I‘ve kicked off Murica-Free March with another from the Canada Reads Longlist. GIRL RUNNER gives off that particular CanLit vibe that has the capacity to leave me deeply unsettled. Hopefully it‘ll be the good kind, not the kind that puts a bad taste in my mouth. At page 75, it‘s too early to say.

And I mean, hey, it might not unsettle me at all in the end. Sometimes early vibes mellow out. I‘ll report back. #MFMarch

I finished THE GOLDEN RAVEN tonight and I have MANY EMOTIONS about Jean‘s healing journey and also how great it is when there‘s a bit with a dog.

Now begins the wait for the next book.

Nine years, baby! I joined because all my book blogging friends were super excited about it, and at first I couldn‘t make it fit with my reading style. Now most of them have wandered away, but here I still am.

Casey‘s helping me dig into a full-series SKIP BEAT! reread ahead of Volume 50‘s English-language release. Everyone‘s grown so much since these early days. MY BABIES. 😭😭😭

Nora Sakavic‘s new book dropped the very day I stopped regularly checking for it! Good thing Kobo sends out reminders when they know you‘re waiting on series additions.

Now I know what I‘m doing with the rest of my reading month. I bought THE GOLDEN RAVEN as soon as I got the email this morning, formally bailed on the poorly-written Shakespearean fantasy I tried last night, and dove in at lunch.

1. Casey got an adorable haircut. He‘s no longer at risk of heat stroke in the middle of winter from the shear wealth of hair on his body!

2. I started SISTER SNAKE tonight and I immediately feel all OMG about it. Is this the book I‘ve been waiting for? I sure hope so.

This week‘s tiny library haul, plus Duffy‘s bandaged leg. (He has what‘s probably a follicular cyst.) I read and loved the first volume of UNHOLY BLOOD last year, so I‘m glad to see my library‘s purchased more volumes of this Korean comic! I already have vols 3-5 on hand, so now I can have a little binge.

I was also pleased to get a Taiwanese novel I heard about on Instagram and another Parisian guide, because I haven‘t read enough of those yet.

I thought I was really gonna have to stretch to finish WIND AND TRUTH before the end of the month, but I don‘t wanna turn it off. I keep looking for more excuses to listen. Earlier today I did the collar and facings on my jacket, then finished this puzzle. Tomorrow‘ll probably involve pressing the jacket so it‘s photogenic, then at least the start of another puzzle. At this rate, I should finish the book on Tuesday. #audiopuzzling

And now, some hockey romance! This one‘s a bit of a departure for Reid; a second chance romance with a LOT of baggage, complicated by very recent grief. Also, both characters are in their 40s and retired from hockey. Gonna devour the back half tonight.

I got so busy reading and loving THE TOMB OF DRAGONS that I never actually posted about it, so please consider this a prelude to the review I‘m still mulling over. In particular, I‘m thinking a lot about how Celehar is someone who always, always does the right thing in relation to his calling, even when it causes major problems for him, but who does the easy thing in his personal life, and how the series helps him learn to take more risks there.

Another tasty DELICIOUS TONIGHT recipe that isn‘t remotely the same colour as the example picture. Oh well. The lentils in this soup cooked down beautifully and the overall flavour is great—which is a relief, because the recipe made a TON of it. That‘s my supper sorted through the weekend.

I took a break midway through my worldbuilding-forward dark fantasy and switched to this character-driven historical fantasy set in a queernorm version of Regency England. It‘s an absolute delight as of 24%. I‘m happy with my life choices.

I pressed the hell out of my jacket today, then paused to finish this miniature tea shop. That took me to 29% with WIND AND TRUTH, which I‘m loving. It‘s common for epic fantasy to have a POV or two that the reader just doesn‘t care about, but I‘m interested and invested in all these people and have been all along. I‘m excited to keep listening tomorrow. #audiocrafting

Plugging along through BLACK SUN RISING with my favourite schnauzer. It‘s not bad, but I haven‘t become invested in the characters or the story, so it‘s slower going than I want right now. (It probably doesn‘t help that I still can‘t stop thinking about THE TOMB OF DRAGONS by Katherine Addison.) One of the LT reviews said things click into place about 200 pages in, though, and I‘m ALMOST there. Hopefully that does it for me.

I spent a goodly chunk of my Louis Riel Day listening to WIND AND TRUTH while I sewed the bulk of a new jacket to take to Paris. It‘s impossible to tell from the picture, but this tweed is shot through with green and goldenrod. I‘m really happy with it.

I‘m also so glad the book came in for me! At 63 hours, it‘ll be a stretch to get it finished before my month off from American writers, but it‘s doable. #audiosewing

I finished Katherine Addison‘s forthcoming novel last night and now I‘m BEREFT. Gonna try to drown my sorrows in Duffy snuggles and early-90s dark fantasy. C.S. Friedman is one of those authors I‘ve always been AWARE of but never quite managed to read, so it‘s about time I gave her work a try. It‘s off to a promising start.

This week‘s library haul. I‘m taking next month off from American writers and artists (something I usually do in February but couldn‘t swing this year due to some ARCs and imminent library holds), and while I‘ve got a couple more American-authored titles in the pipeline for next week, my holds list already reflects Murica-Free March‘s mandate. Today I picked up stuff from Canada, Japan, and Singapore. #MFMarch

Onward through my Kobo! I hit 95% read last night after I bounced off a fantasy sequel that reminded me of how and why I disliked the first book in the series. Now I‘m into a new adult romance I‘ve had for I dunno how many years. It started a bit rough, but I‘m really enjoying it as of 28%. It strikes a good balance between the joy and fear of exploring life in a new city.

Please also enjoy my kitty sheriff mood light.

Poor Duffy lost his beard to an unfortunate gnat infestation, but he‘s still a committed reading buddy. Tonight he‘ll help me reread another chunk of ORANGE, my favourite high school friendship manga. It‘s high stakes slice of life stuff.

My mum gave me a fun, non-Covid respiratory virus that involves an enormous amount of coughing. All I wanna do is snuggle dogs, eat crunchy foods, and read books.

I was in totally the wrong mood for the YA SF novel I tried earlier, but this romcom‘s really working for me. Gonna spend a goodly chunk of time with it this evening. Maybe gonna have more hashbrowns topped with cheese and spicy mayo, too, because who cares about nutritional value.

Casey helped me finish THE COMPANION earlier. It was my first E.E. Ottoman, after years of curiosity about his books, and I very much appreciated it as a celebration of trans love and self-acceptance, all wrapped up in woodsy writing vibes.

That said, I wanted more emotional grounding before the romances actually kicked off, and I feel like the book needed one more close line edit to fix issues like missing words and homonyms.

If you‘re after fantasies about colonialism, displacement, and environmental degradation, you need the Crowns of Ishia novellas in your life. THE DESERT TALON looks at refugees in a land of people with whom they share ancestry but not a viewpoint on what their magic is and how it should be used. Karin Lowachee digs deep into her themes across these 150 pages, all while she delivers her signature stellar characterization. I couldn‘t put it down.

This morning Sneaky Casey stole a pillow and hid behind BIRDING WITH BENEFITS, which is a lot of fun so far. I love it when something that‘s marketed as a romcom is actually full of jokes and wacky hijinks! (Publishers do seem to be getting better about this.) I‘m excited to read more later this afternoon. Hopefully I can finish it tomorrow so the next person on the holds list gets a go.

I‘m working my way through my last unread book from the Canada Reads shortlist. With about a hundred pages to go, I like it but I‘m not passionate about it. Guess that means WATCH OUT FOR HER is my top pick for this year, and it‘s bound to get voted off either first or second. Hopefully the debates‘ll still offer some interesting discussion fodder, whether or not I have strong feelings about the books on the table.

This morning Casey wiggled around like a wild creature and I finished PLAGUE SHIP, which is one of the digital freebies I nabbed right after I got my first ereader and never read. It was my first Andre Norton and I found it interesting both as a story and as an early(ish) step along the road that is science fiction.

Charlie helped me read some Lang Leav this morning. I can‘t claim to be super well read when it comes to Instagram poetry, but I‘ve read enough of it now to feel like its practitioners stick to a limited set of themes. There‘s always a lot about love wounds and the dark periods they provoke, the search for inner strength, and Real Love‘s ability to be your identity—often side by side with pieces about how you shouldn‘t make love your identity.

Throwback to yesterday, when I ate more brown food while I read my penultimate book from the Canada Reads shortlist. I should finish it today. While I like it a lot, I‘m not sure if it‘ll cross the line into love territory. It all depends on how the ending comes together. Still, it should lead to some interesting discussions during the debates.

ETA: I found the ending deeply unsatisfying. Sadness.

Tonight I made wangun yakni (which looks like brown sludge but tastes delish) and finished THE DAUGHTERS OF IZDIHAR. It was great, though extremely stressful since it deals with women‘s rights. I‘m always so thrilled to find secondary world fantasies that aren‘t pseudo-medieval! This one‘s pseudo-Egyptian with an early 20th century vibe to it. #audiocooking

1. I‘m rereading THE WITNESS FOR THE DEAD, and it‘s exactly what I need in this moment.

2. It‘s one of my opera books (love an opera book), and I always read this particular opera as a reference to the one in THE RELUCTANT HEIRESS by Eva Ibbotson—with the key difference that this opera, while divisive, WORKS, and the one in TRH is… not good.

3. Yessss to opera that seeks to do new and different things!

I couldn‘t resist starting THE DESERT TALON as soon as I finished THE MOUNTAIN CROWN, and this was an excellent life choice. Karin Lowachee puts me right there in it. I can‘t wait to read more.

Jade thinks we should stop reading and go play snow fetch, but the wind‘s gusting so hard that she‘s out of luck for now. Maybe later.

Saki‘s usual nighttime ritual involves wiggling around on his back in the middle of the living room.

MY usual nighttime ritual involves whatever I‘m reading. Tonight, that‘s THE MOUNTAIN CROWN by Karin Lowachee, in advance of its sequel. HOW am I the only person who‘s ever posted about it on here? It‘s great! And it‘s short! Everyone should read it!

Every year I choose a project book; something really big and maybe a little daunting (but still fun) that I can poke at for a few months. This year, instead of a multi-volume epic or whatever, I‘ve decided to focus on my Kobo. I want to hit 100% on the Books Finished part of my Activity page, then maintain it at 98-99%.

My mum‘s a big Lindsay Buroker fan, so I started the tagged freebie as soon as my schedule opened up. It‘s really good so far!

This week‘s small library haul, plus a guide to the Châteaux of the Loire I found at the thrift store. BIRDING WITH BENEFITS is the last #AuldLangSpine title I‘ll be able to source before month‘s end, but I probably won‘t get to it until early February. HEAVENLY TYRANT is a long-awaited sequel, while the other two were impulse grabs off the shelf. I‘ve wanted to reread ORANGE for ages now, and I‘m excited to read more plays this year.

Well, here‘s a relevant fucking poem.

Throwback to this morning, when I read my book while Casey styled his hair into a crest by rubbing his head against my duvet.

I wanted to finish DON‘T WANT YOU LIKE A BEST FRIEND today but, while it‘s good, I haven‘t found it as moreish as I hoped it would be. We‘ll see what happens later this afternoon. #AuldLangSpine

ETA: it got INTENSE after page 200 and I did indeed finish it before bed.

Here‘re this year‘s Canada Reads panelists and their selections, for anyone who missed them! For the first time ever, I lucked out; I‘ve already read three of the finalists (the tagged book, A TWO-SPIRIT JOURNEY, and DANDELION; I‘d rank them in that order), and the other two ( ETTA AND OTTO AND RUSSELL AND JAMES and JENNIE‘S BOY) came in for me last week. I‘ll definitely get everything read by the time the debates start on March 17!

I started another from the Canada Reads Longlist while I waited for the final announcement today. So far, THE WHISPERS has the potential to say important things about the expectations people hold for white suburban moms versus the reality they live, but I‘m not sure if it‘ll do enough deconstruction for my tastes.

It didn‘t make the shortlist anyways, and I won BIG with the books that did! I‘ve either read them or I have them in my library stack.

Ahhhh, friends, I‘m having SUCH a good time with SWORDCROSSED! Freya Marske gives off the best vibes. I almost don‘t even care what‘s happening as long as I get to bask in her books‘ overall feel.

There are a couple of domestic thrillers on the Canada Reads Longlist, so I figure there‘s a good chance one of the panelists wants to bring the genre to the table this year. Even if WATCH OUT FOR HER doesn‘t make the cut, I won‘t regret reading it. It‘s creepy as shit! I‘ve got so many theories already and I can‘t wait to see how everything comes together.

I‘m heartsick today, so I‘m looking for small joys to place opposite the horrible hatred I see around me. I hung the photograph I bought last week, and I‘m in the homestretch with this lovely book about queer teenagers who suffer but also have a great adventure together in NYC. #AuldLangSpine

Another recipe with a pretty serious filter on the example photo. Even with Litsy‘s food filter, this soup is way more brown than gold. Maybe Australian creamed corn really is yellow enough to overcome the brownish broth you mix with brown sauce?

It‘s pretty tasty, at least. She cites it as a Chinese restaurant staple, but I‘ve never had it before or noticed it on a menu around here, and I HAUNT my top restaurant‘s menu. A regional thing, maybe?

This week‘s library haul includes another volume by a poet who impressed me last week (SKY WRI TEI ING was so cool!), two more from the Canada Reads Longlist, more from Hiromu Arakawa and Junji Ito, and a religious text.

Here I am, using up the peppermint mocha coffee whitener and the whipped cream while I tear along through WITCH KING. It seems like a lot of Littens had issues with the pacing, but I really like this back-and-forth structure. It offers up my favourite balance of questions and answers. Doesn‘t hurt that the worldbuilding‘s very cool indeed. Martha Wells has let me down before, but I think she‘s gonna land this one. #AuldLangSpine

Supper involved Kris Ripper‘s moreish new romance and Nagi‘s fake mapo tofu. The dish is tasty enough, but I question her tofu to meat ratio and it‘s once again obvious she filtered the hell out of her example picture. Even with a big glop of chili oil on top (and Litsy‘s food filter), this sauce is brown rather than red.

My stack of library books I haven‘t even started yet got waaaaay too tall during my slow reading week. Gonna try to knock it down over the next few days.

Also, I finished my tiny detective‘s office and it now lives beside my library stack. This brings me joy.

I‘m coming off a slooooooow reading week thanks to one good book where the author‘s syntax didn‘t quite jive with my brain and another where I was too distracted to give it my full attention, so I‘m mighty glad to be flying through THE CINNAMON BUN BOOKSTORE! I‘m pretty sure the entire plot will flee my mind within a few days, but that‘s fine. I need books to be enjoyable in the moment, not memorable for ever and ever.

I finished THE SUNBEARER TRIALS this afternoon while I broke in my new moccasins! It was a fun take on the kids-in-life-or-death-competition storyline, set in a queernorm world influenced by Mexico instead of Europe.

The moccasins are a limited edition from Manitobah Mukluks, in partnership with artist Rosa Scribe, and they were a lucky thrift store find. They‘re brand new, AND I had a $10-off coupon. #AuldLangSpine2025

Today‘s library haul features two more #AuldLangSpine2025 requests, two from the Canada Reads Longlist, another Junjj Ito collection, Freya Marske‘s latest, a guide to help me plan my time in the Loire Valley, and the first Namibian novel I‘ve had the chance to read.

Oh, hey, I forgot to tell y‘all how much I loved MOST ARDENTLY! It dove straight into my heart and tugged, tugged, tugged. It‘s also the second Remixed Classic I‘ve adored, after INTO THE BRIGHT OPEN by Cherie Dimaline, so clearly I need to seek out more of them.

I finished it while I started this book nook. I‘m now fairly far into it, thanks to stints with a couple other audiobooks. #audiocrafting #AuldLangSpine2025

I can see why BETTER LIVING THROUGH BIRDING is so popular! Christian Cooper‘s enthusiasm really shines through. I‘m enjoying it a lot and I want to prioritize his comics the next time I have a Marvel Unlimited subscription.

That said, either the print book has teeny, tiny typeface or I find his prose style very slow. It‘s taking me forever to get through these 296 pages and my progress-to-effort ratio has made me a bit grumpy. #AuldLangSpine2025