MissBrangwen's year of reading

Dove Cottage, Grasmere, Lake District - home of William and Dorothy Wordsworth

Hi, my name is Mirjam and this is my sixth year in the Category Challenge. 2025 was not a good reading year for me, especially in the second half, so I really hope that 2026 will be better!

I live in the north of Germany close to the North Sea with my husband. We are both college teachers and besides reading, we love traveling. I also sing in a choir where we have three big concerts a year.

I am keeping my categories from last year because they worked well for me. I don't have a specific numerical goal for each category, but simply wish to track what I read.
Last year I got burned out of the CATs and KITs after some time, but now I am really looking forward to them again.

~~~

Again, I don't have a dedicated theme, but use pictures from my travels from 2025 that have a connection to books. This year, they mainly are from our trip to the north of England that we did in July.

~~~

My reading year starts on Christmas Eve!

Sam Read Bookseller, Grasmere, Lake District

J.R.R. Tolkien
All books connected to J.R.R. Tolkien in any way.

Barter Books, Alnwick

Australia
All books set in or about Australia.

1. Vertigo by Amanda Lohrey
2. Maybe Tomorrow by Boori Monty Pryor
3. The Mushroom Tapes by Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper & Sarah Krasnostein

Hill Top, Beatrix Potter's home, Lake District

Rereading Fiction
This category is reserved for fiction. Non-fiction rereads are not included.

1. Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis
2. Die Marquise von O... / Das Erdbeben in Chili by Heinrich von Kleist

Lit & Phil Library, Newcastle upon Tyne

Doorstoppers
All books that have more than 600 pages, or more than 500 if the print is tiny.

Bookstall in Ximen, Taipei

Diversity
Books by Bi_PoC and LGBTQIA+ authors.

1. The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng
2. Hazel & Gray by Nic Stone
3. Rental Person Who Does Nothing by Shoji Morimoto
4. Maybe Tomorrow by Boori Monty Pryor
5. Abscond by Abraham Verghese

Bookshelf at Hill Top, Beatrix Potter's home

Literary Classics
Books written before 1976 that are somewhat literary - I make this distinction to make sure that I won't simply fill this category with mysteries ;-)

1. Olalla by Robert Louis Stevenson
2. Bulemanns Haus by Theodor Storm
3. The Romance of Certain Old Clothes by Henry James
4. Die Marquise von O... / Das Erdbeben in Chili by Heinrich von Kleist
5. The Old Nurse's Story by Elizabeth Gaskell

Lit & Phil Library, Newcastle upon Tyne

Literary and General Fiction
All novels, novellas and short stories/short story collections that are not strictly genre fiction and not classics.

1. The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng
2. Vertigo by Amanda Lohrey
3. Abscond by Abraham Verghese

Wordsworth House, Cockermouth, Lake District - William and Dorothy Wordsworth's childhood home

Historical Fiction
All novels written at least sixty years after the time they are set in.

1. The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng
2. The Collector's Daughter by Gill Paul
3. Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
4. Virgins by Diana Gabaldon

Bookends, Keswick, Lake District

Romance

Contemporary Romance

1. Her Christmas Kiss by Melissa McClone
2. Cruel Winter With You by Ali Hazelwood
3. Rosie and the Dreamboat by Sally Thorne
4. His Second Chance by Melissa McClonee

Historical Romance

5. A Holiday by Gaslight by Mimi Matthews
6. The Christmas Cuckoo by Mary Jo Putney
7. A Pirate For Christmas by Anna Campbell
8. A Confirmed Rake by Martha Keyes
9. A Summer To Remember by Mary Balogh

Barter Books, Alnwick

Mysteries
Mysteries and crime novels of all kind.

Golden & Silver Age Mysteries

Cosy Mysteries

Historical Mysteries

Police Procedurals and similar
Feuernacht by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir

Psychological Thrillers

Boat Shed Bookshop, Holy Island

Fantasy
All non-Tolkien fantasy books.

1. Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis

The Garden at Wordsworth House, Cockermouth, Lake District

Poetry

Dove Cottage, Grasmere, Lake District

Nonfiction

Autobiography | Memoir | Letters | Biography
1. Rental Person Who Does Nothing by Shoji Morimoto
2. Maybe Tomorrow by Boori Monty Pryor
3. Playing Under the Piano by Hugh Bonneville

History

Politics | Sociology | Critical Theory
4. Unter Nazis - Jung, ostdeutsch, gegen Rechts by Jakob Springfeld

Religion

Others
5. One Green Field by Edward Thomas
6. The Mushroom Tapes by Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper & Sarah Krasnostein



Great Courses

Mediterraneo Books, Chania, Crete

Graphics

The garden at Hill Top, Beatrix Potter's home

Series

"Bedwyn Series" by Mary Balogh: A Summer To Remember (0.5/6)
"Outlander" by Diana Gabaldon: Virgins (0.5/10)
"The Donovans" by Martha Keyes: A Confirmed Rake (3/4)
"The Chronicles of Narnia" by C.S. Lewis: Prince Caspian (4/7)
"Mountain Rescue Romance" by Melissa McClone: Her Christmas Kiss (3/6); His Second Chance (4/6)
"Thóra Guðmundsdóttir" by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir: Feuernacht (5/6)

Series not read in order

Series started in 2026

Seven Stories - The National Centre for Children's Books, Newcastle upon Tyne

Catch all
For all books that do not fit in any of the categories.

Dove Cottage, Grasmere, Lake District

Short Reads
Single short stories and articles (when I do not read the whole collection) read for leisure - texts read for work are not included.

Short stories and other prose

Articles and essays

Alan Lee: Introduction to the Tolkien Calendar 2026

1. Features senior citizens: The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng
2. Microhistory
3. Set entirely or in part at sea
4. Dead author: Olalla by Robert Louis Stevenson
5. Book with a tree on the cover: Her Christmas Kiss by Melissa McClone
6. Retelling of a fairy tale or myth
7. Something living on the cover: Vertigo by Amanda Lohrey
8. A book that has won an award: Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
9. End it
10. A book published before you were born: Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis
11. New-to-you author: A Pirate For Christmas by Anna Campbell
12. A "green" book: One Green Field by Edward Thomas
13. Read a CAT or KIT: The Biggest Secret by Mike Walker
14. A beautiful cover: A Holiday by Gaslight by Mimi Matthews
15. Word in the title that's an onomatopoeia: The Christmas Cuckoo by Mary Jo Putney
16. Difficult to categorize: Hazel & Gray by Nic Stone
17. Female author's debut novel
18. Great first sentence
19. Book by an indigenous author: Maybe Tomorrow by Boori Monty Pryor
20. Book set in a province/state bordering your own
21. Road trip book: Virgins by Diana Gabaldon
22. Mode of transportation in the title: Rosie and the Dreamboat by Sally Thorne
23. Classic from another literary tradition
24. A book of poetry
25. Book from an LT Legacy Library

Barter Books, Alnwick

DecadeCAT

January: 50s
Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis

HomeCAT

January: Bathroom
Rosie and the Dreamboat by Sally Thorne

Children's alphabet tracing board at Wordsworth House

AlphaKIT

January: E-F
One Green Field by Edward Thomas
The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng
Feuernacht by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir

February: B-O
Bulemanns Haus by Theodor Storm
Maybe Tomorrow by Boori Monty Pryor
Playing Under the Piano by Hugh Bonneville
Olalla by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Romance of Certain Old Clothes by Henry James
Die Marquise von O... / Das Erdbeben in Chili by Heinrich von Kleist

March: R-V
Das alles ist Ramadan by Tabea Demir & Nabila Amanda (ill.)
A Confirmed Rake by Martha Keyes
Leyla und Linda feiern Ramadan by Arzu Gürz Abay & Sibel Demirtaş (ill.)
A Summer To Remember by Mary Balogh
Abscond by Abraham Verghese
Virgins by Diana Gabaldon

CultureKIT

January: Collectors
The Collector's Daughter by Gill Paul

February: A book in translation
Rental Person Who Does Nothing by Shoji Morimoto

March: Close To Home
Das alles ist Ramadan by Tabea Demir & Nabila Amanda (ill.)
Leyla und Linda feiern Ramadan by Arzu Gürz Abay & Sibel Demirtaş (ill.)

Coloured CoverKIT

January: Orange / Something found in the garden
Hazel & Gray by Nic Stone

February: Blue / An item of clothing
Rental Person Who Does Nothing by Shoji Morimoto
Playing Under the Piano by Hugh Bonneville

March: Green / Greenery
Abscond by Abraham Verghese
A Confirmed Rake by Martha Keyes
Leyla und Linda feiern Ramadan by Arzu Gürz Abay & Sibel Demirtaş (ill.)

Dove Cottage, Grasmere, Lake District

Other CATs & KITs

January ArtsCAT - Painting: Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier
January NonfictionCAT - Science: Stephen – My First Stephen Hawking Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara & Matt Hunt (ill.)
January ScaredyKIT - Isolated Location: Hazel & Gray by Nic Stone
January SFFKIT - Adaptations: Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis
January MysteryKIT - Female detectives: Feuernacht by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
January RandomKIT - Can You Keep A Secret?: The Biggest Secret by Mike Walker; The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng; The Collector's Daughter by Gill Paul; Feuernacht by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir

February ArtsCAT - Artist Biographies: Maybe Tomorrow by Boori Monty Pryor; Playing Under the Piano by Hugh Bonneville
February ScaredyKIT - Ghost Stories: The Romance of Certain Old Clothes by Henry James

March NonfictionCAT - I want to learn about...: Unter Nazis - Jung, ostdeutsch, gegen Rechts by Jakob Springfeld
March ScaredyKIT - Haunted Houses: The Old Nurse's Story by Elizabeth Gaskell

April ScaredyKIT - True Crime: The Mushroom Tapes by Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper & Sarah Krasnostein

Lit & Phil Library, Newcastle upon Tyne

Other LT Challenges

Reading Through Time - Monthly challenges & quarterly eras.

The Global Challenge - Tracking my global reading over the years.

26 Short Stories for 2026 - A new short story challenge, an incentive to finally dig more into those.

Hosting Commitments

February HomeCAT: Living Room
February CultureKIT: A book in translation
November DecadeCAT: 90s
November CultureKIT: A culture you wish to learn more about

Extra

Extra

Dove Cottage, Grasmere, Lake District

And that's my thread - come in and welcome!

I'm looking forward to another year of reading, chatting books, and being inspired by what you all read!

What wonderful pictures! Thanks for sharing them—it’s like a little virtual vacation for me. You’ve got a nice spectrum of categories—I hope you enjoy your 2026 reading!

Viewing your wonderful pictures is so entertaining that any books added will be a bonus. Happy reading in 2026, Mirjam. I'll be following along.

Great to see you all set up and ready for 2026! Wishing you a year of good health and great reading!

Love your pictures of a great part of the world, Mirjam.

I will do my best to keep up in 2026!

What fabulous photos! I discovered the Lit & Phil for the first time this year, what a glorious place it is!

Wishing you an excellent reading year in 2026, Mirjam.

You take some wonderful pictures, Mirjam. Hope you have a good reading year.

Great blessings to you and your reading in the new year.

>29 Charon07: >30 VivienneR: Thank you so much - I'm glad you enjoyed the pictures!

>31 DeltaQueen50: Thank you, Judy, and the same to you!

>32 PaulCranswick: It really is a great part of the world, isn't it?

>33 Jackie_K: Oh yes! When I looked for things to do in Newcastle and came across the Lit & Phil, I knew that it was a must!

>34 pamelad: Thank you, Pam! I hope you have a great reading year, too.

>35 dudes22: Thank you so much! Although I must add that many of the pictures were taken by my husband. He is a much better photographer than I am.

>36 lowelibrary: Thank you, April! I hope you have a wonderful new year, too.

I hope you have a great reading year Mirjam!

Wonderful photos! Hears to 2026!

>38 lsh63: >39 mysterymax: Thank you both! I hope you have a great reading year, too!

My new reading year always starts on Christmas Eve, as my husband and I have a tradition to read together after dinner and exchanging our presents. Yesterday I started reading A Holiday by Gaslight by Mimi Matthews and read it straight through, so I already have my first review to share.



Book No 1

"A Holiday by Gaslight" by Mimi Matthews
First published in 2018
Perfectly Proper Press
ebook, 172pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

BingoDOG: A beautiful cover
My Own Categories: Romance - Historical Romance

So far I have read the Parish Orphans of Devon series by Mimi Matthews and enjoyed it very much, so I was looking forward to this standalone. And I wasn't disappointed! I really loved this story.

Sophie is the daughter of a baronet who has gone bankrupt because he is addicted to modernizing the family's country house. The solution is clear: Sophie must marry a wealthy man. When Edward Sharpe starts courting her, she is open to the match, even if he is a merchant and beyond her class. However, she feels that they just do not get to know each other, as he seems brooding, secretive and always serious. She decides to end the courtship, although she is not at all sure if that is the right decision.

Sophie and Edward were dear to me from the start. They are genuine and lively characters, and I totally rooted for them. The novella also includes a lot of interesting background information that made it more authentic: Prince Albert's death, scientific and technical progress such as the installation of gaslight or the works of Charles Darwin, and the changing of society. The Victorian age is portrayed in a manner that shows how people had to adapt to the times.

All this provided the love story with a solid background and made it much more fascinating without overshadowing the plot. The Christmas atmosphere and details of the celebrations add to the experience.

I wasn't a fan of the storyline of Sophie's sister, but apart from this, I totally loved this and I'm looking forward to reading more by Mimi Matthews.

This is a wonderful set up and I thoroughly enjoyed your travel photos...it was like taking a trip myself! Enjoy your reading in 2026!

What wonderful photos! I hope you enjoy your 2026 reading and I'm sure I'll take a few BB's!

>41 MissBrangwen: What a wonderful tradition. I start my year on 2025 because when I was younger (a couple of years ago!), I could not wait to start some of the new books I received. I have that very same book on my TBR and may also try to read it before the new year.

>42 beebeereads: Thank you so much! I'm glad you like the pictures.

>43 Tess_W: Thank you, and I'm sure I'll get some BBs from you as well! I hope you enjoy A Holiday by Gaslight when you get to it.

In December three years ago I read the first book in the Mountain Rescue Romance series by Melissa McClone, which is set during Christmas, and I liked it a lot. Two years ago I read the second book and did not enjoy it that much, so it took me until now to read the third book, Her Christmas Kiss.



Book No 2

"Her Christmas Kiss" by Melissa McClone
Series: Mountain Rescue Romance (3/5)
Original Title: Firefighter Under the Mistletoe
First published in 2018
Cardinal Press
ebook, 282pp.
Rating: 3 stars - ***

BingoDOG: Book with a tree on the cover
My Own Categories: Romance - Contemporary Romance, Series

The protagonist of this book is Leanne, my favourite side character from the previous books. She is a paramedic and part of the mountain rescue team, a tough woman who is considered "one of the boys". When a few weeks before Christmas she rescues Christian, a handsome firefighter who also works with the mountain rescue, there suddenly seems to be a bond between them. However, she does not believe that Christian, a good-looking philanderer and heartbreaker, can give her what she needs.

Although this installment isn't as good as the first book in the series, it is much better than the second one. First of all, the mountain rescue really plays a part again, as does firefighting. There is also a lot of Christmas cheer, and the community and characters from the previous books appear a lot.
On the other hand, it takes an awful long time for Leanne and Christian to come to grips with their feelings. The middle part dragged quite a lot because of this, and a lot of it was repetitive. In contrast, the ending came along too sudden and too strong (why would he just realize he loves Leanne to propose marriage in the same instant? It's too much and not realistic.)

I'm still continuing with the series because I like the setting and overall topic.

I have really enjoyed what I have read by Ali Hazelwood so far, so I did not hesitate to buy her short story Cruel Winter With You. It is part of a series of standalone stories by Amazon Original Stories, Under the Mistletoe, but I am not interested in the other ones.



Book No 3

"Cruel Winter With You" by Ali Hazelwood
Publisher Series: Under the Mistletoe
First published in 2024
Amazon Original Stories
ebook, 72pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

Other LT Challenges: 26 Short Stories in 2026 (Set in North America)
My Own Categories: Romance - Contemporary Romance

In the midst of a terrible snowstorm, Jamie is sent by her father to their neighbors' house to borrow a special pan that he needs to prepare the Christmas meal. Nobody is home but Marc, the younger brother of her former best friend, with whom she has a history to say the least. Of course, just then, the snowstorm intensifies and Jamie has to stay at the house. Through several flashbacks, the reader learns what happened between Jamie and Marc, and during the course of the stormy night, stuck together, they finally can't run away from each other.

I love Ali Hazelwood's style and this was no exception. Although it is so short, it is a complete story and does not miss anything. The characters felt real to me, I totally enjoyed reading their story and rooted for them.

Today and tomorrow my husband is visiting his family in Lüneburg, but I am still too weak to accompany him, which is why I am at home and have lots of time to read (and listen)!
I finished my first audiobook of the reading year: The Christmas Cuckoo by Mary Jo Putney. It was quite short, but I chose a short one on purpose after I had listened to Farewell to Lancashire for ages and ages.



Book No 4

"The Christmas Cuckoo" by Mary Jo Putney
First published in 1991
self-published
Digital audiobook, 1h 56min
Rating: 4 stars - ****

BingoDOG: Word in the title that's an onomatopoeia
My Own Categories: Romance - Historical Romance

Jack Howard has newly become an earl, but in a moment of rebellion he flees from his bossy aunt and all the obligations and expectations. He spontaneously boards a coach to Bristol, but on the journey he drinks so much that during a break, he falls asleep and is left at an inn. When Meg, a pretty woman who is almost thirty and resigned to being a spinster, arrives and inquires after a Jack Howard that she is supposed to pick up, he is still in a daze and he goes with her. Later he learns that Jack Howard is supposed to be her brother's best friend who was invited to spend Christmas with the family, but by then, the other Jack is already head over heels with Meg. Moreover, he feels so well and at home with the family that he does not insist when his half-hearted attempts to explain the mistake are thwarted.

Of course you have to suspend disbelief to enjoy the story, but I did, and I was rewarded with a warm and cosy story full of Christmas spirit. I really liked the characters and the calm atmosphere. Jack's and Meg's attraction to each other felt believable and the characterization was surprisingly deep for such a short story. Siobhan Waring narrates the audiobook very well, and I simply enjoyed listening to it.

I finished another Christmas book, and I think that's it for my Christmas reading this year! I'm looking forward to other books now.

I read A Pirate For Christmas by Anna Campbell, which I bought despite the cheesy title for a very small price because it has such good reviews. Unfortunately, I did not like it that much.



Book No 5

"A Pirate For Christmas" by Anna Campbell
First published in 2015
self-published
ebook, 142pp.
Rating: 2 1/2 stars - **°

BingoDOG: New-to-you author
My Own Categories: Romance - Historical Romance

Lord Channing, a Scottish navy captain whom village gossip declares a pirate, has just moved to his manor in Northumberland. He never expected to become an earl as he was the spare, but his brother died, so suddenly he finds himself with responsibilities he doesn't know anything about.
Bess Farrar is the vicar's daughter who manages the village, and she is not afraid to tell the new earl about the village traditions and what is expected of him. As Christmas is approaching, the most important thing is the upcoming nativity play.
From the first second, these two feel drawn to each other, but can a rakish seafarer and an innocent village girl really be together?

This story was totally anachronistic and improbable, but I did like the main characters and the descriptions of the manor and the village as well as the Christmas traditions. Anna Campbell's writing style has a good flow. However, the story dragged a lot because it did not include enough of a plot. There just is too much "will they, won't they?", too much steam, and too little of a real story. The ending could have been much shorter as well, it was drawn out endlessly.

As my first non-Christmas book, I listened to a radio play: The Biggest Secret by Mike Walker. This was on my Audible wish list because Benedict Cumberbatch and Juliet Stevenson are in it. It was originally produced by BBC4, but can now be bought or downloaded from a number of providers.



Book No 6

"The Biggest Secret" by Mike Walker
First published in 2004
BBC Audio
Digital audiobook, 1h 43min
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: January RandomKIT - Can You Keep A Secret?
BingoDOG: Read a CAT or KIT

This radio play follows the lives of a handful of people in the two days before D-Day. There are whispers about an invasion of Normandy, but nobody knows anything for sure.
One of the main characters is Rob Collins (played by Benedict Cumberbatch), a parachuter, who is just out of hospital and is picked up by a driver to go to his starting point for the invasion. Other people the listener meets, among others, are two young boys for whom the war feels like a big adventure, a prisoner on his way to be transferred to another prison, a young navigator dealing with the loss of his brother, a girl who works as a prostitute in London and General Eisenhower preparing for the invasion. The radio play features snapshot after snapshot of these tense days, painting a vivid and sometimes suffocating picture of England shortly before D-Day.
I must admit that I did not always understand what was happening, but still I was mesmerized by the play. The actors and actresses are stellar, as is the soundscape. It is absolutely worth listening to.

Wishing you a good reading year. I love the images. Dove Cottage is just so beautiful, I could sit in the garden for hours.

Hope you feel fully recovered soon.

>50 charl08: Yes, Dove Cottage really was one of the highlights of the trip! I hope you have a great reading year, too.

Happy reading in 2026! You are off to a great start! I love your Lake District photos. It is one of my favorite places that I've visited.

Happy reading! I love the photographs you've posted.

>52 cbl_tn: Thank you! The Lake District is such a beautiful place for sure.

>53 purpleiris: Thank you, I am happy you like them!

Like you, I had a bit of a troublesome 2025 and stopped visiting threads. So here I am, aiming to follow along for another year of varied and extensive reading in 2026. Hope you're feeling on top of things soon.

>55 Helenliz: Here's to a much better reading year to come, Helen!

In 2022 we traveled to Malaysia. Usually I try to read books from a country before a trip, but we were still in the stress of the pandemic somewhat (and other things on top), and I didn't succeed in reading anything Malaysian. Now I finally did: The Gift of Rain by Tan Twan Eng. I have wished to read something by this author for a long time.



Book No 7

"The Gift of Rain" by Tan Twan Eng
First published in 2007
Canongate
ebook, 510pp.
Rating: 5 stars - *****

CATs & KITs: January AlphaKIT - E-F, January RandomKIT - Can You Keep A Secret?
BingoDOG: Features senior citizens
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (Malaysia)
My Own Categories: Diversity, Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction

I went into this novel not really knowing what to expect - I didn't read any reviews before I started - but I was blown away. I'm experiencing a massive bookish hangover now and I know that this book will stay with me.

The novel starts with an elderly man living by himself on the island of Penang. He receives an unexpected visitor from Japan and tells her the story of his life, which is the framing story of the main one.

Philip Hutton is the son of an Englishman and a Chinese woman. His mother died when he was young. His father is a company owner and one of the richest man in Penang, but Philip feels like he belongs nowhere - not among the English and not among the Chinese. One day a Japanese diplomat, Endo, leases an island from Philip's father and when the youth meets the foreign man, the two start an unlikely but extremely deep friendship that will shape Philip's life forever, especially when Japan invades Malaya during World War Two.

This is an introduction to the plot, but it doesn't do the novel justice. The friendship of Philip and Endo goes so far that it is hard to comprehend as a reader, but still I believed it. The style is almost lyrical in parts, with many similes and beautiful descriptions. The narrator paints such a lively and colorful picture of Penang before the war that the desperation and cruelty in the second part of the book hits all the harder. It is not an easy read and sometimes I had to stop to reflect on it, but still I savored it. One thing I especially admired is that many of the characters are ambiguous: They perform good and bad actions, they are both victims of their situations and cause severe consequences which they often cannot foresee. This is true also of the main character, Philip, which is reflected in how different the assessments of him are in the various reviews of the novel that can be found.

A few years ago I started a Narnia reread which happens very slowly, but I'm getting there! Today I finished Prince Caspian.
I absolutely loved "The Chronicles of Narnia" as a child and read most of those books many times. They were my introduction to fantasy and my favourite books before I started reading Tolkien and grew out of the Narnia stories.

I still have all my old German Narnia books, but I also own a beautiful complete collection in English and am now reading that one.



Book No 8

"Prince Caspian" by C.S. Lewis
Series: The Chronicles of Narnia (4/7)
First published in 1951
HarperCollins
Hardcover, 76pp. (Complete collection: 524pp.)
Rating: 5 stars - *****

CATs & KITs: January DecadeCAT - 50s, January SFFKIT - Adaptations
BingoDOG: A book published before you were born
My own categories: Rereading Fiction, Fantasy, Series

This complete collection is a beautiful, big hardcover book, but it is quite hard to read. It is very heavy and there is a lot of text on each page. One of the reasons I bought it, though, is that it includes the illustrations by Pauline Baynes, which I haven't seen before because they were not included in the German Narnia books of my childhood. Pauline Baynes was J.R.R. Tolkien's favourite illustrator of his own books which makes the Narnia illustrations even more interesting to me.

I was really looking forward to this installment because I know that "Prince Caspian" was my favourite Narnia book as a child apart from "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe". I am happy to say that it did not disappoint. I enjoyed it very much and I can see why I loved it so much back then.

The Pevensie children are back in Narnia because all that Narnia once stood for has been forbidden and the talking animals and other creatures are in hiding. Prince Caspian is their only hope, and the four children are called back to Narnia to support him.

Concerning the plot I remembered only the beginning, which is exciting and wonderful as well as a bit melancholic, and I enjoyed it very much this time, too. The story continues just as good and it has many elements I loved on this second reading: Old tales, a journey through the wilderness, friendship and bravery, fighting for the good, an atmosphere of something that is lost but still remembered. The language of this book is much more poetic than in the previous ones, and some passage are so beautiful that I had to read them several times. And this was something I discovered on this reread almost thirty years later: This novel is much more similar to Tolkien's writing than the other ones, so no wonder that I loved it so much. It has many of the features that I love about Tolkien, namely the ones I described above.
There are more similarities, such as the woods who move to fight the enemy, and the notion that fairytales are dismissed by adults although they contain so much truth.

Of course there are some aspects that are a bit problematic, such as the topics of gender roles or speciesism (why must humans rule Narnia when there are so many intelligent animals?). However, this did not take away from my enjoyment because there are so many things in the book that went straight to my heart.

New Year greetings from Kuala Lumpur. My project is at least physically completed and an addition to the city scape.

Look forward to keeping up with you in 2026

>59 PaulCranswick: Oh, that is amazing! I traveled to Kuala Lumpur in 2022 and I remember how it looked back then. Not finished, but already so beautiful and impressive. Congratulations, Paul, and Happy New Year!

>49 MissBrangwen: Ha, I saw the cover and the 4 stars and immediately wishlisted this on Libro.fm :D Looks like you're off to a great start!

>61 rabbitprincess: I hope you like it as much as I did!

I found you! I am dropping a star so that I can follow all your reading, and not just your books on the Global Challenge. Happy New Year!

Since I am slowly reading the The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter by Susan Wittig Albert, I enjoyed seeing pictures of the Lake District and Hilltop since they are prominent in the series.

>63 Tess_W: Thank you, Tess, and the same to you!

>64 labfs39: Hi Lisa, I'm so happy to see you here! I hope you have a great year of reading and everything else!

>65 lowelibrary: I think I noted those down as a BB from you last summer. Hill Top really is beautiful, we enjoyed our visit so much. There were many visitors, but still it felt so tranquil.

Love all the photos in your categories!

Looking forward to following your reading this year as a fellow member of The Inklings. ;) I so wish I could have been there for all their discussions.
I am lucky to still have both my original Narnia and Tolkien books with Pauline Bayne's illustrations. Have you seen the new childrens book about her? I wish I could get it here but have not been able to find it at a library. It is Painting Wonder by Katie Wray Schon.
Love all the photos. You have been to so many amazing and beautiful places.

>67 thornton37814: Thank you, Lori!

>68 JayneCM: Oh, thank you for that recommendation! I hadn't heard of that book before. It's going straight to my wish list. And how great that you still have your original books, what a treasure that is.

One Green Field by Edward Thomas was a second hand cover buy several years ago. I started it quite early in 2025 for NatureKIT, but failed miserably at reading it because I just fell behind. Towards the end of the year I picked it up again and read one chapter every few days, and yesterday I finished.



Book No 9

"One Green Field" by Edward Thomas
Publisher Series: Penguin English Journeys
This edition first published in 2009, original texts first published in 1906 and 1909
Penguin Books
Paperback, 106pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

CATs & KITs: January AlphaKIT - E-F
BingoDOG: A "green" book
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (England)
My Own Categories: Nonfiction - Others

This is a collection of mostly short chapters of nature writing. While it rather is nonfiction, it often resembles prose, as the author's style is very dense and rich, full of similes and metaphors, using many adjectives and words that speak to the reader's senses. Thomas observes the tiniest details of nature as well as the whole picture while he walks through the English landscape, through meadows and woods, discovering old farms, ponds and groves. The writing is beautiful and evocative, a celebration of nature and the English countryside.
Reading these descriptions was a delight, but it also required a lot of concentration. Therefore, reading one chapter every few days was enough. I presume that otherwise I would have tired of the book a bit.

It makes me sad that Edward Thomas was killed in the First World War. He might have written so much more. He was quite prolific during his life-time, though, and I have an anthology of some of his texts on my shelf to read in the future.

Happy New Year, Mirjam, may it have lots of fabulous reading. And exciting bookshops!

>71 MissWatson: Thank you, Birgit, and happy new year to you, too!

Short Reads

For the last two years I totally neglected my Short Reads category, but now I want to use it again.

Today I read the introduction to the Tolkien Calendar 2026, published by HarperCollins. This year's calendar features paintings by Alan Lee for the Great Tales of Middle-earth (The Children of Húrin, Beren and Lúthien and The Fall of Gondolin). Most of the pictures were created for the books upon publication, but there is at least one new painting. Alan Lee is one of the most renowned Tolkien artists and he also worked on Peter Jackson's films, winning an Oscar for Best Art Direction.

Alan Lee also wrote the introduction to the calendar and it is very interesting. He explains his outlook on illustrating books and the influence the difference between novels and myths has on his work, pointing out that Tolkien's works are more like myths than novels to him. Next, he tells the reader about working on the Great Tales, especially the collaboration with Christopher Tolkien. I loved reading about these experiences. The introduction ends with Alan Lee's personal connection to The Lord of the Rings and what it means to him.

I have bought the Tolkien Calendar each year since 2014, and I think this is the most beautiful one to date. The art is just stunning, and it captures the atmosphere of these grand and epic works so well.

>73 MissBrangwen: Alan Lee's introduction sounds very interesting. I didn't realize he did one for his calendars. Are the intros the same every year?

>74 labfs39: The Tolkien Calendar features a different artist each year, and the introduction is usually written by that artist. It has been Alan Lee quite often. There were some years where I simply forgot to read the introduction, but I plan on rectifying that.

Today, I read the short story Hazel and Gray by Nic Stone on a whim. It was a cover buy, but I must say that I was quite disappointed.
This is part of the Faraway Collection, a series of fairytale retellings published by Amazon Original Stories.
At least it fits many prompts!



Book No 10

"Hazel and Gray" by Nic Stone
Publisher Series: Faraway Collection
First published in 2020
Amazon Original Stories
ebook, 34pp.
Rating: 2 1/2 stars - **°

CATs & KITs: January Colored CoverKIT - Something found in the garden, January ScaredyKIT - Isolated location
BingoDOG: Difficult to categorize
Other LT Challenges: Reading Through Time Monthly - Retellings of classics, 26 Short Stories for 2026 (retelling or adaptation)
My Own Categories: Diversity

In this short retelling of Hansel and Grethel, the boy and the girl are not siblings, but teenage lovers. They go into the forest because Hazel needs some respite from her creepy stepfather. When they get lost and suddenly arrive at a luxurious house, everything there seems strange and eerie, and it's more dangerous than they can see at first.

The story includes a lot for just 34 pages, but I could have done without some of the elements. There is too much sexual content that is unnecessary and does not advance the plot. While the idea of updating the witch house into a place where minors are sex trafficked makes sense in a contemporary retelling, I could have done without so many strange details, and it might even have been creepier then. On the other hand, towards the end it was gripping and I raced through the last pages. In contrast to some other reviewers I liked the ending.

I'm finally catching up with the 2026 threads...I love your beautiful bookish photos! And I'm glad you enjoyed A Holiday by Gaslight -- I think that was my first book by Mimi Matthews, and now she's one of my favorite historical romance authors!

>77 christina_reads: Thank you, Christina! I am looking forward to reading more by Mimi Matthews and I am so happy that I enjoyed this standalone so much.

Hi LT friends!

This week I have been at work again and I really enjoyed seeing my colleagues and students. It was quite stressful, though, because I have to catch up with so many things after being ill before the holidays. On top of that, we have a lot of snow here - well, a lot of snow for this area. It's probably nothing compared to some areas in the US and Canada, but it's enough to stop a lot of daily life. No trains, almost no cars, empty streets. The schools were closed on Friday and we had to do online lessons, which felt like a throwback to covid times. I also had to visit one student at their internship on Friday and had to walk there, which was very tiring. Sometimes I was stuck in the snow up to my ankles, and I couldn't see where the sidewalk ended and the road began. I arrived at the kindergarten looking like a snow woman.
Most of my younger students (aged around 16 or 17 years) say that they have never seen snow like this in their lives. We live close to the North Sea and lots of snow is not that common here, in contrast to southern Germany.

I also have to do a lot of grading right now, so I don't have much time to read, but it will get better in about a week.

I hope you are all well! There's so much going on in the world, and having book friends around the globe makes me feel for everyone even more.

>79 MissBrangwen: The last time we had so much snow here in Kiel was in 2010, I think, most of the present load has passed us by this time, and I am glad I can stay at home. Stay safe!

>80 MissWatson: Yes, 2010 was a very snowy winter, too! I still lived in the Cologne area then, so I don't know how it was in Bremerhaven.

As I said above, I don't have much time (or energy) to read a lot right now, but at least I finished another short story. I read Rosie and the Dreamboat by Sally Thorne for HomeCAT. This is another one of the Amazon Original Stories, and it's part of the Impossible Meet-Cute Collection.



Book No 11

"Rosie and the Dreamboat" by Sally Thorne
Publisher Series: The Impossible Meet-Cute Collection
First published in 2024
Amazon Original Stories
ebook, 43pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

CATs & KITs: January HomeCAT - Bathroom
BingoDOG: Mode of transportation in the title
Other LT Challenges: 26 Short Stories for 2026 (Love)
My Own Categories: Romance - Contemporary Romance

Rosie gifts a day at an expensive spa to her sister Bree upon Bree's promotion. Bree is everything that she is not: Successful, beautiful, perfect. Rosie is the one who always has bad luck, and so it happens once again. She is locked in a flotation tank, a truly claustrophobic situation. She has to stay in the dark and wet and wait to be freed. But could this unlucky incident turn around to make her happy when a fireman with a dreamy voice and a great sense of humor arrives to rescue her?

I enjoyed reading this story because of the unique setting and the likable characters. However, the banter between the fireman and Rosie felt a bit over the top after some time, and it all felt a bit much and a bit too forced. It's still worth reading if you are looking for some entertainment and a short, funny read that also has some more serious moments.

Stay safe, warm, and healthy Mirjam. Although we get a lot more snow here in Maine, we are also much better prepared for it.

We had some flakes here today but they didn't really stick because the ground wasn't cold enough. I think we have a better chance for accumulation later in the week. I'd like it to do enough that we get a 4- or 5-day weekend instead of the already scheduled 3-day one.

>48 MissBrangwen: I like a lot of Anna Campbell's books, but she really pumps them out and they're not all up to scratch. I gave A Pirate for Christmas 1.5 stars. It was a shocker!

The Sons of Sin series and the Dashing Widows series are much better.

>84 thornton37814: Schools are closed again today and we are doing online lessons. It's not snowing anymore, but it is very slippery.

>85 pamelad: It's good to know that she has some books that are better. I liked her style, but not the plot.

>83 labfs39: Oh yes, I guess that you are much better equipped and prepared!

Hi there! Just stopping by to drop off a star. I enjoy having friends all around the world. Blessings and peace for 2026. Love your beautiful photos! It’s like a little vacation for me.

I hope the snow is melting: we've mostly had rain and hail here, but there was a little flurry of snow last week. It was soon gone. Yours sounds much more of an issue.

>82 MissBrangwen: I liked these short books (I think I read 5 of the 6) but you're right, the length means they have limitations. But still, a nice quick read. Our library has similar short reads, I think aimed at those who are less confident with reading. I wondered if amazon was hoping it might encourage people to pick up (buy) the authors' longer books....

>88 LadyoftheLodge: Hi Cheryl, thank you for visiting and for your kind comment.

>89 charl08: The snow is almost gone now and while it makes life easier, it also makes everything grey and wet again.
I agree with your comments on the short amazon reads. I am also wondering what entices authors to do them, especially established and celebrated authors. Some real heavyweights have contributed such stories, such as Margaret Atwood and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

I did not have time to read all week, so today I started with a novella to get into it again. I read Vertigo by Amanda Lohrey. I had never heard about this Australian author before, but came across her through LT and immediately bought this book.



Book No 12

"Vertigo" by Amanda Lohrey
First published in 2008
Black Inc.
ebook, 87pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

BingoDOG: Something living on the cover
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (Australia)
My Own Categories: Australia, Literary Fiction

Luke and Anna are a couple in their thirties who live in Sydney. Fed up with the high cost and the competition among their friends and acquaintances as to who leads the best lifestyle, they decide to move to the country. They acquire an old house in a tiny coastal hamlet. The bush lies only a few steps behind their house and it is hard to settle into their new routines, which is full of new experiences and also hardships.

The atmosphere of this story is tense and somewhat bleak. Although the descriptions of the natural world are beautiful, it is not possible to fully enjoy them because of the underlying sense of dread. The narrator is detached and thus it is hard to really get to know the main characters or to feel for them. Another character that appears is a strange boy and in the beginning it is not clear who he is. To be honest, I could have done without this element.
However, I was still fascinated by the novella and especially by the author's way with words and how she portrays the relationship of Luke and Anna with sparse words, yet in such a deep way.
There is a lot of imagery as well. Sometimes it feels a little forced, especially when it comes to the birds, but all in all it serves to make the story more meaningful. I needed more time to read this novella than I'd usually need for 87 pages because I read slowly and reread many passages so I wouldn't miss anything and take everything in.

I hope the snow is continuing to clear and life can get a bit more back to normal. We're not well set-up for snow here either. The lightest dusting and everything grinds to a halt!

>92 Jackie_K: The lightest dusting and everything grinds to a halt!
Exactly! But the snow is almost gone now, which makes life easier, although I hate it when January and February is all grey and dark and it's so long to go until spring arrives.

>91 MissBrangwen: Her book, The Labyrinth, won the Miles Franklin award in 2021. It is an odd and bleak book, but somehow still hopeful.

>94 JayneCM: I am not sure if it might be too bleak for me, but she is a great author for sure.

I'm continuing my quest of reading all the picture books we have at school (some are owned by the school and some were bought by me). Today I read Stephen – My First Stephen Hawking Little People, Big Dreams by Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara, illustrated by Matt Hunt.



Book No 13

"Stephen – My First Stephen Hawking Little People, Big Dreams" by María Isabel Sanchez Vegara & Matt Hunt (ill.)
Publisher series: Little People, Big Dreams
First published in 2020
Frances Lincoln
Board book, 24pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: January NonfictionCAT - Science

As you can see by the title, this book from the "Little People, Big Dreams" series is aimed towards younger children, which is apparent in the board book format and the shorter text. It shows how Stephen Hawking developed an interest in stars and planets when he was a young boy and how he went on to became a famous scientist. The message of the book is that even if you have problems, there is something you will be able to excel at.

While it is a great book, I think that the message could have been transported with a little more impact considering how extraordinary Stephen Hawking was. I must say that I enjoyed the book about Jane Goodall a bit more.

The illustrations are not in my favourite style, but they are clear and vivid.

January has flown by and February has already started! I have read quite a lot but didn't feel like spending much time online. We also visited my mom and the other members of my family for a few days, which was lovely since I wasn't able to visit during the Christmas holiday.
I have some reviews to write now, but I'll do one after the other.

The first review I need to catch up on is of The Collector's Daughter by Gill Paul. This book was mentioned by Jayne in her January CultureKIT thread as a possibility and it intrigued me right way.



Book No 14

"The Collector's Daughter" by Gill Paul
First published in 2021
Avon
ebook, 376pp.
Rating: 3 stars - ***

CATs & KITs: January CultureKIT - Collectors, January RandomKIT - Can You Keep A Secret?
My Own Categories: Historical Fiction

Although I only rated this novel three stars, there were many aspects I enjoyed about it. The main character, Evelyn Herbert, or Evelyn Beauchamp after her marriage, led a fascinating life. She was the daughter of the Earl of Carnarvon and grew up at Highclere Castle (the setting of Dowton Abbey). As a young woman, she travelled to Egypt with her father who sponsored archaeological digs. Evelyn was present when the tomb of Tutankhamun was first opened. After that, her life took a more serious turn because several tragedies happened.

The novel includes two time lines. One starts in the 1920s when Evelyn is a young woman. The other is set in the 1970s when she is elderly and is visited by an Egyptian scholar who is searching for items from the tomb that have been lost. I liked both time lines, although I enjoyed the 1920s one more. The descriptions of Egypt in the 1920s are fascinating and I took pleasure in learning about archaeologoy in that time and about Tutanckhamun's tomb, a topic I didn't know much about before. As far as I can tell, most of the facts included in the novel are correct, be they about the tomb or about the historical persons.

As I enjoyed all of this so much, I would have liked to learn even more about Evelyn, her father and the other characters. The characterizations are quite shallow. The novel includes a lot of aspects and like this, most of them are rather only touched upon. There is a lot of plot, but ultimately, the author tries to include too much. The ending left me rather disappointed because it felt unsatisfying and to me, it missed conclusion.

My next read was Feuernacht by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, the fifth book in the Thóra Guðmundsdóttir series. I read the first four books in 2022, but was disappointed by the fourth one, so I only returned to the series now.

The English title of this book is Someone To Watch Over Me. The main character is called Thóra in the English version, but Dóra in the German books, so I am sticking with Dóra.



Book No 15

"Feuernacht" by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Series: Thóra Guðmundsdóttir
Original Title: Horfðu á mig
First published in 2009
Fischer Verlag
Paperback, 423pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: January MysteryKIT - Female Detectives, January RandomKIT - Can You Keep A Secret?
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (Iceland)
My Own Categories: Mysteries, Series

Dóra is a lawyer in Reykjavik and things are looking grim because of the fiscal crisis that has hit Iceland hard. When she is approached by a new client, she decides to take the job, although her client is highly unusual. She ends up reviewing a case that is already a year old. A young man who has Down's syndrome was found guilty of burning down his previous care home, killing five people who were in the building. Dóra agrees with her client that the young man might be innocent, but the case is extremely complicated.

As said above, I was disappointed by the previous book in the series, however, this one was the best so far. It mostly lacked the aspects that got on my nerves in the previous installments. The case was fascinating and while the novel could have been shortened a bit, all in all it had a good pace and was gripping throughout. I couldn't wait to read on and find out more. The author skillfully weaves the plot and its many different aspects, and also includes Icelandic folklore in an interesting way. Some chapters were so spooky that I was glad not to be home alone!

The author takes care in being sensitive when depicting people with disabilities and the issues involved. There are musings about these topics which sometimes come across a bit heavy-handed and preachy, and although she tries so hard some of the contents seem to be ableist, but then it must be kept in mind that the book is more than fifteen years old.

I am looking forward to reading the sixth and last book in the series.

>99 MissBrangwen: Sounds like a series I might like to try!

>100 Tess_W: It's not the very best nordic noir series, but it is entertaining and easy to read.

I have owned Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier for ages and have always wanted to read it, and as so often happens, a CAT finally gave me the nudge.



Book No 16

"Girl with a Pearl Earring" by Tracy Chevalier
First published in 1999
HarperCollins
Paperback, 249pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: January ArtsCAT - Painting
BingoDOG: A book that has won an award
My Own Categories: Historical Fiction

I have mixed emotions about this book. It was different from what I expected, and while it is written very well and kept my interest throughout, it made me sad and angry and I am not sure about what it wants to convey.

Griet is a young girl of sixteen when her father is blinded in an accident and she has to go out to work as a maid. She gets a post at the house of Vermeer, the painter. The household is full of tensions, grievances and jealousies, and she has to be very careful about what she does and says. This develops into an even more serious situation when Vermeer notices her and makes her a kind of assistant.

This novel deals with the topics of class and gender, but also the sacrifices people make because they have to or want to do so. However, I would have wished for Griet to have more agency. Vermeer's actions, or sometimes lack of actions, made me furious, and it was heartbreaking to see the lack of reaction on Griet's part. Maybe it is meant to be so in order to truly show the reader how her world worked, but sometimes it was almost an ordeal to read about it. Ultimately, the ending was a bit redeeming and made up for a lot that I did not like in the course of the story.

Another aspect worth noting is the topic of art in this book. The descriptions of Vermeer's painting are wonderful, and when I looked up his works, I immediately recognized those featured in the novel. The author really brings 17th century Delft and Vermeer's house to life. I have seen some of his paintings in Amsterdam and I hope to see those or others again one day, and they won't be the same to me then.

With this, I am finally caught up with my January reviews. February has turned out to be much more stressful than I thought, so I am not reading much and spending not much time online. It is still cold and snowy and that is lowering my energy as well. I have a few February reviews to share, though, and hope to write them down soon, as well as to catch up more in this group.

>103 MissBrangwen: This prolonged cold season is truly draining, isn’t it? Let’s hope that it will end soon.

>104 MissWatson: Absolutely! I just want to sleep all the time.

>105 MissBrangwen: Same here. I feels like I want to go in hibernation.

We just had 6" of new snow last night and more on the way Monday. Winter is still very much in force here in the northern US.

>103 MissBrangwen: Oof. Hope for a more relaxing March for you. Or at least less stressful?

Things here are just starting to appear in the garden, which feels like a good sign (fingers crossed for no more frosts).

>107 labfs39: Oh boy. I hope this doesn’t cross the Atlantic.

>107 labfs39: That sounds like a lot!

>108 charl08: I'm not sure about the first half of March, but the things will get better when Easter break starts.
We don't have garden, but I bought some blueberry branches that are slowly starting to blossom, and they really lighten up our living room! I think I remember some pictures of your garden from an earlier thread of yours.

I am hosting CultureKIT this month with the topic "A book in translation" and my plan was to read something by Mieko Kawakami, but I felt that her books might be too bleak for me at the moment. On a whim, I chose Rental Person Who Does Nothing by Shoji Morimoto.



Book No 17

"Rental Person Who Does Nothing" by Shoji Morimoto
Original Title:「レンタルなんもしない人」というサービスをはじめます / "Rentaru nanmo shinai hito" to iu sābisu wo hajimemasu
First published in 2019
Picador
ebook, 151pp.
Rating: 2 1/2 stars - **°

CATs & KITs: February CultureKIT - A book in translation, February Coloured CoverKIT - Blue / An item of clothing
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (Japan)
My Own Categories: Diversity, Nonfiction - Memoir

I had never heard about Shoji Morimoto before I discovered this book on Amazon, but apparently he is quite famous in Japan and there have been newspaper articles about him in Germany, too. He provides a rental service where he does nothing. He accompanies people to restaurant visits or concerts because these people do not want to go alone, he sits in their flat while they study or work so they manage more because they feel accountable, he waits in line for them while they do other things, or he sits at court hearings just so that somebody is there. It is an intriguing idea that tells us much about society, especially Japanese society.

The title of the book caught my attention at once and I expected something funny, but also deep. Unfortunately it wasn't really any of the two, although there were some funny moments. I do not know much about Japanese society and culture, otherwise I might have had more of an insight (maybe?), but still, I learned quite a lot. It was striking to me that many clients booked Morimoto for occasions that usually, to my mind, would be accompanied by friends or family - not because they didn't have any, but because they did not want to lose face, be obligated to reciprocate or show feelings that would make them seem weak. The descriptions of these bookings and occasions were my favourite part of the book.

Morimoto also spends quite a lot of time explaining his philosophy of doing nothing and how he views his job as a rental person, his guidelines of what he does and does not do and how he feels in certain situations. While I initially found this interesting and it reminded me of the debate about the unconditional basic income, it became drawn out and repetitive. Some parts of the book were really boring to me because of that.

All in all, while it is a worthwhile read if you are interested in the main idea, I would have wished for much more: More insight into Japanese culture, more stories about clients and bookings, more about Morimoto's life.

As I found it hard to concentrate on my reading this month, I decided to read some shorter works for AlphaKIT, starting with Olalla by Robert Louis Stevenson. I bought the Penguin Little Black Classics edition of this about a decade ago, but did not read it until now.



Book No 18

"Olalla" by Robert Louis Stevenson
First published in 1885
Penguin Little Black Classics
Paperback, 55pp.
Rating: 3 stars - ***

CATs & KITs: February AlphaKIT - B-O
BingoDOG: Dead author
Other LT Challenges: Reading Through Time Quarterly - 19th Century excl. America, 26 Short Stories for 2026 (written between 1851 – 1900)
My Own Categories: Literary Classics

This Gothic short story was a strange one to me. It has many of the ingredients I like: An atmospheric beginning, an old country estate, secrets and strange creatures. However, it all does not really come together and in the end, I was left without really knowing what to make of it. While a certain craze is to be expected in such a tale, the insta love in this one was a bit too far-fetched for my tastes, and the Christian elements do not really seem to fit (or I did simply not understand the reason why they were included). Still, the Gothic atmosphere is well-crafted and it is a worthwhile read for admirers of the genre.

Another short text I read was Bulemanns Haus by Theodor Storm. It is very short indeed, but as there are single editions of it, I am counting it as a book. I read from a complete edition of Storm's texts that I have on my kindle.

It is my goal to read all of Storm's works, but so far I have only read novellas and poems. This was the first of his literary fairy tales.



Book No 19

"Bulemanns Haus" by Theodor Storm
First published in 1864
e-artnow
ebook, 24pp. (Complete collection: 2924pp.)
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

CATs & KITs: February AlphaKIT - B-O
Other LT Challenges: Reading Through Time Quarterly - 19th Century excl. America, Global Challenge (Germany), 26 Short Stories for 2026 (betrayal)
My Own Categories: Literary Classics

"Bulemanns Haus" is a literary fairy tale that has Gothic and horror elements. It is set in an unnamed city on the coast of northern Germany, where the evil son of a pawnbroker causes misery for his clients and ultimately for himself. It is a sad and eerie story, and two monstrous cats play a role as well. I did not expect the outcome! (The pawnbroker's son is locked in his room by his cats who have grown the size of tigers and feed off countless mice who enter the house. These mice in turn feed off countless bread rolls who were hidden by the housekeeper who then fled the building and forgot the bread rolls. This situation goes on for years, but the pawnbroker's son does not die, he just shrinks and shrinks in size until he is a miniature, crumpled old man.) This sounds comical, but in fact the story is quite gruesome. I still liked it and I enjoyed Storm's style, but so far I prefer his novellas.

>111 MissBrangwen: that's an intriguing concept, sorry the book didn't give you what you wanted form it.
Hope you can get on with some ebjoyable reading while things continue stressful.

>114 Helenliz: Thank you! Yes, it was a bit disappointing.

I finished Maybe Tomorrow by Boori Monty Pryor. This book had been on my wish list for ages and last year I finally bought it when I decided to read more about Australia.



Book No 20

"Maybe Tomorrow" by Boori Monty Pryor
First published in 1998
Allen & Unwin
ebook, 193pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

CATs & KITs: February ArtsCAT - Artist Biographies, February AlphaKIT - B-O
BingoDOG: Book by an indigenous author
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (Australia)
My Own Categories: Australia, Diversity, Nonfiction - Memoir

Boori Monty Pryor is an author, performer and didgeridoo player from Far North Queensland who was born in 1950. In his memoir he tells us about his life and his art as well as about his broader view on Australian society, especially the relations between white and Black people.
The memoir is written as if the author is sitting next to you and talking to you, which is how it actually was written, as it was put down by Meme McDonald according to Boori Monty Pryor's words. This orality is apparent in the structure as well. The text is not chronological, but rather ordered by topics and connections.

Pryor is an amazing man who has suffered a lot of heartbreak because of what white Australians did to his family and to his people. He often performs at schools and meeting children from all backgrounds gives him hope. Many of these occasions feature in the first half of the book and that felt a bit repetitive, but that is the only criticism I have.
I was impressed by Pryor's outlook on his life, Australia as a whole and humankind in general. Despite the terrible things he experienced, he did not loose his kindness or his belief that people can be good. I learned a lot about First Nations culture in Australia from this book as well as more about the recent history of the country.

>111 MissBrangwen: If you enjoyed this book, you make like the movie Rental Family starring Brendan Fraser. It's the same kind of idea but a little bit more involved: people are rented out to play a family member role. It's very touching with some fun and sad parts, a real exploration of human relationships. I recommend it!

>117 Cecilturtle: Thanks for the recommendation! I hadn't heard about this movie, and I like Brendan Fraser.

Today I took The Romance of Certain Old Clothes by Henry James as a BB from Jayne, and I read it at once because it is so short and I just felt like it.



Book No 21

"The Romance of Certain Old Clothes" by Henry James
First published in 1868
JollyJoy Books
ebook, 28pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

CATs & KITs: February ScaredyKIT - Ghosts, February AlphaKIT - B-O
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (USA), 26 Short Stories for 2026 (suspense/mystery/horror)
My Own Categories: Literary Classics

When a young man comes back to New England after finishing his studies at Oxford University, he brings his friend from England. His two younger sisters have high hopes at once, since said friend seems so much more knowledgeable and cultured than his colonial counterparts. But of course, he can only marry one of them. Jealousy and tragedy ensues.

I really enjoyed this short tale that contains an element of horror, but also a picture of New England society as well as a fascinating portrayal of the relationship between the two sisters and how it is eroded once an eligible man appears. The horror element is only short, but I found it to be scary enough.

I finally finished listening to another audiobook: Playing Under the Piano, a memoir by actor Hugh Bonnville. This was a BB from rabbitprincess. Although it took me some time to get through, I totally loved this book.



Book No 22

"Playing Under the Piano" by Hugh Bonneville
First published in 2022
Little, Brown Audio
Digital audiobook, 11h 02min
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

CATs & KITs: February ArtsCAT - Artist biographies, February Coloured CoverKIT - Blue / An item of clothing, February AlphaKIT - B-O
My Own Categories: Nonfiction - Memoir

I haven't watched that many films or series starring Hugh Bonneville, but I really liked those that I have watched, so when I read rabbitprincess' review of his memoir, I immediately added it to my wish list. As I enjoy listening to memoirs narrated by the author, I decided to listen to it on audio, and now, a few years later, I finally got to it.

I really loved this book because it is both funny and pensive, humorous and deep. Hugh Bonneville doesn't take himself or the acting industry too seriously, although it becomes clear that he is absolutely devoted to acting, be it at the theatre or at a filmset. We follow him from early childhood and his first acting attempts all the way through to the final Downton Abbey movie, shot during the pandemic. He tells us about ups and downs, and I learned a lot about the acting industry and how demanding it can be. There is not that much about his private life in the book, although his relationship to this parents, especially his aging father, plays an important role. Bonneville also mentions many of the famous people he has worked with, but it never comes across as boasting or namedropping - he simply writes about his experiences. Still, I was in awe every time he mentions someone like Maggie Smith, Kenneth Branagh or Ian McKellen.

Bonneville's style of narration is lively, but never over the top, and I just enjoyed his voice and manner, which underlined the heartfelt and fascinating stories he shares with the reader (or listener).

I highly recommend this to fans of his works or British films and series in general.

>120 MissBrangwen: Hurray! I'm so glad you enjoyed this and am looking forward to reading the audio! The print edition was good because it also had photos, but I agree that this would be so much fun to hear in his voice.

>121 rabbitprincess: Yes, with memoirs you always miss out either on the photos or on the voice. But listening to him narrating it was stellar, so I am glad I chose the audio. Thank you so much for the BB!

I read Die Marquise von O... / Das Erdbeben in Chili, a volume consisting of two novellas (The Marquise of O and The Earthquake in Chile) by Heinrich von Kleist, in 2011. I hardly remembered any of it now, so when I realized that it was perfect for February's Reading Through Time prompt, I gave rereading it a go.



Book No 23

"Die Marquise von O... / Das Erdbeben in Chili" by Heinrich von Kleist
First published in 1808/1807
Anaconda Verlag
Hardcover, 94pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

CATs & KITs: February AlphaKIT - B-O
Other LT Challenges: Reading Through Time Monthly - Agents of Change, Reading Through Time Quarterly - 19th Century excl. America
My Own Categories: Rereading Fiction, Literary Classics

Die Marquise von O... is well-known for including the most famous em dash in German literature. This em dash is key to the story.
When an Italian citadel is overrun by the Russian military, the widowed daughter of the colonel, a marquise, is threatened by a group of Russian soldiers. She is saved by a Russian count who takes her to safety. The em dash occurs, she faints, and later awakes feeling eternally thankful to the count for saving her. The count goes into battle again.
A few weeks later, the marquise falls mysteriously ill and it is apparent that she is pregnant. But how and why, if she cannot remember having any sexual encounters?
A lot of tragedy, heartbreak and mystery follows until things are finally resolved.
It is a bit of a chore to read Kleist's long-winding sentences, and I was not satisfied with the ending of the story (the marquise marries the man who probably raped or at least took advantage of her and lives with him happily forever!), however, considering the time in which it was written, I think that there are some progressive ideas in there. The marquise's parents at least do penitence for treating her unjustly at first, and the marquise holds her own against them and the count. I was excited to see how the story would unfold and the feature of the em dash is very clever.

Das Erdbeben in Chili is set on the day of the earthquake that took place in Santiago de Chile in 1647. Josephe, a young woman, has been sentenced to death because she has conceived a child by her lover, Jeronimo, who had previously been her teacher and is now imprisoned. After the child has been born, she is on her way to the pyre and Jeronimo is just about to take his own life in his prison cell when the earthquake starts. It destroys the city but frees them both. Outside the ruins of the city they find each other and everything seems to be well, but things take a dark turn again.
This story is interesting and cleverly woven. It shows how the catastrophe of the earthquake changes everything, killing rich and poor people alike, bringing devastation, but also freedom. As the story progresses, though, it felt increasingly jumbled, and I was disappointed by the ending. I did not understand why another character suddenly played such a big role.

>123 MissBrangwen: I am so intrigued by "the most famous em dash in German literature" that I have to add this book to my TBR!

>124 christina_reads: Ha, I'm so happy that it caught your attention!

I can't believe that the first half of March has already flown by! I have not finished a single book so far, and I've hardly read at all. Although nothing absolutely serious happened in our personal lives, this fortnight really wasn't good. My husband caught the bug that has our school in a grip right now, so again, our daily life was quite different from what it usually is. I had another bout of migraines, and last week oral exams started for the social pedagogy students we teach, so we both have had multiple exams a day. On top of that, the war in South West Asia really weighs me down. It is such a terrible and incomprehensible situation, and it might severely disrupt our travel plans this year (I know that this is a luxury problem, but it still stresses me out).

Apart from all of that, this is the first weekend that feels a bit quieter and I hope to finally be able to read again. I really miss it. On Friday, we will go to Hamburg to watch The Fellowship of the Ring with a live performance of the soundtrack, which is something I have wanted to experience for more than twenty years and I am looking forward to it so much. After that, we will drive to Saxony to spend a week hiking in "Saxon Switzerland", a national park of sandstone mountains and the river Elbe. We'll end the trip in Leipzig to visit my husband's best friend and his wife.

In the meantime, I also hope to be more active in this group and catch up on your threads! I know that reading and spending more time here will do wonders for my mental health. I just love LibraryThing, and especially the Category Challenge, so much.

>126 MissBrangwen: Hope you and your husband are back to 100% soon and that you enjoy the Fellowship with orchestra! I would totally do that as well if it were in my city. Is it the cinematic release or the extended edition?

>126 MissBrangwen: Looks like this fortnight will be much better than the last! I hope you are able to get back to your reading.

>127 rabbitprincess: It is the cinematic release which I haven't watched since the extended edition came out on DVD, so it will be like a new experience, haha!

>128 purpleiris: Thank you, I really hope it will be!

I'm sorry to hear you and your husband have not been well, I hope you turn the corner and are feeling better soon. The orchestral concert and film sound amazing! I loved those films when they came out (although for some reason I didn't get on with the Hobbit films, and only watched the first one).

>130 Jackie_K: Many people did not get on with the Hobbit films for one reason or the other... While I do not like them as much as the Lord of the Rings trilogy, I manage to enjoy the good aspects and ignore the bad ones.

Short Stories have proven to be a good way to me to get back into reading after a slump, so this weekend I started with The Old Nurse's Story by Elizabeth Gaskell, my choice for this month's ScaredyKIT. I read the Penguin Little Black Classics edition which includes the title story as well as Curious, If True by the same author.



Book No 24

"The Old Nurse's Story" by Elizabeth Gaskell
Stories first published in 1852 and 1860
Penguin Little Black Classics
Paperback, 53pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: March ScaredyKIT - Haunted Houses
Other LT Challenges: Reading Through Time Quarterly - 19th Century excl. America, 26 Short Stories for 2026 (Title beginning with K-O)
My Own Categories: Literary Classics

The Old Nurse's Story is a Gothic tale in which an old nurse tells a story about what she experienced as a young woman when she started working for the family. The story is set at an old manor in Northumberland and it starts quite pleasantly, but then becomes more gruesome and eerie as it advances. There are family secrets, phantoms, gloomy landscapes and spectral music. The ending felt a bit over the top, but apart from that I enjoyed this ghost story very much.

Curious, If True takes the form of an extract of a letter from France in which the narrator writes about what he experienced when he got lost while walking in the woods around Tours one evening. The man finds an old chateau and hopes to find shelter there, or even a carriage back to his hotel, but he is welcomed to a strange gathering and encounters people from various fairy tales. There are references to Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, the Arthurian legends, Puss in Boots and others. I did not understand all the references and probably missed some. It is an interesting idea: To let all these figures gather at a place after they lived through their tales. However, not much happens in the story plot wise, and I wished for a more exciting conclusion.

>132 MissBrangwen: I do love the look of these mini penguin editions. I have only read North and South and Cranford, both because of the TV adaptations. I didn't realise she also wrote gothic stories!

>131 MissBrangwen: I think if The Hobbit was going to be multiple movies, two might have been reasonable, with the halfway point maybe being the destruction of Lake-Town. The third Hobbit movie is my least favourite because of how early Smaug is removed from the scene, haha. Smaug himself was excellent of course :D

>133 charl08: Yes, she was much more versatile than I thought! I love the Penguin Minis, too, and they are a good way to discover new writers without a huge commitment or to learn about lesser known texts by familiar ones.

>134 rabbitprincess: I am in the tiny minority of people whose favorite is the third movie. I like that it has a more epic feel. I do enjoy some parts of the first and second one, and I love Thranduil and Smaug.
I absolutely agree that two movies, as was first intended, would have been the better choice.

I read another short story, this time one of the Amazon Original Stories: Abscond by Abraham Verghese. It was the first time I read anything by this author.



Book No 25

"Abscond" by Abraham Verghese
First published in 2025
Amazon Original Stories
ebook, 37pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: March Coloured CoverKIT - Green / Greenery, March AlphaKIT - R-V
Other LT Challenges: Global Challenge (USA), 26 Short Stories for 2026 (Coming of Age)
My Own Categories: Diversity, Literary Fiction

Ravi grows up in New Jersey as the son of immigrants from India. His father is a successful surgeon, while his mother is devoted to caring for the family. The boy is torn between the expectations of his parents and his own desire to become a tennis star. A sudden death changes the quiet and regular life the family leads and all at once, Ravi faces growing up.

This short story is well-written and I was amazed by Verghese's ability to characterize the characters in such a deep way despite the shortness of the story. The topics of multicultural life, grief and family relations are portrayed in a profound way. Ultimately, I wished for even a little more, especially towards the ending, but I still liked it very much and hope to read more by this author.

Now that work is a bit more quiet I am continuing my quest to read more of my and the school's picture books. Today I started with Das alles ist Ramadan by Tabea Demir, illustrated by Nabila Amanda. It is Ramadan right now and many of my students are fasting and celebrating, so it was an apt choice. After I had finished, I even discovered that it fits two of this month's KITs.

I found this book because the author is the owner of a German clothing brand producing fair and ecological islamic clothing for women. The products are beautiful and I first bought some for a trip to a muslim country we planned. The trip didn't materialize, but I have bought even more clothing from them since then - I am not muslim, but the pieces are beautiful and the quality is stellar. I also like to cover up a lot in the sun for my health (I have vitiligo, although it is rather mild and not very visible because I am so pale anyway), so I even bought some of their swimwear.



Book No 26

"Das alles ist Ramadan" by Tabea Demir & Nabila Amanda (ill.)
First published in 2025
dattelbeere
Hardcover, 34pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: March CultureKIT - Close To Home, March AlphaKIT - R-V

This picture book does not tell an actual story, but it is rather like a collection of aspects of Ramadan. It references social aspects, such as sharing with others and helping those in need, cultural and traditional aspects such as food and learning, and also spiritual and personal ones, like having patience or trusting in good things to happen. Each page shows one aspect ("Ramadan is...") and a beautiful picture. The pictures are absolutely lovely and create a special and festive atmosphere. They also tell little stories by themselves, for example of a cat that is lost and found. All pictures portrait the same family, and I like the diversity: The mother is blonde and does not look Arabic, her parents do the household chores together, the girl has Black and Asian friends, and one of the grandmothers wears a hijab while the other does not.

While I do love all of this, I would have liked the book to include some more descriptions of the things shown in the pictures. While it is aimed not only at muslims, but also non-muslim parents and care workers, I did not understand everything that was presented. Of course it is not a problem to do some research, but considering using this in a childcare setting, it would be easier if there were some explanations in the book itself. Like this, it is more suitable if used by people who are more knowledgeable about Ramadan.

I finished listening to A Confirmed Rake, the third in the Donovans series by Martha Keyes.



Book No 27

"A Confirmed Rake" by Martha Keyes
Series: The Donovans (3/4)
First published in 2022
Dreamscape Media
Digital audiobook, 9h 14min
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

CATs & KITs: March Coloured CoverKIT - Green / Greenery, March AlphaKIT - R-V
Other LT Challenges: Reading Through Time Quarterly - 19th Century excl. America
My Own Categories: Romance - Historical Romance, Series

This novel's main protagonist is Valentine, one of the Donovan brothers. As the title says, he is a confirmed rake, famous for his drinking, gambling and womanizing, which stems from a deep sadness and unrest because he has always felt rejected by his father.
Rebecca Russell has only recently arrived in Bath after spending years in seclusion in the country, caring for her grandfather. She is naive and good-natured, so when these two meet because their siblings have married (the couple from book 2 of the series), it seems like they have nothing in common at all. However, Rebecca soon realizes that there is more to Valentine than everyone assumes, and that they could support each other: His reputation might improve if he is seen courting her, while she can learn more about society and life in town from him. Of course, the fake courting soon becomes more serious.

It took me some time to warm up to this story because the characters seemed a bit over the top. Rebecca simply seems too good to be true while Valentine is undervaluing himself to no end. However, the story grew on me and totally drew me in as it progressed. I came to love the couple and rooted for them. There are some contents here that I did not previously encounter in a regency romance and the stakes are really high, so it was exciting to follow the couple's path to their happy end.

One note about the audiobook: I enjoyed Ella Lynch's performance of Rebecca very much, but Rupert Degas is considerably older than Valentine and read this more like an elderly man than like a dashing guy in his early twenties. This interfered immensely with my enjoyment of the story until I got somewhat used to it and it got a little better as Valentine grew softer and fell in love.

I also read another picture book about Ramadan: Leyla und Linda feiern Ramadan by Arzu Gürz Abay, illustrated by Sibel Demirtaş.



Book No 28

"Leyla und Linda feiern Ramadan" by Arzu Gürz Abay & Sibel Demirtaş (ill.)
First published in 2011
Talisa
Hardcover, 35pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: March Coloured CoverKIT - Green / Greenery, March CultureKIT - Close To Home, March AlphaKIT - R-V, March RandomKIT - What's in a name?

Leyla is a little girl from Cologne who travels to Turkey each summer to visit family. This summer is very special because it is Ramadan. On top of that, her kindergarten friend Linda comes over from her holiday destination of Lesbos for a few days with her mom. Linda is very curious about Ramadan and Leyla as well as her grandfather explain the festivities to her.

This book provides a lot of information for non-muslim readers, but also familiar settings and topics to muslim children who celebrate Ramadan. The pictures are clear and colorful, but I found some of them a little boring.
The picture book is bilingual: Every double page shows a picture, the German text on one side and the English text on the other side. Unfortunately, there are several mistakes in the German text and the English text is not always idiomatic.

It is still a great book to learn about Ramadan and the children's perspective is portrayed in a convincing manner.

So glad to be catching up on your thread! I loved your pictures and remembered in high school traveling through the Lake District by coach and just falling in love with the landscape. I am so glad you were able to visit the north of England last year. It's lovely and wild and the bookstore looked wonderful.

How great that Alan Lee illustrated the 2026 Tolkien calendar! I really must work harder to find one for 2027, and to read the books that he illustrated that Christopher had published before his death.

And the presentation of Fellowship of the Ring sounds just wonderful. I hope it comes to Atlanta sometime. I saw one of the Star Wars movies with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra a few years ago and was struck by the richness of the score hearing it live.

I must be in the minority in thinking that there was enough material for 3 Hobbit films. But, they should have been much, much shorter (Ori belching in Bilbo's home should have been left for the Extended Editions, for example), and I wish they had not used so much cinematic effects such as Bolg and filming for 3-D. And while I love me some Legolas, even that was just too, too much. They could have done much more with expanding Gandalf finding the Necromancer as a major part of the 2nd movie. But, they didn't ask!

Hope your 2026 continues to be a successful reading year, Mirjam, and your health continues to improve.

>140 threadnsong: Listening to the FotR score live was incredibly rich, especially the choir and the soloists. I am not much into Star Wars, but the soundtrack is beautiful and it must have been a great experience to listen to it live!
I totally agree about Ori belching and scenes like that, and about the technology. Azog is such a bad orc and not scary at all compared to the orcs in Lord of the Rings.

I am back from our trip and finally online again.

The live performance of the Fellowship of the Ring soundtrack was wonderful. It was of course similar to the official soundtrack, but the sound was different and I especially admired the huge choir and the soloists. The Two Towers will be performed next year and we already plan to buy tickets.

The trip to Saxon Switzerland included some great hikes. The landscapes are spectacular and really reminded me of a fantasy novel setting. After that, visiting our friends in Leipzig was really good because it was lovely to catch up and Leipzig is a great city.

We returned the day before yesterday and yesterday, my in-laws visited for the day because they had spent the weekend close by to visit some of their friends. We had some nice food and did a walk in chilly but sunny weather. Today I am finally free to relax again and to read. I finished three books since my last review and plan to write the reviews soon.

Last year I finished reading the six novels that make the core of the Bedwyn Series by Mary Balogh and also read the first prequel. During our trip to Saxon Switzerland I read the second prequel, A Summer To Remember, because I was eager to finally learn about Lauren's story as she is a character who appears in some of the core books and the first prequel.



Book No 29

"A Summer To Remember" by Mary Balogh
Series: Bedwyn Series (0.5/6)
First published in 2002
Hachette
ebook, 376pp.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars - ***°

CATs & KITs: March AlphaKIT - R-V
My Own Categories: Romance - Historical Romance, Series

Lauren Edgeworth is resigned to remaining unmarried and to purchasing a house in Bath to live in peace and dignity. Kit Butler is a rakish, handsome man who has become the heir of the earldom after his older brother's death and must return to his family from whom he is estranged. He despises his father's plan to marry him off and makes a wager with his friends that he will be able to persuade the inaccessible and flawless Lauren Edgeworth. When they meet, Lauren is shocked and repulsed by Kit's behavior, but she is also fascinated and soon finds out that there is more to him than his rakishness.

I was a bit bored by the first half of the novel because both Lauren and Kit seemed over the top to me in their behavior. I could not condone how Kit treated Lauren. However, I loved the second half, when they finally opened up slowly. There is much more to the story than one expects at a first glance, especially when it comes to Kit's family. I was touched by these characters and their experiences and rooted for them not only as a couple but as individuals who fought to overcome what held them back.
I could have done without some of the steamy scenes and some of the chapters featuring the Bedwyns, but the main reason for the second aspect is that I have never liked Freyja and this book only reinforced that.

Although I did not enjoy the first half of the book that much, all in all it is still one of my favorites by Mary Balogh so far and I am looking forward to continuing with the series.

I started a reread of the Outlander novels by Diana Gabaldon several years ago and so far have read the first two books. Now I decided to also include the different short stories and novellas in my reading project. I haven't read any of these so far apart from a few Lord John ones. I started with Virgins, the very first novella, which is set before book 1.



Book No 30

"Virgins" by Diana Gabaldon
Series: Outlander (0.5/10)
First published in 2013
Cornerstone Digital
ebook, 98pp.
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: March AlphaKIT R-V
BingoDOG: Roadtrip Book
My Own Categories: Historical Fiction, Series

This book is set before Jamie and Claire meet. Jamie and his friend Ian are in France and earn their keep as mercenaries. They receive the job to accompany a beautiful bride from Bordeaux to Paris where she is to marry, but mishaps and adventures occur along the way.

This story is funny and lighthearted at times, but it also includes heavier topics and serious moments. Although it is a prequel, I think it is best to read it after book 1, "Outlander", because otherwise some of the most important back stories and reveals of that one will be spoilt, while "Virgins" will not have that much of an impact if you don't know the main characters already and care about them.

I enjoyed this novella, although the plot did not interest me that much. It was a tender portrayal of Jamie's and Ian's friendship, though, and revealed more about Jamie's past. I loved all of that as well as Gabaldon's style and the glimpses into the characters' lives. It is not necessary at all to read it to understand the series, but it is a nice add-on, especially for fans.

While the landscapes in Saxon Switzerland were beautiful, we were shocked (but not totally surprised) to see several people each day who were openly rightwing extremist and wore clothes featuring alluding emblems or words (nothing illegal, but still open enough not to be misunderstood). Rightwing extremism is on the rise in Germany and while it is thus everywhere, it is even more prevalent and in the open in the east of Germany. I wanted to know more about the reasons and about how local people who have other political values cope with it, so I decided to read Unter Nazis - Jung, ostdeutsch, gegen Rechts by Jakob Springfeld. The title translates as Among Nazis - Young, East German, against the Right. I had bought the book some time ago, but now it really was the time to read it.



Book No 31

"Unter Nazis - Jung, ostdeutsch, gegen Rechts" by Jakob Springfeld
First published in 2022
Quadriga
ebook, 192pp.
Rating: 4 1/2 stars - ****°

CATs & KITs: March NonfictionCAT - I want to learn about...
My Own Categories: Nonfiction - Politics

The author wrote this book in 2022 when he was twenty years old. He grew up in Zwickau, a city infamous for being the base of the three NSU (National Socialist Underground) terrorists who killed ten people between 2000 and 2006.
Springfeld writes about his growing activism as a teenager, how Zwickau became unsafe for him and his friends, why the situation there and in the whole state of Saxony is what it is and how it feels to be a young democratic activist in those surroundings.

I learned a lot from this book - about the history of rightwing extremism in Eastern Germany and how it is tied to the GDR, about the NSU murders and about the networks and strategies of rightwing extremists in Germany as a whole. Despite these heavy topics, the book is written in a style that is easy to understand and targeted towards a more youthful audience. Therefore, it was a quick read, although some of the contents were not easy to stomach. Towards the end, it became a bit rambling, but apart from that it is an excellent book and while I do not feel less shocked, at least I can contextualize what we saw during our trip a bit better.

I finished the fourth book in the Mountain Rescue Romance series by Melissa McClone, His Second Chance. I really liked the first book in that series, but did not enjoy the second one that much. The third one was ok, so I was hoping that the fourth one would at least be ok as well. It is also the only book in the series that is not set during Christmas and I was curious to see how that would play out. Unfortunately, I was disappointed.

I thought that this book would fit this month's CultureKIT, but it didn't. At least I advanced with the series!



Book No 32

"His Second Chance" by Melissa McClone
Series: Mountain Rescue Romance (4/6)
Original Title: Winning Back His Wife
First published in 2013
Cardinal Press
ebook, 283pp.
Rating: 1 1/2 stars - *°

My Own Categories: Romance - Contemporary Romance, Series

The plot of this novel is stupid: Cullen, the new doctor of the Mountain Rescue team, gets a call because his soon-to-be ex-wife has had an accident and is at the hospital. No one in his new hometown even knew that he was married. He and Sarah met in Las Vegas two years ago, married after two days, noticed that they didn't get along in real life and broke up. As she does not have anyone else in her life, he offers her to recover at his place, and of course they realize that they still have feelings, but because of their respective pasts, which they never ever talked about, things are complicated.

The novel is badly written, it's repetitive and incredibly cheesy. Both of the main characters are toxic, and I especially couldn't stand Cullen. I usually like all the other characters of the Montain Rescue team, who make an appearance in this book as well, but this time they are intrusive and interfering. The absence of Christmas did not make the book any better.

There is one chapter of mountain rescue which adds a little interest and I wished that it would have been greatly expanded. When Cullen and Sarah start to open up more, I thought that the book would finally become better because I liked that dialogue, but unfortunately, it was a lonely beacon of light.

I'm still continuing with the series because I like the setting and overall topic, and the next ones are Christmas books again, but I do hope that they will be better..

Yesterday I started Bonnie Prince Charlie and the '45 by Grant R. Francis, which I had bought in Scotland years ago. My Outlander reading had revived my interest in the topic. I abandoned it after the first chapter, though - it is written utterly without distance, in a flowery style, heaping praises on the prince without end. The book was a very cheap one bought in a gift shop, and I noticed that there is no publishing date given of the original text, just the year 2000 of the first edition of this particular book. When I googled the author, I learned that he published other books about Scotland in the 1920s! So I assume that the publisher just chose this text because it was out of copyright and published it in a way that made it look like a much newer book. I did not notice when I bought it, otherwise I wouldn't have done so. Luckily I only paid £0.99 for it.

This would have fit this month's NonfictionCAT, but I'll find something else for that.

I have usually shied away from true crime in its true form and have only read novels based on true cases. For this month's ScaredyKIT, though, I listened to The Mushroom Tapes by Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper & Sarah Krasnostein, narrated by the three authors and Caroline Craig.



Book No 33

"The Mushroom Tapes" by Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper & Sarah Krasnostein
First published in 2025
Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Digital audiobook, 4h 54min
Rating: 4 stars - ****

CATs & KITs: April ScaredyKIT - True Crime
My Own Categories: Australia, Nonfiction - Others

I understand that many readers are disappointed by this book because it does not meet the usual true crime criteria and they expected something different. For me, however, who is not a true crime buff, it was a very good book.

The three Australian woman writers accompanied the trial of Erin Patterson, who invited four of her relatives to lunch and poisoned them by hiding mushrooms in a Beef Wellington, killing three of them. The authors taped their conversations about the trial and thought about turning those tapes into a podcast, but then published them as a book. This audiobook was than narrated from that book, so it's not comprised of the original tapes. It is obvious that the text was edited, but it still felt quite natural to me.

I have been kind of morbidly fascinated by this case since I first read about it, and one thing I liked about the book is that the authors try to explain where that fascination comes from - the archetype of the female poisoner, the reversal of women's traditional role of feeding and nurturing, the marriage drama, the Midsomer Murders-like storyline. The conversation flows freely and touches upon many topics. It traces the progress of the trial, but also includes the personal thoughts of the authors, their observations and how they respond to what they see. They also analyze what the story might signify in the wider context of society and why many people, especially women, are so interested in true crime.

While not all the contents were equally intriguing, I really liked listening to the thoughts of these three women. I learned a lot about the actual case, but the discussions of the sociology of it all were even more compelling.

In the past, I wrote down some comments on film adaptations from novels I have read, such as Agatha Christie adaptations or Far From The Madding Crowd. I haven't done so in quite some time, merely because I haven't watched anything. But now my husband and I have finally started watching "The Rings of Power" (I can't find the correct touchstone), so I will jot down some thoughts and impressions here. If you are not interested in this series, please just skip these entries.

Of course, "The Rings of Power" isn't strictly an adaptation, more of an interpretation. I know that many people loath it for various reasons, but I follow several Tolkienists on instagram and substack who talk and write favorably about the show and who point out the good things about it, so I am willing to take it the way I took the Hobbit films: Be happy about the good stuff and ignore the rest. I also decided to look upon it as a kind of fan fiction and I think that approach helps.

Having said that, so far there are more good things than bad things in my opinion.
Please note that these are solely my personal thoughts, and they do include spoilers. I am using this like a watching diary. After each episode, I watch the respective YouTube breakdown video of Nerd of the Rings, so I might refer to that as well.

Season 1, episode 1: Shadow of the Past
- I love the visuals and the soundtrack, especially when the elves appear.
- At times, the soundtrack is remarkably similar to the Outlander one (Bear McCreary!).
- I absolutely loved the depiction of Valinor in the beginning, especially the two trees and Morgoth's silhouette/shadow, as well as the sailing towards the light in the end. It reminded me of the sailing in the end of RotK.
- I admire how the creators worked with what they had the rights to, leaving enough room to be filled in with Tolkien lore by the book readers, while not infringing on the rights or demanding too much of the more casual audience.
- The only aspect that really disturbed me was that Gil-Galad granted permission to Galadriel and her men to sail to Valinor. This contradicts the lore too much and does not make sense.

Season 1, episode 2: Adrift
- Once again, I love the visuals and the music, especially Khazad-dûm, which is glorious. It was amazing to see it before its destruction.
- Nerd of the Rings points out that it does not make sense to have two Durins alive at the same time because Durin was reincarnated. I did not notice that myself but now it annoys me!
- I adore Elrond and already think that Robert Aramayo is a much better Elrond than Hugo Weaving.
- I am slowly getting used to most of the male elves having short hair, although I'd still prefer it if they had long hair.
- The scenes on the water were not my favorites and the only thing that I found a bit boring.

Today we watched episodes 3 and 4 of "The Rings of Power", so here are more musings.

Season 1, episode 3: Adar

- I am absolutely stunned by Númenor. It looks so beautiful. I also appreciate the similarities in architecture to how Gondor is portrayed in Peter Jackson's films.
- Another thing I appreciate is that the orcs are really, really scary in this. So much better than the Hobbit movie orcs! The idea that they use extensive shelters, tunnels and wear clothing and skulls to shield from the sun is clever. I did not expect it, but the Arondir/orcs storyline is one of my favorites so far.
- While I love the depiction of Númenor, their mantra "The sea is always right" is overtly simplistic and does not sound like Tolkien at all. They could have invented something much better.
- This episode ended on such a strong cliffhanger that we watched the next one straight away although we had other plans.

Season 1, episode 4: The Great Wave

- The Númenor storyline is a bit hard to follow and I don't understand everything because it's a bit convoluted.
- When Galadriel escapes, it would have been so much cooler if she had used some kind of Elven magic instead of beating the guards. It does not seem very Galadriel-like.
- One of my favourite scenes was when Arondir, Bronwyn and Theo escaped the forest and the orcs were held up by the light of the sun. I thought of an instagram video I had watched some time ago. I don't remember by whom it was and I can't find it right now. It basically explained how the sun was guided by the Maia Arien and how thus, events like this, when the light of the sun came to the rescue, could be interpreted as intervening by the Maiar (such as when Gandalf comes to the rescue at Helm's Deep). I really enjoyed that thought and it made the scene more meaningful to me.
- I am really glad that I am watching the Nerd of the Rings videos because they point out details I missed. In this episode, the items in Tar-Palantir's room stand out: A painting of Beren and Lúthien, the dragon-helm of Dor-lómin, Tuor's swan shield and Dramborleg, his axe. As the series was criticized so much, I did not expect so many hints to the lore and so much attention to detail. I think it's fabulous.
- Adar is absolutely creepy and I have no idea who he is and if he is a canon character or not.

Hi LT friends!

We had a quiet Easter and then school started again. I also have choir practice again and we are rehearsing Verdi's requiem, which cuts into my reading time because I need to practice quite a lot at home. But I am also reading, although not finishing that much because I am reading quite a lot of books at the same time. I am hoping to finish some things this weekend, though.

I hope you are all well and enjoying spring/autumn wherever you are!