Mini Review

This was fun. It got bonus points because Grandma got to go along on this adventure, and I think we can all agree she's one of the best characters in the series. It did lose a point because Cricket was nowhere to be seen. Perfect for younger readers and Disney lovers alike.

I love Gert and Larry so much! This second series has been a lot of fun. There is kind of an overall plot if you squint and turn your head to the side. I have been loving all the little mini stories so much, though, the Billy Goats Gruff story was my favorite of this volume. I have my fingers crossed that we're getting a Volume Eight. While I wouldn't say this one ended on a cliffhanger, but I do have some questions. Like is Gert stuck in the form, if yes, are we getting a Kaiju issue? Lastly, how kind of hell is Cloudia raising because she looked like she was about to commit a crime? I just want to know what kind of crime. World domination? Or, just be random bits of crime because she can?

HAPPY READING!!

Book Haul

My place has this community portal where you can take polls, leave reviews, post photos, etc., and earn points. All year, I play all the silly games and post little adorable pictures of my cat or the food I cook. I take every poll and fill out all the reviews. I try to earn all the points I can, and normally at the start of December, I cash out all my points for a Barnes and Noble gift card at the end of the year, or the beginning of the next, so I can do a little haul. For whatever reason that escapes me, I didn't cash any points out in 2023, so there was a lot, which meant I had a pretty hefty sum to cash out this year. On top of reward cash for Barnes and Noble getting ready to expire. 

So because I've been ill and work has been crazy busy with the holidays, I jumped online to do a bit of retail therapy. Listen I have bronchitis and coughing so much my stomach muscles hurt, I needed some joy. Honestly, I didn't go all that crazy. I stuck to books I really wanted from favorite authors, and one I got told by a friend I just had to read on my Manga, Manhwa, journey. So I have a super small haul, with a month left in case I need another little treat later.

Not in the photo is the gem of this haul because it's too thin and wasn't easy to get in the stack, but also because I'd cracked it open. I finally got my hands on I Hate Fairyland, Volume 7! I've already read it and loved it, a mini-review coming tomorrow. The Next stop is without a doubt The Metalhead Next Door. It's a toss-up as to who is going to read Gibson's newest book first, me or my roommate. Sometimes she snipes my shiny new books because she knows I have a whole library (and a stack of actual library books) to read from.

Listen I'm starting this year out right, with buying books that I do not have space on my bookshelf for, and I have two more on the way thanks to Night Worms. Some call it a problem, even hoarding, I call to collecting because I understand that I now own more books than I'll have read. But, if you haven't at least looked at the cover of Evocation in person, you have to. Not only is the dust cover beautiful, but the actual hardback is gorgeous, so even if this book isn't for you, you should bask in its glory. 

Anyone else start their 2025 with a book haul?

HAPPY READING!!

January Silent Book Club

It may be a new year, but nothing has changed about the Edmonds Silent Book Club. We're still meeting at Leftcraft in downtown Edmonds, everything kicks off at 7 pm. All readers are welcome, it doesn't matter what you're reading or how you're reading. Come and join us for good food and meet other readers! The first Silent Book Club meet-up of 2025 is on January 15th! So if you're in the North Seattle area we'd love to see you there!

HAPPY READING!!

Waiting on Wednesday

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and talk about the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally, they are books that have yet to be released but don't have to be. It is based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous at Breaking the Spine.

On Halloween night, Josie and her two best friends, Jackson and Alison, sneak into the infamously haunted Bachelor’s Grove cemetery. They are hoping to prove the existence of a famous ghost to secure coveted editorial spots on the school newspaper. Instead, they are chased out by a security guard before they gather any evidence…or so they think.

Later, a sinister meme appears on their phones. It’s an image of the “phantom farmhouse,” an evil apparition rumored to appear to unlucky visitors at Bachelor's Grove—luring them in…and never letting them out—with the words I’m watching dripping down the screen.

Soon, strange and scary things begin to happen all around them. When a second meme from the same number arrives, this time with a countdown, they realize they have only three days to figure out who is terrorizing them. As they investigate, the trio must use their journalistic skills to uncover the truth, or risk becoming a part of the graveyard’s sinister past forever.

Why I'm Waiting: I know this is geared toward younger readers but does sound super creepy.

HAPPY READING!!

New Release Tuesday

 

On a cold winter day in 1832, Sarah Cornell was found hanging in a barn, four months pregnant, after a disgraceful liaison with a charismatic Methodist minister, Reverend Ephraim Avery. Some (Avery’s lawyers) claimed her death was suicide…but others weren’t so sure. Determined to uncover the real story, intrepid Victorian writer Catharine Williams threw herself into the investigation and wrote what many claim is the first American true-crime narrative, Fall River. The case and Williams’ book became a sensation—one that divided the country and inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. But the reverend was not convicted, and questions linger to this day about what really led to Sarah Cornell’s death. Until now.

In The Sinners All Bow, acclaimed true-crime historian Kate Winkler Dawson travels back in time to 19th century small town America, emboldened to finish the work Williams started nearly two centuries before. Using modern investigative advancements—such as “forensic knot analysis” to determine cause of death, the prosecutor’s notes from 1833, and criminal profiling which was invented 55 years later with Jack the Ripper—Dawson fills in the gaps of Williams’ research to find the truth. Along the way she also examines how society decides who is the “right kind” of crime victim and how America’s long history of religious evangelism may have clouded the facts both in the 1830s and today. Ultimately, The Sinners All Bow brings justice to an unsettling mystery that speaks to our past as well as our present, anchored by three women who subverted the script they were given.

    HAPPY READING!!

2024 Reading Wrap Up

Nearly a week into the new year, and here is my wrap-up for 2024! Listen, it was a great year for my goals both here on Bookish Whispers and in my outside life. But what matters here is how I am on my 2024 goals. Well, the downside is I didn't read a single book on my 2024 TBR, no surprise there. On that same note, I don't think I really put a dent in my physical TBR this year. I read so much on my Kindle this year. More than  I originally bought the thing. For something I was sure I'd rarely pick up, this was definitely my Kindle era 2024.

I also didn't manage to clear my BINGO board this year. Seriously, we made this card stupid hard in one place. There is not a single one of us managed to hit that page count square. The one square I thought would be easy because I read a lot of books within three to four hundred pages, and I thought I would hit this one quite early. Wrong! So very wrong. I read 82 books this last year and not a single one of them hit that stupid square.

On that note, I did read 82 of the 70 books I wanted to!  I actually hit a lot earlier than I thought, and finished that goal by the end of October. This meant the last two months of the year were all bonus, and thank goodness for that because the end of December got busy and then I got sick, so not too much reading happened the last couple of weeks of the year.

I will say the page count goal is always the hardest for me to hit, but this year was a little more annoying than usual. Because according to my own maths (I keep a reading journal), Goodreads, and Storygraph, I got three different answers to this goal. According to the maths I recorded and Goodreads, I hit this goal. However, Storygraph says I was a couple hundred pages behind. Personally, I'm saying I hit because two of the three ways I track my reading said so. However, I think Storygraph is probably actually correct because it logs my audiobooks as actual hours listed, where my journal and Goodreads count the pages of the published.

So there's that. 

Still, I'm happy with how the year rounded up. It does mean this year that I would like all three ways I track my reading to match on page counts. That doesn't mean I won't use the average to finish out this year if I need to. After all, it's all good fun!

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sunday

    

They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but we all know we do it. Sometimes, the cover initially catches our eye, drawing us to give a book a closer look. It's the first thing we see, our first impression. Every Sunday, I'll post some of my favorite book covers. Coming soon!

For centuries, enchanted woodland creatures have lived alongside us in the treetops, forests, caves, and streams that make up our natural world. Often mistaken for “ordinary” animals, there’s more than meets the eye when you come upon one. This illustrated compendium of magical woodland creatures explores the history and mythology of these oft-sought beings. From bears and beavers to woodpeckers, dragonflies, snakes, and more, How to Spot a Magical Woodland Creature offers tips on how to seek out the enchanted animals living among us. With interactive quizzes and crafts, there’s endless fun and adventure to be had in this field guide to woodland magic!

HAPPY READING!!

2025 Reading Goals

 

A new year means new reading goals, sort of. I'm not changing the number of books or pages I want to hit. While I did manage to hit both of those goals last year, I don't feel the need to change them with the new year. While Goodreads calls it a challenge, I see it as a goal I want to complete by the end of the year. I know I hit last year, which means it feels attainable this year. I don't want reading to ever feel like a chore, or feel bad because a month exists where I just don't have the energy or time to read. Reading is something I do to escape pressure, something I do for fun. So, for the second year in a row, I'm aiming to read 70 books this year and 15,000 pages! 

I have come to terms with the fact that neither of us is ever going to clear out a BINGO board. Every single time, we get so close, but we never actually make it all the way. So this year, I'm aiming for three BINGOs. Something I feel I can do, considering I managed four last year. So, it's not out of the realm of possibility, though this year's board has a couple of squares outside my comfort zone. 

This year, I'm adding two new goals to my list. Silent Book Club will be celebrating its second year, so I set myself the goal of attending all twelve events. Considering I'm a co-host of these events, this shouldn't be a hard goal to reach. Of course that all depends on not getting sick or needing to actually work the night of the event.

And of course, the hefty goal of making some sort of dent in my physical TBR. I had a crazy notion of sitting down a getting a spreadsheet of all the unread books I owned, so I could keep track of exactly how big of a dent I was making. Only I know about how many books I own at the moment, and not only is that a daunting, all-day task, I don't think it'll do anything but overwhelm me in the end. So instead I'm going to attempt to keep track of the stacks of physical books I read and in the end dehaul to new homes!

Sometimes you just have to realize buying books and reading books are two different hobbies, and on of those hobbies tends to not think about the limit amount of space your apartment has. 

Back on topic though, I feel like I can finish these goals to some degree. I know the TBR one is a bit of a grey area, but I wanted yearly goals I could complete. Or, at least give a good attempt to at completing. The page count goal is one I don't always hit, so it's the only one I ever really worry about completing. But, I give it a real go every year!

What are some reading goals everyone else is trying to hit this year?

HAPPY READING!!

January Spotlight

 

I didn't realize there was an actual case that inspired the Scarlet Letter. I'm even more interested to see how they use current investigating tools to go back and rework a crime nearly two hundred years ago. I'm actually really exited about this one, for the story itself and the out come.

On a cold winter day in 1832, Sarah Cornell was found hanging in a barn, four months pregnant, after a disgraceful liaison with a charismatic Methodist minister, Reverend Ephraim Avery. Some (Avery’s lawyers) claimed her death was suicide…but others weren’t so sure. Determined to uncover the real story, intrepid Victorian writer Catharine Williams threw herself into the investigation and wrote what many claim is the first American true-crime narrative, Fall River. The case and Williams’ book became a sensation—one that divided the country and inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. But the reverend was not convicted, and questions linger to this day about what really led to Sarah Cornell’s death. Until now.

In The Sinners All Bow, acclaimed true-crime historian Kate Winkler Dawson travels back in time to 19th century small town America, emboldened to finish the work Williams started nearly two centuries before. Using modern investigative advancements—such as “forensic knot analysis” to determine cause of death, the prosecutor’s notes from 1833, and criminal profiling which was invented 55 years later with Jack the Ripper—Dawson fills in the gaps of Williams’ research to find the truth. Along the way she also examines how society decides who is the “right kind” of crime victim and how America’s long history of religious evangelism may have clouded the facts both in the 1830s and today. Ultimately, The Sinners All Bow brings justice to an unsettling mystery that speaks to our past as well as our present, anchored by three women who subverted the script they were given.

    HAPPY READING!!

December Wrap Up

Happy January and Happy New Year! It was a pretty slow reading month, all things considered. Work got busy as the holidays kicked up. Then I decided to get bronchitis, which left me exhausted after work, and my days off were spent mostly sleeping. However, I'm finally on the mend now that meds are doing their thing. I'm excited to kick off a new reading year, same goals of course,, but a new year with a physical TBR that's nearly doubled in this last year! 

Books Read: 6
BINGO Books: 0 

A to Z Challenge: 0

Pages Read: 890

I didn't hit any challenges this month. Most of the books were either audio or Kindle reads, which didn't help my A to Z challenge. None of these books hit the last few squares on my BINGO Board either. 

HAPPY READING!!

Waiting on Wednesday

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and talk about the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally, they are books that have yet to be released but don't have to be. It is based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous at Breaking the Spine.

Winifred Notty arrives at Ensor House prepared to play the perfect Victorian governess—she’ll dutifully tutor her charges, Drusilla and Andrew, tell them bedtime stories, and only joke about eating children. But the longer Winifred spends within the estate’s dreary confines, and the more she learns of the perversions and pathetic preoccupations of the Pounds family, the more trouble she has sticking to her plan. Whether creeping across the moonlit lawns in her undergarments or gently tormenting the house staff, Winifred struggles at every turn to stifle the horrid compulsions of her past. When her chillingly dark imagination breaches the feeble boundary of reality on Christmas morning, Winifred is finally ready to deliver on her generous gifts. Wielding her signature sardonic wit and a penchant for the gorgeously macabre, Virginia Feito returns with a vengeance in Victorian Psycho.

Why I'm Waiting: Dudes, creepy children, maybe a haunted house, so much in!

HAPY READING!!