We are about to get “I‘m really glad I work from home and have done all my errands so I don‘t have to go outside” cold…which is perfect weather for staying inside with 700+ pages of fantasy from Martha Wells.

I love how quiet & unassuming Kosuke Kindaichi, the main character, is in this series by one of the biggest names in classic Japanese crime fiction. As always, there is a gruesome crime but what really makes these stories work is the exploration of the emotions that drive people to do the unthinkable. As usual, the pacing is slow but it works & you can almost imagine yourself having tea with Kosuke as he tells you about the latest crime.

Lu‘s adult debut—she writes primarily YA—is billed as The Godfather meets The Magicians & if it had been that, it would be amazing. As it is, the book is a well-executed, albeit formulaic, story about two friends who keep important secrets from each other only to discover they are on opposing sides in a vicious alchemical gang war (essentially). I was entertained but would have liked less focus on the central relationship & more on the world.

After a mostly underwhelming reading year, things have really picked up. This is easily one of my favorite books of the year—filled with wonder, mystery, & more than a little whimsy, this book about choices—not the big ones people think matter but the seemingly little ones—pulls you in, & in my case, did not let go. This is a gentle story & a delightful escape. This is the first book I‘ve read by this author, it won‘t be the last.

This book was something…all sorts of wrong—in the best sort of Victorian horror ways—and the kind of story that is hard to put down even as you read it through your fingers with a mix of horrified fascination and “eewwww, don‘t get too close because…gross.” There‘s a nanny, a creepy house with even creepier owners & a pair of kids running around underfoot. There‘s also revenge, murder, & horror. This book may not be for everyone but I enjoyed it.

First published in 1958 this book, according to Towles, launched the mystery genre in Japan. Having read it, I understand why. A crime that, on the surface, doesn‘t appear to be one. An airtight alibi. A grizzled veteran investigator who can‘t escape a sense of doubt, a young investigator who knows something isn‘t quite right. It has all the elements and Matsumoto‘s revealing of the truth is really well timed. I really enjoyed this one.

Of course it‘s a pick. I don‘t think I‘ve ever read a Stephen King book I didn‘t like…or at least that I couldn‘t find aspects of to like. Ostensibly a whodunit (to a degree), this book is also an examination of the human condition, the lies we tell ourselves & others, the emotional toll of working on death row, racism, the abuse of power, & wonder & hope & the possibility in the seemingly impossible. King just knows how to tell a good story.

Went to a bookstore for the first time in ages and didn‘t find any of the books I was actually looking for. 😬 I did, however, find three books on my “keep an eye out for these” list and a new one by Theodore C. Van Alst Jr. Definitely ready for some holiday long weekend reading!

Somehow, I have never read this or seen the movie...going to fix that right now.

Going with a short story collection to start this spring-like November weekend. After a snowstorm earlier this week, we now find ourselves in the mid 60s. 🤷‍♀️

Jones always has something interesting to say and this book is no exception. This is a zombie story but it is also a book about the church and the military vying to be THE authority in a post-apocalyptic zombie-invested world, the military-industrial complex, good and evil, hope and despair and the will to survive even when the possibility seems unlikely. Not my favorite of his books but still a well-written, entertaining read.

My reading brain is jumping from book to book like there is no tomorrow…🤷‍♀️

Started this one yesterday and so far it‘s holding my attention even though I‘m finding one of the storylines to be rather predictable. We‘ll see if I make it to the end!

We are under a winter storm warning with 12-18 inches of snow expected tonight and all day Monday. So yes, I have done all the shopping and errands and am ready to settle in with a good book. This is a reread for me but it‘s perfect for this sort of day. Stay safe everyone!

❄️📖☕️❄️

Some nights you just feel like 🧟‍♂️

Finally have some time for reading & I‘m making up for a slow few weeks/months😬…Anyway, Byrd is back in Hawaii with another mystery to solve—this time two casino operators are fighting &, perhaps, sabotaging each other…unless someone else is actually to blame. Gotta love a hard-boiled detective mystery in a comic book set in Hawaii. The art is solid—not my fav—& the colors are fantastic. Story is appropriately convoluted with some good reveals.

The K-pop drama continues as a new, upstart group goes up against industry leader Shax…& holds their own. The relationship at the center of the story is not entirely believable yet so I‘ll have to see how it progresses. The strength is the depiction of life as a k-pop idol, the industry behind the scenes & while this is specifically about K-pop, I can‘t imagine it would ever be easy for anyone to live in the spotlight. Entertaining read.

Super excited about today‘s book mail. Just out, this book takes readers through a decade by decade history of houses, architectural styles, the Chicago grid, and much more. With fantastic illustrations throughout, this is going to be a fun read. I‘m looking forward to learning more about the city‘s houses and neighborhoods.

Book club on Monday means I better start reading the book…😬

This is a fun middle grade book full of magic, secrets, night markets, monsters, & a pair of siblings you can‘t help but root for. Juniper is an enchanter & is forced to leave her twin brother behind when she is sent to study magic. Unwilling to be separated from her, her twin Rafferty begins an apprenticeship near the academy where Juniper is studying. Needles to say, things get complicated & with the promise of more, this is a solid first book.

This is a pick for me on the strength of the art which is dark & moody & sinister throughout. It is, however, very text heavy so it‘s not a fast read. Wickey has written a thoroughly researched retelling of the Salem Witch Trials, how neighbors turned on each other, how people were not given fair trials, how rumor, innuendo, & suspicion overwhelmed the truth. That story is juxtaposed with descendants of participants & the lingering trauma.

Did I know Bradbury wrote crime fiction before this book caught my eye in the bookstore? Nope, sure didn‘t. This is an entertaining collection of stories. Some are better than others, as is usually the case, but together they are more entertaining than not. Great plot twists, diverse settings, fantastic range of characters from thugs to circus performers to ventriloquists & more, the supernatural. Bradbury‘s crime fiction is a good read.

It was fine…and then the author used a device after which there was no chance the story was going to recover in the way it would need to in order for that choice to work. And honestly, I didn‘t see that happening. Most likely an unpopular opinion because my daughter tells me this book is super popular but I didn‘t have enough confidence in the story to keep going. My TBR is too unruly to not put this one down and move on.

Excellent poetry collection which originated, Olivarez said when he spoke about it last night, out of his desire to talk about friendship & his friends who have always been there for him. Olivarez also dives into being a person of color, Mexican, American, capitalism, perception, the weight of history, prejudice, racism, love & much more. Powerful, punchy, poetry that speaks to the world we are living in right now. This was a great read.

Attended the CPLF Carl Sandburg Literary Award Dinner tonight & it was awesome being a room full of people supporting books, libraries, & authors. Olivarez read a defiant, unpublished poem about resisting fear & intimidation, masked men & the streets of Chicago. Percival Everett talked about his book James, about why fascists burn books & fear knowledge & about who gets to tell stories. People had a lot to say about the power of words tonight.

I‘m eyeballs deep in a project that isn‘t leaving me much time for reading but I did manage to squeeze in a quick read of this comic which, truth be told, drew my eyes because of the awesome cover. Four sisters, a mysterious letter warning of danger, a magical artifact, & a psychedelic evil carnival—yes, you read that correctly—make for an interesting if uneven read. Remender is always entertaining & this was good enough I‘ll probably continue.

Just as chaotic and angsty as expected…which is to say, I was entertained. I like the art and while the story was a little choppy, and didn‘t always quite make sense, but it‘s off to a solid start. On to Volume 2!

I am so here for all the K-pop drama because sometimes you just want something fun and silly to read…I don‘t remember how I came across this but I‘m anticipating lots of angst. Anyway, this is a manhwa from South Korea…

This narrative work of poetry, envisioned as a modern epic poem, details the discovery of a crime, the investigation, and the resolution though the eyes of Agent K who is tasked with solving the crime. Poetry is well-suited to expressing the jarring, and world-upending (loss of innocence) dissonance of stumbling up a crime, the emotional toll for those the crime touches, and the lingering power of history, secrets, memory. A good read.

Reading a Bram Stoker Award winning collection of poetry today.

This book is a legit doorstop…I can‘t remember the last time my arm got tired holding a book. 😬 I definitely blame the book, not age! 😂 It‘ll all be worth it though if it proves to be an entertaining read! 🤞

With The Summer War Novik returns to the realm of fairytales, a nice departure from her Scholomance trilogy which never really quite worked for me. This book is a novella & aspects of it are arguably underdeveloped—some things are introduced & left as they are with little additional explanation—but this quiet book about family, love, sacrifice, & learning from one‘s mistakes is more satisfying than not. I enjoyed it.

I don‘t know about anyone else, but my reading brain is all over the place these days…that being said, this was a fun one. Haruka sakura transfers to Furin High School which has a reputation for being filled with degenerates. He‘s ok with that because he wants to fight his way to the top, be the strongest of the strong. Except, the students aren‘t the worst. They‘re protecting their neighborhood & Haruka is about to become a member of the team.

A graphic novel about the Salem Witch trials a decade in the making?!? Perfect read as we head into autumn… 🍂🍁🍂

The fact this book is nonfiction is both heartbreaking & maddening—not to mention a national embarrassment. Ackerman writes with raw intensity—he served in Iraq & Afghanistan—about trying to help Afghani support staff (interpreters, other who worked with the US military, their families) leave Afghanistan when the US pulled out in 2021. Chapters about his service in the Marines are likewise intense. A difficult, powerful read.

This is one of those “it‘s me, not you” moments. The book has been getting really great reviews &, generally speaking, I like Ross‘ writing but this one, about a mortal & immortal falling in love never came together for me…perhaps because the relationships between the immortals, while not the main narrative thread, were far more interesting than the love story. Interesting setting, dark, brutal, & compelling but ultimately this was good not great.

I‘ll read anything Lepore writes and her latest, out today, which is about the constitution feels especially timely. I know she thinks originalism is deeply flawed (she‘s right) and that our inability to amend the constitution is a threat to our democracy (again she‘s right). Can‘t wait to read more. I m expecting an informative, compelling and occasionally frustrating/maddening (because politics!) read. Top of the nonfiction pile it goes.

I don‘t often reread nonfiction but this was a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ read for me several years ago. Talked my book club into reading it & the excuse to reread it is a definite bonus. Two chapters in & it is every bit as good this read through as it was the first time. As much a biography, if you will, of A Portrait of a Lady as it is Henry James, this book offers a fascinating analysis of the author, the book, & the world in which it was created.

This book has a great premise—daughter receives word her father, accused of a terrible crime, is in fact innocent. To prove it, she‘ll have to infiltrate the Otherwhere Post & train in scriptomancy—a magic which allows people, long story short, to travel to different worlds. Fascinating magic system, intriguing world, & a story that could have made better use of both, particularly if the characters were a little more dynamic. Good maybe not great.

Sneaking in a few pages while dinner is cooking…

This intergenerational story about family secrets, sisterhood, the masks people wear/the roles they play, reputation, & family honor never quite came together for me. In Korea, 105 year-old Hak Jeonga receives news that has her, & much to her dismay her sisters, rushing to America to deal with some family problems. At stake is the revelation of long held secrets that could shake the family. A low pick for me—I just wanted more from the story.

Today‘s reading…

This first book in a fantasy trilogy is not without its flaws—solid, not great writing, a predictable storyline with familiar characters, an over reliance on various types violence—and yet I was entertained and will undoubtedly continue with the series. Sometimes you just want to escape into another world, even one filled with danger, betrayal, secrets, and death. This one worked for my brain right now. A fast, fun read.

Started this one yesterday. So far I am entertained.

Such a gorgeous edition—particularly the illustrations that are scattered throughout the book. Unfortunately, the story is not as compelling as the artwork. The biggest problem, for me, is that the relationship at the center of everything is not believable & because it isn‘t, the story loses emotional depth. A lot of action takes place off the page which also doesn‘t work. It‘s the author‘s debut & there‘s potential but this was just ok.

Long weekends are made for reading…

I think this may be one of my favorite covers of the year.

Fantastic maps, illustrations throughout. This is a gorgeous edition. Hopefully it‘s an entertaining read too.

This ponderous, philosophical exploration of love, academia, rivalry, existence, magic, science (& more) will likely be a love/hate it read for many people. And then there will be those in the middle like me— it‘s well-written but in the story of Alice‘s journey to Hell to find the professor she killed, Kuang is more focused on philosophy & esoteric discussions than she is character development & emotional depth. In the end, a low pick for me.

First, let me just say this book is really pretty. Gorgeous edition.

It‘s also really good. Kuang is a fantastic writer & 70 pages in, this is great…except for one thing that is really annoying. She borrowed the name of an object from another really well-known IP for something in her book & it is hugely distracting, pulls me out of the story distracting. It‘s not quite as bad as having the characters armed with lightsabers but it‘s close. Sigh.

Books about assassins doing what assassins do shouldn‘t be this fun or entertaining but Isaka‘s gift is making you care about them as characters—or at least definitely pick a favorite that you root for & who you hope will survive. As in Isaka‘s other books, the body count is high, the laughter more frequent than it probably should be, & the pace frenetic leaving characters very little time to make life & death choices. Very entertaining read.

Next up. Isaka‘s books never disappoint so I‘m anticipating another entertaining read. 🤞