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Books I’ve read

I love reading! I always have a book on the go, and I can often be found between the shelves of my local library. I worked as a software developer at Wellcome Collection for seven years, where I got to see what makes a library tick.

I’m also a regular attendee of the London Ace Book Club, and have been since it started running in September 2022. It’s where I met my partner; we bonded over our love of books.

This page is where I keep notes on all the books I’ve read:

Books I read in 2026

I’ve read 40 books so far this year:

  • Atmosphere, by Taylor Jenkins Reid

    Things go wrong in space, with lesbians.
    Read 5 August. ★★★★★

  • Strange Pictures, by Uketsu

    Another fun Uketsu mystery with more free-form illustrations.
    Read 1 August. ★★★★☆

  • Strange Houses, by Uketsu

    A creepy murder mystery that could have gone longer.
    Read 1 August. ★★★★☆

  • Kill it with Fire, by Marianne Bellotti

    A thoughtful discussion of how to modernise software projects, and how to avoid needing it.
    Read 29 July. ★★★★★

  • I Want to Be a Wall, by Hanami Shirono

    A pleasant story about a lavender marriage that left little lasting impression.
    Read 23 July. ★★★☆☆

  • The Day Tripper, by James Goodhand

    A heartwarming story about a man who lives his life out of order, and how little changes affect the course of his life.
    Read 20 July. ★★★★★

  • Letters of Note: Cats, compiled by Shaun Usher

    A collection of letters I found less interesting than I’d hoped.
    Read 12 July. ★★★☆☆

  • Impact-First Product Teams, by Matt LeMay

    Useful lessons and stories about creating a team that aligns its goals with those of the business.
    Read 5 July. ★★★☆☆

  • She Gets the Girl at Christmas, by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick

    A stack of Christmas tropes and a sapphic romance hiding in a trenchcoat.
    Read 1 July. ★★★☆☆

  • She Gets the Girl, by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick

    A sapphic romance about the difference between fantasy and reality, and not taking people at first impression.
    Read 27 June. ★★★☆☆

  • The Last Bookshop in London, by Madeline Martin

    A charming story about the power of books and reading in the midst of war-torn London.
    Read 24 June. ★★★★☆

  • Sistersong, by Lucy Holland

    The three children of King Cador carve different paths for their lives, with Saxons at the door and magic in their blood.
    Read 18 June. ★★★★☆

  • Lifeboat at the End of the World, by Dominic Gregory

    A gripping, raw account of a lifeboat volunteer at Dungeness, dealing with some of the most tragic and politically-charged rescues of the modern RNLI.
    Read 11 June. ★★★★★

  • The French Girl, by Lexie Elliott

    A cold case resurfaces after a decade, and suspicion falls on a once close-knit group of friends.
    Read 7 June. ★★★★☆

  • The Teller of Small Fortunes, by Julie Leong

    A cosy fantasy with two-dimensional characters.
    Read 25 May. ★★★☆☆

  • No Matter What, by Cara Bastone

    What happens when a car accident shatters your happily ever after?
    Read 23 May. ★★★★☆

  • Leave the World Behind, by Rumaan Alam

    A grim and sticky story set amidst an unknowable disaster.
    Read 18 May. ★★★★☆

  • Punderworld Volume 2, by Linda Sejic

    A fun continuation of Punderworld, as Persephone tries to leave the realm of Hades.
    Read 12 May. ★★★★☆

  • Monstrous Regiment, by Terry Pratchett

    A beautiful blend of the absurdity of military and gender roles.
    Read 9 May. ★★★★★

  • Strange Buildings, by Uketsu

    A collection of mysteries and buildings that appear unrelated, but weave together into a gorgeous mystery.
    Read 5 May. ★★★★★

  • There is (still) love here, by Dean Atta

    A short and sweet collection of poems that explore the author’s identity.
    Read 3 May. ★★★☆☆

  • Love Expanded, by Wren Burke

    An intersection between ace/aro experiences and broader experiences of love and relationships; it’s a mix of queer theory and sociology.
    Read 28 April. ★★★★★

  • The People on Platform 5, by Clare Pooley

    A story about commuters who break the stereotype and start talking to each other, with a bunch of feel-good moments toward the end.
    Read 26 April. ★★★★☆

  • Time of Fog and Fire, by Rhys Bowen

    A pedestrian mystery novel.
    Read 22 April. ★★★☆☆

  • The Anatomy of Dreams, by Chloe Benjamin

    A psychological thriller that I enjoyed more once I realised it wasn’t the sci-fi suggested by the blurb.
    Read 18 April. ★★★☆☆

  • The Stranger in the Lifeboat, by Mitch Albom

    What looks like the mystery of a sinking ship is actually a story about faith and hope.
    Read 4 April. ★★★☆☆

  • Practical Doomsday, by Michał Zalewski

    A guide to personal disaster prepping that focuses on pragmatic advice over paranoia.
    Read 1 April. ★★★★☆

  • Lord of the Empty Isles, by Jules Arbeaux

    A young man seeking revenge realises he’s fighting the wrong person, in a space opera that explores grief and loss.
    Read 22 March. ★★★★☆

  • The Secret Detectives, by Ella Risbridger

    A fun children’s murder mystery set on a boat travelling from Calcutta to England.
    Read 16 March. ★★★★☆

  • Song of the Huntress, by Lucy Holland

    A love triangle set against the backdrop of early Britain and an invasion of undead kings that’s slow to start but finishes with a bang.
    Read 14 March. ★★★★☆

  • In the Blood, by Jenny T. Colgan

    Online rage as a deadly plague: a collection of clever ideas that fumbles the landing.
    Read 28 February. ★★★☆☆

  • How to Invent Everything, by Ryan North

    A history of human civilisation and its key inventions, packaged as a guide for the wayward time traveller.
    Read 22 February. ★★★★☆

  • King of Nothing, by Nathanael Lessore

    A teenager looks beyond his playground reputation, and realises that it’s better to be loved than to be feared.
    Read 11 February. ★★★★☆

  • What you are looking for is in the library, by Michiko Aoyama

    A librarian gives five people a book and a felt toy that changes their life, but not in the way they expected.
    Read 31 January. ★★★☆☆

  • How to Love, by Alex Norris

    A surprisingly sincere collection of advice about love and relationships which knows when to be funny and when to be serious.
    Read 29 January. ★★★★☆

  • Common Bonds, edited by Claudie Arseneault, C.T. Callahan, B.R. Sanders and RoAnna Sylver

    A mixed bag of speculative fiction about aromantic experiences that I wish I’d had more time to read.
    Read 27 January. ★★★☆☆

  • Becoming, by Laura Jane Williams

    A memoir about Williams finding a sense of identity and self-worth, which gets better the further you read.
    Read 25 January. ★★★★☆

  • Dream On, Ramona Riley, by Ashley Herring Blake

    This is a romance novel, the first in a new Clover Lake series, and I found it disappointing.
    Read 10 January. ★★★☆☆

  • Lilith, by Nikki Marmery

    This is a modern and feminist retelling of Lilith, a character I’m not very familiar with.
    Read 4 January. ★★★★☆

  • Dethroned in Knightsbridge, by Silvia Lemos

    Poetry collection by a Mincefluencer friend. We’re not close enough for me to know the story behind each of the poems, but I can sense it from her writing.
    Read 1 January. ★★★☆☆

Books I read in 2025

I read 61 books:

Books I read in 2024

I read 63 books:

Books I read in 2023

I read 78 books:

Books I read in 2022

I read 84 books:

Books I read in 2021

I read 61 books:

Books I read in 2020

I read 47 books:

Books I read in 2019

I read 66 books:

Books I read in 2018

I read 26 books:

Books I read in 2017

I read 27 books: