LibraryRat
@libraryrat.bsky.social
Horror fan (all formats), library worker, book guy
30. Golden Hill by Francis Spufford
Manhattan, 1746. Mr. Smith arrives at the counting-house with an order for 1000 pounds.
Why is he there? What's the money for?
Mr. Smith gets into all kinds of scrapes, and I really enjoyed following his story.
Really fun historical fiction.
💙📚
Manhattan, 1746. Mr. Smith arrives at the counting-house with an order for 1000 pounds.
Why is he there? What's the money for?
Mr. Smith gets into all kinds of scrapes, and I really enjoyed following his story.
Really fun historical fiction.
💙📚
August 29, 2025 at 1:25 AM
30. Golden Hill by Francis Spufford
Manhattan, 1746. Mr. Smith arrives at the counting-house with an order for 1000 pounds.
Why is he there? What's the money for?
Mr. Smith gets into all kinds of scrapes, and I really enjoyed following his story.
Really fun historical fiction.
💙📚
Manhattan, 1746. Mr. Smith arrives at the counting-house with an order for 1000 pounds.
Why is he there? What's the money for?
Mr. Smith gets into all kinds of scrapes, and I really enjoyed following his story.
Really fun historical fiction.
💙📚
29. Real Life by Brandon Taylor
Wallace, a gay Black graduate student, finds himself at a crossroads after his father dies. An unexpected encounter with a straight white man brings things to a head one weekend.
💙📚
Wallace, a gay Black graduate student, finds himself at a crossroads after his father dies. An unexpected encounter with a straight white man brings things to a head one weekend.
💙📚
August 15, 2025 at 2:53 AM
29. Real Life by Brandon Taylor
Wallace, a gay Black graduate student, finds himself at a crossroads after his father dies. An unexpected encounter with a straight white man brings things to a head one weekend.
💙📚
Wallace, a gay Black graduate student, finds himself at a crossroads after his father dies. An unexpected encounter with a straight white man brings things to a head one weekend.
💙📚
28. This Wretched Valley by Jenny Kiefer
Rock climbing trip goes wrong. Our protagonists can't get back to the car, no matter how long they walk. Also, ghosts. The land wants blood.
A good palate cleanser for me after a rough reading month in July.
🩸📚💙
Rock climbing trip goes wrong. Our protagonists can't get back to the car, no matter how long they walk. Also, ghosts. The land wants blood.
A good palate cleanser for me after a rough reading month in July.
🩸📚💙
August 5, 2025 at 11:09 PM
28. This Wretched Valley by Jenny Kiefer
Rock climbing trip goes wrong. Our protagonists can't get back to the car, no matter how long they walk. Also, ghosts. The land wants blood.
A good palate cleanser for me after a rough reading month in July.
🩸📚💙
Rock climbing trip goes wrong. Our protagonists can't get back to the car, no matter how long they walk. Also, ghosts. The land wants blood.
A good palate cleanser for me after a rough reading month in July.
🩸📚💙
27. Silence is My Mother Tongue by Sulaiman Addonia
Longlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction.
Solid novel about life in a refugee camp. I'm in a bit of a reading slump lately, and I never quite locked in to it. At least I finished it. Can't say that about some of my July reads.
💙📚
Longlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction.
Solid novel about life in a refugee camp. I'm in a bit of a reading slump lately, and I never quite locked in to it. At least I finished it. Can't say that about some of my July reads.
💙📚
July 27, 2025 at 11:04 PM
27. Silence is My Mother Tongue by Sulaiman Addonia
Longlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction.
Solid novel about life in a refugee camp. I'm in a bit of a reading slump lately, and I never quite locked in to it. At least I finished it. Can't say that about some of my July reads.
💙📚
Longlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction.
Solid novel about life in a refugee camp. I'm in a bit of a reading slump lately, and I never quite locked in to it. At least I finished it. Can't say that about some of my July reads.
💙📚
26. Nightmare Alley by William Lindsay Gresham
Small-time grifter Stan rises from magician in a carnival to Spiritualist preacher to the ultra-rich. Then he falls.
Stan is a dirtbag. The book is a bummer. But overall, a very well-written noir-adjacent story.
📚💙
Small-time grifter Stan rises from magician in a carnival to Spiritualist preacher to the ultra-rich. Then he falls.
Stan is a dirtbag. The book is a bummer. But overall, a very well-written noir-adjacent story.
📚💙
July 7, 2025 at 2:29 AM
26. Nightmare Alley by William Lindsay Gresham
Small-time grifter Stan rises from magician in a carnival to Spiritualist preacher to the ultra-rich. Then he falls.
Stan is a dirtbag. The book is a bummer. But overall, a very well-written noir-adjacent story.
📚💙
Small-time grifter Stan rises from magician in a carnival to Spiritualist preacher to the ultra-rich. Then he falls.
Stan is a dirtbag. The book is a bummer. But overall, a very well-written noir-adjacent story.
📚💙
25. The Haunting of Velkwood by Gwendolyn Kiste
Talitha returns to her old neighborhood, which has been been separate from our reality for the last twenty years. No one could enter or leave, except the three survivors.
Sad story about ghosts literal and figurative.
🩸📚💙
Talitha returns to her old neighborhood, which has been been separate from our reality for the last twenty years. No one could enter or leave, except the three survivors.
Sad story about ghosts literal and figurative.
🩸📚💙
June 27, 2025 at 2:33 AM
25. The Haunting of Velkwood by Gwendolyn Kiste
Talitha returns to her old neighborhood, which has been been separate from our reality for the last twenty years. No one could enter or leave, except the three survivors.
Sad story about ghosts literal and figurative.
🩸📚💙
Talitha returns to her old neighborhood, which has been been separate from our reality for the last twenty years. No one could enter or leave, except the three survivors.
Sad story about ghosts literal and figurative.
🩸📚💙
24. Blackwater Falls by Ausma Zehanat Khan
Detective Rahman is tasked with investigating the murder of a young woman whose body is found in a mosque.
Socially-conscious police procedural. Police corruption, racist Evangelicals, biker gangs, etc.
Good, but gets bogged down by info dumps.
⚡️📚💙
Detective Rahman is tasked with investigating the murder of a young woman whose body is found in a mosque.
Socially-conscious police procedural. Police corruption, racist Evangelicals, biker gangs, etc.
Good, but gets bogged down by info dumps.
⚡️📚💙
June 23, 2025 at 2:20 AM
24. Blackwater Falls by Ausma Zehanat Khan
Detective Rahman is tasked with investigating the murder of a young woman whose body is found in a mosque.
Socially-conscious police procedural. Police corruption, racist Evangelicals, biker gangs, etc.
Good, but gets bogged down by info dumps.
⚡️📚💙
Detective Rahman is tasked with investigating the murder of a young woman whose body is found in a mosque.
Socially-conscious police procedural. Police corruption, racist Evangelicals, biker gangs, etc.
Good, but gets bogged down by info dumps.
⚡️📚💙
23. The Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark
Angry men search for a murderer to hang. But are they on the right track?
Peer pressure is bad. Left me thinking about the consequences of my actions for hours.
📚💙
Angry men search for a murderer to hang. But are they on the right track?
Peer pressure is bad. Left me thinking about the consequences of my actions for hours.
📚💙
June 13, 2025 at 1:23 AM
23. The Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark
Angry men search for a murderer to hang. But are they on the right track?
Peer pressure is bad. Left me thinking about the consequences of my actions for hours.
📚💙
Angry men search for a murderer to hang. But are they on the right track?
Peer pressure is bad. Left me thinking about the consequences of my actions for hours.
📚💙
Good reading month! Expanding my reading outside of just horror has been beneficial for me this year. 💙📚
June 1, 2025 at 1:21 AM
Good reading month! Expanding my reading outside of just horror has been beneficial for me this year. 💙📚
22. How To Stand Up To a Dictator by Maria Ressa
Memoir by the Nobel-winning journalist. Goes over her career, as well as how social media is used to attack journalists and spread lies.
Sobering, but not without hope for the future.
💙📚💡
Memoir by the Nobel-winning journalist. Goes over her career, as well as how social media is used to attack journalists and spread lies.
Sobering, but not without hope for the future.
💙📚💡
May 31, 2025 at 2:55 AM
22. How To Stand Up To a Dictator by Maria Ressa
Memoir by the Nobel-winning journalist. Goes over her career, as well as how social media is used to attack journalists and spread lies.
Sobering, but not without hope for the future.
💙📚💡
Memoir by the Nobel-winning journalist. Goes over her career, as well as how social media is used to attack journalists and spread lies.
Sobering, but not without hope for the future.
💙📚💡
21. Maeve Fly by C.J. Leede
Maeve likes routine. She plays a theme-park princess and lives with her grandma. But when Gideon comes to town, routines are upset. And Maeve has to grapple with the parts of herself that she tries to ignore.
Super-dark humor, sex, and murder.
A great debut.
💙📚🩸
Maeve likes routine. She plays a theme-park princess and lives with her grandma. But when Gideon comes to town, routines are upset. And Maeve has to grapple with the parts of herself that she tries to ignore.
Super-dark humor, sex, and murder.
A great debut.
💙📚🩸
May 25, 2025 at 2:53 AM
21. Maeve Fly by C.J. Leede
Maeve likes routine. She plays a theme-park princess and lives with her grandma. But when Gideon comes to town, routines are upset. And Maeve has to grapple with the parts of herself that she tries to ignore.
Super-dark humor, sex, and murder.
A great debut.
💙📚🩸
Maeve likes routine. She plays a theme-park princess and lives with her grandma. But when Gideon comes to town, routines are upset. And Maeve has to grapple with the parts of herself that she tries to ignore.
Super-dark humor, sex, and murder.
A great debut.
💙📚🩸
20. Yellow Bird by Sierra Crane Murdoch
Lissa Yellow Bird searches for a missing oil worker. She's not long out of prison, and the oil boom on her reservation complicates things at all levels.
A little slow, but Lissa is super complicated and interesting.
💙📚
Lissa Yellow Bird searches for a missing oil worker. She's not long out of prison, and the oil boom on her reservation complicates things at all levels.
A little slow, but Lissa is super complicated and interesting.
💙📚
May 20, 2025 at 3:01 AM
20. Yellow Bird by Sierra Crane Murdoch
Lissa Yellow Bird searches for a missing oil worker. She's not long out of prison, and the oil boom on her reservation complicates things at all levels.
A little slow, but Lissa is super complicated and interesting.
💙📚
Lissa Yellow Bird searches for a missing oil worker. She's not long out of prison, and the oil boom on her reservation complicates things at all levels.
A little slow, but Lissa is super complicated and interesting.
💙📚
19. The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell
Three families are intertwined by an accident in Zambia. We follow these families over 100+ years, from British colonialism all the way to some light sci-fi.
Multi-generational epics aren't always my thing, but I dug this. Will look for more from Serpell.
💙📚
Three families are intertwined by an accident in Zambia. We follow these families over 100+ years, from British colonialism all the way to some light sci-fi.
Multi-generational epics aren't always my thing, but I dug this. Will look for more from Serpell.
💙📚
May 12, 2025 at 2:54 AM
19. The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell
Three families are intertwined by an accident in Zambia. We follow these families over 100+ years, from British colonialism all the way to some light sci-fi.
Multi-generational epics aren't always my thing, but I dug this. Will look for more from Serpell.
💙📚
Three families are intertwined by an accident in Zambia. We follow these families over 100+ years, from British colonialism all the way to some light sci-fi.
Multi-generational epics aren't always my thing, but I dug this. Will look for more from Serpell.
💙📚
18. Excavations by Hannah Michell
The skyscraper where Sae's husband is working construction collapses, but no one knows where he is. She goes searching for answers, and ends up with many more questions about her husband.
A decent thriller. I did learn a bit about South Korean history.
💙📚 ⚡️
The skyscraper where Sae's husband is working construction collapses, but no one knows where he is. She goes searching for answers, and ends up with many more questions about her husband.
A decent thriller. I did learn a bit about South Korean history.
💙📚 ⚡️
May 2, 2025 at 1:12 AM
18. Excavations by Hannah Michell
The skyscraper where Sae's husband is working construction collapses, but no one knows where he is. She goes searching for answers, and ends up with many more questions about her husband.
A decent thriller. I did learn a bit about South Korean history.
💙📚 ⚡️
The skyscraper where Sae's husband is working construction collapses, but no one knows where he is. She goes searching for answers, and ends up with many more questions about her husband.
A decent thriller. I did learn a bit about South Korean history.
💙📚 ⚡️
17. All the Frequent Troubles of Our Days by Rebecca Donner
The nonfiction story of Mildred Harnack, the American PhD student who was a central part of the resistance to Hitler in Berlin.
I was afraid this might be a slog. But it flies by. Regular people fighting back against tyranny.
💙📚 💡
The nonfiction story of Mildred Harnack, the American PhD student who was a central part of the resistance to Hitler in Berlin.
I was afraid this might be a slog. But it flies by. Regular people fighting back against tyranny.
💙📚 💡
April 28, 2025 at 12:55 AM
17. All the Frequent Troubles of Our Days by Rebecca Donner
The nonfiction story of Mildred Harnack, the American PhD student who was a central part of the resistance to Hitler in Berlin.
I was afraid this might be a slog. But it flies by. Regular people fighting back against tyranny.
💙📚 💡
The nonfiction story of Mildred Harnack, the American PhD student who was a central part of the resistance to Hitler in Berlin.
I was afraid this might be a slog. But it flies by. Regular people fighting back against tyranny.
💙📚 💡
16. All the Fiends of Hell by Adam Nevill
Karl wakes to find that everyone has disappeared.
Almost everyone. A few people remain. And terrible creatures roam the earth, half-seen, picking off the stragglers.
Creepy as hell. The apocalypse with a dude who's kind of a fuck-up. 🩸📚 💙
Karl wakes to find that everyone has disappeared.
Almost everyone. A few people remain. And terrible creatures roam the earth, half-seen, picking off the stragglers.
Creepy as hell. The apocalypse with a dude who's kind of a fuck-up. 🩸📚 💙
April 21, 2025 at 1:09 AM
16. All the Fiends of Hell by Adam Nevill
Karl wakes to find that everyone has disappeared.
Almost everyone. A few people remain. And terrible creatures roam the earth, half-seen, picking off the stragglers.
Creepy as hell. The apocalypse with a dude who's kind of a fuck-up. 🩸📚 💙
Karl wakes to find that everyone has disappeared.
Almost everyone. A few people remain. And terrible creatures roam the earth, half-seen, picking off the stragglers.
Creepy as hell. The apocalypse with a dude who's kind of a fuck-up. 🩸📚 💙
15. I Live a Life Like Yours by Jan Grue
Memoir of a man living with a disability, from school, all the way to marriage and becoming a parent.
This one was a lot for me, as I have a disability, myself. Very moving. Made me think about some things I don't love thinking about.
💙📚
Memoir of a man living with a disability, from school, all the way to marriage and becoming a parent.
This one was a lot for me, as I have a disability, myself. Very moving. Made me think about some things I don't love thinking about.
💙📚
April 13, 2025 at 2:26 AM
15. I Live a Life Like Yours by Jan Grue
Memoir of a man living with a disability, from school, all the way to marriage and becoming a parent.
This one was a lot for me, as I have a disability, myself. Very moving. Made me think about some things I don't love thinking about.
💙📚
Memoir of a man living with a disability, from school, all the way to marriage and becoming a parent.
This one was a lot for me, as I have a disability, myself. Very moving. Made me think about some things I don't love thinking about.
💙📚
14. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
A quiet novel about a priest who is far from home in New Mexico, and the forty years he spends there.
Enjoyed it most when I reminded myself to slow down and look for depth in the prose.
💙📚
A quiet novel about a priest who is far from home in New Mexico, and the forty years he spends there.
Enjoyed it most when I reminded myself to slow down and look for depth in the prose.
💙📚
April 9, 2025 at 3:34 AM
14. Death Comes for the Archbishop by Willa Cather
A quiet novel about a priest who is far from home in New Mexico, and the forty years he spends there.
Enjoyed it most when I reminded myself to slow down and look for depth in the prose.
💙📚
A quiet novel about a priest who is far from home in New Mexico, and the forty years he spends there.
Enjoyed it most when I reminded myself to slow down and look for depth in the prose.
💙📚
13. A Red Death by Walter Mosley
Mosley's second book about P.I.(?) Easy Rawlins
Easy's tax troubles will disappear if he shadows a Communist and reports back to the FBI.
Rawlins grapples with racism, guilt, and some murders.
A quick, fun read about a great character.
💙📚
Mosley's second book about P.I.(?) Easy Rawlins
Easy's tax troubles will disappear if he shadows a Communist and reports back to the FBI.
Rawlins grapples with racism, guilt, and some murders.
A quick, fun read about a great character.
💙📚
March 31, 2025 at 2:43 AM
13. A Red Death by Walter Mosley
Mosley's second book about P.I.(?) Easy Rawlins
Easy's tax troubles will disappear if he shadows a Communist and reports back to the FBI.
Rawlins grapples with racism, guilt, and some murders.
A quick, fun read about a great character.
💙📚
Mosley's second book about P.I.(?) Easy Rawlins
Easy's tax troubles will disappear if he shadows a Communist and reports back to the FBI.
Rawlins grapples with racism, guilt, and some murders.
A quick, fun read about a great character.
💙📚
12. Doppelganger by Naomi Klein
Klein starts with how she's often mistaken for anti-vax weirdo Naomi Wolf online, then moves outward to conspiracy theories, the wellness industry, climate change, and more.
Informative, and, in the end, inspiring.
💙📚
Klein starts with how she's often mistaken for anti-vax weirdo Naomi Wolf online, then moves outward to conspiracy theories, the wellness industry, climate change, and more.
Informative, and, in the end, inspiring.
💙📚
March 28, 2025 at 2:55 AM
12. Doppelganger by Naomi Klein
Klein starts with how she's often mistaken for anti-vax weirdo Naomi Wolf online, then moves outward to conspiracy theories, the wellness industry, climate change, and more.
Informative, and, in the end, inspiring.
💙📚
Klein starts with how she's often mistaken for anti-vax weirdo Naomi Wolf online, then moves outward to conspiracy theories, the wellness industry, climate change, and more.
Informative, and, in the end, inspiring.
💙📚
12. Mobility by Lydia Kiesling
Bunny (Elizabeth) grows from the teenaged daughter of a diplomat to a middle-aged bigwig in an oil company. In the background, climate change slowly brings the world to constant crisis.
I mean, sure, this was fine. But I'm not sure what the point was.
💙📚
Bunny (Elizabeth) grows from the teenaged daughter of a diplomat to a middle-aged bigwig in an oil company. In the background, climate change slowly brings the world to constant crisis.
I mean, sure, this was fine. But I'm not sure what the point was.
💙📚
March 21, 2025 at 1:58 AM
12. Mobility by Lydia Kiesling
Bunny (Elizabeth) grows from the teenaged daughter of a diplomat to a middle-aged bigwig in an oil company. In the background, climate change slowly brings the world to constant crisis.
I mean, sure, this was fine. But I'm not sure what the point was.
💙📚
Bunny (Elizabeth) grows from the teenaged daughter of a diplomat to a middle-aged bigwig in an oil company. In the background, climate change slowly brings the world to constant crisis.
I mean, sure, this was fine. But I'm not sure what the point was.
💙📚
11. They Were Her Property by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers
Asserts that in U.S. slavery, white women were often just as involved as men, despite how they have been depicted by historians.
"...they were not passive bystanders. They were co-conspirators."
Informative, but dry. Academic. 💙📚
Asserts that in U.S. slavery, white women were often just as involved as men, despite how they have been depicted by historians.
"...they were not passive bystanders. They were co-conspirators."
Informative, but dry. Academic. 💙📚
March 15, 2025 at 2:05 AM
11. They Were Her Property by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers
Asserts that in U.S. slavery, white women were often just as involved as men, despite how they have been depicted by historians.
"...they were not passive bystanders. They were co-conspirators."
Informative, but dry. Academic. 💙📚
Asserts that in U.S. slavery, white women were often just as involved as men, despite how they have been depicted by historians.
"...they were not passive bystanders. They were co-conspirators."
Informative, but dry. Academic. 💙📚
10. How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
When her parents die in a car crash, Louise goes home to clear out the house. iT'S packed with the remnants of her mom's puppet ministry.
Odd stuff happening in the house. The puppets are not entirely blameless.
Scary, funny, very entertaining. 📚💙🩸
When her parents die in a car crash, Louise goes home to clear out the house. iT'S packed with the remnants of her mom's puppet ministry.
Odd stuff happening in the house. The puppets are not entirely blameless.
Scary, funny, very entertaining. 📚💙🩸
March 7, 2025 at 3:14 AM
10. How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
When her parents die in a car crash, Louise goes home to clear out the house. iT'S packed with the remnants of her mom's puppet ministry.
Odd stuff happening in the house. The puppets are not entirely blameless.
Scary, funny, very entertaining. 📚💙🩸
When her parents die in a car crash, Louise goes home to clear out the house. iT'S packed with the remnants of her mom's puppet ministry.
Odd stuff happening in the house. The puppets are not entirely blameless.
Scary, funny, very entertaining. 📚💙🩸
9. Excellent Women by Barbara Pym
Mildred is a woman in her 30s. She's single in 1950s England. Because she's single, everyone thinks she's free to do them favors, and that she's desperate to marry.
I need to reread this someday. Never quite clicked. A failing on my part, not the book's.
💙📚
Mildred is a woman in her 30s. She's single in 1950s England. Because she's single, everyone thinks she's free to do them favors, and that she's desperate to marry.
I need to reread this someday. Never quite clicked. A failing on my part, not the book's.
💙📚
February 28, 2025 at 2:38 AM
9. Excellent Women by Barbara Pym
Mildred is a woman in her 30s. She's single in 1950s England. Because she's single, everyone thinks she's free to do them favors, and that she's desperate to marry.
I need to reread this someday. Never quite clicked. A failing on my part, not the book's.
💙📚
Mildred is a woman in her 30s. She's single in 1950s England. Because she's single, everyone thinks she's free to do them favors, and that she's desperate to marry.
I need to reread this someday. Never quite clicked. A failing on my part, not the book's.
💙📚
8. Fair Play by Tove Jansson
Trying to read more translated lit.
It's all vibes. Vignettes about Mari and Jonna. Longtime partners, a writer and artist.
They watch movies, bicker occasionally, get caught in some fog, etc.
Low-stakes snack of a read. Only 100 pgs.
📚💙
Trying to read more translated lit.
It's all vibes. Vignettes about Mari and Jonna. Longtime partners, a writer and artist.
They watch movies, bicker occasionally, get caught in some fog, etc.
Low-stakes snack of a read. Only 100 pgs.
📚💙
February 22, 2025 at 2:27 AM
8. Fair Play by Tove Jansson
Trying to read more translated lit.
It's all vibes. Vignettes about Mari and Jonna. Longtime partners, a writer and artist.
They watch movies, bicker occasionally, get caught in some fog, etc.
Low-stakes snack of a read. Only 100 pgs.
📚💙
Trying to read more translated lit.
It's all vibes. Vignettes about Mari and Jonna. Longtime partners, a writer and artist.
They watch movies, bicker occasionally, get caught in some fog, etc.
Low-stakes snack of a read. Only 100 pgs.
📚💙