Ever read a book you didn’t want to? Sure, school and work present lots of opportunities for reads that may land squarely in the “I don’t want to” category. But these reading opportunities are not what you would call “reading for pleasure.” So, excluding necessary reads, do you finish every book you start? I…do…not. I have no problem stopping a book shortly after I start. I usually give a book twenty pages and if it doesn’t interest me in those first twenty pages, so long. Harsh, huh. I realize that I have passed up exceptional stories that may take a while to develop but in my defense, there are lots of exceptional stories out there.

All of this leads me to my current conundrum. I am having a difficult time staying interested in the book I am reading. Nevertheless, I feel compelled to finish this current book; which is, The Whatnot by Stefan Bachmann. Frankly, I am surprised I am struggling, this book should be right up my ally but I find myself dragging my feet. Maybe I am struggling because it is the second in a series and the author has taken a turn in the plot that I was not prepared for from reading the first book. But, I am a book quitter, so why am I still reading? Perhaps I want the book to take a turn for the better and since I have invested this much time so far, why not finish out the next 200 pages. Or, better yet, maybe the universe wanted me to share this book with you because it should be your next most pleasing read. I like the sounds of that. So, here is a brief synopsis for you to chew on.

The Peculiar by Bachmann is the first book in this interesting series. From the very first page, Bachmann successfully creates a realm of wonderful oddities. Both books The Peculiar and The Whatnot are set in a world that is very like an industrial-age England we may recognize and adds a healthy dose of the steampunk genre’s bizarre machinery. But Bachmann then diverges from our common reality to create a world inhabited with fantastic creatures. Malevolent fairies, gnomes, and sprites challenge our Disney inspired imaginations with each turn of the page. Bachmann weaves a tale of familial bonds and unlikely heroes. But above all else, Bachmann constructs a story of collision where two very different worlds cannot help but collide and those individuals caught in the middle usually pay the highest price.

Maybe this series is your next read. Doesn’t it sound good.