en-US Fri, 02 May 2025 17:23:55 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 173403891 FromĚýNew York TimesĚýbestselling author Lilith Saintcrow comes a thrilling Norse-inspired epic fantasy about ancient myth and magical destiny. Ěý The Black Land is a Centuries have passed since that Great Enemy was slain. Yet old fears linger, and on the longest night of the year, people in the South still light ritual bonfires to banish the dark. Ěý In her village, this duty falls to Solveig, a girl favored by the gods with powerful fire magic. But when her brother kills a Northern lord’s son during the ritual, it is Sol who faces punishment, by being weregild—part hostage, part guest—in the North for a year and a day. Ěý As she journeys to her captivity, Sol starts to realize that the Black Land is no myth. The forests teem with foul beasts. Her travel companions are not what they seem, and their plans for her magic are shrouded in secrecy. Ěý With only her loyal shieldmaiden and her own wits to rely upon, Sol must learn to master her powers and wrest control of her fate. For the Black Land’s army stirs, ready to cover the world in darkness—unless Sol can find the courage to stop it. Ěý]]> 448 Lilith Saintcrow 0316440337 Jessica 0 3.31 2024
author: Lilith Saintcrow
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.31
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/05/01
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: fantasy, own, scandinavian-authors
review:
A Viking-inspired fantasy world that isn't blatant fanfic for the Vikings TV show?! GASP. (I love you, Ragnar, but what hath you wrought?)
]]> 210999992 Following the highly acclaimed Nocturnes and Night Music, Night & Day is filled with eerie surprises and dark delights.

Night & Day takes us from the dusty shelves of an uncanny library filled with fictional characters to a bunker deep beneath the earth where scientists seek revenge on old Nazis, from an English marsh haunted by a mother and her son to a country house where a grieving widower finds comfort from a most unlikely source.

Concluding with the author's account of how an obscure horror film brought him closer to his lost father, and how nostalgia can help to keep us sane, this is a collection that will move, entertain, and keep you reading late into the night.]]> 368 John Connolly 1668081679 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.46
author: John Connolly
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.46
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/05/01
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: fantasy, horror, own, short-stories
review:
I've met John Connolly, but this was the first of his books that I've read, and now I'm eager for more! I don't LIKE ghost stories, and yet I actually teared up over one these! Also, that other one, so creepy! And the monogram at the end almost convinced me to watch Horror Express. Almost. Maybe. Not today, though.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 44453040 From the bestselling author of The Bone Season, an epic high fantasy about a world on the brink of war with dragons-and the secret society tasked with stopping it.

A world divided.
A queendom without an heir.
An ancient enemy awakens.

The House of Berethnet has ruled Inys for a thousand years.

Still unwed, Queen Sabran the Ninth must conceive a daughter to ensure the continuation of her bloodline. But as she clings to her independence, assassins are getting closer to her door.

Ead Duryan is an outsider at court. Though she has converted to the Six Virtues and risen to the position of lady-in-waiting, she will never be truly at home in Inys. As she dutifully goes to the sanctuary each day, Ead keeps a watchful eye on the queen, protecting her with forbidden magic.

Yet even she cannot keep Sabran from harm indefinitely. Dragons are encroaching on Inysh lands for the first time in centuries, the divided East and West refuse to parley, and an age-old force is stirring that no mandate can keep at bay.]]> 831 Samantha Shannon 1635570301 Jessica 0 to-read 4.23 2019
author: Samantha Shannon
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/02
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 218554737
Aboard are the heirs of the twelve provinces of Concordia, each graced with a unique and secret magical ability known as a Blessing.

Except Ganymedes Piscero - class clown, slacker, and all-round disappointment.

When a beloved heir is murdered, everyone is a suspect. Stuck at sea and surrounded by powerful people without a Blessing to protect him, odds of survival are slim.

But as the bodies pile higher, Ganymedes must become the hero he was not born to be. Can he unmask the killer and their blessing before this bloody crusade reaches the shores of Concordia?

Or will the empire as he knows it fall?]]> 464 Frances White 0778387909 Jessica 0 to-read 4.06 2024
author: Frances White
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/05/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 203579246
Ruby and her sister, Wren, are normal, middle-class Colorado high school students working a summer job at the local Renaissance Fest to supplement their meager college savings.

So when an eccentric old lady asks them to impersonate her long-absent grandchildren at a fancy dinner party at the jaw-dropping rate of two grand―each―for a single night� Wren insists it’s a no-brainer. Make some cash, have some fun, do a good deed.

But less than an hour into the evening at the mysterious Hegemony Manor, Ruby is sure she must have lost her mind to have agreed to this.]]> 400 Sarah Henning 1250841062 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.68 2024
author: Sarah Henning
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/30
date added: 2025/04/30
shelves: audiobooks, contemporary, fantasy, own, witches
review:
Very fun for fans of Knives Out and Jenn Barnes' The Inheritance Games. To ratchet the tension up even more: sisters Wren and Ruby are only hired for the evening to impersonate two of the potential heirs - and had no idea the family were witches!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 199927764
"You must be as sharp as a stilettotore’s dagger and as subtle as a fish beneath the waters. This is what it is to be Navolese, this is what it is to be di Regulai."

In Navola, a bustling city-state dominated by a handful of influential families, business is power, and power is everything. For generations, the di Regulai family—merchant bankers with a vast empire—has nurtured tendrils that stretch to the farthest reaches of the known world. And though they claim not to be political, their staggering wealth has bought cities and toppled kingdoms. Soon, Davico di Regulai will be expected to take the reins of power from his father and demonstrate his mastery of the games of Navolese knowing who to trust and who to doubt, and how to read what lies hidden behind a smile. But in Navola, strange and ancient undercurrents lurk behind the gilt and grandeur—like the fossilized dragon eye in the family’s possession, a potent symbol of their raw power and a talisman that seems to be summoning Davico to act.

As tensions rise and the events unfold, Davico will be tested to his limits. His fate depends on the eldritch dragon relic and on what lies buried in the heart of his adopted sister, Celia di Balcosi, whose own family was destroyed by Nalova’s twisted politics. With echoes of Renaissance Italy, The Godfather , and Game of Thrones , Navola is a stunning feat of world-building and a mesmerizing depiction of drive and will.]]> 576 Paolo Bacigalupi 0593535057 Jessica 0 currently-reading 3.80 2024
author: Paolo Bacigalupi
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> 195790571
The goblins have killed all of our horses and most of our men.

They have enslaved our cities, burned our fields, and still they wage war.

Now, our daughters take up arms.

Galva � Galvicha to her three brothers, two of whom the goblins will kill � has defied her family’s wishes and joined the army’s untested new unit, the Raven Knights. They march toward a once-beautiful city overrun by the goblin horde, accompanied by scores of giant war corvids. Made with the darkest magics, these fearsome black birds may hold the key to stopping the goblins in their war to make cattle of mankind.

The road to victory is bloody, and goblins are clever and merciless. The Raven Knights can take nothing for granted � not the bonds of family, nor the wisdom of their leaders, nor their own safety against the dangerous war birds at their side. But some hopes are worth any risk.]]> 416 Christopher Buehlman 1250887674 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
This is a prequel, though, and I do wish that I had read The Blacktongue Thief first. I wondered if I was missing something, like, Should I know more about this character? Stuff like that.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 4.23 2024
author: Christopher Buehlman
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/28
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
The idea of this fascinates me. One, they've been at war so long, and it's been such a slaughter, that the women have joined the army to fight the goblin hordes. Two, goblin hordes. Three, because of a goblin created plague, horses are nearly extinct, so mages have created other crazy animals, like giant war ravens. Yes, please, I wish to have a giant war raven.

This is a prequel, though, and I do wish that I had read The Blacktongue Thief first. I wondered if I was missing something, like, Should I know more about this character? Stuff like that.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 222376766 From New York Times bestselling author of the Empire of the Vampire and Empire of the Damned, Jay Kristoff, comes the epic conclusion to the #1 internationally bestselling series.

From holy cup comes holy light;
The faithful hands sets world aright.
And in the Seven Martyrs� sight,
Mere man shall end this endless night.

Gabriel de León has lost his family, his faith, and the last hope of ending the endless night—his surrogate daughter, Dior. With no thought left but vengeance, he and a band of loyal brothers journey into the war-torn heart of Elidaen to claim the life of the Forever King.


Unbeknownst to the Last Silversaint, the Grail still lives—speeding towards the besieged capital of Augustin in the frail hope of ending Daysdeath. But deadly treachery awaits within the halls of power, and the Forever King’s legions march ever closer. Gabriel and Dior will be drawn into a final battle that will shape the very fate of the Empire, but as the sun sets for what may the last time, there will be no one left for them to trust.

Not even each other.]]> 800 Jay Kristoff 1250245370 Jessica 0 to-read 5.00 2025
author: Jay Kristoff
name: Jessica
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 218153851 Titanic meets Aliens in this tense YA science fiction horror series by #1 New York Times bestselling author E.K. Johnston.

Celeste knows every inch of this ship.ĚýShe'sĚýproud of her work as apprentice engineer. And as the maiden voyage of the Titan launches, she's optimistic for the promises of this new journey from Earth to Mars â€� this new life.

Dominic arrives at his suite where his valet is busy unpacking his things. His chest is tight, already feeling anxious inside his dad's precious new ship. Once it launches, he's trapped, inside the ship and inside the life his father has chosen for himĚýâ€� a life that will leave his dreams of art school behind.Ěý

Discovered under melted ice caps, ancient aliens have been brought onto the Titan as well, and stored in display cases for the entertainment of the passengers . . . until an act of sabotage releases them into the ship, with zero discrimination for class, decks or human life . . .]]> 304 E.K. Johnston 1774884089 Jessica 0 to-read 4.33 2025
author: E.K. Johnston
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 219765675
Filled with magic, stardust, and a shockingly dark heart, this is a stunning standalone fantasy perfect for fans of The Ten Thousand Doors of January, The Starless Sea and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue.

For centuries, Everlys have seen their brightest and best disappear, taken as punishment for a crime no one remembers, for a purpose no one understands. Their tormentor is a woman named Penelope, who never ages, never grows sick - and never forgives a debt.

Ten years ago, Violet Everly's mother left to break the curse, and never returned. Now Violet must find her mother, or she will be taken in her place. Her hunt leads her into a seductive magical underworld of power-hungry scholars, fickle gods, and monsters bent on revenge. And into the path of Penelope's quiet assistant, Aleksander, who she knows cannot be trusted - and yet to whom she finds herself undeniably drawn.

Tied to a very literal deadline, Violet will travel to the edges of the world to find her mother and the key to the city of stardust, where the Everly story began.]]> 352 Georgia Summers 1399714201 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.71 2024
author: Georgia Summers
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/25
date added: 2025/04/26
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
I feel like this book was almost too realistic: bright girl, raised in mysterious ancestral home, homeschooled by wise uncle . . . finding out that this means she can't get into college because she has no HS diploma. A young boy was picked up from a grim orphanage by a mysterious and beautiful woman, who still pretty much treats him like crap.

*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 203579272 On the set of a kitschy reality TV show, staged scares transform into unnerving reality in this spooky ghost story from multiple Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author Sarah Pinsker.

“Don’t talk to day about what we do at night.�

When aimless twenty-something Mara lands a job as the night-shift production assistant on her cousin’s ghost hunting/home makeover reality TV show Haunt Sweet Home, she quickly determines her new role will require a healthy attitude toward duplicity. But as she hides fog machines in the woods and improvises scares to spook new homeowners, a series of unnerving incidents on set and a creepy new coworker force Mara to confront whether the person she's truly been deceiving and hiding from all along—is herself.

Eerie and empathetic, Haunt Sweet Home is a multifaceted, supernatural exploration of finding your own way into adulthood, and into yourself.]]> 165 Sarah Pinsker 1250330262 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*

]]> 3.34 2024
author: Sarah Pinsker
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.34
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/25
date added: 2025/04/26
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, contemporary, own
review:
Honestly, if there were a combination haunted house/home improvement show, no matter how fake, I would watch every minute of it. I would kill to see someone trying to put up one of those peel and stick vinyl backsplashes while a ghost keeps ripping it down . . .

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*


]]> 202470599 Part science fiction, part fantasy, and entirely infused with West African culture and spirituality, this novella offers an intimate glimpse into the life of a teenager whose coming of age will herald a new age for her world. Set in the universe Africanfuturist luminary Nnedi Okorafor first introduced in the World Fantasy Award-winning Who Fears Death, this is the first in the She Who Knows trilogy

When there is a call, there is often a response.

Najeeba knows.

She has had The Call. But how can a 13-year-old girl have the Call? Only men and boys experience the annual call to the Salt Roads. What’s just happened to Najeeba has never happened in the history of her village. But it’s not a terrible thing, just strange. So when she leaves with her father and brothers to mine salt at the Dead Lake, there’s neither fanfare nor protest. For Najeeba, it’s a dream come true: travel by camel, open skies, and a chance to see a spectacular place she’s only heard about. However, there must have been something to the rule, because Najeeba’s presence on the road changes everything and her family will never be the same.

Small, intimate, up close, and deceptively quiet, this is the beginning of the Kponyungo Sorceress.]]> 161 Nnedi Okorafor 075641895X Jessica 0 to-read 3.99 2024
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 208427398
The Witch Sphere is in turmoil. In the years since a stunning betrayal sent shockwaves through society, the Sphere was hit with a crisis: witches are giving birth to more typics (non-witches) and their numbers are diminishing. Nadia is determined to help but finds her efforts at the Witch Health Organization entangled with the political machinations of her powerful mother.

A public relations assistant, a teacher, and a former child star walk into a bar bathroom � On what happens to be all of their twenty-second birthday and, like many twentysomethings, become fast tipsy friends. But unlike most twentysomethings, their night of partying ends with an accidental act of magic. Suddenly, Maya, Gabbie, and Delali find themselves thrust into a world of spells and potions with only a mysterious mentor as a guide.

As the girls learn to harness their new power, Nadia starts to notice spikes in the magic baseline and suspects an unknown cadre of witches may be the key to solving the Typic Crisis. Can this unlikely coven come together and save the Sphere or are there darker forces at play? Either way these Bad Witches are going to find a way to have some fun.]]> 448 H.B. Akumiah Jessica 0 to-read 3.59
author: H.B. Akumiah
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.59
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 203956677 A thrilling collection of thirteen short stories that span the worlds of the New York Times bestselling author of the Scholomance Trilogy, including a sneak peek at the land where her next novel will be set.

From the dragon-filled Temeraire series and the gothic, magical halls of the Scholomance trilogy to the fairy tale worlds of Spinning Silver and Uprooted, this stunning collection takes us from fairy tale to fantasy, myth to history, and mystery to science fiction as we travel through Naomi Novik’s most beloved stories.

In Buried Deep, we move from ancient Greece and Rome, through the Middle Ages and the Black Death, and into the modern era. We meet Mark Antony, Sherlock Holmes, and Elizabeth Bennet, in ways we have never seen them before. We visit exotic fantasy cities and alien civilizations among the stars.

Though the stories are vastly different, there is a unifying theme: the act of finding and seizing one’s destiny, and the lengths one will go to achieve that—be it turning pirate, captaining a fighting dragon, or shifting from marriage to seek your destiny with a sword.

And in the two tales original to this collection, we first reenter the remade Scholomance in the wake of El’s revolution and see what life is like for the new crop of students. Then, we get a glimpse at the world of Novik’s upcoming series, a deserted land, populated only by silent and enigmatic architectural behemoths whose secrets are yet to be unlocked.]]> 430 Naomi Novik 0593600355 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.99 2024
author: Naomi Novik
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/21
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: dragons, fantasy, own, short-stories
review:
If you, like me, are a Novik fan, there is much to celebrate here! Not the least of which: a retelling of Price & Prejudice with Captain Elizabeth Bennet's Longwing, Wollstonecraft, absolutely stealing the show!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 195790755
When Lukan discovers that his estranged father has been murdered in strange circumstances, he finds fresh purpose. Deprived of his chance to make amends for his mistakes, he vows to unravel the mystery behind his father's death.

His search for answers leads him to Saphrona, fabled city of merchant princes, where anything can be bought if one has the coin. Lukan only seeks the truth, but instead he finds danger and secrets in every shadow.

For in Saphrona, everything has a price―and the price of truth is the deadliest of all.]]> 528 James Logan 1250345804 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.94 2024
author: James Logan
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/23
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
On paper this sounds like just another vaguely Italian Renaissance fantasy, with the main character a "charming rogue and cardsharp" who is probably just an asshole who keeps assuring women he's charming. BUT. I was so pleasantly surprised! I just kept thinking, This is very refreshing! (I've been reading a lot of horror fantasy.) This book was just . . . fun? Lukan is actually charming! He drinks too much, regrets it later, and then doesn't learn from his mistakes, women actually like him, but he's not a perv. He's from an aristocratic family, but poor, so he's not a spoiled brat. And his relationship with Flea? Adorable. I love a fairly competent protagonist with a hilarious sidekick! And there's MURDERS. And there's political INTRIGUE. And there's some magical beings that are extremely FREAKY.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 48715812 here.

Tiffy and Leon share an apartment. Tiffy and Leon have never met.

After a bad breakup, Tiffy Moore needs a place to live. Fast. And cheap.

Desperation makes her open-minded, so she answers an ad for a flatshare. Leon, a night-shift worker, will take the apartment during the day, and Tiffy can have it nights and weekends. He’ll be there only when she’s at the office. In fact, they’ll never even have to meet.

Of course, since they live together, sometimes they do need to share information. Tiffy and Leon start writing each other notes—first about what day is garbage day, then politely establishing which leftovers are up for grabs and debating the evergreen question of whether the toilet seat should stay up or down. Soon, they're sharing details of their lives: their work, their families, their romances. And it's amazing how much they learn about their flatmate just by sharing a space.

Even though they are complete opposites, Tiffy and Leon soon become friends. And then maybe more.

But falling in love with your roommate is probably a terrible idea . . . especially if you've never met. What happens when you finally bump into each other?

A joyful, quirky romantic comedy, The Flatshare is a feel-good novel about finding love in the most unexpected of places—under the same roof.]]> 328 Beth O'Leary 1250295637 Jessica 4 3.98 2019
author: Beth O'Leary
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2022/11/24
date added: 2025/04/23
shelves: chicklit, contemporary, library, romance
review:
This was just so darling! Everything about it felt very real and organic, their work issues and personal issues and family issues all felt like something you could really see happening, yet at the same time, it was just a teensy bit ludicrous, just to make it interesting. And I really wanted to get a good look at Tiffy's clothes . . .
]]> 198902277 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9781250899576.

A propulsive and uncommonly wise novel about one unexpected wedding guest and the surprising people who help her start anew.

It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She's immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe's plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other.

In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us.]]> 384 Alison Espach Jessica 0 to-read 4.11 2024
author: Alison Espach
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 218153843 From the internationally bestselling author of Tigana, All the Seas of the World, and A Brightness Long Ago comes a majestic new novel of love and war that brilliantly evokes the drama and turbulence of medieval France.

Thierry Villar is a well-known--even notorious-- tavern poet, familiar with the rogues and shadows of that world, but not at all with courts and power. He is an unlikely person, despite his quickness, to be caught up in the deadly contests of ambitious royals, assassins, and invading armies.

But he is indeed drawn into all these things on a savagely cold night in his beloved city of Orane. And so Thierry must use all the intelligence and charm he can muster as political struggles merge with a decades-long war to bring his country to the brink of destruction.

As he does, he meets his poetic equal in an aristocratic woman and is drawn to more than one unsettling person with a connection to the world beyond this one. He also crosses paths with an extraordinary young woman driven by voices within to try to heal the ailing king--and help his forces in war. A wide and varied set of people from all walks of life take their places in the rich tapestry of this story.

A new masterwork from the internationally bestselling author of All the Seas of the World, A Brightness Long Ago, and Tigana, Written on the Dark is an elegant tour de force about power and ambition playing out amid the intense human need for art and beauty, and memories to be left behind.]]> 320 Guy Gavriel Kay 0593953983 Jessica 0 to-read 4.46 2025
author: Guy Gavriel Kay
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 217388100
Terlu Perna broke the law because she was lonely. She cast a spell and created a magically sentient spider plant. As punishment, she was turned into a wooden statue and tucked away into an alcove in the North Reading Room of the Great Library of Alyssium.

This should have been the end of her story . . . Yet one day, Terlu wakes in the cold of winter on a nearly-deserted island full of hundreds of magical greenhouses. She’s starving and freezing, and the only other human on the island is a grumpy gardener. To her surprise, he offers Terlu a place to sleep, clean clothes, and freshly baked honey cakes—at least until she’s ready to sail home.

But Terlu can’t return home and doesn’t want to—the greenhouses are a dream come true, each more wondrous than the next. When she learns that the magic that sustains them is failing—causing the death of everything within them—Terlu knows she must help. Even if that means breaking the law again.

This time, though, she isn’t alone. Assisted by the gardener and a sentient rose, Terlu must unravel the secrets of a long-dead sorcerer if she wants to save the island—and have a fresh chance at happiness and love.

Funny, kind, and forgiving, The Enchanted Greenhouse is a story about giving second chances—to others and to yourself.]]> 384 Sarah Beth Durst 1250333989 Jessica 0 to-read 4.46 2025
author: Sarah Beth Durst
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 203956639 A student will find that the hardest lessons sometimes come outside the classroom in this stunning dark academia novel from the acclaimed author of The Year of the Witching and House of Hunger.

Lennon Carter’s life is falling apart.

Then she gets a mysterious phone call inviting her to take the entrance exam for Drayton College, a school of magic hidden in a secret pocket of Savannah. Lennon has been chosen because—like everyone else at the school—she has the innate gift of persuasion, the ability to wield her will like a weapon, using it to control others and, in rare cases, matter itself.

After passing the test, Lennon begins to learn how to master her devastating and unsettling power. But despite persuasion’s heavy toll on her body and mind, she is wholly captivated by her studies, by Drayton’s lush, moss-draped campus, and by her brilliant classmates. But even more captivating is her charismatic adviser, Dante, who both intimidates and enthralls her.

As Lennon continues in her studies her control grows, and she starts to uncover more about the secret world she has entered into, including the disquieting history of Drayton College, and the way her mentor’s tragic and violent past intertwines with it. She is increasingly disturbed by what she learns. For it seems that the ultimate test is to embrace absolute power without succumbing to corruption . . . and it's a test she's terrified she is going to fail.]]> 464 Alexis Henderson 0593638301 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.45 2024
author: Alexis Henderson
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/21
date added: 2025/04/21
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
If you like The Magicians and that dark academia vibe, you'll go nuts for this! Magical elevators, hot guys, and a lush setting add to the fun. (Well, a mostly lush setting. Part of the book takes place in Ogden, Utah. Which made me snort every time it came up. I really don't think the author has ever been there.)

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 156009464
Cassie Andrews works in a New York City bookshop, shelving books, making coffee for customers, and living an unassuming, ordinary life. Until the day one of her favorite customers—a lonely yet charming old man—dies right in front of her. Cassie is devastated. She always loved his stories, and now she has nothing to remember him by. Nothing but the last book he was reading.

But this is no ordinary book�

It is the Book of Doors.

Inscribed with enigmatic words and mysterious drawings, it promises Cassie that any door is every door. You just need to know how to open them.

Then she’s approached by a gaunt stranger in a rumpled black suit with a Scottish brogue who calls himself Drummond Fox. He’s a librarian who keeps watch over a unique set of rare volumes. The tome now in Cassie’s possession is not the only book with great power, but it is the one most coveted by those who collect them.

Now Cassie is being hunted by those few who know of the Special Books. With only her roommate Izzy to confide in, she has to decide if she will help the mysterious and haunted Drummond protect the Book of Doors—and the other books in his secret library’s care—from those who will do evil. Because only Drummond knows where the unique library is and only Cassie’s book can get them there.

But there are those willing to kill to obtain those secrets. And a dark force—in the form of a shadowy, sadistic woman—is at the very top of that list.]]> 404 Gareth Brown 0063323982 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 4.01 2024
author: Gareth Brown
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/19
date added: 2025/04/21
shelves: audiobooks, booksaboutbooks, fantasy, own
review:
This was someone's debut novel? It's not even fair! Imagine having your first book be this high concept fantasy about magical books and the psychopaths who crave them? I loved Cassie and Izzy (who are NOT psychopaths), they felt so real and I loved their friendship. I feel like we could have explored the sexiness of a wealth Scottish man in possession of a magical library more, though. I mean, come on! His last name was even FOX.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 127306440
Retired soldier Alex Easton returns in a horrifying new adventure.

After their terrifying ordeal at the Usher manor, Alex Easton feels as if they just survived another war. All they crave is rest, routine, and sunshine, but instead, as a favor to Angus and Miss Potter, they find themself heading to their family hunting lodge, deep in the cold, damp forests of their home country, Gallacia.

In theory, one can find relaxation in even the coldest and dampest of Gallacian autumns, but when Easton arrives, they find the caretaker dead, the lodge in disarray, and the grounds troubled by a strange, uncanny silence. The villagers whisper that a breath-stealing monster from folklore has taken up residence in Easton’s home. Easton knows better than to put too much stock in local superstitions, but they can tell that something is not quite right in their home. . . or in their dreams.]]> 151 T. Kingfisher 1250830850 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.78 2024
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/14
date added: 2025/04/18
shelves: audiobooks, fairytales, horror, own
review:
I haven't read the first one (I know, I know, I need to!) but this was able to stand on its own. Loved the aspect of "What if the local boogeyman is REAL?" also the interesting play with gender and language. I basically have two horror writers I'll read: Kingfisher and Stephen Graham Jones. Otherwise, miss me with that nonsense.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 33843251 Before I Fall meets “bah, humbug� in this contemporary YA reimagining of A Christmas Carol from New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Hand.

On Christmas Eve five years ago, seventeen-year-old Holly Chase was visited by three Ghosts who showed her how selfish and spoiled she’d become. They tried to convince her to mend her ways. She didn’t. And then she died.

Now she’s stuck working for the top-secret company Project Scrooge—as their latest Ghost of Christmas Past. So far, Holly’s afterlife has been miserable. But this year’s Scrooge is different. This year’s Scrooge might change everything�

The Afterlife of Holly Chase is a witty, poignant, and insightful novel about life, love, and seizing second (or third) chances, perfect for readers who loved Before I Fall or Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares.]]> 400 Cynthia Hand 0062318500 Jessica 0 to-read 3.94 2017
author: Cynthia Hand
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 195790718
There’s only one in the cloud cities, dragons rule, and the hoard in question belongs to the current regent, Neveranimas―and she wants Anahrod dead.

Enjoy this page-turning adventure with conniving dragons, high-stakes intrigue, a daring heist, and a little bit of heat.]]> 435 Jenn Lyons Jessica 0
I have to say, though: I super hated the concept of the "garden rings"- everyone over age 16 is wearing rings that indicate not just marital status, but their sexual preferences, and that . . . is no one's business, thanks!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Awards.*]]> 3.62 2024
author: Jenn Lyons
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/17
date added: 2025/04/17
shelves: audiobooks, dragons, fantasy, own
review:
Heist novel with dragons! I was intrigued by how the dragons were very much in charge, but also not human in their thoughts. So it wasn't so much as they were ruling the humans as keeping their pets in line, which is pretty chilling, if you think about it.

I have to say, though: I super hated the concept of the "garden rings"- everyone over age 16 is wearing rings that indicate not just marital status, but their sexual preferences, and that . . . is no one's business, thanks!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Awards.*
]]> 174147364
Let the competition begin!

An outsider in her village above the cloud sea, 12-year-old orphan Yeung Zhi Ging’s only hope of escape is to win the single invitation to train as a an apprentice to the immortals. After her ill-fated attempt to impress the Silhouette scout leads to a dragon attack on the jade mountain, Zhi Ging is sure that her chances, and her life, are over. But the scout spots her potential and offers her protection and a second chance. She’s in.

In her lessons in Hok Woh, the underwater realm of the immortals, Zhi Ging must face the challenging trials set by her teachers to prove that she’s worthy of being a Silhouette—despite her rivals' attempts to sabotage her. But as Zhi Ging’s power grows, so do the rumours of the return of the Fui Gwai, an evil spirit that turns people into grey-eyed thralls.

When the impossible happens and the Fui Gwai attack the Silhouettes, can Zhi Ging use her newly uncovered talents to save her friends and the world beyond? Or will the grey-eyed spirit consume them all?

“A soaring, luminous new world." —Jessica Townsend, New York Times bestselling author of The Nevermoor series]]> 384 Siobhan McDermott 0593706110 Jessica 0 to-read 3.92 2024
author: Siobhan McDermott
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 205181111 A simmering tale of magic, adventure, and the extraordinary bond between a brother and sister who'd journey to the ends of the Earth to save each other. From the acclaimed author of ł˘´ÇłŮ±đ°ůĂ­˛ą comes a heartfelt story rooted in Mexican magical realism.

Ten-year-old Lola has always been touched by magic. In her Mexico City home, built around a towering tree, she is accustomed to enchanted blooms that change with the seasons, a sandbox that spits out mysterious treasures, and mischievous chaneques that scuttle about unseen by all but her. Magic has always been a part of her life, but now she must embrace the extraordinary as never before.

Ever since The Thing That Happened, Lola's brother Alex has been sick. As his condition worsens, something begins eating away at the tree, causing its leaves and blossoms to crumble like ash. The two are related, Lola is sure of it, but how? Seeking a cure, she visits a grocery store oracle who bids her to follow the chaneques down one of their secret passages... into a hidden world.

Here in Floresta, a land of myths and monsters and marvels untold, lies the key to healing her brother.ĚýBut the kingdom's young queen stands in the way. Lola must use her wits and face her deepest fears if there's any hope of saving Alex in time.]]> 256 Karla Arenas Valenti 0593177010 Jessica 0 to-read 4.08 2024
author: Karla Arenas Valenti
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 10508431 225 Jessica Day George 1599906449 Jessica 5
*Reading aloud to my kids, March 2012.

*Reading aloud to my kids, and also to prep for Fridays, June 2014.

*Read aloud via FB and Insta Live for the King's English Bookshop during a global pandemic! Had honestly forgotten many of the fun little details of this book! And also found a couple of things that I wish I could change . . . nitpicks like the color of the flag matching the soldier's uniforms . . . totally ridiculous, but it's why I don't read my own books after they're published and it's too late to make changes! :) ]]> 4.10 2011
author: Jessica Day George
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2011
rating: 5
read at: 2020/05/13
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: my-books, middle-grade, fantasy, currently-reading
review:
Just finished reading the manuscript, prior to beginning the Big Edit. Really excited about this book, the first in a middle grade series that will explore the endless possibilities of turning an eleven-year-old princess loose in a magic castle!

*Reading aloud to my kids, March 2012.

*Reading aloud to my kids, and also to prep for Fridays, June 2014.

*Read aloud via FB and Insta Live for the King's English Bookshop during a global pandemic! Had honestly forgotten many of the fun little details of this book! And also found a couple of things that I wish I could change . . . nitpicks like the color of the flag matching the soldier's uniforms . . . totally ridiculous, but it's why I don't read my own books after they're published and it's too late to make changes! :)
]]> 22929540 358 Jessica Day George 1619634317 Jessica 5
February 2015: Just finished reading the galleys. This book is awesome.

April 2025: Reread for . . . reasons.]]> 3.45 2015
author: Jessica Day George
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/07
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: youngadult, my-books, historical-fiction, fantasy
review:
This is the book that I went to Romania to research. I love this book. I'm so excited for this book to finally be out there, in the world. Also, I love the cover of this book. Isn't it gorgeous? Love this book! Just had to say that!

February 2015: Just finished reading the galleys. This book is awesome.

April 2025: Reread for . . . reasons.
]]> 210122409 SMALL FORTUNES. BIG FEELINGS.

A cozy fantasy about trying to find yourself - and finding a family instead. Perfect for fans of Legends and Lattes, A Psalm for the Wild-Built and The House in the Cerulean Sea.

Fleeing a troubled past, immigrant fortune teller Tao roams the dusty countryside with only her mule for company, telling small fortunes, for small prices. Big fortunes come with big consequences . . . which she knows from bitter experience.

It's a lonely life, until she encounters an ex-mercenary and a (semi) reformed thief, who recruit her into their desperate search for a lost child. Soon, they're joined by a baker with a knead for adventure, and - of course - a slightly magical cat.

Tao sets down a new path with companions as big-hearted as her fortunes are small. But as her friends break down her walls, the shadows of her past close in. Now, Tao must decide whether to risk everything to save the family she never thought she could have . . .]]> 320 Julie Leong 1399729047 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 3.86 2024
author: Julie Leong
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/14
date added: 2025/04/15
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
What an absolute charmer! A gentle story of adventure, friendship, but also about dealing with your past and taking control of your power and talents, which was a very interesting aspect of the book.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*

]]> 225699546 From the instant New York Times bestselling author of Firekeeper’s Daughter and Warrior Girl Unearthed comes a daring new mystery about a foster teen claiming her heritage on her own terms.

Ever since Lucy Smith’s father died five years ago, “home� has been more of an idea than a place. She knows being on the run is better than anything waiting for her as a “ward of the state.� But when the sharp-eyed and kind Mr. Jameson with an interest in her case comes looking for her, Lucy wonders if hiding from her past will ever truly keep her safe.

Five years in the foster system has taught her to be cautious and smart. But she wants to believe Mr. Jameson and his “friend-not-friend,� a tall and fierce-looking woman who say they want to look after her.

They also tell Lucy the truth her father hid from her: She is Ojibwe; she has � had � a sister, and more siblings; a grandmother who’d look after her and a home where she would be loved.

But Lucy is being followed. The past has destroyed any chance of normal she has had, and now the secrets she’s hiding will swallow her whole and take away the future she always dreamed of.]]> 384 Angeline Boulley 1250328535 Jessica 0 to-read 5.00 2025
author: Angeline Boulley
name: Jessica
average rating: 5.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 211004176 Follow the river Liss to the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, and meet two sisters who cannot be separated, even in death.

“Oh what is stronger than a death? Two sisters singing with one breath.�

In the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, dwells the mysterious Hawthorn family.

There, they tend and harvest the enchanted willows and honour an ancient compact to sing to them in thanks for their magic. None more devotedly than the family’s latest daughters, Esther and Ysabel, who cherish each other as much as they cherish the ancient trees.

But when Esther rejects a forceful suitor in favor of a lover from the land of Faerie, not only the sisters� bond but also their lives will be at risk…]]> 133 Amal El-Mohtar 1250341086 Jessica 0 to-read 4.19 2025
author: Amal El-Mohtar
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 204594308
When robot Roz opens her eyes for the first time, she discovers that she is all alone on a remote, wild island. She has no idea how she got there or what her purpose is--but she knows she needs to survive. After battling a violent storm and escaping a vicious bear attack, she realizes that her only hope for survival is to adapt to her surroundings and learn from the island's unwelcoming animal inhabitants.

As Roz slowly befriends the animals, the island starts to feel like home--until, one day, the robot's mysterious past comes back to haunt her.]]> 320 Peter Brown 0316581097 Jessica 5 4.28 2016
author: Peter Brown
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/11
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: middle-grade, borrowed-from-jenn, read-aloud, science-fiction
review:
As tender and funny as you could hope for. I had seen the book around for years, and had no idea what it was about. I assumed it was just a robot wandering around, I didn't understand the scope of the story: the messages about family and growth and friendship. Just beautiful!
]]> 199515825 The Cartographers and The Book of M comes an inventive new novel about a woman who wins the chance to rewrite every mistake she’s ever made� and how far she’ll go to find her elusive “happily ever after.�

But there’s a twist: the reader gets to decide what she does next to change her fate.

One woman. Endless options. Every choice has consequences.

Meek, play-it-safe Marsh has just turned forty-five, and her life is in shambles. Her career is stagnant, her marriage has imploded, and her teenage daughter grows more distant by the day. Marsh is convinced she’s missed her chance at everything—romance, professional fulfillment, and adventure—and is desperate for a do-over.

She can’t believe her luck when she’s selected to be the star of the global sensation All This and More, a show that uses quantum technology to allow contestants the chance to revise their pasts and change their present lives. It’s Marsh’s only shot to seize her dreams, and she’s determined to get it right this time.

But even as she rises to become a famous lawyer, gets back together with her high school sweetheart, and travels the world, she begins to worry that All This and More’s promises might be too good to be true. Because while the technology is amazing, something seems a bit off.�

Can Marsh really make her life everything she wants it to be? And is it worth it?

Perfect for fans of Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library and Kate Atkinson’s Life After Life, bestselling author Peng Shepherd’s All This and More is an utterly original, startlingly poignant novel that puts the reader in the driver’s seat.]]> 469 Peng Shepherd 0063278979 Jessica 0 own, science-fiction
The book itself is interactive: like a grownup Choose Your Own Adventure, and reminded me of books like Days With Diam or Hopscotch.

*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*

]]> 3.33 2024
author: Peng Shepherd
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.33
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/12
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: own, science-fiction
review:
Imagine if you had a chance to go back and fix your life: go back to school, save your marriage, have a better relationship with your daughter-- the only catch is that you're on a reality show, and maybe the right choice for you doesn't make good television.

The book itself is interactive: like a grownup Choose Your Own Adventure, and reminded me of books like Days With Diam or Hopscotch.

*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*


]]> 127281143
At the northern edge of a land ruled by a monstrous, foreign tyrant lies the wild forest known as the Elmever. The villagers know better than to let their children go near—once someone goes in, they never come back out.

No one knows the strange and terrifying traps of the Elmever better than Veris Thorn, the only person to ever rescue a child from the forest many years ago. When the Tyrant’s two young children go missing, Veris is commanded to enter the forest once more and bring them home safe. If Veris fails, the Tyrant will kill her; if she remains in the forest for longer than a day, she will be trapped forevermore.

So Veris will travel deep into the Elmever to face traps, riddles, and monsters at the behest of another monster. One misstep will cost everything.]]> 160 Premee Mohamed 1250881781 Jessica 0 fantasy, fairytales, own
So beautiful! So sad! So intense! ]]> 3.87 2024
author: Premee Mohamed
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/10
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: fantasy, fairytales, own
review:
This was beautiful and sad. Imagine being asked to rescue two children, at the risk of your own life, or their father will have your entire village killed. Did I mention that their father is the Tyrant whose conquest of your land orphaned you? And that the children are being carefully groomed to take over for their father one day? So maybe you should just leave them in the terrifying haunted forest-- but you can't-- but maybe you should?

So beautiful! So sad! So intense!
]]> 206777707 In this fresh-yet-familiar gothic tale―part historical fantasy, part puzzle-box mystery―the worlds of Dracula and Sherlock Holmes collide in a thrilling exploration of feminine power.

At the dawn of the twentieth century in Paris, Samantha Harker, daughter of Dracula’s killer, works as a researcher for the Royal Society for the Study of Abnormal Phenomena. But no one realizes how abnormal she is. Sam is a channel into the minds of monsters: a power that could help her solve the gruesome deaths plaguing turn-of-the-century Paris―or have her thrown into an asylum.

Sam finds herself assigned to a case with Dr. Helena Moriarty, daughter of the criminal mastermind and famed nemesis of Sherlock Holmes and a notorious detective whom no one wants to work with on account of her previous partners� mysterious murders. Ranging from the elite clubs of Paris to the dark underbelly of the catacombs, their investigation sweeps them into a race to stop a beast from its killing rampage, as Hel and Sam are pitted against men, monsters, and even each other. But beneath their tenuous trust, an unmistakable attraction brews. Is trusting Hel the key to solving the murder, or is Sam yet another pawn in Hel’s game?]]> 375 Susan J. Morris 1959411640 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.89 2024
author: Susan J. Morris
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/13
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves: fantasy, werewolvesnvampires, own
review:
The daughter of Mina and Jonathan Harker is all (mostly) grown up and off hunting monsters, now paired up with the daughter of the infamous Moriarty, herself a figure of suspicion, as her previous partners have all died mysteriously. They're after a serial killer in Paris, and should be relatively safe, since the killer only goes after men- but it's a rough job for a lady, especially when no one believes in you!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 198821102
Five gods lie mysteriously sleeping above the city of Radezhda. Five gods who once bestowed great technologies and wisdom, each inspiring the devotion of their own sect. When the gods turned away from humanity, their followers built towers to the heavens to find out why. But when no answer was given, the collective grief of the sects turned to desperation, and eventually to war.

Zenya was a teenager when she ran away from home to join the mechanically-modified warrior sect. She was determined to earn mechanized wings and protect the people and city she loved. Under the strict tutelage of a mercurial, charismatic leader, Zenya became Winged Zemolai.

But after twenty-six years of service, Zemolai is disillusioned with her role as an enforcer in an increasingly fascist state. After one tragic act of mercy, she is cast out, and loses everything she worked for. As Zemolai fights for her life, she begins to understand the true nature of her sect, her leader, and the gods themselves.]]> 336 Samantha Mills 1616964146 Jessica 0 fantasy, science-fiction, own
Okay, it doesn't totally fit, but I did keep thinking about that line! This is a solid second world fantasy where the gods are hovering above the world, sleeping-- if they really are gods. And the skies are patrolled by winged warriors who do the bidding of the Mecha God-- if that really IS the bidding of the god they're doing-- Winged Zemolai is cast down from the heights, and is forced to face some uncomfortable truths about her world and her life.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.96 2024
author: Samantha Mills
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/06
date added: 2025/04/08
shelves: fantasy, science-fiction, own
review:
"Ray, when someone asks you if you're a god, you say, YES."

Okay, it doesn't totally fit, but I did keep thinking about that line! This is a solid second world fantasy where the gods are hovering above the world, sleeping-- if they really are gods. And the skies are patrolled by winged warriors who do the bidding of the Mecha God-- if that really IS the bidding of the god they're doing-- Winged Zemolai is cast down from the heights, and is forced to face some uncomfortable truths about her world and her life.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 182506390 Discover this creepy, charming monster-slaying fantasy romance—from the perspective of the monster—by Nebula Award-winning debut author John Wiswell

Shesheshen has made a mistake fatal to all monsters: she's fallen in love.

Shesheshen is a shapeshifter, who happily resides as an amorphous lump at the bottom of a ruined manor. When her rest is interrupted by hunters intent on murdering her, she constructs a body from the remains of past meals: a metal chain for a backbone, borrowed bones for limbs, and a bear trap as an extra mouth.

However, the hunters chase Shesheshen out of her home and off a cliff. Badly hurt, she’s found and nursed back to health by Homily, a warm-hearted human, who has mistaken Shesheshen as a fellow human. Homily is kind and nurturing and would make an excellent co-parent: an ideal place to lay Shesheshen’s eggs so their young could devour Homily from the inside out. But as they grow close, she realizes humans don’t think about love that way.

Shesheshen hates keeping her identity secret from Homily, but just as she’s about to confess, Homily reveals why she’s in the area: she’s hunting a shapeshifting monster that supposedly cursed her family. Has Shesheshen seen it anywhere?

Eating her girlfriend isn’t an option. Shesheshen didn’t curse anyone, but to give herself and Homily a chance at happiness, she has to figure out why Homily’s twisted family thinks she did. As the hunt for the monster becomes increasingly deadly, Shesheshen must unearth the truth quickly, or soon both of their lives will be at risk.

And the bigger challenge remains: surviving her toxic in-laws long enough to learn to build a life with, rather than in, the love of her life.]]> 310 John Wiswell 0756418852 Jessica 0
Shesheshen and Homily are so cute together, and honestly, Shesheshen describing Homily as being so pleasingly big and solid was just really charming. ]]> 3.97 2024
author: John Wiswell
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/06
date added: 2025/04/07
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, horror, own
review:
So gooey, so gross, so . . . sweet? Can grimdark fantasy be cozy? This book posits that it can!

Shesheshen and Homily are so cute together, and honestly, Shesheshen describing Homily as being so pleasingly big and solid was just really charming.
]]> 154985479 The Magicians meets One Last Stop in this brand-new fantasy romance Remedial Magic, about an unassuming librarian who 1) has fallen in love with a powerful witch; 2) has discovered that she is a witch; and 3) must attend magical community college to learn how to save her new world from complete destruction by New York Times bestselling author Melissa Marr!

Ellie loves working in her local library in the small town of Ligonier. She loves baking scones and investigating the mysterious and captivating in her spare time. And there is nothing more mysterious and captivating than the intriguingly beautiful, too properly dressed woman sipping tea in her library who has appeared as if out of nowhere. The pull between them is undeniable, and Ellie is not sure that she wants to resist.

Prospero, a powerful witch from the magical land of Crenshaw, is often accused of being� ruthless in her goals and ambitions. But she is driven to save her dying homeland, and a prophecy tells her that Ellie is the key. Unbeknownst to Ellie, her powers have not yet awakened. But all of that is about to change.]]> 336 Melissa Marr 1250884136 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 2.90 2024
author: Melissa Marr
name: Jessica
average rating: 2.90
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/02
date added: 2025/04/05
shelves: audiobooks, contemporary, fantasy, own, romance
review:
Very cute and fantastical romcom with a fascinating mystery at its heart. I loved the idea of everyone in the magical world choosing their own fashions: the women in sensible pantsuits vs. those dressed like it's a Ren Faire vs. the guys in jeans! Because: why not?

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 38642323 A teen girl and her robot embark on a cross-country mission in this illustrated science fiction story, perfect for fans of Ready Player One and Black Mirror.

In late 1997, a runaway teenager and her small yellow toy robot travel west through a strange American landscape where the ruins of gigantic battle drones litter the countryside, along with the discarded trash of a high-tech consumerist society addicted to a virtual-reality system. As they approach the edge of the continent, the world outside the car window seems to unravel at an ever faster pace, as if somewhere beyond the horizon, the hollow core of civilization has finally caved in.]]> 144 Simon StĂĄlenhag 1501181416 Jessica 0 to-read 4.42 2017
author: Simon StĂĄlenhag
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2017
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 173956216
It's August 1999. For twelve-year-old Michael Rosario, life at Fox Run Apartments in Red Knot, Delaware, is as ordinary as ever—except for the looming Y2K crisis and his overwhelming crush on his fifteen-year-old babysitter, Gibby. But when a disoriented teenage boy named Ridge appears out of nowhere, Michael discovers there is more to life than stockpiling supplies and pining over Gibby.

It turns out that Ridge is carefree, confident, and bold, things Michael wishes he could be. Unlike Michael, however, Ridge isn’t where he belongs. When Ridge reveals that he’s the world’s first time traveler, Michael and Gibby are stunned but curious. As Ridge immerses himself in 1999—fascinated by microwaves, basketballs, and malls—Michael discovers that his new friend has a book that outlines the events of the next twenty years, and his curiosity morphs into something else: focused determination. Michael wants—no, needs—to get his hands on that book. How else can he prepare for the future? But how far is he willing to go to get it?]]> 272 Erin Entrada Kelly 0063337312 Jessica 5 4.07 2024
author: Erin Entrada Kelly
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/01
date added: 2025/04/01
shelves: award-winners, booksaboutbooks, middle-grade, science-fiction, read-aloud
review:

]]> 150247395
Called in to investigate this mystery is Ana Dolabra, an investigator whose reputation for brilliance is matched only by her eccentricities.

At her side is her new assistant, Dinios Kol. Din is an engraver, magically altered to possess a perfect memory. His job is to observe and report, and act as his superior’s eyes and ears--quite literally, in this case, as among Ana’s quirks are her insistence on wearing a blindfold at all times, and her refusal to step outside the walls of her home.

Din is most perplexed by Ana’s ravenous appetite for information and her mind’s frenzied leaps—not to mention her cheerful disregard for propriety and the apparent joy she takes in scandalizing her young counterpart. Yet as the case unfolds and Ana makes one startling deduction after the next, he finds it hard to deny that she is, indeed, the Empire’s greatest detective.

As the two close in on a mastermind and uncover a scheme that threatens the safety of the Empire itself, Din realizes he’s barely begun to assemble the puzzle that is Ana Dolabra—and wonders how long he’ll be able to keep his own secrets safe from her piercing intellect.

Featuring an unforgettable Holmes-and-Watson style pairing, a gloriously labyrinthine plot, and a haunting and wholly original fantasy world, The Tainted Cup brilliantly reinvents the classic mystery tale.]]> 410 Robert Jackson Bennett 1984820702 Jessica 0 fantasy, own

*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 4.28 2024
author: Robert Jackson Bennett
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/29
date added: 2025/04/01
shelves: fantasy, own
review:
For fans (like me!) of Bridge of Birds and Sherlock Holmes! We are presented with a world that seems at once Roman, Asian, and very unique. Air conditioning is provided by giant mushrooms in the corners of your house. The empire is rigidly divided, both the people and the geography, and the closer you are to the center the more important you are-- and the further you are from the GIANT SEA MONSTERS. Oh yes, there's giant sea monsters! Also: a REALLY trippy series of murders, and so enters our quirky investigator and her nervous and precious new assistant, to solve all the crime and also try not to either get murdered or eaten by GIANT SEA MONSTERS.


*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 217536270
In the land of the unforgiving desert, there isn't much a girl wouldn't do for a glass of water.

Twenty-four-year-old Saeris Fane is good at keeping secrets. No one knows about the strange powers she possesses, or the fact that she has been picking pockets and stealing from the Undying Queen's reservoirs for as long as she can remember.

But a secret is like a knot. Sooner or later, it is bound to come undone.

When Saeris comes face-to-face with Death himself, she inadvertently re-opens a gateway between realms and is transported to a land of ice and snow. The Fae have always been the stuff of myth, of legend, of nightmares... but it turns out they're real, and Saeris has landed herself in the middle of a centuries-long conflict that might just get her killed.

The first of her kind to tread the frozen mountains of Yvelia in over a thousand years, Saeris mistakenly binds herself to Kingfisher, a handsome Fae warrior, who has secrets and nefarious agendas of his own. He will use her Alchemist's magic to protect his people, no matter what it costs him . . . or her.

Death has a name. It is Kingfisher of the Ajun Gate. His past is murky. His attitude stinks. And he's the only way Saeris is going to make it home.]]> 624 Callie Hart 1538774194 Jessica 0 fantasy, own
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*

]]> 4.29 2024
author: Callie Hart
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/27
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves: fantasy, own
review:
I do enjoy a heroine who is not afraid to tell the men in her life where to get off. And Callie Hart sure can describe a man who is appealing to the Female Gaze, mmmm hmmm.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*


]]> 199798012
Veycosi, a scholar of folklore, hopes to sail off to examine the rare Alamat Book of Light and thus secure a spot for himself on Cynchin’s Colloquium. However, unexpected events prevent that from happening. Fifteen Ymisen galleons arrive in the harbor to force a trade agreement on Cynchin. Veycosi is put in charge of the situation, but quickly finds himself in way over his head.

Bad turns to worse when malign forces start stirring. Pickens (children) are disappearing and an ancient invading army, long frozen into piche (tar) statues by island witches is stirring to life—led by the fearsome demon known as the Blackheart Man. Veycosi has problems in his polyamorous personal life, too. How much trouble can a poor scholar take? Or cause all by himself?]]> 384 Nalo Hopkinson 1668005107 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.70 2024
author: Nalo Hopkinson
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/26
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
Highly recommend the audiobook, for the the performance. It really bring the dialect to life!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 195853531
A Fae lord who wants in.

A human woman willing to risk it all for a taste of power.

In a land ruled by ruthless Fae, twenty-one-year-old Lore Alemeyu’s village is trapped in a forested prison. Lore knows that any escape attempt is futile—her scars are a testament to her past failures. But when her village is threatened, Lore makes a desperate deal with a Fae lord. She will leave her home to catalog/organize an enchanted library that hasn’t been touched in a thousand years. No Fae may enter the library, but there is a chance a human might be able to breach the cursed doors.

She convinces him that she will risk her life for wealth, but really she’s after the one thing the Fae covet above all: magic of her own.

As Lore navigates the hostile world outside, she’s forced to rely on two Fae males to survive. Two very different, very dangerous, very attractive Fae males. When undeniable chemistry ignites, she’s not just in danger of losing her life, but her heart to the very creatures she can never trust.]]> 339 Analeigh Sbrana 0063380595 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 3.33 2024
author: Analeigh Sbrana
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.33
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/25
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves: audiobooks, booksaboutbooks, fantasy, own
review:
Oh, I'm a sucker for a magical library story!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*

]]> 360470 137 Franz Kafka 3596200199 Jessica 4 theclassics 3.87 1912
author: Franz Kafka
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1912
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2025/03/24
shelves: theclassics
review:

]]> 58329939
Nobody tells a tale like Granny Fuzz. The children of the village can listen all day to her stories about the mysterious hero Iron Purl. Purl could be counted on to show up just in the nick of time, using her superpower—knitting!—to save everyone from the mischief and danger caused by her nemesis, Bandit Bob. She could put out fires, trap thieves, and rescue a falling bunny, all with a pair of knitting needles and her trusty ball of yarn. But would Iron Purl always be able to get the better of that pesky bandit?

And might Granny Fuzz be hiding a secret in that knitting basket of hers?]]> 48 Tao Nyeu 0525428704 Jessica 5 knitting, own, picture-books
But who is this mysterious Iron Purl? And who was her great nemesis? The complex and beautiful pictures hold clues, and the ending is delightful! ]]> 3.93
author: Tao Nyeu
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.93
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/23
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves: knitting, own, picture-books
review:
Absolutely darling! Adorable woodland critters gather to hear a sweet granny mole tell them exciting stories about Iron Purl, who uses her knitting to rescue animals in distress and defeat dastardly pie-thieving bandits!

But who is this mysterious Iron Purl? And who was her great nemesis? The complex and beautiful pictures hold clues, and the ending is delightful!
]]> 214915520
However, when she realizes that she's not the only one who's been forced into this marital union, it's time to join forces with her unwanted new husband. If they can combine her scholarly skills with his ancient history, then, working together, they might just manage to reclaim her inheritance, break his curse, and find their freedom.

...Just so long as they don't fall in love along the way.

A witty and sparkling gothic fantasy novella that puts a new twist on Beauty and the Beast in an alternate-history version of late 19th century England.]]> Stephanie Burgis Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.46 2024
author: Stephanie Burgis
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.46
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/23
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves: historical-fiction, fantasy, own, romance
review:
Very fun novella about a lady scholar suddenly forced into marriage with a grumpy vampire. The reason why may surprise you!

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 199426853
Now they'll have to put aside old rivalries and grudges if they want to find or save the man who brought them together in the first place―and on the way they'll learn a great deal about the sinister house on the beach, the man who built it, and the evil he's bringing back to Marrowstone Island.

From award-winning author Cherie Priest comes a deeply haunting and atmospheric horror-thriller that explores the lengths we'll go to protect those we love.]]> 421 Cherie Priest 1728292824 Jessica 0 audiobooks, horror, own
Also, I was not expecting the direction that this haunted house story took.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*

]]> 3.32 2024
author: Cherie Priest
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.32
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/22
date added: 2025/03/22
shelves: audiobooks, horror, own
review:
At one point I was listening to this when I was the last person awake in my house, and I was like, What was I thinking?! This is a book that requires full daylight and more people around!

Also, I was not expecting the direction that this haunted house story took.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*


]]> 123654897
Meet Kavithri. Outcast. Underdog. Survivor.

Kavi is a Taemu. Her people, once feared berserkers and the spearhead of a continent-spanning invasion, are the dregs of Raayan society. Their spirits crushed. Their swords broken. Their history erased.

But Kavi has a dream and a plan. She will do whatever it takes to earn a place at the secretive mage academy, face the Jinn within its walls, and gain the power to rise above her station and drag her people out of the darkness.

Except power and knowledge come at a cost, and the world no longer needs a Taemu who can fight. So they will break her. Beat her down to her knees. And make her bleed.

But if blood is what they want, Kavi will give them blood. She will give them violence. She will show them a berserker's fury.

And she will make them remember her name.]]> 438 Aman J. Bedi 1399609882 Jessica 0 to-read 4.13 2024
author: Aman J. Bedi
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 63913799
Be not afraid! These monsters, creatures, and beasties are not what they appear. We Mostly Come Out at Night is a YA anthology that reclaims the monstrous for the LGBTQA+ community while exploring how there is freedom and power in embracing the things that make you stand out. Each story centers on both original and familiar monsters and creatures—including Mothman, Carabosse, a girl with thirteen shadows, a living house, werebeasts, gorgons, sirens, angels, and many others—and their stories of love, self-acceptance, resilience, and empowerment. This collection is a bold, transformative celebration of queerness and the creatures that (mostly) go bump in the night.

Contributors include editor Rob Costello, Kalynn Bayron, David Bowles, Shae Carys, Rob Costello, H.E. Edgmon, Michael Thomas Ford, Val Howlett, Brittany Johnson, Naomi Kanakia, Claire Kann, Jonathan Lenore Kastin, Sarah Maxfield, Sam J. Miller, Alexandra Villasante, and Merc Fenn Wolfmoor.]]> 384 Rob Costello 0762483199 Jessica 0 to-read 3.95 2024
author: Rob Costello
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 206101580 From the New York Times bestselling author and legendary storyteller Alan Moore, the first book in an enthralling new fantasy series about murder, magic, and madness in post-WWII London.

Dennis Knuckleyard is a hapless eighteen-year-old who works and lives in a second-hand bookstore. One day, his boss and landlady, Coffin Ada, sends him to retrieve some rare books, one of which, Dennis discovers, should not exist. A London Walk by Rev. Thomas Hampole is a fictitious book that appears in a real novel by another author. Yet A London Walk is physically there in his hands, nonetheless.

Coffin Ada tells Dennis the book comes from the other London, the Great When, a version of the city that is beyond time. In the Great When, epochs blend and realities and unrealities blur, while concepts such as Crime and Poetry are incarnated as wondrous and terrible beings. But, Coffin Ada tells Dennis, if he does not return the book to this other London, he will be killed.

So begins Dennis' adventure in Long London. Delving deep into the city's occult underbelly and tarrying with an eccentric cast of sorcerers, gangsters, and murderers, Dennis finds himself at the center of an explosive series of events that may endanger both Londons.

Mystical, hilarious, and magnificently imagined, The Great When is an unforgettable introduction to the consciousness-altering world of Long London.]]> 315 Alan Moore 1635578841 Jessica 0 to-read 3.57 2024
author: Alan Moore
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 199798512 An electrifying, gritty fantasy from debut author Hana Lee that takes a royal messenger on a high-speed chase across a climate-ravaged wasteland, featuring motorcycles, monsters, and magic.

Jin-Lu has the most dangerous job in the wasteland. She’s a magebike courier, one of the few who venture outside the domed cities on motorcycles powered by magic. Every day, she braves the wasteland’s dangers—deadly storms, roving marauders, and territorial beasts—to deliver her wares.

Her most valuable cargo? A prince’s love letters addressed to Yi-Nereen, a princess desperate to escape the clutches of her abusive family and soon-to-be husband. Jin, desperately in love with both her and the prince, can’t refuse Yi-Nereen’s plea for help. The two of them flee across the wastes, pursued by Yi-Nereen’s furious father, her scheming betrothed, and a bounty hunter with mysterious powers.

A storm to end all storms is brewing and dark secrets about the heritability of magic are coming to light. Jin’s heart has led her into peril before, but this time she may not find her way back.]]> 368 Hana Lee 1668035618 Jessica 0 to-read 3.69 2024
author: Hana Lee
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 61484917 A young squire tackles mysteries, monsters and magic, but the inept knight he serves takes the credit. Every time.

Squire is brainy, bookish, and terribly under-appreciated by the brawny, inept knight Sir Kelton, who somehow always gets all the glory. So when the two mismatched heroes find themselves in a cursed village plagued by a demonic dragon, Kelton rides off to slay it and Squire stays behind to catch up on some reading. But Squire starts to notice that something isn’t quite right about this town . . . Can he uncover its strange secrets?]]> 176 Scott Chantler 1250249333 Jessica 5 4.00 2023
author: Scott Chantler
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2023/06/04
date added: 2025/03/21
shelves: dragons, fantasy, middle-grade, library, graphics-n-comics
review:
So completely charming! The squire is an absolute cutie- so clever and long-suffering! Sir Kelton is such a big . . . knight. And the dragon? *chef's kiss* I loved the style of the art as well as the story, and I hope that there's more!
]]> 201750794
They aren’t the heroes of legend, like Lancelot or Gawain. They’re the oddballs of the Round Tables, from the edges of the stories, like Sir Palomides, the Saracen Knight and Sir Dagonet, Arthur’s fool, who was knighted as a joke. They’re joined by Nimue, who was Merlin’s apprentice until she turned on him and buried him under a hill. Together this ragtag fellowship will set out to rebuild Camelot in a world that has lost its balance.

But Arthur’s death has revealed Britain’s fault lines. God has abandoned it, and the fairies and monsters and old gods are returning, led by Arthur’s half-sister Morgan le Fay. Kingdoms are turning on each other, warlords are laying siege to Camelot, and rival factions are forming around the disgraced Lancelot and the fallen Queen Guinevere. It is up to Collum and his companions to reclaim Excalibur, solve the mysteries of this ruined world and make it whole again. But before they can restore Camelot they’ll have to learn the truth of why the lonely, brilliant King Arthur fell and lay to rest the ghosts of his troubled family and of Britain’s dark past.]]> 673 Lev Grossman 0735224048 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.94 2024
author: Lev Grossman
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/19
date added: 2025/03/19
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, king-arthur, library
review:
Did not think I would like this, because I am not the biggest fan of The Magicians, and I am very precious about King Arthur stories. But. Wow. This is the best sequel to The Sword in the Stone I've ever come across! Also, the author's note was deeply fascinating.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 210411871 A story of sisters separated by hundreds of years but bound together in more ways than they can imagine

2019: Lucy awakens in her ex-lover’s room in the middle of the night with her hands around his throat. Horrified, she flees to her sister’s house on the coast of New South Wales hoping Jess can help explain the vivid dreams that preceded the attack—but her sister is missing. As Lucy waits for her return, she starts to unearth strange rumours about Jess’s town—tales of numerous missing men, spread over decades. A baby abandoned in a sea-swept cave. Whispers of women’s voices on the waves. All the while, her dreams start to feel closer than ever.

1800: Mary and Eliza are torn from their loving home in Ireland and forced onto a convict ship heading for Australia. As the boat takes them farther and farther away from all they know, they begin to notice unexplainable changes in their bodies.

A breathtaking tale of female resilience, The Sirens is an extraordinary novel that captures the sheer power of sisterhood and the indefinable magic of the sea.]]> 337 Emilia Hart 1250280826 Jessica 0 to-read 3.81 2025
author: Emilia Hart
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/17
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 55591470
Until one day some capybaras appear. It's hunting season and they are looking for refuge. But they are unwanted, undesirable guests and even refuse to follow the rules. But as events unfold, minds begin to open and new possibilities appear.

A beautiful, simple, deep book about how accepting others can enrich us all.]]> 48 Alfredo Soderguit 1771647825 Jessica 5 own, picture-books 4.20 2020
author: Alfredo Soderguit
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/17
date added: 2025/03/17
shelves: own, picture-books
review:
Adorable picture book about a chicken farm getting unexpected, uninvited guests- a family of capybaras!
]]> 43275099 46 Agatha Christie 1974936317 Jessica 5
A missing ruby, a traditional English Country Christmas, and Hercule Poirot! I've heard about this one, and found the Kindle version for .99- money well spent! It's short- I heard it described as a short story, but it's more of a novella- and perfect for a holiday afternoon reading!]]> 4.36
author: Agatha Christie
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.36
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2022/11/30
date added: 2025/03/15
shelves: christmas, mysteries, own, new-favorites
review:
So fun!

A missing ruby, a traditional English Country Christmas, and Hercule Poirot! I've heard about this one, and found the Kindle version for .99- money well spent! It's short- I heard it described as a short story, but it's more of a novella- and perfect for a holiday afternoon reading!
]]> 210122902
That’s what everyone says, yours truly included.

Bryony’s been searching for her big sister for ten years and change, and the trail finally leads her to Mr. Once-Upon-a-Time’s traveling show. There’s a wolf who’ll serve you tea, a lady who’s sometimes a swan, and Bryony’s sister sound asleep in a glass casket. All of them, rolling through the wasteland in a giant wooden Whale.

The Whale’s important, you’ll see.

But Bryony’s not the only one on the hunt. Everyone on the Whale is running from something. And whether Bryony can wake her sister before they’re caught, well, only the Devil herself knows.

The Devil’s important as well. You’ll see that, too.]]> 164 K.T. Bryski Jessica 0 fairytales, own
This, this is what you'd get.

*I'm not rating any books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 4.15 2024
author: K.T. Bryski
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/15
date added: 2025/03/15
shelves: fairytales, own
review:
What if Ray Bradbury wrote fairy tale retellings?

This, this is what you'd get.

*I'm not rating any books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 201129898 Infused with magic and romance, this sweeping fantasy adventureĚýinspired by the legend of Mulan follows a young womanĚýdetermined to choose her own destiny—even if that means going against everyone she loves.

The Three Kingdoms are at war, but Meilin’s father refuses to answer the imperial draft. Trapped by his opium addiction, he plans to sell Meilin for her dowry. But when Meilin discovers her husband-to-be is another violent, ill-tempered man, she realizes that nothing will change for her unless she takes matters into her own hands.

The very next day, she disguises herself as a boy and enlists in her father’s place.

In the army, Meilin's relentless hard work brings her recognition, friendship—and a growing closeness with Sky, a prince turned training partner. But has she simply exchanged one prison for another?ĚýAs her kingdom barrels toward destruction, Meilin begins to have visions of a sea dragon spirit that offers her true power and freedom, but with a deadly price.

With the future of the Three Kingdoms hanging in the balance, Meilin will need to decide whom to trust—Sky, who inspires her loyalty and love; the sea dragon spirit, who has his own murky agenda; or an infuriating enemy prince who makes her question everything she once knew—about her kingdom and about her own heart.]]> 432 K.X. Song 0593815726 Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.80 2024
author: K.X. Song
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/12
date added: 2025/03/13
shelves: audiobooks, award-winners, dragons, fantasy, own
review:
Gritty retelling of The Ballad of Mulan, with some little nods to the Disney movie that I quite enjoyed. Also, the audiobook is great, because I do not speak Mandarin and it was good to hear the names pronounced correctly. (Although the physical book is GORGEOUS, with sprayed edges and look at that cover!)

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 36637 240 Joan Aiken 0395971284 Jessica 5 4.14 1964
author: Joan Aiken
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.14
book published: 1964
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/10
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves: fantasy, historical-fiction, middle-grade, own, read-aloud
review:
The Duke and Duchess are a Delight! Simon's adventures as jack-of-all-trades and generally good guy are so fun to read, and of course I always love a book where handwork of any kind saves the day!
]]> 203819380 180 Michael R. Fletcher 0648663523 Jessica 0 fantasy, horror, own
*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.71 2024
author: Michael R. Fletcher
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/11
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves: fantasy, horror, own
review:
Somewhere, beneath the piles of entrails, there's a very fascinating story about a story under siege and danger of binding a power you don't understand to do your bidding.

*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 198820966
In the School of Assassins, Stone Orphan waits for a first assignment. After their first kill, they will graduate, and attain the coveted cloth of bone. But instead of a commission, Stone Orphan gets an inquisitive linguist, UlĂ­n.

Ulín has heard the Orphan Star’s song of despair, mirroring her own, and drawing her to the School of Assassins. But Ulín is far more interested in learning Stone Orphan’s language than deciding whom she wishes to kill.

Unable to contain their curiosity, Stone Orphan offers to exchange stories with UlĂ­n to help her decide the fate of three men.

In R. B. Lemberg’s newest, lyrical Birdverse novella ( The Four Profound Weaves ; Geometries of Belonging ), an assassin and a linguist negotiate their very different languages, past betrayals, and an unexpected bond. By turns, Stone Orphan and Ulín narrate tales of love, suffering, exile, and self-determination, and two hurt souls find hope in each other through a radical listening.]]> 184 R.B. Lemberg 1616964189 Jessica 0 fantasy, own
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 4.27 2024
author: R.B. Lemberg
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/07
date added: 2025/03/09
shelves: fantasy, own
review:
Takes a bit of work to get into, but once you do, the rhythm of the language makes you feel like you're floating.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 201799733
Meet Laszlo, eight-hundred-year-old demon and Hell’s least productive Curse Keeper. From his office beneath Midtown, he oversees the Drakeford Curse, which involves a pathetic family upstate and a mysterious black stone. It’s a sexy enough assignment—colonial origins, mutating victims, et cetera—but Laszlo has no interest in maximizing the curse’s potential; he’d rather sunbathe in Ibiza, quaff martinis, and hustle the hustlers on Manhattan’s subway. Unfortunately, his division has new management, and Laszlo’s ratings are so abysmal that he’s given six days to shape up or he’ll be melted down and returned to the Primordial Ooze.

Meet Maggie Drakeford, nineteen-year-old Curse Bearer. All she’s ever known is the dreary corner of the Catskills where the Drakeford Curse has devoured her father’s humanity and is rapidly laying claim to her own. The future looks hopeless, until Laszlo appears at the Drakeford farmhouse one October night and informs them that they have six days—and six days only—to break the spell before it becomes permanent. Can Maggie trust the glib and handsome Laszlo? Of course not. But she also can’t pass up an opportunity to save her family, even if it means having a demon as a guide ...

Thus begins a breakneck international adventure that takes our unlikely duo from a hot dog stand in Central Park to the mountains of Liechtenstein, a five-star hotel in Zurich, and even the time-traveling vault of a demonic crime boss. As the clock ticks down, tough-as-nails Maggie and conniving Laszlo will uncover a secret so profound that what began as a farcical quest to break a curse will eventually threaten the very Lords of HelL]]> 462 Henry H. Neff Jessica 0
*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 4.18 2024
author: Henry H. Neff
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/07
date added: 2025/03/09
shelves: audiobooks, award-winners, fantasy, own
review:
An absolute HOOT. Definite shades of Good Omens, but grittier and more jaded.

*I am not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 200101541 A chilling twist on the “cursed filmâ€� genre from the bestselling author ofĚýThe Pallbearers Club ˛ą˛Ô»ĺĚýThe Cabin at the End of the World.

In June 1993, a group of young guerilla filmmakers spent four weeks making Horror Movie, a notorious, disturbing, art-house horror flick.

The weird part?ĚýOnly three of the film’s scenes were ever released to the public, but Horror Movie has nevertheless grown a rabid fanbase. Three decades later, Hollywood is pushing for a big budget reboot.

The man who played “The Thin Kid� is the only surviving cast member. He remembers all too well the secrets buried within the original screenplay, the bizarre events of the filming, and the dangerous crossed lines on set that resulted in tragedy. As memories flood back in, the boundaries between reality and film, past and present start to blur. But he’s going to help remake the film, even if it means navigating a world of cynical producers, egomaniacal directors, and surreal fan conventions � demons of the past be damned.

But at what cost?Ěý

Horror Movie is an obsessive, psychologically chilling, and suspenseful twist on the “cursed film� that breathlessly builds to an unforgettable, mind-bending conclusion.]]> 277 Paul Tremblay 0063070014 Jessica 0 horror, own
*I am not rating any of the books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.31 2024
author: Paul Tremblay
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.31
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/03
date added: 2025/03/03
shelves: horror, own
review:
Super creepy, and I was all in until the end when I feel like it kinda went too far? But if you love horror, you will probably be fine.

*I am not rating any of the books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 193544852
Spirits are drawn to salt, be it blood or tears.

Roos Beckman has a spirit companion only she can see. Ruth—strange, corpse-like, and dead for centuries—is the light of Roos' life. That is, until the wealthy young widow Agnes Knoop visits one of Roos' backroom seances, and the two strike up a connection.

Soon, Roos is whisked away to the crumbling estate Agnes inherited upon the death of her husband, where an ill woman haunts the halls, strange smells drift through the air, and mysterious stone statues reside in the family chapel. Something dreadful festers in the manor, but still, the attraction between Roos and Agnes is undeniable.

Then, someone is murdered.

Poor, alone, and with a history of 'hysterics', Roos is the obvious culprit. With her sanity and innocence in question, she'll have to prove who—or what—is at fault or lose everything she holds dear.

"A Sapphic seance of preternatural proportions, My Darling Dreadful Thing summons a stunning new literary voice to be reckoned with. Johanna van Veen reaches beyond the veil to conjure up a gothic shocker like no other."—Clay McLeod Chapman, author of What Kind of Mother and Ghost Eaters

©2024 Johanna van Veen (P)2024 Tantor]]> 375 Johanna van Veen 1728281547 Jessica 0 audiobooks, horror, own
*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.85 2024
author: Johanna van Veen
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/02
date added: 2025/03/02
shelves: audiobooks, horror, own
review:
For you Crimson Peak fans out there who are like, what if I read a book with similar vibes instead of just salivating over this movie again?

*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 205212830 When lies become truths and
two kingdoms� head to a bloody war,
a man is exiled for his conscience

Refusing the queen’s order to gas a crowd of protesters, Minister Shea Ashcroft is banished to the border to oversee construction of the biggest defensive tower in history. However, the use of advanced technology taken from refugees makes the tower volatile and dangerous, becoming a threat to local interests. Shea has no choice but to fight the local hierarchy to ensure the construction succeeds—and to reclaim his own life.

Surviving an assassination attempt, Shea confronts his inner demons, encounters an ancient legend, and discovers a portal to a dead world—all the while struggling to stay true to his own principles and maintain his sanity. Fighting memories and hallucinations, he starts to question everything...

Sleeping Worlds Have No Memory is a thought-provoking meditation on the fragility of the human condition, our beliefs, the manipulation of propaganda for political gains, and our ability to distinguish the real from the unreal and willingness to accept convenient “truths.� The novel is a compelling exploration of memory, its fragile nature, and its profound impact on our perception of identity, relationships, and facts themselves.

A unique blend of science fiction, fantasy and noir, with zeitgeist and prophetic qualities (the original novella anticipated the Russo-Ukrainian War), this is a must for fans of China Miéville’s Bas-Lag series, Ted Chiang’s Tower of Babylon, and Robert Silverberg’s Tower of Glass.]]> 300 Yaroslav Barsukov 1647101360 Jessica 0 to-read 4.05 2024
author: Yaroslav Barsukov
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 199531855 A beautifully crafted, enriching saga inspired by East Asian mythology, The Melancholy of Untold History is Minsoo Kang’s debut novel, steeped in history like R.F. Kuang’s Babel, epic in scope like Anthony Doerr’s Cloud Cuckoo Land, and lyrically exciting like David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas, interweaving four complex yet entertaining stories as they shape and create a nation’s literary narrative through the themes of love and grief.

A history professor mourning his wife. His young protégé’s search for a path forward. Four witty mountain gods with much to say and not enough time to listen. A gifted storyteller bringing a world into being out of thin air...

Famous for his dispelling of the national myth, the Historian understands the power of narrative. He has inspired another young professor to search for her own truths, while trying to understand the way fiction creates fact and how sometimes the past can only be understood by filling in holes with a new narrative. Which is exactly what he needs when his wife passes away to parse meaning out of a world that no longer makes sense.

Together the protégé and the Historian find comfort in each other. Yet they know their time together is fleeting, as time usually is. Only the gods have an abundance of time, and yet—the two discover—even that might not be so clear cut. Part of their homeland’s myth tells of four gods who squabbled and argued and destroyed and rebuilt time and again.

Or did they?

Because, of course, even the gods need mouthpieces on earth. And the one the Historian knows of—the elusive Storyteller—may have just been spinning tales for his own amusement and, ultimately, revenge. By fabricating the exploits of the gods, he could have set a course for certain events to unfold and a particular story to survive today.

Spanning 3,000 years and multiple voices—with tales within tales woven expertly together�The Melancholy of Untold History reveals a people and its individuals who seek to confront the hardships of life through storytelling. Mixing the East Asian mythos with a postmodern approach to standard sci-fi/fantasy narrative tropes, Minsoo Kang has created a challenging, beautiful, sad, humorous, and ultimately unforgettable novel of love, grief, and myth-making.]]> 240 Minsoo Kang 0063337509 Jessica 0 3.70 2024
author: Minsoo Kang
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/26
date added: 2025/03/01
shelves: audiobooks, dragons, fantasy, own
review:
A moody story within a story within a story, in the vein of Cloud Atlas, and set in a world that is not quite our own.
]]> 201751274
Charles� life is split between two worlds: one real and one fantasy. In the real world, he is a lonely, bullied kid who can’t keep up with school when the letters refuse to stay still on the page, and is constantly in trouble for getting distracted. He lives with his mom in an apartment building, where Glory, the grumpy old superintendent, fills his head with stories about the Dream Folk.

In his fantasy world, the Sanctuary, Charles adventures with faeries and sprites and his two imaginary best friends. There, Charles's bullies become ogres, and Glory opens his arms wide to transform into a dragon. But when trolls move into Charles� apartment building and bring with them a terrible secret, the stories he has been told and the ones he brings to life grow more complicated. To protect everyone he cares about, Charles must harness his imagination in ways he never dreamed, in this unique story of the spaces and narratives we create for ourselves, and the ways in which fantasy and reality collide and blur.]]> 400 Rob Cameron 0593572459 Jessica 0
*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 4.24 2024
author: Rob Cameron
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/25
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves: dragons, fantasy, own, contemporary
review:
So stressful! Is Charles right? Is the world full of monsters only he and Mr. Miles can see? Or is this all in his head? And what is happening with the new tenants - do they know that Charles can see their real faces? Things like this are really freaky to me, because I'm always so worried that it's all in the main character's head, and there are no dragons or trolls, just someone hiding from reality, or who genuinely can't tell the difference, and there's going to be a big reveal where nothing was magical the character was wrong. I can safely tell you: this was not that! This was VERY different, different from most of the MG I've read lately, and very unique!

*I'm not rating books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 210585822 A little free library guarded by a cat and a boy who takes on the mystery it keeps.

When a mysterious little free library (guarded by a large orange cat) appears overnight in the small town of Martinville, eleven-year-old Evan plucks two weathered books from its shelves, never suspecting that his life is about to change.

Evan and his best friend Rafe quickly discover a link between one of the old books and a long-ago event that none of the grown-ups want to talk about. The two boys start asking questions whose answers will transform not only their own futures, but the town itself.

Told in turn by a ghost librarian named Al, an aging (but beautiful) cat named Mortimer, and Evan himself, The Lost Library is a timeless story from award-winning authors Rebecca Stead and Wendy Mass. It's about owning your truth, choosing the life you want, and the power of a good book (and, of course, the librarian who gave it to you).]]> 224 Rebecca Stead 1250838835 Jessica 0 to-read 4.40 2023
author: Rebecca Stead
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 181865600
A mother and a son. A goddess and a prince. A curse and an oath. A river whose course will change the fate of the world.

Ganga, joyful goddess of the river, serves as caretaker to the mischievous godlings who roam her banks. But when their antics incur the wrath of a powerful sage, Ganga is cursed to become mortal, bound to her human form until she fulfills the obligations of the curse.

Though she knows nothing of mortal life, Ganga weds King Shantanu and becomes a queen, determined to regain her freedom no matter the cost. But in a cruel turn of fate, just as she is freed of her binding, she is forced to leave her infant son behind.

Her son, prince Devavrata, unwittingly carries the legacy of Ganga’s curse. And when he makes an oath that he will never claim his father’s throne, he sets in motion a chain of events that will end in a terrible and tragic war.

As the years unfold, Ganga and Devavrata are drawn together again and again, each confluence another step on a path that has been written in the stars, in this deeply moving and masterful tale of duty, destiny, and the unwavering bond between mother and son.]]> 496 Vaishnavi Patel 035652020X Jessica 0
*I will not be rating any books read for the World Fantasy Award.* ]]> 3.77 2024
author: Vaishnavi Patel
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/24
date added: 2025/02/24
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, mythology, own
review:
Gorgeous retelling of the story of the River Gunga from the Mahabarata. The writing is very stylish and I loved listening to the audiobook so I got the correct pronunciation of the names.

*I will not be rating any books read for the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 10697427
"Unlike any children's book I've ever read. [It] holds up to multiple rereadings, like the classic I think it will turn out to be." - New York Times Book Review]]> 288 Adam Gidwitz 0142419672 Jessica 4 fairytales, middle-grade, own 3.97 2010
author: Adam Gidwitz
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2012/11/30
date added: 2025/02/24
shelves: fairytales, middle-grade, own
review:
A tongue-in-cheek look at the real Grimm's fairy tales as Hansel and Gretel find themselves escaping from their parents into one horror after another, all based on some of the most gruesome of the stories. Gidwitz leavens it with a healthy dose of humor in the form of warnings- at one point suggesting that younger readers would be better off going with the babysitter to see an R-rated movie than reading what comes next! What kept me from loving it whole-heartedly was that he is, to a certain extent, right. Much of what happens really IS too horrible for younger or more sensitive readers. So I hesitate to give this to my 2nd grader (for whom I originally purchased the book) because I know that he, personally, suffers from nightmares and this might be a bit much for him. So just a little warning to the parents out there: know your child, take a look at the book, decide if it's really for them.
]]> 202102084 From #1 New York Times bestselling author Ava Reid comes a reimagining of Lady Macbeth, Shakespeare’s most famous villainess, giving her a voice, a past, and a power that transforms the story men have written for her.

The Lady knows the stories: how her eyes induce madness in men.Ěý

The Lady knows she will be wed to the Scottish brute, who does not leave his warrior ways behind when he comes to the marriage bed.ĚýĚý

The Lady knows his hostile, suspicious court will be a game of strategy, requiring all of her wiles and hidden witchcraft to survive.Ěý

But the Lady does not know her husband has occult secrets of his own. She does not know that prophecy girds him like armor. She does not know that her magic is greater and more dangerous, and that it will threaten the order of the world.Ěý

She does not know this yet. But she will.]]> 295 Ava Reid 0593722566 Jessica 0 3.46 2024
author: Ava Reid
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.46
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/19
date added: 2025/02/19
shelves: audiobooks, dragons, fantasy, historical-fiction, library
review:
Unusual and rather loose retelling of, you guessed it, Macbeth! Did not see a couple of those twists coming, that is for darn sure!
]]> 127278666 Some people think foxes are similar to ghosts because we go around collecting qi, but nothing could be further than the truth. We are living creatures, just like you, only usually better looking . . .

Manchuria, 1908.
In the last years of the dying Qing Empire, a courtesan is found frozen in a doorway. Her death is clouded by rumors of foxes, which are believed to lure people by transforming themselves into beautiful women and handsome men. Bao, a detective with an uncanny ability to sniff out the truth, is hired to uncover the dead woman’s identity. Since childhood, Bao has been intrigued by the fox gods, yet they’ve remained tantalizingly out of reach—until, perhaps, now.

Meanwhile, a family who owns a famous Chinese medicine shop can cure ailments but can’t escape the curse that afflicts them—their eldest sons die before their twenty-fourth birthdays. When a disruptively winsome servant named Snow enters their household, the family’s luck seems to change—or does it?

Snow is a creature of many secrets, but most of all she’s a mother seeking vengeance for her lost child. Hunting a murderer, she will follow the trail from northern China to Japan, while Bao follows doggedly behind. Navigating the myths and misconceptions of fox spirits, both Snow and Bao will encounter old friends and new foes, even as more deaths occur.

New York Times bestselling author Yangsze Choo brilliantly explores a world of mortals and spirits, humans and beasts, and their dazzling intersection. Epic in scope and full of singular, unforgettable characters, The Fox Wife is a stunning novel about old loves and second chances, the depths of maternal love, and ancient folktales that may very well be true.]]> 390 Yangsze Choo 1250266017 Jessica 0

*I'm not rating any books read for the the World Fantasy Award.*]]> 3.97 2024
author: Yangsze Choo
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/15
date added: 2025/02/15
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, library, mysteries, mythology
review:
Gorgeous. The writing was superb, but it was the characters that I couldn't get enough of. I would read endless books about Bao, and Snow, and Kuro!


*I'm not rating any books read for the the World Fantasy Award.*
]]> 182761629
Britain, 60AD. Hoping to save her lover, her land, and her people from the Romans, Herla makes a desperate pact with the king of the Otherworld. But years pass unheeded in his realm, and she escapes to find everyone she loved long dead. Cursed to wield his blade, she becomes Lord of the Hunt. And for centuries, she rides, leading her immortal warriors and reaping wanderers� souls. Until the night she meets a woman on a bloody battlefield—a Saxon queen with ice-blue eyes.

Queen Æthelburg of Wessex is a proven fighter. But when she leads her forces to disaster in battle, her husband’s court turns against her. Yet King Ine needs Æthel more than ever. Something dark and dangerous is at work in the Wessex court. His own brother seeks to usurp him. And their only hope is the magic in Ine’s bloodline that’s lain dormant since ancient days.

The moment she and Æthel meet, Herla knows it’s no coincidence. The dead kings are waking. The Otherworld seeks to rise, to bring the people of Britain under its dominion. And as Herla and Æthel grow closer, Herla must find her humanity—and a way to break the curse—before it’s too late.]]> 448 Lucy Holland 0316321656 Jessica 0 to-read 3.69 2024
author: Lucy Holland
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 981234
After more than fifteen years as a writing shelf classic, The Way to Write for Children has been completely revised and updated. From analysis of what makes the best-loved children's books so successful, to where to look for inspiration, to practical advice on how to structure a plot, Aiken delivers an extremely useful book for anyone who's ever considered writing a children's book.]]> 97 Joan Aiken 031220048X Jessica 0 currently-reading 3.74 1982
author: Joan Aiken
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.74
book published: 1982
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/14
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> 127305606 The Dead Cat Tail Assassins are not cats.

Nor do they have tails.

But they are most assuredly dead.

Nebula and Alex Award winner P. Djèlí Clark introduces a brand-new world and a fantastical city full of gods and assassins.

Eveen the Eviscerator is skilled, discreet, professional, and here for your most pressing needs in the ancient city of Tal Abisi. Her guild is strong, her blades are sharp, and her rules are simple. Those sworn to the Matron of Assassins―resurrected, deadly, wiped of their memories―have only three unbreakable vows.

First, the contract must be just. That’s above Eveen’s pay grade.

Second, even the most powerful assassin may only kill the contracted. Eveen’s a professional. She’s never missed her mark.

The third and the simplest: once you accept a job, you must carry it out. And if you stray? A �nal death would be a mercy. When the Festival of the Clockwork King turns the city upside down, Eveen’s newest mission brings her face-to-face with a past she isn’t supposed to remember and a vow she can’t forget.]]> 213 P. Djèlí Clark 1250767040 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
We have a fierce and undead female assassin being given an impossible contract: to assassinate a teenage girl who, well, I won't spoil it! It was fun and kept it all moving, and had a surprising ending.

*I am not rating any books read for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.84 2024
author: P. Djèlí Clark
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/12
date added: 2025/02/14
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
On the line between YA and adult, actually, I would give this to an older teen who likes fantasy, although there is violence of the fighting with knives sort.

We have a fierce and undead female assassin being given an impossible contract: to assassinate a teenage girl who, well, I won't spoil it! It was fun and kept it all moving, and had a surprising ending.

*I am not rating any books read for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 198688474
Ten years ago, Malik's life changed forever the night his mother mysteriously vanished and he discovered he had uncontrollable powers. Since then, he has kept his abilities hidden, looking out for himself and his younger foster brother, Taye. Now, at 17, Malik is finally ready to start a new life for both of them, far from the trauma of his past. However, a daring act to rescue Taye reveals an unexpected connection with his long-lost a legendary conjurer with ties to a hidden magical university that Malik’s mother attended.

At Caiman University, Malik’s eyes are opened to a future he never could have envisioned for himself� one that includes the reappearance of his first love, Alexis. His search for answers about his heritage, his powers, and what really happened to his mother exposes the cracks in their magical community as it faces a reawakened evil dating back to the Haitian Revolution. Together with Alexis, Malik discovers a lot beneath the surface at feuding covens and magical politics, forbidden knowledge and buried mysteries.

In a wholly unique saga of family, history and community, Malik must embrace his legacy to save what's left of his old family as well as his new one. Exploring the roots and secrets that connect us in an unforgettable contemporary setting, this heart-pounding fantasy series opener is a rich tapestry of atmosphere, intrigue, and emotion.]]> 432 LaDarrion Williams 0593711920 Jessica 0
I'm also quite pleased to see that this is listed at book one, there's a lot of series potential here, and I'd love to see more!

Content warning: The language is SALTY, but also very realistic.

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 4.04 2024
author: LaDarrion Williams
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/13
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, library, youngadult
review:
I had no idea that there was a secret HBU for magic users! But I'm certainly not surprised!

I'm also quite pleased to see that this is listed at book one, there's a lot of series potential here, and I'd love to see more!

Content warning: The language is SALTY, but also very realistic.

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 56163940
Calling on some of the city’s most skilled outcasts, Arthie hatches a plan to infiltrate the dark and glittering vampire society known as the Athereum. But not everyone in her ragtag crew is on her side, and as the truth behind the heist unfolds, Arthie finds herself in the midst of a conspiracy that will threaten the world as she knows it.

From the New York Times–bestselling author of We Hunt the Flame comes the first book in a hotly-anticipated fantasy duology teeming with romance, revenge, and an orphan girl willing to do whatever it takes to save her self-made kingdom. Dark, action-packed, and swoonworthy, this is Hafsah Faizal better than ever.]]> 340 Hafsah Faizal Jessica 0
*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.65 2024
author: Hafsah Faizal
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/19
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, library, werewolvesnvampires, youngadult
review:
Fun heist fantasy, like Six of Crows but with vampires and colonization!

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 214481315 1 H.G. Parry Jessica 0 fantasy, own
*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 4.33 2024
author: H.G. Parry
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/21
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: fantasy, own
review:
Wow. I'm normally indifferent to Peter Pan stories, but this was gorgeous and so, so heartbreaking!

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 209656459
Bound in an unwanted marriage, Freya spends her days gutting fish, but dreams of becoming a warrior. And of putting an axe in her boorish husband’s back.

Freya’s dreams abruptly become reality when her husband betrays her to the region’s jarl, landing her in a fight to the death against his son, Bjorn. To survive, Freya is forced to reveal her deepest secret: She possesses a drop of a goddess’s blood, which makes her a shield maiden with magic capable of repelling any attack. It was foretold such a magic would unite the fractured nation of Skaland beneath the one who controls the shield maiden’s fate.

Believing he’s destined to rule Skaland as king, the fanatical jarl binds Freya with a blood oath and orders Bjorn to protect her from their enemies. Desperate to prove her strength, Freya must train to fight and learn to control her magic, all while facing perilous tests set by the gods. The greatest test of all, however, may be resisting her forbidden attraction to Bjorn. If Freya succumbs to her lust for the charming and fierce warrior, she risks not only her own destiny but the fate of all the people she swore to protect.]]> 414 Danielle L. Jensen Jessica 0
*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 4.02 2024
author: Danielle L. Jensen
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/24
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, library, romance, scandinavian-authors
review:
I really thought this book would be just exactly my thing, but alas! It was intriguing, it was sexy, it was chock full o' people named Freya and Snorri . . . but I just didn't connect with it. I think part of it was because I listened to the audiobook, and I found myself nitpicking the reader's pronunciation of the names . . . I'm terrible, I know!

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 64414866 An Education in Malice is a dark academia tale of blood, secrets and insatiable hungers from Sunday Times bestselling author S.T. Gibson, author of the cult hit A Dowry of Blood.

Deep in the forgotten hills of Massachusetts stands Saint Perpetua's College. Isolated and ancient, it is not a place for timid girls. Here, secrets are currency, ambition is lifeblood, and strange ceremonies welcome students into the fold.

On her first day of class, Laura Sheridan is thrust into an intense academic rivalry with the beautiful and enigmatic Carmilla. Together, they are drawn into the confidence of their demanding poetry professor, De Lafontaine, who holds her own dark obsession with Carmilla.

But as their rivalry blossoms into something far more delicious, Laura must confront her own strange hungers. Tangled in a sinister game of politics, bloodthirsty professors and dark magic, Laura and Carmilla must decide how much they are willing to sacrifice in their ruthless pursuit of knowledge.]]> 352 S.T. Gibson 0356519325 Jessica 0

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.51 2024
author: S.T. Gibson
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/26
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own, werewolvesnvampires
review:
Heavy on education, light on the malice. As a retelling of Carmilla, I was expecting the opposite, to be frank.


*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 182761396 Set in a world of perilous magic and moonlit forests, this seductive romantic fantasy tells the story of a defiant changeling, her cursed sister, and the dangerous fae lord she must defeat to save her family.

In a kingdom where magic has been lost, Fia is a rare changeling, left behind by the wicked Fair Folk when they stole the High Queen's daughter and retreated behind the locked gates of Tír na nÓg.

Most despise Fia's fae blood. But the queen raises her as a daughter and trains her to be a spy. Meanwhile, the real princess Eala is bound to Tír na nÓg, cursed to become a swan by day and only returning to her true form at night.

When a hidden gate to the realm is discovered, Fia is tasked by the queen to retrieve the princess and break her curse. But she doesn’t go with her is prince Rogan, Fia's dearest childhood friend—and Eala’s betrothed.

As they journey through the forests of the Folk, where magic winds through the roots of the trees and beauty can be a deadly illusion, Fia’s mission is complicated by her feelings for the prince…and her unexpected attraction to the dark-hearted fae lord holding Eala captive. Irian might be more monster than man, but he seems to understand Fia in a way no one ever has.

Soon, Fia begins to question the truth of her mission. But time is running out to break her sister's curse. And unraveling the secrets of the past might destroy everything she has come to love.]]> 496 Lyra Selene 0316564966 Jessica 0

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.71 2024
author: Lyra Selene
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/31
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: fairytales, fantasy, own, romance
review:
Swans are vicious assholes and I feel like it goes without saying that you should be wary of anyone who can turn into one.


*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 201626899
On an Island where boys fly and fight pirates, but girls can only be mothers, Jordan's shaved head and false swagger are the only things keeping her adopted crew of Lost Boys from forcing her into a role she has never wanted. When she gets her first period, she's exposed and thrown back Outside—into a world where grown-ups die slowly in offices, flight is a fantasy, and withdrawal from the Island’s magical Dust slowly strips its afflicted of their dignity.

To Jordan, it’s a fate worse than death.

Nine years later, when the drug she has been using to medicate her withdrawal begins to show its fatal final symptoms, Jordan persuades her best friend and fellow ex-Lost Boy to return with her to the Island. With the help of a temperamental pilot and her long-estranged sister, she sets in motion a plan to oust Peter from his throne and seize control of the Island’s Dust supply.

But Peter isn't the only malevolent force moving against her. As Jordan confronts the nature of Dust, first love, and the violent legacy carved into the land itself, she realises the Island may have plans of its own...]]> 464 P.H. Low 0316569208 Jessica 0 booksaboutbooks, fantasy, own
*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.12 2024
author: P.H. Low
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.12
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/02
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: booksaboutbooks, fantasy, own
review:
Fascinating alternate world "sequel" to Peter Pan. I keep thinking about this one, about what it would be like to spend years with magic: able to fly, having endless adventures, wounds healed by magic. And then to have that taken away . . .

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 198190203 A determined young woman in 1950s Los Angeles walks a darker city than she ever imagined in a spellbinding novel about the power to make dreams come true―whatever the sacrifice.

Los Angeles brims with opportunity in 1959―though not for aspiring fashion designer Cordelia Mai Yin, the first-generation child of Vietnamese immigrants, who finds the city unkind to outsiders and as dispirited as her own family. When Cordi rents a cheap loft in an old apartment building, she quickly warms to kindred souls Tessa, Audrey, and Silly. They also want better things and have pasts they’d rather forget. That they all share the same middle name makes their friendship seem like destiny.

As supportive as they are of each other, it’s a struggle just to eke out a living, let alone hope to see their wishes for success come true. Until an ever-present and uncannily charming acquaintance of the landlord’s offers a solution to their problems. He promises to fulfill their every dream. All it takes is a little magic. And a small sacrifice.

As one surprisingly effective spell leads to another, their wishes get bigger. But so does the price they must pay. Amid the damaged seams of her life so far, Cordi must realize her own power in order to rip free, without losing everything she’s worked so hard to achieve.]]> 347 Van Hoang 166251784X Jessica 0
Just a fabulous reminder that if one of your roommates says, "Hey, we should do a spell/play with a ouija board/poke things in this voodoo doll," the only correct answer is "NO!"

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.42 2024
author: Van Hoang
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.42
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/09
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: historical-fiction, fantasy, library
review:
Picked this up on a whim from the library, once I got into it, I couldn't put it down!

Just a fabulous reminder that if one of your roommates says, "Hey, we should do a spell/play with a ouija board/poke things in this voodoo doll," the only correct answer is "NO!"

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 157981682 The Book of Love showcases Kelly Link at the height of her powers, channeling potent magic and attuned to all varieties of love—from friendship to romance to abiding family ties—with her trademark compassion, wit, and literary derring-do. Readers will find joy (and a little terror) and an affirmation that love goes on, even when we cannot.

Late one night, Laura, Daniel, and Mo find themselves beneath the fluorescent lights of a high school classroom, almost a year after disappearing from their hometown, the small seaside community of Lovesend, Massachusetts, having long been presumed dead. Which, in fact, they are.

With them in the room is their previously unremarkable high school music teacher, who seems to know something about their disappearance—and what has brought them back again. Desperate to reclaim their lives, the three agree to the terms of the bargain their music teacher proposes. They will be given a series of magical tasks; while they undertake them, they may return to their families and friends, but they can tell no one where they’ve been. In the end, there will be winners and there will be losers.

But their resurrection has attracted the notice of other supernatural figures, all with their own agendas. As Laura, Daniel, and Mo grapple with the pieces of the lives they left behind, and Laura’s sister, Susannah, attempts to reconcile what she remembers with what she fears, these mysterious others begin to arrive, engulfing their community in danger and chaos, and it becomes imperative that the teens solve the mystery of their deaths to avert a looming disaster.]]> 628 Kelly Link 0812996585 Jessica 0 audiobooks, fantasy, own
*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.45 2024
author: Kelly Link
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/09
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: audiobooks, fantasy, own
review:
Gorgeous and weird AF (as foretold).

*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 203264082
There have always been whispers. Legends. The warrior who cannot be killed. Who’s seen a thousand civilizations rise and fall. He has had many names: Unute, Child of Lightning, Death himself. These days, he’s known simply as “B.�

And he wants to be able to die.

In the present day, a U.S. black-ops group has promised him they can help with that. And all he needs to do is help them in return. But when an all-too-mortal soldier comes back to life, the impossible event ultimately points toward a force even more mysterious than B himself. One at least as strong. And one with a plan all its own.

A mind-blowing epic of ancient powers, modern war, and an outcast who cannot die. Combines Miéville’s singular style and creativity with Reeves’s haunting and soul-stirring narrative, unlike anything these two genre-bending pioneers have created before, inspired by the world of the BRZRKR comic books.]]> 341 Keanu Reeves 0593446615 Jessica 0 fantasy, library


*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*]]> 3.79 2024
author: Keanu Reeves
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/02/11
date added: 2025/02/12
shelves: fantasy, library
review:
Ever wanted to read John Wick fanfiction, written by Keanu Reeves? You are IN LUCK. This was fun and occasionally very, very gross, and occasionally a bit baffling. I blame that on China Miéville, whose books are always like, "Wow, so brilliant! Wow, that was disgusting! Wait . . . what?" for me. It was definitely fun, and I definitely would watch a whole series of movies of this.



*I am not rating any books eligible for the World Fantasy Award*
]]> 36638
With the help of Simon the gooseboy and his flock, they escape. But how will they ever get Willoughby Chase free from the clutches of the evil Miss Slighcarp?]]> 181 Joan Aiken 0385327900 Jessica 5 4.06 1962
author: Joan Aiken
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1962
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/08
date added: 2025/02/10
shelves: mysteries, middle-grade, own, read-aloud
review:
Sheer delight. A classic children's adventure tale, full of Aiken's sly wit and cleverness.
]]> 61300301 Eleven diverse vampire stories from YA's leading voices, including V.E. Schwab's "First Kill," soon to be a major Netflix adaptation!

In this delicious new collection, you’ll find stories about lurking vampires of social media, rebellious vampires hungry for more than just blood, eager vampires coming out―and going out for their first kill―and other bold, breathtaking, dangerous, dreamy, eerie, iconic, powerful creatures of the night.

Welcome to the evolution of the vampire―and a revolution on the page.

Vampires Never Get Old includes stories by authors both bestselling and acclaimed, including Samira Ahmed, Dhonielle Clayton, Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker, Tessa Gratton, Heidi Heilig, Julie Murphy, Mark Oshiro, Rebecca Roanhorse, Laura Ruby, Victoria “V. E.� Schwab, and Kayla Whaley.]]> 293 Zoraida Córdova 1789096952 Jessica 0 3.42 2020
author: Zoraida CĂłrdova
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.42
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/08
shelves:
review:

]]> 68494 710 China Miéville 0345459407 Jessica 0 own, fantasy, horror
Perdido Street Station is a book built on the bones of a strange story, enormous, enigmatic, wondrous.

New Crobuzon has overrun those bones with filth, slums, streets that smell like piss, clots of dilapidated buildings that smell like sex and death, mold, shit, and the effluvia of thousands of downtrodden junkies and prostitutes.

Perdido Street Station has overrun the bones of the story with words like clot, piss, effluvia, glandular, shit, mold, filth, soiled, stained, blood, decay, and rot- just to list a few of Mieville's favorite words. Everything from a group of buildings to the light from the street lamps is described as being a "clot" or "clotted." Rain is compared to pus: big warm drops falling on you. You know, like pus does. Apparently.

Getting to the plot of this book, getting to the STORY, felt like I was trying to shovel the shit out of a sewer. When at one point the characters, who live in slums and constantly seem to be filthy, stained, hungry, and sweaty, had to take refuge in a sewer and were horrified by the sights and smells, I burst out laughing. The only descriptive words that differed between the descriptions of their HOMES and the SEWER was the addition of the phrase "faecal water." So apparently these people do have some standards? That's nice for them.

Descriptions of body horrors that seemed to be hinting at some nefarious government plot. Torture. Rape. Murder. Dismemberment. What did it have to do with the story, which (once he got around to it) involved a government cover up, a science experiment gone wrong, and something about literal Hell that I think didn't actually need to be there? Nothing. None of these things needed to happen. Nothing needed to be described this way. One of the characters was already terrifying without needing to cut off the ears of everyone in the room because it seemed like a good idea at the time. If you cut out the needless descriptions of whore houses, of experiments that had resulted in grotesque mutations, this would have been a novella.

And let's talk about grotesque mutations and also evolution.

So there are creatures here called Remades. Humans who have either been punished by the government by having their legs replaced with dog legs, or their mouths sealed shut. Why? Because they can. Does the punishment fit the crime? No. OR there are the Remades who have done it to themselves. For . . . fun. I guess? It just seems to have made their lives harder and everything more inconvenient. Nothing about this makes sense, so it's clearly for shock value. There are cabs pulled by oxen, but the oxen have been Remade as bipeds so that they fit into the narrow streets better. Does this make them faster or more efficient? No. It makes them unbalanced. slow, and awkward. Why do it then? It doesn't work. The only reason I can see is for yet another moment of shock.

There are sentient beings called khepri. The males are dog-sized scarab beetles. They aren't actually sentient, having only the brain of a beetle. They writhe around, eating and pooping and trying to mate. The females however, have evolved. They are intelligent. They can use their cement-like spit to create buildings or sculptures. They have human bodies (breasts, genitals, the works), and the heads of scarabs. Like a complete beetle, perched on their necks. With wings and legs. That they can't use. I have so many questions. Like, for instance, HOW THE HELL DOES THAT HAPPEN? Like how do they develop a whole human body, weirdly attached to their other complete body?! And why? Why is that a thing? Apparently just so they can have sex with humans? And also: Why does every female of every species in this book have breasts? There are bug people, bird people, and amphibians, and all their females have boobs. They are literally described as being useless, since they are not mammals and don't nurse their young, but they have them just the same! I guess that's how you know they're girls? (My eyes rolled involuntarily while I was typing that.)

A couple of years ago I read Kraken, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It was bleak, and there was probably some needless vomit and piss, but not enough to stick in my mind. It reminded me of Tim Powers' Anubis Gates. I had been freaked out when I started it, though, because the minute I put it as "currently reading" someone commented that they didn't finish it because of the graphic sex and human sacrifice. Later they deleted their comment, and after I finished the book I realized that they had definitely been thinking of another book. I used to wonder what that book was. And now I know.

I've seen a couple of reviews comparing the richness of Mieville's writing to Dickens, and I just have to say, You take Charles Dickens' name out of your filthy, stained, clotted, faecal mouth! Good NIGHT! Go read David Copperfield (yes, the actual book and not the SparkNotes), and then come back to me with that nonsense!

Also, for reasons, I just looked up the original airdate of the Futurama episode, "Fry and the Slurm Factory." It aired two years before this book came out. *Gives China Mieville even more side-eye.*

*Pours one out for Slurms MacKenzie, the original Party Animal.*
]]> 3.98 2000
author: China Miéville
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2000
rating: 0
read at: 2022/04/25
date added: 2025/02/08
shelves: own, fantasy, horror
review:
New Crobuzon is a city built on the bones of a strange beast, enormous, enigmatic, wondrous.

Perdido Street Station is a book built on the bones of a strange story, enormous, enigmatic, wondrous.

New Crobuzon has overrun those bones with filth, slums, streets that smell like piss, clots of dilapidated buildings that smell like sex and death, mold, shit, and the effluvia of thousands of downtrodden junkies and prostitutes.

Perdido Street Station has overrun the bones of the story with words like clot, piss, effluvia, glandular, shit, mold, filth, soiled, stained, blood, decay, and rot- just to list a few of Mieville's favorite words. Everything from a group of buildings to the light from the street lamps is described as being a "clot" or "clotted." Rain is compared to pus: big warm drops falling on you. You know, like pus does. Apparently.

Getting to the plot of this book, getting to the STORY, felt like I was trying to shovel the shit out of a sewer. When at one point the characters, who live in slums and constantly seem to be filthy, stained, hungry, and sweaty, had to take refuge in a sewer and were horrified by the sights and smells, I burst out laughing. The only descriptive words that differed between the descriptions of their HOMES and the SEWER was the addition of the phrase "faecal water." So apparently these people do have some standards? That's nice for them.

Descriptions of body horrors that seemed to be hinting at some nefarious government plot. Torture. Rape. Murder. Dismemberment. What did it have to do with the story, which (once he got around to it) involved a government cover up, a science experiment gone wrong, and something about literal Hell that I think didn't actually need to be there? Nothing. None of these things needed to happen. Nothing needed to be described this way. One of the characters was already terrifying without needing to cut off the ears of everyone in the room because it seemed like a good idea at the time. If you cut out the needless descriptions of whore houses, of experiments that had resulted in grotesque mutations, this would have been a novella.

And let's talk about grotesque mutations and also evolution.

So there are creatures here called Remades. Humans who have either been punished by the government by having their legs replaced with dog legs, or their mouths sealed shut. Why? Because they can. Does the punishment fit the crime? No. OR there are the Remades who have done it to themselves. For . . . fun. I guess? It just seems to have made their lives harder and everything more inconvenient. Nothing about this makes sense, so it's clearly for shock value. There are cabs pulled by oxen, but the oxen have been Remade as bipeds so that they fit into the narrow streets better. Does this make them faster or more efficient? No. It makes them unbalanced. slow, and awkward. Why do it then? It doesn't work. The only reason I can see is for yet another moment of shock.

There are sentient beings called khepri. The males are dog-sized scarab beetles. They aren't actually sentient, having only the brain of a beetle. They writhe around, eating and pooping and trying to mate. The females however, have evolved. They are intelligent. They can use their cement-like spit to create buildings or sculptures. They have human bodies (breasts, genitals, the works), and the heads of scarabs. Like a complete beetle, perched on their necks. With wings and legs. That they can't use. I have so many questions. Like, for instance, HOW THE HELL DOES THAT HAPPEN? Like how do they develop a whole human body, weirdly attached to their other complete body?! And why? Why is that a thing? Apparently just so they can have sex with humans? And also: Why does every female of every species in this book have breasts? There are bug people, bird people, and amphibians, and all their females have boobs. They are literally described as being useless, since they are not mammals and don't nurse their young, but they have them just the same! I guess that's how you know they're girls? (My eyes rolled involuntarily while I was typing that.)

A couple of years ago I read Kraken, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It was bleak, and there was probably some needless vomit and piss, but not enough to stick in my mind. It reminded me of Tim Powers' Anubis Gates. I had been freaked out when I started it, though, because the minute I put it as "currently reading" someone commented that they didn't finish it because of the graphic sex and human sacrifice. Later they deleted their comment, and after I finished the book I realized that they had definitely been thinking of another book. I used to wonder what that book was. And now I know.

I've seen a couple of reviews comparing the richness of Mieville's writing to Dickens, and I just have to say, You take Charles Dickens' name out of your filthy, stained, clotted, faecal mouth! Good NIGHT! Go read David Copperfield (yes, the actual book and not the SparkNotes), and then come back to me with that nonsense!

Also, for reasons, I just looked up the original airdate of the Futurama episode, "Fry and the Slurm Factory." It aired two years before this book came out. *Gives China Mieville even more side-eye.*

*Pours one out for Slurms MacKenzie, the original Party Animal.*

]]> 55711617
That’s not the only thing that’s getting carved up, though � this, Jade knows, is the start of a slasher. But what kind? Who’s wearing the mask? Jade’s got an encyclopedic recall of every horror movie on the shelf, but� will that help her survive? Can she get a final girl trained enough to stop all this from happening? Does she even want to?

Isn’t a slasher exactly what her hometown deserves?

This new novel by the New York Times bestselling author of The Only Good Indians, Stephen Graham Jones, called “one of our most talented living writers� by Tommy Orange, explores the changing landscape of the West through his distinct voice of sharp humor and prophetic violence.

Go up the mountain to Proofrock. See if you’ve got what it takes � see if your heart, too, might be a chainsaw.]]> 405 Stephen Graham Jones 1982137630 Jessica 4
This was . . . dare I say it about something with such a high body count . . . fun? Jade was such an endearing mess of a main character, and as someone also desperate to escape a small Idaho town (and I did! Without murdering anyone!) I want you to know that basically, yep. Authentic as hell. ]]> 3.52 2021
author: Stephen Graham Jones
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.52
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2021/10/15
date added: 2025/02/08
shelves: audiobooks, horror, library, nativeamerican
review:
Read (wonderfully) by Cara Gee, this is my second of Jones' books, and though I don't like horror, I love his writing voice. This is the story of a teen girl, obsessed with slashers (NOT horror movies, thank you!) who starts to see a slasher play out in her small Idaho town. Is it just wishful thinking on her part? Or is the new girl really The Final Girl? And will Jade get to watch her take down a real live slasher?

This was . . . dare I say it about something with such a high body count . . . fun? Jade was such an endearing mess of a main character, and as someone also desperate to escape a small Idaho town (and I did! Without murdering anyone!) I want you to know that basically, yep. Authentic as hell.
]]> 58936932 Connie Willis Jessica 0 to-read 4.00 2025
author: Connie Willis
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/02/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 139506533
Reunited in New Jotunheim, Reginn, Eiric and Liv discover that they are game pieces being played on a hidden board. Eiric’s slaughter of the old council has opened Tyra’s path to power—she now has the perfect excuse to launch a war against the Archipelago. Tyra is also using her dottir, Liv, as a vehicle to raise a dangerous goddess. And Reginn is tasked with crossing the boundary between the living and the dead to gain access to powerful magical secrets.

With Reginn’s help, Eiric escapes prison and returns home to find his brodir and warn the Archipelago of the impending attack. Meanwhile, she remains at the Grove to try to prevent the outbreak of war. Soon, though, Reginn learns her true role in this use her power to raise the dead to ensure victory for New Jotunheim. The demon Asger Eldr tells her that she alone can prevent another Ragnarok. But how?

Back in the Archipelago, Eiric agrees to join the king’s forces, though that means taking up arms against his systir, Liv, and Reginn, the spinner who has ensnared his heart. For perhaps the first time in his life, he dreads the coming fight.Ěý

As the two sides prepare for an apocalyptic battle, Eiric, Reginn, and Liv find allies and enemies in unexpected places and draw on new strengths as they seek to prevent the destruction of the last of the Nine Worlds.]]> 640 Cinda Williams Chima 006301873X Jessica 5 4.01 2024
author: Cinda Williams Chima
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/30
date added: 2025/02/02
shelves: dragons, fantasy, mythology, scandinavian-authors
review:
How could a book this long feel so short?! I wanted more, more, more! Everything got finished with great satisfaction, but she could have easily expanded it into a trilogy!
]]> 63879533
A charming fantasy set in an underwater world with magical academia and a heartwarming penpal romance, perfect for fans of A Marvellous Light and Emily Wilde's Encylopaedia of Faeries.

A beautiful discovery outside the window of her underwater home prompts the reclusive E. to begin a correspondence with renowned scholar Henerey Clel. The letters they share are filled with passion, at first for their mutual interests, and then, inevitably, for each other.

Together, they uncover a mystery from the unknown depths, destined to transform the underwater world they both equally fear and love. But by no mere coincidence, a seaquake destroys E.'s home, and she and Henerey vanish.

A year later, E.'s sister Sophy, and Henerey's brother Vyerin, are left to solve the mystery of their siblings' disappearances with the letters, sketches and field notes left behind. As they uncover the wondrous love their siblings shared, Sophy and Vyerin learn the key to their disappearance - and what it could mean for life as they know it.]]> 432 Sylvie Cathrall 0356521095 Jessica 0 to-read 3.65 2024
author: Sylvie Cathrall
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 196726166 The Honey Witch of Innisfree can never find true love. That is her curse to bear. But when a young woman who doesn’t believe in magic arrives on her island, sparks fly in this deliciously sweet debut novel of magic, hope, and love overcoming all.
Ěý
Twenty-one-year-old Marigold Claude has always preferred the company of the spirits of the meadow to any of the suitors who’ve tried to woo her. So when her grandmother whisks her away to the family cottage on the tiny Isle of Innisfree with an offer to train her as the next Honey Witch, she accepts immediately. But her newfound magic and independence come with a price: No one can fall in love with the Honey Witch.
Ěý
When Lottie Burke, a notoriously grumpy skeptic who doesn’t believe in magic, shows up on her doorstep, Marigold can’t resist the challenge to prove to her that magic is real. But soon, Marigold begins to care for Lottie in ways she never expected. And when darker magic awakens and threatens to destroy her home, she must fight for much more than her new home—at the risk of losing her magic and her heart.]]> 368 Sydney J. Shields 0316568864 Jessica 0 to-read 3.57 2024
author: Sydney J. Shields
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 150246193
In 1492 , during the Spanish Inquisition, Benvenida and her family are banished from Spain for being Jewish, and must flee the country or be killed. They journey by foot and by sea, eventually settling in Istanbul.

Over four centuries later, in 1923 , shortly after the Turkish war of independence, Reina’s father disowns her for a small act of disobedience. He ships her away to live with an aunt in Cuba, to be wed in an arranged marriage when she turns fifteen.

In 1961 , Reina’s daughter, Alegra, is proud to be a brigadista, teaching literacy in the countryside for Fidel Castro. But soon Castro’s crackdowns force her to flee to Miami all alone, leaving her parents behind.

Finally, in 2003 , Alegra’s daughter, Paloma, is fascinated by all the journeys that had to happen before she could be born. A keeper of memories , she’s thrilled by the opportunity to learn more about her heritage on a family trip to Spain, where she makes a momentous discovery.

Though many years and many seas separate these girls, they are united by a love of music and poetry, a desire to belong and to matter, a passion for learning, and their longing for a home where all are welcome. And each is lucky to stand on the shoulders of their courageous ancestors.]]> 272 Ruth Behar 0593323408 Jessica 0 to-read 4.10 2024
author: Ruth Behar
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 179031714
Adventurous and memorable, Craig Kofi Farmer's middle grade fantasy is an immersive and powerful debut that tackles themes of identity, intergenerational connectedness, and how to say goodbye with heart, humor, and an epic dose of magic.]]> 336 Craig Kofi Farmer 1250900255 Jessica 0 to-read 4.09 2024
author: Craig Kofi Farmer
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 202204721
A disgraced daughter. A fearsome witch.

A woman more myth than mortal.

Medea, princess of Colchis, longs for a different life. Since childhood, she has been shunned from her family, tormented by her people, and treated with shame. All because of a unique and dangerous talent: witchcraft.

But when a dashing young hero, Jason, arrives to claim the famed Golden Fleece, Medea sees her opportunity for escape. Her offer to help Jason sets in motion a journey that will test every ounce of strength, magic, and loyalty she has. A journey that will see her battle monsters, dethrone kings, and confront a love more brutal than any before.

A journey that will ultimately end in betrayal, bloodshed, and a dark power impossible to forget.]]> 464 Rosie Hewlett 1728299012 Jessica 0 to-read 4.08 2024
author: Rosie Hewlett
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 181350367 For fans of Knives Out and The Thursday Murder Club, an enormously fun mystery about a woman who spends her entire life trying to prevent her foretold murder only to be proven right sixty years later, when she is found dead in her sprawling country estate.... Now it's up to her great-niece to catch the killer.

It’s 1965 and teenage Frances Adams is at an English country fair with her two best friends. But Frances’s night takes a hairpin turn when a fortune-teller makes a bone-chilling prediction: One day, Frances will be murdered. Frances spends a lifetime trying to solve a crime that hasn’t happened yet, compiling dirt on every person who crosses her path in an effort to prevent her own demise. For decades, no one takes Frances seriously, until nearly sixty years later, when Frances is found murdered, like she always said she would be.

In the present day, Annie Adams has been summoned to a meeting at the sprawling country estate of her wealthy and reclusive great-aunt Frances. But by the time Annie arrives in the quaint English village of Castle Knoll, Frances is already dead. Annie is determined to catch the killer, but thanks to Frances’s lifelong habit of digging up secrets and lies, it seems every endearing and eccentric villager might just have a motive for her murder. Can Annie safely unravel the dark mystery at the heart of Castle Knoll, or will dredging up the past throw her into the path of a killer?

As Annie gets closer to the truth, and closer to the danger, she starts to fear she might inherit her aunt’s fate instead of her fortune.]]> 358 Kristen Perrin 0593474015 Jessica 0 to-read 3.76 2024
author: Kristen Perrin
name: Jessica
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 180729678 From Eisner Award winner Vera Brosgol comes an instant classic about courage, confidence, and inner beauty.

Jane is incredibly plain. Everyone says so: her parents, the villagers, and her horrible cousin who kicks her out of her own house. Determined to get some semblance of independence, Jane prepares to propose to the princely Peter, who might just say yes to get away from his father. It’s a good plan!

Or it would’ve been, if he wasn’t kidnapped by a mermaid.

With her last shot at happiness lost in the deep blue sea, Jane must venture to the underwater world to rescue her maybe-fiancé. But the depths of the ocean hold beautiful mysteries and dangerous creatures. What good can a plain Jane do?

From Vera Brosgol, the author of Anya's Ghost and Be Prepared, comes an instant classic that flips every fairy tale you know, and shows one girl's crusade for the only thing that matters—her own independence.]]> 368 Vera Brosgol 1250314852 Jessica 0 to-read 4.31 2024
author: Vera Brosgol
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 195263612 From Molly Knox Ostertag, writer-illustrator, comes a darkly beautiful story of identity, family, love, loss, and magic.

Everyone has secrets. Mags’s has teeth.

Magdalena Herrera is about to graduate high school, but she already feels like an adult with serious responsibilities: caring for her ailing grandmother; working a part-time job; clandestine makeouts with a girl who has a boyfriend. And then there’s her secret, which pulls her into the basement each night, drains her of energy, and leaves her bleeding. A secret that could hurt and even kill if it ever got out -- like it did once before.

So Mags keeps her head down, isolated in her small desert community. That is, until her childhood friend Nessa comes back to town, bringing vivid memories of the past, an intoxicating glimpse of the future, and a secret of her own. Mags won’t get attached, of course. She’s always been strong enough to survive without anyone’s help.

But when the darkness starts to close in on them both, Mags will have to drag her secret into the daylight, and choose between risking everything... or having nothing left to lose.]]> 480 Molly Knox Ostertag 1338839993 Jessica 0 to-read 4.33 2024
author: Molly Knox Ostertag
name: Jessica
average rating: 4.33
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

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