This bingo has been so much fun and I love how much more I'm reading now, considering I read a grand total of 4 books in all of 2025.
Individual little thoughts on every book under the cut:
Romance: Under the Whispering Door (T.J. Klune) — Truly lovely, I've read Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea last year, so I trusted him to be able to give me a very sweet little gay love story, and he absolutely delivered. The romance feels more front and centre here too, and I really appreciated the development of the two leads and how they both explore the concept of life and death together.
MC isn't human: The Vampire Lestat (Anne Rice) — After falling helplessly in love with the AMC show, I read Interview with the Vampire in 2025 to get an informed opinion on it as an actual adaptation, and then decided to read this in preparation for the new season in June. Personally, I enjoyed this a lot more than I did the first book and found Lestat's relationship with the other vampires he meets and makes throughout the years very interesting.
College or uni setting: Babel (R.F. Kuang) — Finally got around to reading this and absolutely loved it. As someone interested in translation and linguistics, Kuang had me thinking about the nature of both of these long after finishing, especially how both can be used to further imperialism and colonialism. Robin is a great protagonist, and I loved to see his development in how he feels about his status within British society.
Non-euro fantasy: Son of the Storm (Suyi Davies Okungbowa) — I had this in my shelf for ages. While I was absolutely fascinated by the worldbuilding and especially the magic system, sadly the plot lost me a little bit towards the end. Still, I had a good time overall, and enjoyed the characters in this a lot.
Not originally published in English: Die Unendliche Geschichte/The Neverending Story (Michael Ende) — I grew up with an audiobook of this, which is ironic, given how much this needs to be read as a book. I also remembered absolutely nothing of the actual plot, especially the second half, so getting to experience it properly as an adult was super interesting. This book is absolutely brimming with creative worldbuilding and the thoughts about the nature of stories.
Pink cover: Martyr! (Kaveh Akbar) — Everyone was right about this. The writing style is absolutely captivating in a way that I don't think I've ever seen before. Very early on, there is a bit where Cyrus thinks on the nature of sleeping, and that's when I knew that this book was truly special. His musings on martyrdom were super fascinating, and I loved how excerpts of his poetry and the chapters from other characters' POVs explore this idea even more.
Literary fiction: The Extinction of Irena Rey (Jennifer Croft) — Really unhinged in a great way imo. I loved to watch this insane little cult of translators try to figure out what to do when their author suddenly vanishes and how she slowly turns from this deity-like view they have of her into a deeply flawed human being. I was especially obsessed with the book's framing device of this being a translation of an existing book, with both the original and the translation being written by characters within the book.
Indie pub or self pub: Ambrosia (Lenia Lenient) — I've been following the author on Tumblr for a while, so when I saw this square, I decided it was finally time to read one of their books. It took me a bit to get into, but then I had a great time with it. I appreciated the way the book gives you a non-linear look path that eventually leads you back to the first scene of the book again. And once you end up back there, seeing how it actually built up over time, it all feels so cathartic.
Misc: From Here to Eternity (Caitlin Doughty) — I originally read this for the microhistory square, but ended up not counting it, because it felt like it didn't go into the history of these funerary practices enough. Still, I loved this. This is the first proper non-fiction book I've read, and considering I've been a fan of the author's YouTube channel for several years now, this felt like a good introduction to it! I'm definitely planning on reading her other books in the future. Doughty has a very fun writing style that make the concept of death a lot less daunting, while still treating the cultures and people she talks about with dignity and respect.
Some of the categories for the NYT Connections fills me with hatred and wrath. What do you mean “dog breeds with the first letter changed” i’ll kill you
amandla
prguitarman
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
turnnoffyourmind
gamechangershow
romaincrisis
gummygunk
