2026 Books - March!

1.  To Ride A Rising Storm, Moniquill Blackgoose (audio) - I'll be honest.  This was a huge disappointment.  I really loved the first book, and maybe put too many expectations on the sequel.  Reading is political, and Blackgoose is not holding back.  I know the history she's building on, and the messaging is important, but I wasn't in the headspace for it.  Felt at times like I was pushing through a brutal history lesson instead of reading fiction.  I also thought the pacing was off, and there wasn't enough of the dragons for me.  While there were some moments I genuinely appreciated, overall I just didn't enjoy this read, and that makes me really sad.  Not sure if I'll continue the series. 

2.  Nocticadia, Keri Lake - Truth - I DNF'd Lake's Anathama because it gave me the ick.  In fact, my reaction was so strong that I am a bit surprised I gave her a second chance, especially because I knew this book was built around a trope - professor/student - that I really don't like.  (Call me crazy, but I'm not into power differentials in romance.)  Sucked in by a pretty book?  Curiosity?  Not sure....but I'm really glad I took the chance on Nocticadia.  To my delight, I ended up loving it.  This is the sort of gothic/dark academia that I eat up.  Delicious.  Could not put it down.  Lake is clearly a talented writer, and I'm now wondering if I should try Anathama again.  

3.  A Resistance of Witches, Morgan Ryan - My dear friend Carrie, of Skylark fame, put this into my hands last year, and I do not know why it took me so long to read it because normally I read her suggestions immediately. It was brilliant.  Witches in WWII, a focus on female relationships, loads of personal growth, plenty of social commentary....all in a fantasy background.  It was a deeply satisfying read.  

4.  The Spirit Collection of Thorne Hall, J. Ann Thomas (audio) - I was drawn to this when it showed up on the Apple sale page because I love a good ghost story.  Happy to say that it exceeded expectations.  Funny to say it was a lighter type of gothic romance when there were so many real and serious things addressed...but it was.  I do love that Thomas based Thorne Hall on a real location, and I admit to falling down a rabbit hole doing some research after I read her notes.  

5. Audition For the Fox, Martin Cahill - This was an NPR Books We Love Pick, and it was absolutely the reason why I rely on that app so much!  It's very much the sort of folklore retelling that I love best, and was a much-needed break from the darker stuff I've been reading this month.  I have a feeling I'll be revisiting it!  Bonus, a big message of finding hope in horrible circumstances, and using that hope to create change....let's just say that sort of thing is needed right now. 

6.  We Could Be So Good, Cat Sebastian - I've wanted to read a Cat Sebastian every since Alix E. Harrow brought her up as a must read historical romance author in her event last year.  Fortunately, it lived up to expectations.  The romance storyline was just as sweet as can be, the characters were great, and the real historical setting added a lot of tension to the plot.  I will say, though, that knowing the history of what's coming made me feel really, really sad.  I will forever be an LGBTQ+ ally.  

7.  One Golden Summer, Carley Fortune - I had planned on saving this for the summer, but my daughter picked it out for me as my next read.  Once again, Fortune's work had me browsing vacation rentals and longing to move to Canada.  I love that about her work!  She also writes a damn satisfying romance, and it turned out to be the perfect read for a trip home to the farm.  

8  No Matter What, Cara Bastone (audio) - Apparently, I'm a second chance within a marriage trope sort of girl.  While I was frustrated with some of the miscommunication, I loved watching Roz and Vin work their way back towards each other.  It was refreshing to watch two characters learn and grow together - each taking accountability for their own part in the problem and taking steps to heal from a shared trauma.  

9.  The Change, Kirsten Miller - Bookseller Liz, also of Skylark fame, put this in my hands and I read it immediately.  Texted Carrie and told her to thank Liz for me because I didn't know how much I needed this book.  First, it's about three middle-aged women.  Second, it's about female rage and fighting back against the patriarchy.  Third, it's about people taking action against the sort of evil that we see enacted against women every single day...pulling heavily on maddening headlines where no consequences are ever given.  Fourth, the characters are amazing, and it's really well written.  I loved every minute.  

10.  The Ex Hex, Erin Sterling (audio) - In all honesty, I checked this out from the library because I needed a book to listen to while working.  I love popcorn reads, but this was so light as to be instantly forgettable.  Ah well, I got through four hours of tedious work because of it.  

11.  Empire of the Dawn, Jay Kristoff - Finally finished up the Empire of the Vampire trilogy, and wow.  Just wow. 

As I sit down to write about it, I find it's hard to put into words just how much I loved this trilogy while doing it justice.  All three books were 5 star reads, and the series is definitely now in my top 5-10 series of all time.  Walking away from this, it's going to be hard to go to my next book because it's almost ruined me for reading anything else.  

The writing is achingly beautiful. A close read is necessary, and I found myself savouring each book slowly.  (Which never happens.  I'm a naturally a fast reader who gets obsessive and wants to absorbe the story as fast as I can!)  One of my favorite details was an intensely emotional reflection by Gabe that came up in the first book...and then was repeated in the last. Details like that were woven throughout the books.  Nothing was ever said that didn't have meaning.  Even better, I truly felt like I was in that world, living the events with the characters.  

Speaking of which, the characters are all wonderfully complex, and feel very real.  Kudos to Kristoff, because he does write women well (You may remember that I took these books on as my first real challenge to my bias against male authors.).  I loved that we got the emotional landscape of both men and women, and I love that no one was fully good or bad - for all that there was clearly right and wrong sides.  

There was so much more to love.  I've never before read a book where I had to take breaks because the plot was getting intense and my deep investment was making me feel anxious, but that's exactly what happened during my final weekend with the third book.  Remember that framing device I mentioned?  The reasons for that became very clear in the third book.  I won't give any spoilers, but I will say that it was absolutely brilliantly done.  And the illustrations...oh, the illustrations.  I'm so in love with the art in these books.  It was hard to wait until I got to those pages, because I wanted to skip ahead to drink them all in at once.  

And now I must go and read everything else Jay Kristoff ever wrote.  

12.  Lady Tremaine, Rachel Hochhauser (audio) - Now this felt like a fresh retelling of a fairy tale!  Cinderella through the eyes of the "evil" stepmother, who turns out to be a woman just trying to do the best for her children?  Yes, please!  I absolutely love the way the author twisted the story, and I love how it directly confronts the (admittedly terrible) messaging of most versions of the fairy tale.  I also loved that Hochhauser included hawking.  I have a strong suspicion that she read Helen McDonald's H is for Hawk.  

DNF's: 

This was a big DNF month for me, in part because I took a hard look at my TBR pile and started making decisions.  There were three that I DNF'd within a chapter or two because they just weren't my cup of tea, and five more I DNF'd after reading a significant portion.  I won't share the quickly tossed aside books, but here is a bit about the rest.

1.  The Maiden and Her Monster, Maddie Martinez - Yes, the author is very talented, but I've read a million 'maiden goes into the forest to save her village' and 'maiden makes friends with the monster' books, and it just didn't feel new or fresh enough to carry on.  

2.  Wild Reverence, Rebecca Ross - This kills me, because I love Ross's other works.  I tried, I really did...multiple times.  I know this was super popular last year, but I just can't get into it.  I have a strong feeling that this is a case of the audio killing it for me.  I will definitely try to read it again later.  

3.  Things Magical Under the Moon: A Grim Anthology, Amanda Stockton and Alexis L. Carroll - Full disclosure, my husband gave me this to read because he is friends with the authors.  I read enough from each to know they are very talented writers, and I hope they have long careers ahead of them.  Ultimately, though, I'm not a short story reader, it was a bit too dark for me, I thought it would benefit from one more round of editing, and I've also read a million fairy tale retellings.  Definitely for fans of Angela Carter, though!  

4.  The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, Stephen Graham Jones - Yep, another book that received a bunch of accolades and just wasn't for me.  I recognize the genius in this book, but it just wasn't something I wanted to continue reading.  As we all know, I have a thing about 'boy books' and it felt too much like that for me.   

5.  Cackle, Rachel Harrison - This was recommended to me at a book event last year by a reader that I met.  It was fun, but I just wasn't invested enough to continue.