Madison Reads Books

The Jane Austen Remedy by Ruth Wilson is a cross between a memoir and literary criticism. While I found this book to be thought provoking, it was also a very slow read. It functions as a memoir, but it is also very dense and academic.  * I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley 

An A-Z of Jane Austen is a collection of 26 short essays about Jane Austen's works based around a word starting with each letter of the alphabet. I enjoyed this book, but it definitely has more of an academic tone. Overall, I found this to be very informative. *I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley

The Nine: Origins has so many of the things I love in books. There is a well thought out system of magic, a secret society, an intriguing mystery, and some Dark Academia vibes. I loved this book and couldn't put it down. I can't wait for the rest of the series. * I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley 

I absolutely love Katherine Cowley's Mary Bennet series, and I think this may be the best book in the series. This book was exciting from the beginning, but also dealt with emotional issues in a very compelling way. I have my fingers crossed for a spin-off series focusing on Kitty. 

I really liked Mistakes Were Made. I loved Meryl Wilsner's first book, Something to Talk About, so I was super excited to read this as soon as I saw it. Unlike Something to Talk About, which was an extreme slow burn, this book was very spicy from the beginning. I feel like the age gap was handled in a way that it is taboo and creates tension in the relationship without being creepy, which I was a little worried about before reading it. Overall, this was a really enjoyable read, even if I did have an existential crisis in the middle when I realised I'm closer in age to the mom Erin than to college senior Cassie. * I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley

This book wasn't quite what I was expecting it to be. Rather than trying to connect or draw a path from our current level of science and technology to that depicted in Star Trek, this book features a series of unrelated sections which relate current scientific or social aspects to different episodes, species, or other situations within the Star Trek Universe. While it was interesting to read, I would have liked more science and technology and less sociology and history from a book title The Science of Star Trek. * I received a review copy from the publisher through NetGalley

I thoroughly enjoyed The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy. Its an enemies to lovers fantasy romcom with a morbid side and a healthy does of zombies. Hart is a Marshall patrolling a dangerous magical area inside of a portal and Mercy is an undertaker living in a border town, and they have hated each other from the moment they met, however, after unknowingly becoming pen pals, they start to reevaluate their first impressions. This book made me laugh and cry, and I was very invested in the two main characters and their romance. The only real criticism I have is that there could have been more world building. There was some background throughout the book to explain the new gods and the old gods and how the religion works, but there wasn't alot of explanation for the technology, and I never really felt like there was a point in the book where I understood how this world works. It didn't really detract from the main plot, it just felt like there was no reason for why some ...

I love this series, and My Imaginary Mary lived up to all of my expectations. The story features Mary Shelley and Ada Lovelace as the protagonists of an alternate history fantasy with lots of ties to the Frankenstein story. Like all of the books in this series, the book is full of jokes and modern references targeted at the reader in the style of The Princess Bride or The Hitchhiker's Guide. Overall, this is a fun historical fantasy that never takes itself too seriously. * I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley

I absolutely loved Violet Made of Thorns. It has everything I enjoy in a book; a morally grey anti-heroine, a good system of magic, a believable enemies to lovers plot, and an intriguing story line that kept me interested and theorizing until the end. Violet is a Seer who grew up poor on the streets before saving the prince and becoming the royal seer. She has no problem lying or embellishing her visions in order to keep the King on her side, even if the Prince hates her for it, until she realizes that her lies may have triggered a curse that could end them all. I really hope there is a sequel to this, and I hope it is coming soon. * I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley

Established characters don't always translate well to YA, but that is not the case with this book. Zatanna is a teenager living on Coney Island with her parents, who are stage magicians and can't wait to spend the whole summer with her two best friends and the boyfriend her parents don't approve of. It looks like it will be a normal summer until she discovers the ability to do real magic and uncovers a mystery regarding her family. The story was well-written and engaging, and the artwork is gorgeous. The only other Zatanna story I've read is the DC Comics Bombshells series, but I can't wait to read more and hope a sequel is coming soon. * I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley

Accomplished is a modern day retelling of Pride and Prejudice from Georgiana Darcy's point of view. It picks up in the aftermath of her older brother and guardian discovering George Wickham selling drugs out of her dorm room and deals with Georgiana learning to cope on her own and accept help from others.The story is written in the first person, and there is lots of teenage angst, but overall it is a really good story. I'm always interested to see how author's handle the Wickham situation in modern retellings, and I think Amanda Quain chose well. Overall, if you don't mind a bit of teenage angst, I highly recommend this book. *I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley

Julia Whelan is one of my favorite audiobook narrators, so when I saw this book, I knew I had to read it. Thank You For Listening is a fun romance set in the world of audiobook narration and features a main character who is cynical about love and has to learn to accept herself before she can accept romance. One of my favorite things about Thank you for listening is that romance novels play a very important role in the plot, and Whelan includes several common tropes in a very tongue in cheek way that makes it clear that both the characters and the reader are in on the joke. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a copy for review.

I've always been a fan of classic country music, so I was excited to read Marc Eliot's The Hag. This was a well written, well researched biography. Marc Eliot sticks to the facts and still managed to tell the story of Merle Haggard's life in an interesting and engaging way. I would highly recommend this book to any music fans. This was a slow read for me, not because it was poorly written or uninteresting, but because it is dense with lots of information backed up by footnotes and source material. I received a review copy from the publisher through Netgalley.

Anybody who knows me knows my two favorite authors are Jane Austen and Agatha Christie, so I feel like this book was tailor made for me. Its a cozy mystery a la Agatha Christie featuring characters from all six Jane Austen novels. The book was well written, all of the characters felt true to the original novels, and the mystery kept me guessing until the end.  I received a review copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. 

I love Pride and Prejudice and this is an excellent audio adaptation. The production value is very high and the voice acting is excellent. My only nitpicky issue is that Darcy and the Bingleys were given strong regional accents. I believe the accents are accurate to where the characters are from, but historically, people of their class would not have had strong regional accents.

Half Sick of Shadows is a feminist retelling of Arthurian Legend focused on Elaine, the Lady of Shalott. I really wanted to love this book, and it was good, but just good. The story switches tense abruptly between the present tense and the future tense when Elaine is seeing possible futures, and it made the story hard to follow at times. Its also sold as "The Lady of Shalott reclaiming her story", and I don't feel that it fully follows through.

This is an interesting biography that compares the lives and works of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley by alternating chapters. It is definitely worth checking out if you're interested in late 18th and early 19th century literature and the start of the women's rights movement. I was only vaguely familiar with both women before going in, and this book gave a good overview while focusing mainly on how Mary Wollstonecraft affected her daughter Mary Shelley, even though they never really got to know each other. Overall this is a good all encompassing book if you're vaguely interested in both women, and a good jumping off point if you'd like to do further research.

I loved this fantasy retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in a regency world where magic is an integral part of society. While there are changes to plot and some situations to fit in with the fantasy world, all of the characters are still true to Austen's original. Lizzie Bennet is a powerful mage in a world where women are only supposed to learn small household magic and Fitzwilliam Darcy is a member of the committee that unanimously voted to deny her access to the academy.From there we get to see the familiar development of their romance within this magical world as Lizzie overcomes her Pride and Darcy his Prejudice. Overall this was a 4 star read for me, and one of the better Pride and Prejudice retellings I've read.