New month, new book thread!

The first book I finished in 2025 was Dying To Know by Rae Cairns.

A bit predictable but the writing was absolutely gripping. I genuinely couldn’t put it down.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/93975fdb-ba66-4672-af50-c16b59d19ea9

@bookstodon #fiction #crimethriller

Review by clacksee - Dying To Know

On the one hand, the plot was a bit too predictable and there were moments where suspension of...

And now for the first book I started in 2025: Civil Resistance by Erica Chenoweth.

‘No movements have failed after getting 10% of the nation’s population to be actively involved in their peak event. Most succeed after mobilising 3.5%.’

This one gives me a bit of hope just when I need it most.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/9bfc5908-d3f0-4af6-8919-a86a716a9ba3

@bookstodon #nonfiction #CivilResistance

Review by clacksee - Civil Resistance

There are so many reasons to be depressed and demoralised right now. Everything seems hopeless...

Friday’s book was So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish by Douglas Adams.

Insufficient Marvin … otherwise excellent.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/d04c0c02-f42b-49ef-8bee-7a0be96ffbe6

@bookstodon #CosySciFi
#ScienceFiction

Review by clacksee - So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish

Insufficient Marvin … otherwise excellent. 

Saturday’s book was The Taiga Ridge Murders by Skyla Dawn Cameron.

It’s not *that* kind of horror. It’s sort of modern gothic horror: creepy and eerie but with minimal gore.

PS: The cat lives.

Get it now: https://payhip.com/b/LnA5I

@bookstodon #horror #creepy

Sunday’s book was The Usual Santas: A Collection of Soho Crime Christmas Capers.

Well, this was a random collection of stories.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/463956db-a4ff-4ed8-9901-dacb97f8cdf6

@bookstodon #mystery #CrimeFiction

Review by clacksee - The Usual Santas: A Collection of Soho Crime Christmas Capers

A very odd collection of stories. The only thing they have in common is that they all take pla...

Monday’s book was The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst.

Cosy fantasy (yay!) with angsty romance (ugh).

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/ac83a55b-2e08-4fc8-8867-7929958dfd6d?redirect=true

@bookstodon #CosyFantasy #Fantasy

Review by clacksee - The Spellshop

When the library where she lives and works is burnt down as part of a revolution, Kiela and he...

Oops… Forgot to post this one yesterday. Tuesday’s book was Exit Strategy by Martha Wells.

#Murderbot’s back with the crew from the first story – and it’s not sure how to feel about that. Mainly it feels icky because feelings are gross.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/0b7ef317-f636-42ee-bd32-42e3384ddff6

@bookstodon #CosySciFi #CozySciFi

Review by clacksee - Exit Strategy

This instalment in the series returns Murderbot to the crew from the first story – and it's no...

Wednesday’s first book was A Quiet Teacher by Adam Oyebanji.

This story pairs a slow and gentle pace with a dark and all-too-realistic storyline.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/c7875b1d-b1e0-41e1-be33-dd2adfef933a?redirect=true

@bookstodon #CrimeFiction

Review by clacksee - A Quiet Teacher

This story pairs a slow and gentle pace with a dark and all-too-realistic storyline. Intricate...

Wednesday’s second book was Boneshaker by Cherie Priest.

Compelling characters and a gripping storyline paired with racial slurs and crass stereotypes.

Sorry. Read her other books instead.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/7eff666c-6c12-4e19-bd5a-705a63abe6bb?redirect=true

#books #steampunk

Review by clacksee - Boneshaker

Compelling characters and a gripping storyline paired with racial slurs and crass stereotypes....

Thursday’s book was Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.

This book is a powerful anti-totalitarian anthem. This book is a racist, ableist, misogynist mess. Both statements can be true.

Moving on.

#booksky #dystopian

Hey, I heard you like queer books!

Friday’s first book was Iron Goddess by @dharmakelleher.

A fast-paced story of a woman on a mission. She’ll stop at nothing to protect herself and the ones she loves.

Get it straight from the author: https://dharmakelleher.com/products/iron-goddess-ebook-shea-stevens-outlaw-biker-book-1

@bookstodon @lgbtqbookstodon #thriller

Iron Goddess

Friday’s second book was Marketing Strategy for Authors by @taorwong_author.

This book will teach you how to build a marketing plan that’s right for your author business … wherever you’re at.

Get it straight from the author: https://starlitpublishing.com/products/marketing-strategy-for-authors-1

@bookstodon #WritingCommunity

Marketing Strategy for Authors

Saturday’s book was Unnatural Causes by Richard Shepherd.

I was hoping for inspiration on unusual causes of death. Alas, this is not that book.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/6776801a-b998-4903-bbb6-fec4997268ab

@bookstodon #nonfiction #memoir

Review by clacksee - Unnatural Causes

As memoirs go, I suppose this was fine. If you like that sort of thing, which I don’t really. ...

Sunday’s book was The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi.

In 2020, I couldn’t write another serious novel about serious people dealing with serious problems. So I set out to write a fun, fluffy book to amuse myself.

Apparently, I wasn’t alone in that feeling. John Scalzi felt it too.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/2f654441-d9e2-4109-b335-d072da2ad845?redirect=true

@bookstodon #scifi

Review by clacksee - The Kaiju Preservation Society

Back in late 2020, I found I couldn’t write another serious novel about serious people dealing...

Monday’s book was Blackheart Man by Nalo Hopkinson.

This one wasn’t for me … and that’s okay. Not every book is for every reader.

Also, they’re going to want to revise the review on that cover.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/ae840ac5-681a-46b1-a203-2b40f06cc16d

#booksky #fantasy
@bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Blackheart Man

I’ve previously found that Hopkinson drops readers into the thick of it. At the start, I have ...

Tuesday’s book was Firewatching by Russ Thomas.

Well done mystery with compelling characters and a twisty, winding plot.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/326a87df-d309-4032-9efc-ef3150dbad85?redirect=true

@bookstodon @lgbtqbookstodon #CrimeFiction

Review by clacksee - Firewatching

Well done mystery with compelling characters and a twisty, winding plot.  My only complain was...

Wednesday’s first book was Irmageddon by Maia Ross.

Irma is the best! But also kinda terrifying.

This one is free with subscription to the author’s newsletter.
https://www.maiarossbooks.com/irmageddon.html

#booksky #mystery @bookstodon

Maia Ross | Irmageddon

Wednesday’s second book was Mostly Harmless by Douglas Adams.

‘Oh, so you think time flows that way, do you?’

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/5427474a-17a8-41be-a68e-72c8ecd5e9ab

#cosyscifi @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Mostly Harmless

I think this is my favourite in the series – after the original, naturally. Also, it includes ...

Thursday's book was Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay.

Complex storyline with a cast of thousands, so it was a bit hard to keep straight. I enjoyed it, though.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/233cd311-b002-4366-8cc1-e258c9138c8a

#thriller @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Elevator Pitch

Complex storyline with a cast of thousands.

Friday's first book was Mickey7 by Edward Ashton.

I enjoyed this one – just not as much as I loved Mal Goes to War.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/1d6de5e8-6c93-4ae6-b97e-79ff4d58ba5c

#scifi @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Mickey7

I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I did Mal Goes to War. In fact, if I’d read it first, I mig...

Friday's second book was Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata.

Thanks. I hate it.

Specifically, I despise every character except for Keiko – how they talk to her and about her and act around her.

Anyone who describes this book as funny or sweet or cosy or quirky … is not safe for neurodivergent people to be around.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/b74bc9ef-895d-487f-83c1-44cb5a07078e

#fiction @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Convenience Store Woman

Thanks, I hate it. This is not a light, funny, ‘oh, isn’t she quirky’ comfort read. Keiko is a...

Saturday’s first book was The Truths We Hold by Kamala Harris.

Interestingly, the politics espoused in this book are so much more progressive than anything we saw in her campaign.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/a53b3029-41be-4621-9b56-e99d75f81a70

#nonfiction @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - The Truths We Hold: An American Journey

It’s interesting. The politics espoused in this book are so much more progressive than anythin...

Saturday’s second book was Once on the Blue Moon by Kristine Kathryn Rusch.

A fun story of a genius 11-year-old who has to save a ship full of passengers after pirates board and lock everyone up.

https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/c9813c19-60c0-40b8-b67b-d8b3e2427f86?redirect=true

#scifi @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Once on the Blue Moon

A fun story of a genius 11-year-old who has to save a ship full of passengers after pirates bo...

Sunday’s book was Saturnalia by T.W.M. Ashford.

This claustrophobic sci-fi horror(ish) novel will keep you in the dark – sometimes literally – until the end.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/5571131f-574f-403c-a003-5b83195b151d?redirect=true

#scifi @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Saturnalia

This claustrophobic sci-fi horror(ish) novel will keep you in the dark – sometimes literally –...

Monday’s book was Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death by MC Beaton.

I started out hating Agatha … but she grew on me. I might even read more of the series.

Very short review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/e0ebd479-06e5-45b0-9013-2867845f382e

#CosyMystery @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death

I started out hating Agatha. I’m not sure she actually grew or developed … but she did grow on...

Tuesday’s first book was Snuff by Terry Pratchett.

Pratchett died almost a decade ago. And yet this is a book for today.

Full review: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/3162f494-e687-4dcc-bf2e-0489da4419be?redirect=true

#fantasy @bookstodon

Review by clacksee - Snuff

This book packs a hell of a wallop. It’s a story of injustice and of ‘decent’ people who don’t...

@clacksee @bookstodon she was in an impossible situation because she was part of Biden’s administration so she could not speak out strongly against his policies. But she did signal change in certain things, like Gaza policy, that were either not understood or actively ignored because people didn’t want their stated reasons for not voting for to be undermined.

@BaconSmith @clacksee @bookstodon

Do you remember, I believe it was the convention , where a Palestinian speaker was excluded from the speakers list, and we got a short video instead.

I remember how I felt when that went down, like watching an own goal. I felt kinda sick, slapped in the face, even. I worried that we were not sufficiently robust for that kind of self-sabotage .

I understood the why. I didn't agree with it. Hell of a price we paying.

@clacksee @bookstodon yup just read that, I enjoyed it, interesting idea
@clacksee @bookstodon have you by chance read Nalo Hopkinson's Midnight Robber? It's the one book by this author that I liked. I have tried to read others, but none had that same spark.
@kimlockhartga No, I’ve read some shorts. Some of them I loved and others I just didn’t vibe with. Might be worth checking out.
@clacksee It's weird that it's one of my favorite books ever, and then I haven't liked anything else. I suppose that kind of thing happens sometimes.
@clacksee @bookstodon @scalzi is here too just in case you weren't aware