Happy Publication Day!

   Book Two in the Ex Romana Series by Sophie Burnham is out in the world! 

BLOODTIDE  continues the adventure in an alternate world where the Roman Empire never fell. Apocalypse is coming, and unlikely alliances are being formed.

 I did receive an advanced reader copy from DAW- Astra House - and I can't wait to post up that review!

   This is a complex fantasy read which will appeal to readers who have wanted just a little more from their novels. Fully fleshed out characters, surprise twists and turns, and a storyline full of thought provoking moments.  And a story this complex is nothing with out some messy, complicated relationships! 

    And the COVER!  Design by Adam Auerbach   and illustrated by Simon Prades ( who is also know for his work for the New Yorker) - this one is a stunner!  

 Let me know if you pick this up!  Happy Reading! 

Book Review: Tourist Season by Brynne Weaver

 I LOVE Brynne Weaver.  I really enjoyed her Ruinous Love Trilogy  which made me a bit hesitant about Tourist Season!  I didn't think it could get any better, and as Tourist Season is also about serial un-alivers, I was a little concerned. Some writers hit on a formula and stick with it, and their novels become a wee bit predictable. My concerns were unfounded! 

 And well, I do think perhaps Ms. Weaver may just really like serial un-alivers a bit more than your average person, but that of course is just speculation, and this is fiction- where anything can happen! 

I'm going to say that I think, possibly, that Tourist Season is even better than the Ruinous Love trilogy. 

No Spoiler Summary- as spoilers are awful ridiculous things.  Our protagonist, Harper, has a bit of a shady past, but she's started anew in Cape Carnage. She takes care of Arthur, an elderly man suffering from dementia.  Arthur's got a secret, however, as he's been guardian of the peace in Cape Carnage for decades. His idea of guarding, does seem to involve some disappearances of troublesome folks from time to time, but who's to say that an elderly gentleman has anything to do with that? Especially one with a questionable hold on his faculties. 

Nolan's just a tourist on Cape Carnage come to enjoy the festivities. At least, that's what he wants people to believe. He's got his own agenda which definitely does include a woman who wronged him in the worst way so many years ago. (or did she?) He can't help but find himself attracted to this kind, beautiful woman who is an enigma- wrapped in a juxtaposition, folded into an origami bird. (Probably a Crow- just saying). The last thing he wants is to develop feelings for this woman, because he's pretty sure she's pure evil. 

     As the two orbit each other, some unspeakable acts do occur- which are oddly hilarious when written by Weaver.  (this is not a realistic novel at all and I'm here for the escape!) With a bit of forced proximity, and a shared midnight task, Nolan and Harper come together in an odd macabre dance of discovery. Neither is quite ready to give up the past and commit to the future.  Will they be able to before it's too late? 

Beyond the romance (which really is in the forefront), we also have the story of Arthur who is clearly struggling with dementia - while there are some entertaining moments involving Arthur, it's never at his expense and Weaver treats the challenges of dementia and caregiving with a deep respect that was appreciated. 

The conclusion-  it's a romance so it's going to have a certain ending, but as to how they get to the ending --- you'll have to read to find out! I enjoyed this via Audiobook from my local library.  Narrators Samantha Brentmoor and Robert Hatchet really did a perfect job imparting Weaver's Dark, but hysterical story an extra spark! 

Highly Recommend! 

First Published : 9/2025

Pages: 368

Available as an Audio Book :YES

Trigger Warnings: kidnapping, murder, unorthodox use of wood chipper, more murder, medical situations, death, accidental drug use, sex, and more.   

Not a full TW list, please read responsibly. 

Book Review: Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma

  Spooky Season is in full swing at my house!  I'm so pleased to have finished Immortal Dark! 

This novel has been on my radar since it came out in 2024. It made a big splash across "Booktok"  and I thought this was going to be sort of a Book Tok fluffy vampire book with some nods to Ethiopian culture,  and boy was I wrong. I honestly am left wondering if I read the same book as the bubbly enthusiastic reviewers did. 

   Not that it isn't good.  It IS very very GOOD.  It just pretty much transcends the usual Book Tok tropes and has a lot more depth than what is normally on offer. (and yes, we do all create our own algorithims) ...

   Our protagonist, Kidan is one tough woman. She and her sister were raised outside of the Vampire/Human society they were born to. In order to protect herself and her sister, Kidan has done some unspeakable things. When we meet Kidan, June (the sister) has disappeared and Kidan is searching frantically for her. Kidan is given an opportunity to locate her sister, while reclaiming her familial house on the famed Uxlay campus. The house (which indeed is sentient!) is occupied by Susenyos- a Vampire with a checkered past. The two are instant enemies, and like all good romances, the enemies soon find they have more in common than they have differences. 

   We have all likely read our share of vampire novels. Immortal Dark is a bit of a new take on the well worn vampire tropes. Her novel brings in pieces of various African cultures, entwining this with classic vampire stories. For me, the balance between familiar vampire themes and the African highlights was perfect, each augmenting the other and fitting together seamlessly. 

   What struck me about this novel is that none of the characters are particularly likeable. I intermittently found myself cheering for Susenyos and in the next minute deciding that I was more for Kidan, and often deciding that I really didn't like either's scheming, difficult personalities. This leaves all sorts of space for discussion of morality, loyalty, the cost of deception. I was compelled to find out what happens and read for 4 hours straight to get to the end.  I'm lining up for book two now. Will Kidan and Susenyos reject their prior bad acts or will they choose to fall deeper into the dark? I can't wait to find out. 

   Great read for Spooky Season! 

First Published : 2024

Pages: 448

Available as an Audio Book :YES

Trigger Warnings: parental death, SI, violence, strong language, blood drinking, death, murder, parental abuse,  

Not a full TW list, please read responsibly. 

Book Review: Up Home - One Girl's Journey By Ruth J. Simmons

 I picked this up on Audio from the library as a "Skip the Line Loan"  Available for 7 days only, so I did have to prioritize it and speed right through it. 

 This is a non -fiction memoir written by the author, describing how she was born the child of Texas Sharecroppers and went on to become the President of Smith College and Brown University. 

For me, this was interesting and educative, but as far as a piece of reading- it fell a little flat. The subject matter is so important that I can forgive it for not being an extremely engaging read. In it's favor- it is written in plain language, and follows Ruth's life in a very easy to digest linear fashion (I don't really like books that jump around in time, so this was very nice) and I can see it being easily read by young adults to old adults.  Not in it's favor- the book itself has sort of the same timbre (if you will) throughout. Simmons was  involved in several pivotal moments in time encompassing the rural sharecropping life, the end of segregation in the South, and the Civil Rights movement. These events are described in the novel in the same tone and timbre as descriptions of what was eaten for breakfast.  I do get the feeling though - that part of Simmons life success is because she isn't prone to drama (unlike her teen years!) and faces things with a practical and matter of fact approach. 

   Definitely recommend- especially for older students in conjunction with American History classes, and for folks interested in learning more about how things were over time in the American South.  I do feel like I learned quite a bit from reading about and learning from her experiences. 

First Published : 1/2025

Pages: 224

Available as an Audio Book :YES

Trigger Warnings: Racism, Domestic Violence, poverty, Sexism, Parental death, Medical situations. 

Not a full TW list, please read responsibly. 

September Reading Wrap Up

September was a month of Bangers from the Back list and some great new reads that I got as Advanced Copies.  There were also some very mid reads, but - you can't win them all. Some of this is just dissociation from the world, but also... Advanced copies. 

 I finished 23 books in September. Incomprehensible.

Admittedly one was a VERY short read: Don't Trust Fish by Neil Sharpson.

 I saw this as an audio book and thought why not?  I had no idea anyone harbored  such strong feelings about fish as villians.  

This took about 15 minutes to consume, so ... when I say I read 23 books... it might not be very impressive. 

Out of this stack of Books...  let's do some statistics! 

Books in Translation:  2/27   this comes out to 7%.   It seems low, but I still think I'm surpassing last year's totals.    I am keeping on in searching these out. 

Books by Diverse Authors: 7/27  which is about 26%   A lower percentage than last month, but a higher book count. 

Favorite read for the Month: Has to be My Name is Emilia del Valle  by Isabel Allende. 

 I loved this one with my whole heart and soul.  So relatable, and yet so different! 

A close second was Marie Lu's Adult Debut  Red City! 

  I enjoyed this one!  It was a wild ride that did generate some reading anxiety but... I appreciated the not very cliff- hanger-y conclusion. 

Last month I noted I had been requesting less Advanced Reader Copies, but honestly... I apparently have 8, so lots of new book reviews coming your way in October!!! 

I usually don't do a Least Favorite, but,  My least Favorite was K/A Knight's  The Wasteland.... not to be confused with T.S Eliot's poem.  The poem has great magnitude.  Knight's book is a RH story about a kick butt bounty hunter type woman, who picks up 3 very attractive male companions.  Both dystopian. I might need to do further comparison.  Knight has written other books that I've enjoyed, this one just didn't hang together very well. 

Book Review Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt

   This book should be at the top of any horror lovers list for "Spooky Season"  It is one book that actually managed to terrify me. 

A lot of the horror I read is sort of creeping, unsettling,  or slasher style horror with lots of gore and body parts.  Generally speaking, most of it seems so unrealistic that it isn't exactly "scary". HEX, on the other hand... very realistic with supernatural mixed in, sheer horror. 

    Our story is one of a HEX officer - Robert Grim who works in a small bucolic town - Black Spring NY  which is oddly haunted by a centuries old witch. There's a lot of lore about the witch- and she shows up all around town all the time. HEX is a project to monitor and control this phenomena- without alarming the general population outside of Black Spring. At some point, some teens start to do things that teens typically do- and the carefully constructed peace between the witch, and the town comes tumbling down. 

  If you are looking for something that is nauseatingly frightening on many different levels, this is going to be the book for you.  If not, I strongly advise avoiding it. 

For me, I loved it.  It was so original, and so well paced, and put together, that I could not put it down.. sort of. I also could not read it anywhere but the gym - surrounded by other people.  Interestingly, HEX is translated from Dutch, and the author heavily changed the story line for  a North American audience- moving the location from the Netherlands to the Hudson Valley and more.  I'm not sure how I feel about a book being essentially re-written for a new audience, but that was a choice that was made. 

This is definitely one with lots of extremely spooky vibes, and one from "the Backlist"  I'm glad I read it and I admit, I have been peeking around corners making sure that I don't bump into Katherine all week!!!! 

First Published : 2013  in Dutch  2016 in English

Pages: 384

Available as an Audio Book :YES

Trigger Warnings: violent events, Child death, Suicide, body horror, illness, murder, animal death. 

Not a full TW list, please read responsibly. 

Book Review The Eight heartbreaks of Hanukkah: A Jewish Holiday Romantic Comedy by Jean Meltzer

 Wow!  This is a holiday Rom-com that packs a punch and addresses many serious topics while still injecting humor. Quite a balancing act, and one that Jean Meltzer does extremely well! 

Many Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin audio for the audiobook, read by Dara Rosenberg.

I listened to the audiobook with a friend as a buddy read and we both LOVED this!  I chose it because I thought it might be a good one to recommend when people are looking for a romance that is from a different culture. Now, this is set in contemporary Manhattan for the most part and the main characters are mainstream modern Jewish people, but many readers aren't very familiar with Jewish culture and Meltzer does a great job introducing some concepts and traditions that are different and somewhat unique while spinning a ridiculously funny and at the same time heartbreaking second chance romance. I definitely learned so many things about Jewish culture and family!

Without spoilers- Evelyn is a dedicated, driven TV executive, while David is a laid back physician. They married, having a passionate love and shared values between them, but after a tragic event, they drift apart with David settling down on a hobby farm in Pennsylvania. Evelyn is producing a massive holiday extravaganza, when she's suddenly confronted by David who is doing a stint as the production studio doctor. Things get awkward! Evelyn is visited by multiple ghosts of Hanukkah as she revisits past moments, she gains perspective on past events, while David is faced with his continued feelings for Evelyn. Can a Hanukkah miracle happen for this unlikely couple? Well, of course you'll want to read to find out. 

I enjoyed the audiobook. Dara Rosenburg did a great job conveying personality through her narration, and I definitely felt Evelyn's tension and David's more mellow demeanor through the narration! 

Please note the trigger warnings prior to embarking on this journey. The cartoon cover makes it seem like a campy rom- com, but within the pages, Meltzer also seamlessly addresses pregnancy loss, grief, loss of parent, divorce, and more. So, it's important to decide if this is a novel for you, or one you'd give as a gift. Both of us buddy readers did ugly cry hard through some parts of the book. That said, we also could not stop laughing at some of the other parts!   

First Published : 10/2025

Pages: 368

Available as an Audio Book :YES

Trigger Warnings: medical situations, chronic illness, pregnancy loss, child loss, parental death, divorce, irrational main star, chickens and Llamas. 

Not a full TW list, please read responsibly.