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January was a great month for reading. Honestly, I owe it to one thing and one thing only: I acquired a treadmill. How does one pass 30–45 minutes on a treadmill twice a day in the easiest way possible? With reading, of course!
Thanks to that, I blew through books this month, and I intend to keep up this habit for the rest of the year. Plus, it gives me a great anchor point to share what’s on my shelf and track my favourites for the year. Let’s dive in to the books I read this month, ranked from my least to most favourite.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Devil’s Pocketbook – Ross Jeffery
- A couple grieving the loss of their baby visits a small seaside town in an attempt to heal and reconnect in their marriage.
- A strange vessel washes up from the sea, with a “special gift” inside.
- After they take this “gift” home, reality begins to bend, and the couple becomes swept into psychological turmoil and a dark fight for survival.
This book was interesting enough to keep me reading until the end, but I can’t say it was one of my favourites. That said, readers interested in dark mysteries and horror should check it out.
The Devil’s Pocketbook was first released in 2023, but a new edition is being published under CLASH Books this coming August. Thank you to NetGalley and CLASH Books for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
Atmosphere – Taylor Jenkins Reid
- In the summer of 1980, Joan Goodwin is accepted to join NASA’s space shuttle program, after a call for women scientists to apply.
- There, she becomes friends with her fellow trainees as they prepare to embark on their first space flights.
- An unexpected romance forces Joan to question everything she thought she knew about herself and her place in the world.
The initial appeal of this book, for me, was the space and science themes—which it has of course, but I wouldn’t call this a true sci-fi novel; it leans more toward romance.
The structure of this story is strong. In December 1984, things take a dramatic turn on the STS-LR9 mission. The novel then switches back and forth to what’s happening on the mission in the present day and the development of the relationships among the astronauts up to that time.
It was well written, thrilling, and an enjoyable read overall. I recommend this one for book clubs that are looking for a more interesting twist on traditional romance.
Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI – Yuval Noah Harari
I was super excited to read this one given Sapiens is one of my favourite books. Yuval Noah Harari has an excellent way of delivering a clear thesis with complex-but-accessible reasoning to support his claims. His research is thorough, and his writing makes even the most dry subjects interesting.
As high as my hopes were, this one didn’t quite measure up to the “wow” factor of Sapiens, but it was a great read nonetheless—especially now, when any conversation around AI tends to be all doom and gloom. And I’m not saying AI isn’t to be feared, but I was interested in this book because I wanted to understand why.
Harari dives deep into the extensive history of information networks, bureaucracy, and the increasing fallibility of truth. I was hoping this book would bring some optimism to my own AI fears, but if anything, it made them worse. That said, I respect Harari for giving honest and clear opinions about the dangers we face, and how we can mitigate the risks AI presents to us.
Project Hail Mary – Andy Weir
- Ryland Grace wakes up from a coma on a spaceship, unsure of where he is or how he ended up there.
- Slowly, he remembers he’s on a mission to save the Earth from a dying sun. Sent light years away with two other astronauts, he’s the only one who survived the trip.
- He soon discovers an unexpected comrade: an extraterrestrial being who happens to be on the same mission.
It’s going to be difficult for anything else I read this year to top this. The bar has been set sky-high, pun intended.
This book is beautifully written, brilliant, and the perfect mix of suspenseful, devastating, and heartwarming. Despite its dark subject matter and eerie atmosphere, Weir manages to write with sharpness and wit, creating a story that’s both scientifically fascinating and endlessly entertaining to read. I was hooked from the first sentence, and it left a hole in my soul when I finished it. The hype for this book is deserved.
If you love sci-fi, the movies Interstellar and Wall-E, spaceships, and dark comedy, don’t sleep on this one. The movie, starring Ryan Gosling, is coming out in theatres March 20th!
I’ll probably back off from the robots, space, and science themes for my February picks, but the year is off to a strong start. What’s your number one read for 2026 so far?
See you soon,
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