Rhododendron Compendium | Whidbey: A Novel

Whidbey: A Novel

T Kira Madden

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“Epic in its scope, intimate in its evocation, Whidbey reads like a thriller, compels like a mystery and regarding the human condition, converses with the classics. This is the book everyone will be talking about.” — Adam Johnson, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winning author of The Orphan Master’s Son and Fortune Smiles

A portrait of three women connected through one man in the aftermath of his murder—a stunning literary achievement and the explosive and highly anticipated debut novel from beloved award-winning memoirist T Kira Madden.

Birdie Chang didn’t know anything about Whidbey Island when she chose it, only that it was about as far away as she could get from her own life. She’s a woman on the run, desperate for an escape from the headlines back home and the look of concern in her girlfriend’s eyes—and from Calvin Boyer, the man who abused her as a child and who’s now resurfaced. On her way, she has an unnerving encounter with a stranger on the ferry who offers her a proposition, a sinister solution and plan for revenge.

But Birdie isn’t the only girl Calvin harmed back then. There’s also Linzie King, a former reality TV star who recently wrote all about it in her bestselling memoir. Though the two women have never met, their stories intertwine. Once Birdie arrives on Whidbey, she finally cracks the book’s spine, only to find too much she recognizes in its pages. Soon after, on the other side of the country, Calvin’s loving mother, Mary-Beth, receives a shocking phone call from the police: her only son has been murdered.

Calvin’s death sets into motion a series of events that sends each woman on a desperate search for answers. A complex whodunit told from alternating points of view, Whidbey is searingly perceptive and astonishingly original. Exploring the long reach of violence and our flawed systems of incarceration and rehabilitation, this is a tense and provocative debut that’s sure to incite crucial questions about the pursuit of justice and who has real power over a story: the one who lives it, or the one who tells it?

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Posts about this title from Rhododendron Compendium

Rhododendron Compendium\ \ Syd <3\ \ • Mar 26

https://fable.co/club/kindred-readers-book-club-with-syd-490517587538?invite=a8e687d0-803c-412a-9180-e0ce071d21c4\ \ The Kindred Readers Book Club is now LIVE on Fable for ALL MEMBERS !! \ \ Inner Circle members will soon be able to vote on the book we read for the month of April !! For just $5 !! You will also be able to vote on books you want to see me read, YouTube video ideas + a whole lot more. We will also hold exclusive movie nights and reading sprints each month for Inner Circle members. We will also hold public reading sprints each month so all members will feel included. Inner Circle members will also get exclusive YouTube videos. In this post I have included a list of potential picks for the Kindred Readers Book Club for the month of April !! This list may be set to change when the poll comes but just giving you potential options to encouraging you to become an Inner Circle member !! \ \ Potential Book Club Picks for April: \ \ Spoiled Milk by Avery Curran\ \ Sisters in Yellow by Mieko Kawakami\ \ The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri\ \ So Old, So Young by Grant Ginder\ \ Whidbey by T Kira Madden\ \ Burn Down Master’s House by Clay Cane\ \ love yall ughhhhh (the hudson williams way)

Kindred Readers Book Club is LIVE

6 books

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Sapph-Lit\ \ Nina\ \ • Jul 24

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Hello my Bindery Babes! I know it's only been a few weeks since we voted on what to read for August, but I want to give our library Sapph-Litties extra time to reserve our September read if need be.\ \ I usually have Sapph-Lit picks planned out at least three months in advance, but I feel like time has been flying and it's been hard to keep up this summer especially! This is me setting the intention to plan better as we go into our last four reads of 2026, all of which are FICTION.\ \ As always, I've compiled a longlist of books I'm seeing all over social and on bookstore shelves as of late. Scroll through the covers to see what stands out to you and click into them to learn more about them. These are titles that are exciting to me and I want to introduce you to! \ \ If there is anything in here that speaks to you, shout it out in the comments, and even better, if there's a title you don't see please share that too!\ \ Have a WONDERFUL weekend my Sapph-Litties -- love you all so much and thank you for being here! Let's end this summer with a BANGER of a read xoxo Nina\ \ Upgrade for $5 or login

Sapph-Lit SEPTEMBER 2026 fiction book poll!

What should we read as we transition into fall? Another romance? Some lit fic? Perhaps something else entirely? Share your thoughts in the comments!

9 books

Casey the Reader\ \ Casey\ \ • Jul 15

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Waaaughhh how is this year half over already?! These are my 11 faves so far (yes, 11, I could absolutely not narrow it down any further than that)! They're in no particular order, and I've popped in my mini reviews for each just in case you missed them the first time around. Books marked with a * are books that were gifted to me.\ \ Shapes of Love by L.V. Peñalba* - SHAPES OF LOVE is my new favorite book featuring an aspec character. This book so beautifully covers the many nuances of aromantic and asexual identities and the various forms their close relationships can take. I really loved how Sasha pushed hard against the idea that friend love can’t be as meaningful and important as romantic love. The book lets her make some mistakes around that belief as well, which I liked. Everyone in this book makes mistakes, learns, and has complex conversations about it all. The characters are racially diverse as well, adding yet another layer to the complexity of coming out. \ \ Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell - This is the most devastating book I've read in years. Just absolutely a tear your hair out and lay on the floor crying kind of book. I didn't want to keep reading it but I also couldn't stop reading it. Somehow, it feels like the events of the book are happening to you as you read it. I particularly loved how it both mattered and didn't matter at all that Agnes' husband was William Shakespeare. Who cares, when you're that in the depths of grief? Agnes' touch of the supernatural also added another beautiful, painful layer to her story. I think I can say I've never quite met a character like Agnes.\ \ This Inevitable Ruin by Matt Dinniman - How does this series get exponentially better with every book? Also, sorry to my spouse for the high levels of stress I radiated while reading THIS INEVITABLE RUIN. \ \ There Is No Place For Us by Brian Goldstone* - THERE IS NO PLACE FOR US shines a light on a population that usually gets entirely ignored. These families are working their butts off, only to get slapped down again and again. Goldstone is great at weaving statistics and research in with the individual stories in a way that contextualizes and humanizes them. One thing I haven’t seen discussed about this book is that four of the five families are headed by single moms. Of those four moms, for three of them, the road to being unhoused began with an abusive husband, boyfriend, or ex-boyfriend. \ \ A Sharp Endless Need by Mac Crane* - You know when you read a book and you can’t form words for how you feel about it? Yeah, that’s A SHARP ENDLESS NEED. Crane is so good at writing painful longing. Add in being unsure of your sexuality in a small town, and whew. The longing is so intense it’s hard to look at straight on. My one knock-a-quarter-star-off-quibble is that the ending feels kind of like a throwback. That’s all I’ll say to avoid spoilers. Honestly, I can’t write any more about this. It feels like I want to keep it secret so no one says mean things about it, but I also want the whole world to read it. \ \ Whidbey by T. Kira Madden* - We’ve waited a long time for new work from T Kira Madden, and wow, was WHIDBEY worth the wait. This book follows several women who are all impacted by the actions of one man. We see them through rage, grief, shame, defensiveness, love, fear. There’s a little bit of a mystery element to it, but it’s still deeply personal and introspective. Please look at the content warnings before reading. It’s a heavy book, but worth it if you’re up for it.\ \ Luminous by Silvia Park* - LUMINOUS is the kind of story that sci-fi is best at: what does it mean to be a human? To be a man? To love? To be loved? Siblings Jun and Morgan have both spent their lives trying to make sense of their childhood experience of having a robot brother who got taken away from them during the war the reunified Korea. Everyone in this book is deeply flawed, and trying to build relationships on a cracked foundation. My favorite thing, though, is that in this story of what makes a human (and a human man specifically) is that Jun is a trans man. It adds so many additional layers to what might otherwise be a straightforward robot tale. \ \ Kin by Tayari Jones* - My goodness, Tayari Jones is a master of her craft. KIN is so beautiful, loving, and heartbreaking. We follow Niecy and Annie’s story in a way that’s both about the details of their lives and the larger story of being a Black woman in the South. The women in this book all have taken different paths through life, but they have so much common experience as well. I haven’t seen it discussed much yet, but this is a queer story. I’m trying not to give plot away, but know that there are just so, so many layers to this book. I already want to reread it. \ \ The Maidenheads by Benny B. Peterson* - Listen. As a girl who grew up in the DC suburbs who was very into the local music scene and didn't understand her sexuality at the time...I AM IN THIS PHOTO AND I DON'T LIKE IT. But also, hell yeah. Johnson name checks all my favorite venues in DC and Baltimore and perfectly recreates the grimy love we all had for our local faves. The Maidenheads is messy and mean and full of yearning and good god please go to therapy, my guys. Everyone makes the worst decisions at every turn and I loved them for it.\ \ Searches by Vauhini Vara - I need everyone who uses the internet to read this book. Vara traces the path of her life and the life of the internet, how they overlap and interact, and increasingly, how they have become inseparable. There is so much to think about here regarding how much of our lives we have given over to tech companies, sometimes knowingly, sometimes not. Please read it! \ \ Hold Me Like A Grudge by Celine Ong* - Celine Ong said to herself, "how can I make sports enemies to lovers as gay as possible?" and HOLD ME LIKE A GRUDGE was born. I'm obsessed with everything about this book. Enemies/rivals/pining/coming out/found family/spicy chemistry/soft love/etc etc etc omg can I hug them please! Not to mention all the Supernatural, Fall Out Boy, and various other pop culture references that are hidden about oh so casually. And listen, I know everyone and their mom is going to compare this book to Heated Rivalry...but also it's true! If you're looking for more tender sports yearning, THIS IS IT.\ \ Join for free or login

2026 Mid-Year Favorites

11 books

Sunny's Book Truck\ \ CJ\ \ • May 10

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Sunny's Book Club: Whidbey by T Kira Madden

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Sunny's Book Truck\ \ CJ\ \ • Apr 12

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EARLY ACCESS: Reading Update & Bookstore Profits for March

3 books

Rhododendron Compendium\ \ Syd <3\ \ • Mar 26

Kindred Readers Book Club is LIVE

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Boneyard Picnic\ \ Natalie Meagan\ \ • Mar 20

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March Releases

Sorry I'm late with this but I do have a list so let's add some titles to our TBRs together!

19 books

Ronnica Reads\ \ Ronnica Fatt\ \ • Mar 9

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Here are some March 10th new book releases on my radar (and should be on yours!). First, the ones I've had a chance to read:\ \ Strange Girls by Sarvat Hasin 4.75/5 stars\ \ Put this on your TBR if you enjoy messy lesbian lit fic with complex characters. This one is high in yearning.\ \ The Complex by Karan Mahajan 4.5/5 stars\ \ Put this on your TBR if you enjoy family drama and political intrigue (in this one, they're one and the same). We know from the start that a tragedy happens...but then go back to the beginning to explain why.\ \ Whidbey by T Kira Madden 4.5/5 stars\ \ Put this on your TBR if you appreciate discussions around who gets to tell a victim's story and the tendency of white women to speak over women of color. This has dark subject matter, but handles it thoughtfully.\ \ Centroeuropa by Sarvat Hasin 3.5/5 stars\ \ Put this on your TBR if you enjoy queer translated fiction with magical realism elements.\ \ And the three I'm still waiting to get my hands on:\ \ All the World Can Hold by Jung Yun\ \ Why it interests me: it brings together people from different backgrounds to explore intriguing themes of needs and wants, regrets, and personal drama. \ \ The Fox and the Devil by Kiersten White\ \ Why it interests me: these words from the blurb: sapphic, vampire hunter, gothic.\ \ You Should Have Been Nicer to my Mom by Vincent Tirado\ \ Why it interests me: a gothic horror book centering an inheritance and a creepy house.

March 10th Releases to Put on your TBR

7 books

Sunny's Book Truck\ \ CJ\ \ • Mar 1

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Poll:\ \ April Book Club\ \ Friends! Enemies! Everyone in between!\ \ I hope you're all doing as best as you can be and taking care of yourselves. It's time to vote for the April book club!\ \ \ \ \ \ A traditional American woman, a beautiful wife and mother who sells her pioneer lifestyle of raw milk and farm-fresh eggs to her millions of social media followers, suddenly awakens cold, filthy, and terrified in the brutal reality of 1855—where she must unravel whether this living nightmare is an elaborate hoax, a twisted reality show, or something far more sinister in this sensational debut novel.\ \ My name was Natalie Heller Mills, and I was perfect at being alive.\ \ Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle. Her charming farmhouse is rustic, her husband a handsome cowboy, her six children each more delightful than the last. So what if there are nannies and producers behind the scenes, her kitchen hiding industrial-grade fridges and ovens, her husband the heir to a political dynasty? What Natalie’s followers—all 8 million of them—don’t know won’t hurt them. And The Angry Women? The privileged, Ivy League, coastal elite haters who call her an antifeminist iconoclast? They’re sick with jealousy. Because Natalie isn’t simply living the good life, she’s living the ideal—and just so happens to be building an empire from it.\ \ Until one morning she wakes up in a life that isn’t hers. Her home, her husband, her children—they’re all familiar, but something’s off. Her kitchen is warmed by a sputtering fire rather than electricity, her children are dirty and strange, and her soft-handed husband is suddenly a competent farmer. Just yesterday Natalie was curating photos of homemade jam for her Instagram, and now she’s expected to haul firewood and handwash clothes until her fingers bleed. Has she become the unwitting star of a ruthless reality show? Could it really be time travel? Is she being tested by God? By Satan? When Natalie suffers a brutal injury in the woods, she realizes two things: This is not her beautiful life, and she must escape by any means possible.\ \ A gripping, electrifying novel that is as darkly funny as it is frightening, Yesteryear is a gimlet-eyed look at tradition, fame, faith, and the grand performance of womanhood.\ \ \ \ In a powerfully imagined Russia at the height of the pogroms, a grief-stricken family turn to ancient magic to bring their daughter back from the grave.\ \ Yetta is a bright, quick teenage girl with a wild, searching spirit. Stifled by her mother’s anxiety, her father’s rules, and the path that’s been laid out for her, she craves freedom, the edges of which she doesn’t know. But her family has reason to be cautious and restrictive. Fear has wrapped itself around their shtetl. Jews are mysteriously disappearing, and there are whispers of an impending attack. When violence comes to their door, Yetta is killed. \ \ Her father, in his grief, fumbles through his nascent knowledge of ancient texts and old magic to bring her back. By some miracle, Yetta is returned—but although she looks the same, she is not the girl she once was. Yetta senses there is a secret her family is keeping from her. The answer resides, in part, in the creature lurking in the woods beyond the shtetl―something that may be of her father’s making, and a being that has plans of its own.\ \ \ \ A taboo-bursting, personal and cultural tour through different sexual fetishes that asks: Do we have the courage to look at our desires directly, and express them unapologetically?\ \ The smell of leather. The flash of a harness. The snap of a latex glove. Welcome to the radical, vibrant world of sexual fetishists.\ \ In twenty-first-century commodity culture, we are all intimately involved with objects: we covet a Birkin bag; we keep sneakers box-fresh. We are all, in a sense, all fetishists. But occasionally this desire spills into something more subversive. Second Skin offers a tour through the materials, objects, and power dynamics commonly fetishised, unpacking their histories, their expressive potential, and the communities they give rise to. Drawing from her encounters with fellow fetishists and kinksters, it is also the story of Anastasiia Fedorova’s own journey of what it means to come to terms with one’s sexuality.\ \ Moving between memoir, cultural criticism, reportage, erotic writing, and social history, Second Skin is a researched and topical book that encourages us to rethink how we see not only our own desires, but the world that creates them.\ \ \ \ A portrait of three women connected through one man in the aftermath of his murder—a stunning literary achievement and the explosive and highly anticipated debut novel from beloved award-winning memoirist T Kira Madden. Presented as a multicast recording, this production brings each voice vividly to life, deepening the novel’s exploration of varied perspectives and interconnected lives.\ \ Birdie Chang didn’t know anything about Whidbey Island when she chose it, only that it was about as far away as she could get from her own life. She’s a woman on the run, desperate for an escape from the headlines back home and the look of concern in her girlfriend’s eyes—and from Calvin Boyer, the man who abused her as a child and who’s now resurfaced. On her way, she has an unnerving encounter with a stranger on the ferry who offers her a proposition, a sinister solution and plan for revenge.\ \ But Birdie isn’t the only girl Calvin harmed back then. There’s also Linzie King, a former reality TV star who recently wrote all about it in her bestselling memoir. Though the two women have never met, their stories intertwine. Once Birdie arrives on Whidbey, she finally cracks the book’s spine, only to find too much she recognizes in its pages. Soon after, on the other side of the country, Calvin’s loving mother, Mary-Beth, receives a shocking phone call from the police: her only son has been murdered.\ \ Calvin’s death sets into motion a series of events that sends each woman on a desperate search for answers. A complex whodunit told from alternating points of view, Whidbey is searingly perceptive and astonishingly original. Exploring the long reach of violence and our flawed systems of incarceration and rehabilitation, this is a tense and provocative debut that’s sure to incite crucial questions about the pursuit of justice and who has real power over a story: the one who lives it, or the one who tells it?\ \ Four very compelling choices! Happy voting and remember we are reading Now I Surrender by Alvaro Enrigue in March, today is your last day to sign up.\ \ Love what we do? Become a paid subscriberfor less than a cup of coffee a month. Your ongoing support helps us plan ahead, fund causes we care about, and create meaningful programming for our community.

Vote for the April book club! 🌷

4 books

2-Spirit Bookshelf\ \ (@Indigenousbookshelf)\ \ • Dec 17 2025

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2026 Global Indigenous Books

Indigenous authors saw the 2025 Goodreads nominations and said, “Hold my bepsi.”

Every year is a whole ass scavenger hunt to find enough titles for this list but for the first time ever I can say there is overflowing abundance of Indigenous books on the horizon!!!!. 🍓🌈🌻📚 And this is only part 1.

⁉️ tell me what your Indigenous reading goal is for 2026!!!!! ‼️

14 books