Hello!
It’s the beginning of the year, and I’m off to a strong start with my reading goals!
As a continuation of last year, I am attempting to read/listen to all of Agatha Christie’s books, and I am almost done. I have finished all of the original Miss Marple books and short stories, and I am almost done with her standalone novels and Poirot mysteries that she wrote.
Once I’m done, I’ll read some of her biographies, and then I will move on to the rest of the books other authors have written in her place.
Finally, I have also created a book bingo in order to make a game out of this year’s Pick Your Poison challenge, and that has motivated me a lot. Hopefully, I can actually get a bingo.
With that update out of the way, let’s get to the books I read in January!
I hope you find a new read from this list!
Season of the Bruja Vol. 1 by Aaron Duran
Summary:
Season of the Bruja follows a young woman as she comes into her magical abilities and faces reemergent threats from the past.
From a young age, Althalia knew she would someday be the last of her kind—a bruja, tasked with keeping the power and stories of the ancient ways from fading fully into history. Never alone, Althalia works in a paranormal museum with her friends, a real-life Chupacabra and a were-coyote, while living with and caring for her beloved abuela. Through these powerful connections, her skills and knowledge grow.
But the prejudice her people have always faced continues, and after a seemingly random encounter with a priest, Althalia feels the weight of hundreds of years of religious oppression coming down upon her and her abuela. She must realize her destiny and grow into it quickly if she is to prevent the church from achieving its ultimate goal—destroying the last bruja.
Review:
The artwork is beautiful, and the incorporation of historical and spiritual connections is well done. However, the plot is too fast-paced and confusing for a true connection to be made with the characters. When the main character feels like she is reaching an important milestone, it rushes through the development to end in a resolution.
Rating:
3/5
Summary:
Mystery. Manipulation. Murder. Cults are associated with all of these. But what really goes on inside them? More specifically, what goes on inside the minds of cult leaders and the people who join them? Based on the hit podcast Cults, this is essential reading for any true crime fan.
Cults prey on the very attributes that make us human: our desire to belong; to find a deeper meaning in life; to live everyday with divine purpose. Their existence creates a sense that any one of us, at any time, could step off the cliff’s edge and fall into that daunting abyss of manipulation and unhinged dedication to a misplaced cause. Perhaps it’s this mindset that keeps us so utterly obsessed and desperate to learn more, or it’s that the stories are so bizarre and unsettling that we are simply in awe of the mechanics that make these infamous groups tick.
The premier storytelling podcast studio Parcast has been focusing on unearthing these mechanics—the cult leaders and followers, and the world and culture that gave birth to both. Parcast’s work in analyzing dozens of case studies has revealed patterns: distinct ways that cult leaders from different generations resemble one another. What links the ten notorious figures profiled in Cults are as disturbing as they are stunning—from Manson to Applewhite, Koresh to Raël, the stories woven here are both spellbinding and disturbing.
Cults is more than just a compilation of grisly biographies, however. In these pages, Parcast’s founder Max Cutler and national bestselling author Kevin Conley look closely at the lives of some of the most disreputable cult figures and tell the stories of their rise to power and fall from grace, sanity, and decency. Beyond that, it is a study of humanity, an unflinching look at what happens when the most vulnerable recesses of the mind are manipulated and how the things we hold most sacred can be twisted into the lowest form of malevolence.
Review:
As someone who has an interest in psychology and sociology, I am fascinated by cults and how people end up in them.
This book gave me a lot of information about different cults and the people who created them.
Unfortunately, while it covered some of the people who joined these cults, it didn’t fully dive into psychology of why they joined. This may be due to the fact that many members of these cults died before they could truly be studied and interviewed.
Either way, this was an enjoyable read, especially in audiobook form. I loved getting to hear different people cover these different groups.
Rating:
4/5
The Tea Dragon Society by Kay O’Neill
Summary:
From the award-winning author of Princess Princess Ever After comes The Tea Dragon Society, a charming all-ages book that follows the story of Greta, a blacksmith apprentice, and the people she meets as she becomes entwined in the enchanting world of tea dragons.
After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives—and eventually her own.
Review:
This was a very sweet and enjoyable quick read. I’m intrigued by the society pictured in this book, and I would be interested in learning more about it.
Rating:
4/5
Girl on Fire by Alicia Keys and Andrew Weiner
Summary:
Lolo Wright always thought she was just a regular fourteen-year-old dealing with regular family drama: her brother, James, is struggling with his studies; her dad’s business constantly teeters on the edge of trouble; and her mother… she left long ago. But then Lolo’s world explodes when a cop pulls a gun on James in a dangerous case of mistaken identities. Staring down the barrel, with no one else to help, Lolo discovers powers she never knew she had. Using only her mind, she literally throws the cop out of the way.
Problem is that secrets like Lolo’s don’t stay a secret for long. Skin, a dangerous dealer with designs on taking over the neighborhood, hears of Lolo’s telekinetic abilities and decides that he needs her in his crew. Skin might not have Lolo’s powers, but he’s got nothing to lose and is willing to do whatever it takes to get what he wants. And what he wants is Lolo.
Lolo’s not willing to let Skin use her to hurt the people—and neighborhood—that she loves. But it’s going to take a whole different kind of bravery to stand-up for what’s right, especially after Lolo’s mom returns suddenly and turns Lolo’s whole world upside-down. For too long, it’s true, Lolo’s had her head in the clouds, but this time, it’s on her … and she’s not backing down.
Review:
I really enjoyed this story. I didn’t know what to expect, but I enjoyed the main characters and the struggle they were going through. It reminds me of one of my favorite shows, Static Shock.
Rating:
5/5
Taken at the Flood by Agatha Christie
Summary:
A few weeks after marrying an attractive young widow, Gordon Cloade is tragically killed by a bomb blast in the London blitz. Overnight, the former Mrs Underhay finds herself in sole possession of the Cloade family fortune.
Shortly afterwards, Hercule Poirot receives a visit from the dead man’s sister-in-law who claims she has been warned by ‘spirits’ that Mrs Underhay’s first husband is still alive. Poirot has his suspicions when he is asked to find a missing person guided only by the spirit world. Yet what mystifies Poirot most is the woman’s true motive for approaching him…
Review:
This was another interesting mystery where there are so many possible suspects and twists and turns throughout.
Unfortunately, we once again have another story where there is a love triangle. However, this time, she selects her person after they physically harm her because they offer excitement.
Rating:
3/5
Summary:
The end is coming. There’s no escape…or is there? The first in a compelling YA dystopian series for anyone who’s ever felt like their life-their world-is on the brink of destruction.
Alexandra Lucas’ anxiety disorder was enough to deal with before then mysterious holographic doors suddenly appeared throughout the world, heralding the end of the earth. The holograms claim to be humans from the future offering the promise of safety. A recording plays on loop: heed the warning and step through a portal-like vertex to safety…or stay and be destroyed by a comet that is on a collision course with the planet. But without the ability to verify their story, Alex is forced to consider what is best for her friends, her family, and herself.
Stay or go: everyone must make their own choice. With the deadline of the hologram’s prophecy fast approaching, Alex feels as though she’s living on a ticking time bomb. But the truth is much, much worse. And every decision comes at a price.
Review:
As someone who doesn’t read Science Fiction or Dystopian novels that often, this was a random selection, but an enjoyable one.
The moment I began reading, I was sucked into this world and scenario that was created. I connected with the characters, and I was invested in the plot.
I can’t wait to read the second book! (I immediately bought the second book, so review should be available in February).
Rating:
5/5
The Crooked House by Agatha Christie
Summary:
Described by the queen of mystery herself as one of her favorites of her published work, Crooked House is a classic Agatha Christie thriller revolving around a devastating family mystery.
The Leonides are one big happy family living in a sprawling, ramshackle mansion. That is until the head of the household, Aristide, is murdered with a fatal barbiturate injection.
Suspicion naturally falls on the old man’s young widow, fifty years his junior. But the murderer has reckoned without the tenacity of Charles Hayward, fiancé of the late millionaire’s granddaughter.
Review:
This was one of Christie’s more interesting mysteries. While it seems like a setup similar to most other mysteries, old man dead and the young wife is the prime suspect, the characters keep it interesting.
Unfortunately, the main character, Charles, has the unfortunate tendency to be a bit dumber than Christie’s favorite lead characters. This happens with a lot of her standalone stories.
Rating:
4/5
Summary:
When Chloe turns the key to Small Angels, the church nestled at the edge of Mockbeggar Woods where she is to be married, she is braced for cobwebs and dust. What she doesn´t expect are the villagers ́ concerned faces, her fiance’s remoteness, or the nagging voice in her head that whispers to her of fears she didn’t even know she had.
Something in the woods is beginning to stir, to creep closer to the sleeping houses. Something that should have been banished long ago.
Whatever it is, it’s getting stronger, and pretending it’s not there won’t keep the wedding, or the village – or Chloe – safe.
Review:
I try to give all books a fair chance, but this one had a rough start. I could barely get past the first couple of pages without yawning, so I switched to the audiobook.
Even with that help, I genuinely could not get invested in this story or the characters.
This had a good premise, but the organization and some unlikable characters (in my mind) made this an annoying experience.
Rating:
2/5
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