Madison Reads Books

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