With a long spell of frigid temperatures (though it’s finally mostly above freezing this week) and little desire to go out in the endless grey and dismal dirty snow, I’ve been spending as much time as possible curled up with Dot and reading. I’ve now reread the In Death series (again) through volume 25, I’m on the 26th as I draft this. These are my easy reading. Some people watch sitcoms, I enjoy lighter mysteries. I don’t expect them to be memorable beyond general feelings of “that was fun” and I don’t worry too much that I don’t remember all the details of every case. I do wish for some of the tech described in Eve and Roarke’s world and it’s fun to reread the ones published, say, while I was in college and see what tech now exists and what was proposed then. One day if I had access to the entire series instead of borrowing off and on from the library, it would be fun to go through and map tech to reality.
For more memorable books, since my last update in January, the following titles stood out. I’ve read 24 books total so far this year, and yes, 19 are rereads and part of the In Death series by J D Robb.
On the calculation of volume. I by Solvej Balle, Barbara Haveland (translator) (2024), 176 pages, Fantasy/Science Fiction.
Woah. This title floored me. It’s a study in so many things. It’s beautiful. It’s human. It’s haunting. It feels novel and timeless in its exploration of emotions, of relationships, of expectations, and of change… and lack there of. This book seems to draw the lovers (short listed for the 2025 Booker for example, it did not win) and the haters. I plan to purchase my own copy so I can reread this and try to figure out what about it because on the surface seems overly simple has hooked me. I’m curious about Volume II and a hold has been placed for it as well.
The Black Wolf by Louise Penny (2025), 375 pages, Mystery.
As Louise Penny writes, I didn’t expect this to hit so close to home. It’s a good one and you’ll settle in with your favorite characters both in Three Pines and at the Sûreté, and a few new ones. As I’d read all the other books in close succession, I was curious how my brief pause (over a month, and many other titles inbetween) would do to my enjoyment. It’s still good. It’s interesting; at the moment I don’t have a strong desire to reread these books. The characters have grown and evolved, and whatever book I read next is enough for me. I’m sure there may come a time I want to reread and go deep into Inspector Gamache’s relationships, but for now this is where I am.
The Blanket Cats by Kiyoshi Shigematsu, Jesse Kirkwood (Translator) (2025), 272 pages, Fiction in Translation, Japanese.
Set in Tokyo, a cat is rented for a few days for a variety of reasons. The experience is never what was expected for the participants, and lives are changed. Is it magic? Is it just the addition of a feline allows for a viewpoint that didn’t exist before? The stories explore grief, caregiving, second chances, and the ways we try to connect. For more, see my review at pennyshima.com/book-reviews.
Playful : how play shifts our thinking, inspires connection, and sparks creativity by Cas Holman (2025), 288 pages, Psychology.
If you spend any time with me, you’ll find I urge play. Doodling, swatching just to see how a yarn or stitch works in different combinations, sitting outside (when weather allows) and just enjoying nature. So I was excited to read Playful. For more, see my full review at pennyshima.com/book-reviews.
Right now, I have an ever evolving stack of books on my desk, most are library books. I’ve been dipping in and out of V E Schwab’s Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil. Two books on the library’s new shelf caught my eye the other day: the heartbeat library by Laura Imai Messina and one that’s not actually new, The Wheel Spins by Ethel Lina White. I’ve not seen Hitchcock’s As the Lady Vanishes. Hopefully I’ll make time to read them soon. But let’s be honest, I’ll probably finish another three In Death books first.
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