What I Read in February and March 2023

After a fairly good start to my reading year, I’ve really been in a slump for the past two months, hence the two-in-one reviews post. I think I can pinpoint it to a huge book hangover following the incredible Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, but I finally feel like I’m coming out of the other side. Sometimes, slower reading is needed. It was a slightly busier month for me: & Chai is back in business, I’m finally making progress with my own manuscript, we’ve prioritised date nights aplenty and life has just felt like a lot.

I’ve really read a mixed bag during these two months as well: my Ursula Le Guin journey continued – as did my nature reading – and then I decided to pick up Angels & Demons following our trip to Rome and Vatican City. Which was… a ride (the book, not the trip!).

For April, I’m looking forward to prioritising reading again, furthering my journey through Ursula Le Guin’s catalogue and remembering that I have bookstagram – that always helps to keep me on track with my reading. I also realised that I only read ONE title from my March hopefuls. Oops. Before all of that, though, here are mini reviews of everything I read in February and March…

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Rating: ★★/5

“When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she knows about only from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not truly a beast, but one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world.

At least, he’s not a beast all the time.

As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.”

A Court of Thorns and Roses has a slow start. So slow, that I almost gave up at several points because I prefer a read that grips you almost instantaneously. For me, it took just over half the book to actually get into the story properly. First up, Feyre really annoys me, which isn’t unusual, I don’t think you must always love protagonists – but it helps. Secondly, many of the faerie descriptions made me cringe. While I adored the nature and descriptions of the faerie world, I felt almost embarrassed by those of the faeries themselves. It leaned a little too YA for my liking with the enemies-to-lovers insta-love trope. I want more of the emotion and experience! That being said, this romantic fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast is oddly gripping and it did have me reading it beyond its initial and lengthy setup.

Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner

Rating: ★★★/5

I’ve been meaning to read Crying in H Mart since its release and I wasn’t disappointed. It’s touted a food memoir, which is a great description: Zauner uses memorable food moments to share pivotal life moments. Although I didn’t know much about the musician-turned-author, I found this memoir incredibly moving and insightful. It shares her experience with grief and the loss of a parent, but also the joyful experiences of life as a mixed-race immigrant child.

Rewind Yourself by Simon Barnes

Rating: ★★★/5

My nature reading continued in February with Rewind Yourself, a lovely little book with 23 spellbinding ways to make nature more visible. I really enjoyed and appreciated the format of this book: many of the chapters begin with Narnia and Harry Potter quotes. However, this did also feel jarring to me, since I don’t support J.K. Rowling’s work anymore, which somehow took away from the magic of it all.

That being said, the 23 tips are digestible and will genuinely open your eyes up to the natural way around you. If you’re already a keen outdoorsy person and enjoy keeping an eye out for local wildlife, you may – like me – find some of the tips a little too obvious.

The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula Le Guin

Rating: ★★★★/5

I picked up a few more Ursula Le Guin books at a book fair a few months ago, and keenly delved back into her works in February with The Lathe of Heaven, a little 200~ pager science fiction novel. It centres on George Orr, a man who seems to be abusing drugs but is actually experiencing dreams that can alter and affect reality. I really loved this book and its philosophical themes, explored through a psychotherapist who is curious (and manipulative) of Orr’s plight and a woman that is equally curious, albeit for separate reasons. With environmental, political and social challenges running throughout, The Lathe of Heaven even leans a little into psychological horror at times. At its core, this is a real clever little thriller that makes you think, see and dream.

The Muse by Jessie Burton

Rating: ★★★/5

Jessie Burton has long been an auto-read author for me, but this book has slightly changed things for me.

“On a hot July day in 1967, Odelle Bastien climbs the stone steps of the Skelton gallery in London, knowing that her life is about to change forever. Having struggled to find her place in the city since she arrived from Trinidad five years ago, she has been offered a job as a typist under the tutelage of the glamorous and enigmatic Marjorie Quick. But though Quick takes Odelle into her confidence, and unlocks a potential she didn’t know she had, she remains a mystery – no more so than when a lost masterpiece with a secret history is delivered to the gallery.

The truth about the painting lies in 1936 and a large house in rural Spain, where Olive Schloss, the daughter of a renowned art dealer, is harbouring ambitions of her own. Into this fragile paradise come artist and revolutionary Isaac Robles and his half-sister Teresa, who immediately insinuate themselves into the Schloss family, with explosive and devastating consequences…”

The Muse tells the story of a 1936 painting that hides untold secrets. Odelle Bastien is our curiously lovable heroine, an aspiring writer who has recently scored a typist job for Majorie Quick at the Skelton Gallery. I love the mystery-historical fiction stories that Burton writes: they feel clever and unravel at just the right pace. But something about this dual-timeframe read felt a little off to me. The middle section, especially when in the 1936 timeline, dragged for me and felt tedious to read. I felt as though much of the story was shown rather than told. Then, back in the 1960s, things moved so quickly where I wish we’d gotten to know Odelle more and develop more of a connection between Bastien and Quick.

A fine read, but not an especially memorable one.

Angels & Demons by Dan Brown

Rating: ★★/5

I went into Angels & Demons with a highly raised ‘brow, since this book divides many. In fact, I’m sure many of my bookish friends reading this can’t believe I actually picked it up!

Robert Langdon is an acclaimed symbologist, summoned when physicist Leonardo Vetra is found murdered – his eyes pulled out and an ancient symbol branded on his chest, surely the work of a secret society, the Illuminati. On the eve of an election of a new Pope, Langdon and Vetra’s daughter, Vittoria, embark on a hunt through Rome to the lair of the Illuminati.

I’ll keep this short because the world doesn’t need another A&D review. This fast-paced novel is annoyingly a page-turner, but I can’t decide whether that’s because a) I loved spotting the locations in Rome that I’d recently visited, b) it was outrageously unbelievable in parts, or c) some of it actually discussed interesting topics. To Brown’s credit, I quite enjoyed the discussion here about science vs. faith and I also enjoyed the undeniably fast pace and thriller aspect of the story. But the entire thing felt written-for-a-screenplay and I often dislike this. I also am completely incredulous at the romance plot and descriptions of women. But you knew that already.

The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin

Rating: ★★★★/5

I picked up another Le Guin towards the latter half of March and LOVED it. Partway through this, I decided I’d like to commit to reading lots more of the author’s work because it is truly genius and oh so charming.

The Dispossessed is an anarchist utopian science fiction novel, written in the 70s and is the chronological first of Le Guin’s ‘Hainish Cycle’. I believe you can read the books out of order, which is what I’ve been doing! It follows a brilliant scientist, Shevek, who is working on a new theory of time. It’s set between two planets – Anarres and Urras – and as Shevek encounters people that are jealous of his insights, mind and work, he leaves his homeland in search of somewhere with more tolerance. Through his story, we see Le Guin’s ideas of how different utopias exist: approaches to work, familyhood and the concept of ownership. I loved the way Le Guin uses Shevek’s journey to discuss themes of freedom, population, labour, society, utopias and the way competition and co-operation are perceived across societies.

The book is slow in parts, but beautiful in its scope. There’s a lot going on and, as always, I adore Le Guin’s depictions of the ‘natural land’. One I’m already looking forward to rereading in time.

April Hopefuls

I’m heading back to Rome next month, but I won’t be dipping back into Angels & Demons this time round! Instead, I’m looking forward to welcoming spring with more nature reads, a short little Japanese fiction – I’m thinking for my flight and in-city reading! – plus some manga too.