In January, I read some amazing fiction books and a very interesting book about the supernatural world. There was also one almost out-dated motivational book and one thriller that had a pretty dark storyline. Here is what I read in January:
The Athena Package by Victoria Kimble
Set in a dystopian time, The Athena Package sets the scene for one young girl to fight for a better life. She is living in a caste system where the color of your armband determines how much education you can receive; and, therefore, what kind of job you can get. She’s stuck at the bottom and wants to spend her family’s precious data credits to train to be a nurse assistant. Then, a ransom note appears for her older sister demanding that the Athena Package be produced in exchange for her freedom. She knows her dad is hiding something but he won’t tell her, so she has to find out what the Athena Package is on her own.
We’ll Prescribe You Another Cat by Syou Ishida
I really enjoyed the first book by this author and was excited to see that the story had continued. We’ll Prescribe you Another Cat is a Japanese novel that has all characteristics of a Japanese mystic fairytale. People in need of a problem that needs to be fixed are drawn to a mental health clinic that is hard to find. Once there, they are often prescribed a cat to take care of. The cat ends up somehow changing the person’s perspective and fixing his or her problem. The two office workers might actually be cats themselves in disguise, but I think we’ll find out when the third novel comes out.
The Housemaid by Frieda McFadden
I don’t enjoy the rush of thrillers a lot since I read mostly before falling asleep, but a friend said I had to read The Housemaid. It had a good plot, with lots of twists, but the story ended up being rather dark. Justice wins in the end, but I’m not sure I’d recommend it unless you are a die-hard thriller fan.
Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson
I had Who Moved My Cheese? on my to-read shelf for years. I read it in one sitting and while it’s a good story about keeping your life moving on the right track, it’s a little bit dated in 2026. It would be a good motivational book to update with the current technological times, but the lessons do still apply.
A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh
I want to read Evelyn Waugh’s book on St. Helena, which led me to look at his other books. A Handful of Dust is a sad tale of a married couple who have become distant to each other. The wife seeks love in an affair and the husband becomes bereft when their son dies. It shows how a life without faith just ends up as a meaningless life.
How to Read a Book by Monica Wood
Violet is being released from prison at the age of 22. In prison, she was part of a book club led by Harriet. Her crime was falling in love with the wrong man and getting behind a wheel under the influence at his request. A person is dead because of her choices. Her family wants nothing to do with her when she gets out, so she has to establish a new life on her own. No one will hire her. Then, she runs into Harriet and a ghost from the past. Moving forward will take Violet down a path she never expected. I really enjoyed How to Read a Book. It’s a book about second chances and finding strength within.
Seeing the Supernatural by Lee Strobel
The subtitle explains everything Seeing the Supernatural is about – investigating angels, demons, mystical dreams, near-death encounters and other mysteries of the unseen world. Strobel is best known for this book A Case for Christ where he goes from atheist to believer after doing a journalistic investigation into whether Jesus really existed. This book delves into what he could find about supernatural occurrences and they are fascinating; however, he often just uses a main interview source and his depiction of some Catholic beliefs are incorrect.
