Good mystery and puzzling puzzles - Winterhouse by Ben Guterson
Good, especially on the grand scale of sequels to books that don’t need sequels - Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley
Indigenous family demons - White Horse by Erika T. Wurth
A story that needs to be told more often - The Distance Between Us by Reyna Grande
Not great for class, but good to read - Messy Roots by Laura Gao
Honestly just interesting - The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr
There’s a magical home for everyone, even if you stopped looking - The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
A trio of historical book club reads - A Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas; A Night to Surrender by Tessa Dare; The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie by Jennifer Ashley
The epitome of a mom mystery - Still Life by Louise Penny
A daring and brilliant escape - Master Slave Husband Wife by Ilyon Woo
Final Reviews of the Year 🙂 - Save Our Forest! by Nora Dasnes; Camp Prodigy by Caroline Palmer; Crush by Tegan Quin & Sara Quin (Words) and Tillie Walden (Art)
Summer camp in the 1970’s - The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
I Was a Teenage Slasher (or when the book title is so great you need to make it the title of the review) - I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones
Taking women’s healthcare seriously - Grown Woman Talk by Sharon Malone
“When I’m sad, I read. I can go on reading for hours. Reading quiets the turmoil I feel inside and brings me peace. Because when I’m immersed in the world of a book, no one can get hurt.” - More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop (Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, #2) by Satoshi Yagisawa
Time loops that feel like fairyland. - The Last Hour at the End of the World (The Echo Archive, #1) by Melissa Caruso
A fantasy zoo that is a love letter to the importance of conservation - The Phoenix Keeper by S. A. MacLean
“You won’t necessarily win against fate, but you should at least put up a fight.” - Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty
Samantha Allen brings her delightfully weird mind to romance. - Roland Rogers Isn't Dead Yet by Samantha Allen
A (very long) classic adventure - The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Tinder, but for true love - The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren
As I told the yoga people (derogatory), you can’t meditate your way to new shingles. - Into the Woods by Jenny Holiday
“Just because desperate people seek out exploitative conditions doesn’t make those conditions any less exploitative.” - Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond
Even rich kids can have a hard time - A Very Private School by Charles Spencer
The Almost Perfect Last Book to Review for a Last Review of the Year - The Last Hour Between Worlds by Melissa Caruso
“The world, the girl knew, was worse than savage, the world was unmoved.” - The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff
Oatmeal Can Be Predictable and Interesting at the Same Time - OATrageous Oatmeals by Kathy Hester
You can have magical power or love, not both. - The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk
Yeet the Rich. - The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
A time warp Ikea - Finna by Nino Cipri
Cryptid Curious - Cryptid Club by Sarah Andersen
“I cannot say this frequently enough: the goal is not to clear your mind but to focus your mind—for a few nanoseconds at a time—and whenever you become distracted, just start again. Getting lost and starting over is not failing at meditation, it is succeeding.” - Meditations for Fidgety Skeptics: A 10% Happier How-To Book by Dan Harris and Jeff Warren
“You can forever remember the wrongs done to you as long as you live,” she said. “But if you forget ’em and go on living, it’s almost as good as forgiving.” - The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
“He was a nobody. One of those shy kids who turned into social invalids when that first blast of adolescence hit, meekly accepted their fate, and became invisible.” - My Friend Dahmer: A Graphic Novel by Derk Backderf
Husband shopping isn’t as fun as it sounds - The Husbands by Holly Gramzaio
“I am the servant of the sword,” he said. “I obey the will of the—great god, woman, put on some clothes!” - Swordheart by T Kingfisher
They’re lovely by podcast as well - The Love Prescription by John Gottman, Julie Schwartz Gottman
“At Gatsby’s, the clock stood at just five shy of midnight the moment you arrived.” - The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo
reading while hungry can be hazardous to your health - The Pairing by Casey McQuinston
Cozy Fantasy at its best - Sandry's Book by Tamora Pierce; Tris's Book by Tamora Pierce; Daja's Book by Tamora Pierce; Briar's Book by Tamora Pierce
now we’re cooking (re: writing reviews) - Dawnshard by Brandon Sanderson
something very satisfying about reading this as an actual book! - Oathbringer by Brandon Sanderson
clare pooley is now on my to-read list, but also “break in case of emergency” list - How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley
public libraries to the rescue - The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
breakups are funny - Good Material by Dolly Alderton
imagine when a book was sold for $2.95 - The Moorchild by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
more best of lists - The Fair Folk by Su Bristow
or books written by authors I love but whom I lack alerts for - The Duke at Hazard by K.J. Charles
now time for books from best of 2024 lists - Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon
actually a bit of christmas-y schmaltz - The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin