I read 22 books this month, 18 of them from 2025, and 2 of them from THIS VERY MONTH, and I bought ZERO BOOKS. My library game is SO STRONG (that I haven't cracked my Kindle since February **whomp whomp**)
The House of my Mother by Shari Franke: Shame on me for reading this. **2025
Crush by Ada Calhoun: This book is buzzy, but I did not love it. **2025
Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall: Another solid shrug from me, but I am in the minority because I think everyone else loves this one. **2025
Universality by Natasha Brown: I liked but did not love this slim little zinger of a book. **2025
The Switch by Beth O'Leary: THIS ONE IS REALLY ADORABLE. I know everyone was talking in someone's comments about how some of her books are bad, but this one is super cute. **Audio
The Crash by Freida McFadden: I think we have been over how much I adore these awful books. This was my first time reading one of her books as opposed to listening, and the experience was equally enjoyable **2025
Paper Doll: Notes from a Late Bloomer by Dylan Mulvaney: The stated goal of this book is to bring more trans stories to the mainstream, and she does it! **2025
We Could Be Rats by Emily R. Austin: Honestly, you guys, I feel bad that I don;t like her books very much. **2025
The Weekend Retreat by Tara Laskowski: A really enjoyable thriller with terrible people doing bad things to each other. **Audio
The Love We Found by Jill Santopolo: I loved The Light We Lost, so of course, I liked the sequel. **2025
Playworld by Adam Ross: I liked this book, but it also reminded me why I usually do not read dudes. **2025
You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pilego: Liked this Clue-inspired thriller a lot. I didn't really care about any of the characters, though, and I wish I did. **2025
The Adults by Alison Espach: LOVED this one. I love this author, I guess. The main character is a MESS, and I was nervous the whole time-- this is a vibe I really like. **Audio
Table for Two by Amor Towles: Look at me loving 2 short story collections this year! This one is wonderful, BTW. **Audio
Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: So, okay, you guys. Adichie has come under fire for being a TERF. She denies the claim but also has said some things about women qua women that sound pretty essentialist. And! This book is really good with compelling characters and POVs that change in all of the ways you want them to-- and this is SO HARD, to write with several compelling and unique voices. I really really enjoyed it. BUT ALSO she defines her characters in a whole bunch of ways by their experiences as women in women's bodies-- the blood, the pain, the power inequality-- all of the things are "essentially" women's experiences, so it's hard to unsee the TERF allegations even as her own explanations put a more nuanced point on her initial remarks. She clearly sees gender as grounded in sex, so it makes sense that she would see nuance between cis and trans women-- and is recognizing this difference always hostile? Is noting that women who have been raised as women from birth and women who arrived at womanhood differently might have different lived experiences exclusionary on its face? I am unsure. **2025
Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy: This book reminded me so much of Jane Harper and not just because of the Australian accents-- it was the way the physical setting was also a character. This book is SAD, so beware. ** Audio **2025
A Forty Year Kiss by Nickolas Butler: This is a WI author who is more than "just" a WI author, and I really like his stuff. **2025
Woodworking by Emily St. James: OH THIS BOOK IS SO GOOD. I literally cannot imagine reading a better book this year, so maybe I should just stop now? You should definitely read this-- the author writes for Yellow Jackets, and the HS girls in this story are wonderful. I loved it so, so much. **2025
Kindle Books: ZERO **shame shame shame
Audio books: 9
2025 books: 18
BTY 66
Book books: 37
Kindle books: 2
Audio books: 27
2025 books: 32