Booknotes 4.28

House of Open Wounds, by Adrian Tchaikovsky, published 2023, fantasy. Book #2 in The Tyrant Philosophers, my favorite Tchaikovsky series/world. Quite enjoyed it. Its take on gods and religion continues to be interesting, too. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series. (But I will, because I like to space things out a little.)

Wormwood Abbey, by Christina Baehr, published 2023, fantasy. Book #1 in the Secrets of Ormdale. A fun cozy gothic fantasy which I read for book club.

The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson, published 1959, horror. Such great writing. Creepy, too, which is no surprise and was why I read it, as my second Halloween read of the month. (Last month, that is. Perhaps someday I will not perpetually lag behind on these reviews.) While I don’t often read thrillers or horror — life is already stressful enough, no need to inject more — this book did not push me across my discomfort threshold, for whatever that’s worth.

Things Become Other Things: A Walking Memoir, by Craig Mod, published 2025, nonfiction. For over a decade I’ve been reading Craig’s newsletters but till now hadn’t read any of his books. Nice to finally change that. TBOT is about walking through part of Japan and also about his rough childhood and the loss of his friend, interleaved with photos throughout. Makes me want to visit Japan and walk across England.