The Summer of Sequels, Sophomore Reads (& Stress!)

I hope you all had a stereotypical kind of summer, you know, with lots of time spent by the ocean and on lakes, slow-paced sunny days, and a plethora of pest-free picnics, all of it accompanied by ice cream. Over here, we had a very up-and-down summer that took a lot out of our family, hence the extreme delay in getting this to you (thank you for your patience!) It wasn’t without its highlights though, including an amazing trip to the Yukon, lots of outdoor theatre, and  ice cream!

I also read a lot of sequels, and sophomore reads from authors I already knew and liked. It was the sort of summer where I needed the reassurance of familiarity. Plus, what’s not to love about authors you already love? So without further ado, here’s a quick round-up of my summer reads that made the cut for sharing with you:

A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna
If you liked The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches, which featured in Gentle Reads, the very first installment of ATK Reads, then A Witch’s Guide is for you. When Sera Swan, one of the most powerful witches in England, casts a forbidden spell to save her aunt’s life, it drains away all her magic and she is exiled from the guild overseeing England’s witches. Fifteen years later, she is still so focused on getting her magic back that she doesn’t see the magic of what she’s built around her, including a chosen family who can only be defined as eccentric (one clanks around in knight’s armour), in the very best way. With multiple underlying themes of otherness and a focus on the danger of any one person having too much power, it’s a timely, cozy, and satisfying read. It’s quite possible that I have both read and listened to it, and I can highly recommend either option. 

Contemplation of a Crime by Susan Juby
As I started into the third book in this cozy series about Helen, a crime-solving Buddhist butler (originally featured in O Canada Reads), it felt a bit too same old same old. But happily I persevered, because Juby has a talent for creating a fun cast of characters and telling the story from their different points of view, with Helen grounding everything and everyone around her. I need a Helen in my life! When Helen’s employer and his son are kidnapped from a program designed to bring together people from across the political spectrum to help them bridge their ideological and personal differences (much-needed these days), Helen, her fellow butlers, and the workshop participants have to put their differences aside and trust each other enough to band together to rescue them. West coasters will enjoy trying to figure out which are the islands off Nanaimo where the action takes place.

Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping [On a Dead Man] by Jesse Q. Sutanto
In the follow-up to Sutanto’s, Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers, which I recommended in Golden Oldie Reads, Vera is back and as nosy as ever. Once again she gathers a new cast of characters around her, with some favourites from book one in the series popping up again. The book explores themes of loneliness, chosen families, and human trafficking. This go around, Vera helps a distressed young woman search for her missing friend, who it turns out is a dead influencer who nobody really knew. Confused? You’ll have to read the book to find out more. So far, I’m three for three with books where the author has created a compelling cast of interwoven characters who overcome their differences to support each other. Which, again, it feels as if the world needs right now. 

The Society of Unknowable Objects by Gareth Brown
This is not a sequel to The Book of Doors, which you may remember from Time (& Space) Bending Reads, one of my favourite books from last year, but it is a book about magical objects that imbue their holders with magical powers specific to each item. And whenever power and magic are at stake, good and evil battle for control of it, but in TSoUO it’s not always clear who’s good and who’s evil. The book will have you dreaming of what powers you’d imbue magical objects with if you could and wishing today’s world were a little more magical (in a good, not evil way). One note: a friend found the dastardly deeds committed by the evilest of evil antagonists in TBoD too distressing to read, perhaps that’s where my magical skimming reading, which allows me to skirt over sections that are upsetting, comes into play, but I get where she’s coming from, and the same warning holds true for TSoUO. Also, spoiler alert: this isn’t exactly not a sequel to Book of Doors. 

A little something extra: Bookworms seem to be having a moment! I’ve found more great bookish merch in the last few weeks than I have in years, including some super cute ball caps. I’m torn between this Born to Read, Forced to Work cap and this Pride and Prejudice - Pemberley Trout Derby Hat, both from Perfect Match Bookstore the new romance bookstore that recently opened in my neighbourhood. But I think I’m going to hold out for this Bookworm hat from Collage Collage, a local kids’ bookstore and art studio that I loved when my kids were younger and I've recently rediscovered. You can also order any of these super cool caps online if you’re not local!

I’ve also found what seems to be a good alternative to Audible, it’s called Everand and I’m still testing it but I’ll report back when I’ve put it through its paces!