Tag: TBR

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2020 TBR Update : Complete Fail (so far)

Back in January, I made a post of the 12 books I wanted to read before this year was over. If they were still unread, I had no choice but to unhaul them because they have been on my TBR for too long.

Here is the update on that.

Out of the 12 books, I have read 4 thus far.

A Man Called Ove

I really enjoyed this one. I listened to this on audio during my time off of work because of COVID. I laughed, I shed some tears, I enjoyed it.

4 Stars

The Goldfinch

This tome took me quite awhile to get through, but I finally finished this it. I started it in May I believe and finally finished it in July. I listed to this on audio and the narration was great. The story itself I am unsure about. This is something I may come back to in the future.

3.5 Stars

The Anatomical Shape of a Heart

This is quite embarrassing, but I don’t really remember much from this book. I do remember reading it pretty quickly and not hating it, which is something that I tend to do with YA. It was fine? Probably not something I will keep on my shelves to reread in the future.

3 Stars

The Nightingale

I don’t know why it took my so long to pick this book up. I loved it. It was so good. I listened to this on audio and I could not stop listening. I don’t know why I was afraid to read this. I love historical fiction and I loved The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah, so this was a no brainer.

5 Stars

I did end up unhauling 3 books without reading them.

The Girl with all the Gifts

All My Puny Sorrows

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

To be honest, I just was not feeling these anymore. 2 of them I started reading but couldn’t get in to. The other I lost complete interest in.

That leaves me with 5 books that I either have to read or unhaul.

A Darker Shade of Magic

I have had this entire series soooo long. It was one of those purchases I made because of Booktube. I think I am going to pick this up on audio to help ease the anxiety of reading this. Sounds so weird but I am anxious because fantasy is sometimes hard for me. But maybe it will surprise me.

The Blinds

I am pretty sure this is my very first Book of the Month choice. And I have yet to read this. I have no excuse for this one since mystery/thriller is my preferred genre.

The Dragon Republic

This is a little different situation than the others. I have only had this book for about a year. But I do want to get to it since (surprisingly) I enjoyed The Poppy War.

The Lonely Hearts Hotel

I think I purchased this one because it was compared to The Night Circus. I do not know how accurate that is, but I still want to try it.

I Let You Go

Another one I have no excuse for not reading. This is terrible considering I have 3 books from this author, all unread.

I have 4 months to get through these 5 books. I am going to focus and get it done. I am thinking I am going to use audiobooks to help me out here. 3 of them I am very much interested in reading so I don’t know what y problem is.

Let me know down in the comments which book you would read first! Any that I should just unhaul all together? Let’s chat in the comments.

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Last Year I Was Reading…

This meme was created by ReadingMaria.

It is super easy to participate in. All you have to do is:

Take your current read and compare it to what you reading this exact time last year. Which one do you like better? What is different about the books? Any special facts/things you want to make note of or bring attention to.

Current Read

The Most Fun We Ever Had – – Claire Lombardo

I am 31% through this and I am enjoying it. This story follows the Sorenson Family, which consists of Marilyn and David and their four daughters; Wendy, Violet, Liza and Grace. This is a long winded story that follows a (slightly) dysfunctional family, which is pretty much right up my alley. At over 500 pages, it spans quite a bit of time, and I love a story like that. It is a bit more dense than other books I have been reading, but it is engaging and I want to keep picking it up; it’s just taking me a bit more time to read.

Last year I was reading

The Death of Mrs. Westaway – – Ruth Ware

Mystery/Thrillers are my favorite to read, so not surprised that is what I was reading this time last year. I read this on audio and while it was good, it wasn’t my favorite. To be honest, I haven’t picked up another Ruth Ware since this one.

Comparisons

They are different because what I am currently reading is slow paced and pretty straight forward while last years read is fast paced with twists and turns. Both I am a fan of.

They are similar in that both involve families and the drama/problems/situations that these large families get into. Again, both of which I like.

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book blog Book Review bookish books TBR

Book Review : Catherine House

Catherine House – – Elisabeth Thomas

Honestly, I have no idea how I feel about this book. I think I was expecting one thing, and it turned out to be something completely different, but I am not mad about it.

The writing is not particularly ground breaking. It’s fine. Easy to read and not confusing. But overall, I am not really sure what was going on and what exactly happened. There was a theme that stayed throughout the book of heavy drinking (even during classes) and sex and all nighters and things that happen in college, but here were 10xs worse, or more involved. I thought that was going to play out with the outcome of the story but it didn’t. Which confused me on why it was there so heavily in the first place.

I originally thought this was a dark academia novel. And it was, for most of it. But then it started dipping into the Sci-Fi genre and stayed there until the end of the book. Which again, I don’t hate it.

I found the characters to be one dimensional with no growth. They all seemed to mesh together, which could just be how they were suppose to be because they are in this school that is very weird and pretty much drains everything out of the students. I didn’t hate the main character Ines. I think she could have been developed a little bit more. She had the start of an interesting background but that story never really took off. And I think it could have explained her actions and her character a lot more with just a bit more depth.

This is from a debut author, and even though I think you can tell that, I don’t think this book was bad. It had the makings to be really good. I just think it fell flat in parts.

My review is all over the place, but so are my feelings with this book. I found myself wanting to pick the book up and when I did, it would take nothing to read 100 pages in no time. I finished the last 100 pages before bed last night. I think my biggest issue with the book is I am just not sure what it is suppose to be about and what is it really. This may be a book I come back to in the future. I will also most definitely read from this author again. There is something there that caught my attention and I want to see where it goes and what else she has to offer.

3.5 Stars

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Weekend Reads : 8/15/2020

It is finally my weekend!

I am so ready to dive in to some books the next two days. My boyfriend is helping a friend move and it looks to be rainy so the couch is where I will be. Here is what I have in store for the next few days.

The Most Fun We Ever Had – Claire Lombardo

I am very much looking forward to reading this and I think I am going to enjoy it. I love long, lengthy deep dives into family drama and this looks to have that. At over 500 pages and a family of 4 sibling girls, I think this going to be right up my alley. I originally had heard about this book from the Book Riot podcast and it immediately caught my attention and I knew I needed to read it. The time has come and I am here for it.

The Splendid and the Vile – Erik Larson

This is my slow but steady book. I have this marked out to finish so many chapters a week, taking me about 2 months to read this. I love all things history and love reading both fiction and non-fiction historical books. This follows Winston Churchill in his first year as Prime Minister. It is a dense book, but interesting so far. This is a book that I can only read a chapter or two a night before I feel weighed down by it. I am a little behind on my own schedule with this, and hope to finish up the 6 chapters I have left for this weeks section.

I am still not feeling like listening to an audiobook right now which is a bummer because I was so in to them only a few months ago. I think once I get caught up on The Currently Reading podcast, I’ll feel like picking up an audiobook again.

What do you have planned for this weekend? Enjoying some reading or spending it outdoors for these last weeks of summer? Let’s chat in the comments!

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Weekend Reads : 8/8/202

And I am back.

I took a weekend off of reading because I am starting to feel slumpy. To be honest, I am still feeling this way, but I have so many books I want to read, that I am trying to push through.

Over the weekend I was able to finish one book and managed to get over halfway through another.

Mexican Gothic – Silvia Moreno-Garcia

I have a dedicate review up for this HERE, but in short, this just wasn’t for me, and I am disappointed in that. I was very much looking forward to reading this and wanted to love it, but I was bored throughout the whole thing. I did just hear the news that it is being adapted and I will most likely watch the adaptation. Maybe I will appreciate it more that way.

If you want to hear my full thoughts, check out my review.

Catherine House – – Elisabeth Thomas

I was hoping to have this one done before my weekend was over, but it just didn’t happen. I did manage to get halfway through though, and will have it done for sure by the start of my next weekend. My initial thoughts are that it’s fine? I am rather confused on my own feelings. I hope I sort them out when I finish this book. I am finding it easy to read, and I am picking it up. I just don’t know what is really going on. I was expecting a dark academia book, which it kind of is but I am also getting sci-fi vibes from it.

I’ll reserve my full thoughts for when I finish it.

A pretty uneventful reading weekend if you ask me. I am definitely struggling right now with picking up books, especially audiobooks. Hopefully I find myself out of it soon.

Tell me your thoughts if you read these books? Am I the only one who found Mexican Gothic to be a little lackluster? What about Catherine House? I want to hear what you think!

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book blog book meme Book Review bookish books currently reading Uncategorized

Last Year I Was Reading…

This meme was created by ReadingMaria.

It is super easy to participate in. All you have to do is:

Take your current read and compare it to what you reading this exact time last year. Which one do you like better? What is different about the books? Any special facts/things you want to make note of or bring attention to.

Current Read

Catherine House – – Elisabeth Thomas

I am just about 100 pages into this and I must say, I am intrigued. The book does not have a very good rating on Goodreads, but honestly that doesn’t really bother me. I am not sure what this book is about, except I heard a reviewer say it was really weird. I like weird, and I am in the mood to read weird, so I requested it from the library. I should have this book finished by the time this post goes up, so it should be featured in my Weekend Reads post on Friday.

Last Year I Was Reading…

Fix Her Up – – Tessa Bailey

I do not read a lot of adult sexy time books, so I decided to give it a try. I picked this one up on audio, and while it was a good time, it was not my favorite in this genre that I have read. I haven’t continued in this series and I am not sure that I will. Since reading this, I have read some others in this genre that I like more.

Comparisons

These books could not be further away from each other in terms of genres. Catherine House is a mystery/thriller by a debut author. From the little bit that I have read, I think it is going to be quite dark and gothic. Fix Her Up is a romance written by a seasoned author with an extensive backlist of titles. It had some serious aspects to it but it was pretty light for the most part.

I am really trying to expand my reading by picking up books that don’t fit my typical genres. So far, it has been working out for me. I look forward to finding new books that I enjoy that I would have otherwise missed because I was living in my little box.

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Book Review : Mexican Gothic

WARNING

Unpopular opinion ahead.

When I saw the cover of Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, I was like what is this and how do I get my hands on it? Then I started reading and watching reviews of the book and everything sounded so promising. I am always in the mood for a good horror book and this (seemed) to fit that. I have to say I was underwhelmed by this book.

By no means is this a bad book. It’s not. It just didn’t work for me. I found it to be very slow. Nothing was happening and nothing was holding my attention. I found that when I put it down, I didn’t want to come back to it. This 300 page book took me the full 2 week loan to read it. And I’m pretty sure my Overdrive loan expired and I still had about 40 pages left to read. (As long as you don’t exit out of the ebook, the library won’t take it back). This may be because it was more of a gothic horror. I generally am a thriller reader and prefer fast paced.

When I finally got to the climax and the twist so to speak, I was left a little, like really? That is what is going on here? I didn’t see it coming, but I also didn’t care for it. To be honest, I came very close to DNFing it at that point, because I just didn’t care for the reveal at all.

I knew going in to this, that it was going to be slow moving. I just didn’t realize it was going to be this slow. It took almost 70% for it to finally move along, and like I said, the reveal was very meh and frankly confusing to me. I personally didn’t think the buildup and the first 60-70% was worth the ending for me.

Overall, this was a big disappointment for me. It was just okay. Nothing to go out and recommend in my opinion. However, I think if this author writes another book in the horror genre, I will probably give it a try. We will see.

Did you read Mexican Gothic? What are your thoughts? I know I am in the minority on this one! I tried to really like it, but in the end I struggled to get through it.

2.5 Stars

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Weekend Reads : 6/11/20

Its my 1 year anniversary of having my blog and I need to get my self in gear! I feel all over the place and need to get organized. To start that, I am introducing a new series of blog post call Weekend Reads.

I am back to work after over 100 days off and it is a bit hectic. I have been coming home every night with just enough energy to shower and crawl into bed. So its no surprise I am getting most of my reading done on the weekends. I am a hairstylist, so my weekends consist of Sunday and Monday. Here is what I have planned for this weekend.

I made a long overdue trip to the library this week and went a little nuts. I’m hoping I can get at least one of them read this weekend, if not two of them.

The Wife Stalker – -Liv Constantine

I had no idea this writing duo had another book release until I saw it on one of the FB groups I am in. I immediately went on my library app and requested it. Their books are hit or miss with me. I LOVED The Last Mrs. Parrish and I hate read The Last Time I Saw You. I am hoping The Wife Stalker is one that I enjoy.

I don’t know a whole lot about this except it looks to be another domestic thriller. I don’t like reading the blurbs of any thriller book for fear of spoilers. But going off their last two books, I would assume this is another 2 women 1 man type of situation.

All Adults Here – – Emma Straub

I am also hoping to pick up the new Emma Straub release All Adults Here. I have read and enjoyed quite a few Emma Straub books so I am hoping this doesn’t disappoint. I was on the fence of actually purchasing this, but then I heard it compared to another one of my favorite books on the Currently Reading Podcast, and decided to purchase it.

From what I know, it is a family drama book, which is something I really like reading about. I think it follows a mother and her 3 grown children and the mother coming to terms with how she raised her children and her early years as a parent and how it has effected them now and in their own adult lives. I am intrigued and I hope to pick this up before Monday, but if not definitely before the end of the month.

Call Your Daughter Home – – Deb Spera

This is one that I know I will have finished before the end of the weekend. I only have 2 hours left of the audiobook and I am really enjoying it.

In Call Your Daughter Home, we follow 3 strong woman living in South Carolina in the early 1920s. They have nothing in common as they are in different social classes, but they come together and build a bond between them.

I am very much enjoying the audiobook. I like that is a full cast narration and each of the voice actors does a wonderful job of bringing the characters to life. It is available on Hoopla for anyone who has access to it.

If I can get at least 2 of these read during the weekend, I will be pretty happy. My reading is taking a back seat to my work life for the time being and I am looking forward to spending some time with my books for the next couple of days.

What are you reading this weekend? I’d love to know!

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Stay at Home Book Tag

I am an avid watcher of Booktube and I saw some of my favorites doing this. So when I saw this pop up on some of the blogs I follow, I knew I wanted to do it.

This tag was originally created by Princess of Paperback on YouTube.

Laying in bed – – A book you read in one day

I have a few of these but one of my favorites is The Smell of Other Peoples Houses by Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock. To be fair, it is under 300 pages, but it is so engaging and so atmospheric that it really grips you. I had planned to read this over a weekend, but ended up finishing it the first day.

Snacking – – A book that is a guilty pleasure

For me that is going to be The Cormoran Strike series, starting with The Cuckcoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith. I adore this series. Even though it is a mystery/thriller, I can read it over and over and never get bored. I am actually doing another reread in anticipation of the fifth book that will be released in September. If you are an audiobook fan, I highly recommend the audiobook for this whole series. The narrator is fantastic.

Netflix – – A series you want to start

I have been wanting to start the Shades of Magic series for a long time. I own all the books, bought them a few years ago. I just have not gotten around to it yet. I am hoping to be in the mood to pick it up soon.

Animal Crossing – – A book you recently bought because of the hype

Without a doubt that is The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune. I have no idea what is about, but I heard it is nothing short of being great so I am excited to read it. I plan to read it this month.

Productivity – – A book you learned from or had an impact on you

I read this book a few months ago, but I still think about it from time to time, especially the ending. That would be The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas by John Boyne. I reread the ending of this several times because I couldn’t believe it. This was another one I read in a day. Highly recommend, but only if you are in the right headspace.

Facetime – – A book you were gifted

I don’t usually get gifted books, more like gift cards. One of the books I bought with a gift card was The Trails of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend. I love this sereis so much. I wanted to have my own copies so that one day (hopefully) I can get my nephews to read it.

Self Care – – What is one thing you have done recently to look after yourself

I have been making sure to take the time to workout for at least 30 – 40 minutes a day 5 days a week. I wasn’t doing that when I was working because of the long days. I am hoping to build up a habit that I continue when I do go back to work.

There you have it! I tag anyone who has not done this one yet.

I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy, mentally and physically during this time.

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book blog Book Review bookish books

I Bought It Because of the Hype

We have all been there, had no interest in a book or even no knowledge of a book because it was a genre we typically don’t read. But we end up buying it because we see it all over the place, whether on Bookstagram or Booktube. I have done it more times than I care to admit. Now that I am really coming to know my reading taste, this doesn’t happen as much, but I haven’t completely stopped falling for the hype. I want to share with you some books that I had no intention of buying, but somehow ended up on my shelf. A few I have fallen in love with, some not so much and even some that I have yet to read.

Every Heart a Doorway – -Seanan McGuire

Full confession, I LOVE this series. I originally heard about the series when I was first getting into watching Booktube and it was around the time the 3rd book was coming out. I had just gotten back into reading and was looking for new books, even if they were outside my comfort zone. It is no secret that I am not a huge fantasy reader. I struggle with getting into it. But I am always intrigued by the blurb, and well, sometimes I give in.

I am so happy to report that this is one series that I am thrilled that I gave in and picked it up. I fell in love with this series from the very first book. It has just enough fantastical elements along with more contemporary that is just a perfect blend for me. I preorder the new book every year and usually read them right when I get it. The audiobooks are fantastic as well. So if you have been thinking about it, do it. I do not think you will be disappointed.

Illuminae – -Amy Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

This is another one that gets a thumbs up from me. Again, I heard about this book and series from Booktube. As much as I am not a fantasy reader, I am definitely not a science fiction reader. But people were just so good at selling this concept, that I picked it up. It did take me a while to finally read it, and when I did I really enjoyed it. I think the concept is really cool and different and it kept me engaged through the whole thing. I have tried to read Jay Kristoff’s other work, but it didn’t grab me like this one has. I have read Gemina and enjoyed that as well. So I would agree that it was worth the hype.

The Poppy War – – R.F. Kuang

This one I am really surprised I gave in and bought. I am pretty sure I picked this up when Barnes and Noble was having a half priced book sale, so it made the decision a little easier. Being high fantasy, I was more hesitant to read it, but I did and it was good. I can’t say it is a new favorite, but I made it through and even bought the second in the series. I enjoyed the first half more than the second, but I like reading about schools, oddly. It was definitely a slower read for me. Not that it was paced slowly, but more because this is out of my comfort zone and I didn’t want to miss anything or become even more confused. I will eventually pick up The Dragon Republic so I would say this series is okay for me. Not terrible that I won’t continue on.

Strange the Dreamer – – Lani Taylor

I bought it, I have it, I tried it and I am not sure this one is for me. When I heard this had flowery, beautiful writing, I knew I wanted to try it. And I did attempt it. I still have my bookmark in it and I made it to 70 pages. I was bored. I was having a hard time staying interested. And with 125 unread books on my shelf, I am not sure I will be keeping this and continuing it.

The Priory of the Orange Tree – – Samantha Shannon

I am embarrassed to admit I bought this mostly because of the length of it. At the time, I was really into long books. I heard this was coming out, it was a stand alone and it was lengthy. I ordered it out of pure impulse. And to be honest, I don’t really have any plans to read it. The allure of it has worn off. I am just having a hart time unhauling it. But I know I will because it deserves to be in a home where someone will actually read it.

To say I am not a fantasy reader is pretty funny, considering all of this are fantasy. I am interested, but I just have a hard time following along in some. I think I just need to find the right fantasy for me.

What are some books that you have bought because of hype? Have you read any of these?

Let’s chat in the comments!

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