Joey (Joanna) hails from the Seattle area, but has called Bend home since 2020. She loves to travel, cook, go for walks, and read. When she's not at the bookstore, she also narrates audiobooks and writes fantasy and mystery. She was a high school English teacher for over a decade. So basically everything in her life is about books! She has school aged kiddos who are also avid readers, and a boat-designer husband who puts up with all the literary obsession in the house quite patiently.
Joey reads a little from every section in the bookstore, but mostly Fantasy, Mystery, and Young Adult. Even in general fiction, she usually looks for a little murder or magic thrown in--both is even better! Favorite authors include: V.E. Schwab, Diana Wynne Jones, Laini Taylor, Neil Gaiman, Ann Cleeves, and Leigh Bardugo. She also leads our Out of This World book club and would love to see you there!
CURRENTLY READING
If Jane Austen or Beatrix Potter developed the talents of monster hunter Van Helsing with a nice little side piece of rakish Mr Darcy in tow, worrying about how any bloodshed might blemish his perfectly tailored suits. Sexy, cozy, dangerous, fascinating, academic, all at once. Can this just be a new genre so there can be a LOT more books like it, please?
This fourth installment may be my favorite. It is certainly the most poignant. Love, loss, laughter, and getting the bad guy. These books make my life better and restore my belief in humanity.
An atmospheric and gorgeous gothic about belonging and found family, about confronting our fears and rewriting the scripts handed down to us. Plus a sentient house, a willful cat, spectral beasts and a children's book that is either a battle primer or a literary classic. Alix Harrow at her best.
I enjoyed this memoir/how-to manual for beginning witchcraft immensely. Helmuth approaches the daunting task of taking up a new religion, one which by its very identity resists orthodoxy and hard definitions, with a delightful mixture of curiosity, insecurity, wry humor, emotional intelligence, skepticism, and hope. A great book for any seeker with a penchant for woo woo. Helmuth moves beautifully through her year as a witch into a greater sense of self, nature, and the necessity for community so poignant in a post- pandemic world.
I was swept away by this romantic gothic fantasy, steeped in stormy coastlines and mad fairy kings. What made the book exquisite was the movement of Effy on a heroine's journey to reclaim her power from the uses and abuses of men.The moldering mansion falling slowly into the sea reminds me of the eerie setting in MEXICAN GOTHIC, and the underlying fairy lore evokes JONATHAN STRANGE & MR NORRELL. Reid is a masterful writer and I've fallen under her enchantment.
The fascinating world of chess has been made downright sexy in Hazelwood's YA debut. Relatable Mallory, shouldering her family's financial burdens, and inscrutable Nolan, #1 world ranked chess player, have instant magnetism. STEMinist-adjascent, an exceptional heroine competes in a traditionally male subject with all its casual misogyny. Hazelwood has done a fantastic job adjusting her content and references for "the youths" while not watering down her quippy humor or addictive romantic tension one bit. Such a fun read! I loved it!
This book evokes a fantasy alternate Egypt in the 1880s that is utterly immersive and bewitching. I felt like I had ridden down the Nile in a dahabeeyah, taken tea at the posh Shepheard Hotel, sifted through ancient sand at an archeological dig. Our heroine, Inez, is smart, brave, witty, and willful, and Whit makes for her perfect sparring partner. With unexpected twists and a cliff-hanger ending, This book left me anxiously awaiting the final installment of this lush, adventurous, romantic duology.
Baldree continues the world of Legends & Lattes with this charming prequel in which a younger, battle-wounded Viv is stuck in a sleepy seaside village while she recovers. Familiar themes abound: of found family, magic, outsmarting instead of overpowering enemies, burgeoning romance, and (of course) delicious baked goods. I loved returning to this world and appreciated Baldree's many delightful nods to the book world and readers through the titular bookshop. More cozy fantasies like this one, please!
The unique and vaguely sinister magic paired with delicious romantic tension reminded me of everything I loved about Naomi Novik’s Uprooted. The magic system was utterly ingenious and being inside Elspeth’s head, where the Nightmare is caged and her magic lies hidden, is a fascinating, dangerous, and inspiring place to be. The imminent sequel, which I was lucky to read an early copy of, has cemented this duology as my favorite fantasy series of recent years.
Enemies-to-lovers never looked so good on Jack, whose past professional wrongs are understandably disturbing, yet in person exudes a smoldering intensity and thoughtfulness that is utterly magnetic. Elsie's journey from people-pleasing to a woman who is assertive and self-aware is beautifully done. And their chemistry is page-searingly hot. STEMinist, sexy, and smart. Excuse me while I go read Hazelwood's entire backlist.
1830s Oxford is the setting for a young man's gradual awakening to the uncomfortable realities of colonialism, capitalism, and racism. Uniquely poised as both immigrant and British native son, as both a student with very little power and one of only a handful of people who could use his position to bring an empire to its knees, as both insider and outsider, Robin has to choose between a life of comfort or a life of danger and vague altruism. While I typically read fantasy to escape life's harsher realities, Babel entertained whilst it engaged with difficult and very relevant truths.
This book destroyed me: palpable longing, gut-wrenching tragedy, heartbreaking loss, sparkling wit, hilarious banter, psychological complexity, and broken family systems. At the heart are Harriet and Wyn, who I was dying to see end up together, even as Henry unfolds the very real and difficult circumstances that make it impossible. Her gags and one-liners and gorgeously wrought characters shine as bright as in her other works, but this one had a depth that will keep me thinking for a long time. And don't worry, the ending definitely satisfies.
A beautiful story, Flowerheart relays the coming-of-age of a young witch with unruly magic against a backdrop of cottagecore coziness and a friendship blossoming into love that is swoony from chapter one. Bakewell's magical world asks deeper questions about how society should address mental health needs and who should have the authority to decide what is right, but despite the story's deeper soul, the telling remains light and fast-moving. The main characters give Anne and Gilbert vibes (she even has red hair!) that sold me immediately. But so did the proliferation of flowers and the story of a headstrong witch making her own way in a world that fears her strength. I hope Bakewell writes more of Clara and Xavier!
This much-anticipated sequel does not disappoint! Bardugo returns with a Yale just as arcane, dangerous, and intriguing as in Ninth House, though Alex has become Virgil now–more confident and adept in her role at Lethe, even as she continues to break all the rules and perform increasingly elaborate rituals in her desperate search for Darlington. A new spate of murders complicates everything, providing the delicious mystery meets magic combo that Bardugo serves like a witch’s midnight feast. Characters continue to develop: Alex's relationships before Yale, including criminals she wishes had forgotten her; Darlington's childhood at Black Elm; and Turner's less than spotless history in law enforcement. Meanwhile new characters rise to the fore, including Alex's roommate Mercy, Lethe's Oculus aka Pamela Dawes, and hapless blueblood Tripp Helmuth. Bardugo weaves the perfect tapestry of magical intrigue, gritty survival, and academic grandeur for an impeccable darkly glittering atmosphere. How will we bear waiting for book three?!
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