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Long-term loves: a list of underrated romances for Valentine’s day
Happy Valentine’s Day! I’m not typically a reader of romance novels – I tend to like my romance subplots with a big ol’ helping of plot on the side. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have favorite literary romances. And because I’m feeling mushy, I thought I’d share some of my favorites with y’all today.…
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Magicians and mystery: unraveling the secrets of the loneliest sleuths
In a mystery series, the protagonist is key to a reader’s enjoyment. The proper selection of protagonist can have critical impacts on a reader’s willingness to accept the investigation. Does it makes sense that this character investigates this crime? Does her expertise seem actually relevant to her solution? And, to an equal extent – does…
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The Magic Touch: Four Black fantasy authors who spin up diverse and engaging worlds
February is Black History Month in the US, and I’m celebrating by sharing my favorite fantasy novels by Black authors. Growing up, fantasy was too often dominated by the same stories and tropes and plot beats. These novels break new ground in terms of creativity and storytelling. Innovative magic systems, exciting wordlbuilding, and compelling characters…
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Cozies, fantasies, and more: the most exciting books of 2023
Happy New Year! We just finished a roundup of some of my favorite books of 2022, and it’s time to look ahead to the new year. While I do my best to vary my reading diet and not only take in new books, there are a few I’m particularly excited to get on my shelf.…
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The Cozy Owlet’s favorite 2022 reads, Pt. 3: Fantasy
Happy New Year’s Eve! And welcome back to my end-of-year roundup of my favorite books of the year. Today, we’re taking a look at fantasy novels – a genre I hope to write about more in 2023 – and highlighting my favorite book of the year. My favorite fantasies: holding up a magic mirror to…
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The Cozy Owlet’s favorite 2022 reads, Pt. 2: Mystery & crime
Welcome back to my end-of-year roundup of my favorite books of the year. Yesterday, we covered one of my favorite voyeuristic, meta-fictional genres, the epistolary. Today, we’re going to dive deeper into my “home base” genre – mystery and crime novels. These are: My favorite mystery & crime novels: clever protagonists making sense of our…
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The Cozy Owlet’s favorite 2022 reads, Pt. 1: Epistolary novels
It’s the end of the year, which means it’s time to spend a moment reflecting. 2022 has been such a whirlwind of events – the war in Ukraine, Roe v. Wade, the Iranian protests, Elon Musk (sigh), a memorable midterm election… And it’s been a memorable year for me personally – in the last 12…
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Breaking cover: a celebration of 2022’s most exciting book covers
You’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but I just can’t help myself. There are times when you look at a book and think to yourself, “I need that on my shelf.” These are book covers that tantalize, that intrigue, that promise adventure and emotion. They are the covers that get me…
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Wrapping the Advent of Mystery: one final bow
We have made it through a week of Golden-Age murder mysteries together. I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I have. This has been the most ambitious series I’ve created so far, and it’s been such a treat to read and write. I started this series hoping to find some new authors and stories,…
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A November tradition (and confession): reading more Native voices
November is Native American Heritage Month, and I want to share one of my favorite annual traditions with you to celebrate. A few years ago, I helped run a local diversity-themed book club, and we hit the month of November. Various other members suggested a variety of reads – some wanted to read the new…