Time for another round of Yvonne’s Shorties! This time around a cozy fantasy that was solid enough and a travel memoir that I loved.

Title: A Witch’s Guide To Magical Innkeeping
Author: Sangu Mandanna
Genre: Cozy Fantasy, Romance
First published: July 15th 2025
Publisher: Berkley
Finished reading: February 22nd 2026
Pages: 336

“Your magic knew exactly who you were. That’s why your spell was a shield, not a sword.”

REVIEW

I loved my first experience with Sangu Mandanna‘s writing when I read The Very Secret Society Of Irregular Witches back in 2024, and I’ve been looking forward to read more of her work ever since. There is just something about the cozy fantasy genre that really works for me, and I’ve been excited to read A Witch’s Guide To Magical Innkeeping ever since I first heard about it. I’m not sure if my expectations were simply too high, but this book didn’t quite end up being the new favorite I expected it to be though. There are a lot of things I did love about this story: the countryside inn setting, the found family trope, the quirky characters, the talking fox and zombie rooster… But there were also other things that prevented me from fully enjoying this book as expected. First of all, it almost felt like I was reading a sequel and missing out on key background information about the workings of the magical world and its rules. This lack of information and worldbuilding in general made it harder to get a proper feel of the whole situation, and it didn’t do the plot any favors. Sure, I can’t deny that it was easy to fall in love with the quirky cast of characters and cozy fantasy doesn’t usually have that extensive of a worldbuilding, but I felt that the little that was offered wasn’t enough. The found family trope itself was great, although things could get a little too preachy at times… But thankfully there was also plenty of humor to balance things out a little. I had mixed thoughts about the romance though, and I did NOT appreciate the sexy scene popping up out of nowhere. I thought cozy fantasy was supposed to be cozy and not spicy?! I also can’t say that I was a fan of how things ended… It’s hard to talk about it without spoilers, but this is not a solution I like seeing female characters have to resort to. The only reason I didn’t rate this story lower is because I can’t deny that I did love the quirky cast of characters, and it was enough to partly overlook the weak plot and other elements I didn’t enjoy as much.

Title: Nala’s World
Author: Dean Nicholson
Genre: Non Fiction, Memoir, Travel
First published: September 29th 2020
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Finished reading: February 26th 2026
Pages: 273

“It’s Nala’s world now, I’m just living in it.”

REVIEW

Travel memoirs are my favorite type of non fiction at the moment, and I’ve been reading quite a lot of them lately. I knew that I wanted to read Nala’s World as soon as I first heard Nicki talking about it, as it combined two of my favorite things: cats and travel. I somehow hadn’t heard about his story before (otherwise I would have followed his account years ago), and I very much enjoyed reading about how he first found Nala and their adventures afterwards. It’s probably one of my favorite travel memoirs to date, and both his writing style and personality made it extremely easy to fly through the pages. I really liked the structure of this book, where we follow Dean and Nala on their journey through various countries during 2018-2020. I loved learning more about the places they visited as well as the people they met, and it is such an inspiring journey… It shows that he has such a special bond with Nala and the whole story was such a heartwarming and enjoyable experience. Sure, there are more serious topics incorporated including a sad moment or two, but as a whole Nala’s World turned out to be such an uplifting and inspiring travelogue. I wouldn’t mind reading more about his travels after the pandemic, that’s for sure!

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter.

I’ve seen multiple versions of similar memes around over the years… I always love comparing covers whenever there are different editions of the same book, and I decided to create a monthly Battle Of The Covers post where I highlight books with multiple covers that I was able to read during the previous month. I realize that sometimes there are a lot of different covers for the same book, but I’ll pick my three favorite covers whenever there are more.

Ready for a dose of cover battle?

FEBRUARY 2026

# ROUND ONE #

Round one is for The Other Side Of Now by Paige Harbison. In the left corner we have St. Martin’s Press and in the right corner St. Martin’s Griffin.

WINNER: cover 1.

I like the first cover better with the literal door to an alternate world… I feel it represents the magical realism element better.

# ROUND TWO #

Round two is for Adrift by Will Dean. In the left corner we have Atria/Emily Bestler Books and in the right corner Hodder & Stoughton.

WINNER: cover 1.

The first cover is just so much more atmospheric.

# ROUND THREE #

Round three is for Too Old For This by Samantha Downing. In the left corner we have Penguin and in the right corner Berkley.

WINNER: cover 2.

Hands down the second cover… It just feels so much more ominous, and I like how the hammer plays an actual role in the plot.

# ROUND FOUR #

Round four is for The Love Haters by Katherine Center. In the left corner we have Orion and in the right corner St. Martin’s Press.

WINNER: cover 2.

I definitely prefer the rainbow colors.

# ROUND FIVE #

Round five is for End Of Watch by Stephen King. In the left corner we have Hodder & Stoughton and in the middle and right corner Scribner.

WINNER: cover 3.

I prefer the color combination and font, and I can appreciate how the fishes (especially the pink one) are a direct reference to an important element in the plot.

# ROUND SIX #

Round six is for The Lost Ticket/The Girl On The 88 Bus by Freya Sampson. In the left corner we have Berkley and in the middle and right corner Zaffre.

WINNER: cover 1.

I prefer the color combination of the first one, and I also like the US title better.

# ROUND SEVEN #

Round seven is for A Witch’s Guide To Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna. In the left corner we have Hodderscape and in the right corner Berkley.

WINNER: cover 2.

I’m normally not a fan of pink covers, but I do love this one and it fits the cozy fantasy vibe better.

# ROUND EIGHT #

Round eight is for The Drop by S.R. Masters. In the left corner we have Sourcebooks Landmark and in the right corner One More Chapter.

WINNER: cover 2.

I prefer the color combination and the teaser sentence is easier to read in the second cover.

# ROUND NINE #

Round nine is for Redbelly Crossing by CandiceFox. In the left corner we have Penguin and in the right corner Crooked Lane Books.

WINNER: cover 2.

The second cover represents the Australian setting better.

That’s it for February 2026’s Battle Of The Covers… Do you agree with my choices, or would you pick different covers as your favorite? Have you read any of the books mentioned above?

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter.

Title: Almost Criminal
Author: Ulrike Herwig
Translator: Rachel Reynolds
Genre: Fiction, Contemporary
First published: December 18th 2015
Publisher: Amazon Crossing
Finished reading: February 19th 2026
Pages: 203
(Originally published in German: ‘Oskar an Bord’)

“Criminal?” Oskar asked back. “Well, I think it’s always a question of perspective. I was, first and foremost, a gentleman.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Amazon Crossing in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

REVIEW

There was just something about Almost Criminal that I was drawn to immediately, and not just because of the fun cover. I do have a weak spot for stories with an older main character and I like exploring translated fiction, but it was the premise itself that sealed the deal for me. It sounded like an absolutely hilarious ride, and I have been looking forward to pick it up… And I have to say that Almost Criminal definitely lived up to expectations for me! It’s absolutely bonkers, but SO much fun if you simply go with the flow.

I usually don’t like making a comparison to other books, because it can give you wrong expectations… But in this case I think it really fits. Almost Criminal reminded me SO much of another favorite of mine: The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out Of The Window And Disappeared. Oskar and Allan could have been dear friends, and it has that same over the top and absurd plot and humor… If you have read Jonas Jonasson‘s book in the past, your reaction to Almost Criminal will probably be quite similar.

This is definitely one of those books where you have to be able to suspend your disbelief, sit back and simply enjoy the wild ride. There is nothing credible about the unexpected road trip Tina, Markus and Oskar find themselves on, but this story isn’t really ment to be in the first place. Instead, it offers you a brief escape from the real world, and the humor was simply spot on for me. I literally flew through this book in an afternoon, and the entertainment level was through the roof.

As for the characters… Oskar is without doubt the star of the show, and I absolutely loved his character. He is definitely the reason this story works so well, although Tina and Markus also play a big role as it is their clumsiness combined with Oskar’s unexpected knowledge that make the many situations they encounter along the way so hilarious. The secondary characters are great as well; I do love a good dose of quirky characters and they really livened up the plot even more.

I don’t want to give away too much about this story, but if you don’t mind suspending your disbelief and enjoy a fun and over the top ride with a great cast of characters, Almost Criminal will most definitely entertain you. I won’t mind reading more of this author in the future, that’s for sure!

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter. 

I had originally decided to include this feature in my monthly wrap ups, but I just felt there were too many facts squeezed into one little post and the whole purpose of putting my favorite reads in the spotlight was lost. So this is me giving those favorites their well deserved extra attention! February was a bit of a mixed bag to be honest with more lower ratings than usual including my first DNF of the year, but I also had a new 5 star rating to celebrate. This made it very easy to decide on a favorite… So without further ado, February’s favorite book is: *drumroll*

…

…

…

…

…

Too Old For This by Samantha Downing!! In a way it’s not really a surprise, because I do have a weak spot for a serial killer thriller… But this book was everything I hoped it would be and more.

“Part of the reason this story stands out is that it somehow makes you warm up to and root for a serial killer. Oh yes, Lottie Jones is surprisingly easy to like and she is definitely the star of the show here!”

“You definitely have to be able to suspend your disbelief, but I personally didn’t mind as I was too busy enjoying every minute of the ride. I already know it will appear on my list of 2026 favorites!”

Click here for my full review

I had three 4.5 star ratings in February, and I like that it’s a nice mix of different genres (detective thriller, contemporary and travel memoir).

What I said in my review:

“Paradise has only reconfirmed my love for this series, and I once again had a brilliant time with Patricia Wolf‘s writing.”

“I did guess the big twist of the home invasion case very early on, but that might have just been because I had just finished a book with a similar topic… I wasn’t too bothered by it though, because the journey itself was engaging enough on its own and the organized crime angle adds a lot of tension to the plot. I had an excellent time reading this sequel, and I’m already be looking forward to pick up book three.”

Click here for my full review

What I said in my review:

“ I have to say that Almost Criminal definitely lived up to expectations for me! It’s absolutely bonkers, but SO much fun if you simply go with the flow.”

“I don’t want to give away too much about this story, but if you don’t mind suspending your disbelief and enjoy a fun and over the top ride with a great cast of characters, Almost Criminal will most definitely entertain you. I won’t mind reading more of this author in the future, that’s for sure!”

Click here for my full review

What I said in my review:

“I very much enjoyed reading about how he first found Nala and their adventures afterwards. It’s probably one of my favorite travel memoirs to date, and both his writing style and personality made it extremely easy to fly through the pages.”

“I loved learning more about the places they visited as well as the people they met, and it is such an inspiring journey… It shows that he has such a special bond with Nala and the whole story was such a heartwarming and enjoyable experience.”

Click here for my full review

Have you read any of these titles above? What did you think of them? What were your favorite reads in February?

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter.

Title: Beatrice Ophelia Is Flickering Out
Author: Megan Gerig
Genre: Contemporary, Cozy Mystery
First published: March 17th 2026
Publisher: Lamplighter Literary Creations
Finished reading: February 23rd 2026
Pages: 262

“Mimi had known the power of memories. It was why she’d made candles in the first place. To help others hold onto something precious to them.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Lamplighter Literary Creations in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

REVIEW

WARNING: it’s another unpopular opinion!!

While I usually like my thrillers on the dark side, there is no denying that I also love a dose of cozy mystery every once in a while. There was just something about Beatrice Ophelia Is Flickering Out that made me want to add it to my TBR immediately, and of course I can never resist a Finlay Donovan reference as it is one of my favorite cozy mystery series. I do think the story shot itself in the foot with this comparison though, because this first book of a new series didn’t even come close. Beatrice Ophelia Is Flickering Out turned out to be suprisingly dull, repetitive and tedious instead… I’ll try to explain what did and didn’t work below.

I have a weak spot for a small town setting, and I did love descriptions of the fictional Lake Erie town where Beatrice Ophelia Is Flickering Out is set. It made for the perfect backdrop for this story, and the same goes for the festival as well as the community vibe. The premise also has a lot of potential, but I felt like this book was trying to squeeze to many different elements and genres into one plot and as a result the plot lacked direction. Is this story a family drama, a finding-yourself story or a cozy mystery? Who knows?! I personally was expecting the main focus to be on the latter, and there just wasn’t enough of that cozy mystery vibe for me. The fact that it was very easy to guess who was behind it all was a bit of a disappointment as well.

I’m probably partly to blame for my lackluster reaction to this story though, because I’m just never a fan of family drama. Of course the blurb hinted at some drama, but what I didn’t expect was that this was going to be the main focus in Beatrice Ophelia Is Flickering Out. I’m not saying that it’s necessarily a bad thing, but it’s definitely not my cup of tea and there was just too much of it. The drama could also get quite repetitive, and especially the fact that our main character Beatrice feels like a failure. And why should she be the one to be pressured to solve the family problems, when the rift had nothing to do with her in the first place? It just felt wrong, and Beatrice had too many doormat qualities in general.

As for the characters… I can’t say that I was a fan of any of them. They just felt too much like stereotypes, and with all the drama and secrets I just never warmed up to any of them. The humor wasn’t my cup of tea at all either and instead it felt mostly forced… I could see where the story tried to be funny, but it just didn’t hit home for me. And then I mean not even one laugh, one tiny chuckle… This is probably part of the reason why I was so disappointed, because the humor is one of my favorite aspects of the Finlay Donovan series and this book just doesn’t compare.

All in all it is pretty obvious that Beatrice Ophelia Is Flickering Out and me didn’t get along, and I won’t be continuing the series. There was simply way too much family drama, not enough focus on the cozy mystery aspect and the humor fell completely flat for me… If you like more character-driven family drama slash finding yourself contemporaries with only a mild dose of mystery, this book might just work better for you though.

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter. 

WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.

• WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?

I’m currently reading Jane And Dan At The End Of The World by Colleen Oakley for a little break from ARCs… The premise of this story sounds SO food! I’m also starting April ARC Stolen Family by Lisa Regan; book number 24 of one of my favorite detective series.

• WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?

1. The Book Woman’s Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson (4.25/5 stars) REVIEW 20/03
I remember really enjoying my time with the first book back in 2019, and I’m still not sure why it has taken me this long to finally pick up this sequel. I’m so glad the decision to get an ARC of the third book pushed me to finally pick up The Book Woman’s Daughter though! This story ended up being another excellent piece of historical fiction that shows the many struggles for women in rural Kentucky of the 1950s… It’s a tough story to read at times, but very powerful indeed and I loved how a lot of it was based on historical facts.

2. Wicked Women by Angela Marsons (4.5/5 stars) REVIEW 19/03
I am aware of the fact that I am repeating myself, but this is hands down one of my favorite detective thriller series. I know that I can count on the DI Kim Stone books to consistently deliver an engaging and suspenseful ride, and I always do a little happy dance whenever a new sequel appears on my kindle. I couldn’t resist dropping everything to read it straight away… It’s truly impressive that Wicked Women is already book number 23 of a series that shows no signs of slowing down whatsoever, and it turned out to be another fantastic sequel.

3. The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie (4.25/5 stars) REVIEW 20/03
The original plan was to focus on slowly making my way through the Hercule Poirot books, but I couldn’t resist putting the series briefly on hold to pick up The Seven Dials Mystery. Not only does this title fit the Reading Through The Centuries challenge, but I also wanted to read it before watching the Netflix adaptation… And I have to say that I really enjoyed meeting up with Superintendent Battle again, and the secret society trope and group of amateur detectives were a nice change of pace from the usual Agatha Christie formula.

4. Coming Alive On The Ride by Michael Yang AUDIO (3.75/5 stars) REVIEW
While it’s true that I don’t really read a lot of non fiction, I think I have found my niche in travel memoirs. I’ve been reading quite a lot of them lately, and I was immediately intrigued when I first saw Coming Alive On The Ride. I had recently read another motorcycle travel memoir, and I had been craving for more… So this memoir came at the exact right time for me. Coming Alive On The Ride isn’t just a travel memoir though, as it also focuses on the author’s life first growing up in South Korea and later immigrating to the US. It turned out to be an inspiring story of resilience and adventure, and I very much enjoyed my time reading it.

5. A Novel Crime by Deborah Levison (2.5/5 stars) REVIEW 23/03
I should have learned by now that if a story is described as darkly comical, this probably means that it isn’t the kind of dark humor that I tend to appreciate… Because every single time I try one, they end up being a miss. I blame the premise of A Novel Crime, which sounded like it had SO much potential and it definitely had that Finlay Donovan vibe. Sadly, I don’t think that this story comes even close to that series, and that has everything to do with its unlikeable cast of characters and the fact that the plot is simply ridiculous. Such a shame, because I had such high hopes for this book! More about the what did and didn’t work in my unpopular opinion review.

6. What We Did To Survive by Megan Lally (2.75/5 stars) REVIEW 27/03
Oh boy, I definitely didn’t expect to have to write my second unpopular opinion review in a row… It’s true that I hardly read YA anymore, but I do love a good survival thriller as well as stories with a bad weather trope and/or at least a partial boat setting. As a result, I couldn’t resist making an exception for What We Did To Survive… Especially since I’ve been curious about this author for a while now. Unfortunately, this book has shown that I might just have outgrown the YA genre altogether, and I ended up with mixed thoughts instead. More about what did and didn’t work in my review.

• WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?

Next up are most likely two more ARCs with Too Close To Home by Seraphina Nova Glass and The Missing Ones by A.R. Torre; both anticipated titles as these authors always seem to deliver. I also want to read The Road To Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett for a little break from both ARCs and thrillers… My latest TBR jar pick The Old You by Louise Voss will have to wait a little longer, but I do plan to read it this month.

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter.

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. Each week has a new topic where you can then create your top ten of books that fit the topic… Everyone can join in as long as you link back, and you can also put an unique spin to the topic to make it work for you if necessary.

This week’s topic is BOOKS TITLES FEATURING ORDINAL NUMBERS. Ordinal numbers are numbers that define an item’s place in a series. For example: first, second, third, fourth, tenth, fourteenth, thirty-third, one hundredth, etc.)

The Fourth Monkey – by J.D. Barker (4.5/5)
Colton Gentry’s Third Act – by Jeff Zentner (4.25/5)
The Last Murder At The End Of The World – by Stuart Turton (4.5/5)
The Last Fashion House In Paris – by Renee Ryan (4.5/5)
First-Time Caller – by B.K. Borison (4.5/5)

No Second Chance – by Harlan Coben (4/5)
A Second Chance – by Jodi Taylor (4.75/5) 
First Lie Wins – by Ashley Elston (4.5/5)
Final Call – by Alex Lake (4/5)
The Final Vow – by M.W. Craven (5/5)

Have you read any of the books mentioned above? Which books would be on your list? 

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter. 

Title: Coming Alive On The Ride
Author: Michael Yang
Genre: Non Fiction, Memoir, Travel
First published: March 10th 2026
Publisher: Greenleaf Book Group Press
Finished reading: March 7th 2026
Pages: 378

Duration audiobook 8 hours 18 minutes
Narrated by Edward Hong

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Green Leaf Book Group Press in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

REVIEW

While it’s true that I don’t really read a lot of non fiction, I think I have found my niche in travel memoirs. I’ve been reading quite a lot of them lately, and I was immediately intrigued when I first saw Coming Alive On The Ride. I had recently read another motorcycle travel memoir, and I had been craving for more… So this memoir came at the exact right time for me. Coming Alive On The Ride isn’t just a travel memoir though, as it also focuses on the author’s life first growing up in South Korea and later immigrating to the US. It turned out to be an inspiring story of resilience and adventure, and I very much enjoyed my time reading it.

I had initially gotten a copy on my kindle, but when the audiobook appeared I couldn’t resist switching to that format instead. I now have mixed thoughts about that decision… I enjoyed the narrator and his voice and pace fitted the story very well. It made it very easy to keep listening, and there is definitely nothing wrong on that front. BUT. I’m not sure if it was a glitch, but somehow 10! out of the 26 chapters were completely missing in the audiobook format (chapters 1, 4, 7, 8, 13, 16 and 19-22). And then I mean that the audio skipped right to the next chapter, with no trace of the missing chapters whatsoever… To make things worse, these weren’t only travel chapters, but also parts about him growing up in Korea, adapting to his new life in the US etc. Thankfully I had the kindle version, so I could turn to this format to read the missing chapters, but it was still quite annoying to have to go back and forth between the two formats.

Like I said before, Coming Alive On The Ride isn’t just a travel memoir, but instead it mixes travel chapters with a memoir of the author’s life. While part of me would have liked to see the whole story in chronological order, I understand that this might have made this book feel unbalanced as his motorcycle travels take place later in life. Instead, this memoir opts for mixing travel chapters with a chronological description of his life growing up in South Korea, how they immigrated to the US and his life afterwards. Since the travel chapters have a completely different feel and structure, these switches don’t really distract and I enjoyed both sides of this memoir.

I particularly enjoyed learning more about life in South Korea as well as his journey as an immigrant in the US. I could appreciate that the author didn’t shy away from more difficult topics nor did he hide the obstacle and struggles along the way, and this made for a very authentic reading experience. I admit that the tech part wasn’t as interesting for me personally and I did zone out there, but as a whole I really enjoyed reading about his life. His motivation behind his motorcycle travels was also interesting to read about, and I agree that traveling to different places can be fullfilling on so many different levels as well as broadening your perspective on life.

The travel chapters were written like a travel diary; first explaining where the trip will take us to, and then giving a short description of what happens during each travel day. Of course I would have loved even more details, but it was still fun to read about what happened during the author’s different motorcycle journeys along the way. The maps with each itinerary were also a nice touch! His final trip lists the preparation only though, and I admit that I would have loved to read about his journey to Chile and Argentina as well…

As a whole I ended up having a great time reading Coming Alive On The Ride. Despite the more than solid performance of the narrator, I can’t say that I can recommend the audiobook though, because you are simply missing out on too much… Unless the missing chapters really were simply a glitch. But the book itself is an excellent choice if you enjoy non fiction that is basically an autobiography/travelogue hybrid.

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter. 

I just can’t believe it’s March already! Where does the time go?! February ended up being a bit of a mixed bag for me… I did find a new 5 star rating, but I also had quite a few lower ratings including my first DNF of the year. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that March will be better on that front!

The bookish numbers:

• Number of books read in February: 21
• Total number of books read in 2026: 47
• Total number of pages read in February: 6.975
• Total number of pages read in 2026: 15.077

FEBRUARY 2026 READS

5 STARS: Absolutely and entirely mind blowing! I suggest you to pick up a copy now. 

Too Old For This – by Samantha Downing

4.5 STARS: This one was almost perfect. Surely fantastic!

Paradise – by Patricia Wolf // Almost Criminal – by Ulrike Herwig // Nala’s World – by Dean Nicholson

4.25 STARS: Wow, this was really good. Close to amazing!

What Evil Hides – by Rachel Amphlett // The Other Side Of Now – by Paige Harbison // Adrift – by Will Dean

4 STARS: Wow, this was really good. Close to amazing!

Free Ride – by Noraly Schoenmaker // Plan For The Worst – by Jodi Taylor // The Two Deaths Of Lillian Carmichael – by Paulette Kennedy

3.75 STARS: Great read. Really entertaining!

The Astral Library – by Kate Quinn // The Lost Ticket – by Freya Sampson // A Witch’s Guide To Magical Innkeeping – by Sangu Mandanna

3.5 STARS: Great read. Really entertaining!

End Of Watch – by Stephen King

3.25 STARS. It was a nice read, but not fantastic.

The Stolen Queen – by Fiona Davis

3 STARS. It was a nice read, but not fantastic.

The Love Haters – by Katherine Center

2.75 STARS: I give this one the benefit of the doubt. Nothing too exciting.

The Drop – by S.R. Masters

2.5 STARS: I give this one the benefit of the doubt. Nothing too exciting.

With A Vengeance – by Riley Sager // The Ten Year Lie – by Debra Webb // Beatrice Ophelia Is Flickering Out – by Megan Gerig

0 STARS (DNF): I didn’t even bother to finish this one. Either horrible or definitely not for me!

Redbelly Crossing – by Candice Fox

I ended up signing up for more challenges than planned, but thankfully I managed to make an excellent start with the majority. Some challenges are well ahead of schedule so far!

# CHALLENGES #

• Goodreads 2026 Reading Challenge: 47/170
• 2026 Beat The Backlist Challenge: 35/80 (18/50 books read published in 2025 or 2024 and 17/30 books read published 2023 or before.)
• 2026 Beat The Backlist Bingo Challenge: 27/49
• 2026 Netgalley & Edelweiss Challenge: 15/50
• 2026 Reading Through The Centuries: 0/2
• 26 Priority Titles In 2026: 5/26
• 2026 Finish The Series Challenge: 6/9-12
• 2026 When Are You Reading?: 9/12
• What’s In A Name? 2026: 1/6

As for my other goals: I’m doing pretty well with my international author/translation goal, and I’ve gotten in plenty of audiobooks and US states already as well. A couple goals have no progress yet, but it is still very early in the year so I can’t say that I’m worried yet.

# OTHER READING/BLOGGING GOALS #

• Read at least 3 (modern) classics(rereads don’t count) 0/3 (..) 
• Complete at least 5 series (rereads don’t count) 5/5 DONE!! (Washington Poe // Ben Koenig // Keera Duggan // Detective Kay Hunter // The Enceladons)
• Reread at least 2 books 1/2 (Harry Potter En De Halfbloed Prins)
• Read at least one book over 600 pages 0/1 (565 pages; Harry Potter En De Halfbloed Prins)
• Keep ARC/backlist title ratio below 45% 31.3%
• Read at least 2 books in Spanish 0/2 (..)
• Read at least 1 book in Dutch 1/1 DONE!! (Harry Potter En De Halfbloed Prins)
• Read at least 15 international authors and/or translations 5/15 (The Curious Kitten At The Chibineko Kitchen (Japan) // Harry Potter En De Halfbloed Prins (Dutch translation) // Free Ride (The Netherlands) // Almost Criminal (Germany) // A Witch’s Guide To Magical Innkeeping (India))
• Read at least 10 TBR jar picks 2/10 (Pages From My Passport // The Lost Ticket)
• Read at least 3 kindle freebies 0/3 (..)
• Travel through the 50 US states 20/50 (Alabama // Arizona // California // Florida // Illinois // Maine // Massachusetts // Michigan // Missouri // Nevada // New Hampshire // New Jersey // New York // Ohio // Oregon // Pennsylvania // South Carolina // Texas // Washington // Wisconsin)
• Listen to at least 12 audiobooks 5/12 (The Ice Angels // In His Wake // Trailbreaker //What Evil Hides // Adrift)
• Keep my Netgalley ratio above 90% 98%

Have a wonderful March and happy reading!

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter. 

Time for another round of Yvonne’s Shorties! This time around a contemporary romance TBR jar pick that I mostly enjoyed and another sequel of one of my current favorite series that was excellent (even though it wasn’t my favorite sequel of the bunch).

Title: The Lost Ticket
Author: Freya Sampson
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
First published: June 9th 2022
Publisher: Berkley
Finished reading: February 15th 2026
Pages: 368
(Original title: ‘The Girl On The 88 Bus’)

“Libby’s mind was whirring with Frank’s story. She couldn’t imagine what that must have felt like, to have had such a strong connection with someone that you’d spend a lifetime trying to find them. How on earth would he cope if that purpose got taken away from him?”

REVIEW

I’ve been meaning to try this author for a while now, and it seems like my TBR jar thought it was about time I finally did so. I can never resist a story featuring an older main character and/or an unlikely friendship trope, and I loved the sound of Frank’s story as well as his connection with Libby. And while there were a couple of things that prevented me from rating The Lost Ticket even higher, I can’t deny that I still enjoyed my time with this story and I literally flew through it in less than a day. I loved the growing connection between Frank and Libby, but then again I do love an unlikely friendship trope… Frank’s story is so touching and I liked the similarities between Libby and the woman Frank has been looking for all those years. Dylan and Esme were great characters as well, although the connection between Dylan and Libby felt a bit too much like insta-love… I would have loved to see more dept in their growing bond instead of a focus on certain other elements that didn’t quite work as well for me. I’m never a fan of family drama, and as a result I really disliked having to read about Libby’s parents and sister treating her that way. Toxic relationship much? And then I’m not even talking about everything related to Simon… I could have overcome my feelings if he had been just a footnote in the beginning, but the fact that he kept popping up and treating Libby the way he did kind of ruined this story for me. It didn’t add anything to the story other than the drama, and it really distracted from the rest of the plot. I can’t say that I was a fan of the miscommunication trope either… Again I felt like it was only introduced to add more drama. I could appreciate how Frank’s story ended though; the story felt less Hallmark movie that way. The Lost Ticket ended up being story about unlikely friendships, lost connections, second chances and a dose of romance to sweeten things. If you don’t mind a healthy dose of drama and a variety of heavier topics along the way, this might just be the book for you.

Title: Plan For The Worst
(The Chronicles Of St. Mary’s #11)
Author: Jodi Taylor
Genre: Science Fiction, Historical Fiction
First published: April 16th 2020
Publisher: Headline
Finished reading: February 17th 2026
Pages: 413

“Peering closely at the door, he selected his spot and fetched it an almighty whack. The door jerked once and then opened smoothly. Problem solved. As any techie will always tell you: if in doubt – give it a clout. As true today as it’s always been.”

REVIEW

It’s no secret that The Chronicles Of St. Mary’s is one of my current favorite series, and I’ve been slowly making my way through the books. Part of me wants to binge-read the rest of them, but other part of me doesn’t want it to be over yet… So for now I’m sticking to one book per month. Plan For The Worst is already book number eleven, and it promises to take us on another wild ride. This is definitely a series to read in order, because there will be multiple spoilers and it will simply be impossible to properly understand what is going on otherwise. It’s a fun journey, so well worth your time if you connect to the characters and humor. Plan For The Worst wasn’t my favorite sequel of the bunch, mostly because it picked up certain storyline AGAIN and it is becoming a bit tiring… But I can’t deny that I still had a great time reading this sequel as a whole. My favorite part was without doubt the part that took us to 1628BC Crete, but I enjoyed spending time with these characters in general. There is just something about the humor, the characters and the fact that they don’t take themselves too seriously that really makes this series work, and I will be sad when it is all over… That said, there was a certain reveal near the end that took me by complete surprise, that’s for sure. I already can’t wait to pick up the next sequel!

You can also find me at Goodreads. StoryGraph. BlueSky. Twitter.