Review – Cinder House

Posted August 1, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 3 Comments

Cinder House

by Freya Marske

Genres: Fantasy, Romance
Pages: 144
Rating: three-stars

Synopsis:
Sparks fly and lovers dance in this gorgeous, yearning Cinderella retelling from bestselling author Freya Marske—a queer Gothic romance perfect for fans of Naomi Novik and T. Kingfisher.

Ella is a haunting.

Murdered at sixteen, her ghost is furiously trapped in her father's house, invisible to everyone except her stepmother and stepsisters.

Even when she discovers how to untether herself from her prison, there are limits. She cannot be seen or heard by the living people who surround her. Her family must never learn she is able to leave. And at the stroke of every midnight, she finds herself back on the staircase where she died.

Until she forges a wary friendship with a fairy charm-seller, and makes a bargain for three nights of almost-living freedom. Freedom that means she can finally be seen. Danced with. Touched.

You think you know Ella's story: the ball, the magical shoes, the handsome prince.

You're halfway right, and all-the-way wrong.

Rediscover a classic fairy tale in this debut novella from "the queen of romantic fantasy" (Polygon).

I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I found Freya Marske’s Cinder House a little slower to get started than I’d expected from a novella: it felt like more than half the book was setup (though important things did happen!) and then the ending had to happen at an absolute gallop. A little more time in the second half for a good head of longing to build up would have really helped the ending, though I’m trying not to say too much about that.

The bones of the story are Cinderella, but it’s also much more than that, with quite a bit of worldbuilding woven in. The politics of the world were a bit difficult to grasp from the vantage point we have, which honestly makes sense since, well, Ella’s a house. Kind of. Interestingly, from the buildup I guessed two possible endings, and in the end they were both sort of right (and both sort of wrong).

I did enjoy the world-building, and the way the story works out — the way Ella’s sisters torture her into compliance was very well thought out and described, for instance, it’s all very thoughtful — it just felt like the pacing was a touch off.

Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)

Tags: book reviews, books, Freya Marske, romance, SF/F

Review – A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation, vol 9

Posted July 31, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

A Gentle Noble's Vacation Recommendation

by Misaki, Momochi, Sando, Lamp Magonote

Genres: Fantasy, Manga
Pages: 160
Series: A Gentle Noble's Vacation Recommendation #9
Rating: four-stars

Synopsis:
When Lizel mysteriously finds himself in a city that bears odd similarities to his own but clearly isn't, he quickly comes to terms with the unlikely truth: this is an entirely different world. Even so, laid-back Lizel isn't the type to panic. He immediately sets out to learn more about this strange place, and to help him do so, hires a seasoned adventurer named Gil as his tour guide and protector.

Until he's able to find a way home, Lizel figures this is a perfect opportunity to explore a new way of life adventuring as part of a guild. After all, he's sure he'll go home eventually... might as well enjoy the otherworldly vacation for now!

Volume 9 of A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation felt maybe a tad disjointed, because we’re lacking information about events until a flashback/explanation later, and this happens twice (once about how Lizel plans to defend the people, and then also about the promise he makes Gil make).

That said, it’s a great conclusion to this little arc of the attack on Marcade, and we see a lot of Lizel’s scheming. And it’s to be hoped that in the next volume, Gil and Eleven give him whatfor about it, for goodness’ sake.

There are some really fun moments between the trio, though most of the focus is on Lizel’s cleverness and his efforts to thwart Variant Ruler. The elves kind of come out of nowhere, and I felt kinda like I’d missed something, but they were technically somewhat foreshadowed…

Not my favourite volume in some ways, but I enjoyed it as always.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

Tags: book reviews, books, Lamp Magonote, manga, Misaki, Momochi, Sando, SF/F

WWW Wednesday

Posted July 30, 2025 by Nicky in General / 4 Comments

It’s a bit late in the day, but it’s still Wednesday!

What have you recently finished reading?

I haven’t finished anything in a few days, which is unusual for me — but I blame moving. Looks like the last thing I finished was Jonn Elledge’s A History of the World in 47 Borders, which was ultimately a bit too flippant and glancing for me, even though I generally like books in this format. I did learn some stuff, but, hm. I’m not sure how well I retained it.

What are you currently reading?

I must confess, I’ve grabbed a book off my shelf solely because I think I’ll probably donate it after I’ve read it, and it avoided me having to shuffle 8 shelves’ worth of books along to fit a different book in. So I’ve finally picked up Gwen and Art Are Not In Love (Lex Croucher). I’m trying not to be a purist about it as far as the links to Arthuriana go, but I’m raising my eyebrows a bit all the same (also about whether it’s supposed to fit in historically, given references to other, real countries) or not.

I’m guessing it’s Not That Deep, but that’s why I don’t read a lot of this kind of light-hearted YA-ish romance. I overthink it!

What will you read next?

I really don’t know. I’m eyeing a couple of other books that I suspect I’ll read and then donate, like Kacen Callender’s Felix Ever After, since I’ve been reminded of them while sorting through my books and getting them onto the new bookcases. We’ll see! With all the turmoil of moving, it’s also “whatever can catch and hold my interest right now”, to be quite honest.

Tags: books, WWW Wednesday

Review – The Buried City

Posted July 30, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

The Buried City: Unearthing the Real Pompeii

by Gabriel Zuchtriegel

Genres: History, Non-fiction
Pages: 256
Rating: four-stars

Synopsis:
This is Pompeii, as you've never seen it before.

In this revelatory history, Gabriel Zuchtriegel shares the new secrets of Pompeii. Over the last few years, a vast stretch of the city has been excavated for the first time. Now, drawing on these astonishing discoveries, The Buried City reveals the untold human stories that are at last emerging.

Pompeii is a world frozen in time. There are unmade beds, dishes left drying, tools abandoned by workmen, bodies embracing with love and fear. And alongside the remnants of everyday life, there are captivating works of art: lifelike portraits, exquisite frescos and mosaics, and the extraordinary sculpture of a sleeping boy, curled up under a blanket that's too small.

The Buried City reconstructs the catastrophe that destroyed Pompeii on 24 August 79 CE, but it also offers a behind-the-scenes tour of the city as it was before: who lived here, what mattered to them, and what happened in their final hours. It offers us a vivid sense of Pompeii's continuing relevance, and proves that ancient history is much closer to us than we think.

The cover copy on the inside flap of the dust cover suggests that Gabriel Zuchtriegel’s The Buried City is about amazing new finds at Pompeii, but that’s not really a good description of the book (though it does discuss some recent finds). It feels more like a manifesto for seeing Pompeii differently, for seeing it not just as a source of treasure, nor a tourist site for income, but a piece of heritage that everyone has a stake in, and everyone deserves the chance to learn about.

It takes a while to unfold to anything like that, though, because it’s also partly autobiographical, Zuchtriegel’s musings on what makes him who he is as an archaeologist, what drove him to the point that he became the director general at Pompeii. All of that led him to his excitement on unveiling the life of slaves in Pompeii, his attitude toward his work there, his involvement of young people in actually putting on drama in Pompeii — something which was revelatory for them and for the team involved.

It’s a fascinating book about archaeology in general, not just Pompeii; I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it for being about Pompeii, but more as a view of a career and an attitude that culminated in a change of focus at Pompeii. And it really does ramble, sometimes.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

Tags: book reviews, books, Gabriel Zuchtriegel, history, non-fiction

Top Ten Tuesday: Beach Reads (Sort Of)

Posted July 30, 2025 by Nicky in General / 10 Comments

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday theme is beach reads, and I… don’t really have specific books I’d read at the beach. So instead I’m going to tell you what I’d take with me to go on a beach holiday right now, if I was going to do such a thing — and you’ll have to just enjoy the weird choices!

(Technically it’s Wednesday here now, but I haven’t gone to bed yet, so nyah. It’s Tuesday.)

The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation, by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu. I should’ve started reading this earlier in July, because it’s a book club choice for a danmei book club Discord. Also, I’ve really enjoyed MXTX’s other series, and I’m very curious about this one, especially since people rave about it a lot.
The Butcher, the Baker, the Candlestick Maker, by Roger Hutchinson. This is about the census in Britain, both the story of how the census came to be and how it’s been managed, and also the story of what it says about Britain. I’m partway through it, so if I was heading off on a beach holiday, I’d definitely take it with me. Also, it’s fascinating!
Dreadful Company, by Vivian Shaw. I’ve been rereading this series before reading the latest book, and I’ve let myself get distracted from the second book for far too long. So this one would have to slip into my bag. It’s a fun story, set mostly in Paris, and is pretty breezy, too — definitely a good companion for a lazy afternoon.
The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association, by Caitlin Rozakis. This one sounds fun and pretty light, so I think it’d be ideally suited to a nice holiday spent lying around somewhere warm and comfy. (For me that needn’t be a beach: curled up on my new recliner works!)
The Judas Window, by John Dickson Carr. This is the most recent British Library Crime Classic reissue, and I’m eager to get to it. I’ve had mixed results with reading John Dickson Carr’s work at times, so I’m kind of curious where I’ll fall with this one.
Paladin’s Strength, by T. Kingfisher. Having just read Clockwork Boys and The Wonder Engine, I’m eager to get back to this series as well. It’s a liiiittle bit chunky-looking on the shelf, so maybe a holiday would be an ideal prompt to get stuck in.
Between Two Rivers, by Moudy Al-Rashid. This is a history of ancient Mesopotamia that I’ve been meaning to read for a while, and I’m choosing it for no other reason than that the cover keeps catching my eye.
The Love Hypothesis, by Ali Hazelwood. I’ve been meaning to read more of Hazelwood’s romances; maybe this is the moment? Might be a good quick read while I’m so busy with moving stuff…
Idylls of the Queen, by Phyllis Ann Karr. This would be a reread. I mentioned this in a recent Top Ten Tuesday post about books I want to reread, and this seems like a good moment! I just saw my copy in the great unboxing of books; surely I’ll find it soon as I properly sort through and alphabetise?
Elusive, by Genevieve Cogman. I might have to reread the first book first, but I remember tearing through it — if the second book is the same, that could be a very fun holiday read!

I know, I know, as ever it’s a bit of a weird mix. I can think of others, like the next volume of the Solo Leveling manhua… but it’s time for me to think about sleep, so let’s stop there…

Tags: books, Top Ten Tuesday

Review – The Governess Gambit

Posted July 29, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

The Governess Gambit

by Erica Ridley

Genres: Historical Fiction, Romance
Pages: 148
Series: The Wild Wynchesters #0.5
Rating: four-stars

Synopsis:
Meet the Wild Wynchesters: This fun-loving, caper-committing family of tight-knit siblings can’t help but find love and adventure!

Years ago, Chloe Wynchester and five other uniquely talented orphans were adopted by a wealthy baron with a secret mission: The motley Wynchester family fights for justice from the margins of high society. And the handsome, clever duke Chloe has long admired proves to be her worst enemy…

An unscrupulous boarding school is exploiting orphans in a secret workhouse. Baron Vanderbean plots a daring rescue. When illness befalls him, Chloe must take the reins. But how can a lifelong wallflower lead the charge to save the children?

This is another review that I wrote back when I read the book, which somehow never got posted here!

The Governess Gambit is full of setup for the first book of this series, The Duke Heist — which I haven’t read yet — but also, for anyone who knows the Wynchesters from their other adventures (in my case the second book, The Perks of Loving a Wallflower) a tension and inevitability that you just don’t want to be real. I think it’s best experienced that way, actually: Bean might be dead in the main series, but nonetheless the love they felt for him is clear, and knowing that already is what shapes the tension of this book.

It’s also fun seeing everything from a slightly different perspective, since this book follows Chloe, and it did whet my appetite for The Duke Heist as well.

Still eager to see more of the other Wynchesters! Especially Jacob and Graham, as I feel like we see their point of view least of all so far. Though maybe The Duke Heist will change that!

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

Tags: book reviews, books, Erica Ridley, historical fiction, romance

Review – What Stalks the Deep

Posted July 28, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 6 Comments

What Stalks the Deep

by T. Kingfisher

Genres: Horror, Science Fiction
Pages: 192
Series: Sworn Soldier #3
Rating: four-stars

Synopsis:
Alex Easton does not want to visit America.

They particularly do not want to visit an abandoned coal mine in West Virginia with a reputation for being haunted.

But when their old friend Dr. Denton summons them to help find his lost cousin—who went missing in that very mine—well, sometimes a sworn soldier has to do what a sworn soldier has to do...

I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Sometimes I think people’s reactions to the three stories so far in T. Kingfisher’s Sworn Soldier series are very telling about what frightens them. My favourite — the one I think is best — is the first one, because it plays on all my fears about contagion. The second book didn’t fill me with as much enthusiasm, and this one hit a different note: if you’ve read it, on the Ingold-to-Denton scale, I’m definitely on the Ingold end in terms of my reaction.

In other words, this one is barely horror to me and doesn’t scare me at all. I do appreciate it more than the second book (which, to be clear, I did also enjoy), but it was the finding of kin in Ingold, his fascination with what’s happening and with the mines, that was the key here. Which is fine, because I’m not necessarily interested in being scared, but I think it does add an edge and make things memorable. For me, the tensest thing about the book was actually Alex’s claustrophobia.

We do also see the aftermath of the first book for Denton — it’s good to link back up with him, and to understand how it affected him too. Differently, somewhat, but deeply, to the point where the best comfort he can imagine is summoning Alex to join him when weird shit starts going down again.

I continue to love the world-building about sworn soldiers, though there wasn’t that much of it in this one.

Rating: 4/5 (“really liked it”)

Tags: book reviews, books, horror, SF/F, T. Kingfisher

Review – The Apothecary Diaries (LN), vol 3

Posted July 26, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

The Apothecary Diaries

by Natsu Hyuuga, Touko Shino

Genres: Fantasy, Light Novels
Pages: 344
Series: The Apothecary Diaries (LN) #3
Rating: three-stars

Synopsis:
Maomao must help keep Consort Gyokuyou safe during her pregnancy. An imperial consort being with child is supposed to be a matter of the utmost secrecy, but this is the rear palace, where maneuvering and backstabbing are as commonplace as banter and tea parties. Threats seem to lurk around every corner — but it’s not just the rear palace keeping busy. Jinshi finds himself struggling to entertain a most unusual request from a pair of visiting ambassadors. Later, he’s invited to an important gathering in a faraway place — but who knows what dangers might be waiting for him?

I found volume three of Natsu Hyuuga’s The Apothecary Diaries (the light novel version) dragged a little bit, if I’m honest. It felt like there was quite a bit of filler, and it was harder to tell if there was an underlying linkage between the stories, even when they revealed more of the court and characters (and ultimately… with most of these chapters, there wasn’t a strong link to bring it all together).

It’s hard to tell since there are so many volumes, of course; maybe some of the details of these stories will become important later — and it is fun to see a bit more of the court and characters like Xiaolan and Suirei. But for me the potentially plot-forwarding bit didn’t come soon enough to really keep my interest in this volume.

Also, the “frog” scene was excruciating. Come on, Maomao, what good is all that doing?!

So I’m sure I’ll read more of The Apothecary Diaries, probably both the light novel and the manga; I love Maomao and her way of thinking. Buuut… I probably won’t go onto volume four right away this time.

Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)

Tags: book reviews, books, light novels, Natsu Hyuuga, SF/F, Touko Shino

Stacking the Shelves & The Sunday Post

Posted July 26, 2025 by Nicky in General / 33 Comments

As promised last week, now I have many bookcases! And we’ll get the books from storage next week and get them all onto the shelves. I’m looking forward to it very much, it’ll really make things feel like home.

Anyway, let’s get to the books.

Books acquired this week

I didn’t get anything for myself — I’m trying not to get anything at the moment, because my birthday’s next month, and my 9th wedding anniversary (20th anniversary of us getting together), and I’m trying to cap how many books I buy without reading them, this year. I’m allowed 20 at a time bought this year and unread, and right now I’m at 15.

I need to get busy with reading, so my wife can spoil me a bit more!

I did get a book for my wife, though, and I might as well highlight that here, because I might read it eventually too:

I’m a wuss about horror, but it does sound intriguing, so I might give it a shot at some stage.

Posts from this week

Let’s start with the reviews, as usual:

Fantasy romance: The Other World’s Books Depend on the Bean Counter (manga), vol 2, by Kazuki Irodori (4/5 stars, “really liked it”)
Historical fantasy: Castle of the Winds, by Christina Baehr (1/5 stars, “didn’t like it”)
Epistolary novel: The Correspondent, by Virginia Evans (4/5 stars, “really liked it”)
Historical romance: The Perks of Loving a Wallflower, by Erica Ridley (4/5 stars, “really liked it”)
History: Heavenly Bodies: Cult Treasures and Spectacular Saints from the Catacombs, by Paul Koudounaris (4/5 stars, “really liked it”)
Historical mystery: A Case of Life and Limb, by Sally Smith (4/5 stars, “really liked it”)
Romance manga: A Side Character’s Love Story, vol. 15, by Akane Tamura (3/5 stars, “liked it”)

As a reminder, these aren’t the books I read this week, just the reviews that got posted. Sometimes I read less, sometimes I read more, so I save up reviews sometimes, and also try to give a bit of a range of genres rather than posting a glut of fantasy or non-fiction all at once. I’ll discuss what I’ve been reading this week below!

But first, the other posts from this week:

What I’m reading

Now’s the part where I figure out what I’ve read this week and share some sneak previews. It’s been a busy week, it was surprisingly difficult to drag my mind back to the start of it… but here are the covers of the books I’ve read this week and intend to review on the blog (eventually)!

You can always check my StoryGraph if you’re interested in peeking at the reviews ahead of whenever they get posted on the blog. As you see, I read quite a lot this week, plus finished a reread of The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System, vol 2, so I’m quite happy.

As for the weekend ahead, what will I read? I’m getting back into reading a book about Britain’s census, The Butcher, The Baker, The Candlestick Maker, by Roger Hutchinson, and I’ve been dipping in and out of A History of the World in 47 Borders, by Jonn Elledge. I might finish my reread of Vivian Shaw’s Dreadful Company, for a bit of fiction.

Or I might read something else altogether. Who knows?

Linking up with Reading Reality’s Stacking the Shelves, Caffeinated Reviewer’s The Sunday Post, and the Sunday Salon over at Readerbuzz, as usual!

Tags: books, Stacking the Shelves, weekly roundup

Review – A Side Character’s Love Story, vol 15

Posted July 25, 2025 by Nicky in Reviews / 0 Comments

A Side Character's Love Story

by Akane Tamura

Genres: Manga, Romance
Pages: 161
Series: A Side Character's Love Story #15
Rating: three-stars

Synopsis:
Nobuko and Hiroki have graduated college, and their relationship is now long distance. One an office worker in Ehime, the other a graduate student in Hiroshima, their lives are very different and their schedules no longer match up. The stress of it all leads to one anxiety after another, but if they don't want their relationship to falter, they must learn to face it head on.

Volume 15 of A Side Character’s Love Story is a bit less pure cuteness than some of the others, bringing a serious note. Nobuko is building her adult life in Ehime, making friends and spreading her wings, and back in Hiroshima, Hiroki’s having trouble adjusting to that — to Nobuko hanging out with people he doesn’t know, meeting people, etc.

He’s not even wrong, because Tai is of course trying to flirt with and “steal” Nobuko. That said, she’s having none of it, and it’s really high time for them to have one of their discussions about how they feel and get Hiroki out of his funk.

There’s also a fair amount going on with the new side characters, with both Aoike and Asuka getting “screen” time for their relationship woes, more so than was usual for the side characters from earlier volumes, like Fumi-chan.

Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)

Tags: Akane Tamura, book reviews, books, manga, romance