The Crescent Moon Tearoom

This was such a cozy read. I adored it. Stacy Sivinski says she's not a word witch but I beg to disagree. This book was like warming up with a cup of herbal tea on a cold night. The Quigley sisters aren't just triplets, they're witches in downtown Chicago. Since their parent's death they converted their house into a charming teashop and read the tea leaves for all of Chicago's society ladies. It's a cozy and comforting business until one day they receive a letter from the council. Suddenly their small, comfortable world is turned on it's head and they must complete three tasks in order to keep their tea shop open. The problem is, the very thing that's meant to save them might be the thing that is starting to tear them apart. Charming and cozy. I may have to re-read this every few winters! 

Bedside Companion for Book Lovers

I read this every morning after putting on my face. Some of these quotations and excerpts were great, some were meh, and some were.... lacking. I was hoping there would be a good mix of modern and classic authors sampled, but alas it was about 80% from authors in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. The book is heavy and bulky so this would be hard to read in bed. Again this was ok, but this isn't one I will re-read in the future. 

Song of a Blackbird

Absolutely heartbreaking and inspiring this graphic novel is a powerful reminder of the cost (and rewards) of resistance as told by two narratives on in 1943 and one in 2011. In 1943 Emma Bergsma is seeing firsthand the horrors of the Nazi occupation in Amsterdam. When she sees Jewish families being forcibly loaded onto trains she decides to join the Dutch resistance. In 2011, Annick has discovered that her grandmother needs a bone marrow match to live and her siblings aren't a match. It turns out they aren't blood related to her at all. Annick is determined to find her Oma's real family to see if any of them are a match. All she has to go on are a couple of art prints and some of he oma's shaky memories of the war. Absolutely stunning storytelling, the graphic novel format really helped bring the story to life and the afterward with the real photographs and history is captivating! 

The Little Wartime Library

I absolutely adored this book. Every time I think there can't possibly be another WWII book featuring something I didn't know, I am quickly humbled. The Little Wartime Library is a fictionalized account of Britain's only underground library during the war. A shelter and library (and many other things including a theater!) were put underground in an uncompleted railway tunnel. Told with dual narration, the story centers on Clara, the "head" librarian after her mentor and boss was killed when the aboveground librarian was killed and Ruby her best friend and library assistant. Both women have their fair share of trauma. Clara lost her husband at Dunkirk and has thrown herself into the library; Ruby's sister was tragically killed with over 100 others when people stampeded down the stairs and deals with an abusive stepfather. The two women prove that a library is more than just books, it's a community. Fantastic, heartbreaking, and inspiring. A wonderful novel!

A Book for Christmas

Enchanting and captivating, I adored this collection of winter themed stories and folktales. At only 100 pages, this is a super quick read so I think I may have to read it every Christmas (or winter). From saints to thieves, to the fear of not getting a book at Christmastime, this little collection has something to delight every reader! 

Good Spirits

I ADORED THIS BOOK! BK Borison has lived up to the hype. Obsessed is an understatement. Good Spirits follows Harriet, a young woman who loves her cozy existence working in an antiques shop. She loves the holidays and is a genuinely good person. When she is suddenly visited by the ghost of Christmas past she is so confused. What has she done wrong. Her ghost, Nolan is also confused, every memory they visit makes him like Harriet even more. The two find themselves drawn together and soon the attraction is palpable. Of course with her luck she would fall in love with a ghost. Steamy, witty, and wonderful. I can't wait for the next book in the series! 

The Wager

I love a good nonfiction read and this historical telling of the Wager was captivating and horrifying. It got a little slow at times, but maybe I just haven't read enough seafaring books. As the subtitle summarizes, the Wager's voyage was beset with one calamity after another: typhus, scurvy, violent weather, wrecks, starvation, death, mutiny, and murder. Pretty much everything that could go wrong, went wrong. There were very few survivors left, but the ones that survived the horrors all seemed to have conflicting stories. Was there really a mutiny? Was the captain at fault? After reading this recounting I can tell you that I would last about 1 second on one of these 17th century British warships. Absolutely not. Hard pass. Don't read this before you go on a cruise to the Cape of South America.