📚November 2025 recap📚

I finished reading a total of five books in November: four manga volumes, and one novel.

💛💛💛💛🖤- A Man Who Defies the World of BL, Volume 1 by Konkici
💛💛💛💛🖤- The Metalhead Next Door by Mamita
💛💛💛🖤🖤- Cinderella Closet, Volume 1 by Wakana Yanai
💛💛💛💛🖤- My Beautiful Man, Volume 1 by Yuu Nagira and Megumi Kitano
💛💛💛💛🖤- Husband Material by Alexis Hall

In addition, I read the short story 'The Seed' by Sheri Singerling.

November was another ridiculous month with another two assignments due for my university modules, and ongoing disruption from the roadworks plus the replacement of the gas supply line into the home we’re renting - hence why this month was heavy on the manga.

Family has been watching anime (as usual), continuing with ‘May I Ask for One Final Thing?’, and the latest season of ‘Spy × Family’.

Songs I’ve been obsessed with recently: ‘Bite’ by Mad Tsai, ‘BOUNCY (K-HOT CHILLI PEPPERS)’ by ATEEZ, ‘White Rabbit’ by Daou Pittaya, ‘Orchid / Flame’ by Hannah Bahng, ‘Darkside’ by Neoni, and ‘Sadistic’ by JASP.ER.

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📚Book Review📚

📖A Man Who Defies the World of BL, Volume 1 by Konkici (translated by Adrienne Beck)

I kicked off November by reading the first volume of the manga series and watching the latest season of the live action adaptation ‘A Man Who Defies the World of BL 2024’ (the final season is due to start airing later this month). Obviously this is going to be a lot funnier if you’ve ever dipped a toe into the waters of BL fandom, but I think I would still generally recommend it as being an enjoyable read. Basically about a chap at university trying to remain a background character and pointing out (and avoiding) all of the BL tropes.

📖The Metalhead Next Door by Mamita (translated by Adrienne Beck)

I also read another one-shot BL manga about someone struggling with a stutter / social anxiety and their developing friendship with their next-door-neighbour (which eventually turns into romance). This was actually really sweet, though it did end up being slightly spicy towards the very end of the story.

#reading #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk #snugglebuddy #catsandbooks #booksandcats #bookreview

October reads.

As the weather gets colder, means more reading and more snuggles.

I really enjoyed getting into the Murderbot diaries. Fun witty quick reads. I also really enjoyed Hermtica.

#books #booksandcats #readmore #cats #dogs #catsanddogs

📚Book Review📚

‘Cat + Gamer, Volume 2’ by Wataru Nadatani.

I’m continuing to love this manga series about an inexperienced cat butler learning the ropes whilst trying to balance her duties with work and her existing gaming hobby. Just gentle and wholesome vibes with snippets from the cat’s point of view.

The series comes with Twiglet’s approval too!

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📚Book Review📚

‘Bridget Jones’s Diary (And Other Writing)’ by Helen Fielding.

This was the last book left unread from my Yuletide presents, so I’m glad to have gotten around to it within a reasonable timeframe. I definitely liked the diary format, but it does kind of suffer in comparison to ‘The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 ¾’ by Sue Townsend (which I personally prefer and find more relatable). I think that this is possibly just one of those situations where I prefer the compressed storytelling of the film adaptation, and found the book a bit repetitive and drawn out in places.

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📚Book Review📚

‘Cat + Gamer, Volume 1’ by Wataru Nadatani

I bought this manga volume because it was featured in a BookTube video by ‘Gavin Reads It All’ and I have a particular soft spot for black and white cats. This is such a gentle and wholesome story of an inexperienced cat butler learning the ropes whilst trying to balance her new duties with work and her existing gaming hobby. There are snippets from the cat’s point of view as well (adorable). Has a similar vibe to ‘My Roommate is a Cat’ (which I haven’t read but loved the anime adaptation of). Will definitely be continuing this series.

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📚Book Review📚
In the spirit of continuing to try to make better use of the library system and to cross books off my long-term TBR, I saw that a book I’ve been wanting to read for about five years was available digitally and decided to make it my first book review for June: ‘Semiosis’ by Sue Burke (published in 2018).

This one is about colonists starting a new life on a planet they call Pax, and explores the challenges that the colony faces as well as the alliances they form with indigenous species.

If anyone hasn’t picked up this one yet, the vibe is somewhat similar to the more recently published ‘Alien Clay’ by Adrian Tchaikovsky. I enjoyed both stories, and found them interesting but not particularly inspiring if that makes sense.

I know that not every story can be, or even needs to be, something that blows your mind - and ‘Semiosis’ is definitely much better than a lot of stories - but it lacked a truly alien feel to any aspect of what could have been a fascinating exploration of a vast intellect spanning generations. The book moves along and deals with issues that face the colonists through the lens of a character from each generation. In some ways it felt kind of like Asimov’s Foundation series but with Hari as a plant system.

This is the first book in a trilogy, and I would recommend giving this one a read if you like stories where humans have to try to survive on a planet where we are the aliens - just don’t expect anything too deep.

Q. Have you read any of the books in this series? Can you recommend anything similar?

#bookreview #reading #scifibooks #aliencontact #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk #readingbuddy #catsandbooks #booksandcats

I’ve been trying to read more poetry this year, so I’ve continued this trend by reading the newly reissued ‘Dream Work’ by Mary Oliver. Cover photo by Vicki Jauron.

Dogfish, Wild Geese, The River, and Starfish are definite favourites, but the haunting end to The Journey really hit me:

‘But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice,
which you slowly
recognised as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do -
determined to save
the only life you could save.’

#reading #poetrycollection #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk #readingbuddy #caturday #catsandbooks #booksandcats

I’m starting off the month with another much-anticipated sequel. ‘The Tainted Cup’ made my top five for 2024, so I’m very glad to report that I was not disappointed in this second installment.

‘A Drop of Corruption’ by Robert Jackson Bennett.

Cover art by Tom Roberts.

Book two in the Shadow of the Leviathan series sees the eccentric detective Ana Dolabra match wits with a formidable adversary. Ana and Din are again called to investigate an unusual murder, this time in a case that spirals into a conspiracy decades in the making, and one that will push Ana’s abilities to new limits in her quest to solve the mystery before time runs out.

This story was exactly what I wanted it to be, and I’m very happy to have spent the past few days revisiting this world and solving another mystery with Ana and Din. I’m very satisfied, and am looking forward to the next book in the series.

The weather is unpleasantly sticky at the moment, which made the descriptions of Yarrow feel that much more visceral.

#reading #fantasybooks #murdermystery #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk #readingbuddy #caturday #catsandbooks #booksandcats

please stop reading and give me pets.

#cats #books
#catssittingonthings #booksandcats
#readmore

📚February 2025 recap📚

I read four books in February, including one non-fiction related to my course work. Given that it has been an incredibly challenging and busy month, I’m really happy that I still did more reading than in the same month last year - where I read three books, and two of those were manga volumes. I’ve also made a good start on my reading goal for the year, with twelve books completed so far - compared to only five at the same point in 2024. I’m also - thus far - meeting my goal of reading a short story each month.

💛💛💛💛🖤Alien Clay - Adrian Tchaikovsky
💛💛💛💛💛 Vicious - V. E. Schwab
💛💛💛💛🖤NeuroDiversity: The Birth of an Idea - Judy Singer
💛💛💛🖤🖤A Month in the Country - J. L. Carr

I also read the short story ‘Two Sisters in Exile’ by Aliette de Bodard.

I’ve felt very burnt out over the course of this month, and ‘Vicious’ - with its short chapters and pithy lines - just perfectly suited my mood.

My husband and I have been watching ‘Interior Chinatown’. We’ve been continuing to watch season two of ‘The Apothecary Diaries’ and the first season of ‘Sakamoto Days’ as a family.

#reading #scifibooks #fantasybooks #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk #booksandcats #catsandbooks

📚January 2025 recap📚

I read eight books in January: one cyberpunk eARC, three science fiction novels, one poetry collection, one fantasy debut from last year, one science-fiction novella, and one ebook of a problematic classic.

💛💛💛🖤🖤 Nytho - Sheri Singerling
💛💛💛💛💛 Network Effect - Martha Wells
💛💛💛💛💛 System Collapse - Martha Wells
💛💛💛💛🖤 The Stardust Grail - Yume Kitasei
💛💛💛💛🖤 Blue Horses - Mary Oliver
💛💛💛💛🖤 So Let Them Burn - Kamilah Cole
💛💛💛💛💛 The Cybernetic Tea Shop - Meredith Katz
💛💛🖤🖤🖤 Breakfast at Tiffany’s - Truman Capote

I also read the short story ‘Counting Casualties’ by Yoon Ha Lee.

My husband and I finished watching the first season of ‘Only Murders in the Building’. We got caught up with the latest ‘Doctor Who,’ started watching season two of ‘The Apothecary Diaries’ and also started the first season of ‘Sakamoto Days’ as a family, and I watched season two of ‘The Rig’.

#bookreview #scifibooks #fantasybooks #poetrycollections #catsandbooks #booksandcats #readingbuddy #bookishcommunity #bookishcommunityuk

This is Wisp: aka Whisper, Whisperwill, Will of the Wisps, and Mold Spore 🖤🤍❤️

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