2025 Books - January! With bonus 2025 reading goals!
Reading Goals for 2025:
- Average 10 books/month
- Prioritize books I already own
- Work through unlistened to books in Libro.fm
- Reclaim books from unfinished folder
Best book(s) of the month:
- Onyx Storm - my winner for the month!
- A Psalm for the Wild Built
- A Prayer for the Crown-Shy
- House of Frank
- The Once and Future Witches
- The Lost Story
1. A Psalm for the Wild Built, Becky Chambers (audio, novella, reread) - Starting the New Year with a gentle reread of the Monk and Robot books. As I've said a million times, I adore Chambers, and her books suit me quite well. A book about finding one's purpose is the perfect way to start the year.
2. The Stardust Grail, Yume Kitasei - Kitasei was a bookspa discovery for me last year, and so I was excited when this - her second - book wound up on NPR's Books We Love 2024 list. Maya and Auncle are awesome, and I very much enjoyed their adventure. I do not think it was as emotionally deep as The Deep Sky, but that's completely ok. I very much enjoyed the Indiana Jones in space plot, and I do think that it said a lot about cultural looting/theft. I'm pretty sure this is a standalone, but I would love it if there's a sequel.
3. Quicksilver, Callie Hart - I succumbed to curiosity for this wildly popular booktok book, and it was literally the worst book I’ve read in the last year or more. I did finish it, so it was at least good enough for that. I actually loved the FMC, Saeris, and Carrion was a hoot even though he was an eye-rolling plot device. However, our MMC, Kingfisher, was just an asshole, and I do not see the appeal. Plus, if someone had told me there were vampires I would never have picked it up. Hart relies on that method of fantasy writing where contemporary language is used to make the story more accessible - but several times she used words or phrases that felt really out of place and so knocked you out of the story. (I've seen authors use this method effectively, but I've also seen it dumb down a book.) Also, I found the spice to be icky. I'm 100% not a dark romance reader - I do not understand it, and I do not want to understand it - and this came right up to that line. In fact, for the entire time I was reading it I was thinking about the fact that I did not want to cross that line. Will not be reading the next book in the series.
4. The God and the Gumiho, Sophie Kim (audio) - Also a booktok recommendation, but this time it was wonderful. Helps that the audio was a recommendation from Skylark on Libro.fm! I'm really glad I decided to use one of my credits on the audio. ALWAYS good to have someone pronouncing nouns that I am not familiar with, and it was so much fun to have two narrators. Hani and Seokga were marvelous characters, and I loved the grumpy/sunshine relationship, their banter, and the way they worked together. Loved, loved, loved how the Korean folklore was honored and updated, and the ending was perfection. I've already preordered the sequel, and I can't wait to see what happens next!
5. A Prayer for the Crown Shy, Becky Chambers (audio, novella, reread) - Of course, I had to listen to the second Monk and Robot book. My favorite part this time was the time we spent with Sibling Dex's family. Both of these books are 5 star books for me.
6. The Serpent and the Wings of Night, Carissa Broadbent - I do not like vampires, and I do not like games and trials. BUT, I really like Carissa Broadbent, so I took a chance. So I read it, and I loved it, and I was annoyed that I was going to have to wait for the next book. Broadbent is one of my two great 2024 reading surprises (her and the Sword of Kaigan), and the more I read her books the more I fall in love with her writing. Not something I say often, but I appreciated the structure of this book as much as I appreciated the story. I loved Oraya and her emotional journey. Also was super nervous for the end of the book. (As one should be with a duology!) Cannot wait to read the second book!
7. Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear, Seanan McGuire (novella) (Wayward Children #10) - My oh my, this is the best Wayward Children book in a while. (Also, I can't believe I've been reading these marvelous books since 2016!) This was a really emotional read, and I was swept away by the longing and the sadness in so much of it. Then I delighted in the world Nadya found beyond her door, and was utterly devastated at the end when she found herself back in our world, back in the body of the child she'd been when she left. I'm truly hoping we get more of Nadya in the next book, because she has my heart and soul.
8. Love on the Brain, Ali Hazelwood - I really did fall in love with Hazelwood last month with Bride, and so when I saw this book on sale I picked it up. It was the perfect lighthearted follow-up to a couple of intense, one very emotional, books. I love that it was set in STEM, and I love that Bee is both the smartest person in the room and a messy human.
9. The Ashes and the Star Cursed King, Carissa Broadbent - Yay! The second book in the duology arrived! Now this is how you do it right. At the end of the first book, Broadbent separated our lovers, and in this book she made them earn their way back to each other. Could not put it down. Can't wait to continue with the Crowns of Nyaxia books.
10. An Academy for Liars, Alexis Henderson - An NPR Books We Love 2024 selection, this is dark academia/fantasy at it's best. Super complicated lead characters, check. Weird Gothic school, check. Morally grey actions all around, check. Then at the end, enough tension to have my frantically reading while pacing the house, check. Best of all....an amazing ending that actually was hopeful (my personal requirement), check!
11. That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Human, Kimberly Lemming (Mead Mishaps #3) - Not going to lie, I pulled this out to read because some really horrible news broke and I needed something lighthearted and fun to distract myself. (Also, I had just started a pretty serious book, and the serious book was too serious to read given the news.) This turned out to be my favorite of the Mead Mishaps book. They are really silly books, but they are a ton of fun. In this go around the love story between Cherry and Dante was filled with hilarious banter and a lot more heart than I really expect from these books.
12. The Way of Integrity, Martha Beck - This book was a recommendation from my therapist, and its central concept has been a focus in therapy for the last several months. I appreciate how Beck centers her work around Dante's journey in the Divine Comedies, and how readable she is. I also do find value in the content - especially as it pertains to my therapuetic work. I did raise a skeptical eye to some of it, and found the end to be a bit over the top. Now back to fiction...which is more fun.
13. Haunt Sweet Home, Sarah Pinsker (novella) - Another fantastic NPR 2024 Books We Love, I snapped it up when I saw it was on sale. Having finished the two previous books, and read portions of two more earlier in the day, when I saw it was a novella I decided it would be the perfect way to end my crazy night! And it is an absolutely lovely book. I've taken to reading the acknowledgements, and I was 100% not surprised when I saw that Ellen Datlow is one of Pinsker's editors. Knowing so much of Datlow's work, that made complete sense to me. Mara was a wonderful character, I loved the whole set up of a home reno/haunting reality show, and I loved what this book had to say about how we are who we are. I won't say more because I want you to discover this book for yourself!
14. Death of the Author, Nnedi Okorafor - I once again am blown away by Okorafor's talent. I had a very strong reaction to most of the book. Loved, loved, loved Zelu. Hated her entire family, even though I'm not sure I was supposed to feel that way. Loved that it was about a writer, and wondered how much of it was directly related to Okorafor's experience, even though she clearly says she is not Zelu in the notes at the end. I do feel that the book within a book bogged it down a little bit. Wasn't near as invested in the robots' story. Having said that, the last chapter may have changed everything, and has left me wondering about the truth of the story. Once again, don't want to give it away, but I do think if you read it you will come away with a lot to think abou too.
15. The Whispering Night, Susan Dennard (audio) - The only reason I read it is because I felt like I needed to finish the trilogy. Overall, I think it's a worthwhile read but it's perhaps too YA for me these days. (And I say that as someone who has always loved YA.) Better than the second book, it did wrap up the series nicely. I did, however, roll my eyes at the epilogue.
16. The Love Hypothesis, Ali Hazelwood - needing something quick and easy to tide me over until the big book release this month, this did the trick nicely! Pretty much the same comments as those listed above for my other Hazelwood book. She's fun, and I'm a fan.
17. Below Zero, Ali Hazelwood (novella) - And I still had a little bit of time before that book release! I didn't enjoy this novella near as much as Hazelwood's full length books, but it did what it was supposed to.
18. Onyx Storm, Rebecca Yarros - Wow, just wow. By far the best book of the series so far. I laughed out loud, I was completely shocked multiple times, I loved the emotional journey, and I had to reread the end multiple times because it was just so darn good. The fandom in general reports feeling like their hearts have been ripped out by the end - which I totally get. BUT, my own reaction was of intense excitement for what's coming next (recognizing we could be waiting a long while for books four and five), and complete delight for the author. The ending was absolutely brilliant, and I'm thrilled for Yarros and all of the accolades she's receiving. Yarros has clearly settled fully into the world she's built, knows her characters inside and out, and very obviously had fun writing this book. (Also, I stand by what I've said for a long time - the second book was rushed and suffered as a result.) I wasn't a super fan before Onyx Storm, but I am now!
As a bonus, for the first time ever I let myself enjoy the moment/hype that was this book release. I made sure to finish up all books the day before it was released so I could focus just on Onyx Storm. I started reading at 5 am the morning of the release. I attended a launch breakfast party at Skylark, which is the first time I've ever done that. I got a free audio version, which allowed me to fill every spare moment with the book until I was done as I flipped between audio and print. I've had a million conversations with friends and family who are also reading the books, and as soon as I finished I dove into the social media hype and news stories. And it's been such a joy! For the first time, reading hasn't been a purely solitary pursuit, and I clearly need more of this in my life.
19. House of Frank, Kay Synclaire - I needed to find something very different from Onyx Storm for my next read, and so I picked up this booktok recommendation. (Two of my favorite book accounts have their own imprints with Bindery, and I'm fascinated by the relationship that Bindery is building with its influencers and authors.) It's billed as a cozy fantasy, but I found it to be much deeper than cozy fantasies usually are. The story of a witch who has lost her sister and her magic, it's a powerful exploration of grief and healing and found family. Just beautiful. I'll definitely be reading more from Bindery Books, and I certainly hope that Synclaire keeps writing.
20. Six Scorched Roses, Carissa Broadbent (novella) - Loved this little standalone novel which accompanies Crowns of Nyaxia duology I read earlier this month. I was tickled when I realized which couple it was about, and I loved the way it expanded the world. Also, Lilith was amazing. We didn't get that much of her in the duology, but after this I'm hoping she plays a roll in the rest of the books moving forward.
21. The Once and Future Witches, Alix E. Harrow (audio, reread) - This reread gave voice to all of the emotions I've been having lately. It's a book about wronged women, fighting for a better world, and resisting evil. It was both more difficult to read this time around and exactly the catharsis I needed.
22. When the Moon Hatched, Sarah A. Parker - I’d tried the audio twice in the last year, and it didn’t stick either time, so I was somewhat hesitant to read this book. So glad I decided to give it a chance, because it was absolutely lovely. This book is the exact definition of romantasy - where the plot and the romance have equal weight in the storyline. In fact, the first half reads like pure fantasy and the second half reads like a romance. The world building was pretty stellar, I loved the characters, and it was a good blend of original and “standard fantasy.” I loved the fact that our characters have been through some shit, and aren’t really ok. (Too often fantasy books gloss over the trauma after the fact.). Raeve is fascinating, and I can’t wait to see where her story goes next. Oh, and I loved the diary entries throughout the book. And the writing is absolutely beautiful.
23. The Lost Story, Meg Shaffer - An NPR Books We Love 2024 selection, I would have bought it anyway because I loved Shaffer's first book so much! This book is another tribute to Narnia, to books where children find magical doors where they find themselves on the other side. Beautiful writing, characters you absolutely adore, storyteller interludes that are super fun, and an ending that’s sweet and hopeful. I loved every minute of it!
“All books are magic. An object that can take you to another world without even leaving your room? A story written by a stranger and yet it seems they wrote it just for you or to you? Loving and hating people made out of ink and paper, not flesh and blood? Yes, books are magic. Maybe even the strongest magic there is.”
Excerpt From
The Lost Story
Meg Shaffer
https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-lost-story/id6469578671
This material may be protected by copyright.
Comments