October, November and December Reading!

In which I recognized that I never finished these wee reviews....and totally forgot about this post.  

Whoops. 

October

1. Under the Whispering door, T.J. Klune (audio) - Klune writes with whimsy and love, and in this book he also writes of second chances.  I'll forever be a fan.  

2. The Bronzed Beasts, Roshani Chokshi (audio and print) - I've got to say, for a series that I've at times been iffy about, Chokshi really stuck the landing.  It was one of the best, most satisfying series ends that I've found in a while.  

3. A Spindle Splintered, Alix E Harrow - Harrow just keeps getting better and better.  This, her third book, was a complete delight in every way possible.  In fact, I sent a gift copy to a friend the day after I finished, and immediately bought a physical copy for myself.  

4. The Last Graduate, Naomi Novik - Novik's twisted version of the magical school is fantastic.  Unfortunately, I didn't realize it was the second of a trilogy, and so I finished feeling pretty annoyed.  Yay.  Huge cliffhanger.  Boo.  

5. The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep, H.G. Perry - Now this is my kind of fun!  Book characters coming to life?  A heavy bent to the classics?  LOTS of Dickens?  Yes, please!  

6. A Spindle Splintered (audio...because it's just that good.)

November

1. Over the Woodward Wall, A. Deborah Baker (audio, reclaimed) - I'd tried reading this earlier, but it was a bit too precious for me.  It's still too precious, but in audio it's more tolerable.  (Because I can do other things while listening.)  I decided to pull it from my unfinished pile when I saw a second book had come out, and I'm glad I finished it.  Having said that, I won't purchase anymore - and if I decide to read them I'll do audio from the library.  

2. The Five, Hallie Rubenhold (audio) - I stumbled on the new podcast Bad Women: The Ripper Retold, and was fascinated by how Rubenhold managed to upend the Ripper narrative by focusing on the victims.  (And the way she managed to annoy pretty much everyone by challenging the myth). I don't know that there's much need to listen to the podcast AND read the book, but it was fascinating.  

3. Miss Moriarty, I Presume?, Sherry Thomas - I love The Lady Sherlock books.  I've said this with every new book that's come out.  

4. Along the Saltwise Sea, A. Deborah Baker (audio) - And...this is why I decided to finish Over the Woodword Hall.  I saw that this had been released and decided to see if the series got any better.  Sweet and fun....but again, only library if I decide to continue with these books.  

5. The Nobleman's Guide to Scandal and Shipwrecks, Mackenzi Lee - and we finish the series!  Still terribly good fun, if not quite living up to the expectations of the first two books.  

6. Cemetery Boys, Aiden Thomas (audio) - Read it, please.  It's an urban fantasy look at gender identity that is culturally specific and altogether beautiful.  

7. The Future of Another Timeline, Annalee Nentz (audio) - A powerful book, indeed.  I loved the central twist of figuring out who was who, which completely upended how I felt about who.  

8.  Noor, Nnedi Okorafor - Okorafor is such a good writer.  This is maybe not my favorite from her...but I'd still recommend it.  

9.  A Marvelous Light, Freya Narske (audio and Print) - It took me a long time to decide whether or not to read this one, even though on the page it fit my preferences exactly.  Once in, though, I found it was a very enjoyable read that mostly reminds me of a literary version of K.J. Parker's romance novels.  

December

1. Cloud Cuckoo Land, Anthony Doerr (audio) - Doerr leaves me feeling emotionally wrung out in the very best way.  

2. This Poison Heart, Kalynn Byron (audio) - A YA fantasy where the protagonist is a black teen who has magic powers to grow plants...and who's the daughter of two lesbians and they all have the most endearing family interactions ever?  Yes please!!!  I am, and I am not annoyed that it ended on a cliffhanger.  Not because I'll get to read more, am because I don't know when. 

3. Lost in the Never Woods, Aiden Thomas (audio) - Following Cemetary Boys, decided to check out another of Thomas's books.  This is a dark take on the Peter Pan story, and while overall I enjoyed it there was a story beat that left me a tad uncomfortable.  Still not quite sure how I feel about it.  

4. Tales from the Cafe, Toshikazu Kawaguchi - Of course I had to read the follow up to Before the Coffee Gets Cold.  These books are slow, and very gentle reads that leave you feeling hopeful. 

5.  We Could Be Heroes, Mike Chen - Rollicking good fun!  

6.  The Death of Jane Lawrence, Caitlin Starling (audio and print) - Y'all know me!  I love a good Gothic novel.  This book started with all of the right notes - almost formulaic - and then swerved in unexpected ways.  Truth be told, I had to do some digging online to figure out exactly what happened in the end...which does take away from my general enjoyment of the read.  

Unfinished

1. No Time to Spare, Ursula K. Le Guin - It's a lovely reflection on getting older.  I read pieces of it periodically, and finally realized I wasn't going to get through the rest of it anytime soon.  

2. The Lost Book of Adana Moreau, Michael Zapata - I adored the first part of the book, but when we moved into the search for Maxwell Moreau I got bored.  

3. Do You Dream of Terra - Two? Temi Oh - Yes, it is engrossing, and I understand fully why this tale of teens sent to space received so many accolades.  I made it about 1/3 of the way, though, and my heart was screaming that this was a book about child abuse.  (I read the last few chapters...and at least they brought that up.)  Just can't do the whole thing.  

4. The Dollmaker, Nina Allen - It just wasn't what I wanted or expected, and I didn't want to finish it.  That simple!