The White Lady
Jacqueline Winspear
“She enjoyed this benign memory; there were other strands of reflection reaching back over the years that were akin to electric cables, able to shock if touched. Those hot wires of remembrance were all around her.”
Although bombs have stopped falling and soldiers have returned home, the war will never be over for Elinor White. She gave her childhood to the Belgian resistance, then two decades later sacrificed even more for England; all she wants to do now is stay tucked away in her rural estate, where she can garden and keep an eye out for old enemies. But when Jim Mackie settles nearby with his wife and young daughter, Elinor recognizes someone else desperate to escape. As Elinor digs into Jim’s family connections, she quickly realizes that she’ll need to confront her own past before it consumes her.
The short version of my review is that this book was fine. I liked Elinor, and was interested enough in the mystery to finish. But in truth, novels about women spies in world wars just aren’t my jam. It’s been a hugely popular genre for so long that anything I read feels just like the book before, and the book before that. Stories like this are important, but in the end I’d prefer a true story than a novel.
A good addition to your shelves if you like strong female characters and a world war setting.
The Hearth Witch’s Guide to Magic & Murder (The Hemlock Saga #1)
Kiri Callaghan
“Two hundred years. No mortal would have survived it. Every human ally, every friend, even those she’d chosen as her family, gone—their children, gone. She struggled to swallow, and she reached for the file once more, opening it to bury herself in the details of the photographs and coroner’s report.”
Two centuries into a 500-year sentence, changeling Avery Hemlock is free…sort of. A rise in supernatural crime threatens to expose the Fey to humanity, and the Winter Council has made it Avery’s job to fix things — fast. Across London, medical school dropout Saga Trygg is trying to fix her broken heart with tea and baked goods. This effort is impeded by many things, not least of which is her strange new neighbor who doesn’t seem to understand how light switches or phones work. Due to a small capitalization-related misunderstanding, Avery decides that having Saga (plus her medical training and knowledge of human ways) tag along on the investigation might be useful. Out of the frying pan, into the fire!
I picked Callaghan’s book up at the store last year because it seemed right up my alley. Witches? Check. Fey? Check. Grizzly murder and associated twisty investigation? Check. A friendship that may lead to something more? Check! Just about every aspect of this novel was spot-on for me — I love Avery and Saga, the secondary characters are intriguing, and the murder investigation kept me guessing. Book 2 doesn’t have a title or release date yet, but you can bet your sweet bippy I’ll be keeping my ear to the ground for updates.
Read this if you like your less-than-cozy murder mysteries with heaping spoonfuls of magic and queer vibes.
Super Natural: How Life Thrives in Impossible Places
Alex Riley
“Guided by changes in the Earth’s atmosphere and the movement of the continents, life unfurled into every open space and every crevice; a once boring world was inoculated with wonder.”
According to the internet, less than half of Earth’s land is habitable by humans and up to 99% of the water is too salty for us to drink. But it turns out we’re possibly the planet’s least stubborn life form; thousands (if not millions) of species looked at our highest mountains and deepest abysses, said “Bet,” and set up shop. In Super Natural, science researcher Alex Riley introduces readers to the organisms that have turned the uninhabitable into home.
This book is a deep dive into extremophiles, creatures who thrive in ecological niches once considered barren. The surprisingly cute tardigrade (or moss piglet!) is the best-known example, but poking around just about anywhere inhospitable — hot, cold, anoxic, or toxic — will stir up something worth obsessing over. Some of the deeper scientific details went over my head, but mostly I just enjoyed reading about these lovable weirdos. Like Riley, I hope what we learn from them will help us better understand the planet and ourselves.
Good fun for biology nerds — I just wish it had photos!
Greenwood
Michael Christie
“What if a family isn’t a tree at all? Jake thinks as they walk in silence. What if it’s more like a forest? A collection of individuals pooling their resources through intertwined roots, sheltering one another from wind and weather and drought.”
In the years after what’s become known as the Great Withering, Jacinda “Jake” Greenwood spends her days walking rich tourists through the world’s last remaining old growth forest. Orphaned and deep in debt, the only place she feels at home is amongst the trees she’s loved her entire life. Greenwood is structured like the rings of those trees, moving backward then forward through time to cover the lives of Jake’s father, his mother Willow, and Willow’s father and uncle. The events and actions of the past reverberate through time, building new layers for those who come after.
This novel’s setup was the main reason I added it to my TBR — Cloud Atlas is structured similarly, and it’s an interesting way to depict the inter-connectedness between a set of characters. My reading experience was nice, mainly because the longest sections were about the characters I liked most (or was it the other way around?). Unfortunately the final section in particular left me with a bad taste in my mouth. We spend the least amount of time with Jace, but her decisions have the biggest impact and seem unjustifiably dumb. And while I appreciate an allegory, this book quickly runs into a The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe problem: did you know the lion is Jesus? Did you know families are like trees, stories are like trees, time is like trees, connection is like trees, trees are like trees?! I would have enjoyed the tale more if the author had been willing to hold the metaphor more loosely and let the reader make those connections on their own.
This was an interesting story with a unique structure, but the heavy-handedness and illogical ending sapped (snort) my enjoyment.
Inheritance (The Lost Bride Trilogy #1)
Nora Roberts
“With my blade I took the first, then by my blood this house was cursed. One by one they wed, they die, because they seek to take what’s mine. And with their rings of gold, my spell will hold and hold.”
Graphic designer Sonya MacTavish has been dealing with a lot of “unexpected” lately: a cheating fiancé, a surprise uncle, and an inherited mansion. Lost Bride Manor is beautiful but absolutely, definitely haunted. But Sonya is determined to make it her own — even if it means tangling with a dead, also very mad, witch. As the house and its (mostly) unseen inhabitants begin revealing their secrets, Sonya realizes that although she can’t change their past, she may be the only one who can save their future.
It’s been awhile since I came across a book that made me miss lunch and stay up too late finishing the last chapter. There’s a reason Nora Roberts has sold over 500 million books worldwide: the woman can tell a hell of a story. Her characters feel grounded and real, and the novel’s atmosphere is thick enough to cut with a knife. The mystery is well-crafted and spooky, and I enjoyed the whole thing from beginning to end. I couldn’t put it down.
Give this a try if you like Victorian witches, found family, and gentle romance. The last few pages leave on quite the cliffhanger, so I recommend having the second in the series on hand.
The Mirror (The Lost Bride Trilogy #2)
Nora Roberts
“In this place, I call the wind, and as it blows, your life I end.”
Just as Sonya is getting used to the ghostly inhabitants of Lost Bride Manor, the visions begin. An ornate mirror not part of the mansion’s inventory shows her the tragic deaths of seven brides, and how each death strengthened the evil that lingers hundreds of years later. But within each vision are clues that can help her break the curse — if she’s strong enough.
I loved Inheritance so much that I went to the library the next day to pick up the next in the series. Sometimes the second-in-a-trilogy suffers from “middle book” syndrome, but happily that’s not a problem here. There’s some new subplots, but otherwise we’ve met all the characters, know who the villain is, and have some sense of what needs to happen to break the curse. I will admit this one gets a little repetitive with aspects that don’t impact the main story — I can only read so much about Sonya’s freelance marketing work and descriptions of food before some skipping is warranted — but the ghosts and mystery still had me hooked. I’ll definitely be finishing this series as soon as I can.
The House in the Ceruelean Sea (Cerulean Chronicles #1)
TJ Klune
Book club
“Hate is loud, but I think you’ll learn it’s because it’s only a few people shouting, desperate to be heard. You might not ever be able to change their minds, but so long as you remember you’re not alone, you will overcome.”
Linus Baker has spent his career following the rules and staying in his lane. As a caseworker for the Department in Charge of Magical Youth, it’s his job to identify magical children who may be a danger to others. What happens to those children is not his department. But Linus’ bubble bursts when he’s sent to a small island to determine whether its inhabitants are too unusual. There he meets six children who defy explanation, and their guardian who will do anything to keep them safe and together. Island life is simple, but the world outside is not. Can this odd family use what they have learned to figure out how to stay together?
What a sweet way to end this month’s reading. The child characters in particular are funny and endearing, and the adults who care for them are kind. I’d happily put this in the hands of anyone I’d like to introduce to themes of acceptance, kindness, and standing up for what’s right. That said, I think the novel skews more toward Middle Grade — there are few surprises, no characters who aren’t purely good or bad, and everything feels too heavy handed for most adult readers. The themes and inspiration could have made it take a much darker tone, and I think Klune missed opportunities to dive deeper into the more complex aspects.
Good for lovers of cozy mysteries, fantastical children, and found family.
Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash
