Tag: Book Review

March 2026 Wrap Up

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In March I read five book including starting and finishing a trillogy.

Books:

The first book I read was A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik. This is the first book in a dark academia fantasy set in a magical school where students learn but the school is also trying to kill them. We follow El who is powerful but is hiding what her power truly is. When she is saved by Orion who is trying to save as many of his fellow students as possible El starts to realize that to survive to graduation she will need some help. I liked the concept and ideas of this first book however it does at times feel a little info dumpy and I feel like the pacing could have been better.

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood is the sequel to the Handmaids Tale and is set about fifteen years after the events of the Handmaids Tale. Told through three different perspectives the focus of the story is on the young women growing up in Gilead. While still very readable I found myself sometimes confused on whose perspective I was reading and I still think that how Gilead functions doesn’t make much sense.

Markiplier from North Korea by Sunok Frank is a book written by Markiplier’s mother and is the story of their family. This is something that Markiplier fans will probably enjoy but I don’t think many others will. I do think that some events are embellished or at least could be interpreted differently by others in the family.

The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik is the second book in the Scholomance series and the sequel to A Deadly Education. El is now in her final year and with graduation looming not everyone is expected to make it out. While I enjoyed El learning about the school and what is truly is this book does suffer some from middle book syndrome and I personally hate the ending.

The Golden Enclave by Naomi Novik is the last book of the Scholomance series. El and almost everyone have escaped the school but someone is now destroying the enclaves and El is trying to find a way back into the school to save Orion. This book dumps a lot of information on you very quickly and I feel that for a final book it could have been better paced and written. Overall, I like the concepts of the series but not the pacing. I think that I would have enjoyed the series more if the first two book had been condensed into one.

February 2026 Wrap Up

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In February I read three books and watched one movie.

Books:

The first book I read was Slayers of Old by Jim C Hines which is a fantasy novel following several former chosen ones who have retired but are being called back to save the world once again. We follow Jenny, Amet, and Temple who think they are done fighting evil and work more to heal but someone is summoning an ancient evil. I loved how everyone you met is connected to the others and come together to save the world.

Next I read The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. This is a dystopian where due to declining fertility rates the Republic of Gilead has forced both men and women but primarly women into very strict social orders. We follow Offred a Handmaid whose job and purpose is to have children for those who can’t but this has been forced upon her. I liked the concept but not how it was written. The writing at times feels disjointed and I had trouble following the timeline of events. Also how Gilead is formed and stays in power doesn’t make logical sense.

The last book I read in February was The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty. This is a historical fantasy that follows Amina who was a pirate but is trying to no longer live that life. When she is contacted by a crewmate’s mother to go after her “kidnapped” granddaughter Amina gathers her crew for one las adventure. I loved how the story unfolded and what is really going on with the granddaughter. This could be read as a standalone but I’m looking forward to the sequel.

Movies:

The only movie I watched was 28 Weeks Later. 28 Weeks Later is a zombie movie and the sequel to 28 Days Later where after 28 weeks most of those infected with the rage virus have starved and there is now a military run protected zone in London. When two kids sneak out to their old home they find their mother who while infected shows no symptoms she is brought into the protected zone, her husband get infected, and the spreading virus destroys everything. While not a bad movie in comparison to 28 Days which felt like it had something to say about society 28 Weeks is just another zombie movie.

January 2026 Wrap Up

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In January I read four books/short stories, watched four movies including two documenteries, and played one video game.

Books:

The first thing I read was the short story These Deathless Bones by Cassandra Khaw. This is a horror short story about a witch bride who is the second wife of a king and the conflict between her and his son. The son is a horrible person who kills both people and animal and he gets what he deserves. I loved Cassandra Khaw’s writing and the ending.

In Mercy, Rain by Seanan McGuire is a short story set in the Wayward Children series following Jack in the Moors. Set shortly after Jack goes with the mad scientist and gives us some idea on what Jack’s life was like in the Moors. I love this series and Jack is one of my favorite characters so I always like getting more of her story.

The Scorpion and the Night Blossom by Amelie Wen Zhao is a Chinese inspired fantasy where demons roam the land after the war between the Kingdom of Night and the Kingdom of Rivers. We follow An Ying who decides to enter the immortality trails to heal her dying mother. I loved the premise but not the execution. I’m getting a little tired of competition stories and I didn’t find the romance believable.

The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley is the first book in a slow burn enemies to lovers Romantasy. We follow Osric a member of an order of assassins whose magic is slowly dying. He forces Aurienne a healer to help him by funding a cure for a plague. The story is primarily about their relationship and budding romance but mysteries are uncovered. I loved this book and have a full review posted as well.

Movies:

In January I watched two movie and two documentaries. I rewatched Jurassic Park which has always been a favorite and I think will continue to be. Really all I have to say is if you haven’t seen the original Jurassic Park you should.

Next I was able to go see Iron Lung in theaters. Iron Lung is the YouTuber Markiplier’s first feature film and is a horror movie that is based on the video game of the same name. After the events of the Quite Rapture where all of the planets and humanity expect those on space stations have disappeared, moons covered in oceans of blood have been found. We follow the Convict Simon who is being sent down in a submarine to explore these blood oceans. I loved this movie and have a full review posted. I need to purchase a copy because this is one of those movies that I think is better understood on rewatch.

The first documentary I watched was Markiplier From North Korea, which is a documentary where Markiplier travels to South Korea with is mom and learns more about the family history and his grandfather’s escape from North Korea. I watched this because a book of the same name is coming out and I wanted to see what the documentary is. I would recommend this for fans of Markiplier.

Finally I watched the documentary Wick is Pain which is all about the John Wick movies, how the movies where made, and how physically tasking they were. I enjoyed it and I would recommend it for fans of the John Wick movies.

Video Game:

The only video game I played this month was the puzzle game Is This Seat Taken. Which is a puzzle game where your characters who are different shape have to be placed in cars, planes, buses etc. while taking into account each characters preferences such as not hearing loud music, being next to specific characters etc. I played this on Switch and found it to be a cute but quick game.

Book Review: The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley (Dearly Beloathed #1)

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The Irresistible Urge to Fall For Your Enemy is the first book in a slow burn enemies to lovers romantasy. While this is not a complete reworking of a Draco/Hermione fanfiction the author does write that and you can see the influence in this novel. Personally, I feel like whatever your opinion of Harry Potter and JK Rowling are, you can have. However, I don’t believe that authors who have written Harry Potter fanfiction and are now reworking them into original stories should be attacked or blamed in anyway.

The story follows Osric a member of an order of assassins whose magic is slowly dying. He forces Aurienne a healer to help him by funding a cure for a plague. I loved how their relationship slowly develops thought the book. While this story is focused on the relationship we do learn about the world, what is happening in society, and that other important things are going on. The focus is on Aurienne attempting to heal Osric and their antagonist relationship. They do end up investigating the deadly pox and incidentally finding information that is important to the wider world.

I really enjoyed this story. However, this does feel like only the first part of the story as most of the mysteries of the pox and Osric’s healing have not had a conclusion. You will definitely need to read the sequel to get a satisfying ending.

December 2025 Wrap Up

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In December I read four books, most of them fairly short. December is one of the busiest months for me as I work in retail and the holidays are the biggest sales season.

Books:

The first books I finished was Saiyuki Reload volumes nine and ten. These volumes finish off this portion of the Saiyuki story and I plan to post a full review in the future. Also to note volume ten was never officially published in English therefore to finish the story I had to find online fan translations. These volumes have the first but probably not the last confrontation with Ukoku Sanzo and brings our main group back together. Hazel’s story is also brought to a close thou I wouldn’t be surprised if he shows back up in the future. I love Saiyuki but it is a series I’m not sure is the best to recommend.

The next book I read was Pocket Potters: Harry Potter. These are children’s picture books that introduce characters from the Harry Potter series. I liked this and found it cute but I think fans will like it more than those just getting into the series.

The final book I read by The Nightblood Prince by Molly X. Chang and I already have a full review posted. This is a young adult Chinese inspired fantasy with vampires. We follow Fei who is believed to be the prophesized Empress of All Empresses. However, she wants control of her life and her decisions. While I enjoyed the story I do think it is slightly miss marketed (which I go more into in my full review) but I do think young adult audiences would also enjoy it.

Book Review: The Nightblood Prince by Molly X. Chang

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The Nightblood Prince is a young adult Chinese inspired fantasy novel. We follow Fei, when she was born a prophecy stated that she will become the Empress of All Empresses. She has been raised in the place to marry the crown prince but Fei wants more in her life. When she sets out to hunt a legendary tiger she runs into Yexue, a runaway prince from a rival kingdom who also controls an army of vampires.

I liked the concept of this book but I feel like it’s a bit miss marketed. The author states that it is a cross of Mulan and Helen of Troy with vampires and double villain love interests. That description I find very interesting and I can see how its described that way but from that description I thought the villain’s would be more so, there would be more vampires, and the Mulan retelling section seems to have come from left field.

While I loved Fei as a character and how she is operating in this world when she takes her father’s place in the army. The love triangle and most of the vampires are not a major aspect until about sixty percent of the book. I think I would have enjoyed the story more if I had gone in with lower expectations but I do think that the intended YA audience would love this.

November 2025 Wrap Up

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In November I read six books and watched one movie.

Books:

Dracula by Bram Stoker I listen to as the podcast Re:Dracula which takes the original novel and breaks it up chronologically so you are listing to events as they unfold and has a full cast narration. This is one of my favorite ways to read Dracula. Dracula is my favorite classic but I know that trying to read the novel can be a little bit of a struggle. I would recommend anyone trying to get into the original story to try out this podcast.

Mate by Ali Hazelwood is the sequel to Bride Hazelwood’s first paranormal romance omega verse book and I have a full review also posted. We follow Serena who is the first know human were hybrid and she has become a target that is seems everyone is after. The Alpha of the Northwest pack Koen Alexander turns out to be Serena’s mate but doesn’t seem to want to have anything to do with her. This is a more slow burn romance that I would recommend anyone who liked Bride to try out.

Elantris is Brandon Sanderson’s first published novel and is part of the Cosmere. Set in a fantasy world where ten years before something happened where the city of Elantris was essentially destroyed as those who have the power of the Elantrians are not considered dead and there is no hope for them. We follow prince Raoden who has been taken by Shoad and is sent to live in the city of Elantris, Sarene a princess who was meant to marry Raoden, and Hrathen, a high priest of Shu-Dereth while all of them have different paths their stories become intertwined. Raoden wants to figure out the secrets of Elantris, help his new people, learn to survive and hopes that Arelon doesn’t fall apart. Sarene to help her own people stays in Arelon and gets involved in the politics. Meanwhile, Hrathan has been sent to convert the people of Arelon and if that doesn’t happen they will be wiped out. While Elantris is one of Sanderson’s weaker novels I loved the characters and concepts. Similarly to the Mistborn series there is a focus on religion and how one’s faith can change over time.

The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson is one the secret project books. This is both a fantasy and sci-fi novel where a man wakes up in a version of Medieval England with no memory. When he finds parts of the Frugal Wizard’s Handbook it turns out that he has chosen to travel here. I find the ideas in this book interesting but didn’t love the main character having memory loss for much of the story.

Dumbledore: The Life and Lies of Hogwarts Headmaster An Unoffical Exploration by Irvin Khaytman is exactly what it says it is. This is a nonfiction book that reads more like an article about Dumbledore and what he is doing through the Harry Potter books. The focus is on what he knew, when he knew it, and how his decision impacted other characters. An interesting deep dive on Dumbledore but a little boring in some areas. I would only recommend this to fans that want to research different theories and understandings of these characters as this is a book that I feel only a select few will enjoy.

The last book I read was Saiyuki Reload volume 8 by Kazuya Minekura. This once again continues the Saiyuki story and I plan to have a more thorough review of Saiyuki Reload posted at some point.

Movies:

The only movie I watched in November was Hell House LLC: Lineage. Lineage is set after all the other Hell House movies. We follow Vanessa who survived Russell Wynn’s Insomnia production at the Abaddon Hotel and who now lives in town. It turns out that she and others are connected to the Abaddon Hotel, Carmichael Manor, and Andrew Tully. Going into this movie I believed that is would be the last movie in the series but with how this movie ends there are too many loose ends and I would expect another movie at some point. I enjoy the Hell House series but this one is no longer a found footage movie and because of that I feel like it loses some of the charm of the others. I have never found these movie all that scary this one is I didn’t find scary at all just creepy.

Book Review: Mate (Bride #2) by Ali Hazelwood

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Mate is the sequel to Ali Hazelwood’s first paranormal romance and omega verse book Bride. We follow Serena, the first known human were hybrid who had become the target of pretty much everyone. The Alpha of the Northwest pack Koen Alexander turns out to me her mate but doesn’t seem to want a relationship or does he? Serena has been feeling sick and thinks that she might be dying but to keep Anna, a child hybrid, safe Serena is willing to take on the world.

This is a great paranormal romance that allows the relationship to grow and is a little bit of a slow burn. However, I didn’t like is how long it took other characters to realize that Serena was going into hear when it felt like that I something they picked up on when she spoke to different were doctors. I’m surprised that no one sat Serena down and explained were society and biology to her as we are told she is an orphan and doesn’t know what everyone else does. I also didn’t enjoy the cult that becomes the main antagonists.

I know that the main characters would have to get together and that it’s more of a slow burn but at a certain point the will they/won’t they got a little tedious. Overall, a good paranormal romance but I did enjoy Bride more than this one and at times plot point just seemed very convenient.

October 2025 Wrap Up

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In October I read eight books and watched one movie.

Books:

The first book I read was Food to Die For: Recipes and Stories from America’s Most Legendary Haunted Places by Amy Bruni. This is a cookbook written by paranormal investigator Amy Bruni. She takes recipes that are connected to haunted places and uses this to tell the story of these places. A cool concept and I liked the stories but some of the recipes are out there and I’m not sure many people would make them.

Next I read Queen Demon by Martha Wells and I have a full review posted as well. This is the second book in the Rising World series and we follow Kai and his companions after the event of Witch King. The story focuses on the fact that Dahin believes that he knows the location of the Hierarchs well of power and the possibility of a new Hierarch rising. I greatly enjoy this series and based on the ending I do expect that there will be at least one more book in the series.

Ahsoka by E.K. Johnston is a Star Wars canon novel following Ahsoka after the end of the Clone Wars and surviving Order 66. She is traveling to different planets and working odd jobs while hiding that she used to be a Jedi. To save the people she has grown to care about Ahsoka realizes that she never really stopped being a Jedi and starts to work with the Rebellion.

A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djeli Clark is a short story set before A Master of Djinn. In an alternate Cairo where magic and supernatural entities exist, when an odd suicide happens investigator Fatima must find out the truth and stop a plot that could unravel time itself. While connected to A Master of Djinn it doesn’t require you to have read any part of the series before this short story. I enjoyed this and plan to read more of the series in the future.

Sister Wife: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Finding Freedom by Christine Brown Woolley is Christine’s story from the show Sister Wives. This book starts with her childhood, follows into her early marriage with Cody, then starting the show to eventually leaving both the Church and Cody. It’s nice to see this story told by one of the wives. Though I do feel like this is Christine’s truth which might be different for other members of the family.

The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher follows a young woman, Mouse, who agrees to clean out her grandmothers horded house but there are things in the woods. A creepy horror story but does tell you that everything will be fine at the beginning. The ending is fairly cathartic for the characters. This was a reread for me as my book club was reading it and I still really liked it.

Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire is the seventh book in the Wayward Children series and I have a full review posted as well. After having been to the Moors Cora is having nightmares and decides to transfer to the Whitethorn Institute the “sister” school to Eleanor West’s but this school focuses on making the students forget about their door and reinter society. However, it’s clear that something not quite right is happening at the Whitethorn Institute. I didn’t like this one as much as others in the series but I think some of the information introduced will come back in future stories.

The last book I read was I Will Judge You By Your Bookshelf by Grant Snider. An illustrated book/comic about books, book lovers, and writers. Cute but doesn’t have much substance though I would recommend to big book lovers.

Movies:

The only movie I watched this month was 28 Days Later. I’ve never watched 28 Days Later before but since 28 Years Later is now on Netflix I decided it was time to watch it. Overall, I enjoyed this zombie movie and can see why it was so popular.

Book Review: Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire (Wayward Children #7)

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Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire is the seventh book in the Wayward Children series. After having traveled to the Moors, Cora is having nightmares and decides to transfer to the Whitethorn Institute the “sister” school to Eleanor West’s where they try to get students to forget about their door and reinter “normal” society.

Cora starts to realize that something is going on at the school and no one knows what happens to the students that don’t graduate, those who still think about and believe in the doors. Whitethorn is very strict and regimented to try and help the students but it doesn’t always work. This book introduces a new, possibly larger villain that could come back.

While I understood why Cora felt she needed to change Whitethorn stifles who is as a person. I didn’t like this one as much as others in the series but it has information that I think will be needed for future stories in the series. Also Cora is not my favorite of the characters and I still feel like there is too much emphasis on her body and size.