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Sentaro has failed. He has a criminal record, drinks too much, and his dream of becoming a writer is just a distant memory. With only the blossoming of the cherry trees to mark the passing of time, he spends his days in a tiny confectionery shop selling dorayaki, a type of pancake filled with sweet bean paste.
Until, that is, Tokue comes into his life. An elderly woman with disfigured hands and a troubled past, she makes the best sweet bean paste Sentaro has ever tasted. The unlikeliest of friendships blossoms, but it will take all of their resolve – and plenty of pancakes – to protect themselves when Tokue’s dark secret comes to light.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
It was the August BOTM for my online bookclub and it was relatively short, so I thought I’d try it.
The Quotes
“All experience adds up to a life lived as only you could. I feel sure the day will come when you can say: this is my life.”
“I began to understand that we were born in order to see and listen to the world. And that’s all this world wants of us. It doesn’t matter that I was never a teacher or a member of the workforce, my life had meaning.”
“If all you ever see is reality, you just want to die. The only way to get over barriers, she said, is to live in the spirit of already being over them.”
“Some lives are all too brief, while others are a continual struggle. I couldn’t help thinking that it was a brutal assessment of people’s lives to employ usefulness to society as a yardstick by which to measure their value.”
The Narrator(s)
Cindy Kay. It was good, no notes.
My Thoughts
I procrastinated reading this book because I haven’t had the best of luck with slice of life stories. I thought that normally nothing happens in slice of life stories except for regular day to day and so on, but with this story, I did see a progression; I liked that there was a something to look forward to with Sentaro learning to make the sweet bean paste from Tokue, I liked that there was some tension and backstories for both characters. I was curious about how it would end for them, and that made me excited to keep reading.
Having said that, I’m not saying that this book is going to become a favorite or anything, I’m just surprised that I didn’t dislike it and didn’t have to force myself to keep reading. It was charming, and I love the description of the food and the way Tokue made the bean paste. That was such a delight to read and made me curious about the actual making of them.
A lot of where the book went surprised me a little because I sort of expected a little bit of magical realism and I was surprised that it was more realistic than fairytale-ish. I appreciated the realism because it served the story but it also led to an ending that was somewhat open-ended, which disappointed me. I would’ve liked a more developed ending. All in all, it wasn’t bad though. I enjoyed reading it.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Dragons of Winter Night by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
With the return of the dragon minions of Takhisis, the Queen of Dragons, the land of Krynn has become more dangerous than ever. But as the nations of Krynn prepare to fight for their homes, their lives, and their freedom, longstanding hatreds and prejudices interfere. When fighting breaks out among the races, it seems the battle is lost before it even begins.
Meanwhile, the heroic Companions have been torn apart by war. A full season will pass before they meet again—if they meet again. Raistlin has made an ominous prediction, one that implies not all of the Companions will survive the fight. His warning, along with sinister dreams, haunt the friends as they search for the weapons that will stop the Dark Queen in her tracks: the mysterious Dragon Orbs and legendary Dragonlance.
Another riveting tale in the Dragonlance Chronicles, Dragons of Winter Night is an action-packed adventure in which the true value of love and friendship is measured against the backdrop of a catastrophic war between good and evil.
They won their first real battle in the war for Krynn, but the war has only just begun for the Companions! Friendships born in conflict will be torn apart. Hope will rest on the shoulders of a disgraced Knight and his two inexperienced companions. Worlds long divided by hatred and prejudice will either band together in a last struggle against darkness – or perish for all time.
“If we deny love that is given to us, if we refuse to give love because we fear the pain of loss, then our lives will be empty, our loss greater.”
“Do not enter with defeat in your heart for that is the first victory of evil.”
“Why insult the door’s purpose by locking it?” is a favorite kender expression.”
“Be thankful you can feel pity and horror at the death of an enemy. The day we cease to care, even for our enemies, is the day we have lost this battle.”
The Narrator(s)
Paul Boehmer. Still perfect!
My Thoughts
This second book in the series was so much darker than the first one! It surprised me because there are two more books in the series and this seemed like a huge escalation from the first to second book as opposed to gradual escalation throughout the books. The stakes are higher now, and the Companions’ lives are very much in peril. I was very invested in everything that happened to them; I didn’t like the fact that they kept getting separated, and that there was so much internal conflict between themselves. There was some levity, as there always is with a kender in the mix, and that at least kept me sane! You know I love Tasslehoff!
As of this writing I haven’t started the next book yet, but right now I am completely devastated by the ending. I am hoping that we’ll get more clarity in the next books because I don’t see how we can move forward like this! I have forgotten everything about the books because it’s been decades since I read them but I am completely enthralled by the story once again and I’m excited to finish the series!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
This Dungeons & Dragons-inspired fantasy adventure is the first installment in the beloved Dragonlance Chronicles, set in the magical world of Krynn.
Once merely creatures of legend, the dragons have returned to Krynn. But with their arrival comes the departure of the old gods—and all healing magic. As war threatens to engulf the land, lifelong friends reunite for an adventure that will change their lives and shape their world forever . . .
When Tanis, Sturm, Caramon, Raistlin, Flint, and Tasslehoff see a woman use a blue crystal staff to heal a villager, they wonder if it’s a sign the gods have not abandoned them after all. Fueled by this glimmer of hope, the Companions band together to uncover the truth behind the gods’ absence—though they aren’t the only ones with an interest in the staff. The Seekers, a new religious order, wants the artifact for their own ends, believing it will help them replace the gods and overtake the continent of Ansalon. Now, the Companions must assume the unlikely roles of heroes if they hope to prevent the staff from falling into the hands of darkness.
Lifelong friends, they went their separate ways. Now they are together again, though each holds secrets from the others in his heart. They speak of a world shadowed with rumors of war. They speak of tales of strange monsters, creatures of myth, creatures of legend. They do not speak of their secrets. Not then. Not until a chance encounter with a beautiful, sorrowful woman, who bears a magical crystal staff, draws the companions deeper into the shadows, forever changing their lives and shaping the fate of the world.
“Say that our lives are measured not by gain but by giving.”
“People want to believe in something—even if, deep inside, they know it is false.”
“He said kenders were small because we were meant to do small things. ‘If you look at all the big things in the world closely,’ he said, ‘you’ll see that they’re really made up of small things all joined together.’ That big dragon down there comes to nothing but tiny drops of blood, maybe. It’s the small things that make the difference.”
“We do not mourn the loss of those who die fulfilling their destinies.”
The Narrator(s)
Paul Boehmer. I really like his narration and the different voices he makes for the different characters; they really bring the characters to life!
My Thoughts
It was so nice to revisit this story and some of my favorite characters. Tasslehoff Burrfoot, the kender, I’m sure would be an annoying friend to have in real life, but he’s so funny and adorable in the book and I always look forward to scenes with him and his antics! Raistlin is another standout character; I don’t necessarily like him as a person, but he is the most fascinating character and I want to know more about him.
We also meet a couple of non-main characters in this book; Fizban, an absent-minded wizard, and Bupu, a sweet gully dwarf, that are hilarious and I love reading about them! The plot is also really good, don’t get me wrong, it’s just that the characters are the best part of the series. The first time I read this series was decades ago so I was more easily impressed and although the details of the story didn’t stay with me, the impression it made on me certainly did, and I’m glad to say I still love the story and the characters decades later!
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Magic has made the city of Tiran an industrial utopia, but magic has a cost—and the collectors have come calling.
An orphan since the age of four, Sciona has always had more to prove than her fellow students. For twenty years, she has devoted every waking moment to the study of magic, fueled by a mad desire to achieve the impossible: to be the first woman ever admitted to the High Magistry. When she finally claws her way up the ranks to become a highmage, however, she finds that her challenges have just begun. Her new colleagues will stop at nothing to let her know she is unwelcome, beginning with giving her a janitor instead of a qualified lab assistant.
What neither Sciona nor her peers realize is that her taciturn assistant was once more than a janitor; before he mopped floors for the mages, Thomil was a nomadic hunter from beyond Tiran’s magical barrier. Ten years have passed since he survived the perilous crossing that killed his family. But working for a highmage, he sees the opportunity to finally understand the forces that decimated his tribe, drove him from his homeland, and keep the Tiranish in power.
Through their fractious relationship, mage and outsider uncover an ancient secret that could change the course of magic forever—if it doesn’t get them killed first. Sciona has defined her life by the pursuit of truth, but how much is one truth worth with the fate of civilization in the balance?
A standalone dark academia brimming with mystery, tragedy, and the damning echoes of the past. For fans of Leigh Bardugo, V. E. Schwab, and Fullmetal Alchemist.
For the Reading Challenge(s): N/A
The Reason
I’d been curious about the author because of another one of their books, and one of my friends convinced me to read this one as a buddy read.
The Quotes
“It’s much easier to tell yourself you’re a good person than it is to actually be one.”
“The question isn’t: How do I stop feeling this way? That’s stupid. I can’t. The question is: What can I do with this feeling?”
“So many parents will try to kill everything brilliant about a girl in the name of giving her a good life, a safe life, a chance at happiness.”
“Because good people can turn desperate when the horrors are upon them—especially people whose culture of plenty has left them with no systems to cope with scarcity or cataclysm. Good people will turn monstrous when it’s down to their survival or someone else’s.”
My Thoughts
This story was so brutal and hard hitting. It’s not what I expected because I thought there would be more magic study, more learning, advancements of the craft, more feminism and women breaking into the Magistry as Highmage, but instead, it’s a whole riot and revolution that happens so quickly, and with so much destruction! I’m not sure yet what I think about the direction the story went with all this destruction, but the storytelling itself is great. All that teaching through dialogue is not an easy thing to do without boring the reader, but I found it interesting and now I’m a little sad that this is a standalone and there’s not more to the story.
The thing that stands out most to me is definitely the denial of truth when it interferes with your comfort and way of life. We all do that to an extent, I think, but when it goes so deep and is rooted so deeply in evil, it’s just easier to not think about it and justify all the evil doing. Most evil doers don’t see themselves as evil, so it’s also interesting to see that characterized with some of the characters and how they see themselves. There is so much to think about with this story, honestly. I think I’ll be thinking about this book for a while.
My Rating
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.
Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?
Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.
Today’s topic is Books With Occupations in the Title
Apparently, I have a lot of books with occupations in the title on my TBR list. I had a hard time narrowing it down to ten but these are the ones higher up on my TBR, so hopefully I’ll actually read some of them soon!
Top Ten Books With Occupations in the Title
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie – This has been on my TBR the longest and I don’t even remember why I was interested in it at the time, but it’s relatively short, so I’m curious to get it read and crossed off my list.
The Bonesetter’s Daughter by Amy Tan – I’m actually interested in many of Amy Tan’s books, but this is the only one that had an occupation on the title. I’ll make my way through her portfolio eventually!
The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed – This one calls to me. I love fantasy and horror and it gives me dark fairytale vibes. For some reason, I’m reminded about the Grimm Brother’s fairytales, the dark ones, not the Disney ones, and I hope I’ll get something like that here.
Call The Midwife by Jennifer Worth – The TV series charmed me although I only watched the first couple of seasons. I just googled it and I’m surprised to learn it’s apparently still ongoing and on its 14th season now! I’m sure it has deviated a lot from the book already, but I’ve lost interest in the show anyway, and I’m curious to read the book itself.
Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller – I really need to get to this one soon. It calls to the adventurous, swash-buckling feminist in me, and I just want to immerse myself in adventure. It’s the first of a series though, and I’m trying to finish series I’ve already started before starting more.
The Drunken Botanist by Amy Stewart – I have a fascination with plants and what they can do and the author has another book called Wicked Plants that’s on my TBR too! This book is about plants that go into alcoholic beverages and I don’t drink, so I’m not as excited about this one compared to Wicked Plants, which is about dangerous and poisonous plants. Perhaps I should clarify that I don’t do poison either! 😂
Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett – Who doesn’t like Terry Pratchett and the Discworld books? Unfortunately, I haven’t read many of them because I have this thing about series. I find it hard to read them out of order (unless I didn’t know they were a part of a series) even if they’re not sequentially related. One day I’ll either read them all, or I’ll break the series-in-order rule!
The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi – I found this book in a Little Free Library and brought it home because it caught my attention. I’m not sure when I’ll get to this one; it sounds a little heavy and I think I need to be in the right frame of mind for it.
The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich – I’ve read The Sentence by the author and loved it, and I have The Mighty Red higher up on the TBR. I intend to read this one after, because I really like the author’s writing style so far and I hope to read more from her.
The Soul of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman – I read The Main Dish and The Making of a Chef by the author and loved them, and of course immediately added this book to my TBR as well. I just love the way he talks about food and cooking. I want more!
Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Would you read any of these books?
Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.
August 2025 Wrap Up
I spent the first half of August mood reading, and the second half reading from the TBR, so I satisfied both sides of the reader inside me! I realized that it’s important to leave room for mood reading, and it’s okay to let go of some of the books I previously committed to if I’m not feeling it.
My August 2025 TBR Intentions
Six out of eight ain’t bad! I’ve lost interest in the last Children of Time book, unfortunately. I’m not sure if I’ll ever come back to it. I am still very interested in reading The Power of Myth, but every time I pick it up I end up putting it down after a few passages because I want to savor and contemplate everything. I want to study every last bit of it! I might end up having to make up a study schedule for it or something!
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
My favorite books in August were obviously The Hunger Games trilogy. They are my all-time favorites and always get better the more I reread them. Dragons of Autumn Twilight is also a reread and from one of my favorite series, and The Long Walk is another reread from a favorite author.
So in the interest of fairness, I should talk about the new reads that I loved this month; most notably A Man Called Ove and Blood Over Bright Haven. These two were amazing and they make me so happy that the authors have other books that have gotten great reviews as well. I’m so looking forward to reading more from them!
September 2025 TBR Intentions
My aim is to finish the Dragonlance Chronicles by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman this month, hopefully. I do have a couple of September BOTMs and a few other books that have September deadlines I should focus on though. I also hope to finish S. by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst if possible, but I’m perfectly happy to take it slow so we’ll see how it goes.
Dragons of Winter Night by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Dragons of Spring Dawning by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Dragons of Summer Flame by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman
Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman
Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab
The Devils by Joe Abercrombie
A Sorceress Comes To Call by T. Kingfisher
Falling by T.J. Newman
S. by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst
How was your month in August? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful September with lots of great books!
Welcome to the Sunday Post, a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer to share weekly news and updates on what we’ve been up to on our blog, with our books, and book-related happenings.
School Starts This Week!
I had my orientation last week and I’m excited and anxious as hell. Honestly, I wish I was too cool for school, but I’m feeling very, very uncool right now! 😂
In some ways, I feel like I’m ready and overprepared, in other ways, I feel so unprepared it’s not even funny. Also, I’m fully aware that I’m being really annoying now with all the school talk and how excited I am, but give it a few weeks and I’ll probably start complaining about school then! Hopefully not though!
Yeah, I don’t have much to share other than about going back to school. It’s my whole personality right now! Thank goodness I do have some books to talk about too!
The Books
Books I read last week:
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins – This is a reread. I resisted reading this for a long time because I just didn’t feel a need for more books in the THG world, but a friend talked it up and I was pleasantly surprised that I ended up liking it. Reading it the second time now, I’m seeing more of the details I missed before and I love it even more now!
Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa – I don’t usually like “slice of life” novels, but this was my online bookclub’s BOTM, and it was relatively short, so I decided to give it a chance. I didn’t love it, but it wasn’t bad and I liked it well enough.
Books I’m reading:
S. by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst – I haven’t touched it since the week before! I haven’t had time to immerse myself but I don’t want to leave it too long, otherwise I’ll have to start over.
Dragons of Winter Night by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman – The second book in the Dragonlance Chronicles I’m working through. I’m about 45% in.
I will try to get some reading in for S. I’m also hoping to finish Dragons of Winter Night early in the week so I can start Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab.
How was your week? I hope you had a great week last week, and I hope you have a great one again this week!
Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.
Today’s topic is Non-Bookish Freebie
Taking the opportunity with today’s topic to post pictures of my cats! We lost Loki (the white-ish one) a few months ago, but he’s not forgotten and he’s still a very important part of the three MeowsCateers. Some of the pictures aren’t the best quality but I hope their cuteness comes through!
The Three MeowsCateers
Basking on the windowsill
Staring into your soul
Dozing cats
Nom-noms
Cuddle pile
Do you have any pets? Share stories about them in the comments! I’d love to hear them!
Welcome to the Sunday Post, a weekly meme hosted by Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer to share weekly news and updates on what we’ve been up to on our blog, with our books, and book-related happenings.
School On My Mind
I’m ramping up preparations for school. We have an online “orientation” course that I’ve been working through these last few days that I haven’t finished yet. I’ve been organizing my notebooks and getting my textbooks, and kind of going overboard with colored highlighters and tabs – I am well aware I’m being a little extra but I love the idea of aesthetic notes! I’m pretty sure when the time comes for taking notes, all aesthetics will go out the window though!
I also had a wonderful Saturday spent with a friend who used to go to the school I’m going to. She offered to take me on a tour of her favorite spots on campus, which was really fun, and then we went for lunch after, which was really fun too! I think I’m ready for school…? 😅
The Books
Books I read last week:
Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang – I am shooketh by this book! I didn’t expect it to be so hard-hitting but yeah, it’s incredible and gave me so much to think about. Now I’m even more excited to read The Sword of Kaigen.
Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman – I just finished this today. I actually just read this last year and was supposed to read the rest of the series as well, but never got to them, so I’m rereading this to refresh my memory before getting to the next books.
Books I’m reading:
S. by J.J. Abrams and Doug Dorst – I had never heard of this book until my bookclub started reading it, but it’s essentially a book within a book; the book in question is basically a “prop” of sorts, it’s a fake book that exists for this story. It’s got annotations on the margins made to look like two characters communicating with each other, there are papers, articles, letters, and more stuffed within the pages of the fake book. I’ve just finished the intro and not yet even gotten to the first chapter yet. I’m anticipating that this will take me longer to finish than a regular book!
It’s the last week I have to read the books with an August deadline; two BOTMs with two bookclubs – Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa, and The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell. I could possibly do the first because it’s shorter but I don’t think I’ll be able to finish The Power of Myth since it requires more focus. We shall see.
How was your week? I hope you had a great week last week, and I hope you have a great one again this week!
Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly bookish meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl that features a different bookish topic every week.
Today’s topic is Books with a High Page Count
I did a previous TTT topic with Chonky Books, but I’ve read a few more chonkers since then and thought I’d add them here. Not all of them are the most chonky books in the world, some are only about 600+ pages, and where there are series, I featured the first book in the series even though the later books are chonkier. I’ll state them in the descriptions though.
I’m a huge fan of chonkers because you get more time with the story and characters, and you get to live in that world a little longer. What chonkers have you read and loved?
Top Ten More Chonkers
11/22/63 by Stephen King – 849 pages. It’s like I can’t do a TTT without having at least one SK book on the list. But to be fair, it actually did come in at 10th place when I went through my most recent chonkers read (that wasn’t already featured or part of a series)! It’s time travel, historical fiction, and such an adventure!
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky – 671 pages. This one felt like a fever dream. I enjoyed the reading experience but I didn’t connect to the characters and I don’t think it’s one that will stay with me. There’s a lot of philosophizing and justification, which makes sense for the topic, but I couldn’t agree with the characters’ points.
The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt – 771 pages. I loved this one. It had David Copperfield/Demon Copperhead vibes, and I love how immersive it is. It’s a coming-of-age story and we see the protagonist as a young child up to adulthood. His best friend is also one of the most interesting and exasperating characters I’ve read!
Super Powereds by Drew Hayes – 814 pages. This one was such a pleasant surprise and it has become one of my favorite series! A group of super powered young adults going to a super powered school; it’s so smart and action-packed, and there’s also such a strong found family element to the story. How could I resist? There are four books and the first one is 814 pages, the next three are 822 pages, 1104 pages, and a whopping 1981 pages, respectively!
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson – 1007 pages. I’ve finished up to Book 3, and the next two books are on my immediate TBR. I’m enjoying it so far but I need to read them faster because I’m forgetting details the longer I’m taking to read them. Books 2 and 3 are 1088 pages and 1248 pages, respectively.
The Terror by Dan Simmons – 835 pages. This one was so good! It has a slow start but the tension just kept building and building. It’s based on the real-life expedition that failed, but there are some fantastical elements in this story.
Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky – 608 pages. I’ve read this and the second book with 597 pages. There is a third book but I haven’t read it yet. It’s about humans colonizing other planets, and somehow creating intelligent life in other species through some kind of nanovirus. It’s very interesting to see the evolution of these species throughout thousands and thousands of years, and I love how much more evolved they become than even humans!
Perdido Street Station by China Mieville – 710 pages. This one lives in my mind rent-free. I love the world-building, the different alien species we see living together, and I love how the pursuit of science and art is presented here. It is also extremely gut-wrenching and devastating, and I’m still not over it.
Les Miserables by Victor Hugo – 1463 pages. I loved the experience of reading this one as well, even the parts where the author goes on long tangents on things that are not necessarily directly related to the story! I don’t like the characters as people, but I think they are really interesting as characters and I love that they stayed true to the title of their story!
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy – 964 pages. This book has been on my TBR for ages and now that I’ve finally read it I can say that Tolstoy is a genius and I am enthralled by his writing! To be clear, I hate Anna Karenina as a character, and I got so tired of her by the time I was halfway through the story, and I also didn’t much like the other characters so there was nothing to keep me invested. But somehow, Tolstoy did! He is a master at character study and like them or not, the characters and their thought processes and behaviors kept me interested! I’m looking forward to reading Tolstoy’s War and Peace!
Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them? Would you read any of these books?
