95584560
It’s a match seemingly made in heaven. Except, Malachi doesn’t expect Joy’s thirst for vengeance to taste so sweet, and Joy doesn’t expect a freaking demon to revive everything in her she’d thought long-dead.

After the deal is struck, and the contract has some to an end, they both realise that one contract will not nearly be enough.]]> 196 Viano Oniomoh Whitney 0 3.75 2023 Sweet Vengeance (Sweet Demons, #1)
author: Viano Oniomoh
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/09/19
shelves: fat-rep, we-did-the-monster-smash, to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Flawless (Chestnut Springs, #1)]]> 108514520 The rules were simple . . . Keep my hands off his daughter and stay out of trouble. But now I'm stuck with her. There's only one bed. And, well, rules are made to be broken.

I'm the golden boy of professional bull riding. Or at least I was until it all blew up in my face. Now, my agent says I have to clean up my image, so I'm stuck with his ball-busting daughter for the rest of the season as my "full-time supervision."

But I don't need a goddamn babysitter, especially one with skin-tight jeans, a sexy smirk, and a mouth she can't stop running . . . A mouth I can't stop thinking about.

She says this means nothing.

I say this means everything.

She says there are boundaries we shouldn't cross. That my reputation can't take any more hits-and neither can her damaged heart.

I say I'm going to steal it anyway.]]> 416 Elsie Silver 0349437661 Whitney 0 to-read 3.93 2022 Flawless (Chestnut Springs, #1)
author: Elsie Silver
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/09/16
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Tentacles & Triathlons (Leviathan Fitness, #2)]]> 61225518
When parks department supervisor Reece Rollins decides to sign up for a triathlon� there are two things holding him back. One, his fear of monsters. Two, his sub-par swimming skills.

At the urging of his sister’s wolven mate, Reece joins Leviathan Fitness to train in the gym’s olympic size swimming pool. After running into Reece at the pool, Cyrus offers to help Reece get ready to win the race.

New feelings arise from the depths as Reece and Cyrus learn that monsters and humans go together, tentacle in hand. The only question is- can these two hold on to their new found love despite their differences?

Tentacles & Triathlons is book two in the Leviathan Fitness series. Each book will center around the gym and feature a different monster pairing.]]> 218 Ashley Bennett Whitney 2
the fact that most of the reviewers here are women just shows that this book has a certain target audience ]]> 4.09 2022 Tentacles & Triathlons (Leviathan Fitness, #2)
author: Ashley Bennett
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2022
rating: 2
read at: 2024/09/15
date added: 2024/09/16
shelves: lgbtqiap, kindle-unlimited, read-in-2024, romance, smutty, we-did-the-monster-smash
review:
i broke my streak of refusing to read m/m books written by women because someone recommended to continue this series and i really was silly goosing for thinking i would like it. tentacles are a no-go for me so i was already uncomfy and sighing my way through this, but then the relationship also just felt inauthentic?!

the fact that most of the reviewers here are women just shows that this book has a certain target audience
]]> <![CDATA[At First Spite (Harlot's Bay, #1)]]> 65962558 Bestselling author Olivia Dade welcomes you to Harlot's Bay in this delightfully sexy rom-com about a woman who buys the town's famous Spite House, only to realize the infuriating man she can't stand lives right next door--and their unwilling proximity might spark something neither can ignore.

When Athena Greydon's fiancé ends their engagement, she has no choice but to move into the Spite House she recklessly bought him as a wedding gift. This is a problem, for several reasons: The house, originally built as a brick middle finger to the neighbors, is only ten feet wide. Her ex's home is attached to hers. And Dr. Matthew Vine the Freaking Third (aka the uptight, judgmental jerk who convinced his younger brother to leave her) is living on the other side, only a four-foot alley away.

If she has to see Matthew every time she looks out her windows, she might as well have some fun with the situation--by, say, playing erotic audiobooks at top volume with the windows open. A woman living in a Spite House is basically obligated to get petty payback however she can, right?

Unfortunately, loathing Matthew proves more difficult than anticipated. He helps her move. He listens. And he's kind of...hot? Dammit.]]> 386 Olivia Dade 0063215918 Whitney 1
as much as i like reading books with representation of fat girls, this one came at the MAJOR expense of being unbearably unreadable. i hate to roast the main character because we did have a lot in common with our insecurities and depressive tendencies, but i really could not take her seriously because her dialogue was absolutely miserable. so overwritten, weighed down by memes and references that were sometimes decades old, and generally so unbelievable as a main character to the point where i was shocked that the main male lead didn't find her horrendous instead of attractive.

immediately when i read the one (and only...... and on page 300....) sex scene, all i could think about was how i was going to quote it WORD FOR WORD in this review because the main character's dialogue was absolutely diabolical. if i had to suffer, then so do you:

"You are the undisputed Champion of Head, long may he reign, and long may he lick. You can grab a condom and get inside the pussy you now own. Congratulations, by the way. The owner's manual will arrive in your inbox shortly."


HUUUUUHHHH??? who talks like that ]]> 3.71 2024 At First Spite (Harlot's Bay, #1)
author: Olivia Dade
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2024
rating: 1
read at: 2024/09/09
date added: 2024/09/09
shelves: fat-rep, cringe, the-worst, smutty, read-in-2024, romance, from-library
review:
this book was NOT good and i think at this point i need to stop pretending that olivia dade is for me

as much as i like reading books with representation of fat girls, this one came at the MAJOR expense of being unbearably unreadable. i hate to roast the main character because we did have a lot in common with our insecurities and depressive tendencies, but i really could not take her seriously because her dialogue was absolutely miserable. so overwritten, weighed down by memes and references that were sometimes decades old, and generally so unbelievable as a main character to the point where i was shocked that the main male lead didn't find her horrendous instead of attractive.

immediately when i read the one (and only...... and on page 300....) sex scene, all i could think about was how i was going to quote it WORD FOR WORD in this review because the main character's dialogue was absolutely diabolical. if i had to suffer, then so do you:

"You are the undisputed Champion of Head, long may he reign, and long may he lick. You can grab a condom and get inside the pussy you now own. Congratulations, by the way. The owner's manual will arrive in your inbox shortly."


HUUUUUHHHH??? who talks like that
]]> <![CDATA[Bred by the Wolfman (DreamTogether Breeding Program, #1)]]> 216176825
Russ has always wanted a cub of his own, but he’s exhausted all possible options except hiring an anonymous surrogate at DreamTogether. While he expects a perfunctory visit breeding a human, he discovers an incredible and delectable woman—and his instincts recognize her as his mate.

But after parting ways, neither of them knows the other besides a fake name. Can Russ find out Dee’s true identity, and convince her that they should raise their cub together?

This steamy, sweet monster romance novel follows one plucky heroine looking for a new life, and a wolfman who desperately wants a cub of his own. It features pregnancy, bonded mating, knotting, obsession, stalking, and cheating, with a heartfelt HEA. For a full list of content warnings, visit the author's website.]]> 224 Lyonne Riley Whitney 2 3.78 Bred by the Wolfman (DreamTogether Breeding Program, #1)
author: Lyonne Riley
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.78
book published:
rating: 2
read at: 2024/09/03
date added: 2024/09/07
shelves: kindle-unlimited, read-in-2024, smutty, romance, we-did-the-monster-smash
review:
please ignore this i had a hard week at work and i'm 14 books behind on my goodreads goal
]]> <![CDATA[Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel]]> 26114280
Weaving decades of field observations with exciting new discoveries about the brain, Carl Safina's landmark book offers an intimate view of animal behavior to challenge the fixed boundary between humans and nonhuman animals. In Beyond Words , readers travel to Amboseli National Park in the threatened landscape of Kenya and witness struggling elephant families work out how to survive poaching and drought, then to Yellowstone National Park to observe wolves sort out the aftermath of one pack's personal tragedy, and finally plunge into the astonishingly peaceful society of killer whales living in the crystalline waters of the Pacific Northwest.

Beyond Words brings forth powerful and illuminating insight into the unique personalities of animals through extraordinary stories of animal joy, grief, jealousy, anger, and love. The similarity between human and nonhuman consciousness, self-awareness, and empathy calls us to re-evaluate how we interact with animals. Wise, passionate, and eye-opening at every turn, Beyond Words is ultimately a graceful examination of humanity's place in the world.]]> 496 Carl Safina 1250094593 Whitney 5 read-in-2024, favs-of-2024
when i was a kid forced to go to the school library during one of my english periods in elementary school, i beelined toward the animals non-fiction section because at that age i couldn't be bothered with fiction. and reaching for a book like this really reminded me of that part of me that must still exist latent somewhere. this book really helped stoke my curiosity about animals, and it's crazy because carl is so right - we share our planet with SO much other life but are so concerned with ourselves that we hardly consider their thoughts and feelings (which science still insists do not exist)

this book is kind of like its own internal trilogy: there's three sections on elephants, wolves and whales. the selection felt random at first to me, but by finishing this, i totally get why the researchers cited in this book have been passionate watchers and lovers of those species all their lives. elephants, wolves and whales are SO cool!!!!

understanding how human-like animals can be and how we've absolutely destroyed their habitats and our world in general was devastating. but gaining the knowledge that we're not the only social animals that walk the earth (or swim the sea?) was so fascinating and this book rightfully changed my mind about how smart certain species are, even though they certainly can't talk or rule the world or anything the way men claim to.

anyway i've started waxing poetic but even though this book took me nearly half the year to read, it was soooo good. i tabbed so many quotes from this and said "WHEW! Carl has bars" so many times when he hit a certain section out of the park. although this book could be scientific, it was also written SO beautifully so you could picture yourself alongside the researchers, observing these animals.

i absolutely want to read more from carl in the future and had the best time reading this. highly recommend if you're at all interested in animal behavior or want to think about the world from less of a human perspective. ]]> 4.48 2015 Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel
author: Carl Safina
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2024/09/07
date added: 2024/09/07
shelves: read-in-2024, favs-of-2024
review:
this book didn't just eat, it devoured. another win for me finding a book i've never heard of for 50 cents at a used bookstore and giving it a shot because WOW

when i was a kid forced to go to the school library during one of my english periods in elementary school, i beelined toward the animals non-fiction section because at that age i couldn't be bothered with fiction. and reaching for a book like this really reminded me of that part of me that must still exist latent somewhere. this book really helped stoke my curiosity about animals, and it's crazy because carl is so right - we share our planet with SO much other life but are so concerned with ourselves that we hardly consider their thoughts and feelings (which science still insists do not exist)

this book is kind of like its own internal trilogy: there's three sections on elephants, wolves and whales. the selection felt random at first to me, but by finishing this, i totally get why the researchers cited in this book have been passionate watchers and lovers of those species all their lives. elephants, wolves and whales are SO cool!!!!

understanding how human-like animals can be and how we've absolutely destroyed their habitats and our world in general was devastating. but gaining the knowledge that we're not the only social animals that walk the earth (or swim the sea?) was so fascinating and this book rightfully changed my mind about how smart certain species are, even though they certainly can't talk or rule the world or anything the way men claim to.

anyway i've started waxing poetic but even though this book took me nearly half the year to read, it was soooo good. i tabbed so many quotes from this and said "WHEW! Carl has bars" so many times when he hit a certain section out of the park. although this book could be scientific, it was also written SO beautifully so you could picture yourself alongside the researchers, observing these animals.

i absolutely want to read more from carl in the future and had the best time reading this. highly recommend if you're at all interested in animal behavior or want to think about the world from less of a human perspective.
]]> Yearning For Her 91921340
Willow Crowley’s world comes crashing down when she discovers her boyfriend has been seeing another woman. The dream she’d held of a life with him is shattered in an instant, leaving her alone with nothing except heartache.

She vows to never open herself to that hurt again�

Until a seductive, otherworldly stranger with white hair, piercings, and icy blue eyes promises her a single night of pleasure. No strings attached.

But that night isn’t enough for him. He wants more, more than she’s ready to give. How can she trust him not to break her heart when he isn’t even human?

Kian has lived promiscuously for four hundred years, feeding on the desire of the humans he and the fae considered prey. But when he locks eyes with a purple-haired female, something inside him shifts irrevocably.

No one else can sate his hunger.

He wants her.
Needs her.
Yearns for her.

Yet she refuses to submit to the carnal delights he promises. She wants more. She wants…love.
Can he mend her broken heart? Can he love a mortal woman?
-----
Content warnings can be found on the author's website.]]> 396 Tiffany Roberts Whitney 1 3.90 2023 Yearning For Her
author: Tiffany Roberts
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2023
rating: 1
read at: 2024/08/19
date added: 2024/08/24
shelves: fat-rep, romance, we-did-the-monster-smash, kindle-unlimited, smutty, the-worst
review:
if i would've known this writer was actually a husband x wife duo it would've been removed from the tbr EXPEDITIOUSLY because this book was so horrid
]]> <![CDATA[Spinster Sister (Lawless Ladies, #1)]]> 58269143 He never thought to wed for love. He never anticipated her.

Welcome to book 1 in the new and exciting series from bestselling author Elise Marion.

Helena Montgomery is left to care for her siblings after the deaths of her parents. Buried under a pile of debt, she has no choice but to join her friends in a dangerous scheme. Moonlighting as a masked highwayman is a sure way to end up facing the hangman, but there is nothing Helena wouldn’t do for those she loves. Besides, she only intends to continue her illegal activities until her sister’s first season yields an advantageous marriage.

Lord Sebastian Radcliffe doesn’t want a wife but must select one to secure his family legacy. The young, beautiful Harriett Montgomery seems like the perfect choice—yet Sebastian finds himself drawn, instead, to her elder sister. He never expected to marry for love, yet the vivacious Helena quickly burrows her way past his stony façade and straight into his heart.

He thinks her a high-handed shrew; she thinks him a self-righteous bore. Yet, passion kindles between this unlikely pair, leaving them hopeful that the futures they once thought impossible might be within reach. However, the damaging secret of Helena’s crimes hangs over her head, forcing her to keep Sebastian at arm’s length. Despite her best efforts, she is unable to deny the depth of her feelings.

When the truth is exposed, will Helena lose the man she has come to love?

]]> 214 Elise Marion Whitney 0 to-read, fat-rep 4.08 2021 Spinster Sister (Lawless Ladies, #1)
author: Elise Marion
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/24
shelves: to-read, fat-rep
review:

]]> Melt My Heart 50395296
That is, until she meets Cal, the gorgeous, sweet guy from New Zealand who can't seem to stay away. The gorgeous, sweet guy who also happens to be Daisy's summer crush. Lily can't seem to figure out why she isn't as into him as she should be. She should be head-over-heels in love, not missing time at the ice-cream shack with her life-long best friend, Cassie. Not wondering what Cassie is getting up to with Cal's friend Jack, or what she's thinking about when they're alone . . .

With University threatening to tear Cassie and Lily apart at the end of summer, trying to keep Cal a secret from Daisy and a growing right-wing threat disturbing the usual quiet of their pleasant seaside town, Lily's summer is set to be far from relaxing.

Melt My Heart is a hilarious and inspiring coming-of-age YA novel from Bethany Rutter: influencer, editor and a fierce UK voice in the debate around body positivity.]]> 320 Bethany Rutter 1529041163 Whitney 0 to-read, fat-rep 3.83 2020 Melt My Heart
author: Bethany Rutter
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/24
shelves: to-read, fat-rep
review:

]]> What's Wrong with Fat? 15856744
Abigail Saguy argues that these fraught and frantic debates obscure a more important How has fatness come to be understood as a public health crisis at all? Why, she asks, has the view of "fat" as a problem-a symptom of immorality, a medical pathology, a public health epidemic-come to dominate more positive framings of weight-as consistent with health, beauty, or a legitimate rights claim-in public discourse? Why are heavy individuals singled out for blame? And what are the consequences of understanding weight in these ways?

What's Wrong with Fat? presents each of the various ways in which fat is understood in America today, examining the implications of understanding fatness as a health risk, disease, and epidemic, and revealing why we've come to understand the issue in these terms, despite considerable scientific uncertainty and debate. Saguy shows how debates over the relationship between body size and health risk take place within a larger, though often invisible, contest over whether we should understand fatness as obesity at all. Moreover, she reveals that public discussions of the "obesity crisis" do more harm than good, leading to bullying, weight-based discrimination, and misdiagnoses.

Showing that the medical framing of fat is literally making us sick, What's Wrong with Fat? provides a crucial corrective to our society's misplaced obsession with weight.]]> 272 Abigail C. Saguy 0199857083 Whitney 0 to-read, fat-rep 4.04 2012 What's Wrong with Fat?
author: Abigail C. Saguy
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/24
shelves: to-read, fat-rep
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Camera Shy (Lessons in Love, #1)]]> 175473448
"A man is going to treat you how you treat yourself. So please, for the love of God, act like a queen."

I was expecting a ring on my thirtieth birthday. What I didn't see coming was my boyfriend and business partner dumping me because he couldn't bear the idea of our bland sex life for the rest of our lives.

When an opportunity arises to spend my summer in Las Vegas, I stumble upon my hot new neighbor and his photography studio. We strike a simple deal.

He's the teacher, and I'm his student.

My lesson is learning to love the body I have. In exchange, I'm going to save his business. I have exactly one summer to unearth the most confident version of myself before I go home and return to reality.

But after a passion-fueled summer, I'm not sure of who I am anymore, and it's clear that the worst heartbreak of my life might still be yet to come.]]> 446 Kay Cove Whitney 0 to-read, fat-rep 3.81 Camera Shy (Lessons in Love, #1)
author: Kay Cove
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.81
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/24
shelves: to-read, fat-rep
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore (Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, #1)]]> 13538873
Clay Jannon tells how serendipity, sheer curiosity, and the ability to climb a ladder like a monkey has sent him from Web Drone to night shift at Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. After just a few days on the job, Clay realizes just how curious this store is.

A few customers come in repeatedly without buying anything. Instead they “check out� obscure volumes from strange corners of the store. All runs according to some elaborate, long-standing arrangement with the gnomic Mr. Penumbra. The store must be a front for something larger, Clay concludes.

He embarks on a complex analysis of the customers� behavior and ropes in friends to help. Once they bring their findings to Mr. Penumbra, it turns out the secrets extend far outside the walls of the bookstore. A quest to New York City dips in a world conspiracy for eternal life. The current of romance pulls Clay onward.]]> 288 Robin Sloan 0374214913 Whitney 0 to-read 3.71 2012 Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore (Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore, #1)
author: Robin Sloan
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Big Swiss 60701439
One day, Greta recognizes Big Swiss’s voice in town and they quickly become enmeshed. While Big Swiss is unaware Greta has eavesdropped on her most intimate exchanges, Greta has never been more herself with anyone. Her attraction to Big Swiss overrides her guilt, and she’ll do anything to sustain the relationship…]]> 336 Jen Beagin 1982153083 Whitney 0 to-read 3.69 2023 Big Swiss
author: Jen Beagin
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Muscles & Monsters (Leviathan Fitness, #1)]]> 60840930 Leviathan Fitness is known for monsters, muscles, and wolven who rescue damsels in distress.

After a wedding cake catastrophe, local decorator Tegan finds herself being helped by a solid wall of fur and fangs named Atlas. She’s never met anyone like him and finds herself enamored by his wolfish charm. After their sweet encounter, Atlas invites her to his gym anytime she needs his cake lifting services.

Tegan decides that instead- she wants to lift the cakes herself. She signs up for a membership with Leviathan Fitness, determined to build her strength.

Primal desires emerge as Atlas and Tegan test just how much their new love can lift� and if there are any limits to what monsters and humans can do.

Muscles & Monsters is book one in the Leviathan Fitness series. Each book will center around the gym and feature a different monster pairing.]]> 182 Ashley Bennett Whitney 4 3.73 2022 Muscles & Monsters (Leviathan Fitness, #1)
author: Ashley Bennett
name: Whitney
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2024/08/17
shelves: fat-rep, we-did-the-monster-smash, smutty, read-in-2024, romance, kindle-unlimited
review:
not taking any feedback at this time on my enjoyment of this animal crossing-ass romance
]]> <![CDATA[Paladin's Strength (The Saint of Steel, #2)]]> 57119466
When their paths cross at the point of a sword, Istvhan and Clara will be pitched headlong into each other’s quests, facing off against enemies both living and dead. But Clara has a secret that could jeopardize the growing trust between them, a secret that will lead them to the gladiatorial pits of a corrupt city, and beyond...]]> 445 T. Kingfisher Whitney 0 to-read, fat-rep 4.20 2021 Paladin's Strength (The Saint of Steel, #2)
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Whitney
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/17
shelves: to-read, fat-rep
review:

]]>