I’ve picked up most of T. Kingfisher’s books by now at some point, and I think this one will be a hit for most Kingfisher fans. It’s fairly short Beauty and the Beast retelling with T. Kingfisher’s usual flair of bugs and plants shining through. No big surprises, but an enjoyable, fast read for fans of fairytale retellings.
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One of our friends recommended this to my kids and I for our family book club, and we loved it! My 10yo and 8yo were super invested, and it’s such an awesome true story of ingenuity and grit. Some heart-rending moments, but ends with triumph. Five stars from all of us. (We read the young reader’s edition aloud, and it also has come cool pictures of William’s village.) My friend did not recommend the movie because she said it veered too far from the book, so we skipped it.
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This is one of those beautiful books that absolutely destroys you, and then you immediately go recommend it to everyone you know. Told in an epistolary style (through letters), with pops of humor and amazing character development, the Correspondent is a gorgeous multitude that flutters like a butterfly and hits like a sledgehammer. Highly recommend the audiobook, which has a full cast. I was absolutely trying not to cry (SUPER rare for me) while I was mowing the lawn. Five glowing stars.
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This was an engaging YA high fantasy that feels like Avatar: The Last Airbender meets Hunger Games in an interesting world with a likable MC and a fabulous audiobook narrator. I’ve been in a reading slump for SO long, but this one grabbed me right out of the gate and kept my attention throughout. Definitely recommend.
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(Full disclosure, I did try to read book 2 this summer, and while I enjoyed the multi-POV, the characters and plot progress didn’t grab me in quite the same way, and I didn’t finish.)
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The was a sweet, super cozy fantasy with a relatable princess; a saucy, unserious pirate; fun, quirky world building; and pops of humor. The midst of a book slump, I definitely enjoyed the read, but I did wish the romance had a little more oomph.
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As a big Shiloh Briar fan, I’ve been looking forward to this one for a while and was super stoked when it made the transition from indie to Orbit! I got a book box from the author and then was even be able to convince our book club to make it the read of the month! Though I love the new cover, I do think it puts more emphasis on the romance than the indie versions (which honestly, we agreed as a book club, might match the story a little better.) Personally, I wouldn’t call this a “romantasy” and more of a quirky-dark fantasy with a strong side of slowburn, closed-door romance. The characters totally pop, and I highly recommend for the unique adventure with tons of banter and solid heart.
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I can’t remember where I found this mystery, but I was looking for something to get me out of a book slump, and while the first half flowed pretty well, the twists in the second half really just didn’t land for me. So, not the book for me, but might be for you!
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My husband lives with chronic, undiagnosed pain, so the premise of two people with chronic illness/pain was intriguing, and while I was super into the first half, the dynamics of the second half didn’t quite hit for me. So while this one was really for me, if you’re looking for a romance (+spice) with chronic pain rep, this might be for you!
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So my sons and I got into the Warrior Cats books after a friend sent me a Hank Green video on the theology of Warrior Cats. Naturally we were intrigued, and we picked up this book first because we had no idea what we were doing. Luckily, even though this technically isn’t the first book, it does stand alone, and I have to say, even though I would more classify as dog people than cat people, we were all hooked. The world here is super well built, the characters are complex and interesting, the plot is fast-paced, and it’s well illustrated. My 9yo and 7yo ended up reading the whole series, so it’s definitely a 5 stars from all of us, highly recommend.
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Oof. A coworker bought this for me with a high recommendation, so I finished it so we could discuss it. Since I loved The Correspondent earlier this year and I loved A Man called Ove, I had high hopes, but boy, this book was not for me. The plot follows a kind, older gentlemen who comes to the town of golden, falls in love with the portrait art in a coffee shop, and then proceeds to buy them all and gift them to their subjects. In the exchange, he learns and listens about their life and tribulations, while a small element of mystery hangs around his own past. I honestly didn’t realize this was Christian fiction when he gave it to me, but the undertones are pretty explicit, and overall, the story comes as very didactic.
If you’re looking for Christian fiction with pretty prose this might be for you, but unfortunately, it was definitely not for me.
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