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Reading adventures, Pt. 10: Lemons + learning on the Amalfi Coast
After bidding goodbye to the City of Flowers, we met some friends for a lovely week on the Amalfi Coast – known for lemons, linens, and beautiful ceramic tiles. The sheer cliffs and clear blue waters were a welcome respite from the inland heat. And I was looking forward to a week of lazing around
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Fantasy politics with a mystery twist in A Drop of Corruption
Robert Jackson Bennett is back! And he’s advancing the stories of Ana and Din, an imperial investigator and her assistant. Regular readers know how much I adore RBJ, and I’ve been extremely excited for this next release. A Drop of Corruption rejoins Ana and Din months after the events of The Tainted Cup. They’ve been
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March 2025 Roundup: a packed month ahead of a promising April
The sun finally came back out to play this month in the Bay. Of course, this meant lots of lovely reading picnics or afternoons with the Kindle on our sunny rooftop. Spring has sprung – and so, apparently, has my reading pace. 52 Book Club: A series of beneficial binges I managed to read 13
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The Ragpicker King: Layering tropes to create tension
I was an avid reader of YA fantasy back in the late aughts. Percy Jackson, The Hunger Games, everything Tamora Piece penned – you name it, and I’d at least skimmed the first chapter. And yet, I could somehow never get into Cassandra Clare. I was firmly in the high fantasy camp, and her more
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Warm, healing, rebellious, comforting: The flavors and facets of fantasy tea
Perhaps the most consistent part of my reading experiences over the years has been my beverage of choice. Whether I’m reading mystery, fantasy, or epistolary, I’m always accompanied by a steaming hot mug of tea. (In summer – or in the Bay Area “summer”, aka late September, you may catch me with an iced version.)
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February 2025 roundup: a mystery here, some history there
Somehow, February is already over. I’m not sure how we got through two months of the year so quickly! This month has been a busy one, both at home and at work. But, I still got some reading in, most of it accretive to my 52 Book Club goals. Plus, I finally caved and got
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Funny, thoughtful fantasy in Tress of the Emerald Sea
Sometimes, you read a book you love so much it takes you a couple of weeks to process it. I’ll confess – I wasn’t expecting much when I picked up Brandon Sanderson’s Tress of the Emerald Sea. I know Sanderson has a big fan following, and some of my closest friends love his work. But
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Reading adventures: Mysteries in the Tahoe snow
It is truly Winter here in the Bay – the skies are grey, the streets are drenched. Which means, of course, that it’s the right time of year for a trip to Lake Tahoe. I love Lake Tahoe, even though I find Winter Tahoe to be strictly worse than its summer sibling. I’ve been up
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January 2025 Roundup: Falling further in love with reading
I committed this year to monthly updates on my 52 Book Club Challenge, with short blurbs on anything I hadn’t written about yet. I am pleased to share that this approach seems to be working! I’ve already tackled 16 books from the challenge in January, and many are books I may not have touched if
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Reading adventures, redux: Molten Death in Maui
It is early in the year to be traveling – but I’m lucky enough to have a trip already under my belt this year. We took one look at the grey skies and early sunsets of the Bay and decided it was time to head for more tropical climes. And thus, we set out for