Virtual Mount TBR Challenge 2025 discussion
Stormness Head (60 books)
>
Karen is STILL obsessed with Narnia in 2025!
1. She Speaks! What Shakespeare's Women Might Have Said by Harriet Walter.4 stars. Attempting to give more of a voice to many of Shakespeare's women characters, many of whom she has played. Really enjoyable and would have been a 5 if the quality had been maintained all the way through. Which would have been a tough ask.
Borrowed from the library.
2. Bucher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver.3 stars. Just. I toyed with 2. I don't get the hype; this book just did nothing for me.
Borrowed from the library.
3. Starling House by Alix E Harrow.4 stars. Clearly written by a fan of Buffy but I enjoyed this.
Borrowed from the library.
4. Neon Gods by Katee Robert.3.5 stars rounded up. I love the idea of the world but something about the ending fell a little flat. Definitely want to continue the series though.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
5. Slash: the Autobiography by Slash.4 stars. This guy is a nutcase. But fascinating too. Can we have a sequel?
Borrowed from the library.
6. Spectacular by Stephanie Garber.4 stars. I auto-ordered this from the library without reading the description so had no idea what it was about before starting it. It is a lovely novella, set during a fantasy holiday inspired by Christmas. Tella has an adventure. The illustrations are gorgeous. A nice surprise.
Borrowed from the library.
7. Winter in the Air by Sylvia Townsend Warner.4 stars. I don't usually enjoy short stories as much as I enjoyed these ones. The plots are not flashy, but the word choices and atmosphere are spot on.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
8. Transformers: Evolutions - Hearts of Steel by Chuck Dixon.3 stars. I liked the illustrations but this had a poor plot, jumped between protagonists all the time and seemed to introduce characters only to do nothing much with them.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
9. My Fault by Mercedes Ron.3 stars. Just. Lacked depth and surprises.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
10. Dead Voices by Katherine Arden.4 stars. The first ever audiobook I have ever been able to get all the way through. As my library does not have a physical copy. Not my preferred method of reading. However, this was surprisingly creepy for a children's book and I really enjoyed it.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
11. The Kiss Countdown by Etta Easton.3.5 stars rounded to 4. A bit too much event planning and not enough of space. Nice hero.
Borrowed from the library.
12. Icebreaker by Hannah Grace.3.49 rounded down. There were bits I loved like the hockey team in general and Henry in particular. But this was too long and without much tension.
However I was not going to read this and then I decided I wanted to read book three so... I wanted a solid four star but going in I was expecting to give it a two so in many ways it was better than I expected. Hopefully the next two books will be better.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
13. Deep End by Ali Hazelwood.4 stars. Not my favourite book by Ali Hazelwood but still better than most out there. Enjoyable.
Borrowed from the library.
14. Artificial Condition by Martha Wells.4 stars. Love Murderbot. And now ART.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
15. Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn I've.3 stars. I really liked the ending.
Borrowed from the library.
16. If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin.3 stars. Totally called the ending.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
17. Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells.4 stars. I really enjoyed the further adventures of Murderbot. More characters are introduced. There is a sad moment. I like where the ending indicates it is going.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
18. Garments Against Women by Anne Boyer.
3 stars. Hated bits (basically the beginning) and loved others.
Complex, abstract, infuriating. challenging.
Borrowed from the library.
19. The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke.3 stars. Lovely short story - perhaps too short - with gorgeous illustrations.
Borrowed from the library.
20. Exit Strategy by Martha Wells.4 stars.
Love Murderbot.
Borrowed from the library.
21. Quicksilver by Callie Hart.5 stars. Unexpectedly fantastic. Just what I want from a fae romance and it even has vampires in it too.
Borrowed from the library.
22. Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld.4 stars. I really liked this.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
23. Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory by Martha Wells.3 stars. Too short. Need more Murderbot.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
24. Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh.3 stars. Far too long, too repetitive and there is no way a healthy 16 year old only weighs 6 stone 3 pounds. But the book is strangely compelling too...
Borrowed from the library.
25. Night Shift by Annie Crown.3 stars. Loved the premise, but the execution was not everything I wanted.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
26. The Flight from the Enchanter by Iris Murdoch.
4 stars. Like the way all the storyline came together. Interesting.
Borrowed from the library.
27. Twisted Hate by Ana Huang.4 stars. Much better than the pretty awful second book but not as good as Twisted Love. Good ending though.
Borrowed from the library.
28. Bride of the Shadow King by Sylvia Mercedes.3 stars. Started off well.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
29. After Life by Gayle Forman.5 stars. Really beautiful. One of her best books.
Borrowed from the library.
30. Keeping 13 by Chloe Walsh.4 stars. This book is so much better than the first one. It is still too long but is not as tedious in places as the first. But parts of it hit hard.
Borrowed from the library.
31. Spare by Prince Harry.3 stars. Still not sure what I think.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
32. The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells.3 stars. Intriguing idea.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
33. The Great When by Alan Moore.3 stars. I can see what people will like this but it was not really my thing.
Borrowed from the library.
34. Twisted Lies by Ana Huang.3 stars. Not as bad as Bridget's book but a mediocre end to the series.
Borrowed from the library.
35. The Blanket Cats by Kiyoshi Shigematsu.3.5 stars rounded up. A mixed bag. Nice cats and shame about the people. The Cat No-One Liked was my favourite tale.
Borrowed from the library.
36. Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito.4 stars. A great alternative read for Christmas.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
37. How to be a Renaissance Woman by Jill Burke4 stars. Really good read.
Borrowed from the library.
38. The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar.4 stars. The writing is very flowery which took me a while to get used to. But I love the ballad type that this is based on and ended up loving this.
Borrowed from the library.
39. Superior by Angela Saini.3 stars. Apparently I own this on Kindle but I forgot and read it on Libby so I am adding it here. I liked the historical context but was not as absorbed as I was by her book Inferior.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
40. If Only I Had Told Her by Laura Nowlin.2 stars. Unnecessary and so unsubtle .
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
I have just noticed that a couple of books I read earlier this year are missing from this list.41. Such Charming Liars by Karen M. McManus.
4 stars. One of her best books.
42. The Frozen People by Elly Griffiths.
5 stars. Wonderful start to a new series. Loved it.
Both borrowed from the library.
43. And I also forgot Poems by Currer, Ellis And Acton Bell.5 stars. I own an Everyman edition of poems but this is a reprint of the first editions. All the Brontes were very good but Emily was great.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
44. This is Not America: Why Black Lives in Britain Matter.4 stars. I really enjoyed this.
Borrowed from the library.
45. Dream On, Ramona Riley by Ashley Herring Blake.3 stars. I loved the beginning, but the book was too long and was just missing something. I may continue the series though.
Borrowed from the library.
46. Uniform Justice by Donna Leon.3 stars. I always enjoy this series but there was not much plot to this one.
Borrowed from the library.
47. The Walnut Tree: Women, Violence and the Law – A Hidden History by Kate Morgan.4 stars. Really interesting overview.
Borrowed from the library via Libby.
48. Untamed Shore by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.4 stars. Atmospheric and well written.
Borrowed from the library.
49. Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood.4 stars. Much better than the prequel. Some good dialogue.
Borrowed from the library.
50. Mirage by Camilla Lackberg and Henrik Fexeus.4 stars. Enjoyable but I am not sure what to make of the twist.
Borrowed from the library.
51. Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry.4 stars. One of my favourites by her.
Borrowed from the library.
52. The Manor of Dreams by Christina Li.4 stars. I would definitely read another book by this author. The mix of gothic elements and family saga were very good. I don't think the connections between the modern house and the oldest house on the site were fully developed and it took away from the ending a little
Borrowed from the library.
Good luck to everyone taking part.