What I Read in January (2026)

Books Read in January: 11
Books Read for the Year:  11/225
Topical Books/Monthly Goal Books:
The Gate of the Feral Gods, by Matt Dinniman (audio): It’s absolutely ridiculous that I’m enjoying these audio books as much as I am.
Chasing Stardust, by Erica Lucke Dean (TBR): This was a solid read.
Commune, by Joshua Gayou (TBR): Not bad, but I won’t continue with the series.
Battlefield of the Mind, by Joyce Meyer (spiritual re-read): Always a good choice.
Back Lash, by Devon Monk (TBR): Of course I loved this.
Not Quite By the Book, by Julie Hatcher (TBR): This was pretty cliched, but it was cute.
This Impossible Brightness, by Jessica Bryant Klagmann (TBR): This book seemed absolutely pointless.

For Review:

Strange Animals, by Jarod K. Anderson. This was a…strange…read. And absolutely fascinating. Quite odd, yet compelling. I would happily read more of these characters/this setting.

The Halifax Hellions, by Alexandra Vasti. This was entertaining. I’d read the first half of it as a novella, but I did like the second half/the story of the other twin.

Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter, by Heather Fawcett. This was such a cute read! I liked the feel of the entire novel, and the cats were wonderful characters.   

Just Because:

Sweet Tea and Sympathy, by Molly Harper (audio). This was a decent read.

Left Unfinished:

Love and Other Brain Experiments, by Hannah Brohm. The MC was really unlikable to me, and I didn’t want to read about her.

The Jills, by Karen Parkman. I tried, but this just seemed depressing and the characters annoyed one.

Maybe This Once, by Sophie Sullivan. These characters felt like cardboard cutouts to me.

Keeper of Lost Children, by Sadeqa Johnson. I love historical fiction, but this just couldn’t keep my attention. Great subject and solid writing, I just wasn’t interested in the characters.

Murder Will Out, by Jennifer K. Breedlove. I tried, but Willow bored me to tears. Geralt was at least a bit entertaining, but he was a colossal jerk, and I can’t read about unlikable people very long.

Dating After the End of the World, by Jeneva Rose (TBR): The MC was a complete jerk. Why be bitchy and aggressive 24/7?

If Only You Knew, by Ellie. K. Wilde. This felt both unnecessarily dramatic and predictable, and I just couldn’t get interested.

Sundays are for Writing #356

This week, I didn’t do much writing. Texas doesn’t do well with any winter storms, and the amount of ice we got last weekend made this week absolutely nuts. And when the ice was gone, the usual craziness came back with a vengeance. I only wrote one book review this week, Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter, by Heather Fawcett, but I did outline six scenes in the fiction project, so it’s a win.

Happy writing!

Book Review: The Unwritten Rules of Magic, by Harper Ross  

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Title: The Unwritten Rules of Magic
Author: Harper Ross  
Genre: Fantasy    
Rating: 4 out of 5

Emerson Clarke can’t remember a time when she felt in control of her life. Her father—a celebrated author—blew in and out of her childhood like a hurricane until he got Alzheimer’s. Her mother numbed loneliness with gin. And recently, her teen daughter has shut her out without explanation. The only place Emerson has ever been in charge is in front of the keyboard where, as a ghostwriter, she dictates everything that happens on the page. If only she could arrange reality the same way, life could be perfect. An impossible fantasy—or so she believes until she makes a startling discovery.

After her father’s wake, Emerson steals her father’s vintage typewriter—the very one he’d forbidden anyone to touch—and tests its keys by typing out a frivolous wish. After it comes true the very next day, she tries another. When those words also spring to life, she becomes obsessed with using the typewriter to engineer happiness for herself and her daughter. Easier said than done.

As Emerson shapes her real-life circumstances, she uncovers disturbing truths about her family’s history and the unexpected cost for each story-come-true. She should destroy the typewriter, but when her daughter’s secret finally emerges, Emerson is torn between paying the price for bending fate and embracing the uncertainty of an unscripted life.

I was a little bit on the fence for the first half of this book. I wasn’t sure if I liked Emerson or not for…yeah, half the book. Actually, I’m kind of still on the fence about her after I’ve finished the book. She seems pretty whiny and doesn’t actually want to do the work—she just wants the happy results handed to her without effort on her part. Sure. Don’t we all? That being said, this was a decent read. I liked the wrap-up and resolution of the story.

The Unwritten Rules of Magic is Harper Ross’s debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

  

Book Review: Silver & Blood, by Jessie Mihalik

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Title: Silver & Blood
Author: Jessie Mihalik            
Genre: Fantasy   
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

There’s something in the woods…

Untrained and barely armed, Riela reluctantly agrees to enter the forest and kill the deadly beast that has been attacking her fellow villagers as she’s the only mage available—or so she thought. When one beast turns into two, she fears her death is at hand, but unexpected aid from a scarred, strikingly handsome man with dangerous moonlit magic means a second chance at life—and an opportunity to learn more about her own fickle power.

After being rescued and healed from her fight in the forest, Riela awakens in a magical castle complete with a gorgeous library, a strange wolf, and the surly man who saved her life. Riela soon learns Garrick is not a mortal mage at all—he’s a powerful Etheri sovereign who has been locked out of his kingdom in Lohka for nearly a century, and his powers are weakening.

Trapped in his castle and surrounded by the treacherous woods, the spark of attraction between Riela and Garrick slowly ignites into fiery desire. But the more they discover about Riela’s magic, the more suspicious Garrick grows of her identity. As they unravel the secrets connecting Riela’s past to Lohka, the tenuous threads of trust between them begin to fray because Riela’s life—or her death—might be the key to regaining everything Garrick has lost.

I just enjoyed this read. I liked the world and the culture and the characters. Did the “twists” surprise me? Not really, but I’ve read a lot of fantasy. That didn’t make me enjoy it less, though. I liked Riela’s spunk and her determination—even when I knew it was going to lead to some stupid decisions. Would I read more, just for fun? Absolutely!

Jessie Mihalik lives in Texas. Silver & Blood is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon in exchange for an honest review.)

   

Book Review: In Bloom, by Liz Allan    

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Title: In Bloom
Author: Liz Allan     
Genre: Fiction   
Rating: 3 out of 5

It’s the mid-nineties, and in the small, shitty coastal town of Vincent, four girls – each hailing from single-mother, multi-sibling families, form a band. Friends since they were children, they consider themselves ‘forgettable girls’ – poor, not particularly clever, distracted at school, disengaged and disillusioned from the other kids, and desperate to escape the fates of their mothers, who seem locked into a life of minimum-wage jobs and domestic drudgery. Winning the Battle of the Bands is their ticket out – they might not have talent, but they can play three chords and scream until their vocal folds burst out of their throats – and nobody wants it more than them.

But when lead singer Lily Lucid quits, and accuses their idolized music teacher of sexual assault, the three remaining girls are left with nothing. They’ll do anything to keep their dream alive, even if it means sacrificing school, Lily and their mothers. But how far out of control can they spin before there’s no turning back?

Most of this book is in a stream-of-consciousness style that feels more than a bit manic. The chapters are quick and frantic, so the story moves quickly, but I found the characters—the three main ones who are treated as a group whole without the reader even knowing their individual names until the last few chapters—to be fairly childish and annoying. Yes, they’re fourteen, but they acted several years younger than that. If this hadn’t been such a quick read, I would have DNFed it. The near-constant Nirvana obsession was enough to put me over the edge.

Liz Allan is from Australia and lives in the UK. In Bloom is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Simon & Schuster in exchange for an honest review.)

 

Sundays are for Writing #355

Yeah, work was absolutely crazy this week, with the impending cold weather event—Texas does not do ice storms well—so I didn’t get much reading done. I did write one book review, The Halifax Hellions, by Alexandra Vasti.

Happy writing! Stay warm.

Book Review and Blog Tour: Anne of a Different Island, by Virginia Kantra    

Title: Anne of a Different Island
Author: Virginia Kantra             
Genre: Fiction  
Rating: 4 out of 5

She believed life could follow a plotline—until the story she was living unraveled.

Anne Gallagher has always lived by the book. Anne of Green Gables, that is. Growing up on Mackinac Island, she saw herself as her namesake: the same impulsive charm, the same fiery imagination, even the same red hair (dyed, but still). She followed in Anne Shirley’s fictional footsteps, chasing dreams of teaching and writing, and falling for her very own storybook hero.

But when a string of real-life plot twists—a failing romance, a fight with the administration, and the sudden death of her beloved father—pulls her back to the island she once couldn’t wait to leave, Anne is forced to face a truth no story ever prepared her for. Sometimes, life doesn’t follow a script.

Back in the house she grew up in, Anne must confront her past and the people she left behind, including Joe Miller, the boy who once called her “The Pest.” It’s time to figure out what she wants and rewrite her story to create her own happy ending. Not the book version. The real one.

This was a cute read. It actually felt as bit like a comfort read: I knew Anne and Joe would end up together, I just didn’t know all the twists and turns. All the similarities and callbacks to Anne of Green Gables were fun, too, especially Anne introducing a new generation to her favorite books. This was a solid read.

Virginia Kantra is a bestselling author. Anne of a Different Island is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley in exchange for an honest review.)

 

Sundays are for Writing #354

I’ve been doing some plotting for my fiction project this week. I only wrote one book review, Strange Animals, by Jarod K. Anderson. I also DNFed three books: Dating After the End of the World, Maybe This Once, and Keeper of Lost Children.

Happy writing!

Book Review: The Bookbinder’s Secret, by A. D. Bell

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Title: The Bookbinder’s Secret
Author: A. D. Bell            
Genre: Historical fiction   
Rating: 4 out of 5

Lilian (“Lily”) Delaney, apprentice to a master bookbinder in Oxford in 1901, chafes at the confines of her life. She is trapped between the oppressiveness of her father’s failing bookshop and still being an apprentice in a man’s profession. But when she’s given a burned book during a visit to a collector, she finds, hidden beneath the binding, a fifty-year-old letter speaking of love, fortune, and murder.

Lily is pulled into the mystery of the young lovers, a story of forbidden love, and discovers there are more books and more hidden pages telling their story. Lilian becomes obsessed with the story but she is not the only one looking for the remaining books and what began as a diverting intrigue quickly becomes a very dangerous pursuit.

Lily’s search leads her from the eccentric booksellers of London to the private libraries of unscrupulous collectors and the dusty archives of society papers, deep into the heart of the mystery. But with sinister forces closing in, willing to do anything for the books, Lilian’s world begins to fall apart and she must decide if uncovering the truth is worth the risk to her own life.

I enjoyed the parts of this about bookbinding, and the mysterious hidden letters and story hidden in the bindings of the secret books. I did not enjoy Lily’s penchant for doing absolutely stupid things all the time. I was honestly more invested in the story from the past than Lily’s story, as I was not convinced she’d ever make a good decision.

A. D. Bell lives in Oxford. The Bookbinder’s Secret is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

   

Book Review: Oxford Blood, by Rachael Davis-Featherstone     

Image belongs to St. Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books.

Title: Oxford Blood
Author: Rachael Davis-Featherstone         
Genre: YA, thriller   
Rating: 3.8 out of 5

Love, Lies, Legacy…

High-achieving state-school pupil Eva has one dream – reading English at Oxford. If she gets in, not only will she receive a world-class education at an elite university, but she will be fulfilling the dreams of her mother and gain some independence from her father, the overprotective Inspector Dawkins.

At the same school, Eva’s best-friend George is also hoping to go to Oxford. The attraction between him and Eva is undeniable, but they’ve agreed to put any romance on hold until their places at Oxford are secured. Eva cannot be distracted from her goal – although when they are both invited for interview week, their future together feels oh-so close.

Until George shows up dead.

The police rule his death an accident, but the behaviour of some of the other interview candidates has Eva suspecting foul play. When a shocking secret about George is revealed, Eva finds suspicion falling on her. What was meant to be one of the most important weeks of her life is fast turning into a nightmare.

All eyes are now on Eva, including the anonymous posters behind OxSlay, a gossipy social media forum exclusively for Oxford students. But amongst the conspiracy theories, lurk hidden clues. Could they help Eva clear her name – and catch the killer?

This was disturbing to me for several reasons, the main one being the way everyone was absorbed in social media—and believed every single thing they read on it. The idea of being in the Oxford environment and being absorbed like that with learning and studying was fascinating, but the dark side of the environment was pretty horrifying.

Rachael Davis-Featherstone lives in Hampshire, England. Oxford Blood is her new novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review.)