May 2026 Reads...

Below are the books I read in May along with my thoughts on them. I'm not doing any formal reading challenges this year, but I am continuing to read diversely. In May, I continued to read books by Autistic Authors. . In June, I'm reading books that fall under the 2SLGBTQIA+ umbrella, whether the author or the main characters. Mostly both. In July, I'm reading Canadian authors, and in August I'm reading Indigenous authors. They are all books that I already have on my bookshelves, whether digital or physical. I've also started listening to audiobooks through the Libby app when I'm walking my dog, but since I can only listen to what's available at the time, the title I pick may not fall under the above categories. In September, it will be time to read the books that I had pre-ordered for the year, as they will all be out by September 1st.

---

THE RIPPLE EFFECT by Maggie North

The Ripple Effect is a second chance (after a one-night stand and ghosting) opposites attract wilderness romance with lots of pinning, second guessing, and attitude. We first meet Stellar and McHuge in Rules for Second Chances, and it was nice to see them get their own story. But their ride to romance was much different than Liz and Tobin's. While both characters are very strong-willed and stubborn, they emote it in much different ways. Stellar is small and angry while Lyle is very large and lets things roll off him. This leads to a lot of angst and misunderstandings between the two of them as Stellar helps McHuge with his new business venture as a favour to her best friend, Liz. What they do have in common is how much they care for others and their belief in fairness. Though, once again, they show it in very different ways. In this story, both characters must face demons from their childhoods and learn to communicate with each other while helping other couples strengthen their own relationships with some white water rafting thrown in. It really is quite the ride and another fabulous romance from Maggie North. Looking forward to the next one!

---

THE LUMINOUS DEAD by Caitlin Starling
​
Although this book is considered a sci-fi horror, it was not exactly a horror in the way that I expected. The story is set on a faraway mining planet, and caver Gyre is anxious to take a new mission to earn money to find her mother who left when she was young. As she gets further into the mission, she learns that it is far from the usual mapping of mineral deposits that she expected. Her guide, Em, is not much older than herself, and has her skipping past all the usual significant discoveries for something beyond. 

I found this story to be good and it mostly kept my interest throughout, but I would have liked the fear of the Tunneler, a deadly creature that we don't meet until the end of the book, to be enhanced toward the beginning. As a reader, I knew it was nearby, but didn't understand the fear until the actual encounter. I also would have like to have seen the relationship between Gyre and Em develop a little deeper. I didn't understand Gyre's sudden feelings for Em. They seemed out of the blue. The first half of the story spent a lot of time on the specifics of cave diving. If this is your special interest, you will LOVE this book! To me, the horror came from Gyre being alone in the caves for so long and encountering dead bodies of previous divers along the way, that it drove her to madness. Also, the dangers of cave diving on its own. The ending was satisfying.

---

THE REASON I JUMP by Naoki Higashida & translated by KA Yoshida and David Mitchell 

This book has been recommended for parents of Autistic children as well as others in order to understand a neurodivergent child. Especially those with higher support needs, and those who have difficulty with speech communication. While I think this book is a great place to start in order for people to be more understanding and compassionate with Autistic children, I think this book is slightly outdated and gives some inaccurate information. Autism and Asperger's are still separate diagnosis here instead of under the umbrella of ASD, and Autism is still described as linear rather than a multi-faceted spectrum. Plus, I feel that there is somewhat of a translator bias. The author explains why he does the things he does and how it feels for him, which is wonderful and helpful. But when asked about sensitivities he doesn't have, he guesses. And that is one issue I have with this book. My child and I both have food sensitivities, and forcing someone to eat something they have a sensitivity to only makes things worse. Plus, I know several Autistic people with an aversion to water. I wish he would have just left his answer at, "I don't know." Also, there are so many co-occuring conditions that Autistic people often have, such as Apraxia and Developmental Coordination Disorder, which are enveloped under the Autism umbrella here, but should be considered separate conditions in order to help the person. I don't want to discount this book, because I believe it can be very helpful, but I think it is simply a starting place, and readers should continue to look for more books from Autistic authors and even social media accounts run by Autistic people (not psychologists or those who are all about finding a cause and a cure for Autism) in order to understand and help the Autistic people in their lives. And also to realize that each Autistic person's experience is different from the next. We are not a monolith.

---