Christian Reader - Book lists, discussion, writing

Swept Away - Beth O'Leary, 2.5/5, Audiobook ~10hrs
I loved the first part. Reading about Zeke and Lexi being stuck on the boat hit all the right notes of the "forced proximity" trope for me. Sure, it was unrealistic as - but it worked for me.

So 4 - almost 5 stars for that part.

But then ... apparently Beth O'Leary didn't think that almost drowning was conflict enough, but added the most ridiculous and unnecessary of all twists, and I came close to giving up on the book right then and there. Completely pointless, and just plain mean.

So 1 star for that part.

Fortunately they managed to resolve things in a decent manner, which is why I decided to round up rather than down on goodreads. But I could have done without the epilogue!


Waking Gods - Sylvain Neuvel*, 3.5/5, 336 pages
I downgraded the rating a bit on this reread (from 4.5 to 3.5) - there were just too many things left unanswered and too many jumps in narration. I realize this was a deliberate choice by the author, but it kept pulling me out of the narrative. Still enjoyed it otherwise though.


Faraday's Flowers - Tony Kendrick*, 2/5, 190 pages
I first discovered this book when I was a young teen. I came across it at a flee market while on vacation in Bornholm, thought the back blurb looked interesting and picked it up. As such it was one of the first "grown-up" books I read, which probably had a lot to do with how much I liked it. I hadn't reread it in ~25 years though, and alas, this book did not stand the test of time, and I had to downgrade the rating from a 4 to a 2! The mere fact that it took me TWO WEEKS to finish this short 190-page book should tell you something by itself.

None of the characters seemed fleshed out, and Wayse seemed to mostly just stumble his way around Shanghai and accidentally discovering the people he needed to talk to without any real rhyme or reason.

Nostalgia demands that I hold on to this book, as I really did love it as a teen! But I don't see myself ever rereading it.


The House Witch - Delemhach, 4/5, Audiobook ~17hrs
Lovely cozy fantasy :-) The first in a series, but while it did have a bit of an abrupt ending, it was very much a fairytale-style ending, so it was still nicely self-contained. But very charming, so I want to continue on with the series.
I want to read more about life in the kitchen - how Fin uses his magic, how the knights and maids work side by side ... basically more cozy fantasy stuff and less political intrigue stuff ;-)


Library of the Dead - Glenn Cooper*, 4/5, 350 pages
I'm in a bit of a reading slump, so decided to try to restart it by rereading an old favourite - time will show if it worked. It's a fascinating read even on this, my fourth reread.

Books Read: 37
Book of the Month: "The House Witch"
Biggest Disappointment: "Swept Away".

My total number of books read this month is quite low, but that's in part because I listened to a total of 40 hours worth of audiobooks!!! That's almost as much as in January and February put together!

Sunrise on the Reaping - Suzanne Collins*, 4/5, Audiobook ~13hrs
Really good - but so sad! Of course I knew this going into it, but there were still so many heartbreaks along the way, that I hadn't expected.

Haymitch starts out as a confident young man who refuses alcohol. He has a loving family and a sweet girlfriend. How does he end up a battered victor, mentally destroyed, a drunk who's all alone? It would have to be a rough ride.

And it was. Suzanne Collins did not pull any punches, which made for a hard read. Of course I knew all the other tributes would have to die, but I still got to care about more of them than I thought I would. I really appreciated the backstory to people we meet in later books - that added a nice nuance I hadn't expected.

I did feel that Suzanne Collins lost me a bit in the last few chapters though. The Edgar Allan Poe poem took up way too much page space there, and kinda hijacked the story. It's a clever writing trick, but should have been used MUCH more sparingly than it did. That brought down the rating a bit - especially as I read this as an audiobook, so couldn't just skim those parts.


The Dragonet Prophecy - Tui T. Sutherland, 3/5, Audiobook ~9hrs
Childrens fantasy, but written well enough that it's an enjoyable read for adults also. I liked it well enough, but it's very clearly the first in a longer series, so nothing was resolved.

I liked the world-building, and was fascinated by the ideas of dragons who didn't come into their powers until subjected to their natural environments - that was a really nice touch! I liked Clay, Tsunami and Glory, but didn't really feel like we got to know the others as well. I would have loved to see more of Peril though, and hope that she turns up again in later books.


Recipe for Love - Katie Fforde, 3.5/5, 400 pages
There was a lot to love in this book.
And there was a lot to roll my eyes at.

I LOVED all the descriptions of the competition. I wish there had been more of that. I'm a wanna-be foodie, and reading about the different challenges, and how the contestants completed them? Yes, please!
For much the same reason, I enjoyed reading about Zoe helping out in the kitchen as well and loved Fen and Rupert.

Cher was cartoon-like in her cattiness. Her narcissistic tendencies seemed realistic at first, but quickly went overboard, and Zoe was far too much of a doormat.

The relationship with Gideon was equal parts sweet and eye-roll worthy. Part of that was due to awkward writing, and part was due to it being shoved down the reader's throat, rather than letting it evolve organically.

At the end of the day, I found more to like than to dislike, and I'd definitely recommend it thanks to the contest ... but with a huge disclaimer.


The Space Between - Lauren Keenan, 3.5/5, 320 pages
I haven't read many books set in New Zealand - and especially not many historical novels set in NZ, so this made for a fascinating read about a period in time I don't know all that much about. It's very well-written, but naturally (given its subject matter) a fairly bleak book. It's ridiculous how horribly indiginous people were treated by colonizers no matter where they arrived. This book may have hit closer to home than most, as I've been to Parihaka Marae, and heard about not just the loss of land, but the loss of this land from people touched by it.

It was a bold move to use so much Te Reo Māori in Matāria's chapters, but I rather liked the fact that everything wasn't translated (even if I would have appreciated a glossary together with the bibliography and historical notes at the end of the book), and most things could be gleaned from context, so I don't feel like I missed out on much.


The Time-Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger*, 4/5, 18hrs
I had forgotten just how sad it is. There are a few chapters near the end that are almost depressing, and the NYE chapter had me sobbing.

There were also a few chapters that seemed almost pointless - I've never enjoyed reading about other people's dreams, and clearly this was no exception. The long descriptions of Claire's work bothered me less, as that seemed to help flesh her out as a character.

I'm nitpicking though. I still really enjoyed the book - even if I did downgrade it from 5 stars to 4.

Books Read: 21
Book of the Month: Probably "Sunshine on the Reaping", but it was a close call.
Biggest Disappointment: None this month.

Only 7 books as I had TWO DNFs this month. I was not amused!

Fortunately most of my other reads were decent enough.

The Honey Witch - Sydney J. Shields, 3.5/5, 368 pages
I have very mixed feelings about this book - making it hard to review!

I absolutely adored the first ~250 pages. This seemed like cozy fantasy at its best, and I loved reading about Marigold becoming a Honey Witch. I was ready to give it 4 ... possibly even 5 stars!

Alas, it seemed like Sydney Shields wrote herself into a corner. She very obviously knew where she wanted to go, but not necessarily the best way to get there, making for some ... interesting choices along the way. Most of them were minor nit-picks. I might not agree with them, they might grate on me, but they worked. Unfortunately the final show-down did not.

( Vague spoilers below )

A shame - if she had allowed herself enough page-space for a proper resolution, this could easily have become a favourite read for 2025.


Assistant to the Villain - Hannah Nicole Maehrer, 4/5, Audiobook ~14hrs
Very charming read! I was hooked almost from the get-go, and my interest never wavered.

It's one of those books that's hard to review without revealing too much though, so I'm having a hard time figuring out what to write. I really loved the characters, and loved seeing Evie and the Villains interactions. There were definitely some twists and turns I hadn't seen along the way.

One thing I will say though, is that I would have liked to know ahead of time just how open the ending is. Fortunately, I have the sequel readily available, so it's not an issue, but I was very puzzled how they intended to wrap everything up within the last 15 minutes of the audiobook.

Turned out - they didn't! So onwards with the sequel! Hoping that its ending is less open, considering that the next one isn't out until August this year!!!


Murder in the Bookshop - Anita Davidson, 3/5, 272 pages
A historical cozy mystery. It kept me well entertained while I was reading it, but I'm fine with just leaving it here - I don't need to read any more of the series. The titular bookshop - which was a huge part of why I bought the book - played a much smaller role than I had expected / hoped, and it more ended up like an Agatha Christie type mystery. Fine if that's what you're after, but not really my cup of tea ... of which they drank a LOT throughout the book! Very British of them!


Heartbreak Houseshare - Emily Merrill, 4/5, Audiobook ~11hrs
Sweet NA chick-lit. Nothing special, and fairly standard fake-dating / friends-to-lovers trope, but all the characters were just genuinely nice, which made for pleasant reading. The boss wasn't overbearing and demanding, the roommates were friendly, and the family stood up for each other - it was just nice!

I liked the focus on mental health. They did perhaps skirt over it a bit quickly, but it was there, it was introduced as a genuine health issue, and they didn't shy away from showing some of the tough parts as well.

The miscommunication made me groan out loud. It came this close to not falling into that trap. I had literally just commented on how awesome it was that Flick and Teddy actually talked through their issues and listened to one another ... and then ... It was so pointless, and really didn't do anything for the story.

Ah well. I loved the 20s list and the column, and I especially loved that Flick tried to make it a realistic 20s list, and not just add all sorts of crazy things. I would have loved more focus to have been on that list - introducing a "happiness project" element I guess - but I guess that would have made for a very different book.


The Christmas Book Hunt - Jenny Colgan, 1.5/5, 127 pages
Weird twists that made absolutely no sense, so much being inferred between the lines, and all in all just rather dull.
But any story involving books and Edinburgh is automatically more charming than it would be otherwise, so I rounded up to two stars on Goodreads.


Dragonsinger - Anne McCaffrey*, 5/5, Audiobook ~10hrs
This is one of those books that would have been too short practically no matter how long it was. One of my very favourite books, and one of my introductions to the fantasy genre. I love the atmosphere it describes, and would love to experience some lessons at Harper Hall myself... even though I'd probably be more likely to be one of the clueless girls (although not as cruel I hope) than Menolly.

I love the lyrics that start off each chapter. Usually when books have lyrics or poems as introductions to chapters I just skip them, but here they seem an integral part of the book :)

It's a shame no more books have been written about Menolly's life at Harper Hall. I was so disappointed with Dragondrums, because I wanted to read more about Menolly - not Piemur.


Books Read: 7
Book of the Month: Assistant to the Villain
Biggest Disappointment: The Christmas Book Hunt

I know it's only the 29th today, but I literally JUST finished a book on my way to work, and am going out all evening and most of tomorrow, so really doubt I'll be able to finish anything :-P

The Paradise Problem - Christina Lauren, 3/5, Audiobook ~12 hrs
I mostly liked it. I loved the setting. I liked Reagan and the crazy sister-in-law (Beatrice? I listened to the audiobook version, and can't remember her name, other than that it started with B). I appreciated that the third act breakup was decently handled (even if I hated the fact that they decided to include it at all - the external conflict would have been more than enough to add suspense to the book. Chick-lit authors, this is a plea to JUST STOP ADDING THAT ALREADY!!! *Cough* Anyways ... I digress ...).

However - and this is a rather big deal - I did not buy the romance at all. Sure, there was lust - but love? No, I just didn't see it. Liam and Anna acted like friends who decided to have sex - not as two people falling in love with each other.

The lack of communication between Liam and his siblings frustrated me. I kinda get Alex as they were at odds, but Jack? Charlie? It seemed pointless.

And finally, it annoyed me that Ray had no redeeming features. He was just cartoonishly evil.

Unfortunately not Christina Lauren's best work. I still enjoyed reading it - but I didn't love it, the way had expected to.


The Book Club Hotel - Sarah Morgan, 4.5/5, 330 pages
Rounded up on goodreads because of the sheer delight it brought me to read. I would have read this in a single setting if it hadn't been for that pesky sleep getting in the way! As it was, I started it Sunday evening and finished it Monday morning before work X-D

More a "December-book" than a "Christmas-book", so not too christmassy to read in the start of November, but an excellent way to kick off the season. I actually hadn't realized it was christmassy at all when I picked it up, as neither the Danish title ("The Book Club in Vermont") nor the back blurb gave it away. It wasn't until I went to add it on goodreads, and discovered I already owned a kindle version called "The Christmas Book Club" that I realized I had once again been foiled by two different titles to the same book!

Fortunately it was an absolutely delightful book, so I really don't mind owning both an e-copy and a physical copy. Of course I had seen the ending a mile away, but I enjoyed seeing how the characters got there, and loved that there was no pesky "third act break-up" and no miscommunication. Instead what I got was a group of friends who'd clearly go through fire for each other, an established couple who made mistakes but TALKED about them, an adorable and precocious 5-year-old, and the most charming setting I could have wished for.

My only complaint is that I can't go visit Maple Sugar Inn myself now! This could easily become a Christmas stable for me.


Twelve Days of Christmas - Trisha Ashley*, 4.5/5, 402 pages
It had everything I'd like in a Christmas story - lots of details about Christmas preparations, engaging characters, a child to experience Christmas through, and of course a suitable romance to tie it all up in a nice little bow :)

It was sweet without being sugary and had me wanting to celebrate Christmas together with Holly, Jess and all the others... although I guess I could do without Coco and Guy!

I'd forgotten how sudden the ending was though! From 0 to proposal in no time! Ah well - I still love it :-D


Little House on the Prairie - Laura Ingalls Wilder*, 4/5, Audiobook ~6hrs
By The Shores of Silver Lake - Laura Ingalls Wilder*, 4/5, Audiobook ~6hrs
Farmer Boy - Laura Ingalls Wilder*, 4.5/5, Audiobook ~7hrs
The Long Winter - Laura Ingalls Wilder*, 4/5, Audiobook ~7hrs
Little Town on the Prairie - Laura Ingalls Wilder*, 4.5/5, Audiobook ~7hrs
These Happy Golden Years - Laura Ingalls Wilder*, 5/5, Audiobook ~7 hrs
I felt like rereading these, and was fortunate enough to find audiobook versions that included fiddle playing and singing! I loved finally hearing how all of Pa's songs went :-D And as always, they are wonderful comfort reads :-D


The Christmas Bookshop - Jenny Colgan*, 4.5/5, 328 pages
Reread to get me into the proper mood for my Edinburgh Christmas trip. Worked like a charm too! :-D Even if Carmen did annoy me from time to time - the setting couldn't be beat!


Books Read: 112
Book of the Month: "The Christmas Book Club" / "The Book Club Hotel" - absolutely delightful!

Zero Stars, Do Not Recommend - MJ. Wassmer, 1.5/5, 350 pages
Unfortunately the last part of the title could also have been the title of this review: "Do Not Recommend". I had expected a dystopian novel, with people trying to figure out their new normal - perhaps a bit like "Life As We Knew It" by Susan Beth Pfeffer. What I got was a common-day "Lord of the Flies" - a less humorous and less believable (amazingly enough) version of "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray.

Rico was one-dimensional evil for no particular reason, the "lovely" influencer and her preacher husband got on my nerves something fierce, and I desperately hope this is not how events would have turned out in real life. I have to believe that, or I would loose all faith in humanity.

I considered giving up on the book on multiple occasions, but I did want to know if there was any sort of resolution, so I stuck with it. And there was, but not really a satisfying one. While the explanation was fine, there was still a lack of closure.

So yeah, I don't understand all the high ratings on Goodreads. This was definitely a "do not recommend" for me, and the book goes straight in the trash.


Nightworld Academy - L.J. Swallow, 2.5/5, Audiobook ~9hrs
Hard book to review. I mostly liked it, I think? I liked the characters, I liked the setting, I liked the "coming into her powers" trope ... but at the end of the day, there wasn't really anything new to it. It was a story that had been told - and told better - before. I liked the school, but thought too little page time was given to the classes. I liked the characters, but the animosity of the mean girls wasn't really explained. I liked Maeve's powers, but her hesitancy to tell anybody about them seemed unnecessary.

Mostly though, nothing seemed resolved at the end of the book! I thought it was - but then the author threw a cliffhanger at me at the very last minute.

So 2.5 stars - rounded up on Goodreads, because I really did enjoy it for most of the time I listened to it.


The Thursday Murder Club - Richard Osman, 2.5/5, 430 pages
NB: This is not a bad rating! Goodreads translates 2 stars to "It was okay", which it was. I wasn't blown away by it, I didn't particularly like it - but it was okay.

I think part of it is that the book suffered from too much hype. I had had it sold to me as "an amazing read" and it just ... wasn't. I didn't grow to care for the characters, I wasn't really interested in the whodunnit part of it ... the writing style was fine, so it wasn't any great hardship to finish it, but I'm going to just leave it at the one and not bother with the rest of the series.


The Summer Seekers - Sarah Morgan, 5/5, Audiobook ~11hrs
This immediately became a new favourite. It hits so many of my favourite tropes.
* Roadtrip? Check.
* Intergenerational friendships? Check.
* Personal growth? Check.
* Fraught relationships that are fixed by - wonder of wonders - communication? Check!

I loved seen Kathleen and Martha's friendship grow. I loved that Kathleen and Liza actually talked about their issues. I LOVED that Sean took the bull by the horns and realized he and Liza needed to talk. I was so, so, so grateful that Finn was a non-issue.

No third-act breakup, no annoying misunderstandings caused by lack of communication. Just a sweet and poignant story about very realistic relationships.

Loved it!


The Billionaire's Wake-Up-Call Girl - Annika Martin, 4/5, Audiobook ~9hrs
This was the perfect book to keep me company on a 4 hour drive. It had me laughing out loud on numerous occasions and I loved the banter between Lizzie and Theo as well as between Lizzie and Mia.

The romance was super sweet and the third act breakup less contrived than it often is in romance novels. Sasha's (I think that's her name anyways) behavior did subtract the final star though - it just seemed too malicious to be believable ... even within the book's own universe.

I wish we could have heard more about the bakery. I want a follow up that focuses on that!

Funny, cute and sizzling. Grumpy/sunshine and high levels of spice.


New Moon - Stephenie Meyer*, 4/5, Audiobook ~15hrs
Eclipse - Stephenie Meyer*, 4/5, Audiobook ~15hrs
I felt like rereading these after talking "Twilight" with my niece. I don't have the first one as an audiobook, so that's why I started with book 2 :-P They aren't high literature, but they are ridiculously readable and I ended up listening to 30 hours in a week!


The Little House In the Big Woods - Laura Ingalls Wilder*, 4.5/5, Audiobook ~4hrs
I heard this as an audiobook this time where the narrator actually performed the songs - that was a nice touch, even if it was a tad louder than the spoken word, so I had to adjust it. Still a nice addition.

Books Read: 85
Book of the Month: "The Summer Seekers" - really sweet and poignant.
Biggest Disappointment: "Zero Stars..." - do definitely NOT recommend! "The Thursday Murder Club" was also a disappointment, but that was more because I had expected it to be better than it was - not because it was a bad book as such.

Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing - Matthew Perry, 4/5, Audiobook ~9hrs
I had a hard time rating this book. It wasn't well-written - but it was captivating. It wasn't what I'd consider "a good book" - but it was riveting, fascinating and heartbreaking. I loved hearing about being part of "FRIENDS" and (especially) the shooting of "The Whole Nine Yards" (one of my all-time favourite movies), but had no idea just HOW tough Matthew's life had been.

I'd thought that Matthew Perry was one of the numerous famous guys who couldn't handle being famous, and turned to drinking and drugs because of it. This was very much NOT the case, and in fact, I think being famous (and being on "FRIENDS" especially) actually may have saved his life more than once. Yes, it meant that he had the money to get the drugs he craved, but it also meant that he had money for the rehab, and that his drug habit didn't mean he ended up on the streets. Addiction is a horrible, horrible thing, and my heart broke for Matthew more than once while reading his memoir. It ended up on an optimistic note - which was all the more heartbreaking because of what we now know would happen just one year later :-(

The book hits very differently being read after his death. The very first sentence is, “Hi, my name is Matthew, although you may know me by another name. My friends call me Matty. And I should be dead.” - and all I could think was, "And you are! ;-( ;-( ;-("

At the end of the day, I'm glad I've read it - and I'm VERY glad that I chose the audiobook version of it. Hearing it in Matthew Perry's own voice definitely added something to it, and he did an excellent job of narrating it.


Maybe This Time - Cara Bastone, 4/5, Audiobook ~6hrs
Really sweet book, with an unusual use of time-travel that I found very fascinating. I loved reading how Mikey and June got to know each other - in two time-lines even! - and seeing their friendship grow.

I'm not entirely sure what I thought of the ending, but on the other hand, I have a very hard time figuring out how else it could have ended - so I'll take it.


Feed - Mira Grant*, 4.5/5, Audiobook ~14hrs
This was amazing! Pretty near impossible to put down. I "read" it as an audiobook, and found myself making excuses to bike detours just to read a bit more. To label it merely a zombie-book or a dystopian novel would be doing it a disservice, because it is so much more than that. The true strength of this book is the worldbuilding, and Mira Grant's descriptions of a world post-zombie outbreak. A world where George Romero is considered a national hero, and where bloggers are the true journalists.


Deadline - Mira Grant*, 4/5, Audiobook ~15hrs
Very obviously the middle book of a trilogy and therefore really cannot stand on its own. It had me totally hooked from the very beginning, and was as action-packed as I could have wished, but the story was definitely action-driven and character-driven rather than plot-driven... some major twists were thrown at us, but nothing resolved.


Page - Tamora Pierce*, 4.5/5, 231 pages
This book covers 3 years, and while it mostly handles that well, it does occasionally seem a tad rushed... 8 months passing by in a single chapter. I don't mind books covering a lot of time as long as it's done consistently, instead of covering one week in three chapters and then 8 months in one. Still, it's a minor complaint. Mostly I love this book as I find it fascinating to read of the training pages have to go through in order to become squires.


Squire - Tamora Pierce*, 4.5/5, 339 pages
While I did miss reading about Kel's life at the palace, there was so much to love in this book - Kel getting Raoul as her Knight-Master, the tilting, the Yamani, Cleon - and of course, Kel finally meeting Alanna. I don't think I'd claim it my favourite any longer, because the two first ones are excellent as well, but it certainly is very, very good :-)


Books Read: 54
Pages Read: 6.117
Hours Listened to: 267

I still have another 300 pages left of my current book, so am unlikely to finish any more books this month. I have done a LOT of rereading in April!

Wavewalker - Suzanne Heywood, 4/5, Audiobook ~13hrs
Captivating read. I know Suzanne only presents one point of view of what happened, and I'd love to read her parents' take on things, because as presented here (and with a whole lot of armchair diagnosing) her parents come across as having borderline narcissistic tendencies. I am impressed by Suzanne's self-discipline, and her determination to study and get an education despite all the obstacles her parents threw in her way.


On the Island - Tracey Garvis Graves*, 4.5/5, 328 pages
It's been a long time since I dove into a book and got so thoroughly hooked that I finished it in a day! But though I can see its flaws, this book just worked for me, and I couldn't put it down.

The writing style took a bit of getting used to. It seemed almost diary-like in style, and occasionally glossed over things, without going into depth with them. But to be fair, that was necessary for this kind of book! The plot took place over the course of 4-5 YEARS, and it would have been way, way too long (not to mention tedious) to be detailed about everything. Some parts were somewhat unbelievable, but they worked within the scope of the book, so I'll allow it ;)

The relationship really worked for me. I know some people will have reservations about the age difference going into the book, but trust me - it works. It's tastefully done, and faced head on.

I tend to love Robinson Crusoe-type stories, and this was no exception. That it also had shades of two of my other favourite books (a Danish one, and one that is still unpublished) only improved my reading experience.


A Dip in the Ocean - Sarah Outen*, 5/5, 310 pages
Absolutely fascinating memoir! Very well written, and so interesting! Parts had me crying and parts had me cheering. I seriously cannot even imagine setting out on such a huge adventure / challenge alone though! I'd be completely terrified. But I love living vicariously through others, and this book was right up there with "Changing Gears: A Family Odyssey to the End of the World" by Nancy Sathre-Vogel in how much it captivated me.

Highly recommendable for people who like to be adventurous through others.


Witches In Flight - Debora Geary*, 4.5/5, Audiobook ~8hrs
A Modern Witch - Debora Geary*, 5/5, Audiobook ~10hrs
A Reckless Witch - Debora Geary* 5/5, Audiobook ~10hrs
I was in the mood for a reread. These remain some of my all-time favourite books :-)


The Children of Captain Grant - Jules Verne*, 3/5, 200 pages (abridged)
I grew up with this abridged version, and actually enjoy it a lot more than the unabridged version. Sure, Jules Verne took a lot of liberties with both the geography and the history of the places he wrote about (not to mention that his descriptions of both the Aboriginal and the Maori people were more than just a little bit racist), but he was a product of his times and wrote accordingly.


Coraline - Neil Gaiman, 3/5, 189 pages
I think this one falls into the "and now I've read that" category. It wasn't bad, it was just meh, and as such I have no desire to read it again.

Guess I'm just not that into Neil Gaiman. He's a lot more miss than hit for me - though his books come highly recommended, so I keep trying.


Grace Notes - Philip Yancey*, 3.5/5, 380 pages
As always with such devotionals, some were good, and some were just meh. I did appreciate that these "essays" were taken from his books rather than written specifically for the devotional, as I think that meant the general quality was higher.

Books Read: 37

Instamom - Chantel Guertin, 3/5, 336 pages
Sweet story, and a very easy read. It was fun to read about what an IG influencer is up to, even if I have NO clue how realistic it actually is.

I was quite amused to discover - by page 90 or something like that - that the book took place in Toronto. I don't know if there had been no mentions of the specific city before then, or if I'd just completely missed all of them, but suddenly Kit and Will were making plans to go on a picnic on Centre Island, and I did a double take! It was fun to be able to picture exactly where they were :-D

My main issue with the book was the way Will and Kit communicated - or rather did NOT communicate when times got tough. I put down the book in disgust at around page 220, but was SO close to the end that I decided to push through. I'm glad I did, as they redeemed themselves in the end, but they could have gotten there sooner.

Although - to be fair - I think it was a very realistic way of failing to communicate, and having to take some time & space to figure out what should come next. The time Kit spend with her father did ring very true to me. So in the end, I appreciated the way it was handled. In any case - well worth the $3 I spent on it ;-)

(I now kinda want to look at other editions of this book, because on page 281 Kit was paged to come to stall 281 -- that CANNOT be a coincidence!!! X-D )


Crystal Singer - Anne McCaffrey*, 4.5/5, 311 pages
Not as good as her "Harper's Hall" trilogy, but still very, very enjoyable. Guess I just enjoy books where people have to learn stuff, because the parts where Killa learns how to sing Crystal are definitely my favourites.

I'd forgotten that we only get to see her out in the ranges once in this book though.


Shooting Stars over Bluebell Cliff - Della Galton, 3/5, 310 pages
A sweet and charming read, but slow - VERY slow. Also, the back blurb is completely misleading, as part of what it claims as "the main plot" doesn't happen until halfway through the book, and the conflict it claims is so tiny as to be irrelevant.

I do enjoy reading about filming shows though, so still liked the book well enough, and the familial relationships were described really, really well.... the romantic ones less so though, and all in all I don't think it's a book I'm all that likely to reread.


The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England - Brandon Sanderson, 4/5, 366 pages
Everything about this book just appealed to me. The title, the cover, the book-in-a-book excepts, the back blurb. So even though I was just going to flip through it, I ended up reading the entire thing over the weekend.

And fortunately the story itself lived up to my expectations. I loved the mix of fantasy, mythology and realism, and liked seeing how John slowly remembered more and more of his past, and pieced together his life from clues along the way... even when he turned out to be spectacularly wrong.

This is one of those strange books where I can't say exactly why I loved it as much as I did, but it caught my attention from the very first chapter, and wouldn't leave me alone till I turned the last page.


Wolfsong - T.J. Klune*, 4/5, Audiobook ~18hrs
This book is made out of cup cakes and pine cones. Of epic and awesome.

Though very different in plot and style from The Lightning-Struck Heart I can definitely recognize T.J. Klune's 'voice' here, and the book itself is almost as good (although not quite as surreal). It has definite shades of parts of the "Twilight" series, and knows it too, as it pokes fun of it at every chance it gets.

Ox is awesome, and I loved seeing him grow into his role through the book, but my absolute favourite thing about the book is the relationships shown in the various packs. The natural love and accept flowing from Thomas Bennett down through the pack to Ox and his mother, and how that philosophy lives on in Ox and grows to include other humans as well. T.J. Klune writes relationships very well indeed.

The ending was perhaps a bit cheap, and I'd seen it a mile off, but the rest of the book made up for it. I ended up listening to it at every chance I got, and finished this +18hr audiobook in just little over a week.


The Lightning-Struck Heart - T.J. Klune*, 5/5, Audiobook ~17hrs
Felt like re-listening to this, and love it just as much as always :-D I absolutely adore the narrator, Michael Lesley. He makes the audiobooks even better than the physical books.

Books Read: 17
Pages Read: 2511
Hours Listened to: 76
Book of the Month: The Frugal Wizard's Handbook... very fun read!
Biggest Disappointment: Shooting Stars.... Not a bad read, I'd just expected more.

Løbende tjener - Dennis Jürgensen, 4/5, 487 pages
(Running Servant)
Dennis Jürgensen's talent cannot be denied. He writes ridiculously readable books, and this was no exception. It took me all of 5 pages to be hooked, and if I hadn't had Christmas plans I'd probably have finished it in a day.

This is a suspense novel much in the same style as Chris Carter's Robert Hunter series - although fortunately not quite as graphic in its violence. I'd guessed some of the twists ahead of time, but definitely not all of them... and there was also something I'd thought was a twist, but which may just be setting up something for one of the later books in the series. I was slightly disappointed by the ending - it seemed too easy, somehow.

Though the first in the series, it can be read as a stand-alone novel too. The main plot is nicely contained, although there is an overreaching arch that's left open.


Holiday Romance - Catherine Walsh, 4.5/5, 354 pages
I loved this book and read it in just two sittings! The relationship between Molly and Andrew is adorable, and I loved seeing it grow from friendship to something more. The progress seemed natural and believable with that sudden burst of, "Wow! I think I love you in a different way now!"

The setting itself was a bit contrived, but worked within the bounds of the story, and I loved reading about their families and their different ways of doing Christmas, once they made it to Ireland.

It's not high literature, but a sweet comfort read, that I could see myself rereading on a fairly regular basis.


Snowed In - Catherine Walsh, 3.5/5, 384 pages
Not quite as good as the first book in the series. I still really liked both Christian and Megan, but their relationship wasn't quite as adorable as that of Andrew and Molly. I do love a good fake-dating trope though, and when added to the forced proximity of being snowed in together, you definitely end up with a charming story regardless.

The way Megan cut off everybody from her past, as well as people's reactions to Megan returning didn't quite ring true though, but that just may be because I'm not from a "small town community" myself. The Christmas aspect was a lot weaker in this one too.

But I still liked it well enough to finish in two days :-D


The Northern Lights Lodge - Julie Caplin, 3.5/5, Audiobook ~13hrs
Not quite as good as the two previous books I've read by Julie Caplin, but as always she writes her settings so well, that I'm always extremely eager to go visit whatever place she sets her books in - and this was no exception. I actually found myself WANTING to go to Iceland in November when it's cold, dark and wet! Now THAT is a real achievement!

All the subterfuge annoyed me - both with regards to Lucy and her past, as well as Alex and his reason for being there. The latter sort of made sense (and was fortunately explained in the book), the former less so, once Lucy began to make friends with her colleagues, but thankfully she spoke up about it before Bob could end up being too much of a nuisance. And I loved the way first Alex and then the girls handled Bob and Clive!


Heartstopper Volume 4 + 5 - Alice Oseman*, 4/5, pages total
I got volume 5 for Christmas, so wanted to reread volume 4. They're still adorable!


The Roommate - Rosie Danan, 3/5, 336 pages
I liked it well enough, but it was a lot more unrealistic than I had expected it to be - even within its own universe. Too insta-lovey and too much wish fulfillment. The end especially had me rolling my eyes. I actually didn't mind the wish fulfillment part until then, but the final confrontation happening on live radio? Nope - not buying it. Waaaay out of character


Books Read: 112
Pages Read: 22,732
Hours Listened to: 336
Book of the Month: Probably Holiday Romance. It was just plain sweet :)
Biggest Disappointment: The Roommate - it wasn't bad - it was just that I had had higher expectations for it.

Highlands Christmas - Amy Quick Parrish, 2.5/5, 128 pages
A quick read. I finished it in less than an hour. It's very simplistic, very stereotypical and very unrealistic. However, it's also very charming, and while I found myself noticing all the issues with it, it never really made me consider giving up on it. I really enjoyed the setting (there's just something about (Scottish) village life - especially at Christmas time!) and the friends Melissa made along the way. I even liked Colin... even if he was clearly being awfully unprofessional and blatantly ignoring a serious conflict of interests ;-)

I would love for the author to take a second shot at this - find a better editor, and work out some of the kinks. Because plot-wise it has great potential, and if the charm hadn't been diluted by the stereotypes in both characters and events, it would end up being a very sweet Christmas novella indeed.


Legends & Lattes - Travis Baldree, 4/5, Audiobook ~7hrs
This was recommended to me as "cozy fantasy", and I definitely see what they mean... reading about an orc trying to open a café and introduce gnomish coffee to a city who've never heard of any warm drinks other than tea? Yeah, it doesn't get much cozier than that :-D

I had wondered if Travis Baldree could stick to the 'cozy' part, or if it would end up serving as the basis for a more traditional fantasy style novel, but to my great delight the main focus of the book was indeed on the establishing of "Legends & Lattes" - expanding the menu, gathering a following and becoming an established business in the neighbourhood. I know it doesn't sound like that ought to make for thrilling reading - and it doesn't... but it does make for very cozy reading. The fantasy aspect almost took a back seat to the worldbuilding, which I really appreciated.

Of course there had to be some sort of crisis in the end, but it didn't actually come from the direction I had expected it to... and I greatly enjoyed the follow-up afterwards.

So far it seems to be a stand-alone novel (although there is a prequel), but I wouldn't mind reading more about Legends & Lattes in the future :-)

I read this as an audiobook, narrated by the author himself :-)


The Witch is Back - Sophie H. Morgan, 4.5/5, 384
Such a delightful read! I was utterly charmed, and while I loved that it was a stand-alone novel, I still want to read more from this universe! I hope companion novels will be made about Leah or Tia at some point - or Sloan!

Alright - getting my (few) complaints out of the way first. I will admit that the book is rife with cliches. The "good guys" are good through and through and the "bad guys" have no redeeming factors whatsoever. I lacked some sort of motivation behind Clarissa's actions. Also, I'm never too keen on the main character keeping secrets from the reader - although it served a purpose in this case. Finally, it took Emma and Bastian waaaaaaay too long to actually COMMUNICATE!!! But I appreciate that they did so before everything blew up in their faces.

I loved the friendship between Leah, Tia and Emma, I loved the relationship between Sloan and Emma and would love to read more about how that evolved. I loved this different take on the "fake dating" trope and was charmed by the tattoos of the joining. I loved Kole and Bastian's parents and I adored how Bastian stood up to Clarissa.

I can fully see how some people might find this book trite or twee or some other t-adjective - but to me it worked, and I polished it off in two quick sittings.


A Deadly Education - Naomi Novik, 4.5/5, Audiobook ~11hrs
Naomi Novik has been a bit hit and miss to me. I wasn't too impressed by "Uprooted", but loved "His Majesty's Dragon", so I was a bit reluctant to start this series. However, it came strongly recommended by a friend whose taste in books I trust, so when I found it at the library, I decided to give it a shot.

I'm so glad I did! I listened to 11 hours in just a week and loved every minute of it. This is Harry Potter if Hogwarts was evil and out to get you! I will admit that the writing style takes some getting used to - there's a lot more telling than showing going on in the beginning, but for some reason it worked with the atmosphere of the book, and I was instantly drawn in.

I loved reading about El's growth and almost reluctant way of making friends, and was fascinated by the way magic works in this world - crocheting to gain manna seems like the perfect deal to me! (which I know means it wouldn't gain me much, but hey - a girl can dream, right? ;-) )

The end was a bit more sudden than I had expected, and I'm very intrigued to see what will happen next!


Chef's Choice - T.J. Alexander, 3/5, 336 pages
Not as good as the first book, unfortunately. I loved "Chef's Kiss", but never felt I got to know Luna and JP as well as I did Simone and Ray - nor was I as charmed by them.

A shame, as I usually love the fake-dating trope (and that part was done really well), but since I felt the relationship was a lot more tell than show, I never truly bought that their feelings changed.

That said, I did appreciate that it was more "slow-burn" than "third act break-up", and I loved the confrontation with JP's grandfather near the end.

So a good book - but not a great one.


Wonder - R.J. Palacio*, 5/5, 316 pages
Definitely not a book for everybody. I can easily see how it could be too twee for some and just too much for others, but personally, I absolutely adored it! Without a doubt one of the best books I've read this year. It had me both laughing and crying with joy, and I had tears - happy tears - running down my cheeks as I read the last page. It was probably a too perfect ending, but it worked for me, and I just wanted to gather everybody up and give them all huge hugs.


Auggie & Me - R.J. Palacio*, 4/5, 380 pages
It didn't blow me away the way "Wonder" did, but I still really liked it.
It was good to see things from Julian, Chris and Charlotte's point of view, and I liked that Auggie was just a minor characters in these stories.
I liked Julian's story the best - but with Charlotte's as a close second.


The Rosary - Florence L. Barclay*, 4/5, 389 pages
Hadn't realized it had been 11 years since I read this last!

The last half is by far the best - I do love reading about Jane as Rosemary Grey - but it baffles me that nobody seems to mind that she deceived Garth in that way by pretending to be somebody else. It's just... glossed over as being completely inconsequential.

Ah well. Still a beautiful story... if a bit over the top in some places.


Tre piger i en bil - Estrid Ott*, 4/5, 205 pages
I read this often as a kid, but somehow hadn't picked it up for 18 years, so figured it was about time! Fortunately - as with most of Estrid Ott's books - it stood the test of time. Sure, it was terribly dated in some aspects, but then it WAS written almost 100 years ago (almost exactly - it's from 1925), so it's to be expected.

It was quite funny to read this after just having been to NYC myself, and actually being able to picture some of the places described... even if in a "slightly" more modern setting ;-)


Sue Barton, Student Nurse - Helen Dore Boylston*, 4.5/4, 244 pages
A quick read (took me no more than an hour or two), but a good one. It's a wonder I've never wanted to be a nurse or a doctor, as much as I love reading about their work. It's a feel-good book of the old-fashioned style and I greatly enjoyed it.


Books Read: 94
Book of the Month: A toss between The Witch is Back and A Deadly Education. I loved both!