How to Fake It in Society by K.J. Charles: review

5/5 stars on Goodreads

How to Fake It in Society by KJ Charles

K.J. Charles has a skill of writing historical romances of ordinary people who are interesting without fancy titles or high social status. She gives her characters skills and occupations that are unique and meaningful for the plot instead of being mere gimmicks. And her gay historical romances never solely revolve around the fear of being found out but have their unique obstacles on the way to happily ever after.

How to Fake It in Society is about two men who know they’re not worthy of being loved. One because he’s been brought up to feel insignificant, and the other because he knows his entire life is a lie. They come together at the cross-roads in both of their lives, and each turns out to be exactly what the other needs in his life. But the lies are there and they’re not easy to forgive, as they’re exactly the kind that makes the other realise how unworthy of being loved he is. It takes a drastic turn for the two to find their happily ever after.

Titus Pilcrow has made a meagre living as a colourist, someone who makes oil and watercolours. But now he’s about to lose his shop, because his vindictive ex is his landlord. But his fate takes a drastic turn, when his elderly client pressures him to marry her on her deathbed so that her unworthy nephew won’t inherit a penny. And then she dies, leaving him a fortune.

Enter Nicolas-Marc, Comte de Valois de La Motte, who had quite counted on that fortune. He has a moneylender at his neck, and he needs funds fast. But instead of asking for money from Titus, he ends up befriending him. And it’s an excellent friendship that gives Titus much needed self-confidence and happiness, while making Nico feel like he isn’t a complete scammer. And then it all goes wrong, with no easy way out to happiness.

This was a delightful romance. I loved both men, their unique stories and especially Titus’ enthusiasm for colours. The detailed stories about different colours never felt stamped on just so the author could show her research. They had a role in the story, up to the climax. Bad guys had their comeuppances and good guys got everything lovely. The men came together in the end on their own terms, without lies or compromises. The reader can be sure that their union will last.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Platform Decay by Martha Wells: review

4/5 stars on Goodreads

Platform Decay by Martha Wells

Platform Decay is book 8 in the Murderbot Diaries. Like most books in the series, it’s more a long novella that only took four hours to read, but it’s a complete and satisfying story, with no cliffhanger ending.

Murderbot has arrived on a humongous planet-circling torus to free Dr Mensah’s family members Farai, Sofi and Naja, who have been captured by Barish-Estranza corporation in retaliation to events in the previous book. They’re already in a safehouse. Murderbot simply has to get there and take them safely back to their escape shuttle. But things get immediately complicated, because the person who has been helping them wants Murderbot to save other people too, and they’re in a completely different part of the torus, to a wrong direction from the shuttle.

The rescue mission takes them through different zones of the huge torus, some of which are civilised and some that are more like the Wild West. Some zones belong to B-E, others don’t, but that doesn’t stop the corporation from chasing them. Transportation turns out to be the greatest problem though. Murderbot isn’t happy with having clingy humans and their emotions to account for. It’s even less thrilled with its own new emotion module that keeps interrupting at worst possible moments.

This was an exciting flight through imaginative environments. Murderbot was mostly its sarcastic self again, with no imminent mental breakdowns anymore, as the emotion module did its job. It was trying new things like direct communication, which went about as well as one can imagine. And it realises that having some emotions isn’t all that bad, and sometimes it’s nice to be thanked and praised. Especially if it comes from small children.

The story isn’t entirely satisfying emotionally though. The setting is new, and the characters are again people the reader hasn’t really met before. They turn out to be nice additions, but the emotional connection isn’t there, like with Mensah, Amena or ART. Their interactions with Murderbot weren’t as funny or poignant either, though an understanding formed between them in the end. But there was Three, the SecUnit Murderbot freed, exercising its free will with unpredictable results. It was nice to follow the bond between the two. And the ending was satisfying, leaving everyone in a good place. I hope we’ll get more books soon.

Out Law by Jim Butcher: review

4/5 stars on Goodreads

Out Law by Jim Butcher

Out Law is book number 18.75 in Dresden Files series, an odd number considering there isn’t a book n:o 18.5 and it’s a long novella of almost 200 pages. I hadn’t read book 18, Twelve Months, which came out this January (2026), or the novella The Law (2022), which apparently set the stage for this one, and it’s been ages since I read the previous full book, Battle Ground, which came out in 2020. There were a lot I didn’t remember and a lot that had happened in Harry’s life since then, but I was able to read this perfectly fine without knowing all the details. Though now I’m spoiled for some of them, should I go and read the books I skipped.

Harry owes the crime boss Marcone a favour. Marcone decides to collect. A goon of his, Tripp Gregory, wants to get out of the life of crime by starting a charity to help children. But he’s gone about it in a very gangster way, which has landed him in trouble with the IRS, and a bookie who won’t pay up his winnings. Marcone wants Harry to help. Harry is reluctant, because he doesn’t like Tripp. But Marcone appeals to his moral core: you don’t always only get to help the people you like or who deserve your help.

What starts as a straightforward case gets a supernatural twist when someone sends a demonic entity to try and kill Tripp. It turns out, Harry has battled the entity before, and it’s kind of his fault that it’s on the loose. So, now it’s personal.

This was a good and compact, but full story with proper three acts and a good story arc. The old Harry was back, a bit grumpy but one that isn’t crushed with grief, guilt and PTSD. There were funny moments, and good banter. There were many life lessons delivered to Tripp who took them like a five-year-old who has never considered moral questions before. The enemy was powerful, but not overly so; Harry was powerful, but not overly so. I liked this. It returned my love for the series and I might continue with it again.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.