DK Jones 📚

Cover art for adrift by Will Dean showing a house boat floating down a canal, surrounded by vibrant green trees and bushes, the sky is overcast and grey

Books #37 of 2026: Adrift by Will Dean

4.75/5 ⭐️

This was very dark but beautiful. Such an intimate look at a messed up family, abuse, and how hard it is to escape. The setting and the atmosphere really worked. I especially loved the son’s character arc.

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StoryGraph February reading summary: showing 18 books read, 7149 pages, Ave rating 4.28, highest rated books: adrift by Will Dean, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, and Kindred by Octavia Butler Ave book length: 384 pages, Ave time to finish: 3 days. 100% fiction. 7 romance, 6 fantasy, 4 literary, 4 mystery, and 3 contemporary. 61% audio books, 28% digital, 11% print

February Reading Wrap-up

Favorite Reads:
📚 Adrift by Will Dean
📚 Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

#booksky

Cover art for missing sister by joshilyn jackson, showing a woman next to a tree at sunset

Books #36 of 2026: Missing Sister by Joshilyn Jackson

3.75/5 ⭐️

This book dragged in the first half but got a lot more engaging towards the end. The story wasn’t very original. The main characters were quite annoying but I liked the side characters a lot.

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And the adaptation was still fairly faithful to the overall arch and themes of the book (which can’t be said for all book to movie adaptations)

I watched the Guillermo del Toro version over Christmas with my husbands family - and my brother in law told me he thought it was a fairly faithful adaptation. In fairness to him, I think it’s been a while since he read the book, but wowowow was he wrong! (I did enjoy the movie a lot though!)

🌸 March 2026 TBR

📚 The Everlasting by Alix E Harrow
📚 The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
📚 The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
📚 The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

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I didn’t even realize there were different versions! But I just checked and it was the 1818 version - how different are they? Should I also read the 1831?

Cover art for Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, showing a spooky forest covered with mist with birds flying through

Books #35 of 2026: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

4.75/5 ⭐️

I thought I knew the story of Frankenstein from adaptations and pop culture - but the book was so different and so much better than I expected. I loved the scenery and the writing, and the focus on morality

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Cover art for an academic affair by Jodi mcalister showing a woman in a dress and jacket on the left side and a man in slacks and a jacket with glasses on the right side, each carrying a huge stack of books that cover most of their faces

Books #33 of 2026: An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister

4.5/5 ⭐️

I loved the characters & the portrayal realistic/dark side of academia. I liked the importance of family, though I wish there had been less miscommunication. The romance started out weak but improved throughout the story

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Cover art for Rumoured by Kelly and Kristina mancaruso showing a woman with pink lips and green reflective sunglasses where a crowd of people can be seen in the reflection of the glasses

Books #32 of 2026: Rumoured by Kristina & Kelly Mancarusa

3.75/5 ⭐️

This was entertaining, but for a thriller it had absolutely no tension or stakes. Most of the “thrilling” elements are before the story starts and it’s an investigation story. The ending was very obvious by 30% in.

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Cover art for the strength of the few by James Islington showing people dressed in flowing white robes flying over a desert towards a black pyramid

Books #31 of 2026: Strength of the Few by James Islington

4.5/5 ⭐️

I am still loving the world, story arc & magic system, and the three parallel stories was an interesting concept but it fell a bit short. There were too many characters, and the stories each felt rushed or underdeveloped

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Cover art for an academy for liars showing a black background with a golden moth in the center, with pins going through the wings of the moth

Books #30 of 2026: An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson

3/5 ⭐️

This was more of a series of plot points than a story arc. Events & character responses felt random. The magic system was not well developed/explained. In the final conflict, the opposing sides seemed to have the same goal

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Cover art for kindred by Octavia butler, showing a black woman in a simple dress standing in front of a field

Books #29 of 2026: Kindred by Octavia Butler

4.75/5 ⭐️

This is such an original story and so well told. The plot got a little repetitive in the middle, but each scene felt important. The characters’ motivations were complex and were well dissected

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Cover art for marriage portrait by Maggie ofarrrell showing a portrait of a woman with orange lines across showing the title and author

Books #28 of 2026: Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

4.5/5 ⭐️

This book was so vivid, I could picture every location, person and outfit so well. The alternating timelines gave the book the right amount of tension, and everything was woven so precisely. I loved the ending

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Cover art for culpability by Bruce holsinger - showing a smudged image of a woman laying on a blanket with a basket with a bay in the background, a dock leading into the bar with a person sitting on the dock, and a person kayaking in the bay

Books #27 of 2026: Culpability by Bruce Holsinger

4.5/5 ⭐️

This book was fairly predictable, but I think the simple story was a good backdrop for the conversation around ethics in AI, which did not feel preachy. The characters were well drawn and believable

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Cover art for the wizard of earthsea by Ursula k le guin showing a young mage in a cloak with a staff fighting a shadow

Books #26 of 2026: Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin

4/5 ⭐️

I loved the style of the writing but I found the plot fairly basic and the stakes did not feel high enough. The characters were interesting but I wasn’t invested in them except his pet the otak.

#booksky

I loved it! And if you enjoy it, definitely recommend picking up heart the lover next - it’s a kind of prequel/sequel to writers and lovers and is equally/more fantastic.

Cover art for heart the lover by lily king, showing an orange background, with pink eyes and pink lips, the bottom of the eyes are rung with flowers petals and are crying flower petals

Books #24 of 2026: Heart the Lover by Lily King

5/5 ⭐️

Lily King really knows how to write people and relationships in a brutal & realistic way. This book is so wonderful and tragic. I loved that this has the same main character as Writers & Lovers while being a completely fresh story

#booksky

That’s so fair - it’s been a while since I read it but I think I remember the end being satisfying

I loved that book!

This one has 3, which was too many

Cover art for weyward by Emilia hart showing a black crow on a green background with lots of plants and insects

Books #22 of 2026: Weyward by Emilia Hart

4/5 ⭐️

I don’t love split timelines, every time one story got interesting it would cut to a different character/time period. I found the characters compelling though and I liked the setting and atmosphere

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Cover art for nettle and bone by t kingfisher, showing a woman in a cloak made of leaves and claws

Books #21 of 2026: Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher

4/5 ⭐️

The plot was a little basic and boring but as always T. Kingfisher writes the most realistic, interesting, funny characters and they really carried the book for me.

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StoryGraph January reading summary: showing 24 books read, 8758 pages, Ave rating 4.46, highest rated books: heart the lover by lily king, writers and lovers by lily king, men who hate women by Laura bares. Ave book length: 357 pages, Ave time to finish: 2 days. 79% fiction, 21% nonfiction. 10 fantasy, 7 literary, 6 romance 5 historical 4 lgbtqi+. 100% audio books

January Reading Wrap-up

Favorite Reads:
📚 James by Percival Everett
📚 Heart the Lover by Lily King

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Cover art for a tainted cup by Robert Jackson Bennett showing a book cover with a flower with sculls at the center and a cup tipped over, and a green plant encroaching on the book cover

Books #19 of 2026: The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

4.5/5 ⭐️

I love mysteries crossed with other genres - the fantasy elements of this were so interesting. I loved the characters and their relationships. I thought the pacing was really good

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❄️ February 2026 TBR

📚 Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
📚 Ledge by Stacey McEwan
📚 A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin
📚 The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell

#booksky

Cover art for lovers and writers by lily king, showing a painting where the top half is black and the bottom half is a table with a journal, a pitcher of flowers, wine glasses and cans filled with flowers, and fruit spread around

Books #18 of 2026: Writers and Lovers by Lily King

5/5 ⭐️

This book was so beautifully written, such an interesting study of grief. The characters are incredibly flawed but in a very believable way. This was a reread and it was just as satisfying the second time

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Cover art for men who hate women by Laura bates, showing a black and white background and a piece of paper with the title taped to the background

Books #15 of 2026: Men Who Hate Women by Laura Bates

5/5 ⭐️

I’m continuing to fall down the rabbit hole of the rise of the alt-right and misogyny on the internet. This a well researched and fascinating insight into the different groups that have arisen and the real world impacts

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Cover art for black pill by Elle Reeve showing the title subtitle and authors name on a black background. Subtitle: how I witnessed the darkest corners of the internet come to life poison society and capture American politics

Books #13 of 2026: Black Pill by Elle Reeve

5/5 ⭐️

As a white woman in a liberal bubble, I’ve often struggled to understand the how and the why of the last 11 years - this book does an incredible job answering those questions for a small slice of society, and is incredibly insightful.

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Yes!! One of my favorite books of 2025!