My Nine Books

17.10.2026 MarilkaLeave a comment

…or more like my 27 books, multiplied 🤣

I’m a bit late to the party, but finally got to try to do my nine books. Rather obviously one set of 9 was not enough 😝 So I made three sets – and even that only scratches some surface of the thousands of books I’ve read, even though not all of them “stay with me”. In many cases I could’ve picked multiple titles by the same author, but I stuck to picking one per author only.

I’ll treat you to all of them, books in sets:

Set 1: books from my early life (childhood > teens)

Home for a Bunny (Golden Book) – so beloved!
Seacrow Island, by Astrid Lindgren – the book that made me love reading (instead of listening only), and I could’ve listed several more of Lindgren novels here
Watership Down, by Richard Adams – oh, cry and laugh!
The Tripods trilogy, by John Christopher – my debut to SciFi and fantasy
The Thorn Birds, by Colleen McCullough – my coming of age book, but also there’s Tim, An Indecent Obsession, The Ladies of Missalonghi and so many more!
Exodus, by Leon Uris – another teen obsession, but also there was Mila 18, Trinity, Redemption (later on), The Haj…
The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas – and The Count of Monte Christo and many more!
Unknown Soldiers (Tuntematon sotilas), by Väinö Linna – a high school read I surprisingly actually read and it stuck
Pride and Prejudice – this actually came later in my life, I think, but still my Austen debut and first love (though my favorite Austen is actually The Northanger Abbey)

Set 2: books from the recent years (and earlier ones from authors I keep on reading)

One for the Money, by Janet Evanovich – got introduced to Evanovich when pregnant with my younger kid (who’s now 23yo) and I’ve read every single book she’d written
The House in the Cerulean Sea, by TJ Klune – my first Klune, made me fall in love with Klune, and could list here a couple dozen other Klune books
The House Witch, by Delemhach – this and the rest of the trilogy and the other related trilogies…
The Thousand Doors of January, by Alix E. Harrow – my favorite Harrow, there’s something special about this story
Neverwhere, by Neil Gaiman – while maybe not my favorite Gaiman (that might be The Ocean at the End of the Lane), but somehow the most profound one for me
The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern – my son recommended this to me and my god I loved this book!
The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, by V.E. Schwabb – stumbled upon this accidentally and it just was one of those books, you know
The Bone Door, by Frances White – a book from this year, I was a bit sceptical somehow, but then I read it and wow! Likely the best book of the year, one that stays with me forever
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries, by Heather Fawcett – There’s something about this series, the ambiance, the characters, everything…

Set 3: mix and match of books that didn’t make it to the other sets

Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott – I was debating between this and Anne of Green Gables since I could not fit both here 😀 but chose this one because it was the inspiration of my first (never finished) novel attempt
Song of the Highlands, by Sharon Gillenwater – a teen read, representing every book about Ireland I read as a teen (it was more than just this and Uris’ Trinity & Redemption)
The Name of the Rose, by Umberto Eco – we watched the movie in high school and I loved it and then read the book and it is one of the major influences of my teen years
Gone with the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell – at a point, I was obsessed, and could add here also Alenxandra Ripely’s Scarlett and Rhett Butler’s People by Donald McCaig
Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank – while a definite corner stone of my life in itself, also represents here all of the other books I once devoured about the Jews & the Holocaust of WW2
The Ultimate Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams – what can I say, it holds the secret of life, the universe and everything inside
The 1Q84 trilogy, by Haruki Murakami – my favorite Murakami (or second favorite if maybe Sputnik Sweetheart holds that place?) and well, it’s simply excellent
The Lost Bookshop, by Evie Woods – while one of my favorite books ever in itself, also representing an entire (sub)genre of beloved newer books for me: everything else by Woods, Meg Shaffer, and Heather Webber, and some other such ones too
The City of Dreaming Books, by Walter Moers – last but not least, Moers’ Zamonia books, but especially these Bookholm books, hold a firm place in this list. I just wish more of these would be translated as my German is NOT good enough…

[Made with https://myninebooks.com/]

Half year reading checkpoint 2026

6.7.20266.7.2026 MarilkaLeave a comment

At the end of June, at the half year mark of 2026, I had read 98 books, a total of 37 583 pages.That’s a lot of books, a lot of pages, a lot of enjoyment. I tried to translate that to hours > work days (8h), but it looked kinda rediculous. I mean, with an average of 40 pages/h it would make 120 work days (out of what, 176 days total?), with the average of 50 pages/h, 95 work days. Though, I DO read an average of 4,5h per day, so calculating with that, I have spent 99 work days (792h) reading, which makes 47 pages/hour. So ok, accurate, I guess.

I don’t have a life, I have multiple.

I’m generally no good at ranking anything – I mean, how does one REALLY choose a best of so many somethings that are all different and touch and delight me each in their unique way?

Still, I always try to somehow pick some favorite books to showcase in my yearly wrap-ups (blog posts), just to highlight some out of the mass. For the yearly review, I usually make several categories for this, but now, for the first time, I attempted a simple Best of H1/2026 ranking by selecting one for each month and narrowing it down from there.

I can tell you even THIS was NOT easy! Out of an average of 16 books per month, almost 100 books. I tried to go with a “If I had to choose only one of these to reread…” approach and this is what I got.

The winner is: The Impossible Garden of Clara Thorne, by Summer N. England.

Book wrap-up 2025

1.1.2026 MarilkaLeave a comment

I have to say, with a total of 163 books (60 137 pages), I’m too overwhelmed to make any top picks, but I’ll try to compile some top lists. First, though, let’s look at the stats a bit:

It’s all StoryGraph this time since it’s more accurate than Goodreads, but feel free to look at my Goodreads Year in Books 2025, if you like.

Now, for some top picks then. I did do a “book of the month” pick for my general Year 2025 review (post in Finnish), so that’s a good place to start, I guess. Though it IS a bit random, picking one of many excellent reads per month, but here you go, my Book of the Month picks:

Perhaps next up could be another round of picks throughout the year, 20 books along the way that I feel I want to highlight here. Some of them (well, quite many, actually) are part of a series, but since I they were separate reads instead of entire series in a binge (you know, starting a new series, latest published book in one, that kind of thing), they’re mentioned here, not in the favorite series list.

So, on to the top series then, ie. series with more than one book published, and that I read in their (current) entirety during last year (or as far as I had time to). So many series! I picked 11 favorites – no number in mind, just took the ones that stood out, even if only a little bit – which left at least a few good series unmentioned, but, you know.

I’m generally quite good at choosing my books and love or at least enjoy almost everything I read quite a bit, but there’s always bound to be some I thought and wanted to love but just didn’t, some I just didn’t like as well as I imagined I would, that simply aren’t my cuppa, and the sequels that simply do not live up to the expectations set by the preceding books in the series. I mean, I didn’t even DNF one single book, so even these 13 least liked books were by no means bad, just the ones I liked least or was disappointed with.

Well, that wraps it up rather neatly – though it DOES pain me not to be able to list all those other awesome books I read that didn’t make it on any of the top pick lists. So I’ll just add here the full set as a pic collage from the Goodreads Year in Books – and don’t forget my monthly reading wrap-ups! They include a bit of an intro to every book I read, too.

On to a new reading year! Starting with Whispers Most Deadly (Dunhollow 2) by Emma MacDonald (print), and The Burning Witch book 3 by Delemhach (Kindle), which, as mentioned, I’ve already read halfway.

December reads, 2025

1.1.2026 MarilkaLeave a comment

December is a tricky month in the way that there’s a lot of holidays that sort of offer more time to read, but then at the same time those holidays are full of baking and cooking and celebrating with the family. Also, some work events and my son’s graduation (though the party will be right after New Year). Still, I obviously found plenty of time to read too, finishing 13 books (5005pages), bringing the total of the year to a dazzling 163 books, 60 137 pages (year wrap-up to come). So, my last month of 2025:

The Austen Intrigue (Regency Secrets 4), by Julia Golding – another regency mystery solved by Dora and Jacob, this time with Jane Austen as the main supporting character. Charming and witty with a touch of danger, as always.
The Forget-Me-Not Library, by Heather Webber – a touch of magic and a lot of love and goodwill is the recipe for personal healing and finding a home in this lovely story. Webber at her best.
The Last Wish of Bristol Keats (The Courting of Bristol Keats 2), by Mary E. Pearson – while maybe I wasn’t entirely happy with the ending, it was still a rather excellent ending to this enchanting fae tale.
The House Witch trilogy, by Delemhach (Emilie Nikota) – a lowly cook, a peasant, a supposedly weak witch, who turns out to be a lot more than he seems. Not to mention his familiar, who all but ends up running the entire nation! Charming, hilarious, sweet and romantic, with mysteries to solve and the day to save; everything I love in a book!
The Princess of Potential (The House Witch 4), by Delemhach (Emilie Nikota) – the stand-alone book 4 is the story of princess Alina finding her potential, her love, and her place in the world, setting the scene for The Burning Witch trilogy. As excellent as the preceeding trilogy.
The Bookshop Below, by Georgia Summers – a bit of a disappointment as I so wanted to love this book, but ended up only liking it. It was it all, but the pace was too slow for me, it sort of slugs along in an ethereal way that is enchanting but not entirely engaging.
Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore, by Emily Krempholtz – now this one I simply devoured! Charming, quirky, warm and good at heart. A story of deception and new beginnings. Of victory over the evil, both without and within.
The House Saphir, by Marissa Mayer – magical mystery that reads like a fairytale. Absolutely loved the story and the unraveling of the history of the mystery at hand. Learning to trust, learning to ask for help, learning to love. Great read!
Books 1 & 2 of The Burning Witch trilogy, by Delemhach (Emilie Nikota) – Kat, the daughter of the House Witch, is charming though maybe a bit annoying (well, she does proudly hold the title of the most annoying person in the world). This book starts her story, how she finds her place, purpose and love. If she wasn’t a witch, I’d just call her ADHD.
Cackle, by Rachel Harrison – Start anew, get adopted by a witch, discover you’re a witch, find your own strength while being manipulated. I dunno. There was a lot to love in this story, but still I couldn’t, not entirely. Just rubbed me the wrong way, if only subtly.

Dec 14, I seem to have found a new series (of series) to obsess over: The House Witch series by Delemhach. I finished the first book last night and enjoyed it immensely! It’s humorous with lots of action, quirky lovable characters, loyalty and love. It radiates good will and warmth, that makes you believe that everythig will always turn our alright (and it does!) – even when there’s some evil plans threatening the totally adorable kingdom.

As noted, it seems to be an entire series of series – the original trilogy, the Burning Witch trilogy (daughter of the House Witch), a standalone story of the crown princess of Daxaria (The Princess of Potential), and The Ether Witch duology (or trilogy? is there a third book to come?*) about the son of the House Witch.

*) Yes, I learned that there will be a third and final book in the Ether Witch trilogy. Also, The Princess of Potential definitely stands as book 4 of The House Witch trilogy and should be read before The Burning Witch books, if one wants to read them in their (chrono)logical order.

Dec 23, I finished The Bookshop Below, by Georgia Summers, yesterday, and while I liked it a lot, I was disappointed that I didn’t love it like I had expected. It was a bit too slow paced, a bit too… ethereal, maybe? Today I started Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore, by Emily Krempholtz, and am happy to find that one seems to be exactly what I expected.

Vuoden poiminnat 2025

1.1.20261.1.2026 Marilka1 Comment

Josko tämän tällä kertaa suomeksi, kun kirjat ja statsit kuitenkin taas englanniksi. Vuoden poiminnat, kuukausi kerrallaan. Melko rauhallistaha tämä elämä nykyisin, tasaista kotielämää.

Tammikuu

Aloitin töissä uudessa roolissani Head of Delivery
Ace söi levyllisen tummaa suklaata, mutta selvittiin säikäyksellä

Kuukauden kirja: Paris – Paris Hilton

Helmikuu

Olin muutaman päivän Timmy-vahtina tosikoisen ollessa reissussa

Kuukauden kirja: Rachel Greenlaw – The Woodsmoke Women’s Book of Spells

Maaliskuu

Aurinkoinen mutta tuulinen päiväretki Inkooseen ja Tammisaareen
Ace 5v

Kuukauden kirja: Benjamin Alire Sáenz – Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Huhtikuu

Meggie 13v
Tosikoisen synttärikahvit

Kuukauden kirja: Mary E. Pearson – The Courting of Bristol Keats

Toukokuu

Timmy 13v
Isoäidin syntymästä 100 vuotta, kukkia haudalle

Kuukauden kirja: Colin Mochrie – Not Quite the Classics

Kesäkuu

Firman liikuntapäivä Fiskarsissa
Täytin 50v, kahvikekkerit perheen kesken
Jääkaappi-pakastin hajosi, uuden saamisessa olikin vähän draamaa mukana [A Tale of Two Fridges]

Kuukauden kirja: Sylvie Cathrall – A Letter from the Lonesome Shore