February 2025 Wrap Up

I’m a little late with my February 2025 wrap up. However, it was a good reading month, and I didn’t want to skip this wrap up, so better late than never. Let’s get to it.

Wind and Truth

Synopsis:

Dalinar Kholin challenged the evil god Odium to a contest of champions with the future of Roshar on the line. The Knights Radiant have only ten days to prepare—and the sudden ascension of the crafty and ruthless Taravangian to take Odium’s place has thrown everything into disarray.

Desperate fighting continues simultaneously worldwide—Adolin in Azir, Sigzil and Venli at the Shattered Plains, and Jasnah in Thaylenah. The former assassin, Szeth, must cleanse his homeland of Shinovar from the dark influence of the Unmade. He is accompanied by Kaladin, who faces a new battle helping Szeth fight his own demons . . . and who must do the same for the insane Herald of the Almighty, Ishar.

At the same time, Shallan, Renarin, and Rlain work to unravel the mystery behind the Unmade Ba-Ado-Mishram and her involvement in the enslavement of the singer race and in the ancient Knights Radiant killing their spren. And Dalinar and Navani seek an edge against Odium’s champion that can be found only in the Spiritual Realm, where memory and possibility combine in chaos. The fate of the entire Cosmere hangs in the balance.

My Rating: 4/5

My Full Review: https://wildwoodreads.com/2025/02/06/wind-and-truth-review/

Kings of the Wyld

Synopsis:

Clay Cooper and his band were once the best of the best.

Their glory days long past, the mercs have grown apart and grown old, fat, drunk, or a combination of the three. Then an ex-bandmate turns up at Clay’s door with a plea for help.

It’s time to get the band back together.

My Rating: 4/5

My Full Review: https://wildwoodreads.com/2025/02/19/kings-of-the-wyld-review/

The Bomber Mafia

Synopsis:

The Bomber Mafia weaves together the stories of a Dutch genius, a band of brothers in central Alabama, a British psychopath, and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard to examine one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history.
 
Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists, the “Bomber Mafia,” asked: What if precision bombing could cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal?  
 
In contrast, the bombing of Tokyo was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, whose brutal pragmatism cost thousands of civilian lives, but may have spared even more by averting a planned US invasion. In The Bomber Mafia, Gladwell asks, “Was it worth it?”
 
My Rating: 4/5

My Thoughts: I enjoyed this, but I think I might have rated it too high. It was an interesting listen but now I don’t remember one bit about it. And it was a little all over the place as far as switching from each group of people. I think I will back my rating down to a three.

Counting the Cost

Synopsis:

Jill and Derick knew a normal life wasn’t possible for them. As a star on the popular TLC reality show 19 Kids and Counting, Jill grew up in front of viewers who were fascinated by her family’s way of life. She was the responsible, second daughter of Jim Bob and Michelle’s nineteen kid. She didn’t protest the strict model of patriarchy that her family followed.

But as Jill got older, married Derick the red flags became too obvious to ignore.

For as long as they could, Jill and Derick tried to be obedient family members—but now they’re raising a family of their own. Thanks to time, tears, therapy, and blessings from God, they have the strength to share their journey. Theirs is a “complicated, remarkably relatable story of faith and family loyalty.

My Rating: 4/5

My Thoughts: This was a great read and what this couple went through was astonishing. This is a perfect example of misuse of religion. Keep in mind I am a Christian, but I absolutely do not agree with abuse and control disguised as “church.”

I Am Malala

Synopsis:

When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education.

On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school.

Instead, Malala’s miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she became a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest nominee ever for the Nobel Peace Prize.

I AM MALALA is the remarkable tale of a family uprooted by global terrorism, of the fight for girls’ education, of a father who, himself a school owner, championed and encouraged his daughter to write and attend school, and of brave parents who have a fierce love for their daughter in a society that prizes sons.

I AM MALALA will make you believe in the power of one person’s voice to inspire change in the world.

My Rating: 4/5

My Thoughts: Again, this was another great read. Malala is an inspiration. The fact that she almost lost her life standing up for education is heartbreaking. Everyone has a right to education without fearing for their lives. My only thought with this book is that there was some info dumping with history of the area that didn’t feel completely necessary. I was more interested in her life.

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Moon of the Crusted Snow

Synopsis:

With winter looming, a small northern Anishinaabe community goes dark. Cut off, people become passive and confused. Panic builds as the food supply dwindles. While the band council and a pocket of community members struggle to maintain order, an unexpected visitor arrives, escaping the crumbling society to the south. Soon after, others follow.

The community leadership loses its grip on power as the visitors manipulate the tired and hungry to take control of the reserve. Tensions rise and, as the months pass, so does the death toll due to sickness and despair. Frustrated by the building chaos, a group of young friends and their families turn to the land and Anishinaabe tradition in hopes of helping their community thrive again. Guided through the chaos by an unlikely leader named Evan Whitesky, they endeavor to restore order while grappling with a grave decision.

My Thoughts: This could have been great. I loved the concept. But the characters felt one dimensional and the dialogue was flat. I just couldn’t force myself to read it. I’ve heard the story gets great but there’s no point in reading something you’re not enjoying.

So that’s my February 2025 wrap up. What did you read in February?

Check out my last post here.