1/1: A Spell of Winter by Helen Dunmore (library, 1995) - Just a weird little book about incest. 3/5 stars
1/2: The Accomplice by Lisa Lutz (library, 2022) - I adored this book. Lutz is such a reliably consistent author who always works for me no matter what she writes. 4.5/5 stars
1/4: Amari and The Night Brothers (Supernatural Investigations #1) by B.B. Alson (library, 2021) - A perfectly good, heartfelt fantasy novel for kids about a girl trying to find her missing brother, learning she's a magician, and figuring out her place in a new world all at the same time. 4/5 stars
1/6: Son of the Shadows (Sevenwaters #2) by Juliet Marillier (library ebook, 2000) - Second book in a series and the plot really ratchets up in this one. 4.5/5 stars
1/6: Correction in Ink: A Memoir by Keri Blakinger (library, 2022) - Former heroin addict writes about her time in prison. I thought the most interesting part of her story was her re-entry, but, sadly, that was only the last few pages of the book. 3.5/5 stars
1/7: Hello Stranger (Ravenels #4) by Lisa Kleypas (library ebook, 2018) - This historical romance novel about a doctor and her studly suitor really appealed to me. 4.5/5 stars
1/10: American Royalty (American Royalty #1) by Tracey Livesay (library ebook, 2022) - Black American rapper meets white prince and they fall in love. These two cannot possibly make it. 3.5/5 stars
1/11: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (library, 2020) - Book club book of the month. Just fine. 3.5/5 stars
1/12: Magic's Promise (Valdemar: The Last Herald Mage #2) by Mercedes Lackey (library, 1990) - Valdemar is living up to its promise as a good fantasy epic so far. 4/5 stars
1/15: Spoiler Alert (Spoiler Alert #1) by Olivia Dade (library audiobook narrated by Isabelle Luther, 2020) - Terrible romance novel. 1.5/5 stars
1/16: Black Sun (Between Earth and Sky #1) by Rebecca Roanhorse (library ebook, 2020) - Fantasy I wanted to like more than I did. 3/5 stars
1/16: Magic's Price (Valdemar: The Last Herald Mage #3) by Mercedes Lackey (library, 1990) - Pretty good. I enjoyed spending time with Van. 4/5 stars
1/18: Devil's Daughter (The Ravenels #5) by Lisa Kleypas (library ebook, 2019) - I'm enjoying these books now and that's all there is to it. 4/5 stars
1/18: Love & Saffron: A Novel of Friendship, Food, and Love by Kim Fay (library, 2022) - Lovely story about how friendship grows. 5/5 stars
1/20: Every Summer After by Carley Fortune (library, 2022) - What a weird book. It's a mashup of an adult romance and a YA novel. I have some issues with lax parenting and excessive drinking and drug usage with this book, but it was also really hard to put down. 4/5 stars
1/21: Bad City: Peril and Power in the City of Angels by Paul Pringle (library, 2022) - Wild ride about corruption in Los Angeles from city hall to USC to the police to the editors of the newspaper. 4.5/5 stars
1/22: The Roughest Draft by Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka (library, 2022) - Romance novels about two authors in which writing takes center stage. I wanted to like it a lot more than I did. 2.5/5 stars
1/22: Child of the Prophecy (Sevenwaters #3) by Juliet Marillier (library ebook, 2001) - Really good fantasy. 4.5/5 stars
1/24: Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister (library, 2022) - Really interesting premise, but I didn't really love it. 3.5/5 stars
1/24: Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan (library ebook, 2022) - How romance should be done. 5/5 stars
1/26: Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger (library book, 2012) - My beloved nerdy nephews were talking about this book at Christmas and they really recommended it. It's a pretty intense rip-off of Harry Potter. I can see why they liked it, but it wasn't for me. 2.5/5 stars
1/26: Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman (library ebook, 2022) - A journalist writes a profile of an actor that makes her career and years later they meet again. There's a dog and that really improved this just sort of meh romance novel. 3.5/5 stars
1/28: Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel (library, 2022) - Simply beautiful and admirable. 4.5/5 stars
Average star rating: 3.8/5 stars
DNF:
A Girl is a Half-Formed Thing by Eimear McBride - I don't have the patience to wade through stream of consciousness, let alone stream of consciousness with a child as a narrator. I'm sure it has a great payoff, but it's not my jam. DNF at page 10. Ha.
Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips - I downloaded this audiobook because it was on my list and available immediately. It wasn't very long before I realized it was about a child abduction and I was made uncomfortable by it and stopped early on. DNF at 5%.
Ooooh an excellent list.
ReplyDeleteIt had its highs and lows.
DeleteOkay, so the weirdest thing is I apparently put a library hold on A Spell of Winter, and when it came in I had no recollection of what the book was about or why I requested it. I haven't started it yet, and now I see your description is "just a weird little book about incest." What??? WHY did I want to read this??? Anyway... I just realized I never read your review of Sea of Tranquility- I'm going to do that right now.
ReplyDeleteI begged people to read it because I want to talk about it!!!! It's like Flowers in the Attic, but literary with good writing, but still. Drama! Incest! Please read it!!!!
DeleteI very much enjoyed "Sea of Tranquility" although I couldn't help comparing it to "Station 11," one of my all-time favorites. We read "Disappearing Earth" in Book Club and it started out as a slog for me, then I started seeing connections. Afterward I couldn't get the book out of my mind. Oh, Ally Bean sent me! :)
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm excited to see someone from Ally's blog roll! Welcome! Station Eleven was SO good. I think it was better than this one, but the Station Eleven, The Glass Hotel, and Sea of Tranquility as a trilogy is just amazing. I ALWAYS think about Mandel's books for such a long time after I've finished them.
Delete