Category — Book Reviews

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from October.

What We Can Know (Ian McEwan): This book is an excellent reminder that sometimes you feel bored or want to stop something or don’t know where it is going, but if you hang in there, you will have your mind blown. What a fantastic ride. What a hard gulp of a thought about what we leave behind and how it will be interpreted in the future. This is one of my favourite reads of 2025.

Lyra’s Oxford (Philip Pullman): A bit thinner as a story than the Collectors or the novels. Enjoyed it because I enjoy all time with Lyra in Oxford, but it feels more like a sketch than a finished drawing. Still, as a completist, I felt like I had to read this one before getting to The Rose Field.

A Particularly Nasty Case (Adam Kay): I liked this but didn’t love it because it felt like a repeat of This Is Going To Hurt without the emotional bits. On the plus side, I laughed quite a few times. It’s a cute cozy mystery with an unlikeable narrator but I wanted to like him. There is a moment early on when the narrator points out why he and Nina should be friends on paper, and that’s kind of how I felt about the book. We should connect on paper.

Serpentine (Philip Pullman): Again, His Dark Materials completist, so I needed to read this tiny novella before continuing on to The Secret Commonwealth. Each tiny Lyra story hurts and heals my heart. This one was no different. I love this world so much. I’m glad I decided to reread and catch up on the novellas I missed on the way to the Rose Field. It is a great way to spend time in this tumultuous world.

Guilty by Definition (Susie Dent): Word nerds, rejoice. I read two books set in Oxford at the same time — The Secret Commonwealth (Philip Pullman, fantasy) and this — and they often visited the same places: The Trout or Cornmarket or Godstow. So it was a very strange experience jumping back and forth from real Oxford to fantasy Oxford, and a great way to experience the word play of this mystery. I loved being in the CED (or… alternate OED) offices, learning about the world, and following the twisting path of the story.

What did you read last month?

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from September.

Could Should Might Don’t: How We Think About the Future (Nick Foster): I read this because I wanted to become more comfortable with thoughts about the future, and the book ultimately achieves that, giving you ways of seeing though messaging and balancing your thoughts. I admittedly skimmed sometimes, but would highly recommend to anyone who thinks a lot about the future. I’ve been talking about it a lot the past month.

The Subtle Knife (Philip Pullman): Part of my re-read of His Dark Materials before the release of the final book at the end of October. No matter how many times I read it, it is just as beautiful and thought-provoking as the first time. I love being with Lyra and Will.

Displeasure Island (Alice Bell): Solid follow-up to last year’s Grave Expectations. The characters are still great. It was a light-hearted read during a time when I needed a light-hearted read.

The Killer Question (Janice Hallett): Janice Hallett is a treasure. Every book is brilliant. Even if you guess something, I guarantee that you will not guess everything. She has trick after trick after trick, and makes you laugh over and over again. Thank you for such an enjoyable experience.

The Wasp Trap (Mark Edwards): I’m so happy that I finally got to read a Mark Edwards book – they are hard to get in the U.S. – and it was a solid thriller. Good characters, great pacing, interesting situation. Well done.

The Amber Spyglass (Philip Pullman): As much as I’m disappointed that the ending doesn’t change with the re-read, it is the only ending that makes sense. It breaks your heart. But life does. Luckily, I still have two novellas and a novel left in my re-read of His Dark Materials before the final book is released.

What did you read last month?

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from August.

The Compound (Aisling Rawle): Like a new season of Traitors, it was hard to get into it until the numbers dwindled down and you knew the contestants better. And then I was all in. A character asks a question in the book that I’ve always wondered – why would anyone be a participant? It is so far from what I would choose that I would just love to hear why someone chooses to go on a show. In any case, it is a reality television competition in book form.

Vera, or Faith (Gary Shteyngart): I wanted to read this book so badly, but I didn’t enjoy it when I started it. But then I kept reading and it took awhile but it grew on me. So I ended it happy that I stuck with it. There are some gorgeous thoughts and phrasing in the book, and Vera is delectable, as she would say. So happy I read it, even though I was a little sad through the whole thing.

Mean Moms (Emma Rosenblum): A mindlessly fun book with a strange structure. You know the person behind everything halfway through the book but the characters don’t. It took a little of the tension out of the end of the book. But still a good summer read about terrible people.

The Collectors (Philip Pullman): A brilliant short story from the world of His Dark Materials. You can read it without reading the books, but you’ll get more out of it if you’ve read at least The Golden Compass. I’m rereading the books before the publication of The Rose Field. Love being in this world – it stays with you long after you close each story.

The Golden Compass (Philip Pullman): A second reading of this book in the same year. Or maybe last year? It is so nice to back in Lyra’s company. It’s like entering Narnia or falling into Wonderland. And I probably related to the story, especially the pain of separation, in a different way than I did so many years ago. Again, part of the re-reading before The Rose Field is released this fall.

The Marble Hall Murders (Anthony Horowitz): There is no such thing as a bad Anthony Horowitz book. I save Anthony Horowitz books for when I need a solid, perfect book — think of it as literary rainy days. And I needed to end summer on a high note. This one did it. I guessed a few things correctly but didn’t care. I just liked being along for the ride with Susan.

What did you read last month?

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from July.

Can You Solve the Murder? (Antony Johnston): Let me start by saying that I read this when I got my shingles vaccine, so my enjoyment may have been tempered by the fact that I felt terrible. It was also high-involvement: You track the clues and what you’ve learned. It got a little tedious near the end – two hours of reading time would have been the perfect amount because you’d be more inclined to try again if you didn’t solve the crime. But very clever format and a fun read.

A Novel Murder (E.C. Nevin): Another possible literary victim of my shingles-vaccine induced mood. I thought this was going to be more of a quirky cozy (Richard Osman) but it was a solid cozy cozy. So if you’re looking for a cozy mystery, this is a good one. Lots of drinking in the pub, friends helping friends, police who include writers in solving the crime.

Bitter Sweet (Hattie Williams): This was amazing. I immediately handed it off to ChickieNob who agreed. This book will stay with me for a long time. I started crying trying to talk about it. It is a book that will profoundly impact your heart and brain, a similar effect to All Our Wrong Today’s or The Other Side of Night, but with the familiar growing pains of The Rachel Incident. So achingly beautiful and infuriating and moving. It is quite literally bitter sweet.

What a Way To Go (Bella Mackie): No one writes terrible people as well as Bella Mackie, and these are the worst. Is it a little rough in places? Yes. There were a few times that whole paragraphs repeated on two different pages (e.g., look at p. 131 and 338, and the description of Tanners), which I noted because I thought it was a clue. And there were chapters that came out of order near the end. (That was weird and also not a clue.) But even with those things, it’s a 5-star read. You’ll snicker through the book trying to figure out the ending.

Culpability (Bruce Holsinger): A solid story that asks a lot of questions. It feels like it would be a great book club book, lending itself to discussion. I’m a little surprised that the environmental impact of AI never comes up, especially because the majority of the book takes place on an enormous body of water. But it is less a story about AI and more a story about family dynamics.

The Sentence Is Death (Anthony Horowitz): This was a re-read. I love this series so much, and slipping into a re-read of it is like hanging out with old friends.

Bring the House Down (Charlotte Runcie): An amazing five star read about art and our relationship to it and to each other. About awful behaviour and the way we thoughtlessly and purposefully impact each other’s lives. I was blown away by how much this book made me think. How much the complex characters got under my skin. Cannot wait to see what else this author writes in the future. I loved every messy page.

What did you read last month?

As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she reads that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better at doing this.

So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.

These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from June.

Consider Yourself Kissed (Jessica Stanley): This book was so good that she made me want to go lock myself somewhere and do nothing else but read her book. The writing is gorgeous. The story is relatable. Every character is lovely (except her dad). This book is like getting a hug. Go read it. Immediately.

Skipshock (Caroline O’Donoghue): Do you recognize the author’s name? Did you read The Rachel Incident? Same author, compleeeeeeeeeeetely different book. But if you liked her writing in that, you may like it in this, which I’m declaring is the new Hunger Games. No, they’re not making kids fight to the death, but it’s that kind of world building that makes you lose yourself in the story. This is brilliant. And I can’t wait for part two.

10 Marchfield Square (Nicola Whyte): If you liked The Maid by Nita Prose, you may also like this book. They felt very similar. And sweet. It’s a cozy mystery that feels like it operates outside a time period, if that makes sense.

The Matchmaker (Aisha Saeed): I’ve known Aisha since the BlogHer years, so I was thrilled to hear that she had written a book for adults because she is known for her middle grade fiction. This book is wonderful. A cozy thriller – as in more than a cozy mystery but less scary than a thriller, so perfect beach read because you’ll keep wanting one more chapter to figure the whole thing out. Plus there’s a little romance in there and plenty of weddings. Loved this book.

Death at the White Hart (Chris Chibnall): A new book by the creator of the television show Broadchurch, that feels very… Broadchurch-y. I didn’t love it in the beginning, but I’m glad I stuck with it because I really loved it by the end. I hope this becomes a series.

What did you read last month?