Rose-Anne
That was an alright read, especially if you like feisty leading ladies. It was well written and had plenty of likeable characters.
The misogyny is painful though. I know that's how it was then, and we've made progress (with more to go) but it's still irritating. Insta-love is irritating to me as well, so for myself, this book kept me always a little annoyed.
Okay, really intriguing story. About half way through I thought : "This could totally be a storyline in Doctor Who." It really has that vibe, and I'm into that.
It did feel long though, and it was a heavy read. Or at least I found it that way, and it might be because of a lot of heavy things going on in my life right now and I need a lighter read. I'll do that next.
I find it difficult to rate this. It is definitely an engaging read. I'm not a very philosophical person so it lost me a bit during those parts, but I am always intrigued by the human experience, particularly those very unlike my own, and this book had plenty of that. If you're not offended by some spicy content and some brutally honesty real life situations, this is worth the read.
A nice murder mystery. As a Canadian I find it extra charming that it takes place in Quebec and there is a nice amount of "franglaise" sprinkled about. It's cozy like an episode of Murder She Wrote. The characters are each interesting, mostly likeable, and I loved the repartee between them. There are a few twists along the way, some you may see coming, but probably not all.
One thing to note, if you read the digital edition, as I did, be prepared for sections containing several typographical errors. I was really annoyed and wondering how such a popular book could be so poorly done. I looked it up and the physical books don't have this issue so it must have been something that happened when being ported to digital. I wouldn't let it stop me from reading this though.
By all means, read Brandon Sanderson...just not this one.
The story had a clever plot, but the language used was painful. I know it was meant to represent an over the top version of the 1920s but it was just too over the top. Maybe it was fun to write that way, but it's less fun to read. Even intentionally done, the misogyny is just excruciatingly cringy in 2026.
I do know this was a novella he wrote very, very early in his career. Thank goodness he got so much better at it.
Very intriguing little book. I thought the whole alternate reality was very interesting and would have actually enjoyed more of it, so I'll read the next in the series. I am less into the angst of the main character, just because that's not how I am so it's unrelatable, but really loved the interaction between Dex and Mosscap. Also, I love the idea of a tea monk. That should be a thing.
Nice story that kept me coming back to see how the obvious twists were going to come together. I'm not one of those readers who thinks every read has to be incredibly deep and completely unpredictable. To me it felt deeper than a beach read or a cozy mystery, but still light enough to be a feel good read.
Plus, it has a sentient animal. I'm a big sucker for a perfectly charming sentient animal.
Charming little book about the importance of human connection, kindness, empathy. Often, we are stubborn about letting others know we don't have it all together. Does anyone ever truly have it all together though? In my experience, once you open up even a little, it's surprising how compassionate and helpful fellow humans become. This book is about that.
A few of the scenarios might be a bit unrealistic, but that's okay in a book like this. I encourage you to read it and be inspired to either reach out to, or check in on, your fellow human beings just a little more often. We should be there for each other.
Every Canadian should read this book. It's another example of what they skipped in history class, but is a part of our history that we should know. Genevieve Graham shares with us the sobering truth of what some of the newcomers to our country have endured, and sometimes, it's painful. That said, the book ends in a way which leaves you feeling informed and sad for what has happened, but happy for several of the main characters as they've preserved and overcame (though the scarring remains) and made good lives for themselves. I like the truth, but I don't like finishing a book feeling gutted. The Forgotten Home Child balanced this well.
Wow. This is not my normal kind of book but I read it for a challenge. I guess that proves the worth of participating in a challenge or two, because otherwise, I would have missed out on this. It was a really enthralling, well written story and I loved it.
I only docked it a quarter of a star because there several words I didn't understand and Kobo dictionary was no help so a glossary would have been awesome.
The second half was worth getting through the first half, because it got harder to put down as the book progressed. That might be on me because I left such a big gap between reading Senlin Ascends and reading this one and for the first while I was lost and trying to remember all the back story.
I feel like for me, I can't get to the 4 star mark with this book because I'm one of those people who sees the story in my head like a movie while I'm reading and lots of times when entering a new scene the movie flickered and went blank. I'd have to re read a few times trying to get an idea of what the surroundings looked like. I don't think most people would have got tripped up on that, and probably it's better the way it is because if Josiah had done much more world explaining, the book would have been far too long.
The plot is definitely intriguing and I'm going to read the next in the series for sure.
Interesting book, definitely worth the read.
The part of me that is full of curiosity about how everyone else lives in all their different parts of the world loved all the information about Cuba and what it was like to live there in the past and now.
The part of me that loathes romance, and especially instant romance, gagged a lot. I know that's my issue though.
The story was definitely interesting enough that I never considered DNFing it, and I appreciated the writing style that was easy to read. The author made it very easy to always know which timeline you were in, which is always good in a book that spans different eras.
The Ten Thousand Doors of January is a marvelous story. If you loved the Narnia series, I'm willing to bet you'll love this book as well.
One of the ways I can really tell I'm enjoying a book is when I can't stop thinking about it as I go about all the rest of my life. This one had me, for sure, and I was always eager to get back to it and only grudgingly put it down when I really had to.
I highly recommend you give this one a try. I don't think you'll regret it.
This was a very different read for me since I don't usually do a lot of folklore but the premise intrigued me.
While I was reading it (which took a while due to life circumstances) sometimes I was really enjoying it and sometimes it was more challenging (but that also may have been due to the life circumstances, I'm not sure).
Overall though, I'd say it was a worthwhile read. It was entertaining, and I am very interested by the concept of genetic memory so I really liked that aspect of it.
I went into this with a bit of hesitation. I'm a cat person, for sure, but find sometimes books centered around cats to be a bit cheesy or childish. This is NOT that. This book was absolutely fantastic. I read it in 3 sittings, only because my life didn't allow me the time to read it in one. I love the easy to read writing style, the characters, the modern and inclusive vibe, and I don't know...it was just interesting the whole way though. I'm going to be recommending this to a lot of people.
I'm going to give this a 4. It wasn't a 4 for me, but it's not the fault of the author that I don't really enjoy romantic themes, and this was one start to finish. I did enjoy the splash of magic and dash of steampunk, and it was a good story that was well written. A special shout out to some of the fun banter between the main characters.
This was a well written book and I enjoyed it a lot. It bounced ALL over the place from character to character and place in time which I usually struggle with, but I didn't feel lost at all (except when it was intentional). Of course, it's sad at places and frustrating at lots of places (because of a slew of trigger warning topics which sadly, we still can't stop committing against our fellow human beings even in 2025, never mind in history) but it ends with enough happy feelings and nice resolutions that you don't go away feeling too heavy.
I learned a lot about things I had never considered before, like Caribbean culture and Asian immigration to the Islands, which I hadn't even known was a thing. I love to know more about different places.
This was probably the best book that I've read this year, and I've read several really good books this year.
The subject matter is heavy for sure, but the writing was perfect: easy to read and hard to put down. I also don't know how a book that made me so very sad also made me laugh out loud so many times due to the super witty dialogue. This was just my writing style. ❤️
I can't help being left feeling relieved at how far we've come in terms of LBGTQ+ acceptance, but still frustrated that we have so far to go. If I live to be 500, I'll still never be able to understand why society has to be so narrow minded. Let's do better.
This was a heavy read. I know why a lot of people liked it but it was a struggle for me. Potentially, I've read too many intense books in a row and so this poor book gets the blame for my accumulated big feelings but it was sad. All the way through.
Also, huge emetophobia trigger warning: starting at Chapter 4 and for several chapters after, it's pretty nasty. I've had therapy and am doing much better, but these chapters were a good test of that.
Overall, it's a book full of distressing themes and there's no happy ending really. I'm left hoping Pop survived long enough to see Jojo and Kayla through to adulthood and that they somehow overcame all the trauma they endured. It's only fictional, right, so it doesn't matter? Tell that to my overfeeling heart. I know real people live similar lives for real and that's heartbreaking.
3.25 because it is a good story, just too sad for me.
My second: "Wow. What did I just read?!" book in a row. This is weird, so be prepared for that. I found it to be quite a page turner though, and quite thought provoking. It takes the social consciousness that seems to be budding in our rethinking of zoos and religion to an extreme, but that's why it makes you think so much. It's definitely a good read if you can open your mind and just accept the weirdness, which you should. I would like it to continue so I can see how this new world plays out.
I really liked this book and I think I'll probably put more from the author on my TBR list. I'm a mid 70s baby but I could still relate to a lot of the main characters childhood (late 60s) and it was nostalgiac in a nice way. There were a lot of different characters in this book, but it was easy to follow and they were mostly lovable.
There was some abuse and homophobia portrayed realistically, but the book showed how the abuse wasn't acceptable and the negative effects it could have. The queer characters and their relationships were shown in a positive light. Nothing was too graphic or dwelled on for too long.
Overall, it was an interesting story that was well worth the read. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants a little break from heavier reading but isn't into total fluff books.
I hated reading this book but I loved this book. It was a really tough read for me because so much of it takes place in the worst parts of World War 1 and I am not a war person. I could really relate to the main character, Xavier, who also had a peace loving heart.
I really enjoyed how the book was written though, and I'm so glad I slogged through the uncomfortable parts. Joseph Boyden slipped smoothly between the timelines frequently with no announcement, yet it wasn't confusing for the reader at all. The way it all came full circle at the end was perfectly done.
My next read is going to be a little lighter, but I'm sure I'll come back to read more from this author.