Happy March, readers! It’s a dreary time of year, but at least one exciting thing happens every March, and that’s the announcement of the Women’s Prize 2024 Longlist on March 5. Here are some of my favorite books published in the last year: Chenneville, The Warm Hands of Ghosts, Tom Lake, The Fox Wife, The House is on Fire, Talking at Night, and Happiness Falls. To be eligible, books have to be written in English and published between April 2023 and March 2024 in the UK (which can differ quite a bit from the U.S.). Also new this year is the first Women’s Prize nonfiction longlist, which you can find here.
Here’s what I read in February:
- Hello Stranger by Katherine Center (audio)
- The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo
- A Living Remedy by Nicole Chung (audio)
- The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden
- Tom Lake by Ann Patchett (audio)
- Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton
- The Soulmate by Sally Hepworth (audio)
- Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum
- Bookshops and Bonedust by Travis Baldree
My favorite reads:
I loved The Warm Hands of Ghosts, and I also really enjoyed The Fox Wife.
I love Ann Patchett but I didn’t think the plot of Tom Lake sounded interesting – it’s about a woman reminiscing about a long ago affair with a celebrity. This wasn’t an exciting book, but it was warm and comforting (due in part to narration by Meryl Streep) and I was sad when it was over. Patchett’s gift is writing about families and making them feel real. This is one of those books about people you’ll wish you actually knew – and I rather liked the lack of drama.
Disappointing reads (or DNFs):
After I read Birnam Wood, which was quite good but very dark, I needed something “fluffy” so I listened to The Soulmate. I think Hepworth is very good at slowly unfolding a story, and if you’re just looking for entertainment, it fits the bill. But a lot of reviewers on Goodreads expressed concern about how bipolar disorder is represented, and I’m not sure I know enough to agree or disagree.
I DNF’d Tricia Levenseller’s The Shadows Between Us. She’s an entertaining writer, but the premise and writing felt younger than I was in the mood for, and her main character was pretty awful. Also I discovered there’s another book in her Pirate King series so I’d rather read that.
On the blog:
I reviewed two new-to-me romance authors, I wrote about what I love and don’t love in romance novels, and I recommended ten books with nature in their titles. I reviewed The Fox Wife and The Warm Hands of Ghosts, and for Ozathon 2024 I wrote about Ozma of Oz.
Books for challenges:
- Nonfiction: A Living Remedy
- Reading Around the World: The Fox Wife, The Warm Hands of Ghosts, Birnam Wood, The Soulmate
What I’m reading now:
I have an ARC of Women of Good Fortune by Sophie Wan, and I’m also reading What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez. I just finished I Owe You One by Sophie Kinsella.
What’s coming up:
For Ozathon 2024, I’ll be hosting the fourth book in the series, Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz. Thanks to those who have joined us in our readathon, and I hope you’re enjoying the journey as much as I am! I also have several ARCs I need to review in March. In addition to Women of Good Fortune, I have two science fiction ARCs: Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis and Cascade Failure by L.M. Sagas.
Added to my TBR:
Since a lot of bloggers wrote about romances this month, I added some books by new-to-me authors to my list: The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston, Role Playing by Cathy Yardley, With Love From Cold World by Alicia Thompson, and The Emma Project by Sonali Dev.
Things that made me happy this month:
I bought myself an indoor exercise bike this month, and I even put most of it together myself. I used to hate indoor bikes, but I like that I can connect to programs, virtual instructors and videos of nearly anywhere in the world. All of that makes biking in my garage much more fun – and better exercise – than I expected. Of course when the weather gets nicer I’m looking forward to getting outside.
Wishing you all a happy spring! Please let me know if you’re reading something good.
