Hi there book buddies,

Dropping you a quick line before heading out to a Sunday evening Dodger game! Hope you had a great 4th of July. We hosted our neighbors, and I think I'm still full. In other news, I finally broke down and ordered a new rug from Ruggable to replace our super stained living room rug. If you have any tricks for keeping your rug stain-free, please let me know.

I did A LOT of reading last week but only finished ONE book. 😳 Yes, you guessed it! I spent my entire week plowing through The Calamity Club, finally finishing yesterday while prepping for 4th of July company. And while I did LOVE it, I don't think it's a 6⭐️ for me. I wanted more from the ending; in fact, I felt like we deserved more from the ending after spending SO much time with these characters. Alas, I still highly recommend it and cannot wait to share a little something fun I'm working on that was inspired by the book. 5⭐️s

I'm chipping away at The Secret Society of Librarians more slowly than I'd like, but that's just because I haven't had much time to sit down with my Kindle. The days leading up to the beginning of a new month are SO hectic in my little bookish space that it always means I have less time to read. I'm hoping to start a new content creation cycle that will help with that (and give paid subs early access to the next month's histfic releases much earlier).

I read one chapter of the new Madeline Martin book, A Time of Witches, and it completely hooked me! I love when an opening chapter sucks you right into the drama. I have a feeling this will be the witchy book I've been craving.

I just started Mad Mable on audio and have a feeling it will be the palate cleanser that I need after The Calamity Club. It's too early to say much about it other than I always enjoy being transported to Australia in Hepworth's books, and this one is no different.

I have big reading plans for July so stay tuned for lots of great books, reading updates, reviews, and a secret behind-the-scenes vlog!

ICYMI

• This labor of love has had great reactions, so thank you to all who engaged with it on social media!

• July historical fiction heads up (short form)

• July historical fiction heads up (long form)

• Don't miss this massive book mail haul

Hear It Here First

BIG plans for a Calamity Club comparison post & my first ever secret TBR jar pull coming soon!

Happy reading!

xoxo

c

One thing I kept thinking about after this week's reading is how often we confuse fast pacing with good pacing.

Some books race from plot point to plot point and somehow still feel slow. Others spend hundreds of pages carefully building tension, relationships, and atmosphere, and I never want to put them down.

This week was a perfect example of that. Across six completely different books, I realized the stories I enjoyed most weren't necessarily the fastest. They were the ones that made me trust the author enough to wait for the payoff.

Some earned that trust beautifully and one didn't quite get there for me.

🌲 Hide and Seek: The Slow Burn That Never Felt Slow

Scandinavian crime fiction has always approached suspense differently than many American thrillers.

Rather than throwing a twist at you every twenty pages, books like Hide and Seek build tension through meticulous police work, creeping dread, and the feeling that every answer only opens the door to another question.

On paper, this is a 500-plus-page police procedural.

In practice, it never felt like one.

That's because Søren Sveistrup understands that suspense is created by momentum. Every interview, every clue, every conversation between Hess and Thulin moves something forward, whether it's the investigation itself or their increasingly complicated relationship.

Their unresolved history is one of my favorite parts of the series. There were plenty of moments where I wanted to reach into the pages and force them to have an honest conversation already, but that frustration is exactly what makes them compelling. Their personal story mirrors the investigation itself: full of unfinished business, unanswered questions, and emotional loose ends.

I also appreciated how much attention the novel gives to the victims and the people left behind. The grieving mother campaigning to keep her daughter's case alive adds an emotional layer that prevents the investigation from becoming just another puzzle to solve.

It's a reminder that the best police procedurals are about the people who have to keep living after them.

🔪 Keep Them Close: Twists That Play Fair

There are two kinds of thriller twists: the first relies on information the author deliberately hides from the reader, and the second changes how you interpret information you already had.

David Ellis consistently writes the second kind.

Every time I thought I'd figured out who was responsible for Finley's murder, another chapter would reveal a new piece of context that completely changed my understanding of what I'd already read. That's a much harder trick to pull off, and it's why his books always feel satisfying instead of manipulative.

The multiple timelines never become confusing because each one answers one question while quietly introducing another.

I also loved that Allison and Luke aren't written as perfect protagonists. They're messy, emotionally complicated, and carrying secrets of their own, which means you spend just as much time questioning the people you're rooting for as the people you're suspicious of.

That's exactly what a domestic thriller should do.

🌫️ Thornbird: More Than "The Daughter of a Serial Killer"

The premise alone sells this book: a girl whose father was a serial killer is forced to return to the hometown she escaped years ago.

Ryan spends the entire novel wrestling with an identity she didn't choose, and that's ultimately what gives the mystery its emotional weight. The twists kept me guessing, but the reason I kept turning pages was because I wanted to see whether she could finally separate herself from the legacy everyone else had forced onto her.

I also appreciated that this never became misery for the sake of misery. It balances suspense with emotional drama in a way that keeps the story bingeable without ever feeling gratuitous.

I do think a few storylines (particularly the FBI involvement and one of the relationships) could have used more room to breathe. Those threads felt a little rushed compared to how thoughtfully the central mystery unfolded.

Still, for a debut YA thriller, this is incredibly confident.

If A Good Girl's Guide to Murder made you realize YA thrillers can be just as gripping as adult ones, Thornbird deserves a spot on your radar.

⚔️ Daggermouth: Sometimes the Hype Is Right

I'll admit it; I went into this one almost hoping not to love it.

When a book is everywhere, it's hard not to wonder if it can possibly live up to the expectations readers have built around it.

For me, it did.

People keep comparing it to The Hunger Games, and I understand why. Both explore oppressive systems and impossible choices. But emotionally, Daggermouth feels much angrier.

There's a current of feminine rage running through this novel that gives every conflict extra weight. From the first page, the world feels fundamentally unjust. Every decision the characters make is shaped by systems designed to keep them powerless.

That emotional foundation is what made the enemies-to-lovers dynamic work so well for me. The romance isn't separate from the larger story; it's another way the book explores trust, power, and survival.

The opening takes a little while to settle into its rhythm, and a few supporting characters fade into the background early on. But once the story locks in, it never lets go.

That ending? I'm still recovering.

🩸 The Brides: When Atmosphere Becomes the Story

This was probably my most complicated read of the week, mainly because I don't actually think it failed at what it was trying to do.

I think I expected it to be a different book.

The Brides is incredibly faithful to Victorian gothic fiction. The epistolary format, the slow accumulation of dread, the fragmented perspectives...all of it feels intentionally designed to recreate the experience of reading Dracula rather than modernizing it.

The atmosphere is phenomenal: dark, creepy, and beautifully unsettling. But atmosphere is also the point. Readers looking for a fast-moving vampire novel or a romance-heavy retelling may find themselves waiting for a story that never arrives in quite the way they expected.

For me, I never stopped admiring the craft, but I also never fully connected emotionally. I felt like I was observing the novel rather than living inside it.

It's one of those books that reminded me there is a difference between appreciating a novel and loving one.

🌾 Harvest Season: The Challenge of the Middle Book

Middle books have one of the hardest jobs in any series: they have to deliver a satisfying story while also convincing readers that the biggest answers are worth saving for later.

That's exactly where Harvest Season lands.

Harper and Nolan continue to be the emotional heart of this series, and I loved watching their relationship deepen alongside Harper's bond with Arthur. Those quieter character moments are what kept me invested, even when the central mystery slowed down.

The middle section dragged a bit for me because I found myself wanting the larger plot to move faster. But then the final quarter completely changed my experience. Suddenly every lingering question became a reason to keep reading.

By the end, I wasn't frustrated that everything wasn't resolved; I was excited that there was still so much left to uncover.

That's a delicate balance, and whether it ultimately succeeds will depend on how Book Three pays everything off.

After the Walk

If this week reminded me of anything, it's that pacing is all about trust.

• I trusted Sveistrup to take his time because every chapter mattered.

• I trusted David Ellis because every timeline added another piece to the puzzle.

• I trusted Daggermouth to justify its hype.

• I admired what The Brides was doing, even if it never quite earned that same trust from me emotionally.

I'd much rather spend time with an author who knows exactly where they're taking me, even if they make me wait a little longer to get there.

What about you? What's a book that rewarded your patience? The kind where the payoff made every slow chapter worth it? I'd love to add a few more to my TBR.

We made it. This will be long. We've got a lot of ground to cover, chat.

Kingdom of Ash has been completed. I have read my way through Throne of Glass for the very first time. It's done. I have to say, I think the finale really did satisfy me in every way I could think of. It was bittersweet, fast-paced, and action heavy. We saw growth from Aelin as a character that I've been dying to see and that was preventing me from enjoying my time with her as a character.

This book was far more dispersed. We got every cluster of side characters equally and Aelin no longer dominated the page, which I felt was a good thing for me as someone who doesn't care for her and for the story. It let the other characters shine in ways they really deserved to. I actually consider the story in 2 parts - before the box and after the box. Everyone loves a good Main Character in a Box arc for some reason, but it worked here in really good ways.

It was not a clean rescue. We didn't get Aelin back in the first 100 pages. She stayed gone for the first 350 and mentally gone for the next 150, meaning half the book was giving Aelin an arc to realize where she stumbled and start anew if she wanted. I loved Fenrys in this and getting to know these other cadre members that we didn't get much time with before. Him and Aelin's trauma bonding was heartbreaking and SJM really leaned into villainy here, which I liked a lot. She let Maeve be evil, but her motives be kind of... understandable? That's one thing I've enjoyed about the series. Nobody is clear cut, not even Erawan.

I felt for Aelin in the end. The fear and struggle and suffering... I just really felt for her. Refusing to break and not knowing real from illusion is terrifying. It stripped her of all the mechanics she used to avoid herself and never have to face anything head on, which translated to later in the book when she stopped avoiding herself and charged into battle. I don't think she could've let the army without this arc, evil as it was. She had to become someone new to claim her power and birthright. The person she was didn't have the capacity or ability to step into the role of queen. If she wanted to lead her people, she had to literally be reborn as a new person.

She retains her dry humor and irreverence, but she's lost the self-limiting cockiness and aggrandizing behavior that alienated her from other people. Part of leading is knowing when to accept help, thinking bigger than yourself, and knowing how to balance hard choices for what you need with what you want. The fact is that for the first 6 books of the series, Aelin didn't have that. She was selfish and couldn't think outside of herself for a long time. Later books, she learns to also think of her friends, but still in a selfish way. She doesn't let them in, still keeps them at arm's length, doesn't give them autonomy or choice and decides on their behalf what's best for them without their input. Well-intentioned, of course, but well-intentioned doesn't mean right. It also doesn't mean she's ready for leadership. At all.

But the woman who comes running from Maeve's war camp and sits quietly on the boat through the mountains is different. She's been forced to rely on Fenrys for her mental survival. Her skin has been stripped away and forged anew. She literally loses all the scars that remind her of the person she was and has to decide the kind of person she will become. Her scars are an old version of her that doesn't fit with this new person she needs to be, the person she wants to be. I think that's the key difference between KOA Aelin and EOS Aelin. EOS Aelin was present-minded, she only thought about right now and herself and what she wanted and felt she was owed for herself. KOA Aelin has been through so much that stripped that away and made her realize it wasn't about her, it was about Erilea and Terrasen. She removed herself from the equation to see the real picture at hand - she had to become someone that could lead a kingdom, regardless of whether or not it ended with her on the throne. She had to be the kind of person who loved her people sight unseen more than she loved a crown and power. EOS Aelin wanted the crown and the power, KOA Aelin wanted whatever was best for her people. That's the distinction and why I think Darrow was fully right to deny her the throne in EOS. I stand on that forever.

I loved seeing Fenrys get his arc, tragic as it was. My only complaint is that I wish we'd split KOA into two books so we could get more of Fenrys and Connall, or had more setup for their dynamic ahead of time. I think Connall's death felt a little flat for me because I didn't know him beyond being Fenrys's twin and I didn't know Fenrys enough to have an emotional attachment to that bond. However, it was still devastating to read and empathize with this poor wolf-man who only ever wanted to protect his brother. Maeve had cleaved into Connall's mind and destroyed their relationship, yes. But Fenrys did what Aelin had done - he decided what was best to protect Connall without letting Connall have any agency or tell him what he needed. Misguided as it was, Connall took the blood oath because he wanted to. Fenrys didn't respect his brother's agency and that let himself be manipulated by Maeve into taking it, too. If he had allowed his brother to do what he wished and tell him how or if he needed protecting, I think it would have been a completely different relationship for them.

Sometimes, you have to let the people you love make bad decisions and experience the natural consequences of them. Constantly shielding people from those consequences isn't noble, it damages your relationship and prevents the person from experiencing what they need to from that choice. It's the hardest thing in the world to watch someone you love make a bad decision, but you have to respect their agency to make it. You have to let them experience the consequences. Die a hero or live long enough to be the villain, remember?

I need to opine on Aedion and Gavriel, but I don't even know where to start so let me stretch first.

Okay. Aedion and Manon of all of these characters suffer the most loss and biggest hardship. Yes, even with Aelin in the box. I'll get into why Manon actually paid the steepest price later, let's focus on Aedion. Aedion is in Orynth. Holding the wall. He makes bad choices that get a lot of people killed. Again, intentions were good when he drugged the lords and went to bring the fight to Morath. 100% understand his noble decisions.

But it was the wrong choice that decimated their army. Thank god it showed them the witch towers before they reached the city, but that cost was steep. Darrow, in that moment, was absolutely right to punish him for it. Darrow's commands were actually rooted in good strategy and about conserving lives and forces. Aedion messed up.

In times of war, you cannot have a general that defies leadership. War is too stressful, too precarious, and too dangerous to tolerate insubordination like that. Darrow handled it with an iron fist and he was right to do so. I like him so much as a character because he makes the hard, unpopular, uncomfortable choices that success on a battlefield demand in order to survive. Aedion makes very noble, headstrong choices, but he is not a strategist. He is a front line general. He is brave and strong and powerful and motivating and knows how to lead, but he isn't a war strategy guy. Darrow, however, is. He has the knowledge and history and understands making hard choices to lose battles in order to win wars. He is the reason a lot of people survived and they had the supplies they needed to weather a siege.

Aedion paid the price for his own headstrong blindness. A heavy one. Couple that with the fallout with Lysandra and he just kept paying over and over. Aedion was shattered by her betrayal. He was right to be furious, right to be cold, right to question everything between them, and right to throw her into the snow. That's a very controversial take, but hear me out.

Lysandra and Aelin knew about Aedion's traumatic past. Knew about how he was on the killing fields at Terrasen's last stand at fourteen years old. Knew he had to serve a king against his own people, watch his kingdom be ransacked, and be used and passed around all of Adarlan ending up with a reputation he was ashamed of. Their plan put him, right back into his trauma. It triggered the return to the worst period of his life on purpose in a way that he thought these two women would never, ever do to him. He trusted them. He trusted Lysandra above all others. She betrayed him and was prepared to drop him back into his trauma.

I've been in that situation. Not to get all deeply personal, but I've been in a place where someone I trusted knowingly tried to re-traumatize me in the same way I had shared in confidence. If it's never happened to you, you don't understand what it feels like. There is no reasoning with it. No soft landing. No gentle words. No intervention. The only way you can handle a person who willingly and knowingly does that to you is through total annihilation. Iron fisted slam into the earth. It has to be absolutely clear that the boundary is made of steel and it will not bend. If he bent, if he gave her that inch, he would be opening the door to "permitting" the behavior and allowing other boundaries of his to be crossed. He had to be cold and ruthless and unfeeling. It was literally him versus her and he picked himself. As he should have. Plus, they were in the middle of fighting for their lives, they didn't have time to patch shit up. There's demons in their hair.

I'm glad they repaired things because I do love them together, but I would take a very long time before I fully trusted that person again.

On top of all of this, it's Aedion holding Orynth together. Aedion watching his men die. Aedion keeping at bay an entire city worth of hopelessness. Aedion watching the witch towers coming for the walls. Aedion holding the gates. Aedion losing the father he should have been given more time with. Which I blame Rowan and Aelin for and I'll get into that later. Of all of them, Aedion is one of the two characters who paid a much steeper price than the rest.

Now let's talk about the only other character whose price was steeper: Manon.

Manon, my sweet and darling girl. Manon left the Ironteeth and chased down the Crochans. She became tribeless, peopleless, and only had the Thirteen. Still, she persevered. She did not back down. She chose hope even when nobody gave her any reason to have any. She buried the Crochan dead with her sisters and risked everything to ask them to join her. She went to the middle of the Ferian Gap and risked annihilation to hope with her fellow Ironteeth who had never been allowed to hope before. Manon unmade herself and remade herself because she loved her friends and her dragons so much it was worth it even if it killed her.

When Abraxos is injured and Manon knows it's time for them to die for a better world, her Thirteen do not let her. Their final act is love, in defiance of their entire lives built on hate and cruelty they chose to love Manon more than themselves. They flew to that witch tower for hope, not vengeance. It made them stronger than all the other Ironteeth and the Blackbeak matron could ever have been.

Manon had to stand at the walls and watch her sisters obliterate themselves because they hoped and believed enough in a future they would not live to see. All she could do was witness. Manon, in the end, was the only character who was completely alone. Aelin had friends and family and her mate with her. Aedion had the same. So did Lysandra, Rowan, Lorcan, Elide, Fenrys, Chaol, Dorian, Nesryn, Yrene, Sartaq... all of them had friends and loved ones and family they could lean on. They had someone to hold and process and cleave to in their grief. In return, someone was there to hold them back.

Manon had no one.

She didn't even have Dorian. Not really.

Her grief lived in her heart and she was the only one who could carry it. There was no one to lean on, no loved ones to turn to, no friends to draw strength from. Every person who knew Manon and loved her fiercely was gone. Now she has to return to a homeland her beloved sisters died for without ever knowing what it looked like and build it in their image.

Without them.

Manon's price, more than any other character, was the steepest. Time will heal her, it will build her friendships, gain her new sisters, open her heart up, but she is the only character who must endure her sorrow in isolation. My heart, for her, broke the most.

Aedion might be the only character who comes close to understanding that. Gavriel died hoping his son forgave him. He sacrificed himself for the child who had rejected him and Aedion realized too late how badly he did not want to. He rejected his father in no uncertain terms because of Aelin and Rowan.

Yeah. I said it.

Aelin and Rowan cost Aedion his connection with Gavriel in enormous ways I won't ever forgive specifically Rowan for more than Aelin.

I mentioned it in EOS but Aelin and Rowan took Aedion's agency away and weaponized his relationship with his father for their own gain. They used him yet again the way he had been used by Adarlan and kept him and his father from reconciling earlier than the moment before his death. There was no effort from Aelin to encourage Aedion to repair the rift or find a way to get to know Gavriel.

Gavriel was the only one who stopped to help her in Heir of Fire and she looked at him resentfully instead of encouraging Aedion to know his father was a noble man and there was more to his story. Rowan considered Gavriel the best of them, the most noble, the one cadre member who might have been his true friend, but Rowan never once spoke in Gavriel's defense to Aedion. In fact, Rowan treated Gavriel very badly and acted like he was a completely different type of man than the one he knew him to be. He never defended his friend. Never told Aedion the entire story despite knowing it. Rowan claims "it's not his story to tell", but then never hesitates to weaponize Aedion's existence after telling Aedion it wasn't Rowan's place to divulge his paternity to Gavriel. It was okay to do so to Aedion to get Gavriel to do what Rowan wanted, but not okay to do so for Gavriel when it could have done good and repaired his relationship with his son.

I resent Rowan for it so very much. He is a shitty friend and a bad partner. I will stand here on this hill and say I do not care for Rowan because of how he treats his friends. He doesn't encourage growth in Aelin, never guides her with his centuries of experience, won't hold her accountable, and resorts to immediate violence when anyone holds her responsible for her own behavior.

He mistreated Gavriel at every turn knowing Gavriel was the only true hearted one of his friends he trusted. Gavriel was the best of them and came to Aelin and Rowan's defense multiple times, but yet Rowan always treated him like he had done something wrong by taking the same blood oath Rowan took and only got out of because of a chance encounter. Rowan acted like he had no idea that the blood oath was a compulsion that would kill them to defy. He had the same compulsion, he didn't break it, but somehow expected Gavriel and Lorcan to do it? Miss me with that, he's a dogwater friend. How a man treats his friends is an important glimpse of his character and he treats his friends badly.

Speaking of the Lorcan of it all, that man is owed several apologies by multiple parties and I will accept no Lorcan slander. Released of his oath, Lorcan chooses to go help rescue Aelin. He's the one who gets her to safety. He risks himself over and over again and everyone treats him like shit for it. Even AFTER he's the one who gets Aelin to safety and she forgives him because she understood her capture was largely her fault. Lorcan called Maeve's armada because he thought those ships were Erawan's - RIGHTFULLY so, Aelin never told anyone the plan until she made a showy entrance to Ansel. Her prioritizing her flourishing entrance is the split second Lorcan sent out his call and that is why she got captured. Showmanship over communicating during a time of very real threat and danger to people's lives. She didn't treat any of that situation with the gravity it deserved or her companions with the faith and trust they deserved and that's what cost her. That's why she forgave Lorcan, it's one of the lessons she learned in the box and why she stopped doing that shit after it.

Lorcan called Maeve's ships with the intention of pitting them against what he believed to be Erawan's fleet so they might be able to escape during the naval battle. That's a smart plan. I'm sorry. Based on his limited knowledge? That plan was sound as hell. I side with him. That was smart.

When the blood oath is rescinded from Gavriel and Lorcan, Lorcan is the only one whi tried to get up and do something. Gavriel sat like a sad pumpkin mourning his honor more than acting to save his new queen. Elide stood there and did nothing. Manon didn't even move to stop her. Lorcan is the only one of them on the beach who tried. When he tells everyone this and despite them all knowing beyond a doubt he is telling the truth, they ignore it and dismiss it to keep blaming him. Knowing he is telling the truth. Do you know how messed up that is? Knowing someone is being honest about their motivations and then completely ignoring it to cling to their anger and the made up version of you instead? That is so messed up. Lorcan deserved a hell of a lot better than that from them all, even my girl Elide.

Which brings me back to the hotdog water friend that is Rowan Whitethorn.

Rowan knew - he knew - Lorcan had taken punishment after punishment for him without saying a word. Lorcan paid the price for Rowan leaving. He never spoke of it, never mentioned it, never asked for anything. He did this for centuries whenever Rowan fucked off. Lorcan swallowed every punishment in silence for a man he believed was his friend and he had a responsibility to protect. How does Rowan handle leaning about all of that? Oh. By dismissing it outright and never thinking about it or considering it or coming to Lorcan's defense. Ever. In fact, Rowan is the worst offender in making sure everyone stays hating Lorcan.

Rowan is a bad friend.

Lorcan is a better man than me because after that shit in the caves on the boat with Fenrys and Rowan and Elide ALL ganging up on him, knowing the truth and still choosing to stay and help Aelin - who had asked them all to forgive him and let go - I would have been like alright you are all very much heard, I'm gonna go wander off and find Vaughan, good luck storming the castle. Won't trouble you with my presence since it's unwanted, bye. Lorcan stayed and ate shit from them and still fought his ass off to get Aelin her throne.

Lorcan deserves apologies from every single one of the cadre.

Alright. Continuing on. Chaol and Yrene? Oh, you mean the true heroes of the story? You mean Yrene, the strongest magic user in the whole series? The GOAT? The slayer of Erawan? Yeah I love them. Chaol kicked his dad's ass and stayed to protect Anielle even when he could have left. He prioritized his city and his people and put his dad in his place. Chaol deserved a better father and because of him he will be that better father. All Chaol hate should be directed at his dad. Chaol survived that man and has no magic and trained himself to be the best fighter on the field. With NO MAGIC he can fight standing, on horseback, with a cane, and in a chair. That man did that. Raw battle prowess did that. Chaol deserves way more respect for that. He showed there is no such thing as a limitation, only an adaptation.

Yrene? Unbothered self assured diva. Yrene is self confidence incarnate. She knows exactly who she is. She is the image of what happens when you process your trauma and you do not allow it to control you anymore. She trusts her instincts, she trusts herself, and that's why Erawan can't get in her head or rattle her. She is unflappable. Erawan got in everyone's head but hers because she's processed her life and chosen to heal, the self confidence it gave her to accept all facets of herself made it impossible for him to rattle her.

We love to see a healer being the one who saves the day. No swords, no bloodshed, no warrior cry. Just a woman growing life in herself who knows the incredible power of a gentle hand over a hard one.

Chaol is Wife Guy #1 and he is so proud and supportive of his wife. I love them so much.

Dorian's arc, too, has been really interesting. In my first TOG review, I may or may not have but definitely did refer to him as a wet pencil. I stand by that. His personality in TOG? Boredom. Nothing. Blah. Unexciting. But also he was the hedonistic prince of a demon king and didn't get out much. Watching him get into the world and experience figuring out who he was gave him so much more dimension. When he left Manon for the greater good and picked up the mantle of a destiny that wasn't supposed to be his, he chose to challenge himself about what kind of man he wanted to be.

Dorian had one of the most satisfying arcs. He didn't get his clean ending. He didn't charge into battle to save his own city. He charged into battle to save his friend's because he wants to be the kind of man who answers a call for aid. He wants to be the kind of king whose kingdom rallies to protect its allies. Even when he felt like he was pantomiming, he still acted the way he wanted his best self to act. That's one of my favorite messages:

You are already the best version of yourself, you just have to act like you would want your best self to act.

Fake it until you make it. He never let his quest for self discovery stop him from acting like he wanted his best self to act. In the end, he realized that's all he had to do to be the man he wanted to become. I love that. Dorian is baby.

All in all, I thought this was an incredible satisfying ending to the series. It left enough open that if SJM ever wanted to do more, she could. But nothing felt unfinished and no stone felt unturned. Everyone's circles closed. I laughed, I cried, I got mad, I decided I hate Rowan Whitethorn...

My biggest complaint is I wanted more about Rolfe and the Mycenians. We had them teed up to be something big and I didn't think we got that. I also wish we'd had more about these Wolf Clan fae and they didn't feel like kind of a deus ex a la Endgame. The way that happened didn't fully make sense to me, but it's fine. I also wish we'd have gotten the full breadth of the demon spiders Tower of Dawn built up. That kind of turned into a fart in the wind, which was disappointing. I personally think splitting it into two or even three more books would have deepened a lot of the cast, which ended up getting a little too busy in the last book to have the punch I think I was expecting.

However, I loved the way SJM handled nerfing Aelin. I didn't really care for the multiple worlds thing and i don't love that all her series are connected, but that's me being pretentious and not a big portal fantasy person. To each their own. Anyway, I think she did a good job of reeling back in the overpowered magic of Aelin, giving Dorian closure with his dad, and leaving enough that there's room for more if needed.

Justice for Gavriel, who could have come back inside.

More importantly though... where the hell is Vaughan?

Welcome back to our Goosebumps Bookclub! I've made some fun changes that I think you will all like. Goosebumps Bookclub is now open to ALL members. Not just paid members. After careful consideration, I really wanted to open this up so everyone could have a fun, nostalgic time.

For paid members, I totally understand if you need to cancel. However, I do have some upcoming surprises for my paid members. So feel free to stick around or cancel as you see fit, It's not about the money, it's about everyone having a good time!!!!

We last finished Ghost Beach, making RETURN OF THE MUMMY our next read!

For those new to our bookclub, you will have two weeks to complete the book before we move on to the next one! Discord is open for discussions and just general talk! Sundays are bookclub days! Every other Sunday I'll drop some book recs based on the Goosebumps book we are currently reading. If there is an episode based on the book we will also set a time to watch it together and chat about it via discord.

Return of The Mummy can be watched for free on The Roku Channel HERE

Happy reading!

Happy Summerween all you BEA-utiful people. If you are unfamiliar with what Summerween is, it's a week long reading challenge hosted on Instagram. I've linked the insta account HERE.

Below I've provided this year's prompts and the books I've chosen for them!

1. Read a book in the dark or at night--We Had to Remove This Post by Hanna Bervoets

2. Read A Thriller/Horror Book--You Should Have Left by Daniel Kehlmann

3. Read A New to You Author-- A Plagued Sea by Kim Bo-Young (Author), Sophie Bowman (Translator)

4. Read a Book With Pink On The Cover--Delusion by HongJacga

5. Read A Book With Less Than 250 Pages-- A Short Stay In Hell by Steven L. Peck

"...Acceptance that this palce can exist. I hate it all. I hate the politeness of this country. I hate having a stiff upper lip and pretending these systems are acceptable. that we can't all agree that removal centres should not exist, and are neither discussion-worthy nor vote-dependent, but stand as lessons that humanity should never put in place again."

GENRE: Historical/Lit Fiction
RATING: 5/5
FORMAT: physical ARC

Review:

What a book. Smallie is a Historical/Lit Fic and is inspired by the Windrush Scandal. It was an emotional read and a fast paced one as I was reading so quickly after you get into it from the first few pages.

We mainly get two POVs and it's a dual timeline, with the focus on Lucinda from her younger days and her in the present plus Patrick. We see the dynamic of the whole family through Patrick's POV and eventually, we get to see it from Lucinda's too.

Essentially, Smallie is a story about what it means to leave behind a home and find a new place that eventually becomes your home. It's a dive into what it means to build a new community, only to lose everything again. It's a story that shows the cycle of moving, the way it changes things in ourselves.

Most importantly, it's a story showing the experience of the Windrush Scandal that has happened in the UK in the late 2010s. It's a story that shows the impact of where we are today politically and how this hurts on an individual and familial level to the people harmed by politics.

As for the writing, I thought it was done in a lyrical way. The prose flowed and it was a book that left me flipping the pages and thinking about it as soon as I put it down. I would have loved to know what happened to a few things in the story in a bit more details but I do recognise that leaving it as a mystery means I'll be thinking about the few unresolved things for a long time to come.

I was provided a free advance reader copy and I’m sharing my honest thoughts.

It’s been another full week over here, and by full I mean I keep opening one project and somehow finding five more hiding underneath it.

This week has been a lot of I Wish I Was a Vampire. I’ve been deep in edits for my middle grade Halloween horror book, and it still feels a little unreal that this is my middle grade debut. It’s spooky, funny, emotional, and very much for the kid who wanted to be scary instead of cute.

Autumn Parker is eleven, obsessed with horror, and very tired of everyone trying to make her into something softer and sweeter than she feels. There are plastic vampire teeth, school costume problems, late 90s Halloween energy, trick-or-treating, and a girl who has to figure out what it means to be seen as herself. Here's the first line:

Autumn Parker came downstairs wearing purple pajama pants, a black cape, an oversized t-shirt that fell to her knees with a pop star she loved on it, and her favorite vampire chompers.

The schedule for this book is also starting to feel very real. I’m finishing my own edits, then it goes to my first reader, then beta readers. After that I’ll be working through beta feedback, and getting it ready for distribution. The release date is September 15th.

I’ve also been working on Small Town Slasher, which releases August 4th. IN ONE MONTH! I will be finishing up formatting in the next few days. Small Town Slasher has had a long, weird road. I pulled it from NetGalley, tore it apart, rebuilt it, and learned a lot from the process. Mostly that I will be outlining from now.

I’ve also been working on more outreach behind the scenes. School emails, bookstore emails, author visit possibilities, screener requests, PR box attempts, and event ideas but it's all challenging being disabled. I never know how I'm going to feel on the date of an event.

I’m still working on the Yuletide Horror anthology too with some good and bad news. The cover is incredible so far but I'm a little bummed still because two of the people invited that committed had to back out. It's frustrating but I can't do anything about it.

The next Death by TBR Books open call for a novella is coming later today! AND the summer slasher anthology submission call for the fourth Twisted Tales to Tell in the Night anthology is still open.

These updates are for you but also for me and remind me that I am doing a lot and should be proud even though imposter syndrome and past influences impede that sometimes.

BOOKS
It Could Have Been Her by Lisa Jewell
Helpless by Jessica Knoll
The Woman in White by Sarah Pekkanen

Currently reading: The Divine Gardener's Handbook by Eli Snow and The Secret Lives of Zombie Wives by Barbara Truelove

SHOWS

NEW
Elle

FILMS - I'm on LetterBoxd - horrormaven13
Obsession
The Devil Wears Prada 2
Summerween

Rewatches that I'm enjoying as I pretend to live in the late 90s/early 00s.

TV
Gravity Falls
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
The X-Files
Law and Order: SVU
Owl House

FILMS
I Know What You Did Last Summer
Weapons
Evil Dead Rises
Open Water 2
Jaws

That's all for this week! Please share what you've been reading and watching!

xoxo

Spooky Girl

“By touching objects, she could speak with them to understand their purposes and convince them to do small things for her.”

GENRE: Cozy Fantasy
RATING: 4.5/5
FORMAT: eBook
Overall Impression: This is definitely a wholesome Cozy Fantasy, in which we realise that happiness is found in the small things and in the mundane tasks or magical abilities

Review:

What a cute, lovely story! I loved The Teller of Small Fortunes and I have been meaning to read The Keeper of Magical things, which did not disappoint

The Keeper of Magical Things was about exploring who we are in the world and seeing our worth in it. It was also about finding your place in it and wanting to do good for the people around you.

With it being set in Shpelling, which has suffered due to its history with magic, we begin the journey of how a magical power that seems mundane and how the story shows you that this can change the world in a different and unexpected way.

I thought that this was very reflective of real life. Certainty struggles in the Guild because she can’t become a Mage with how she can do magic. It’s very reflective of how in real life, structures are set and there isn’t much room for adjustment so that each person can become the best they are and help others in their own way.

I think ultimately, this feels like a cozy fantasy that makes you realise there is beauty in the small things and it is in the small, mundane moments that awe can find happiness, relief and work to change things for the better.

“You were always waiting for something to happen, after all. Life was a series of waits, of moments in between. You couldn’t cram all your happiness and meaning into only the big moments, or you’d miss everything else that mattered along the way.”

It's time to wrap up what I read in June. I read a total of 15 books this month!

Also, stay tuned for some Bindery updates!

What Hunger by Catherine Dang--A coming of rage cannibalisim story dealing with loss and tragedy. 4 stars

Going To The Six by A.C. Hessenauer--A found footage, documentary style horror novel about the discovery of a sunken ship in Lake Superior. 4 stars

The Vessel by Adam L.G. Nevill--A woman takes the job of caregiver to an CREEPY elderly lady. 5 stars

Knock Knock, Open Wide by Neil Sharpson--Steeped in Irish folklore, this book follows a child's tv show keeping a sinister goat puppet in a box. 3.5 stars

Nowhere Burning by Catriona Ward--Nowhere is a place where runaways and lost kids can go for safety. The ranch is also the place of a murdered movie star. 3.5 stars

Corpse De Ballet by Megan Kearney-- A graphic novel reminiscent of Suspiria following a cut-throat ballet school. 4 stars

Ghost Beach by R.L. Stine--Two kids are visiting family on a possible haunted island. 4 stars

The Devil and Mrs. Davenport by Paulette Kennedy-- A 1950's housewife starts getting visions from ghosts--one being a girl who was recently murdered. 5 stars

Decomposition Book by Sara Van Oh--A woman staying in a cabin finds a dead body and its journal. 4 stars

Muñeca by Cynthia Gomez-- A witch takes the job as a caregiver to a woman trapped in her own body. 3.5

Her Last Breath by Taylor Adams--A twisty thriller of a woman fighting for her life in a cave system. 5 stars

The Anomaly by Michael Rutger-- A crew of explorers travel to the Grand Canyon to see if they can find a legendary cave. 5 stars

Twisted Tales To Tell In The Night: Another Halloween Anthology-- A fun, nostalgic Halloween collection of short, spooky stories. 4 stars

The Tumor In The Clay by Nick Francis--A Graphic Novel about an elderly man who is a retired surgeon. He elects to try and take his tumor out at home in his bathtub. 5 stars

Odessa by Gabrielle Sher-- When his daughter is murdered, a Jewish man will stop at nothing to bring her back. Even if she comes back changed. 4 stars.

We have a lot to catch up on (after writing last week’s case files completely slipped my mind). Let’s get into it!

This week, I shared my top favorite mysteries and thrillers I have read so far this year. Funny enough, I filmed this same type of video for YouTube a couple weeks ago, but I read two more books since filming it that I had to revise my list!

Watch it on your platform of choice: Instagram | TikTok | YouTube | Facebook

This week’s reads:

• Breakout by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon (finished): What a wild ride! This is a solid YA thriller with plenty of secrets and twists. I enjoyed the characterization in this one—each of the teens is well-fleshed out with realistic motivations—and while I wasn’t totally surprised by any of the reveals, I was entertained.

• The Wreck of the Mentor: A True Story of Death, Despair, and Deliverance in the Age of Sail by Eric Jay Dolin (finished): Nothing says summer like a maritime saga! This chronicle of an 1832 shipwreck is richly textured and easy to digest; although I wouldn’t call it “gripping” (it still felt like traditional nonfiction to me), it moves along very well and includes lots of extra information that places this event within its broader cultural, social, and political context.

• It Could Have Been Her by Lisa Jewell (finished): LISA!!! I could not put this down. A dark and twisted narrative with a female sleuth I really came to love—plus Jewell’s excellent writing taps into all senses. I saw some mixed reviews on Goodreads so YMMV, but for me, this was a huge win.

• The Great Game by Arvind Ethan David (currently reading): I do love a historical mystery-thriller, even more when it’s set in London. This one includes some nods to detective fiction greats like Holmes and Watson, and is so far, deeply puzzling.

• The Cloak and Dagger Club by Jackie McMahon (currently reading): I’ve been following Jackie’s publication journey on YouTube for some time, so it’s been a pleasure to dive into her debut, which I always knew I’d love! Fans of the Detection Club, do not skip this one. I am enjoying it immensely.

This week’s book mail:

• It Could Have Been Her by Lisa Jewell (out now): Included a tote bag that says “Lisa Jewell is my thriller queen.” Yup.

• Murdoku by Manuel Garand (out now): Stay tuned for an unboxing of this clever package! To unlock it, I have to solve a Murdoku puzzle. (Yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like—murder-themed sudoku.)

• The Cloak and Dagger Club by Jackie McMahon (out July 14): Clearly I am already reading (and loving) this one.

• Agatha Christie: The Mother of the Cozy Mystery by Nancy West (out July 14): A delightful little book on the Queen of Crime. Thoughtfully designed, this will look great on any mystery lover’s bookshelf, and would also make a stellar gift.

Thank you to Atria, Manuel Garand, Berkley, and Adams Media/Simon & Schuster for these gifts.

Yours mysteriously,

Manon

Hey hey party people! I am a little behind the power curve this summer with my kiddos being home full time buuut here is the book club pick for this month! Reading schedule to be posted shortly.

People skip Tower of Dawn? Truly, they skip this book?

Could never in one million years be me. Never ever. First of all, the book is so much fun I forgot fantasy can be so vibrant and delightful. Second of all, it's got essential information in it to the series. Like. Critical reveals happen in this book. People skip this?! Grow up.

Chaol apologist until I die. I loved his arc in this. Coming to terms with his injury and his own limitations in a physical way was so great to see for him. He blamed himself, but really he could never have known. Aelin and Dorian were around the king, too. They didn't notice how evil he was - and he was Dorian's dad! We never talk about that! Everyone shouts at Chaol for following orders (doing his job! Which most normal people would do in his situation!) and that he didn't notice the king was hella evil, but they forget that was Dorian's actual father. Dorian saw him more than Chaol ever did and in way more contexts.

He had been That Way for all of Dorian's life, so Dorian wouldn't have known better, but he had also been that way for all of Chaol's life, too. People ignore the fact that Dorian and Chaol are the same age! Chaol is held to a much higher standard than anyone else in the King's orbit, which is so ironic to me it makes me actually laugh about it. That's his trauma - he holds himself to a much higher standard than everyone around him, his dad held him to a much higher standard than everyone around him. Readers who hate Chaol are doing to him exactly what his dad and he himself does that traumatizes him in a specific way!

Okay, back to Tower of Dawn because I could go on about Chaol for hours. I love him, he's the best, beloved household name here.

I love Yrene. Love, love, love the addition of her to the story. She is fierce and strong and perceptive and kind. She understands kindness versus niceness so clearly. Nothing about Chaol gives her pause and she sees him immediately as he is when she meets him. She doesn't care about his limitations, she just cares about him getting better.

I loved their mirror arcs in this, too. Yrene processing her hate and rage, Chaol processing his self loathing and disappointment. It was so great to see them together. And the yearning really got me.

This was the book I felt SJM had the most fun writing. It's buoyant, but fast-paced and gives you so much without burning you out. Nesryn and Sartaq are so fun together, too. Nesryn learning to be put first and her whole calling back to her homeland? I loved that. As someone who feels lost and struggles to articulate that I don't feel "home" anywhere, that really resonated with me. I'm always looking for wherever it is I am "meant" to put my roots down. I get her in a very personal way and loved her learning she was always meant to be back in Antica.

The story in this was delightful. A friend described it as "very Temple of Doom" and I felt that so hard. The library scene was stressful, the hidden-in-plain-sight twist was fantastic, and the red herrings were actually subtle and well done. That surprised me. I think this was SJM's strongest-written story. The romance felt authentic and organic, it's very much what two people in this situation would probably experience.

Sometimes, I will admit, I feel a little caught off guard or like the romance develops too quickly for me to not be skeptical about a couple or two. This one? I liked this one. I am very cautious about love and attraction, so I find that a slower-paced romance lands much more realistically for me. The story itself was very well put together and its message and themes felt distinct from the main arc. It did drag and repeat itself or get into loops a few times, but I didn't mind that too much. When it slowed down, I just relaxed into the story and focused on the characters' behaviors more. I think we could've axed like... 50-100 pages and had a much tighter story but I'm not an editor so take that with a grain of salt.

I walked away calling this an "asterisk book". This is Throne of Glass and this is HUGE for the main story, but it's its own thing. Does that make any sense at all? I hope so.

Her reveal, though. That big one? The Maeve of it all? That was wild. It actually made me feel a little bad for coming for Aelin's neck honestly. Yes, I want her to experience consequences to force her into processing her trauma, but I meant a wrist slap! I didn't mean this! I regret putting that into the universe, guys. I'm sorry.

I needed the world without Aelin for a while, that's what I learned from this. It was such a spark to me, Tower of Dawn. I had so much fun. This one was the breather and the new life into the main story I really needed to no longer feel like I was oversaturated. EOS and TOD? Tied for favorite to me. Which is hilarious because they're the tandem books.

This has been one of the most fun, enjoyable, rewarding community experiences reading a series I've had in a really long time. If anything, I'm loving this series because of how active and engaged I've gotten to be with the TOG community during my read through. That, alone, has made this experience so special so far.

I'm not ready to be done. I'm not ready to leave the world. But we've got a future Queen to save, so we do what we must.

It's time for a giveaway! I have a stunning, special edition of Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid done by Acrylicpics Bookish Nook.

To enter the giveaway, be a "Kist Reads" Follower, Sicko, Mega Sicko or Sicko Society tier in the US or Canada and leave a comment on this post (it can be an emoji or whatever, it's just so we can expedite the winner selection & shipping). And yes, I cover the shipping costs. In return all I ask is that you consider upgrading your sub while you're here to support the publishing imprint, but that isn't required.

Terms & conditions* at the bottom. Here it is:

I'll randomly draw the winner by 7/7 and reach out via email if you've won. Good luck!

*No purchase necessary. Open to legal residents of the United States and Canada, 18 years of age or older. Void where prohibited by law.

How to enter:
Open to all “Kist Reads” Bindery members – any tier (including free “Follower” members). Comment to enter (limit 1 entry per person).

Prize Value: $34.95

Timing: Runs 7/3/26 - 7/7/26

Winner Selection & Notification:
Winner will be selected at random and notified via email within 3 days of the giveaway’s end. The winner must respond within 3 days to claim their prize.

Canadian Requirement:
If the selected winner is a Canadian resident, they must correctly answer a time-limited skill-testing question to claim the prize.

Other Details:
By entering, you agree to these rules and all applicable federal, state/provincial, and local laws. No cash substitute. Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late, or misdirected entries or for delivery issues. Any applicable taxes, duties, or customs fees are the responsibility of the winner.

Sponsor:
Kist Reads, Sun City Center, FL
Kistreadsbooks@gmail.com

Now that I'm doing weekly reading roundups on Mondays, it doesn't really make sense to do a fave of the week on Fridays. I don't know exactly what I'm gonna do yet (I KNOW it doesn't have to be the same every week. But my brain does not! It likes routines!), but today I've got my June wrap up and a look forward at some books I hope to pick up in July. (Books marked with a * were gifted to me and books marked with a ^ I was paid to read.)

For June reads, it's no surprise that all my faves (starred) were books I read for Pride Reading Bingo. Queer books forever!

THE QUARTER QUEEN^

WHY ARE PEOPLE INTO THAT?

LONDON FALLING*

⭐️ SEVEN DEVILS

ESCALA'S WISH^

⭐️ THE MAIDENHEADS*

DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL (reread)

⭐️ SEASONS OF GLASS AND IRON*

DIVERGENT (reread)

POOL HOUSE*

LOVE IS AN EX-COUNTRY

RAISING ARTEMIS^

THE FOREST ON THE EDGE OF TIME*

⭐ ONE OF THE BOYS*

DEATH OF THE AUTHOR*

⭐ SHAPES OF LOVE*

Here's what's on deck for July. (Ish...you know how that mood reading life goes.)

MOSS'D IN SPACE* - This is the July Found Family Book Club pick!

CHAOS* - This space romance series is a fave of mine and I've been saving this latest installment for when I needed a treat.

MAKE ME BETTER* - Gailey is a fave author and normally I would have gobbled this up by now but for some reason I thought it was a fall release and therefore I didn't prioritize the ARC. Whoops!

BLACK SALT QUEEN* - I've been meaning to read this fantasy about royalty, romance, and betrayal for awhile and the sequel recently came out so I better get to it!

I LOVE YOU DON'T DIE* - I'd intended to read this for Pride Bingo and didn't get there. I adored Song's debut CHLORINE and am looking forward to more of that.

THIS PRINCESS KILLS MONSTERS* - Another Pride Bingo fail. I've been very into cozy, comedic fantasy lately so I'm ready to wrap myself up in this one.

OUT OF STEP, INTO YOU* - The last of my Pride Bingo intendeds. I thought Burch's debut YA novel a few years ago was seriously underrated, so watch out for me yelling about this one soon.

Books I'm carrying over from June: My current reads are Love In A F-cked Up World by Dean Spade and Coldwire* by Chloe Gong.

Other miscellaneous July reads: I run an in-person book club that reads spicy books and I our July pick is The Pairing by Casey McQuiston, which will be a reread for me. I also read the first chapter of Murder In The Dressing Room* by Holly Star yesterday. There will be other audiobooks because I can't commute without them, but I haven't picked any yet.

Is that a packed enough TBR for you or what!