Book Confessions of an Ex-Ballerina

3 Stars

I really wanted to love this one.

The premise is strong. Big scale sci-fi. Alien conquest. Philosophical undertones about humanity and survival. On paper, this should have been exactly my thing.

But it felt slow. Very slow. A lot of time spent in introspection and explanation, not a lot that kept me urgently turning pages. I kept waiting for it to click, and it never fully did.

The world building is detailed, and you can tell it’s deliberate. I just didn’t feel connected to the characters enough to stay invested in what was happening to them. For a book about captivity and survival, I wanted more tension.

It’s not bad. It just didn’t grip me the way I expected it to. Three stars. I might continue the series, but this one didn’t hook me.

4 Stars

The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan started off strong. The opening had momentum and intrigue, and I was fully locked in. The story moved at a swift pace and I felt genuinely invested in where it was heading.

Then the middle hit a wall.

The pacing slowed down quite a bit and it felt bogged down for a stretch. It wasn’t bad, but it definitely dulled the edge the beginning had sharpened so well. I found myself wishing it would tighten up and get moving again.

Thankfully, the final portion picked the pace back up and reminded me why I was enjoying it in the first place. The ending delivered and left me satisfied.

Overall, it was a solid read with a strong start and finish, even if the middle sagged a bit for me. Four stars.

4 Stars

Star Wars: I, Jedi by Michael A. Stackpole was a fun ride. The story kept me engaged and there were some great moments that really captured the Star Wars feel. The action was solid and I liked seeing the galaxy from Corran Horn’s perspective.

It wasn’t perfect. Some parts dragged a bit, and a few plot points felt predictable, but overall it was enjoyable and hit all the right notes for a Star Wars adventure. Four stars.

4 Stars

I wouldn’t call this a “fun” read exactly, but it is fascinating. This book digs into the long, chaotic history of people trying to wrestle English spelling into submission… and repeatedly losing. It turns out we’ve been collectively side eyeing silent letters for centuries.

As someone who has struggled with spelling and dyslexia my whole life, a lot of this felt weirdly validating. There’s something comforting about learning that English isn’t hard because you’re bad at it. It’s hard because it’s a linguistic junk drawer held together with vibes and tradition.

I listened to the audiobook, and while I’m know it was not actually narrated by Nathan Fillion, if you just pretend it is, the experience improves dramatically. Suddenly spelling reform debates feel like charming dinner party arguments instead of academic squabbles.

Informative. Occasionally dense. Deeply affirming if you’ve ever lost a fight with the word “necessary.”

4 Stars

OMG. What did I just read.

This book is dark. Just straight up dark. And I loved it.

I felt so bad for Margot the entire time. Her mother is truly terrible. Every scene with her had me tense and waiting for karma to clock in. I just wanted her to get what was coming to her.

The author did a really great job setting the mood. The atmosphere felt heavy from the start and never let up. It made everything hit harder. The characters also had real depth. Even when they made awful choices, they felt layered and human.

Definitely not a light read, but if you like dark stories that actually commit to the darkness, this one delivers.

3 Stars

I’m three books in, so clearly something is working.

And yet… I still don’t love the journal entry format. It keeps me at arm’s length from the story. Instead of falling into the woods and getting lost among the fae, I feel like I’m reading field notes about someone else doing it. It never quite pulls me under.

That said, the story itself is interesting. The folklore elements are clever, the fae politics have bite, and the world is imaginative enough that I keep coming back. There’s something quietly compelling about Emily’s academic stubbornness colliding with magical chaos.

At this point, I can’t tell if I’m reading the series because I genuinely enjoy parts of it or because it keeps appearing on my book lists and I think, “Maybe this is the one where it fully clicks.”

Either way, here I am. Three stars. Still intrigued. Still mildly annoyed. Still probably going to read the next one if there is one.

3 Stars

I wanted to like this one more than I did.

The writing in The Irish Goodbye is solid. The prose is polished, the characters feel fully formed, and there’s clear intention behind the emotional beats. On a technical level, it’s well done.

But the journey just wasn’t for me.

I never fully connected with where the story was taking me. Even when I appreciated what the author was doing, I felt more like an observer than a participant. I kept waiting for that pull, that moment where I felt invested, and it never quite arrived.

Not a bad book by any means. Just not one I enjoyed reading.

5 Stars

This book wrecked me.

All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir made me angry. Not frustrated at the writing, not annoyed at the plot, but angry at the world. Angry at injustice. Angry at how heavy life can feel when you’re young and already carrying too much. And that kind of anger? That’s powerful storytelling.

The writing is beautiful without trying too hard. The characters feel painfully real. You don’t just read about Noor and Salahudin, you sit with them. You feel the weight of grief, expectation, generational trauma, love that doesn’t know where to go. I wanted to cry more than once.

It’s not an easy read. It’s not supposed to be. But it’s honest and raw and deeply human.

This one stays with you.

Book Confessions of an Ex-Ballerina

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February 2026 Wrap Up

Weekly Menu #649 And The Book Of The Week

Sunday Confessions #346

What I Read Last Week - February 16th to 22nd

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