Dark Voyage by Helen Susan Swift

Started: 12.4.26

DNF: 13.4.26

Kindle

TBR Prompt: Set in the early 1900s

I really wanted to like this book, as it's the first in a series of five, I believe all set in Scotland (I'm not sure if they're connected). I made it to page 30 but I just couldn't get past the awful dialogue, it felt so stilted and wooden. This, in turn, made it very hard to even begin to like or get a feel for the characters. It's a DNF, and I'll be removing the other books from my TBR list.

Hold On to Your Kids by Dr Gordon Neufeld & Gabor Mate

Started: 8.4.26

Finished: 12.4.26

Paperback

Extra book choice - not TBR

This was a spur of the moment purchase. A very interesting, thought-provoking book about the need to nurture the attachment between a child and their parents (or significant adults) rather than letting them be 'brought up' by their peers. Definitely one I want to re-read and highlight.

Little Addictions by Catherine Gray

Started: 30.3.26

DNF: 12.4.26

Kindle

Extra book choice - not TBR

This was another Kindle Daily Deal. I'd just read The Unexpected Joy of The Ordinary, and I was curious what this would have to say about phone addiction. I don't think I'm completely addicted to mine, but I would like to spend more time away from it. Again, it's well written and there's nothing wrong with it, but I just read the bits I wanted to rather than the whole thing, so I'm classing it as a DNF.

Glimmers by Nadia Narain and Katia Narain Phillips

Started: 30.3.26

DNF: 12.4.26

Kindle

Extra book choice - not TBR

I picked this up as a Kindle Daily Deal. This book is about Glimmers, which are the opposite of Triggers. It suggests that we should try to notice as many glimmers in our days as possible; those moments which make us smile, laugh, feel loved, joyful, connected, experience a positive emotion or reaction.

There are explanations about how the nervous system works, and how glimmers can contribute to feeling calm, present and safe.

The sisters who wrote the book give a lot of examples from their lives, in particular a turbulent childhood, and there are spaces for you to write about your feelings (obviously not in the kindle version), so it's a bit like a workbook too.

I DNF'd the book, not because I disliked it in any way, but just because I felt I'd got enough out of it by about the 25% mark.

As I was reading it, I did start writing down 'glimmers' as I noticed them. I've never been any good at keeping up with a gratitude journal, which is a similar idea, and sure enough, I only kept this up for a few days. I don't disagree with the idea of trying to record the good stuff, but for me, I'd liken it to going to a concert and spending the whole time 'watching' via your phone as you take photos and videos. Having to remember to write things down seemed to take me out of the moment. So I will continue to try and be aware of the glimmers, but I'll just notice them quietly, in my head.

Ascension by Nicholas Binge

Started: 6.4.26

Finished: 10.4.26

Hardcover

TBR Prompt: Water on the cover

Well, I don't really know what to make of this book! I think it's speculative fiction, maybe a touch of cosmic horror with a bit of sci-fi thrown in for good measure. A group of scientists join a secretive mission to investigate a mountain - several thousand feet higher than Everest - which has suddenly appeared in the middle of the ocean. Time and space behave differently, memories fade, moods and temperaments become erratic. Suspicion and mistrust abound, and inexplicable things are discovered on the mountain. Harold, the physicist of the group, writes letters to his niece as a form of journalling; the majority of the book is told in this epistolary fashion, although it reads more like... well, a novel, rather than letters. 

I quite enjoyed the mystery and suspense surrounding the appearance of the mountain, and what they might discover as they climbed towards the summit, but some of the things that they found left me a bit "meh", and at times the themes of science and religion got a bit heavy for me. 

The Sword Of Kaigen by M. L. Wang

Started: 2.4.26

Finished: 6.4.26

Kindle Unlimited

TBR Prompt: Newest / most recently acquired book

Well, it's been a minute since the last one, but I think I can safely say that this is a 5 star book! The Sword of Kaigen had me gripped; I'm a bit amazed at how much I loved it! The extensive glossary / new vocabulary used in the story was quite overwhelming at first (and I think some words were unnecessary), but it was so well written that it gets easier to follow as you go. This is a standalone fantasy about love and loss, duty and family honour, politics and propaganda. There is a LOT of violence; the fight scenes are cinematic in their visceral brutality, and there are heartbreaking moments (one in particular that I read several times because I couldn't actually believe that it was happening?!?!?) The deep misogyny was frustrating, to say the least, but I think it went some way to highlight the isolation and distance of Kaigen from some of the more forward-thinking regions.

I'm still very new to the fantasy genre, but I think I can see that my preferences are leaning more towards high fantasy like this, or grimdark like The First Law Trilogy (I've only read book one so far), rather than romantasy or cosy / light fantasy. I'm so excited to read more!

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney

Started: 2.4.26

DNF: 2.4.26

Paperback

TBR Prompt: Oldest book on my list

I got to page 104 but I wasn't enjoying it. A story about an author whose wife disappears without a trace, I found the MMC to be quite whiny and helpless. I get that he was grieving, but after the story jumped to a year later, it felt like every other sentence mentioned how much he loved his wife and couldn't write or do anything, really, without her. It was very repetitive. So I'm afraid I read some spoilers, then skipped to the end and read the last couple of chapters. There was definitely a big twist or two, but I'm not sorry that I DNF'd this. I do like books that are set in Scotland, so I presume this is why I had this book on my TBR, but even the Scottish island location wasn't enough to save it. I used to read a lot of thrillers but I definitely think my tastes are changing and these kinds of stories don't appeal to me as much as they once did.

Rainforest by Michelle Paver

Started: 31.3.26

Finished: 1.4.26

Hardcover

TBR Prompt: Animal on the cover

This book is the story of an entomologist called Simon who is travelling to the rainforest, ostensibly to study mantids. Told from his POV, it's safe to say that he's an 'unreliable narrator'. We learn that he's grieving for someone called Penelope, with whom he believed he was in love, however as he divulges more into his journal, it becomes apparent that his feelings weren't reciprocated, and also that this trip may not have been entirely his choice. Once in the jungle, amongst the natives and their spiritual beliefs, Simon finds that the line between the living and the dead is a tenuous one.

Set in the 1970s, with some 1970s attitudes towards women and indigenous people, I never warmed to the character of Simon, or any of his colleagues really, though I don't think we were meant to. To me, he seemed spoiled and petulant; there were suggestions of a difficult childhood but these were never really explored in any great depth. He just seems to have grown into an angry, self-obsessed man with poor social skills. By the end of his jungle ordeal he has perhaps had something of an awakening, but I didn't feel that he'd fully redeemed himself in any way.

I enjoyed this book but it doesn't come close to my favourite, Dark Matter, by the same author.

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman

Started: 29.3.26

Finished: 31.3.26

Hardcover

TBR Prompt: Orange book

Oops, I did it again! I finished one of next month's books, this month! But this was such a fun, easy read, I didn't want to slow down or wait. Great to be back with the Thursday Murder Club, and a few new characters too. I know there are some people who don't like these books, but... well, you're wrong. What's not to like? 

For what it's worth, I've always pictured Ron looking more like the ex-England footballer Jimmy Greaves:

And I can see why they chose Helen Mirren to play Elizabeth in the Netflix film, because she absolutely looks like she could be an ex-spy ("there's no such thing as an ex-spy"). But I thought it would've been a lot funnier to have someone like Anne Reid (though maybe when she was a few years younger, and sounding a bit more like her Dinnerladies character) saying things like "...I suspect my assistance was greatly appreciated when you were being throttled half to death in Odessa in 1974..."

Didn't really have any objections to Celia Imrie and Ben Kingsley though.

March Reading Wrap Up

 

16 books in total, but 5 DNFs.

1. Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

Heartwarming novel about grief and learning to move on. And a remarkably bright octopus.

2. Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

A DNF - just a bit too cosy and twee for me.

3. Weyward by Emilia Hart

Witchy revenge!

4. Blood On Her Tongue by Johanna Van Veen

Made me feel a bit nauseous

5. A Short Stay In Hell by Steven L. Peck

Existential dread

6. Tender Is The Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

DNF

7. The Frozen Silence by Dr James Pennington

Really interesting account of the search for the Franklin Expedition

8. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

A story about loneliness, friendship and kindness. Bit of a slog at first, but a (mostly) happy ending.

9. Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman

Reluctant DNF.

10. A Taste Of Darkness by Various

YA horror, but didn't like the first two stories, so DNF.

11. Alice by Christina Henry

Dark, twisted reimagining of Alice In Wonderland. Really good!

12. The Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom

A reminder that we all matter to someone.

13. The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner

DNF

14. Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Mushrooms, so many mushrooms!

15. The Unexpected Joy Of The Ordinary by Catherine Gray

Non-fiction, interesting reminder that being ordinary is perfectly ok.

16. The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman

Funny, heartwarming, clever; great to be back with the gang. [Should've been an April read].