The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England

 Book 35 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 22 - 31

The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England

by Brandon Sanderson

published 2023

Summary (via the book jacket)

A man awakens in a clearing in what appears to be medieval England with no memory of who he is, where he came from, or why he is there. Chased by a group from his own time, his sole hope for survival lies in regaining his missing memories, making allies among the locals, and perhaps even trusting in their superstitious boasts. His only help from the "real world" should have been a guidebook entitled The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving Medieval England, except his copy exploded during transit. The few fragments he managed to save provide clues to his situation, but can he figure them out in time to survive?

My Opinion

3 stars

It's tough to sum up how I feel about this book.  I liked it and it kept my interest but I would also have to put it down often, like I was preventing myself from getting too invested, because I was worried about disappointment.  But the last day of travel was so peaceful and gave me a chance to breathe and enjoy the character development. 

There were so many good elements but also a touch too much of 'oh wow what a coincidence this worked out'.  But I was also really happy about how it worked out so I'm glad those coincidences were there.

Basically I enjoyed it while I was reading it and don't want to overanalyze it now that I'm done because I think it will dampen the experience.  I'm worried the religious themes were preaching because I don't know much about the author and I'd like to remain in the dark about it.

Hard Cases

 Book 34 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 17 - 26

Hard Cases: True Stories of Irish Crime by Gene Kerrigan

published 1996

Summary (excerpt from the book jacket)

Hard Cases is a collection of startling stories about the reality of crime and court cases in Ireland. In these stories, there are no crime bosses with quaint nicknames; the police don't collect convenient clues that tell them who dunnit.

Instead, we get cases both famous and obscure in which the outcome in sometimes just, sometimes unsettling.

My Opinion

3 stars

The writing was compelling with strong opening sentences for each story.  For example, "Shercock" started with the sentence, "Peter Matthews went into Shercock leaning on a crutch and came out of the village in an ambulance".

I ended up with a 3 star rating because when the crimes were interesting I was very invested but there were a few crimes that didn't grab me.  The word I seemed to use most often when jotting notes while reading was "frustrating"...sometimes it was frustration that the authorities were bumbling and the criminals were getting away, sometimes it was frustration that the authorities were corrupt and detaining the wrong people, and sometimes it was overall frustration with the system in general.

All in all, a wide variety of cases that didn't feel dated, even reading decades after being published.

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb

 Book 33 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 17 - 22

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian

published 2021

Summary (via the book jacket)

Kit Webb has left his stand-and-deliver adventures behind him. But dreary days at his coffeehouse have begun to make him pine for the heady rush of thievery. When a handsome yet arrogant aristocrat storms into his shop, Kit quickly realizes he may be unable to deny whatever this highborn man desires.

In order to save himself and a beloved friend, Percy, Lord Holland, must go against every gentlemanly behavior he holds dear to gain what he needs most: a book that once belonged to his mother, a book his father never lets out of his sight and that could be Percy's salvation. More comfortable in silk-filled ballrooms than coffeehouses frequented by criminals, Percy finds that his attempts to hire the roughly hewn highwayman formerly know as Gladhand Jack prove equal parts frustrating and electrifying.

Kit refuses to participate in the robbery but agrees to teach Percy how to do the deed. Percy knows he has little choice but to submit, and as the lessons in thievery begin, he discovers theft isn't the only crime he's desperate to commit with Kit.

But when their careful plan goes dangerously wrong and shocking revelations threaten to tear them apart, can these stolen hearts overcome the impediments in their path?

My Opinion

3 stars

I checked this book out immediately after reading The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes.  This is technically the first book and I had hoped reading them out of order wouldn't affect this read.  Unfortunately it did.  Reading Marian first made this book feel very slow because I knew certain characters would appear and what the plot would become.  I thought this book would cover the same timeframe but from difference perspectives but that wasn't the case.

So it may have been mostly user error but even if I had read this first, I wouldn't have loved it.  I thought the plot got stagnant and the will they/won't they lasted too long.  Once they did start, it was hot.  I appreciated the detail of them making sure they had lubrication and going slow instead of pretending everything can just be jammed in without preparation.

Men Have Called Her Crazy

 Book 32 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 15 - 16

Men Have Called Her Crazy by Anna Marie Tendler

published 2024

Summary (via the book jacket)

In early 2021, popular artist Anna Marie Tender checked herself into a psychiatric hospital following a year of crippling anxiety, depression, and self-harm. Over two weeks, she underwent myriad psychological tests, participated in numerous therapy sessions, connected with fellow patients, and experienced profound breakthroughs, such as when a doctor noted, "There is a you inside that feels invisible to those looking at you from the outside."

In Men Have Called Her Crazy, Tendler recounts her hospital experience as well as pivotal moments in her life that preceded and followed. As the title suggests, many of these moments are impacted by men: unrequited liven high school; the twenty-nine-year-old she lost her virginity to when she was seventeen; the frustration and absurdities of dating in her mid-thirties; and her decision to freeze her eggs as all her friends were starting families.

This stunning literary self-portrait examines the unreasonable expectations and pressures women face in the twenty-first century. Yet, as overwhelming and despairing as that can feel, Tendler ultimately offers a message of hope. Early in her stay in the hospital, she says, "My wish for myself is that one day I'll reach a place where I can face hardship without trying to destroy myself." By the end of the book, she fulfills that wish. 

My Opinion

3 stars

I hate to do it but I have to acknowledge that I discovered Anna Marie Tendler through all the media surrounding her divorce.  That led me to her Instagram which led me eventually to this book.

She does an amazing job at keeping herself centered in her story, something that is not always easy for women to do.  It was emotional enough to render empathy but also detached enough to have some separation and clarity of the bigger picture.

She and I could not be more different (I'm a Midwestern mom with no creativity or spirituality) so her world almost feels like another planet to me.  I hope she herself has found the peace she wished for Shawn.

In the Shadow of Blackbirds

 Book 31 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 11 - 15

In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters

published 2013

Summary (via the book jacket)

In the middle of the 1918 influenza epidemic, Mary Shelley Black arrives in San Diego, where she hopes to be reunited with her childhood best friend - and first love - Stephen Embers. Stephen went abroad to fight in World War I, and his brother is now profiting from the grief-stricken citizens by claiming to commune with the dead through spirit photography - a practice that scientific-minded Mary Shelley believes is fraud. But the connection to the other side may be more real than Mary Shelley thinks possible...and it might be the only way to learn the truth of what happened to Stephen.

My Opinion

4 stars

I wavered between 3 and 4 stars but rounded up because of the originality of the story and the way it absorbed me while reading.  I've read books about spirit photography/seances, I've read books about the 1918 flu outbreak, and I've read books about war but this book combined them all to capture a specific time.  It wasn't until I would put the book down that issues would hit me, the biggest one being no mention of her father at the end or wrap-up of that very important plot thread.

It built at a really good pace.  I couldn't believe it was written in 2013 because of how well the author wrote the uncertainty and panic of the 1918 influenza outbreak.  With the way the author wrote about masks, I thought for sure she had the recent experience we'd all had with Covid and used it to inform this book.

All in all, an interesting, imperfect book.

Happy Place

 Book 30 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read on March 15

Happy Place by Emily Henry

published 2023

Summary (via the book jacket)

Harriet and Wyn have been the perfect couple since they met in college - they together like salt and pepper, honey and tea, lobster and rolls. Except now - for reasons they're still not discussing - they don't.

They broke up five months ago...and still haven't told their best friends.

Which is how they find themselves sharing a bedroom at the Maine cottage that has been their friend group's yearly getaway for the last decade. Their annual respite from the world, where for one vibrant, blissful week, they leave behind their daily lives; have copious amounts of cheese, wine, and seafood; and soak up the salty coastal air with the people who understand them most.

Only this year, Harriet and Wyn are lying through their teeth while trying not to notice how desperately they still want each other. Because the cottage is for sale, and this is the last week they'll all have together in this place. They can't stand to break their friends' hearts, and so they'll play their parts. Harriet will be the driven surgical resident who never starts a fight, and wyn will be the laid-back charmer who never lets the cracks show. It's a flawless plan (if you look at it from a great distance and through a pair of sunscreen-smeared sunglasses). After years of being in love, how hard can it be to fake it for one week...in from of those who know you best?

My Opinion

4 stars

I added this book to my 'to-read' list after seeing it in Booklist.  Pulling the bright pink book off the shelf at the library and deciding to read it on a rainy day was a perfect diversion.  I read it in a few hours.

I haven't been anti-romance/"chick lit" (ugh, the term) novels but I definitely wasn't drawn to them as much as I have been lately.  Similar to short stories getting me through the beginning of the pandemic, there is something comforting and soothing about getting lost in a story with a fairly guaranteed outcome.

But that's not discounting the journey.  I loved the characters and their dynamic, and the setting  (getting together for one last week before the place is sold and not wanting to rock the boat) was plausible enough.  All in all, a fun read.

How to Stay Married

 Book 29 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 4 - 10

How to Stay Married: the Most Insane Love Story Every Told 

by Harrison Scott Key

published 2023

Summary (via Goodreads)

One gorgeous autumn day, Harrison discovers that his wife—the sweet, funny, loving mother of their three daughters, a woman “who’s spent just about every Sunday of her life in a church”—is having an affair with a family friend. This revelation propels the hysterical, heartbreaking action of How to Stay Married , casting our narrator onto “the factory floor of hell,” where his wife was now in love with a man who “wears cargo shorts, on purpose.” What will he do? Kick her out? Set fire to all her panties in the yard? Beat this man to death with a gardening implement? Ask God for help in winning her back?

Armed with little but a sense of humor and a hunger for the truth, Harrison embarks on a hellish journey into his past, seeking answers to the riddles of faith and forgiveness. Through an absurd series of escalating confessions and betrayals, Harrison reckons with his failure to love his wife in the ways she needed most, resolves to fight for his family, and in a climax almost too ridiculous to be believed, finally learns that love is no joke. 

My Opinion

3 stars

I added this book to my 'to-read' list after seeing it in Bookpage.

First, I had to check my unintentional bias.  I realized women write about their unfaithful husbands all the time so when this book, written by a man about his unfaithful wife, generated a bigger reaction in me than usual before I'd even started it, I had to stop and sit with it.  From the beginning it felt more monumental and I shouldn't have assumed that but also, after reading it, the starts and stops were a roller coaster no matter the gender.

Second, I always have a love/hate relationship with memoirs because everyone has the right to tell their own story, and I obviously read them, but I also feel empathy for the others in their lives who didn't have a choice about being written about.  So I take a second to think of the real people in this book.

Third, I actually read the book.  If I had been his friend watching him go through this, it would've been tough to see him continually forgive her as she actively continued betraying him but also, if I had been her friend I would've had sympathy that any grievances she felt about him became inconsequential in the jury of public opinion because of crossing the line of infidelity.

I feel kind of icky after reading it.

Mystery Royale

 Book 28 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 8 - 9

Mystery Royale by Kaitlyn Cavalancia

published 2025

Summary (via the book jacket)

The only thing sixteen-year-old Mullory Prudence has left of her mom is a warning: "Run if the strange finds you." But mysterious writings don't pay the bills or help take care of her sick gran. And they certainly don't make her miserable after-school job any more bearable. When unexpected letters start appearing in peculiar places - sealed in bags of dog food and hidden in the refrigerator - Mullory knows she should avoid them to heed her mother's warning, but her curiosity thinks otherwise. She uncovers an invitation from Stoutmire Estate to compete in a game of Mystery Royale for the chance at a sizable inheritance.

Dizzy with the prospect of billions, Mullory enters the game only to unearth the true prize: the illusionary magical properties of Xavier Stoutmire, a recluse without an heir. A recluse who was expected to keep his magic in the family, especially when there isn't enough for each member. With a prize worth killing for, the game is simple: Be the first to solve the mystery - who killed Xavier Stoutmire? One week full of lavish parties dripping with enchantments, in a mansion brimming with clues of the past, and everyone's a suspect. To win, Mullory will need to untangle a twisted family web and decide who she can trust...

  Whitaker Stoutmire, the golden boy who's harboring deadly secrets?

  Ellison Stoutmire, his closed-off twin, who saw something she shouldn't have?

  Lyric Stoutmire, the youngest sibling, exiled by the family and burning with resentment?

   Or Mateo Maldonado, the only other outsider, whose reserved manner allows him to hide in the shadows...at least at first?

But most of all, Mullory must ask herself, why? Why her? A question most strange indeed.

My Opinion

4 stars

I chose this book from a library display.  It's a semi-familiar premise but the addition of magic changes it up.

I could feel the tension and was uncomfortable as I read but in a good way that made it difficult for me to put down.  Things happened so quickly that it was hard to keep up but that seemed to be part of the design as the characters also had to think on their feet and decipher clues. 

It's a very very high 4 for me.  The almost-ending pulled me out a little but then the actual ending would lift me back up a little if it meant this becomes a series.

The Devil in the Shape of a Woman

 Book 27 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from February 16 - March 7

The Devil in the Shape of a Woman: Witchcraft in Colonial New England

by Carol F. Karlsen

published 1998

Summary (via the book jacket)

Confessing to "familiarity with the devils," Mary Johnson, a servant, was executed by Connecticut officials in 1648. A wealthy Boston widow, Ann Hibbens was hanged in 1656 for casting spells on her neighbors. The case of Ann Cole, who was "taken with very strange Fits," fueled an outbreak of witchcraft accusations in Hartford a generation before the notorious events at Salem.

More than three hundred years later, the question "Why?" still haunts us. Why were these and other women likely witches - vulnerable to accusations of witchcraft and possession? In this work Carol F. Karlsen reveals the social construction of witchcraft in seventeenth-century New England and illuminates the larger contours of gender relations in society.

My Opinion

2 stars

When the text of the book is only 265 pages and the appendix/notes/index adds another 115 pages to the book, you know it's going to be a dense read.  The readability was tough but the research appeared to be solid.

As always when reading about witchcraft, the contradictions of thinking women are inferior while also thinking women are powerful enough to curse you is frustrating.  Sometimes they're accused because a person they helped died but sometimes they're accused because a person they helped lived.  Also, people need to mind their own damn business.

In Utero

 Book 26 of my 2025 Reading Challenge

read from March 5 - 6

In Utero by Chris Gooch

published 2024

Summary (via the book jacket)

Twelve years after a disastrous explosion, young Hailey is dropped off by her mum at a holiday camp in a dilapidated shopping mall. Alienated from the other kids, she connects with an eerie older teen named Jen...but soon dark horrors awaken, and the two new friends are caught up in a cataclysmic battle between two terrifying creatures who have been lying dormant all this time.

My Opinion

2 stars

This was an impulse grab from the library and a graphic novel was about all my brain could handle this week.

Unfortunately, this was a miss for me.  A lot of buildup for a few pages of action and then the book was over.  The art was cool though.