Curioussquared takes on 75+ in 2022, part 2

Hello everyone! I'm Natalie. I have participated in the challenge on and off over the years, and consistently over the past few years.

I'm located in Seattle, where I live with my husband and dogs. I do most of my reading curled up on the couch with my retired racing greyhounds, Skelly, Otter, and Kermit, or listening to audiobooks while doing chores and walking the dogs. I'm on the hunt for a new job right now, so have more free time than usual. As part of that increased free time, one of my non-reading goals for 2022 is to finish the manuscript I started writing for NaNoWriMo 2021 -- I hit 50k but the story's not over!

I read mostly fiction, with a heavy emphasis on fantasy and sci-fi, YA fiction, general fiction/literature, a scattered mystery here and there, and the occasional non-fiction title. In 2021 I read a ton of romance novels, which have not been my traditional bill of fare, but I've been enjoying easier reads (and listens) in these strange times, so I expect that trend to continue in 2022.

I've been keeping track of my books read since 2008, and I have traditionally aimed for 100, but I think these days I'm usually hoping to hit 150. I managed it in 2020, but only got to 135 in 2021, mostly because a lot of my time was spent planning my wedding to my new husband, Tim :)

Another typical reading goal for me is to prioritize books off my shelves. A little more than half of the books I read in 2021 were off my shelves, and I'd like it to keep it that way or even higher in 2022. I have a separate thread I maintain in the ROOTs group, and in addition, I have a selection of books off my shelves I'd like to get to this year, which you can see in a post below.



Here's a photo of the dogs from our engagement photoshoot last year -- with my Skelly front and center :)

Here are my top books of 2021! I didn't trim down to a nice even number or anything because I don't feel like it ;)

North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
Catfishing on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer
The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin
The Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope
Hollowpox by Jessica Townsend
Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells
Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon
Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik
Hollow Chest by Brita Sandstrom
A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia A. McKillip

Books read in 2022:

January
1. The Secret Bridesmaid by Katy Birchall (library)
2. The Kings of Clonmel by John Flanagan (library)
3. The Merciful Crow by Margaret Owen (off my shelf)
4. Front Desk by Kelly Yang (library)
5. Even Cowgirls Get the Blues by Tom Robbins (off my shelf)
6. Terciel and Elinor by Garth Nix (off my shelf)
7. The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco (off my shelf)
8. You Had Me at Hola by Alexis Daria (off my shelf)
9. Graceling by Kristin Cashore (reread)
10. Winter's Orbit by Everina Maxwell (off my shelf)
11. 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff (off my shelf)
12. The 101 Dalmatians by Dodie Smith (reread)
13. Kim by Rudyard Kipling (off my shelf)
14. The Faithless Hawk by Margaret Owen
15. Halt's Peril by John Flanagan

February
16. The Starlight Barking by Dodie Smith
17. Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon (off my shelf)
18. Fire by Kristin Cashore (reread)
19. A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper (off my shelf)
20. Shielded by KayLynn Flanders
21. Knight's Castle by Edward Eager (off my shelf)
22. Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold
23. Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao (off my shelf)
24. With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo (off my shelf)
25. Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton (off my shelf)
26. The Excalibur Curse by Kiersten White
27. Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore (reread)
28. Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl
29. Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston (off my shelf)
30. Faithful Place by Tana French (off my shelf)
31. The FitzOsbornes in Exile by Michelle Cooper

March
32. The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
33. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)
34. A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske (off my shelf)
35. All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
36. The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
37. The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite
38. Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger (off my shelf)
39. The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian
40. A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas (off my shelf)
41. Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff
42. The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera
43. Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)
44. The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins (off my shelf)
45. Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson (off my shelf)
46. Woes of the True Policeman by Roberto Bolano (off my shelf)
47. The Radium Girls by Kate Moore (off my shelf)
48. The Night Ride by J. Anderson Coats

Books read in 2022:

April
49. Winterkeep by Kristin Cashore
50. Major Barbara by George Bernard Shaw (off my shelf)
51. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (off my shelf)
52. Little Thieves by Margaret Owen (off my shelf)
53. Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo (off my shelf)
54. House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones (reread)
55. Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer
56. Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams
57. A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger
58. The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy by Anne Ursu
59. An Offer from a Gentleman by Julia Quinn
60. Dreams from my Father by Barack Obama (off my shelf)
61. Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia (reread)
62. The Secret Starling by Judith Eagle (off my shelf)
63. Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong
64. Stuck with You by Ali Hazelwood
65. Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard (off my shelf)

May
66. Hook, Line, and Sinker by Tessa Bailey
67. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood (off my shelf)
68. Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver (off my shelf)

June

Books read in 2022:

July

August

September

Books read in 2022:

October

November

December

As mentioned above, I have a pool of books I've pulled off my shelves that I want to try to get through this year. It's a mix of newer titles I'm excited about, stuff I've had unread on my shelf forever, and everything in between. It's really, truly random -- I just ran around pulling stuff off the shelves that caught my eye!

We're going aggressive with numbers this year, folks! Last year I chose 42 and got to 37; I'm carrying over the five I didn't get to, as I'd still like to read them soon, and added a whole bunch more:



Here's the list if you can't read them all!

Done: 22/61

1. Angel Mage by Garth Nix
2. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon
3. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
4. Small Gods by Terry Pratchett
5. Even Cowgirls Get the Blues by Tom Robbins
6. The Greenstone Grail by Amanda Hemingway
7. Swordspoint by Ellen Kushner
8. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
9. Winter's Orbit by Everina Maxwell
10. Terciel and Elinor by Garth Nix
11. The White Company by Alexander Conan Doyle
12. Flight to Arras by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
13. Breathe by Cliff McNish
14. A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers
15. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
16. Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende
17. Queen of Scots by John Guy
18. Voyager by Diana Gabaldon
19. Beloved by Toni Morrison
20. The Girls by Emma Cline
21. Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky
22. Kim by Rudyard Kipling
23. City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty
24. A Brief History of Montmaray by Michelle Cooper
25. The Secret History by Donna Tartt
26. Heartstone by Elle Katharine White
27. In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan
28. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard
29. Tongues of Serpents by Naomi Novik
30. Knight's Castle by Edward Eager
31. Faithful Place by Tana French
32. Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver
33. Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
34. The Jewel Thief by Jeannie Mobley
35. Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko
36. Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
37. Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
38. Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
39. Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
40. The Cloud Roads by Martha Wells
41. A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
42. You Had Me at Hola by Alexis Daria
43. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
44. The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
45. Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson
46. Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao
47. Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger
48. The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fforde
49. The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang
50. Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
51. The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
52. Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston
53. The Secret Starling by Judith Eagle
54. Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama
55. Little Thieves by Margaret Owen
56. Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon
57. Blackout by Connie Willis
58. Bend Sinister by Vladimir Nabokov
59. Saving Savannah by Tonya Bolden
60. Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
61. Blazewrath Games by Amparo Ortiz

Welcome to my second thread of 2022!

27 books read: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

8 years after the events of Graceling, Bitterblue, now queen of Moncey, is still navigating the complicated aftermath and wreckage of her father Lek's rule. She has allies to help her -- but sometimes it's unclear who those allies are, and if her advisors are always acting in her best interests, or if they just think they are. When Bitterblue starts to feel like she's locked in her tower with no actual connection to her subjects in her city, she starts sneaking out at night and discovers story parlors where she hears tales of her father and his atrocities. As she starts uncovering problems in her city and among her subjects, she starts also uncovering horrors from her father's reign that have been hidden for years. Piecing together the past, bit by bit, Bitterblue slowly takes control of her castle and her responsibilities.

I loved Graceling and Fire when I read them, and I remember enjoying Bitterblue, too -- but I read it several years after the first two, and I think I missed a lot of the context from the previous books. This time around, I was so, so impressed with this novel: you can see just how much Cashore's writing has improved since the first book, and not only is the story tightly plotted and fast-paced, but Cashore has expertly woven together the stories from the previous two novels and taken them to their logical conclusion. So, so good, and I can't wait to read Winterkeep next. 5 stars.

Happy new thread, Natalie!

>7 curioussquared: Let me know when you are planning to read #s : 2, 3, 19, 20, 23, 32, 36, 43 & 58 and I'll join you in a read because they are all books on my shelves that I hope to read soon too.

Happy new thread!

>9 curioussquared: That looks like an interesting series.

>10 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul! I will try let you know if I start any of those. I've been gravitating toward easier reads with all the dog medical drama, but I'm starting to feel more ready for something a bit heftier :)

>11 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita! I highly recommend it if you're into fantasy novels. The first one definitely reads as more YA, but I think they grow progressively denser and can be enjoyed by all ages.

On the watching front, I finally got around to A Room with a View (1985) and North and South (2004). Both were excellent adaptations, and I would have watched them sooner had they been available on one of my streaming services. Luckily my library had DVDs available, and luckily I still have a way to watch DVDs, though the remote on my player is broken and the on-player buttons are very limited, so I have to watch them all the way though with no way to pause :) I particularly enjoyed the bathing scene in A Room with a View -- hilarious!

>12 curioussquared: Having just completed Lincoln in the Bardo I can really sympathise!

Happy new thread, Natalie!

Happy new thread, Natalie! Glad you're enjoying your reread of the Graceling series. I'm looking forward to your thoughts on Winterkeep to help me decide how quickly to reread and read that one too :)

Happy new one!

Happy second thread!

>15 PaulCranswick: Lol, not a fan? That one's on my list...

>16 FAMeulstee: Thanks, Anita :)

>17 bell7: Thanks, Mary! I have it out from the library on audio right now, but am now wondering if maybe I want to read it instead since it's my first time. Decisions, decisions...

>18 drneutron: Thanks, Jim!

>19 libraryperilous: Thanks, Diana :)

I have been bad and have been frequenting Book Outlet's website way too much lately. I have recently acquired:

Heir Apparent
Beasts Made of Night
Star Daughter
This Poison Heart
The Faithless Hawk (I decided I wanted my own copy)
A pretty box set of all 8 Anne of Green Gables books -- This set, if anyone is interested: https://bookoutlet.com/products/9780349013329B/the-complete-anne-of-green-gables...
Down Comes the Night
A Sisterhood of Secret Ambitions
Sisters of the Snake
The Conductors

Oh well, they were all great deals!

>21 curioussquared: Seventeen books warms the cockles of my heart!

>7 curioussquared: I've read thirteen of them. Strongly recommend The Goblin Emperor asap as one that you will enjoy. Have bailed, at least at this point, on #s 7, 35, 48 and 60. Warning: if you read Blackout (which I quite enjoyed), you need to have All Clear on hand as it is the second part of the story.

I bought almost all of the L. M. Montgomery books (including the entire Anne series) when they were reissued in paperback in the 70s, and still have them.

Hugs to Skelly and the other boys.

The Goblin Emperor is very comforting!

>23 ronincats: I struggled to get into Willis' books, even though it seems like the kind of series I would like. The tone was a bit glib. Does that change later in the book?

>14 curioussquared: Yay! So glad you enjoyed both of those. North and South is in my personal collection and I've been thinking a rewatch is in order.

>22 PaulCranswick: Mine too, Paul, but I'm definitely not doing well at my "get my TBR pile under 400" goal I wanted to accomplish this year. I can't stop hovering between 420-430...

>23 ronincats: Good to know, Roni! I do have All Clear on deck so I should be good to go when I get to those. I have copies that were my mom's, and probably from the 70s, of the first three Anne books, but I couldn't resist this very cute and very reasonably priced box set. I love a box set, lol.

>24 libraryperilous: Have you tried To Say Nothing of the Dog? That's the only one I've read, but I loved it. I really need to get to The Goblin Emperor. I moved it into my "next in line" stack on my nightstand, but there are something like 15 other books in that stack, too. Lol.

>21 curioussquared: Nice set of Anne covers. I'm partial to the ones Tundra books released several years ago and I bought for my collection. They had the same artist do a bunch of Montgomery's bibliography but not all, frustratingly.

>25 MickyFine: So good! I'm waiting for my hold on the film of 84, Charing Cross Road to come in, to complete my "adaptations I want to watch that I can't find streaming" watching :)

>29 MickyFine: Oh, those are gorgeous!

28 books read: Danny the Champion of the World by Roald Dahl

Danny's mother died when he was born, and he and his father live a simple life in a wooden caravan behind the filling station his father owns. But Danny has never felt he lacks for anything, for he has the most wonderful father a boy could ask for. One night, Danny wakes up and finds that his father isn't in the other caravan bunk. It turns out he was out doing the thing he loves most -- poaching pheasant from the nearby wood that belongs to nasty Mr. Hazel. Soon, Danny and his father are hatching a scheme to poach more pheasant than anybody ever has before -- just in time to spoil opening day for Mr. Hazel and the rest of his posh hunting guests.

This is one of the few Dahls I somehow overlooked in my childhood. I remember checking it out from my elementary school library and stalling out somewhere around the part where Danny's dad is describing the different methods for catching pheasants; apparently my elementary school self wasn't very interested in poaching? Anyway, this was a delight even as an adult, and the relationship between Danny and his father is so special. 5 stars.

>30 curioussquared: That's so funny that 84, Charing Cross Road isn't available streaming for you. It's on Netflix in Canada, which is how I watched it last summer and finally put the book on The List.

>33 MickyFine: Streaming rights are so weird. Oh well, yay for the library!

29 books read: Among the Beasts and Briars by Ashley Poston

Cerys is the daughter of the royal gardener in Aloriya, a peaceful, normal village -- aside from the fact that it's right next to a cursed wood that the villagers all know not to enter. On the coronation day of Cerys's best friend, the princess Anwen, something goes horribly wrong, and the evils of the wood breach Aloriya. Cerys must flee into the wood with the royal crown, which holds the magic of Aloriya, her only ally the fox who eats her garden scraps. But Fox may be more than he seems, and he and Cerys must learn to trust each other as they travel deeper into the wood to try to save Aloriya and everyone they love.

I really wanted to love this -- I really love Poston's Once Upon a Con series, and I follow her on Twitter and enjoy her presence there. I thought the synopsis of this one was adorable -- a fox and the gardener's daughter on a quest to save the world! But it fell pretty flat for me. The characters and worldbuilding lacked depth, and I called the big twist from the very beginning. Something about the writing was a little off, too; the language used was very modern, which isn't necessarily wrong in a high fantasy novel, if it's done right, but it wasn't done well and just felt very out of place. 3 stars.

>35 curioussquared: My mom rarely DNFs books, but she couldn't get through this one. I had guessed the plot twist from reading a description.

I sometimes think, particularly in YA, that publishers push authors to write books that aren't really to the authors' tastes or strengths, so that the publishers can capitalize on the authors' popularity. That especially feels true of YA fantasy. And then sometimes you get authors selling well and forcing publishers to publish their middle grade mouse on a ship story, so I suppose it balances out.

Edited: typo

>36 libraryperilous: I could definitely see it, though I'm not sure that was the case here. There was a bit in the acknowledgements where Poston was describing how she had some friends read the first draft and they told her it was only half a story, and then she had them read the revised version to confirm it was a whole story. I thought to myself, hmm... Those friends needed to be more honest.

I was disappointed because Poston's contemporary fairy tale spins are delightful, and I think she generally writes really great characters, but this book suffered most of all from a horrible lack of worldbuilding, which caused her characters to fall flat as well. I had already pre-ordered her debut adult contemporary romance novel that comes out in July, so hopefully that one is better than this one! I had also been meaning to check out her sci-fi duology, but I think I'll hold off for now.

I've been plagued by a background tension headache since early Tuesday morning and I'm very done with it 😡 I scheduled a massage yesterday in hopes it would help and while I enjoyed it, the headache is still lingering. I'm going to try to do a bunch of stretching exercises today to see if I can get to the bottom of it. I do get the occasional bad headache but I don't think I've ever had one last so long!

Plans for today are tidying up before we have some friends over this evening, probably while listening to The FitzOsbournes in Exile, and reading more of Faithful Place if I have some time.

>38 curioussquared: Ooof, headaches suck but long ones are even worse. Hope it disappears soon.

Hope you have a lovely time with friends.

>38 curioussquared: Ouch! I hope the headache goes away soon/is gone already.

>39 MickyFine: >40 ArlieS: Thanks, friends! I did 20 minutes of intense neck stretches yesterday and that seems to have done the trick. My neck and upper back/shoulders are still painfully sore, for some reason (I don't think I've been lifting stuff and my exercise regime has been lacking of late!) But the headache stemming from the tension seems to be gone. I might try to keep up the stretching routine for the next few days just in case it tries to return.

We had a nice time with three friends yesterday (Tim's best man and his wife and my maid of honor) playing some Mario Party and then watching a few episodes of Love is Blind: Japan. These shows are delectable drama, lol. Didn't finish any books but I should be done with The FitzOsbournes in Exile today, tomorrow at the very latest.

30 books read: Faithful Place by Tana French

22 years ago, 19-year-old Frank Mackey and his girlfriend Rosie Daly were supposed to sneak out of their parents' homes, meet at midnight, and head for the ferry to England to chase their dreams and escape their humble beginnings. But Rosie never showed up that night, and after finding a note she left in the abandoned house in the neighborhood, Frank assumed she had gone to England without him. He waited until dawn, then kept his promise to himself to escape his dysfunctional family and left, though he stayed in Dublin. Then, 22 years later, Frank gets a call from his sister Jackie, the only family member he speaks with. Rosie's suitcase has been found, stuffed up the chimney of the abandoned house, and suddenly, everything Frank knows is turned upside down. Maybe Rosie didn't leave him all those years ago -- maybe she never made it out of the neighborhood alive.

I don't think of myself as a mystery reader, really, but every time I pick up a Tana French novel, I can't put it down. This entry in the Dublin Murder Squad series was no exception. Frank appeared in The Likeness (and possibly in the previous book? I can't remember) and wasn't a particularly likeable character, so I wasn't sure if I needed a novel from his point of view. I was definitely wrong. French paints deft portraits of all her characters, all in shades of grey, and Frank is no exception; the bits with his daughter were beautifully done and served to complexify him nicely. I really did like The Likeness, but the premise required a suspension of disbelief that kept it from being truly excellent for me, while Faithful Place just requires that you know that humans are complicated creatures. Honestly, I just want to pick up the next book right away, and I might just do that! 4.5 stars.

31 books read: The FitzOsbornes in Exile by Michelle Cooper

After their narrow escape after the Germans attacked, Princess Sophia of Montmaray, along with her brother the king, Toby, her cousin Veronica, her sister Henry, and their Portuguese Water Dog Carlos, are all living in England with their rich aunt Charlotte. As their aunt orchestrates their coming out into society and the FitzOsbornes adjust to a very different life from the one they lived in their crumbling island castle, unrest is spreading across Europe as World War II looms.

I thought this sequel to A Brief History of Montmaray was better done than the first novel. The pacing made more sense, it felt less like an I Capture the Castle ripoff, and it was an interesting POV of an era that gets less face time than the actual war years. I was disappointed to learn that no audiobook was made of book 3, which probably means I'll get to it rather later than I would have otherwise. 3.75 stars -- I don't usually do quarter stars, but this wasn't quite up to a 4 for me, but felt better than a 3.5.

I spent a long time on the couch today finishing Faithful Place while it poured rain outside, which was nice until I had to take the dogs out for their evening walk in said pouring rain. Now I have to decide my next reads... audio will be The Love Hypothesis. Print, probably something off my big list, but I'm also tempted by a reread of either the Howl's Moving Castle books or Eliza and Her Monsters. I'm also considering holding off on a new print book until I finish up the Kindle reads I've had going for ages -- Radium Girls and A Court of Wings and Ruin.

In other news, I've been striking out with most of my job apps lately and have been considering how I want to proceed. I've decided to do an online Technical Writing certificate -- the course I chose is intended for people who think of themselves as writers or have worked professionally in a writing capacity, but don't have the actual training in writing technical documentation that a tech writing gig would require, so perfect for me. It's self-directed, so I can take as long as I want, but it's intended to be feasible to complete in a month with a few hours of work every day. Most of the assignments are self-review, but there is a capstone element that the course director reviews and provides feedback on. I'm excited!

I hope the course is informative and rewarding, Natalie.

>46 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! Me, too.

That course sounds perfect - seems like a smart move!

>48 scaifea: So far so good, Amber! I started yesterday and so far it's a little overwhelming just because I don't know all the tech jargon, but very informative.

Ooh, The Flatshare is being adapted into a TV show!

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/paramount-plus-drama-flatshare-uk-1...

I'm very excited but dang I really did not want to sign up for another streaming service.

I hope the course goes well for you, Natalie, and glad it's very informative! I saw the news about The Flatshare yesterday too, and figured it would make a lot of people happy :) I didn't enjoy the book as much as a lot of other readers, but can see it making a good show.

>51 aktakukac: Thanks, Rachel! I was definitely one of those who LOVED The Flatshare -- it instantly became a comfort read for me. I thought The Switch was quite good as well, but unfortunately The Road Trip fell very flat for me.

32 books read: The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

PHD student Olive Smith didn't MEAN to kiss notoriously mean Professor Adam Carlson that night -- she was just trying to convince her friend Anh that she really was on a date, rather than working late in the lab, so that Anh would feel comfortable pursuing Olive's ex, Jeremy. But when she grabbed for the nearest guy to kiss, that guy just happened to be Carlson. It's awkward, but when she's able to explain her reasoning to Carlson the next day, he gets it, and even offers to continue the dating charade until Anh is fully convinced. It turns out he could use a fake girlfriend himself -- Stanford is holding back some of his funding because he's considered a flight risk, and a steady, local partner would help convince them he's not leaving anytime soon. So Olive and Adam enter an agreement to fake date for the next few months, at least until the date the department is due to make their decision on Adam's funding. Olive thinks she has everything all figured out -- but it doesn't take long for it to get complicated.

I'm always skeptical of books that are super duper popular on BookTok or Likewise, an app I frequent where people solicit book recommendations based on certain criteria. I entered into The Love Hypothesis ready to dislike it, but instead, I was totally, utterly hooked. This is a big package of romance tropes all tied up with a delightfully tropey bow, but every single one was so well done I was powerless to resist. I think I predicted most of the plot points, but I was having such a good time I didn't care. 4.5 stars.

>53 curioussquared: Oooh, fake dating is one of my favourite tropes. I'll have to add this one to The List.

>54 MickyFine: I hope you enjoy it! It was one of the most purely fun books I've read in a while.

>29 MickyFine: Absolutely beautiful covers!

>53 curioussquared: Looks like a fun read

Have a great weekend :)

Catching up in order to wish you a lovely weekend, Natalie. I am a bit scared to visit actually in fear of you getting me addicted to another game!

>56 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita! Good to see you :)

>57 PaulCranswick: Lol! Hi, Paul. Just for that... this is the latest one I've found: https://www.heardle.app/
I'm very bad at it, but at least there's a limited number of options to choose from! I don't enjoy it as much as the word versions but it's still fun to try once a day.

33 books read: Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Sophie is the eldest of three sisters -- which of course means she's destined to a boring life with no adventure. But when the Witch the Waste swoops into her hat shop and turns her into an old woman, she decides to ignore the fate given to her and sets off to seek her fortune -- or at least a different life from the boring one she's been leading. Soon, she finds herself living with the famously evil wizard Howl, his apprentice Michael, and his fire demon Calcifer, who tells Sophie he'll remove the spell on her if she can break his contract with Howl. But Sophie has no idea where to even start breaking the contract, and meanwhile, the Witch of the Waste is getting closer and closer to breaking past Howl's defenses.

This is definitely one of those books that I really can't review impartially; I've loved it since childhood and I'm not about to stop now. My reading record tells me I haven't reread this since 2007 or earlier, which seems wrong to me, but I think I've just watched the Miyazaki film enough times since then that it was filling in a lot of blanks. I love the Miyazaki adaptation, but nothing beats a DWJ novel for me. Planning to reread the sequels soon as well! 5 stars.

Current reads:

- Finally started A Marvellous Light in print which I'm loving so far.
- A few hours left in All Creatures Great and Small on audio, which is just as delightful as I expected.
- About halfway through A Court of Wings and Ruin on Kindle. Not sure I understand the all-consuming love some people have for this series, but I'm invested now. If I continue the series, I might do the other two on audio -- I think they'd go quicker for me that way.

Remember how I said I've been bad in the book acquiring department? The trend has continued...

Someone was giving away a big stack of books in my local Buy Nothing group and I generously offered to step up and take the collection off their hands! That stack included:
My Dark Vanessa
Just Mercy
Such a Fun Age
Born a Crime
Swing Time
Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?
The Leavers
The Undocumented Americans
I'm Still Here
I'm Not Dying With You Tonight

Then, I took a box of books to sell to my favorite local indie bookstore yesterday. I did pretty well and got $56 in store credit, which I immediately spent. I mean, you get 10% off if you spend it same day, so I basically had to. Plus what was I supposed to do while they were evaluating my books if not find a stack to buy? I got:
Remote Control
The Searcher
The Bone Spindle
These Precious Days
The Atlas Six

>61 curioussquared: Quite the haul, Natalie. Did you start reading one immediately when you got home?

>50 curioussquared: That got me excited. I loved that book, look forward to seeing it on the screen.

>53 curioussquared: Already on my radar, although you may have pushed it further up the list.

>61 curioussquared: Nice haul. Who doesn't spend their credits straight away?

>62 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! No, only because I was already in the middle of Howl's Moving Castle, and then I promised my friend I'd start A Marvellous Light so we can talk about it.

I'm very good at acquiring books and less good at reading them in a timely manner :)

>63 fairywings: Hi Adrienne! I hope you enjoy The Love Hypothesis -- it was so much fun.

Those streaming service executives definitely know how to get me to pony up my money. I had no interest in another streaming service before this; now I'm fully resigned to handing over the cash once that series is out!

And I know -- there are people who have enough self control to be given a bunch of store credit in a bookstore and not spend it right away? Couldn't be me.

>58 curioussquared: Had a go but not my genre of music today unfortunately - I even thought it might have been Gary Glitter!

>66 PaulCranswick: Not really my thing either! I got lucky today when I was typing in random things just to find a guess and the answer happened to pop up as an option, and I thought it sounded plausible.

Oh, yay for Howl!! I would follow him and his castle anywhere.

>68 scaifea: Same, really. Probably one of my most enduring book crushes.

34 books read: A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske

When Sir Robin Blyth is assigned a new position in the civil service, he's pretty sure it's a punishment -- it really seems like the most boring, out-of-the-way position they could possibly have found for him. But it turns out the assignment is a mistake, because the position is actually meant for someone aware of the magical world hiding behind the normal one, and Robin is meant to be acting as a liaison between those worlds. He finds all this out quite quickly in his tenure, when Edwin Courcey shows up in his office looking for Robin's predecessor and accidentally introduces him to this magical world. Robin and Edwin must become unlikely allies when Robin is cursed and Edwin is the only person available to help -- and soon, it seems like they might be the only people in all of England in a place to stop the villains who cursed Robin in the first place. As Robin and Edwin dig deeper into the mystery, their friendship deepens as well -- and might even become something more.

I knew I would love this book from the moment I first read the description and yep, I was 100% right. I love Robin and Edwin, I love the Edwardian setting, and I love the intricate, creative magic system. I'm so excited to keep reading Marske's work in this world -- book 2 is coming in November! 5 stars.

35 books read: All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot

In the late 1930s, James Herriot, a young Scotsman straight out of veterinary school, managed to land a job in the Yorkshire Dales. So begin his charming, episodic memoirs, which cover everything from his tempestuous boss, Siegfried; recalcitrant, demanding farmers; his at first catastrophic romancing of Helen Alderson; and of course, lots and lots of stories about all kinds of farm and house animal.

I've heard of this book for years but never felt compelled to pick it up until my friend and I started watching the new TV series airing on Masterpiece (which is excellent viewing, by the way). I figured I'd give it a try and I'm so glad I did! What a lovely book. Herriot's writing is warm and friendly and draws you right into each anecdote. He sees the humor in every situation and is able to paint remarkable portraits of the human condition in each tale. I loved it. 5 stars.

Currently reading: I've moved on to Elatsoe in print and The Hating Game on audio. So far really enjoying the former and really puzzled by all the hype for the latter. Still working on A Court of Wings and Ruin on kindle, which is really slow going, but I want to finish the series so I can be conversant with all the memes, lol.

>70 curioussquared: Ooooo, adding this one to my list!

>73 scaifea: I hope you love it as much as I did!

>70 curioussquared: I didn't get on with this book, but I am excited for book two. A shipboard magical mystery!

>75 libraryperilous: Bummer! I hope book 2 is better for you. I maaaay have already pre-ordered it 😁

>71 curioussquared: I grew up watching episodes of the TV series from the 70s (borrowed on VHS from the library by my Mom) and I'm so delighted that the new series is creating more fans of Herriot's work. I really need to get around to trying the new adaptation.

>77 MickyFine: I know the old series was much beloved but I've never watched it, so I can't say how it compares to the new one. I can say that much of the actual text of Herriot's work has been lovingly recreated in the new series -- I was honestly shocked at how faithful the new show is, and any additions seem to fit in flawlessly. I hope you get around to trying it soon!

36 books read: The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

Lucy and Josh's publishing firms merged, and now they're competing executive assistants to their respective co-CEOs. What are they competing in? God knows, because it doesn't seem like they ever do any actual work. Instead they play weird games (like "the staring game" which yes is just staring at each other) and try to make the other one look bad. Neither one leaves before the other one does at night. They have no friends or hobbies. They have had multiple write-ups with HR because their weird interactions are highly inappropriate. Will they be fired? No. Instead these executive assistants are both up for the promotion to Chief Operating Officer (???). But turns out... they might actually like each other instead of hating each other? SHOCKER. Also, the main character's main personality traits are that she's super duper short and also she collects vintage Smurf figurines.

Appropriately, I hated The Hating Game. It was bad. Zero plot, just chemistry and vibes and god-awful writing. Nothing made sense. I took some samples (aka texted excerpts to my best friend while listening just to confirm the sentences were as ludicrous as I thought) for you all to appreciate:

- To emphasize how strong Josh is when he picks her up in an elevator without her consent (???): "His collarbone was like a crow bar under my hands." Sorry, I wasn't aware that being strong gave you bones of steel?

- No quote, but at one point, Josh is taking care of Lucy while she's sick and she has A FEVER OF 105.6. Like, immediate ER, potential danger levels. Does he take her to the hospital? No, he just has his doctor older brother come to her apartment. I don't think that's a substitute for the hospital?

- "His hard-on is pressing so hard against the back of my leg my hamstring feels bruised." No comment, except... what?

- "I've never had someone try to do this before." "What?" "Get to know me." Has the man never MET a HUMAN?"

- "You're like a beautiful racehorse." An actual compliment Lucy gives Josh.

- "The receptionist visibly flinches when blasted with his blue laser eyes." Never in my life have I ever had a flinch reaction to anybody's eyes, no matter how blue they were.

- "I look over his skin like a warlord, and he's my new territory." Lol.

- "I ate my meal like a barn animal."

- "I eat like a chipmunk, using my small prehensile paws to rip off the crust." I guess Lucy's other personality trait is that she eats like an animal.

- Honorable mention to the time Lucy compared herself to Lara Croft while yelling at Josh's father.

Anyway. 1 measly star. I finished it out of hate in the end. It got an extra half star for the entertainment value, but I don't think it was entertaining in the way the author intended.

>79 curioussquared: So what you're saying is you ... played a hating game with the book while you read it? :)

Awful prose, and the present tense made everything worse.

His hard-on is pressing so hard against the back of my leg my hamstring feels bruised.

I look over his skin like a warlord, and he's my new territory.

Did Miss Perky write this book?

>80 libraryperilous: Lol. Exactly! And I think she might have... I'm just astonished by this thing's popularity. The one thing the author does well is the chemistry between the two leads, but if you take that away there's literally nothing left to the book.

37 books read: The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics by Olivia Waite

Lucy Muchelney has long acted as her astronomer father's assistant, and in recent years, she's done the bulk of the actual work as well, poring over complicated mathematical equations and proofs while her father indulged his wild theories about life on the moon. Now that her father is dead, her brother Stephen thinks Lucy must be married -- but Lucy, fresh out of a secret relationship with her friend Priss, wants nothing of the sort. Instead, she secretly takes a coach to London to meet with the widowed countess Catherine St. Day, with whom she often corresponded on behalf of her father regarding the astronomical data distributed by Catherine and her late husband. Lucy has a plea for Catherine: to support Lucy in her bid to be the official English translator for an important French astronomy text. While Lucy's bid to the local, male-only scientific society is rejected out of hand, she and Catherine hatch a plan for Lucy to translate the work anyway, and Catherine will finance the publishing. It only makes sense for Lucy to stay with Catherine in London while doing the work, especially since the two of them are becoming... friends.

This was such a fun historical romance! I loved the leads, the setting, and the premise. Recommended for any romance readers -- very healing after my trauma of The Hating Game ;) 4.5 stars.

38 books read: Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Ellie lives in an alternate USA very similar to ours -- but hers has fairy ring transport centers, vampires undergoing complex treatment plans, and, oh, Ellie can call up the ghosts of animals. Her ghost dog, Kirby, is with her always. When Ellie's cousin Trevor dies suddenly in a suspicious car accident, Ellie has a bad feeling about the whole situation, and that feeling is emphasized when Trevor appears to her in a dream the night of his death and accuses a local businessman of having killed him. Ellie knows her parents will believe her, but the police are a different matter. So she starts trying to unravel the mystery, supported by her parents, her best friend Jay, and Kirby. But while Ellie thinks she's prepared for most things, the evil she encounters is much older and much more insidious than she could have known.

This one has been on my list for a while and I'm so glad I finally got to it. I loved the feeling of the world being just a teeny bit off, in the most intriguing way, and I loved Little Badger's subtle worldbuilding -- just brief mentions of an aspect of Ellie's world that concealed these huge, fascinating ideas that I desperately wanted more of. Ellie is asexual and her identity was also refreshing -- it was just there, without being a big part of the plot. I also loved that Ellie's family was so supportive, as that can be hard to find in a YA novel! I think that might be partly why Elatsoe read as middle grade to me part of the time, even though Ellie is 17 -- so many of the hallmarks of a YA novel have to do with romance and rebellion against one's parents, and this book didn't have those things. Absolutely not a problem, it just made for a different YA reading experience than I'm generally used to. Refreshing! 5 stars.

Nice to have a couple of great reads after such a dud!

>82 curioussquared: Your BB has scored. I'm not a big romance reader, but I like reading them once in a while.

>83 curioussquared: @Sakerfalcon mentioned the middle grade feeling in her review. I've had this one on my TBR for ages. It sounds so interesting!

>84 aktakukac: It's definitely nice, Rachel!

>85 ArlieS: I hope you like it! One of my friends has been asking for queer historical romance novel recommendations lately and I sent her a list, which inevitably led to me reading a bunch off that list, too, and I'm loving the genre.

>86 libraryperilous: Oh, I hope you can get to it soon! I knew very little about it going in and it was really fun going into it that way.

Not a lot of reading done the last few days as one friend came over Friday night, I got brunch with another friend Saturday morning, and then spent the rest of Saturday cleaning and preppinh before my sister in law and her boyfriend came over for dinner and finally exchanging Christmas presents, lol.

We tried to watch Turning Red on Friday but bailed about half an hour in -- the mom and the humor in general were too cringe for all of us, and honestly, as someone who was in middle school precisely when the movie is set, I... Don't need to relive that experience?

Brunch was really good -- I had avocado lox toast with a poached egg and it was *chef's kiss*. I hadn't seen this friend since our wedding and it was lovely to catch up! She's getting married at the end of July, so we commiserated about the planning process.

I did finish an audiobook yesterday while cleaning, so review to come soon.

Today I've been leveled by the time change, so I'm mostly lounging around and trying to finally finish A Court of Wings and Ruin -- I started it in December and I just want to be done at this point. Some bits are really well done and exciting, and other bits I find pretty boring.

39 books read: The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian

Kit used to be a highwayman -- but after he was injured and his partner and friend, Rob, went missing, presumed dead, he put all that behind him. Now he's perfectly respectable, running a popular coffee house and minding his own business. But then Percy, a foppish nobleman, shows up in his life, demanding Kit help him rob his father so he can dispose of some incriminating evidence of his own illegitimacy and be rid of a pesky blackmailer. Kit agrees to help against his own better judgment, and soon he and Percy are spending quite a lot of time together, as Kit helps him prepare for the robbery since his leg prevents him from doing it himself. The more time they spend together, the more they both realize how attracted they are to the other, and soon it seems like nothing can prevent them from falling in love. But Kit's past isn't quite done haunting him yet...

A solid, fun romance. I liked talkative, can't-shut-up Percy paired with quiet, stoic Kit, and Kit's shop assistant Betty stole the show for me and was definitely my favorite character. Recommended as a lighthearted historical romp, though I don't think I'd read it again. 3.5 stars.

>79 curioussquared: I had to read these out loud to my husband. Aside from laughing, my favorite response of his was to this:

"I eat like a chipmunk, using my small prehensile paws to rip off the crust."

Him: "SEXY!"

>88 curioussquared: We watching Turning Red this weekend, too. We made it through the whole thing, but it's definitely the worst Pixar movie so far. Disappointing.

I am 90+ posts behind, Natalie, and not even trying to catch up. I am just swinging by to say "Hello!"

>90 ursula: I'm so glad my suffering could bring you some joy 😂 I will just never understand why this book is so popular!

>91 scaifea: Ugh, I know. I really wanted to like and support this one, too, since it's the first ever Pixar movie with a woman credited as the sole director. Just not for me. There's a lot of discourse on Twitter right now about how people aren't liking it because they can't relate to it, and the idea that you don't have to relate to something for it to be good and the fact that you're not relating to it implies that someone different from you is. And there's a lot of discussion about how 13-year-olds don't act like the Mei does. Neither of those was the problem for me: rather, I found Mei to be too realistic and too relatable for a time of my life that I don't really care to experience again! Being a 13-year-old girl was kind of excruciating and once was enough, thanks.

>92 alcottacre: Good to see you, Stasia!

>93 curioussquared: Yeah, I don't agree with Twitter here either - it's not about relating to a different culture or age group (and I agree that she seems very 13 to me), it's the fact that the story isn't at all inventive. It's been done, lots: teen feels actual and metaphorical growing pains, rebels against parental wishes, makes some mistakes, learns some lessons, the parents yield a bit and grow too, happy ever after. And that would be fine if she had added some sort of new twist, but no. It's just Asian Teen Wolf.

>94 scaifea: Lol, I'm not sure I watched long enough to weigh in on whether or not it was inventive. It was really just the cringe for me, and the way her mom acted (giving her zero privacy, showing up sneaking outside the school with pads) really set me on edge.

Ugh, I had the worst sleep I've had in a while last night. The only good thing is that I tried to get back to sleep by reading my kindle and while I didn't get back to sleep until waaay too late (or early), I did finish a book in the middle of the night. Silver linings 😂

Yesterday I was a potato for most of the day after my awful night of sleep, but my best friend did come over after she was done with work and we did a dance workout. It's fun to have someone to work out with again! I've started really missing the group exercise classes I was going to pre-COVID, but I don't really feel ready to go back to a crowded room full of sweaty people breathing heavily, especially since they're not requiring masks anymore. Their website says their air filtration system circulates every 6 minutes, but it just still feels like asking for it.

Today I had to get moving a little more quickly than usual to make it to my annual check-up appointment. This was my second time seeing this doctor and I liked her just as much as I did the first time I met her, so I'm feeling really good about that. Then I got home and picked up Skelly to go pick him up some additional chemo medication at the vet oncologist, and another bag of his prescription food at his regular vet. I took him along so I could weigh him at his normal vet, and he's up to 71.1 lbs!!! He's gained over ten pounds since we brought him home from the hospital and I'm so happy :) He's still a liiittle on the thin side, but he doesn't look ridiculously unhealthy anymore. I think we're going to aim to maintain his weight at about 75 lbs -- he was around 83 before he got sick, but he was definitely a little chonky and I think being slimmer will be easier on his joints as he gets older.

40 books read: A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas

Feyre is back at the Spring Court, spying on Tamlin and others and playing a dangerous game. While she gathers information, Rhys and the rest of the gang back at Velaris -- including Feyre's sisters Nesta and Elain, now High Fae -- are preparing for the upcoming war against Hybern. But as Hybern and the threat of the cauldron grow stronger, Feyre and Rhys aren't sure they've mustered enough power to defeat them.

This was definitely the worst of the series for me. Maas needs a better editor, though her megafans seem to eat up every word, even the unnecessary ones. I thought the first part of this book was compelling, while Feyre was at the Spring Court and while she and Lucien journeyed home, but there was a massive lag in the middle that took me literal months to get through. It picked up when they finally had the council of all the high lords and seemed to make some actual progress in prepping for the war, then dipped again as I find Maas to be terrible at writing actual battle scenes. There are some characters and concepts in these books that I love, and others I find terribly boring. The final battle was underwhelming: Honestly, at this point, every single character is so overpowered the interactions are all boring and don't make sense because Maas is just making decisions as to how events will happen without any reason behind those decisions because otherwise everyone would be too powerful for anything to happen. I don't understand how the king of Hybern was able to easily walk up to the Weaver and break her neck with no issues at all when she's supposed to be this super power old god of death. Also, where the hell did Feyre's dad come from? He showed up out of literally nowhere. Finally, sorry, but someone we actually care about needed to die. This whole battle had zero stakes. The back and forth of Amren is dead! Rhys is dead! Lol jk they're both alive... just gave me really bad fanfic vibes. And I love fanfic, but this read like bad wish fulfillment fanfic. Anyway, I'm going to listen to the final book in the series; I think I'll enjoy it more if I can just kind of let it happen without thinking too hard about what's going on, and I want to finish the series if only to be conversant with all the memes since this series is so darn popular. 3 stars.

41 books read: Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff

It's the summer before middle school, and uncle Roderick has died. Bug's house has always been full of ghosts, but since his death, things seem different -- like uncle Roderick is trying to send Bug a message. Meanwhile, Bug's friend Moira is acting weird -- she's suddenly obsessed with boys and makeup, and their sleepovers are starting to feature more nail polish than popcorn and movies. Bug doesn't hate those things, specifically, but they don't necessarily feel right. Grappling with all the changes going on, Bug starts to look inward, trying to figure out just what kind of message uncle Roderick is trying to send -- all while trying to convince Mom that everything is all right, and trying not to be too spooked by uncle Roderick's scary communication methods.

This is a lovely middle grade novel exploring gender identity in a really accessible and believable way. Also, ghosts! Lukoff writes in his afterward that he told somebody he wanted to write both a trans middle grade novel and a ghost story, but he didn't know which to do first, and they asked, why don't you do both? Brilliant! I was genuinely spooked by some parts, even though you have the idea that uncle Roderick's ghost is friendly. Really well done -- 4 stars.

42 books read: The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera

Halley's Comet's course has been altered to head for Earth, and there's no more time to prepare. Petra, her younger brother Javier, and her parents have been selected to join the party heading for their new planet, Sagan. The trip will take hundreds of years, and they will be in stasis for all of it, while several generations of people chosen as Monitors will take care of them. But when Petra wakes up, something is wrong. The monitors are no longer well-meaning; instead, they are all brainwashed and part of the Collective, a dictatorial society sacrificing those who are no longer useful for the greater good, in order to create a world with no cruelty or suffering. But Petra's pretty sure that world won't have any joy or kindness, either, and she won't stand for it. Tapping into her passion for storytelling, Petra makes allies and forms a plan to escape the ship and head to Sagan without the Collective.

I thought this year's Newbery winner was well deserving of that honor! This book feels like it's in the tradition of some of the best, classic children's sci-fi -- I got The Giver vibes at several points. There were maybe a few threads of story that I wasn't satisfied with that might have been minor plot holes, but I also didn't feel the need to pull those threads and really dive into any issues I had because the whole story was so compelling that I couldn't put it down. I also felt like this book seamlessly wove together sci-fi and folklore in a way I haven't really seen before. Recommended! 4.5 stars.

>99 curioussquared:, >100 curioussquared: Leaving both of these on the TBR. Great reviews!

I'm so glad Skelly seems to be responding well to treatment and is gaining back some weight!

>98 curioussquared: Someone described this series as basically endless fae sexy times, lol.

>101 libraryperilous: I hope you enjoy them, Diana!

I'm glad Skelly seems to be on the mend, too :)

Re: endless fae sexy times.... they're not wrong. Honestly, more sexy times might have made this entry more interesting 😂

Currently reading:

- I'm about halfway through The Moonstone on audio and loving it

- Just about a chapter or two into Castle in the Air to continue my series reread

- Probably will start Notes from Underground next from my TBR list

- Planning to get back to Radium Girls on Kindle now that my life is a little less stressful and I made it through the digital library books I had checked out.

The only sort of disappointment at the doctor today was that they called me in so fast from the waiting room that I didn't even have time to complete my forms, let alone read at all! And I brought a book and everything :)

>103 curioussquared: Bringing a book is a magical method of getting them to be running on schedule; if you hadn't brought it, they'd have been running two hours behind. ;-)

>104 ArlieS: Isn't that always the way? Lol.

43 books read: Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones

In this sequel to Howl's Moving Castle, Abdullah, a young carpet merchant from the land of Zanzib, has his life turned upside down when he in quick succession acquires a magic carpet, meets, falls in love with, and loses a beautiful princess, and becomes the owner of a genie in a bottle who can grant him one wish per day. Soon, he's on the run from the Sultan, on a mission to save the princess in the company of a mysterious, dishonest soldier who might be more than he seems and a bossy mother cat and her kitten.

It's been years since I've read this book, but my prior impression -- that it just doesn't compare to the first Howl book or any of my other favorite DWJ books, for that matter -- held up upon this reread. I think my main problem is that I just don't find Abdullah to be a very compelling protagonist, and the conceit of having him speak exclusively in flowery language and compliments gets old pretty fast. The story picks up a little for me once we get to Ingary, and get to visit with old characters. It's still a DWJ book, so it's excellent fun to see how she ties up all the loose ends of the story and just how tightly plotted everything is, but it'll never be one of my favorites. 4 stars.

44 books read: The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins

At her birthday party, Miss Rachel Verinda is presented with the moonstone, a legendary Indian diamond of extraordinary size and value that was at one point stolen by a British soldier from its resting place in the forehead of a statue of an Indian god and has since been passed from person to person, always pursued by those who wish to restore it to its rightful place. And that night, the moonstone is stolen from Rachel's sitting room, where it had been stored in an unlocked drawer for the night. The authorities are called, but the stone is nowhere to be found, and the culprit goes free. But over the course of several narratives from witnesses to various parts of the story, the mystery unravels, and the strange crime is solved.

I really enjoyed this! I loved how distinct each narrative was, though of course as with any book with multiple narrators I had my favorites, and there was one I couldn't stand (*ahem* Miss Clack). When I read To Say Nothing of the Dog in 2020, I was annoyed because they spoil part of the mystery of this book -- they reveal that the culprit was sleepwalking when the crime was committed. Luckily, that didn't impede my enjoyment of the story at all, because there were still so many questions around who did it and how all the ends were tied up. So, not an issue in the end! 4 stars.

Now reading:

- Vespertine in print and totally loving it so far. Getting Sabriel vibes in the best way and based on this book and the magic library in Sorcery of Thorns, I'm guessing Rogerson must be an Old Kingdom fan.

- Woes of the True Policeman on audio, and enjoying it more than expected right now. Bolano's prose has a poetic quality that is translating really well to listening, and so far it doesn't seem to matter that I read 2666 13 years ago.

- Still working on Radium Girls on Kindle and Notes from Underground, but the Dostoevsky is probably on hold until I finish the Bolano and can transition to something a bit lighter on audio.

Does anyone have any horse book recommendations for an 11-year-old girl? My aunt asked me for some for my cousin and I sent some but I wasn't really a horse girl. My cousin is very much a horse girl and takes riding lessons.

I suggested Riding Freedom, Wild Magic and sequels, and The Scorpio Races with the caveat that it was aimed a bit older, and I also mentioned the Misty of Chincoteague books, Black Beauty, and National Velvet with the note that I wasn't sure how well they hold up for modern kids.

Would love any other recommendations! I'm not sure what her reading level is -- I think probably pretty average for her age.

>109 curioussquared: I devoured tons of Saddle Club books around that age (until I rode an actual horse and discovered it was terrifying) but I'm not sure they've had the same resurgence as Babysitters club.

>100 curioussquared: That sounds quite interesting

Have a great week!

>110 MickyFine: Oh, I forgot about those! I was mostly into those series books when I was a little younger so I didn't think of them.

>111 figsfromthistle: Thanks, Anita! I hope your week is excellent as well :)

The Black Stallion books were some of my favorites when I was a kid, and I think I was about that age when I read them.

>113 scaifea: Ooh, I'll add those to the list! I never got around to them when I was the right age.

>109 curioussquared: I was a big fan of Patricia Leitch's For Love of a Horse at that age. There's also the Horse Diaries series, but the only one I've read was kind of mediocre. I've not read any of her books, but Jean Slaughter Doty is the girl-and-her-pony book queen. It's marketed to adults, but Perestroika in Paris is a fable, and I don't think the vocabulary would be too difficult for an 11-year-old. Perhaps one to recommend for later?

>115 libraryperilous: I hadn't heard of the Leitch -- I'll look into it! The Smiley is one I have to read on my shelves, so I might read it first to see if she'd like it.

I was supposed to have five interviews this week, but one no-showed (the recruiter told me later he was sick). In any case, I feel that I have very much earned my upcoming weekend wine tasting in eastern WA with my sister in law and two friends! I've finished a few books the past few days, but I'll write reviews later when I have computer access again.

Have a great weekend away!

>118 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! It was lovely to get away for a bit with the girls, and the weather cooperated! It felt like summer :) Plus, lots of delicious wine! We capped off Saturday, our tasting day, with a delicious Italian dinner, and then watched Bottle Shock back at our Airbnb in keeping with our wine theme.

45 books read: Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson

In a world where spirits of the dead threaten the lives of the living, Artemesia has spent most of her life training to be a nun in an order open only to those girls with the Sight, who can see and thus control the spirits with the help of incense, consecrated steel, and, for those especially gifted, saintly relics inhabited by spirits of their own. For most of her childhood, Artemesia's family thought her mad due to her Sight, and she was shunned and isolated. Now a shy, awkward young adult with more interest in the dead bodies they care for than the other order novices, Artemesia is due to be evaluated by the order to see if she is talented enough to be taken for additional training to wield a relic in the capital of Bonsaint, or if she is just to spend the rest of her days as a Gray Sister in the convent that has been her home for years. The problem is that Artemesia knows she's talented enough to wield a relic -- but she doesn't want the responsibility that comes with it, and she definitely doesn't want the public speaking or leadership role that comes with it as well. But when things go wrong and spirits start to appear in numbers not seen for years, Artemesia finds herself with greatness thrust upon her -- stuck with the relic of Saint Eugenia whether she likes it or not, and with its revenant spirit fighting first to possess her and then for space in her brain as a traveling companion. Forging an uneasy alliance, Artemesia and the revenant must figure out why so many spirits are suddenly attacking, and stop a greater evil before it's too late.

This was totally my kind of book. If you like Garth Nix's Old Kingdom series, you will almost certainly like this -- I got big Sabriel traveling with Mogget vibes from Artemesia and the revenant's relationship. A really unique story with a fascinating magic system and spooky, ghost-fighting nuns -- what's not to like? Rogerson just gets better and better for me -- An Enchantment of Ravens was good, and this entry and Sorcery of Thorns were great -- I would need to reread Sorcery of Thorns to figure out which one I liked better. She's definitely an auto-buy author for me now. 5 stars.

46 books read: Woes of the True Policeman by Roberto Bolano

Following Amalfitano, a university professor, as he is forced to leave his position and life in Barcelona due to his scandalous relationship with a student. He and his daughter move then to Santa Teresa, Mexico, where Amalfitano has landed a new teaching job and where he continues to explore his new homosexuality.

This is a sort of sequel to Bolano's epic 2666, which I read in high school for a really cool senior elective class called Violence, Morality, and Human Nature. (The other books we read were Crime and Punishment and Blood Meridian. Possibly one other that I've forgotten at this point!) I hesitate to call Woes of the True Policeman a novel; it was posthumously published from drafts found in Bolano's files, and it comes across more as deleted scenes from 2666 than a story of its own. The writing/translation is still excellent, and I particularly enjoyed the first half; I was lost in the part that was just summaries of Arcimboldi's novels. I remember feeling the same way in the 100 or so pages of 2666 that was just descriptions of women who had been raped and murdered in Santa Teresa. It's clearly a device that Bolano likes, but it has never worked for me. 3 stars.

Currently reading:

- Winterkeep on audio -- still loving being immersed in this world

- Radium Girls on Kindle -- I made some progress on my weekend away and I'm about halfway through now

Need to start a new print book -- probably will be something from my big list of books to read this year, but I might also go with House of Many Ways, continuing my reread.

47 books read: The Radium Girls by Kate Moore

The horrifying true stories of the radium girls, who painted luminous watch dials for greedy corporations who knew the risks of radium but preferred to profit. Moore focuses on the stories of individual girls involved in the landmark court cases that eventually opened the eyes of the nation to the dangers of radium, which had previously been marketed as a health product. Her book is extremely well researched and chock-full of primary sources -- she was able to get her hands on several of the women's journals, diary entries, and letters by contacting families, many of whom where glad these stories would finally be told.

Such a stunningly impactful book -- sort of like a car crash, in that it's horrible but you can't quite look away (or stop reading). These women showed incredible bravery in the face of what was almost certain death, many actively choosing to suffer in order to make things better for those who would come after them. Their court cases and testimonies paved the way not only for better workers' rights, but also for radiation and nuclear safety as the US dived into the Manhattan Project and other explorations of nuclear energy. 5 stars.

48 books read: The Night Ride by J. Anderson Coats

Sonnia loves nothing more than horses -- and one horse, Ricochet, especially. But Ricochet isn't hers -- he belongs to the king as part of his team of fleet horses, and Sonnia only gets to ride him because she volunteers in the stables. When Ricochet is chosen to be a companion to a wild racehorse and moved to the royal racing stables, Sonnia travels with him just in the hopes of getting to say goodbye. But when she gets there, she manages to land a job as a stablehand. She's elated -- she's earning more money than she's ever had before, and she gets to stay near Ricochet while she saves up to buy him. But as she settles in to her new life, Sonnia learns of a secret, underground racing operation happening at the stables -- and she may have to participate whether she likes it or not.

Thanks to Foggi for this recommendation! This was a fun, fast-paced middle grade adventure; the blurb describes it as Black Stallion meets Tamora Pierce, and while I haven't read Black Stallion, I can definitely see this appealing to Pierce's younger fans. I'm going to recommend it to my cousin who was looking for horse books! Just a solid, compelling story with sweet horses and compelling characters. My only complaint is that the world itself didn't seem very built-up; there were just enough details that it clearly wasn't set anywhere definitive, but rather some kind of fictional world, and just enough information that I wanted more than was provided. 4 stars.

Well, my many interviews last week paid off and my life of leisure is coming to an end!

I got an offer for an HR communication role with a major grocery store corporation on Monday and agreed to terms this morning. I'm going to have one more conversation with the guy who couldn't meet with me last week due to illness; he's someone I'll be working with closely so I just want to make sure he's not a big jerk before I formally accept, but I think it's happening! I'm pretty excited, but also definitely feeling a little like, wait, you mean I have to work again? Lol.

We haven't talked about start date yet -- I imagine they'll want me to start in April, but I do have some travel planned in May, so if they're willing to work around that I can start earlier, but if not, well, I guess they can wait. You never know how quickly these big corps can move; sometimes they're so limited by technology or company policies. We'll see!

Anyway, I'm looking forward to what the job will do for my wallet, but less so what it will do to my reading numbers this year, lol.

>125 curioussquared: Congratulations, Natalie. I hope the last meeting works out fine.

>125 curioussquared: Congrats on the new job, Natalie!

>126 FAMeulstee: >127 MickyFine: Thanks, Anita and Micky!!

Congrats! I hope the guy isn't a creeper. :)

>120 curioussquared: I loved Vespertine and hope she writes a sequel or two.

>124 curioussquared: Oh, this sounds fun.

>129 libraryperilous: Thanks, Diana! I just finished my conversation with him and can confirm he's very nice, so I think it's happening!

It sounds like there will be a Vespertine sequel, but I can't remember if I saw this from the author herself or from some kind of fan speculation? But that idea has definitely been planted in my head.

I think you would like The Night Ride! Like I said in my review, there were a few holes I noticed once I finished, but while I was reading it I was totally compelled and couldn't put it down.

What I'm reading:

- A little over halfway through Winterkeep on audio and I am LOVING it, though I kind of wish I had read it in print for my first readthrough. But Cashore continues to astonish me with the directions in which she keeps expanding her universe.

- Just started The Blind Assassin in print; not really far enough yet to have an opinion!

- Started A Snake Falls to Earth on my Kindle in the wee hours of this morning after Otter woke me up to go outside and I couldn't fall back asleep. Got about 10% in and am really enjoying it so far.

Dodging BBs right and left, although a few of them got through and are now in the BlackHole. Drats, lol.

>132 alcottacre: Lol, sorry, not sorry, Stasia!

Well, looks like I'll be starting the new gig 4/25. Gotta make the most of my life of leisure until then! And probably try to make a dent in my list of books to read this year...

Yesterday my friend and I discovered that we had DIFFERENT WORDLE ANSWERS for the day. The one I had, STOVE she had the day before, when I had HARRY, and she had LOWLY for 3/31. We looked it up and apparently the NYT is removing some words that they think could be considered offensive from the old Wordle word list, but if players (like me) hadn't refresher their Wordle browser tab in a while, they might have gotten the old word originally slated for that day. Maybe I'm missing something, but not really getting why HARRY might be offensive? Anyway, it definitely made me feel like my life was a lie, lol. Things seem to be back to normal today.

Oh, congrats on the new job!! That's so exciting!

>136 scaifea: Thanks, Amber!! I'm excited 😁

>125 curioussquared: Congratulations! This is terrific news. Sounds like Skelly is doing well, also.

>138 AMQS: Thanks, Anne! I'm pretty excited.

Skelly is doing great. We took all the dogs to a celebration of March family birthdays at my grandma's house yesterday and they had the time of their life playing with all the other family dogs. Skelly was running around like a puppy bossing dogs around and following his favorite lady dogs around. I kept trying to get him to rest but he wasn't interested 😂 All three boys are tired today!

>135 curioussquared: To be honest, Natalie, I am thoroughly sick and tired of all this PC nonsense. A word is a word and a game is a game - I wish the thought police would just leave us all alone.

I am so pleased that the job came through!

>140 PaulCranswick: I'm not too concerned about the Wordle thought police, Paul, I just thought it was an interesting situation.

Thanks! Waiting for them to send a revised offer letter with my correct location, but it seems like a pretty done deal at this point.

>134 curioussquared: Wonderful! I do hope you enjoy the new job!

Have a marvelous Monday, Natalie!

>142 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia! You, too!

49 books read: Winterkeep by Kristin Cashore

Queen Bitterblue of Monsea is still hard at work running her kingdom. The latest challenge is the land of Winterkeep, a country across the sea on a newly discovered continent. Winterkeep and Moncey have had fairly cordial relations so far, but it's a strange place, and Bitterblue often feels like some things are getting lost in translation. Recently, reports came back of two of Bitterblue's ambassadors, drowned in an unfortunate shipwreck. But the details aren't quite lining up for the queen, and so she decides to visit Winterkeep herself to investigate. Meanwhile, in Winterkeep, young student Lovisa Cavenda, heir to a powerful political dynasty, is suspicious of some of the goings-on around her home. Her parents are keeping secrets -- nothing new about that, but this time it seems more serious than usual. When Queen Bitterblue's voyage to Moncey goes horribly wrong, Lovisa might be the only one who can make things right -- but first, she'll have to face up to some difficult truths about who her family really is and some of the acts she may have been complicit in.

Cashore has done it again; I was carried away by this fourth installment in the Graceling Realm series. Each book she writes expands her universe further in the most exciting, delightful of ways; this one featured telepathic animals and a love story I've been waiting for, so I was very here for it. I just learned a fifth installment will be coming out this fall, and I'm so excited! I'm not sure this one was quite up to the level of Bitterblue for me -- that one just had so much wrapping up and coming together of previous storylines that it truly felt like a masterwork, whereas this was a book that didn't need to exist but I'm so glad it did -- but it was still excellent. 4.5 stars.

50 books read: Major Barbara by George Bernard Shaw

Major Barbara is partially about Barbara, a Major in the Salvation Army. But it's more about her father, the wealthy builder of weapons Andrew Undershaft. Long estranged from his wife and children, when Barbara and her father meet as adults, they clash: each is openly disdainful of the other's work. They strike a deal: Andrew Undershaft will come see the Salvation Army headquarters where Barbara works, and Barbara will in turn tour his weapons factory.

This is a strange little libertarian play from Shaw. It first comes across as preachy, and Barbara is indeed preachy, but quickly turns to satire as the Salvation Army eagerly accepts money from the industrialist father and Barbara and her beau become entangled in the family business. Entertaining to listen to from LA Theatre Works, and fantastic dialogue from Shaw as always, but I don't think I'd read it again. 3.5 stars.

What I'm reading:

- Started listening to In Cold Blood this morning; enjoying it but not too far in yet.

- Only 50 or so pages into The Blind Assassin. I like it, but I'm having trouble reading more than 3-5 pages at a time at night before it puts me to sleep. Considering putting it aside to take on a plane trip with me in May; it sort of seems like the kind of book that demands a long stretch of uninterrupted, focused reading, which I find hard to give sometimes. Will probably start Little Thieves soon as a shared read with my best friend.

- Still reading A Snake Falls to Earth digitally.

>135 curioussquared: I thought they said they were also removing words they thought were "obscure", and I can see that word falling into that category.

>147 ursula: That would make more sense for sure!

>120 curioussquared: hit me with a BB, sounds intriguing.
>144 curioussquared: Need to catch up on this series.

Congratulations on the new job Natalie.

>149 fairywings: Thanks, Adrienne! I hope you enjoy Vespertine -- Rogerson is a must-read author for me now.

>144 curioussquared: I still have not read the first book in the series although I have it pulled out to get it read this year! Glad to know that the other books in the series are good reads too.

>151 alcottacre: I hope you enjoy it when you get to it, Stasia! I would add that this is a series that gets better and better; the first book comes off as a good if not amazing YA fantasy novel, and the books, writing, and worldbuilding just keep improving from there.

>144 curioussquared: Oooh, glad to see you really enjoyed that one, Natalie. One of these days, I'll reread the series and read Winterkeep.

>153 bell7: Enjoy! I was really excited to see that there's a book 5 coming this fall, too -- I think that's a record for shortest time between books for Cashore. So at this point you can probably wait until that one is released to start your reread :) I only found out about it halfway through this go-round with the series! And just a note that the audio narrator, Xanthe Elbrick, has been excellent, if you want to go that route.

51 books read: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

Holcomb, Kansas, 1959. The Clutter family -- patriarch Herb Clutter, his invalid wife Bonnie Clutter, and their two teenage children still at home, Nancy and Kenyon -- are murdered in their home one Saturday night and discovered the next morning when they don't show up as usual to church. While the authorities are called and folks are questioned, there's no real motive anyone can think of, and no real probably suspects. The Clutters are famous for being kind, helpful, upstanding members of the community. Who would want to hurt them? In this nonfiction novel, Capote pieces together all the bits of the case into a compelling narrative, starting the day the Clutters died and ending after their killers are hanged.

I'm not really a true crime aficionado, but I do enjoy the occasional foray and this one has been on my list to read for quite a while as THE true crime book. The research Capote did (accompanied much of the time by his friend Harper Lee, though she is not mentioned in the book) is deep and thorough, particularly regarding the murderers themselves. I'm not sure I expected to spend most of this book inside the heads of the two killers, but that's the majority of the book. Capote doesn't make you sympathize with them, exactly, but you definitely come out of it with more of an understanding of what would need to happen in somebody's life to make them commit such a violent act -- which I suppose is really the draw of true crime, right? I did think the book went a little off the rails at the end; there's a bit where the murderers are on death row, waiting for an execution date, and there's a really long aside about some of the other condemned prisoners and what they did to get there and I never really understood the connection. 4.5 stars.

52 books read: Little Thieves by Margaret Owen

A year ago, Vanja stole the princess Gisele's appearance-altering pearl necklace and was suddenly transformed from abused maid to cossetted lady. The god-daughter of death and fortune, Vanja has always had help from her godmothers -- but when she turned 13, Death and Fortune appeared to her and told her she must choose one of them if she wished any more help. Since she refused to choose, Vanja has been on her own -- taking care of herself, because nobody else will. Disguised as the princess, with the real Gisele cast into poverty, Vanja has used every trick up her sleeve to cheat, lie, and steal from her fellow nobles, with the goal of saving enough money to escape the country and thus escape the local forms of her godmothers, finally evading the choice they're forcing upon her. But then, three things happen very suddenly. First, Vanja is stopped on her way home from a theft by another low god, who curses her to literally become her greed -- her body will become entirely jewels by the full moon in two weeks unless she can overcome her greed and break the curse. Second, an inspector arrives to investigate the rash of thefts in the area, and while Vanja's not too concerned with the seemingly bumbling junior prefect, he's another obstacle in the way of her escape. And third... the princess Gisele's fiance, the cruel Adalbrecht, has suddenly returned, and he has news: he wants the wedding to happen as soon as possible, in -- you guessed it -- two weeks. As the clock ticks down toward her wedding and her demise, Vanja must come to grips very quickly with her approaching fate -- and maybe, finally, let herself open up to some people who want to care about her.

I totally loved this loose Goose Girl retelling. The alternate-Germany setting was fascinating, the magic system was unique and interesting, and it was a pleasure to watch Vanja transform and heal over the course of the book. The side characters were also rewarding, especially Emeric and Ragne. And the whole book features gorgeous illustrations by the author. Owen is fast becoming a must-read author for me, and I'm looking forward to the sequel! 5 stars.

We booked a last-minute trip to the Washington coast with some friends for this weekend -- we'd been talking about a trip in April with some friends, and I suddenly realized this was the last real weekend to do it since the next weekend is Easter and the weekend after that I'll be starting my job on the Monday and will want to be well-rested. So I'm glad this weekend worked out! We found an Airbnb on the beach with two acres of fenced yard for the dogs and a great view, which is good since I think it's supposed to rain all weekend. Oh well! It'll be nice just to get away for a bit. And I'm definitely planning on doing some reading!

Have a great time, Natalie!

>158 MickyFine: Thanks, Micky! We had a lovely time -- the weather was nicer than expected, and the dogs had so much fun fully opening up and zooming around at top speed.

53 books read: Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Camino lives in the Dominican Republic with her Tia. Her father, who supports them, lives in the US for most of the year, coming home every June for the summer. Yohaira lives in New York with her parents, but her father goes home to DR every summer without her and her mother. Neither girl knows the other exists until their father's plane crashes on the way home, leaving no survivors. As each grapples with their grief and coming to terms with the father they loved is not entirely the man they knew, they both come to realize that solace perhaps can come only from each other.

Another gorgeous novel from Acevedo. I was fully immersed as soon as I started and finished it in an evening. I'm just going to keep reading everything she produces! 5 stars.

Question for the group: I was talking about Clap When You Land with my best friend, who is fairly well-read if not quite as book-crazy as me. She had just never heard of the concept of a novel in verse, aside from stuff like epic poems (Beowulf, The Illiad, Eugene Onegin, etc.), and claims that the concept is not as well-known as I think it is.

I maintain that lots of kids have to read novels in verse in school -- I definitely had to read Out of the Dust and Witness in elementary school, and read and loved Love that Dog on my own. The Ellen Hopkins books starting with Crank were also super in vogue when I was in high school, though I was never interested, but my friends who weren't really readers were reading them. I also remember reading Make Lemonade in middle school, and while I don't think it was assigned, I definitely sourced it from our classroom shelf.

So I guess my question is... did you have to read any novels in verse for school as a kid?

Current media round-up:

Books:
- Listening to Braiding Sweetgrass, read by the author. It's lovely, peaceful listening.
- Still reading A Snake Falls to Earth on Kindle; I think my library loan is almost up, so I'm probably going to be making use of the old airplane mode extension trick.
- Started Magpie Murders and House of Many Ways in print. I think I'm going to put The Blind Assassin on hold until our trip to Atlanta in May for Tim's cousin's graduation, unless it starts calling my name soon. It feels like a book that would benefit from a long plane ride.

TV:
- I've been watching Our Flag Means Death with Tim and my best friend and LOVING it. Genius television. We have two more episodes left; hoping to finish them up this week if my friend can come over.
- Watching Superpumped with Tim and I have officially deleted Uber; I'll use Lyft exclusively, thank you very much.
- Not a lot of solo television lately, but I did binge a bunch of Old Enough on Netflix yesterday. Small Japanese children sent on solo errands? I am hooked.

Games:
- Haven't played much since I beat Pokemon Legends: Arceus, but still need to complete my Pokedex.

>134 curioussquared: Congrats on the new gig!! Enjoy your last two weeks of freedom. : )

>161 curioussquared: No novels-in-verse read by me. I hadn't even realized they were a thing, until reading the post I'm responding to now.

>161 curioussquared: I only found novels in verse in the last years, starting with Love that dog. After that one came books by Sarah Crossan and Steven Herrick that I liked very much.

>161 curioussquared: No novels in verse for most of my school years outside of rhyming picture books. I am, of course, familiar with novels in verse, working in libraries, but have to admit I've never read any as poetry is... not my thing.

>160 curioussquared: I have not heard of that one. Wow! 5 star read! BB for me.

Hello! Thought I'd chime in since you were so kind to leave me a message.
First off, the doggies are the cutest things ever. I love greyhounds in all their giraffe-like charm, and good on you for the rescues.
Second, good job on how many you've done so far! :o I'm still playing catch-up on how much I'd hoped to read, honestly. I've seen a couple in your lists that have my attention.
Lastly, I don't think I've read many books in verse outside of class. But I do remember in class reading King of Elfland's Daughter in college. It wasn't verse - I don't think, I'm bad at this kind of thing - but it had a very poetic, old school fairytale style that I fell head over heals in love with. I tend to seek out books that change things up on narration, especially with a more poetic style of storytelling. I'm not a purple prose person but I do like some lyrical, lilac literature on occasion :)

Good luck on the manuscript!

>163 Berly: Thanks, Kim! Good to see you back on the threads :)

Thanks to everyone for weighing in on my novels in verse question, though I'm a little annoyed that my friend seems to have been right 😂

>166 MickyFine: I don't really think of poetry as being my thing either, Micky, but I've always considered verse novels as rather a different thing. The right one can just totally suck me in.

>168 Ravenwoodwitch: Hi Raven! Glad you found me :) What you said on your thread about falling out of the habit of reading while in college really resonated with me -- I desperately wanted to read for fun when I was in school, but it was definitely hard when I was already reading so much for my literature-heavy degrees! And thanks for the kudos -- it's definitely been easier to read more this year what with the whole no job thing, but I expect my numbers to taper off somewhat since I'm starting the new gig in a few weeks.

I'll have to look for The King of Elfland's Daughter! Sounds very much up my alley :)

54 books read: House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones

Charmain Baker has never had much interest in anything beyond books -- and her mother has made sure she's not much good for anything else, as she hasn't allowed Charmain to learn how to do anything useful around the house so as to keep her respectable. But when Great-Uncle William, a wizard, is sent to convalesce with the elves, Aunt Sempronia is insistent that someone must be there to look after his house -- and that Charmain is the only one for the job. Soon, Charmain finds herself up to her elbows in chores she doesn't know the first thing about doing, trying her best to keep herself and Great-Uncle William's dog Waif alive and fed while also trying to find her way around the house. Because Great-Uncle William's house is no ordinary place -- it's highly magical, with different rooms sprouting up left and right depending on how you step. And of course, magic is one of those useful things Charmain's mother wouldn't let her near. Before long, Charmain starts to suspect that Great-Uncle William's house might hold the key to some of the mysteries of her small kingdom -- if she can find her way around.

I can't remember if I've read this book more than once before, but I had definitely forgotten how lovely it is. Castle in the Air is fine, but it's missing some of the DWJ charm for me. House of Many Ways gets it back, and feels like a truer sequel to Howl's Moving Castle -- Castle in the Air just lacks some of what makes Howl so much fun. I liked that Charmain was flawed, but working on it; I loved Waif, and her contribution to the story; and I loved bumbling, well-meaning Peter, and how he and Charmain worked together like real kids thrust together would. 5 stars.

>172 curioussquared: I've been dying to try a DWJ book; would you say this book is readable if I haven't had the chance to get Howl's Moving Castle or is it a direct sequel?
And funny enough, Elfland was a book from my Fantasy and Literature class in college. Everyone else got really annoyed at it and called it "too cyclical" but I thought it was mesmerizing. I like to stir up things a bit by arguing that Dunsany was the actual father of western fantasy (open to all opinions on that one). This book DOES predate The Hobbit I'm just sayin' *waggles eyebrows*

>173 Ravenwoodwitch: Hi Angela! I would say House of Many Ways is definitely readable if you haven't read Howl's Moving Castle, but not as enjoyable as it would be if you read HMC first. DWJ is one of my all-time favorite authors and I've read everything she ever produced. If you want to try a DWJ book, here are my suggestions for good places to start:
- Howl's Moving Castle -- probably her most popular book, thanks to the Miyazaki adaptation. The movie is very different but I love it just as much.
- Fire and Hemlock -- you might really like this one if you appreciate some of those old fairy poems -- this is a loose adaptation of Tam Lin and Thomas the Rhymer.
- The Chronicles of Chrestomanci, volume 1 (containing Charmed Life and The Lives of Christopher Chant) -- the Chrestomanci books are probably my personal favorites of hers. These skew a little younger than the first two recommendations but I think they're good for any age. I'm a little biased as I first read them as an elementary schooler so they have grown with me :)
- Dogsbody -- a sweet, poignant, sci-fi standalone with hints of folklore. Every dog lover should read this one -- fair warning, I cry every time I read it.

Wherever you start, I hope you love it!

55 books read: Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer

In Braiding Sweetgrass, Kimmerer paints a broad picture of the world around us and the relationship humans have with the natural world -- both the negative impacts we see every day as humans continue to deplete natural resources and climate change worsens, and also some of the surprising symbiotic ways humans and plants have always worked together to thrive. Kimmerer's story is told through a series of stories and essays, using a mixture of anecdotes from her life as a member of the Potawatomi tribe, scientific knowledge from her place as an environmental scientist and professor, and wisdom shared with her by her relatives and members of other indigenous tribes.

This one has been on my radar for a while; it's definitely not my usual reading fare, but I think it's an important one. I listened to the version read by the author and I found that to be a particularly impactful way to absorb the book. I loved the parts of this book that focused on the ways humans have positive influences on plants and nature, and especially the parts that showcased incredible indigenous knowledge and set straight common misunderstandings of indigenous practices that we've been getting wrong ever since the first colonizing Europeans arrived in the Americas. I did feel that the last 20% or so of the book was very doom and gloom and finger waggy about the harm we as humans do to the earth. Obviously I agree and I do my best personally to treat my planet with respect and combat climate change as much as I can as an individual, but I'm also in the camp that believes that any significant progress in slowing climate change is going to need to come from governments and corporations. In any case, Braiding Sweetgrass is an incredible read, and one that requires an important shift in perspective that perhaps needs to happen universally before we do make any progress on climate change. 4.5 stars.

56 books read: Undercover Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

In this sequel to The Bromance Book Club, we follow Braden Mack, the founder of the club -- a romance novel, or "manual," as the club calls them, devotee, and yet the only one of the club without a serious girlfriend or wife. Mack is an expert at flirting and truly believes he knows what women want, but every time he goes for the "perfect" woman, things don't work out. Enter Liv -- the pastry chef sister to one of the other club members' wives. Liv and Mack have never gotten along -- she's never forgiven him for eating her leftover lo mein the first time they met. Liv thinks Mack is a cheesy playboy, and Mack thinks Liv is a prickly manhater. But when they clash at the restaurant Liv works at, resulting in some horrible secrets coming out about the restaurant owner, the two find themselves reluctantly teaming up to fight for justice for women who have been wronged.

I loved this sequel maybe even more than the first one! The avenging women narrative was a fun one, and I enjoyed seeing both characters open up to each other and grow. 4 stars, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.

>176 curioussquared: Glad to see you liked this even more than the first book as I haven't got around to it yet. Eventually...

57 books read: A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger

On Earth, in Texas, Nina is a normal Lipan Apache teenager who believes in the old stories and spends most of her time working on translating an old, old story told to her by her great-grandmother before she died. She's pretty sure animal people really exist, too. So when a cottonmouth person, two coyote people, and a hawk person show up at her door one day demanding help for their friend, a toad person, on the brink of death due to the near-extinction of his species on Earth, she doesn't hesitate to spring into action with her new friends. And they might be able to help her with the problems her grandmother has been facing...

I enjoyed this second novel from Little Badger; I find the mythology of the animal people to be super interesting so was excited to see a novel featuring one of them as a main character -- Oli the cottonmouth. I had a few issues with the book, mostly due to pacing. I had a lot of trouble getting into the story for the first half, I think partially because the two storylines of Oli and Nina were so disconnected for so long. But once they met, I devoured the rest of the book in a day or so. So, not as good as Elatsoe for me -- I also preferred the slightly alternate, magic-in-the-open Earth in that book to the low fantasy Earth in this novel. But definitely still worth reading and I'll be keeping an eye out for Little Badger's future work. 4 stars.

>177 MickyFine: I hope you get to it sooner rather than later! I couldn't put it down and found myself gravitating toward activities I could do while listening to get it done faster :)

I hope everyone who celebrates had a good Easter! We spent it with Tim's family and lucked out with some gorgeous weather -- a nice break from all the rain we've had.

I have just under a week until I start the new job so I'm spending this week relaxing and chipping away at stuff I've been wanting to get done in preparation.

Currently reading:

- Almost done listening to The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy and loving it. An Offer from a Gentleman will be next on audio.

- Reading Magpie Murders in print.

- Need to start something new on Kindle!

I hope your last week of the life of leisure is a good one!

>180 curioussquared: hey! Congrats on the new job :)

Thanks, Micky and Angela!

Yesterday I took advantage of the nice weather to do some yard work, then showered and prettied myself up to go out to dinner for Tim's birthday, so the day turned out nicely. I finished listening to The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy, so review forthcoming on that one, and got a few hours into An Offer from a Gentleman. A few of my friends have mentioned this isn't one of their favorites among the Bridgerton books but so far I'm really enjoying the Cinderella retelling aspects.

I also made a teeny bit of progress in Magpie Murders and started Fireheart Tiger on my Kindle before bed.

Today is pretty open -- I want to get a few chores done and I have to drive to a nearby suburb to pick up a med for Skelly from a compound pharmacy, and I might try to do more yard work while I still have the inclination to do it. Then my best friend is coming over after work; we've been doing hangouts where we do a workout, then have dinner and watch an episode or two of some TV. Now that we finished Our Flag Means Death we're probably moving on to the new season of Call the Midwife or finishing up All Creatures Great and Small.

Also, I haven't seen anyone here talking about Our Flag Means Death and that makes me sad!! Everyone needs to watch the Taika Waititi gay pirate show, it is perfection ❤️

>155 curioussquared: I get to dodge that BB as I have already read it a couple of times now.

>156 curioussquared: Adding that one to the BlackHole. Thanks for the recommendation, Natalie!

>160 curioussquared: I loved that one too!

>172 curioussquared: Another DWJ book I need to read. *sigh*

>175 curioussquared: Already in the BlackHole. I really need to get to it soon.

>178 curioussquared: Oo, my local library has a couple of Little Badger's books. I will have to check them out.

Have a wonderful Wednesday, Natalie!

>184 alcottacre: Thanks for stopping by, Stasia!

Well, my brother called and wanted to have spontaneous lunch and now it's raining, so no yard work today, I guess! Oh well ;)

58 books read: The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy by Anne Ursu

Marya Lupu has always lived in her brother Luka's shadow. From his birth, their parents believed Luka was destined to be a sorcerer, and so they spent lots of time and money preparing him for that destiny, grooming him to be the perfect sorcerer candidate. After all, sorcerers are the most important people in the land, and their families are treated like royalty, because sorcerers are the only ones who keep the dread -- menacing fog that consumes whole villages -- at bay. If it hadn't been for a kind neighbor, Marya would have been completely neglected. But when the day comes for Luka's sorcerer trial, everything goes wrong, and it's Marya's fault. Instead of Luka being accepted as a sorcerer, Marya is bundled off with barely a day's notice to the Dragomir Academy for Troubled Girls. There, she and the other girls are supposedly being reformed, but Marya is suspicious that something else is going on. With the help of one of the other girls in her class, Marya starts digging deeper into the school's history and true purpose -- careful not to trust anyone completely.

I was totally captivated by this middle grade fantasy novel! It felt almost a little older than middle grade -- YA readers who aren't looking for romance would enjoy this story as well. I felt like this was a familiar storyline done in a really fresh way. Recommended if you like slightly spooky schools, secret embroidery languages, and plucky, rebellious girls. 4.5 stars.

Some great reading here, Natalie, and great news about Skelly!

Morning, Natalie!

I keep thinking I need to watch the gay pirate show - maybe I'll bump it up my list so we can chat about it...

>183 curioussquared: HBOMax content is on Crave up here in Canada and while I'm increasingly tempted to add it to our streaming stable, we haven't bit that bullet yet. Glad to hear Our Flag Means Death is good though.

>187 curioussquared: I DNFed this one because it was too grim for my tastes. I'm glad you liked it. Ursu is a great writer; she just is too heavy for my middle grade tastes. I agree with you that it had a YA feel to it.

>188 AMQS: Thanks, Anne! We're so happy to have our silly, bouncy boy back :)

>189 scaifea: Morning, Amber! Oh, please do -- it's so so good!

>190 MickyFine: I totally get it -- I'm very reluctant to add more streaming services. I'm just feral for this show and want everyone to watch it 😂

>191 libraryperilous: It was definitely pretty grim -- all the abuse and neglect of the early chapters of Harry Potter but then the magic school isn't a refuge, it's just as scary as the first part. I listened to it so I think that helped keep me from getting bogged down.

59 books read: An Offer from a Gentleman by Julia Quinn

Sophie Beckett is the bastard daughter of the Earl of Penwood, but her life isn't so bad. While her birth is a widely known "secret," the Earl at least publicly acknowledges her as his ward, allowing her to live in his home and feeding, clothing, and educating her. Even when he marries, he forces his new wife and her two daughters to tolerate Sophie, even if her stepmother and stepsisters are less than kind. But when the Earl dies, including a provision in his will that his widow will get 4,000 pounds more per year if she continues to provide for Sophie until she is 20, Sophie's life changes drastically. Her stepmother abides by the letter of her father's will, feeding and housing her, but Sophie is forced to work for no pay, doing the work of lady's maid, scullery maid, and house maid for nothing. With no prospects, Sophie stays, miserable. But on the night of the Bridgerton masquerade ball, the housekeeper, who helped raised her, decides that Sophie deserves a night of magic, and they dress her up in disguise and send her off, masked, to the event. It's everything Sophie dreamed of, and she's swept off her feet by Benedict Bridgerton -- who's equally swept of his feet, but by a woman he can only identify as the mysterious lady in silver. When Sophie runs away at midnight, Benedict is determined to find his mystery woman again, while Sophie knows they can never be. But fate has its ways, even if it might take its time...

I couldn't put this third Bridgerton book down! I really enjoyed the Cinderella retelling aspects. I had some problems with how Benedict got things to go his way, but was willing to overlook them as the story still swept me away. I think it's possible that Benedict is just not the brightest of lightbulbs, or at least that's how I've decided to look at it. Anyway, it was great fun and exactly what my brain wanted right now. 4 stars.

What I'm reading:

- Still making incremental progress in Magpie Murders. I really want to like it but so far it's just not grabbing me, but I also know it's supposed to get wacky at some point so I'm giving it time.

- Started Dreams from my Father on audio and loving it so far. Obama can write.

- Still reading Fireheart Tiger on Kindle.

My friend didn't end up coming over last night, so that hangout will probably happen tonight. Instead I mostly listened to my book and cross-stitched last night :)

>194 curioussquared: So, I'm kinda pop-culture illiterate.
Is THIS the Bridgeton stuff everyone is on about on social media?

>196 Ravenwoodwitch: Yes, sort of! Everyone is obsessed with the Netflix TV adaptation of the book series. Season 2 came out a month or so ago which is why you've heard so much about it lately :)

>175 curioussquared: Totally agree with all of your thoughts on Braiding Sweetgrass. It's a lovely book with lots to say and I learned a lot but there's not much that can be done about climate change / environmental destruction solely through individual solutions to a systemic problem.

>187 curioussquared: Into the BlackHole it goes!

>194 curioussquared: I read all of the Bridgerton books back in the day and thoroughly enjoyed them.

>198 norabelle414: Exactly! Definitely worth reading, but I could have done without the guilt trip at the end.

>199 alcottacre: Enjoy, Stasia! The Bridgerton books are such fun. I've already borrowed the next one from the library, but we'll see when I get to it.

My last weekday of freedom! I think I'm going to go to the bookstore and Costco and enjoy that weekday shopping feeling, then maybe squeeze in some more yard work if the weather holds and of course some relaxing :)

>200 curioussquared: If it helps, the fourth book is probably my ultimate favourite out of the whole series.

>202 MickyFine: It does! I definitely want to get to it soon, I just have a bunch of other audiobooks checked out that I need to get to first, and there are a bunch of copies of the Bridgerton book available so I can renew it if I need to :)

Happy weekend!

Today we're going to a store to look at some gas fireplace insert models. We have two wood burning fireplaces in our house that we have never used and have no plans to use, so I'm very excited to get them converted to gas (just in time for summer, lol). Especially the basement fireplace -- the heat down there is electric rather than gas like the rest of the house, so it'll be nice to have another option for heating down there as it can get pretty chilly.

My bookstore haul was very successful yesterday! I picked up:

The Night Watchman
The Witch Elm
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue (special edition with a ribbon bookmark!)
Circe
Queen of the Tiles
A Magic Steeped in Poison

I found used copies of the first four, which I was very pleased about!

I've also managed to snag Kindle deals on a few other books recently -- Empire of Sand, Jade City, and A Case of Grave Danger, the last of which I may have purchased based solely on what looked like a greyhound on the cover ;) I really can't seem to keep my TBR below around 440 or so... sorry not sorry!

60 books read: Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama

Written years before his presidency, Dreams from My Father chronicles Obama's interesting childhood in Hawaii and Indonesia, the brief visit that was his only experience with his father in the flesh before his death, and his growth into a responsible young man. It continues to how he got involved in community organizing, and his eventual reconnection with his Kenyan family and subsequent visit to Kenya, ending just before he started law school at Harvard and culminating with a glimpse of his families merging at his wedding to Michelle.

I found this to be a compelling memoir of an interesting young life. Obama can really write! The book touches on race relations and Obama's own experience of growing up Black in America, in the brand new state of Hawaii and then the differences he encountered upon moving to LA, then New York, then Chicago. Normally I'm not interested in reading books by politicians, but I liked the idea of reading something written by Obama before he was a politician -- when he was just a young lawyer fresh out of Harvard who maybe had some big dreams but was definitely still figuring things out. I listened to the book and highly recommend that way of reading it -- I knew Obama was a great orator, but he's a shockingly good audiobook narrator -- he does voices and accents and everything! Be careful not to get the abridged version, though. There's a newer, unabridged version that clocks in at around 14 hours. 4.5 stars.

Currently reading:

- Finally getting to some interesting stuff in Magpie Murders!
- Started Our Violent Ends on audio
- Got a little father in Fireheart Tiger on Kindle

Oh, I admit, I struggle with nonfiction reads; I'm a bit of an old-fashioned escapist and find it hard to really sink into non-fiction reads. But it's good to hear Obama is as passionate a writer as he was a speaker :)

>207 Ravenwoodwitch: I'm normally a very sporadic nonfiction reader as well; 4 in the past two months and 3 in the past month is a way higher average of nonfiction than usual for me. Normally I read more like 4 a year! I've found listening to them on audio can help -- a great narrator can bring a book to life, and the fact that it's being narrated keeps me from getting bogged down in any parts that I might find less interesting.

Reporting live from day 2 of new job! So far so good. Lots of getting settled and required training courses, but everyone seems nice and welcoming.

I did finish a book -- a comfort read I started on Sunday night.

61 books read: Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia

At school, Eliza is nobody -- just the weird, friendless girl who doesn't talk or make eye contact and wears strange baggy sweats every day. But online, she's LadyConstellation -- the creator of the massively popular webcomic Monstrous Sea. Nobody knows her identity, aside from her two closest online friends. Eliza has it all figured out. She's going to make it through school, then focus on art in college, which she's heard is infinitely better than high school. And if everything works out, she should finish Monstrous Sea right around graduation. But things change when a new kid comes to school -- and he's a Monstrous Sea fan. And not just any fan -- Wallace is one of the fandom's most popular fanfiction writers. At first, Eliza doesn't have any interested in telling him who she is, but she can't seem to stop talking to him -- she's never met a real life fan before. But then, as Wallace and Eliza grow closer, Eliza starts to realize she has no idea HOW to tell him who she is without ruining their relationship. Paralyzed with fear and longing, Eliza lets things continue as they are -- but soon the situation will spiral out of her control.

I loved this book the first time I read it a few years ago, and I love it just as much now, upon my third reading, probably? Zappia clearly loves fandom, and it comes through in this novel. It's also a fantastic look at mental health and deals with some pretty heavy issues, including anxiety, panic attacks, and suicide. This book always totally absorbs me -- I was able to put it down the first night I started reading it, about 100 pages in, but then last night I was sucked in until past my bedtime. I just couldn't put it down even though I've read it multiple times before, and that's the definition of a favorite/comfort read for me. This is the first time I read my snazzy new hardcover, and it was nice to get to study the illustrations a little more closely. 5 stars.

Oh man. I remember my first dips into Fanfiction. Nothing worth physical sharring other than I was the queen of silly plots and obvious Mary Sues :$

This does sound fun. Imma add it to the list!

>211 Ravenwoodwitch: Oh, same here! I was definitely more of a fanfic reader than a fanfic writer (I consumed an embarrassing amount of Harry Potter fanfiction between the years of, like, 2004-2008) and all my writing attempts were... not good. I feel like books centered around fandom are becoming a big thing in YA and for the most part, I really enjoy them -- this one, Fangirl, and Geekerella are some of my favorites.

New job is progressing apace! Hoping to wrap up all the required compliance trainings this week. The benefit of doing them from home is I can cross stitch while they're playing :) Also working on setting up meetings with my larger team to get to know everyone.

Reading-wise, I haven't made much progress in Magpie Murders or Fireheart Tiger, but I'm hoping to finish one or both by Saturday. I'm 75% through Our Violent Ends on audio and finding it just OK. After that one I'll probably move on to Pigs in Heaven.

I truly cannot stop buying more books! My latest Book Outlet order arrived yesterday:

Doomsday Book
The Stranger Diaries
Final Draft
Under a Painted Sky
Thorn
Forestborn
Sisters of Sword and Song
Lobizona

I feel you. I just heard that there's a new online book retailer who works out of my town, and I can already feel my fingers itching.
Glad the new job is working out. :)

>204 curioussquared: One of the best things we ever did in our house was converting our coal-burning (yep, you read that right!) fireplace to gas. We absolutely love it. We have 2 fireplaces, but as one of them is in the library, it is never going to get lit.

Congratulations on the haul, Natalie!

>205 curioussquared: I need to get that one read!

>210 curioussquared: Into the BlackHole it goes!

>214 curioussquared: Oo, another nice haul!

>215 Ravenwoodwitch: It's a constant urge! My real problem is that I can't resist a good deal.

>216 alcottacre: Coal-burning! Wow, the gas must have really been an upgrade. I'm doing a final comparison of the two quotes we got and then I think we'll pull the trigger. I'm very excited!

>217 curioussquared: Our house is almost 100 years old, so yes, the fireplaces were coal-burning. Congratulations on upgrading your fireplace! It is so wonderful to have one.

>218 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia!

62 books read: The Secret Starling by Judith Eagle

Clara's mother died when she was born, and she has always lived with her cold, distant uncle, a series of governesses, the butler, and the cook in lonely, cold, Braithewaite manor. It's a lonely childhood, but it's all Clara knows. One day, the latest governess leaves -- and for the first time, she isn't replaced. Soon, the butler and Cook are dismissed, too -- and then Clara's uncle leaves, abandoning her in the village with nothing but some money. Determined to make it on her own, she tramps back to the manor, ignoring the new For Sale sign in front. But she's surprised when she meets a boy her own age waiting outside, Peter, who has apparently been sent to stay with Clara and her uncle while his grandmother is recuperating and is very frustrated to find no uncle. The two decide to stay by themselves for the moment and soon start discovering mysteries hidden in the manor -- like an old ballet slipper under the floorboards. Together with their new friends, the grandchildren of Clara's old Cook, Clara and Peter start to piece together the puzzle -- but before they get too far, they'll have to deal with some adults who seem determined to get in their way.

A fun middle grade mystery in the best tradition! Featuring plucky orphans, nefarious villains, and mysterious ballet dancers. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Recommended for fans of classic children's stories and more modern classics like The Penderwicks. 4.5 stars.

>214 curioussquared: Congratulations of acquiring some great books! The Secret Starling sounds like a very fun read, as well as Dreams of my Father.

>220 curioussquared: Judith Eagle is one of my favorite middle grade authors. She has a new one out this summer, and it takes place on a ship. I like that she picks eras that aren't as common in historical fiction.

>221 Whisper1: Thanks, Linda! They were both excellent if very different reads 😂

>222 libraryperilous: I'm pretty sure this recommendation originally came from you, so this checks out :)

>214 curioussquared: We do share that affliction, Natalie!

>225 PaulCranswick: I think that is one that most of us on that site deal with, Paul!

Had an excellent weekend and now embarked on my second week of new job!

Friday night was quiet; I ended up finishing three books, sort of accidentally: I wrapped up Our Violent Ends on audio, then managed to listen to the whole 3.5 hours of Stuck with You while giving the dogs their evening walk and finishing up a cross stitch project, and then finished the second half of Fireheart Tiger, which went much quicker for me than the first half. And Tim and I managed to fit in a few episodes of Minx, too, which we've really been enjoying.

Saturday, Tim and I started by going out for brunch. Then I had plans to go to my favorite bookstore with my friend to grab a picture book I wanted to gift to my newly 5-year-old cousin for her birthday (Secret Pizza Party, for those interested). I didn't realize until we got there that it was Independent Bookstore Day, so the whole place was in party mode! I picked up a few books because how can I not -- You Have a Match and In Deeper Waters, as well as The Penderwicks on Gardam Street because they had it for sale for 50 cents at the Library book sale cart in the same building. After I checked out at the bookstore, they had me spin a prize wheel and I won an additional free book! They were giving away a cart-full of ARCs, so I grabbed Hollow Chest, which I read and loved last year. After the bookstore, my friend and I went to visit out other friends and their toddler daughter. I hadn't seen her for nearly a year so she was pretty shy with me, but I was able to make some headway by showing her videos of the dogs. We went to the park and chatted with her parents while she played, and it was nice to see them again. Then my friend and I went back to my house and got takeout and watched the first few episodes of Heartstopper, which is way too adorable for its own good.

Sunday was my cousin's 5th birthday party, which was very cute to see. It was with our side of the family and her mom's side, too, so lots of family, all at a park. The weather mostly held out for us but I think it was a little colder than we realized because Tim and I were both so, so tired when we got home.

I had no idea Saturday was about supporting independent bookstores; I would have made my trip to the on then instead of Sunday. Ah well, better later than never.

I like the smaller shops better to be honest. They have this hush about them that feels sacred to me in a weird way, and the introvert in me approves that there's plenty of nooks to curl up in for awhile.

>228 Ravenwoodwitch: I love a little bookstore, too. My favorite one that I went to on Saturday is huge, but somehow manages to retain that little bookstore vibe? I think that's why it's my favorite :)

Minx is great! I really hope it gets another season.

63 books read: Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong

In this sequel to These Violent Delights, Juliette Tsai and Roma Montagov are once more at odds -- but in a surprising turn, their feuding gang families have asked them to work together to address the threat of a blackmailer working against both gangs. As political pressure grows in Shanghai as the Nationalists gain power, Juliette and Roma must face their fears and defy their families if they're going to save the ones they love -- and each other.

I really wanted these books to work for me, but they never quite got there. A lot of stuff felt like excuses to take the romance from enemies to lovers to enemies again to lovers again -- ad infinitum. Halfway through the book I just realized that I didn't really care too much what happened to any of the characters. I think these books had a really interesting premise and setting, but the character writing fell flat -- probably better for actual young adults who are looking more for tropes than well-crafted characters. 3 stars.

>230 norabelle414: Me too!

64 books read: Stuck with You by Ali Hazelwood

In this novella, Sadie and Erik work for rival engineering firms. When they met a few weeks ago, sparks flew and they spent a magical night together. But before it could go further, Sadie realized Erik was using her to gain professional knowledge, and she cut off all communication. But now, they're stuck in an elevator together at 10:45 on a Friday night. Help isn't coming anytime soon, and they're just going to have to talk things out.

Ali Hazelwood is quickly becoming a favorite of mine. This was a supercute, superfun romance novella that played on a forced proximity trope and packed a big punch in 3.5 hours of listening. I think it's only available on audio right now, but I enjoy listening to romance novels so that worked well for me. Recommended for contemporary romance fans! 4 stars.

65 books read: Fireheart Tiger by Aliette de Bodard

Thanh is a princess who spent many of her formative years as a sort of hostage/ward in a rival, bully country, Ephteria. Before she left Ephteria, she almost died in a fire of unknown origin, but she managed to find her way out of the building with the help of a mysterious maidservant who disappeared after the fire. Now back in her home country, Thanh is trying to prove herself to her mother by effectively running the negotiations with the Ephterian delegation -- which includes Princess Eldris, who happens to be Thanh's ex. Thanh struggles to find her place at home, still dealing with memories -- and more -- of the fire, and dealing with Eldris, who seems very happy to see Thanh again.

The first half of this novella went slowly for me, but I flew through the last half. I wasn't totally compelled, but I'm definitely intrigued by the world. 3.75ish stars.

Happy Tuesday! We woke up to discover a sewage line backup in our basement shower, so less happy for us. Joy.

The plumber has been and gone, and will be back tomorrow to fix the issue and charge us a lot of money. #thejoysofhomeownership

66 books read: Hook, Line, and Sinker by Tessa Bailey

LA-based production assistant Hannah and King Crab fisherman Fox developed a sort of friendship when Hannah was up in Fox's hometown of Westport, WA, helping her sister Piper renovate and open a bar. Since Hannah left to go back to LA, she and Fox have been texting constantly, and they both look forward to the other's texts more than they would like to admit. When Hannah convinces her production company to shoot their latest movie in Westport, she assumes she'll stay with Piper and her fiance. But they've already committed their guest room for that period, so Piper suggests Hannah stay with Fox, not knowing about the... friendship developing between them. Now roommates, Hannah and Fox must figure out how to navigate their friendship, budding relationship, and own personal issues if they're going to make things work.

A fun romcom set in my home state! I didn't realize this was a sequel and will be picking up the first one, but I think they're definitely readable out of order. This felt a little like a Hallmark movie -- big city girl comes back to her home town and falls for the local hunk -- but in a good, comforting, readable way. I liked the fishing background and Hannah's job was interesting, too. Basically just a solid contemporary romance -- nothing super special but a nice way to spend a few hours. 4 stars.

Currently reading:

- Started A Rush of Wings on Kindle and enjoying it so far.

- Listening to Pigs in Heaven and it's excellent.

- Still working my way slowly through Magpie Murders. Hoping maybe to make some good progress on it and finish it this week before we leave for Atlanta on Friday. I'm only planning on taking one physical book to Atlanta, The Blind Assassin, because I think it deserves a focused plane ride :) Also started Salt to the Sea and it's riveting so far, but I want to finish these other two books before I get back to it.

>220 curioussquared: Who can resist "plucky orphans, nefarious villains, and mysterious ballet dancers"? I know I cannot. Into the BlackHole it goes!

>231 curioussquared: Ugh. Sounds like I can safely give that one a miss.

>233 curioussquared: Hmm, that looks to be one in a series. All of them are available on Audible as nearly as I can tell, so I will try and pick them up one at a time and see how I like them.

>234 curioussquared: Giving that one a pass for now.

>237 curioussquared: My local library actually has the first book in the series so I will give it a shot.

Have a wonderful week, Natalie!

>239 alcottacre: Thanks, Stasia! You too!

Omg. My day has come. I gasped so loudly Tim thought something was wrong.

Wordle 319 1/6

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

>241 curioussquared: WOW!

>242 FAMeulstee: Right? I feel like I should go buy a lottery ticket or something.

>241 curioussquared: Wow again!

>241 curioussquared: Woot! That is a very exciting day.

>244 ArlieS: >245 MickyFine: I know it's purely luck, but still, it was just so satisfying.

>241 curioussquared: I got that one in one try too!! Pure luck but it made me very happy. ; )

Safe travels to Atlanta! And I liked Blind Assassins a lot. Have fun.

>247 Berly: Thanks Kim! I'm back and back to work today, but pretty bleary-eyed. 3 day trips across three time zones are not my favorite. I did finish The Blind Assassin on the plane -- review to come soon!

Well, I'm back from a whirlwind trip to Atlanta for Tim's cousin's college graduation! Normally I don't think we'd attend this kind of thing, but this kid has been through a lot (he's been battling cancer since high school and still managed to graduate college during COVID in three years).

We carpooled to the airport early Friday morning with Tim's sister, sat in a metal box for 5ish hours, then were picked up by Tim's parents and taken to the rental house where most of Tim's family were staying. The parents of the graduate catered a fried chicken dinner that night. Tim and I were staying at a different Airbnb about 10 minutes away, so we excused ourselves after dinner to check in and collapse.

The next day was the graduation at 9 am, so we had to get up at 7:30 am... which is 4:30 am Seattle time. I was not very functional, but luckily didn't have to be much more than present. After the event itself we left the bigger group with Tim's parents and sister and went out for a barbecue lunch, then went to walk around Piedmont Park. That evening the grad's parents had arranged a really nice meal at an Italian restaurant. I was flagging at that point, but I will say that the food and wine perked me up pretty well :)

The next morning we were out of the Airbnb by 10. Tim's parents and sister picked us up and we found a spot to do Mother's Day brunch, then headed back to the airport. Our flight was unfortunately delayed a little, but we were back in Seattle by 8pm.

I'm on my third cup of coffee today in an attempt to be functional. So far the attempt is only partially successful!

I finished The Blind Assassin on the plane ride home, and made more progress in A Rush of Wings, which I'm hoping to finish tonight or tomorrow (especially given that it's due back at the library tomorrow!). Also hoping to finish Pigs in Heaven on audio given that it's due back this evening :)

67 books read: The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood

In three interconnected narratives, Atwood explores the story of two sisters, Laura Chase and Iris Chase Griffen, beginning with Laura's death seemingly by suicide. The novel bounces between Iris's recounting of her and Laura's childhoods and her narration of her present life in her 80s, and is interspersed with newspaper clippings and selections from The Blind Assassin, Laura's novel that was published after her death and made her posthumously famous. But the details surrounding Laura's death are somewhat unclear, and there are other mysteries shrouding the Chase family that are slowly revealed as the timelines converge.

I tried to start this book a few weeks ago but had trouble getting past the first 40 pages, and decided to put it off until I had a few good, long plane rides to make me focus. I think that was a good choice for this book! The different narratives made it a little choppy and hard to get involved in the book, and I wasn't really absorbed until around page 100. I found The Blind Assassin intervals to be disruptive and hard to read, so I was glad I was trapped on a plane without the opportunity to put the book down at those points, because I was really enjoying the other sections. At the same time, it is the different narratives and timelines that make this book truly masterful -- reading it, I had the sense that I was peeling layer after layer of an onion. I kept revising my guess as to what, exactly, had happened, right up until the last few pages of the book where everything is revealed. So overall, it's an incredible piece of writing that I enjoyed for the most part and can appreciate for the bits I didn't, if not my favorite Atwood and not one I think I'll revisit. 4 stars.

68 books read: Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver

In this sequel to The Bean Trees, Taylor Greer and her adoptive daughter Turtle are living a pretty good life in Tuscon until they end up on Oprah after Turtle sees a man fall down a hole at the Hoover Dam and inadvertently saves his life. A Cherokee lawyer, Annawake Fourkiller, spots Turtle on TV and immediately knows she's Cherokee, too. Annawake tracks Taylor and Turtle down to let them know that Turtle's adoption is invalid and to encourage Taylor to allow her daughter to connect with her Cherokee roots -- possibly by removing her from Taylor's custody and putting her with a Cherokee family. Taylor is terrified, and immediately uproots her and Turtle's life to go on the run. Alice, Taylor's mother, decides to try to help by traveling to the Cherokee nation where Annawake is located to get to the bottom of things. All three women are convinced they know what's best for Turtle -- but what's best might be a complicated question.

I enjoyed this sequel, but didn't find it as compelling as the other Kingsolvers I've read, including the first book in this series. Kingsolver's writing is good enough that I still enjoyed the whole thing, but some of the conflict fell flat and the ending felt very pat. Recommended if you loved Taylor and Turtle in The Bean Trees, but while it can stand alone, I wouldn't recommend it like that. 4 stars.

Currently reading:

- A Rush of Wings on Kindle -- hoping to finish today or tomorrow
- Started Boyfriend Material on audio which is really fun so far -- Red, White, and Royal Blue vibes
- Still working through Magpie Murders in print, and it might come with me to Hawaii next week if I don't get really jazzed about it soon. Also started Salt to the Sea but I don't think I'll continue until I finish Magpie Murders.

I need to start a new thread! Maybe tonight.

Good morning! I did not finish A Rush of Wings last night -- good thing for the Kindle library loan airplane mode trick. I didn't start a new thread, either. Oh well, today is another day.

I did exercise and make progress in Boyfriend Material, so that's good.

Congratulations, Natalie, on the new job, and I am SO delighted to hear how well Skelly is doing! I also have picked up a million book bullets while catching up on your thread...

>254 ronincats: Thanks, Roni! I wish I could say I was sorry about the book bullets... ;)