Sonya Cheney

Writer. Witch. Creatrix.

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reading wrap up | january 2021

February 5, 2021 by Sonya Cheney Leave a Comment

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I read six books this month, making it a point to try to check off some of my “21 in ’21” TBR books. Honestly, I exceeded my own expectations by reading two off that list. I still have a long year ahead of me as far as reading goals go, but I made good headway in January.

Circe by Madeline Miller // This is one of two books from my “21 in ’21” reading list that I created at the beginning of the year in the back of my Passion Planner, and I am. SO. GLAD. I finally gave it a read. I’ve heard such good things about it for so long, and rightly so. It’s a beautifully written book, and such a fun take on Greek mythology. There are certain parts of the book that made me say I don’t want to be Circe, but I would definitely like to embody some of her traits in my personal life.

An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green // Two things: First, I think this was my favorite book of January. Second, I think…I might like Hank’s book better than John’s books. I know it’s not a competition, and to be honest, it’s been years since I read one of John Green’s novels (the last was Turtles All the Way Down right after it came out), but I just can’t stop thinking about An Absolutely Remarkable Thing. I want to recommend it to everyone, and I immediately borrowed the sequel from the library when I finished it. It’s such an excellent exploration of social media life and humankind, and yes, I did get a little watery in the eyeballs as I read.

My Calamity Jane by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, and Jodi Meadows // The second from my “21 in ’21” and my first Lady Janies novel, and I’m glad it was this one. To be honest, the other two in the series haven’t much interested me (especially given that I’ve never even read Jane Eyre), but every once in a while I’m in the mood for a Western, and this was just the one I needed. I did not realize going into it that werewolves were a part of the story, so I was a little skeptical at first, but I’m happy to report that I stuck it out and had a rollicking good time with this one.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery // An absolutely beautiful classic. I love Anne with an E, my first interaction with Anne Shirley, and of course I had to get to the book eventually. I’m now on the hunt for a copy of the next book in the series that matches the edition of Anne of Green Gables that I bought because I must keep indulging in her world.

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold // I already wrote a separate post reviewing this book but, spoiler alert, it was excellent.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by J.R.R. Tolkien // Okay, technically I read this one in November, December, and January, but I finished it in January, so it’s a part of the wrap up. I didn’t feel myself loving this one as much as I did The Fellowship of the Ring, and I think part of it was the way it was essentially two books in one–following Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas separately from Frodo and Sam. Which of course makes sense, but I think I might have had an easier time getting through it if the teams had had alternating chapters rather than a “book one” and “book two” set up within the novel. But, I mean…there were Ents, so I really can’t complain.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: books, reading, reading wrap up

book review | the five: the untold lives of the women killed by jack the ripper by hallie rubenhold

January 22, 2021 by Sonya Cheney Leave a Comment

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Holy tragedy, Batman.

If this book hadn’t been what it was, I might say I needed a drink after reading it. I learned about it from the horror podcast Good Mourning, Nancy when they covered the movie From Hell in July 2020, and as the hosts discussed this book, I knew that I needed to add it to my library list. I’m so grateful for them spreading the word of this good book and for its existence at all.

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper is not your typical Jack the Ripper book; in fact, it hardly is one at all, and that’s one of the best parts about it. Hallie Rubenhold’s collection of biographies on the women who fell victim to one of history’s most notable killers is an important book to recognize and to read. Rubenhold teaches readers about the individual lives of each woman; we get to know them, feel for them, and weather the ups and ultimate downs of their lives with them one at a time as Rubenhold guides us through the Victorian London of Jack the Ripper’s victims.

There are clear themes and threads weaving throughout each woman’s life—alcoholism, patriarchy, and sometimes sheer bad luck. So many of these women were not who we’ve been taught they were. They weren’t caricatures of sex workers; they were victims of circumstance. Sometimes we forget that they were real women with real lives, but Rubenhold’s book strives to readers of that with intensity. Her thorough research and direct presentation of each woman’s life demonstrate a passion, frustration, and empathy not often seen in tales of Jack the Ripper. This isn’t his story; it’s theirs.

Sometimes, though, it could be a bit too thorough. Rubenhold’s commitment to presenting the history could at times become wearisome. I found myself having to go back and reread pages once in a while, either because I’d lost focus and hadn’t retained what I read or because there was so much information presented at once. It’s admirable, but the tone was a bit too textbook for attention keeping at times. This isn’t a historical retelling or a fictional representation; it doesn’t even stray into creative nonfiction. With the exception of speculation presented by Rubenhold over unknown details of the women’s lives—Mary Jane Kelly, in particular—the book is quite straightforward in its presentation of facts. Part way through reading, I switched the audiobook in the hope that it would keep my attention easier, and I’d recommend this approach for anyone who might find the tone challenging.

Overall, though, The Five is a fascinating and necessary look at the lives and the London of the women destined to become a part of a dark history. Rubenhold’s passion can’t be denied, and it’s a commendable endeavor to show the world these women were more than “just” the sex workers that the media, and by extension history, have painted them to be. It’s taken nearly 150 years for their narratives to be set right. Their tragedy wasn’t the deserved result of an “immoral life” as the newspapers of the time would have people think. It was the culmination of challenges presented by the time in which they existed. It’s owed to their memory to present them as more than the archetypal fallen women destined for destruction. They were victims not only of Jack the Ripper but of a harsh world that wasn’t built for their success.

Polly Nichols. Annie Chapman. Elizabeth Stride. Catherine Eddowes. Mary Jane Kelly. They were the victims. They were the women. They were the five. They are the women lost to the inky pages of history, salacious rumor, and the knife of a killer. Their stories are important, and Hallie Rubenhold’s book details their lives to provide an alternative to the history that we all thought we knew. This book is exactly what she presents it as: It is truly the untold lives of these women, and it’s something they’re owed after decades of being side characters in a psychopath’s story.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: book review, books

recent reads | winter 2020.

March 21, 2020 by Sonya Cheney Leave a Comment

I’ve decided that I’m going to do a seasonal wrap up of what I’ve been reading. I won’t review everything, and what I do review won’t be long or particularly “professional” sounding, but I do want to share because I love knowing what others are reading or have read. It’s a great way to find something new to add to my TBR (as if I need to add to it at all), and it’s fun to hear what others think about something I’ve read as well.

Winter Top Three

American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century by Maureen Callahan // It’s not often that books terrify me, but when they do, it’s usually because they’re nonfiction, and humans are scarier than any monster the imagination could conjure up. I can’t remember where I first learned about this book, but it was quickly added to my TBR late last year, and I finally got around to reading it in January after my library hold on it came in.

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty // I haven’t watched the show—simply because we don’t get HBO—but this was the first book that I read after I got my Kindle in February, and I devoured it. I was frantically texting my friend Kat all of my theories because she has seen the show, and it was pure fun and entertainment, even with the very difficult topics within the book.

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas // This one. I read this one after years of hype, and I kind of just picked it up on a whim because I’d been watching booktube videos again, so it was back on my radar. After only a few chapters, I knew I was in love. I don’t read a ton of fantasy novels—YA or otherwise—but this one is a deserving exception to my rule. (Which isn’t a rule—I just don’t pick them up as often as contemporaries.) This book was so much fun, and I even told Dan that I wished he’d been home as I read the climax of the novel so he could see my face as I was FREAKING OUT. I cannot wait to continue with the series.

Other Books I Read This Winter

  • Lady Killers: Deadly Women Throughout History by Tori Telfer
  • Monster, She Wrote: The Women Who Pioneered Horror and Speculative Fiction by Lisa Kroger and Melanie R. Anderson
  • Jigsaw Youth by Tiffany Scandal
  • Super You: Release Your Inner Superhero by Emily V. Gordon
  • Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life by Ruth Franklin
  • Big Dreams Daily Joys by Elise Blaha Cripe
  • Let Me Tell You: New Stories, Essays, and Other Writings by Shirley Jackson
  • To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
  • PS, I Still Love You by Jenny Han
  • Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han
  • Wicca: A Modern Guide to Witchcraft and Magick by Harmony Nice
  • Before You Cast a Spell by Carl McColman
  • The Door to Witchcraft: A New Witch’s Guide to History, Traditions, and Modern-Day Spells by Tonya A. Brown
  • The Thorn Necklace: Healing Through Writing and the Creative Process by Francesca Lia Block
  • This Lie Will Kill You by Chelsea Pitcher
  • The Witches are Coming by Lindy West

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: books, recent reads

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