Company Town

Finished January 31

Company Town by Madeline Ashby

This science fiction novel is set in the near future on a city-sized oil rig called New Arcadia located off Canada's east coast. New Arcadia has recently been bought by a family-owned corporation called Lynch Ltd. The rig consists of five towers, each built in a different time period, with the oldest housing some of the poorest of the city's citizens. The main character Go Jung-hwa (Hwa) is one of these. She was born to a Korean-Canadian mother who didn't want her, and with Sturge-Weber, a rare disease that means she has a large birthmark and is more susceptible to certain conditions like seizures. Hwa is also on of the few people in New Arcadia that has no technological enhancements. She is an expert in tae kwon do, and works as security for the United Sex Workers of Canada, of which her mother Sunny is one. Hwa also had an older brother she was close to that died when the Old Rig exploded a few years ago. She is close to many of the sex workers and respects her union representative Séverine. She is given an assignment to watch over two union men who will be attending the official handover of the city to the new owners. 

When there is an incident at the handover, Hwa tries to get a better view of the situation and ends up meeting Daniel Siofra, a high level employee of the new owners who uses technology to affect the mood of groups of people. He is impressed with her skills and wants her to train Joel, the youngest son of the new owner and also act as his bodyguard during the day. Hwa doesn't want the job as she is loyal to her employer and the women she protects, but she is given now choice. As Daniel tells her when she protests "I'll find something you want and give it to you." She will be well-paid and she does set up her own apartment, but stays in Tower One. She also attends school with Joel, offering her a chance to further her education. 

When Joel is attacked and her friends start being murdered in violent ways, Hwa isn't sure who she can trust and who has ulterior motives, maybe for her, and maybe for the whole city. 

This is suspenseful and intriguing and I really cared about Hwa and what happened to her. Daniel appears to like her and support her, and she begins to feel something for him, but doesn't know if she can trust that feeling, or him.

Ashby has created characters with depth and personality, and I particularly liked her choice to give Hwa a Newfoundland accent. Great read. 

The Glitter Scene

Finished January 28

The Glitter Scene by Monika Fagerholm, translated from Swedish by Katarina E. Tucker

This literary mystery novel is told out of chronological order and from a variety of viewpoints. 

The story starts with the most recent time period, from 2004 to 2006. Johanna lives with her aunt Solveig in a house outside of town. When a girl a little older than her Ulla, tells her of a tragedy nearly forty years earlier, where an American girl died and then her boyfriend killed himself, she is intrigued and wonders where her parents, who were children at the time, fit into the story. She knows her father, Solveig's brother, is dead, but she doesn't know who her mother is. 

We then jump back in time to a story about a mask and some shoes, with the intriguing subtitle "an entirely different story, or maybe not?" and a second story about a girl who pretends she is a wild child from far away. We see Solveig and her twin sister Rita, girls who plan to become swimming stars; a brother and sister, Tom and Maj-Gun Maalamaa; Solveig and Rita's brother Bengt; their cousin Bjorn; and Doris, a girl looking for a more welcoming home than the one she was born into.

From there we move to 1989 when Maj-Gun and another local girl Suzette are in their late twenties and still unsure of their futures. When the two girls reconnect, a friendship of a sort is formed, but Suzette has secrets she doesn't want to share. 

This is a complex read, with interactions between locals and a wealthier group of people who move into a new, gated development that has repercussions. 

Somewhere Among

Finished January 28

Somewhere Among by Annie Donwerth-Chikamatsu

This children's novel is narrated by eleven-year-old Ema. As the story opens Ema and her parents are taking taxi from their small apartment to the other side of Tokyo where her father's parents live. Ema's mother is from the United States and teaches English at a college. She's having a difficult pregnancy, so the plan is to live with her Obaachan (grandmother) and Jiichan (grandfather) so that her mother can rest. This means that Ema can't go to her usual school as it is too far away. 

At first her Papa tries to stay there as well, but the commute to his work is too long and he gets too tired. It is June, shortly before the normal school year ends, so Ema will get tutored by her Obaachan until she starts at the new school in September. Ema is a pretty good kid, and she's excited to have a sibling, so she tries to not worry her mother over things. Usually in the summer she goes with her mother to visit her California grandparents, Nana and Grandpa Bob, but this year she will miss that, so she talks to them on the phone and writes to them. 

The novel is told in a series of poems, with each one dated. We see how Ema has some trouble adjusting to living with her grandparents. Her Obaachan runs the house and has rules and expectations, so Ema finds her a little cold, but she is close to her Jiichan and they spend time together. 

By the time school starts, he finds her a used bicycle to go back and forth with and he fills in her mother's duties on the Mama Patrol that watches out for the kids safety going to and from school. But this novel also takes place in 2001, and when the planes hit the towers in New York City, Ema is unable to prevent her mother from learning the news. 

I really liked Ema and understood her feelings of not fitting in due to her mixed heritage. Changing schools is hard and she also has to deal with a bully, something she hasn't encountered before and tries to hide from her mother. 

This is a book that draws you in with the character and the poetry format means that a reader can take their time as they go through the book. 

The Midnight Land I: The Flight

Finished January 23

The Midnight Land I: The Flight by E.P. Clark

This is the first book in a high fantasy series that is inspired by Russian folk tales, literature, geography, and language. The series is called The Zemnian.  The land of Zem is a matrilineal society where the women hold positions of power and influence and the men are seeing as strong and good-looking, but not as intelligent.  Clark has built a complex world that has a court that is gossipy and full of plots. The Tsarina and her court live in Krasnograd, in a building called the kremlin,a generic term for castle. Her younger half-sister, Krasnaslava Tsarinovna (Slava) is a woman with the skill of deep empathy. She can feel other's emotions and sometimes even their thoughts. Her role at court is to attend and give advice which sometimes encourages mercy to the wrongdoer. She finds her life tedious and the feeling of being constantly bombarded with the emotions of others tiring. 

When the daughter of a smaller kingdom within Zem, Olga Vasilisovna comes to the Tsarina to ask for funds to go to the Midnight Land, beyond the trees and map what she can, Slava finds herself asking to go along on this journey and receiving permission. Slava's father was a warrior from the land of the Steppes, and she is proud of that heritage even though she herself has never been outside the city. 

Olga helps Slava get together a suitable wardrobe, including trousers, and picks a horse from the royal stable for her to start the trip out on. 

As they journey, Slava finds the experience enlightening, as well as physically demanding. It takes her some time to overcome the pain from being on a horse all day, and being able to keep up with the rest of the group. At first the vast forest they travel through scares her, and staying in the barricaded shelters spaced along the roads feels odd. She is gradually accepted by the men with conversations between Olga, her men and Slava happening as they ride. But when she convinces the men to spare an elk they came across instead of getting fresh venison, she feels an outsider again. Slava dreams of the elk and when the group gets lost, Slava leads them in following the elk back to the main road. This example of her ability to talk to animal spirits causes curiosity and discussion about the different animal and tree spirits that exist. 

When, after visits to other small kingdoms within Zem they reach a small village near the treeline, and must switch from horses to dogsled, Slava finds that her presence is helpful for a reason she hadn't expected. As they travel and Slava's skills grow, she dreams and talks to various animal spirits, but also of the tree spirits (leshiye) who seem to want something from her, at least until they fully understand her skill. This is a tasking journey, where the group encounters a variety of dangers from weather to wolves to thieves, and sometimes Slava is placed in a leadership role. 

The novel ends with the group in Lesnograd, the capital of Olga's kingdom, where she hopes to ask her mother's sorceresses for help in understanding Slava's gifts. But there they find a very different situation than expected, and new dangers await. 

I really enjoyed this world, and the plot. Clark has done a lot of work building this world, and it shows. I've bought the rest of the series and look forward to following the story as it unfolds. 

Slava is an interesting character whose empathy makes connections with others, and whose growth gives her strength as she better understands what she is capable of. I also liked Olga and her rebellious nature where she has spurned the husband her mother arranged for her and taken one of her men, who is thoughtful and caring as her partner. 

The element of nature is strong here too, and important to the story. 

The Weekend Crashers

Finished January 16

The Weekend Crashers by Jamie Brenner

This women's fiction novel has three female characters that we follow over the course of a few days. Maggie Hodges is in her 40s, raised her adult daughter as a single mom, and works at a clothing store in New York City. She started the job when her daughter was young, and stayed. The owner, an older woman named Elaine, is a woman that has invested in a variety of businesses.

Piper Hodges, 23, daughter of Maggie has been working as a model since being discovered by a reputable agent. Piper lives with her boyfriend Ethan, and has paused her college education to focus on modelling. 

Belinda Yarrow owns a small hotel in small town Pennsylvania with her husband of 35 years, Max, something they bought into decades ago after a crisis in their marriage.

All three of these women are knitters. Belinda runs knitting retreats on a regular basis, with some people coming regularly. Elaine grew up in the town Belinda's hotel is in and told Maggie about the retreat.

As the book opens, Piper is doing a show in New York City, and Maggie has scored a ticket. For unknown reasons, as Piper is walking onto the runway, she faints and collapses. 

We can see Piper is less enthused about her modelling career than her mother is. Piper has other interests, and hasn't made big money so far, and she finds herself feeling relieved that this may end her career. Maggie is worried about her daughter in many ways, including that she is in a serious relationship at such a young age. This may be because Maggie herself got pregnant with Piper when she was quite young and gave up her college education to be a responsible mom. She wants Piper to have more options.

Maggie brings up the knitting retreat as a way to take Piper's mind off her mishap and have some mother daughter time. 

Belinda's husband has booked another group into the hotel on the same weekend as the retreat, a bachelor's party where the focus is on outdoor expertise and survival skills. They've also had an offer from a chain to buy the hotel and Max is eager to move to another stage of life. Belinda isn't so sure. 

As we see the possibilities for people who truly care about each other want different things in life, we also see how throwing two disparate groups of people together by change can create interesting situations. 

I think I liked Belinda best of the characters, perhaps because she is closest to me in age, I found her insightful, thoughtful, and good at her job. She isn't as good at communicating her own wants and isn't always diplomatic when she does.

Each women grows in some way during this weekend and its aftermath, and many of the men face issues of change as well. I enjoyed the read. 

The Ghostly Grounds: Murder and Breakfast

Finished January 11

The Ghostly Grounds: Murder and Breakfast by Sophie Love

This is the first book in a paranormal cosy mystery series called Canine Casper Cosy Mystery. Marie Fortune, a woman in her late thirties, has been working in an upscale dog grooming salon in Boston and as the book opens, she finally loses her cool at the attitude of the clients and her boss, and quits. She reflects on the life she is living and her long-harboured dream of running a bed and breakfast on the coast of Maine. This was a dream inspired and encouraged by her Great Aunt June, whom she spent summer childhoods with in Maine. She worries over what she will do next and when she invites her boyfriend Chris over to tell him, she finds evidence that he's been involved with someone other than her and finds herself ending that relationship as well. As soon as he leaves, she gets a call from a police officer telling her that her Great Aunt June has died.

Naturally she goes to the small Maine town June lived in for the funeral, and finds that June has left her the large house she lived in there and the property it was on, which includes beachfront. Marie can't help but see this as an opportunity to live her dream. She also finds another surprise waiting for her there, as was promised in the note June left for her. It turns out to be a dog, and Marie is happy to take it on as well. 

As she uses the last of her savings to do needed renovations to the house to make it work as a bed and breakfast she leaves in place the gothic touches that June decorated the house with as they seem to fit the place, and despite the fact that the house has a reputation for being haunted Marie doesn't really notice anything like that. But one of her first visitors seems to see something and before she knows it, she finds believers and nonbelievers making bookings hoping to either see something or disprove that there is anything haunting about the house. 

When one of those visitors dies soon after leaving the house, she finds herself under suspicion for the death, and questioning the activities that have been occurring at the house. 

A fun read, with touches of humour and romance. 

The Treasure Keeper

Finished January 10

The Treasure Keeper by Shana Abé

This is the fourth book in the Drákon series, a historical fantasy series I've been reading completely out of order. The main character here is Zoe Lane. Zoe is the daughter of a seamstress in the English town of Darkfrith, a drákon town hidden from discovery by humans. When she was a child she used to play with Rhys Langford, the son of the head of the town. Rhys disappeared months ago, and men sent after haven't returned either. One of them is Zoe's fiancé, and she doesn't like sitting around waiting. 
Zoe, like many of the more recently born women in the community doesn't have the ability to shapeshift to either smoke or a dragon, let alone both, but she does have two gifts that no one knows about. One is the ability to become invisible. the other is the power to feel other's emotions, and often see their thoughts. 
Using her first power, she escapes Darkfrith and follows the trail to Paris, the last place her fiancé wrote her from. She bases herself out of a room in an abandoned royal residence, and frequents cafés listening to others' emotions and trying to find the men who have been hunting dragons, men known as the sanf inimicus.  
However Zoe is also finding herself seeing Rhys and she doesn't understand why. She is sure he must be dead, but she can talk to him and he seems to be the same as the man she knew. She believes that she is talking to his soul and that she can therefore talk to the dead. 
When his presence saves her from a confrontation with someone working for the sanf inimicus, she is taken aback, but very thankful. When a clue leads her to drákon men hunting the same people as herself, she asks to join, but is refused. She is hesitant to reveal her gifts, but may have to do so to be successful in her hunt. 
I really enjoyed this novel, cheering Zoe on as she revealed herself as a strong woman, and willing to learn how to take best advantage of the gifts she has been given.

Regreen

Finished January 8

Regreen: New Canadian Ecological Poetry edited by Adam Dickinson and Madhur Anand

The anthology is one I've owned for a while, but only got to reading late last year. As with most poetry I read, it is something I tend to take my time with, reading a poem to two at a time, and thinking about what the poem says.

There are thirty-five poets represented here with the number of poem from each ranging from one to eight. Most are short, a page or two. 

Both editors wrote informative introductions that I found helpful. Besides both of them being poets, Madhur was at the time of this book, the Canada Research Chair in Global Ecological Change at the University of Guelph. I think this brings an interesting consideration to the collection.

The poems are divided into three sections: a triumph of tubers; pristine modernity, the dreams; and a leaf that looks like a mouth. The all have some relation to the environment, sometimes nature-based, sometimes to do with man's activities that affect nature. There is joy and there is regret. There is also hope.

Running for My Life

Finished January 5

Running for My Life: One Lost Boy's Journey from the Killing Fields of Sudan to the Olympic Games by Lopez Lomong with Mark Tabb

This autobiography takes us from Lopepe's (Lopez's) kidnapping from his parents at an outdoor church service near his Sudanese home when he was six years old to his life at the time of publication (2012). When the rebels attacked the church congregation, his mother held him close, but the chose him anyway and threw him in the back of a truck with other children. By luck, none of his siblings had come with him and his parents that day. His brother planned to take them to a later service. Three older boys who said they knew his older brother took him under their wing and protected him as best they could on the truck journey and in camp once they arrived. 

While the older boys were soon forced to train as soldiers, the younger ones like Lopez remained in their tent prison all the time. The older boys planned an escape during the night and took him with them. Lopez was already known as a fast runner, and this escape was a real test of both his swiftness and his endurance. The boys made it to the Kenyan border and were taken into a refugee camp, and Lopez never knew the exact identity or what became of his saviours. In camp, Lopez attended classes and ran the perimeter of the camp to earn his right to play football (soccer) and to keep himself busy. He grew to a leadership position in his group and ensured fairness and responsibility for the members. They gathered and shared food and made sure it lasted. 

There was always a dream among the boys to find a life in the West. At one point, Lopez was lucky enough to get to see Michael Johnson run in the Olympics on a staff member's television and this became his dream. When he was sixteen, he was chosen for adoption in the United States and found his new family. Lopez had blocked thoughts of his family from the beginning of his time in the camp, convincing himself that they were dead so that he would be able to move on. This was how he came to be eligible for adoption. 

It took him some time to get used to his new life and we see him go through adjusting to having dependable access to food, to having a bedroom to himself, to learn about electricity and running water that was part of his new home. He called his adoptive parents Mom and Dad right away though and trusted them completely. 

As they soon realized his running skills, he was connected with a coach, and his new parents sought out other boys from the camp who had settled nearby and ensured he had contact with them. They ensured he had academic support to catch up with his schooling, and that he plan for the future. 

When it came to light that his family in Sudan was still alive, they encouraged contact and he has since worked to create a charitable foundation that helps his old community. 

As we see his drive and his empathy, we find a young man that has not only fulfilled his own dreams, but also helps other fulfill theirs. 

February Reviews for the19th Annual Canadian Reading Challenge

 This is where you add the links to book reviews that meet the requirements of this reading challenge.

The Last Thing He Told Me

Finished January 4

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

This standalone suspense novel was recommended to me at the library when I asked about a book to meet a challenge. The challenge was a book published in the last five years that had been adapted into a movie or television show, and this was adapted into a television series.

The main character is Hannah Hall, a wood turner, and furniture maker. Hannah had lived in New York City until recently, when she married Owen Michaels, a coder that she met through one of her clients. After their marriage she moved onto the houseboat in Sausalito, where Owen lives with his sixteen-year-old daughter Bailey.  She made some missteps with Bailey at the beginning, but is trying to come to a better relationship. 

One day a kid from the sports team Owen coaches shows up at Hannah's door with a note that just says 'Protect Her.' Hannah knows that he means Bailey, but isn't sure what is going on until she finds that Owen's workplace was raided by the FBI for fraud. She can't believe that Owen would have anything to do with that, but why else would he disappear? When she picks up Bailey from school, she finds that he's left something for Bailey as well. 

As Hannah tries to make sense of things, she is visited by a Texas Ranger who offers help, and she begins to dig into Owen's past, finding that he isn't who he said he was. This is a mystery with some suspenseful moments, and Hannah ends up faced with a decision that is difficult on the surface. 

First Date: Divorce

Finished January 2

First Date: Divorce by Patricia McLinn

This book is the first book in the series The Wyoming Marriage Association. 

I've read books in three other series by this author and enjoyed them. I chose the book to meet a reading challenge left over from 2025. This book lets us see a variety of viewpoints. The main female character is K.D. Hamilton, a sheriff's deputy from Montana who has been trying to get her boss to let her do investigative work. K.D. was raised by a single mother after her father abandoned the family, and her mother remarried after K.D. left home. She is wary of relationships. She has been lent to the sheriff's office in Bardville, Wyoming and has just arrived at the ranch she was told to come to as the book begins. 

The main male character is Eric Larkin, a lawyer who has been living in Bardville for a short time, having moved there from Chicago after his divorce to be close to a couple of friends and have a fresh start. Along with him has come his assistant, a widowed friend of his mother's. The assistant is on the ball and trying to get Eric to be more social. Eric has kept to himself for the most part, except for his friends, the sheriff and a private investigator who is ex-FBI. 

The situation is a local business just outside of town, who is leasing a county-owned building and operating as a luxury retreat specializing in marriage counselling. A number of couple who stayed there left even more determined to split up, and they've all had one person who engaged a local lawyer for a divorce. Before renewing the lease, the county wants to ensure there isn't anything shady going on. 

K.D. and Eric will pose as a married couple who've been separated a while, but are attempting a reconciliation. Since Eric has kept to himself, no one in town outside of his friends is aware that he's divorced. There is a tight timeline, and they have to create a backstory complete with photographic evidence, so a few ranching women come together to stage wedding and other couple photographs. As K.D. gets involved, she learns more about Eric's ex and why they split. 

The mystery is pretty tame, but the romance has some sizzle. A fun read.

Roundup of Reading for 2025

 

Here are the numbers.

Total books read was 180.

Total pages read was 56,266.

Audience

Adult            169

Teen                  3

Children's         8

Genre/Subject (Note that some books have more than one genre

Fiction                164     of which 69 were part of a series

Mystery                  55

Romance                56

Literary                  21

Historical                26

Fantasy                   16

Science Fiction        2

Horror                      5

Western                    1

Nonfiction                    14

Biography/Memoir        9

Essays                            2

Travel                             1

History                           3

Social History                2

True Crime                     1

Science/Social Science   2

Arts and Crafts                1

Translated from another language to English: 12

From French        3

From Arabic         1

From Japanese     1

From Dutch          1

From German       2

From Italian          1

From Chinese       1

From Hindi           1

From Spanish        1

Setting (some books will have multiple settings)

Other world                    5

Other real world             4

Canada                         20 

United States                93

Europe                          61

Asia                              13

Latin America                9

Africa                             6

Australia / Pacific          6

Where I got the books

Library                        75

Owned                        94    of which 44 of the print ones got gifted elsewhere

Borrowed                      3

Temporary (Netgalley) 8 

Author Gender

Male                            35

Female                       140

Unclear                          1

Both                               2

Format

Graphic Novel                1

Large Print                     2

Regular Print

ebook                            58

License to Bite

Finished December 30

License to Bite by Carrie Pulkinen

This novel is the start of a series set in New Orleans. Ethan Deveraux has been a vampire for about 30 years, but he's mostly just holed up in his house occasionally venturing out to work a little for money to live on or as a sidekick to the vampire who converted him.

Jane Anderson is in town with her best friend. She works as a social influencer, a bit of a disappointment to her father, the governor of Texas, and to her brothers who all have college degrees and professional jobs. But they do all love her, and are worried about her in New Orleans during Mardi Gras.

And rightly so, as the girls get pretty drunk their first night and are escorted home by Ethan and his sire. Ethan is struck by something about her and thinks she might be his lost love reincarnated and he finds himself possessive of her.

When her preoccupation with social media puts her in a deadly accident, Ethan finds himself making her a vampire to keep her from dying. As her sire, he must take responsibility for her learning the rules and the process she must follow to stay alive. That means registering her the next night and preparing her to get her license to bite. 

Jane is a rebel and a feminist. She's also a charmer, having watched her father in politics for years. She certainly doesn't like the term 'sire' and she doesn't like that the council consists only of old men. But she can work with that. 

The big threat is her fear of blood, making her pass out whenever she sees it. How in the world is she going to bite under testing? Especially with a representative of the world vampire council in town looking for infractions, eager to stake whoever slips up. 

This novel is humorous, fun, and a total enjoyment to read. Jane is smart, sexy, and ambitious. She has ideas for new revenue streams and is willing to use her clout to get things moving. And Ethan is ready to move on with his death, finding Jane both annoying and attractive. 

A December to Remember

Finished December 29

A December to Remember by Jenny Bayliss

Augustus Balthazar North, owner of North's Novelties and Curios in the village of Rowan Thorp has set off on his last adventure, dying in his van on an European mountain. He never really settled down, although he had charm enough to attract ladies and he never pretended to be anything he wasn't. Through his many liaisons he had three daughters, and they all spent a month every summer with him together.  

Maggie, the oldest lived in Rowan Thorp, her mother moving there to see if there was any long term relationship possible, and she ran a greengrocer that Maggie has now taken over. Simone's mother is very business-oriented and Simone is now a physiotherapist married to a therapist and the two are going through a rough patch after having several unsuccessful IVF tries. Star is a free spirit, similar to her mother, never settling down, growing up in a series of communes and in other group settings. She's just been evicted due to the actions of an ex-boyfriend. 

Augustus has set some strange conditions in his will, asking that his daughters work together to bring back the Winter Festival that the town used to have on the solstice. The other is that they find the 32 altered monopoly houses that Augustus has hidden in the shop. The shop has been around since the 1740s, with North's passing it down to the next generation, collecting interesting objects from all over.

The women hire Sotheby's to catalogue the items in the shop and possibly sell some of them at auction, and Sotheby's has sent a lovely young man who is very interested in Augustus' reputation as a collector, eager to see what treasures the shop holds. 

As the women look for the houses, research the festival which was held until several decades earlier, and get to know each other again, they also find community in Rowan Thorp, and find other reasons that the town is the place they want to call home. 

I really enjoyed all three sisters, who all have interesting lives that differ widely from each other, but are also good women. Each finds skills that contribute to their situation and that affect their personal lives in other long-term ways. There is humour, good will, and lots of good food as well.

A seasonal read that brings the feeling of joy and friendship out in a big way.

A delightful novel. 

A Dream of Death

Finished December 26

Dream of Death by Connie Berry

This is the first book in the Kate Hamilton Mysteries series. Kate is an antique dealer who lives in Ohio. She met her late husband at university there where he taught. He was from the Scottish island of Glenroth and Kate has visited a couple of times, but hasn't been back since his death three years ago. Their children are at university and she leads a busy life. 

When her sister-in-law Elenor calls her begging to her come she does, but it doesn't mean that she's comfortable about it. Her visitor coincides with the Tartan Ball, a late fall annual event. She's staying at the hotel that Elenor owned and ran, and where the ball takes place. 

Elenor doesn't fill her in completely about why she's asked her to come, but she has shown Kate a lovely historical casket, and given her a novel about a famous event on the island that a local historian has written, asking her to read it. 

At the ball a couple of announcements that Elenor makes don't go over very well with the locals, and Elenor ends up going back to her apartment in the hotel early. Kate is disturbed the next morning to find that Elenor is dead, and that her death was a copycat murder of one more than two centuries earlier, the woman the novel is about. 

With the local police dismissive of her ideas, Kate follows the clues that she sees through the eyes of someone who is aware of some history, but not a local herself. As she works out who she can trust, she finds herself confiding in the hotel's only other guest, a police investigator from England. 

I liked the historical aspect of the plot, as well as the information around antiques. This is in some ways a woman's story, both now and in the past, and Kate is a good observer. I'd definitely be interested in reading more in the series.

Live Fast

Finished December 24

Live Fast by Brigitte Giraud, translated by Cory Stockwell

This is an interesting novel as the author looks back on the accidental death of her partner, Claude, decades before. She recounts the chain of events that led up to the accident, and for each of them wonders what if something different had happened. It is something that I think anyone who has lost someone due to something that was preventable wonders, but seeing it all spelled out takes this to another level.

One can sense the loss that the death was, and how the present day event of leaving the house that the couple had just bought, but not yet moved to, would trigger this reflection. 

I was touched by the everyday events that she described and the way that small choices bring us to a different reality. 

An amazing read. 

You Belong with Me

Finished December 24

You Belong with Me by Mhairi McFarlane

This romance novel has a romance that we've come into at a critical moment and it deals with some interesting issues around communication, trust, and what happens when one of the pair is a celebrity. Edie is a woman who is good at her publicity job, but not as confident in her personal life. She tried to talk herself out of a relationship with famous actor Elliot Owen, but he shows up on her doorstep determined to make a relationship with her work. 

Edie had a recent experience where someone took advantage of her nature and compromised her, with Edie getting unfairly blamed for the situation. Since it involved co-workers, it spilled into issues at work, specifically bullying and mean girl attitudes. Her boss knew the truth and allowed her leeway to work from home, and recognizes her leadership potential. When she's assigned an employee from head office to report to her as a new satellite location manager, she's wary of what he's been told by her work bullies.

Edie also learns to deal with Elliot's agent and how she should deal with the publicity that news of her relationship will bring. Another interesting thing to deal with is his relationships with other cast, particularly those cast as significant others in an ongoing series. 

As Edie and Elliot learn more about each other and work out the new seriousness of their relationship, dealing with information leaks, crushes, and new opportunities puts strain on their long distance relationship.

A romance with a lot going on and some real issues at the heart of it. 

We Need No Wings

Finished December 19

We Need No Wings by Ann Dávila Cardinal

This novel really caught my attention and kept it. The main character is Tere Sanchez, an English professor at a New England university. She is currently on leave, almost a year after her husband was unexpectedly killed in an accident. She has been having a very hard time moving on. As the book opens, she is out looking after the garden that her husband loved so much when she found herself having a very unusual experience, she levitates. At first she thinks she might be going crazy, but after having more such experiences, and making some discrete inquires of an older aunt, she remembers that her family is said to be descended from the family of Saint Teresa of Avila, who was also known for levitation. 

On an impulse, she decides to travel to Spain, to Avila, and see what she can learn, both from the place and from a distant cousin who lives there. Her Puerto Rican Spanish will make it relatively easy to get along. 

She lets her son, who lives in California, as well as a university colleague who was a close friend of her husband, know that she's gone to Spain. Once in Avila, she starts by trying to find her relative, a task harder than she expected, and unexpectedly begins to make friends with some locals. The landlord at her apartment helps, as well as a young homeless man that she takes under her wing. When she decides to rent a bicycle, she also finds an friendship forming with the owner of the bike shop.

Her inquiries into Saint Teresa lead her to churches and museums, and give her insight into how women were treated then, and how little has changed in some ways. 

I loved this book and Tere's story of mid-life change. 

False Impressions

Finished December 16

False Impressions by Sandra Nikolai

This is the first book in a series featuring a ghostwriter and investigative crime journalist. Megan Scott and her husband Tom's marriage has been more stressful lately as their efforts to have children have been unsuccessful. Tom travels a lot for work, and is off on another trip as the novel begins.

Megan is starting a new project as a ghostwriter for investigative journalist Michael Elliott, and when they realize they knew each other years before, they begin to develop a friendship as well.

When Tom goes off for a retreat, Megan doesn't have any concerns until police arrive at her door telling her that he and his female companion are dead. The discovery of his infidelity at the same time as his death is confusing for Megan emotionally, and she relies heavily on Michael for support. 

It also puts her under suspicion for his murder, and the ties between her and the crime continue to grow. The police seem to have their minds already made up, and Michael and Megan begin their own investigation to find the truth. 

I enjoyed the premise of the novel and the plot. As the book began, some of the dialogue seemed stilted and awkward, but that improved as the book went on. While it took me a while to get truly interested, I was glad I stuck with it. A good read.

Baby Mine

Finished December 14

Baby Mine by Kennedy Fox

I picked this out of my free Kobo reads to meet a challenge and kept hoping it would get better and it just kept getting more cringy. Engineering student and part-time bartender Hunter is drawn to a woman Lennon that he sees while he's working at the bar. She's also a student, but not locally, and is there with friends. He means to ask for her number, but doesn't get another chance, and the next morning he finds that she came home with his roommate. As his roommate and Lennon get serious and then when Lennon finishes her degree and gets a teaching job nearby, she moves in the apartment, Hunter becomes a bigger and bigger jerk to try to keep her from being nice to him, which would make him want her more. Um, childish anyone?

Then his roommate dies in a motorcycle accident and the grief she is feeling, that he also shares, makes him change course and be pleasant, responsible, and caring. (He says, 'but he'd never have a relationship with her because she was with his friend') Sure. Her friends see possible coupledom and his friends warn him against what he's doing, so they see it too. 

Then she discovers that she's pregnant with the roommate's behaviour. What to do? This is where her background really comes in. She's from Utah and the middle of three daughters, all living near each other. Their parents, back in Utah, are a pastor and his wife, very conservative, didn't let the girls date in high school at all, think they are all still 'pure' and don't know that Lennon was living with her boyfriend. 

And no, these aren't spoilers. All but the religious background are part of the book description. It took me longer to get through than I'd thought it would and I almost quit a few times, but didn't want to waste the time I'd invested. This book is the first in a series and ends of a bit of drama that is unresolved. I'm just glad I'm done. There is a sequel should you be interested.

The plot is cringy, the writing isn't great. The dialogue is stilted. 

I Remember Beirut

Finished December 11

I Remember Beirut by Ziena Abirached

This graphic novel is a recollection of the author's memories from living in Beirut as a child during the Lebanese War. This is a collection of memories illustrated in simple yet bold black and white drawings. It includes maps that help bring the memories to life by showing the overall setting and urban geography of where she and her family lived. Because there are many memories of daily life from how they shopped and went to school, and the limited movement they did, I got a very good sense of what life was like for them.

The optimism she observed in the adults around here despite their situation comes through and I could see how her situation was normalized in this way. I also found it interesting how one memory leads to another, from the man who drove the neighbourhood kids to the closest stop the bus would come to to his one very long fingernail (with the illustration showing one of the ways he used it) to Florence Griffith Joyner's fingernails. This book flows wonderfully, and I found it insightful.

January Reviews for the 19th Annual Canadian Reading Challenge

 This is the place to add the links to reviews of books that fit this Reading Challenge that you finished in January 2026. I hope this new calendar year bring you reading joy.