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BOOK LOG 2025
1 January 2025: Avatar by John Passarella. “Angel novel. Solid, could pass as an ep.”
6 January 2025: Worlds Without End by Caroline Spector. “Shadowrun novel. Ancient elf tries to stop return of mysterious evil. Very different than one would expect of the setting, but not bad.”
9 January 2025: The Turn of the Screw by Henry James. “Norton Critical Edition. Interesting how much early interpretation differed from later.”
11 January 2025: The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins. “Ok murder-thriller, but predictable.”
15 January 2025: The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith. “Strike novel. Very enjoyable.”
28 January 2025: Two Faces of Liberalism by John Gray. « Excellent defense of minimal ‘modus vivendi’ liberalism. »
18 February 2025: Collapse by Jared Diamond. “Workmanlike writing, but impressive coverage.”
22 February 2025: Godsgrave by Jay Kristoff. “Genuine surprises with a hard edge, a real page turner.”
15 March 2025: Initiation by Carla Jablonski. “First book in Timothy Hunter series. Liked Trench-Coat Brigade.”
8 April 2025: The Running Grave by Robert Galbraith. “Strike book about a cult. A bit over-complicated but still good.”
9 April 2025: Showdown at Centerpoint by Roger Macbride Allen. “Last in the Corellian Trilogy. Average.”
18 April 2025: Mansfield Park by Jane Austen. « Features the most insipid protagonist ever. »
9 May 2025: In Good Company by Gary McKay. “Story of an Aussie platoon commander during Vietnam. Interesting how little has changed tactically in many ways.”
9 May 2025: The Outsider by Albert Camus. “I need to think about this one.”
15 May 2025: The Walrus & The Warwolf by Hugh Cook. “Ridiculous but fun and different style of fantasy.”
18 May 2025: Breaking the Dark by Lisa Jewell. “Infuriating fan fiction that tries to ‘fix’ everything ‘wrong’ with Jessica by making her a bland #mumlife carbon copy vision of ‘stable’ and ‘happy’”
22 May 2025: The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu. « Starts off amazing, but then gets really silly. »
1 June 2025: If This Book Exists, You’re in the Wrong Universe by Jason Pargin. “Hilarious and awesome; have to get the others.”
1 June 2025: Gerald’s Game by Stephen King. “Overlong epilogue, but good.”
23 June 2025: Newton by I Bernard Cohen and Richard S Westfall (eds). “Norton edition. Good coverage of many topics.”
30 June 2025: X-Men: Watcher on the Walls by Christopher L Bennett. « Post 9-11 security state theme, handled well. »
30 June 2025: No Bikinis on the Front Yard: My Lighthearted Stories in the Army by Larry Patrick. « Very funny and I learned a lot. Proud of my dad! »
9 July 2025: Silver Linings by Katrina Nannestad. « Well-written. »
20 July 2025: Spirit of the Crocodile by Aaron Fa’aoso and Michelle Scott Tucker. “Great YA book about Torres Strait islanders.”
29 July 2025: Delores Claiborne by Stephen Kingston. « Draws you in immediately! »
10 August 2025: The Surface Trials by HM Waugh. « Surprisingly good. »
23 August 2025: Middle English Lyrics edited by Maxwell S Luria and Richard L Hoffman. “Hard to read—literally!”
4 September 2025: Westfallen, Book 1 by Ann and Ben Brashares. “Solid YA time slip novel.”
14 September 2025: The Hall-Marked Man by Richard Galbraith. « Latest Strike novel. Excellent. »
15 September 2025: Oak-Leaf Bearers by John Flanagan. « Fourth Ranger’s Apprentice book. Exciting large scale battle scenes! »
27 September 2025: A Slowly Dying Cause by Elizabeth George. « New Lynley novel. Disappointing flat mystery, though some good Havers bits. »
5 October 2025. Muhammad: Biography of a Prophet by Karen Armstrong. « Hagiographic and relentlessly apologetic. »
6 October 2025: The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan. « Elliptical story about cycle of terrorist bombings in India. Ok. »
8 October 2025: They Bloom at Night by Trang Thanh Tran. « Interesting spin on Black Lagoon-type horror tales. »
9 October 2025: Frog: The Secret Diary of a Paramedic by Sally Gould. “Readable and heartfelt.”
12 October 2025: The Koran trans. by N.J. Dawood. “Boring and repetitive.”
18 October 2025: Stop Screaming, I’m Scared Too by Rod Henderson. « Well-written and heartfelt account of an Army aviator’s time in and after service. »
14 November 2025: Beggars in Spain by Nancy Kress. “Re-read of one of my all-time favourites. Remains thought-provoking and resonant, now more than ever.”
24 November 2025: Inversions by Iain M Banks. “Clever tale told in two different settings with subtle links between them.”
3 December 2025: Descent of Angels by Mitchel Scanlon. “Tells origins of Luther, Zahariel, and Lion, but doesn’t appreciably tie into Horus Heresy.”
11 December 2025: A Study in Ashes by Emma Jane Holloway. “Third book in The Basketville Affair. Good but overlong.”
14 December 2025: Futuristic Violence and Fancy Suits by Jason Pargin. “Fun and clever.”
17 December 2025: Dark Mirror by Craig Shaw Gardner. “Angel novel. Good characters, but pedestrian plot.”
20 December 2025: House of Secrets by Chris Columbus and Ned Vizzini. “Enjoyable, fast-paced kids’ adventure book.”
22 December 2025: The Ghost Machine by James Lovegrove. « Firefly novel. Ok, but afraid to push storytelling beyond established boundaries. »
25 December 2025: The Christmas Market Murder by Peter Boland. « Really satisfying classic locked-room mystery. »
27 December 2025: Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. « Fantastic story and love poem to the 1980s geek culture. »
29 December 2025: Lair of the Crystal Fang by S.A. Sidor. “Really strong Arkham Horror novel. Makes we want to check out more.”
