Effie‘s world is small - her uncle is a renowned but reclusive painter who keeps her close to home and discourages her ambitions. Joseph is a writer who comes to Ettie and Tata‘s to write about the artist and his work. His arrival expands Ettie‘s world. I really enjoyed this one.

I was instantly sucked into Semiramis‘ life. Like many other readers, I found this book a tad uneven - for me the first two thirds were more satisfying than the end. Either way, she is a formidable character and a pleasure to commute with.

England is in the brink of WWI and the Prime Minister, who is in his 60s, is completely besotted with Venetia, a girl in her 20s. He writes to her obsessively - and his correspondence included in the novel is historically accurate- to the point that it interferes with both national security and his ability to do his job. A fascinating read.

Queer sci-fi cozy mystery that takes no time at all to read.

As a young boy, Christian dreamed of being a fashion writer for Vogue and living in NYC. This is the story of how his dream came true. It was kind and hopeful and I loved it. Thanks #netgalley for a copy of this audiobook - it felt like a friend telling you a story.

I‘m grateful to my writer friend who called this collection a must-read. O‘Neill muses on the lessons learned passed down from her father - an eccentric sometimes criminal who taught Heather to love whimsy and to live with her whole heart. I cried.

Read because of the #womensprizeforfiction shortlist, but this one was really not for me. Strong, evocative writing but utter aimless characters and plot.

I bought this brand new book from my library after spilling a full bowl of chicken noodle soup on it. I loved the peak inside the 1978 Met Gala and the Egyptology. The characters held my attention. As the improbable coincidences piled up, I lost interest but read on because: expensive soup accident.

I‘m genuinely surprised this didn‘t make the #womensprizeforfiction shortlist this year. Three generations of women are shaped, torn apart, and brought together by their secrets and tragedies. I‘m not usually one for reconciliation-after-estrangement narratives but I teared up at this one.

Tara lives November 18th over and over and over. I realize this is meant to be a seven-book series. The movement in book one is almost entirely internal - not bad, but not what I was expecting.

My daughter highly recommended this bonkers thriller and it did not disappoint. Survivor, some reality tv dating show plus a dash of an Agatha Christie closed door mystery. Loads of fun.

A failed Pitbull impersonator tries to give his life structure and meaning taking cues directly from the movie Scarface. Oh, and kind of befriends a captive orca named Lolita. This was my kind of awesome and I was surprised at the low ratings.

A virgin with a disability that keeps her indoors has a filthy inner life and strong resentment of able bodied folks. The narrative voice is so unrelenting and strong that I couldn‘t put it down. I‘m not sure what to do with the ending though. Are you? #manbookerinternational

A palate cleanser of a mystery that was slightly too easy to guess.

Absolutely lives up to its name #ManBookerInternational

Gen X catnip

I really enjoyed Lily and Matthew‘s love story and was surprised when it changed to Nick‘s generation. I soon grew to love Nick‘s youthful idealism and felt for him as he got to know his biological father. I was less sucked in by May‘s storyline and the end felt a tad rushed. A light pick.

Grateful to #netgalley for access to this horror novel. On paper it‘s exactly my thing: Malerman, a demon, an unreliable narrator. In reality, the child narrator was repetitive and I wanted more demon than I got.

Absolutely fabulous audio narration by the actor playing Anita. And the dual timelines stories are well done too. Highly recommended.

I can‘t lie - I didn‘t get it. I started in print and ended in audio. Both formats were a miss for me, but the audio was slightly better.

A most excellent addition to the series. What a gut punch.

I really enjoyed the setting, the love story, and the Wordle bits. (And was pleased I solved many of the Wordles before the MC.)

When I was a horror-loving Heathers-and-The-Craft-fanatic of a teen I would have been OBSESSED with this book.

Gerri from Succession reading to me is the treat I hadn‘t known I needed.

Dizzyingly claustrophobic story of a young mother trying to leave an emotionally abusive partner. (Pictured: the ice cream shop in Skerries the MCs visit in the opening scene)

Dark. Feminist. Gothic. Angry. Dual timelines. Short chapters. Yesssssss

The token genre pick on this year‘s #CanadaReads shortlist. I‘ll bet it gets voted off first or second.

Not nearly as wonderful as Johnston‘s fiction. This was a bit of a slog honestly, and I don‘t have high hopes for it on #CanadaReads. I think it‘ll be voted off first or second.

Holy moly did Ma-Nee live through some terrible terrible shit. Her empathy, compassion, and generosity shine through. I found the tough parts really tough to listen to and so it‘s my third pick for #CanadaReads winner this year.

Im not one to read about estranged mothers so personally this was not a read I enjoyed. I‘d say this is my second choice for #CanadaReads winner for the year. It was pretty straightforward but I think it‘ll resonate with a lot of Canadians. Many of us deeply understand the feeling of not being fully one culture or another.

Having read all of the #CanadaReads shortlist, this is my pick for the 2025 winner. I‘m unsure if it‘s passing similarities to last year‘s winner will hurt its chances (serious social topic + elements of fantasy / social justice). I listened and will have to reread soon - there‘s a lot to unpack with this one.

Thanks #netgalley! I had zero expectation going into this Women‘s Prize longlister and was still surprised how much I liked it. A heartbroken young woman distracts herself from her feelings by taking a job with the UN rehabilitating ISIS brides. It‘s funny, and frustrating, and really made me think.

Bought on a whim. Read in a day. I love a twisty turny political thriller.

It took me three months to read this chunkster. I had (too) high expectations because of how much I love The Magicians trilogy. The first third felt disjointed at times and going was much easier when I moved from book to audiobook. Between a pick and a so so.

Utterly unputdownable.

A most excellent quick read about a man and the two women who love him.

When Maddy learns she has BPD, she needs to learn how she wants to be in the world, overcome self-doubt and fear, and rebuild her family‘s trust in her. This book was nothing short of incredible.

Dan Brown never disappoints. This 1998 thriller about NSA surveillance was clearly ahead of its time.

Three teens return from the dead and are asked to fulfill a series of magical tasks by their music teacher in this slow burning fantasy. I really loved the familial relationships between Daniel and Carousel, Susannah and Laura and Ruth, Mo and Maryanne.

Unexpectedly sad tale of a family whose inability to be vulnerable with each other leads to tragedy.

Another twisty thriller to make the gym more bearable. Not McFadden‘s best.

The gift of the Magi - but make it twisty

I loved the author‘s first book and had high expectations for this one. I LOVE reading about Russian ballerinas. I‘m not sure why, but I feel like I was being kept at a remove from these characters. It was difficult to root for them or empathize.

Read because I keep seeing this book everywhere. Devoured because it was delightfully ridiculously twisty and I had no idea where we were going to end up.

An uneven chunkster about one man in a German settlement in Russia on the banks of the Volga. It couldn‘t quite decide if it wanted to be history, fairytale or magic realism - or maybe was purposefully speaking to these genres and I missed the point.

A well-narrated story of the natural daughter of a scientist who creates human-animal hybrids.

Unlikeable people connected in intricate ways and just generally making the world worse. I‘m not making this sound like the pick that it is.

Absolutely blown away by how much I loved this book. A fantastic tale of two sisters with a long and complex history. There is so much love between them despite their differences.

Purchased on vacay because the tagline is chef‘s 😘