Yesterday I submitted my final assignment! This assignment honestly nearly killed me off. It’s a miracle I’m alive right now.
Thankfully I’m all done. My second year of university is officially over and I can now switch my priorities back to where they belong: books. Today I come to you with
The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston – Let’s ignore the fact that I had plans to read this in Spring and just keep your fingers crossed for me that I finally get to it. It’s about a ghost writer and actual ghosts. I can’t remember if she’s the ghost or she see’s ghosts but I’m excited to find out.I’ve heard such good things about this, especially in recent months it seems like everyone’s been reading it and I want to too!!!
Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado – This is one of those books where I don’t know anything about it other than I want to read it. It feels like it will have all the good vibes. There’s a fat chance (ha) that I’ll love this.
I have been feeling pretty slumpish recently – not necessarily in terms of reading but blogging. Maybe it’s cause we’re down to the last month of uni and the stress is getting to me (it doesn’t help that I’m procrastinating like crazy but I can’t help it). Maybe I’m just in a weird mood
Earlier this week I saw people picking and talking about 10 random books from their shelves for a Top Ten Tuesdaytopic so I’m gonna take inspiration from that in an attempt to get some juices flowing.
I don’t really have bookshelves at the minute (I’m at uni + my parents are moving house = bye bye most of my physical collection) but I do have a list I compiled at the start of the year that features my physical books, e-books and ARCs. In an extreme show of nerdiness I can confirm that yes it’s in alphabetical order and I do keep it up to date whenever I buy/receive a new book.
All of that is to say that I’m not picking these books, a random number generator is so this should be fun.
Jade City by Fonda Lee – Fantasy books scare me. That’s the only reason I haven’t started this series yet. This book is all about a crime syndicate family who deal jade – a magic drug that grans certain people superhuman powers. I’m really excited for the merging of criminal and fantasy elements with this book and I’m looking forward to finally picking it up soon!
Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake – I have read the first chapter of this book multiple times but still haven’t continued on past that. This isn’t because it’s bad, but I know I’ll need to be in the right mood and mindset when I read a book about a girls best-friend accusing her brother of sexual assault.
This Book Kills by Ravena Guron – Here we have the first 2023 release I read this year …. unfortunately I wasn’t a huge fan. This book had a lot of promise, I liked the idea of a murder being based on the main characters short story but everything fell a little flat.
Greywaren by Maggie Stiefvater – Does anybody else get scared about finishing much-loved series? Because I do. Hence why I’ve owned this book for months and still haven’t read it despite how desperately I do want to. I’m also scared for Declan Lynch’s safety.
Little Thieves by Margaret Owen – I remember nothing besides the fact that it is a fantasy book with a ridiculously pretty cover. This will be the perfect book to read in autumn/winter. The problem there is that it’s now spring so it’ll be a little while before I am in the right seasonal vibe to read it.
I’ve been scootering around the block with my little brother and sister and I’m just not made out for that life anymore. They were whizzing away while I tried not to let on that one of my legs had gone numb. Now the kids are asleep, I’m back in my element: in bed eating chocolate ready and rearing to talk about books 🙂
When it comes to blogging, or being in any sort of bookish-sphere, there can be this pressure to keep up with the new releases, despite how unrealistic that is. In an attempt to prevent that pressure, I like to give myself an extra couple of months before I give some recommendations, with the expectation that I’ll recommend more in the (distant) future.
And so today I come to you with some 2022 releases that were so good, you should make sure to keep them at the top of your TBR!
Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl by Joya Goffney
I am still so happy that I got stuck on door duty at work. Sure I was cold and yes I got freaked out by the elevator opening on it’s own that it made me jump and kinda break the card machine, but I was so bored that I picked up one of the few ARCs I had downloaded on my phone and I loved it!
Confessions of an Alleged Good Girl is a sex-positive and educational story about a religious girl learning about her sexuality and sexual health. I loved Monique, the main character. I thought this book did a really good job at making you feel what the character was feeling – frustration, anger, fear. I also loved watching her becoming friends, and more than friends, with Sasha and Reggie and how those new relationships changed her for the better.
I definitely recommend this book. I’d say it’s perfect for any age but definitely for those who are maybe falling out of love with YA a little bit!
Today I come to you with my second round of 2023 anticipated releases. I said at the beginning of the year that these are just lists of books I’m looking forward to, but I’m not gonna put tons of pressure on myself to read them immediately because I always end up feeling bad. Like here’s a ton of books I’m not gonna read anytime soon.
So far I’ve only read Beach Read. I loved it so much and I was split on whether I should read her other books ASAP or savour them. I chose to savour them and I’m now stock-piling Emily Henry books. Here we have another one to add to my collection.
Happy Place seems like it’s going to be a great book to read in the summer. It follows a newly broken up couple who agree to pretend to still be together for their annual holiday with friends. I’m excited for how this is essentially fake-dating but with the twist of them been newly broken up.
I’m sure this book isn’t going to be all fun, summer, fake-dating hyjinks, especially if it’s anything like Beach Read which packs a bit of an unexpected emotional punch. Hopefully I don’t wait too long to read this.
I’m a week late with this week’s Let’s Talk Bookish but I’m excited for spring which means I’m excited to talk about spring books!
Let’s Talk Bookish is a bookish meme that was created by Rukky @ Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, where each Friday, bloggers write posts discussing the topic of the week! Since the beginning of April, I’ve been the host of LTB, and I post each month’s topics here on my blog! March Topics.
This week’s topic is … Spring Books
Prompts: What books do you like to read in spring? What makes you feel the change in the seasons? Is it the cover, or the content? Do you read certain genres in spring, or books set during the season? What books are on your spring 2023 tbr?
At some point last year I was going through romance books like they were going out of style. Because of that I invested in Kindle Unlimited. While I’ve definitely read some really fun books that I wouldn’t otherwise have picked up, I am considering cancelling my subscription. I’m not reading these books as frequently so I don’t see the point ok keeping it.
There are a couple of books that are stopping me from cancelling just yet though and today I’m going to talk about those! I saw Dini @ DiniPandaReads do this for a Top Ten Tuesday freebie a little while back so you should definitely check out her TBR as well, but yeah. These are essentially the Kindle Unlimited books on my TBR right now!
Heart, Haunt, Havoc by Freydis Moon
If you’ve only read a couple of pages does that still count as a current read? If yes then this is a current read.
Heart, Haunt, Havoc is a very recent release, it only came out this past February so I was very surprised when I saw it was available on Kindle Unlimited already. I jumped at the chance to add it to my Kindle library though.
I’m up to date on the vibes of this book more than the actual plot. It follows two queer characters, Colin a transgender excorsit, and Bishop whose non-binary and is currently living in a haunted house. That and the cover is really all I need to know. I feel really in the mood for paranormal, ghost and demon stories after the release of Lockwood & Co on Netflix so I’m excited for this book for that reason too.
Like I said, I’ve started this book but am only a couple of pages in and yet I’m pretty sure I’m going to really enjoy this. It’s pretty short, 150 pages, so I’m thinking it’ll be a quick read for me over the next couple of days while I sadly dedicate my time to my first uni essay of the semester.
I told myself not to go overboard when it came to picking out books for my TBR this month since I failed so spectacularly when it came to keeping on track with last months. Yeah. There are still 8 books on this TBR.
Right now I’m impassioned and so motivated to read all these books, I’ve even started one or two of them, but those feelings could easily disappear in as little as a couple of days. My attention span leaves something to be desired.
You can tell I’m motivated and invigorated to read because, as I’m planning out these books, it’s early January. I’m just wanting to read everything all at once which, of course, is impossible to do, so planning my TBRs ahead of time is helping me fulfill this need.
Despite Valentine’s being only 1 day out of 28, in my brain February is the month of reading as many romance books as possible and that’s exactly what I’m going to do!! There are 10 books on this TBR and 2 less days to read them than normal (something I always forget about) so we’ll see how this goes.
My main focus this month is going to be sapphic YA romances, specifically the ones released in 2022 that I was dying to read, but just never got around to:
Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales – There are three reasons I want to read this book 1) it’s a Sophie Gonzeles book and she hasn’t let me down yet, 2) it’s a reality-dating show were two girls fall in love with each other instead of their shared exboyfriend, and 3) the Taylor Swift title reference.
I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston – I’ve been curious about McQuistons YA debut since before this was even out and yet I’ve still not read it. That’s gonna change this month. Despite the plot giving me Paper Town vibes, a book I hated, I am keeping my fingers crossed that I’m going to love this one.
She Get’s the Girl by Rachel Lippincott and Alyson Derrick – This cover is so beautiful that whenever I think about this book, the only thing my mind thinks of is the cover and not the plot. I actually can’t remember what the plot is in the slightest, I just know it’s F/F, written by a married couple, and I’ve been desperate to read it for months.
While those are my top 3 books I hope to read, they’re not the only sapphic romances on this TBR as I also really want to read …
For Her Consideration by Amy Spalding – It’s happened a few times now but I never cease to get excited and giddy when a publisher reaches out and offers me a copy of a book, as was the case here. This book is set in Hollywood which I’m always on board for, especially since it follows a scriptwriter (I’m doing a whole class on scriptwriting this semester!) and a movie star!
She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlan – AGHH I’m so happy to have this book and I will force myself to read this, even if it involves staying up all night. I only know as much about this book as the cover is telling me – cheerleader and a jock – but if this disappoints me I do think I’ll cry.
I know it’s late Janaury/early February so this tag may be slightly passed it’s metaphorical sell-bye date but I am an absolute sucker for end and beginning of the year content – wrapping up and looking ahead – so we’re just going to pretend like I got around to this a bit earlier than I did.
Not only that, but I was actually tagged by Dini @ DiniPandaReads so of course I had to do it eventually!!
How many books are you planning to read in 2023?
I have set my reading goal for the year to 75 books but my internal goal for myself is to hit 100 books for the third year in a row. I like to low-ball so that it’s still a goal I have to work towards which will motivate me to read more, but won’t suck the joy out of reading for me. So far I’ve read 7 books so I think I’m on a good track at the minute!
Name 5 books you didn’t get to this year but want to make a priority in 2023.
The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas // Ophelia After All by Racquel Marie // The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston // Better Than The Movies by Lynn Painter // Songs in Ursa Major by Emma Brodie
I’ve done my fair share blog posts centering around books I didn’t get to and still want to read whether that be with my 12 books for 12 months TBR or my very long list of 2022 releases I didn’t get to but still want to read. And yet, there’s still even more books that I really want to get to sooner rather than later.
Today I am bringing you a bookhaul. Not my first book haul of the year (that’ll come in due course don’t you worry), but actually my last bookhaul of 2022.
These books are either books I bought in New York … or books I bought to stop me crying when I got stranded in Germany. After not sleeping in 24 hours, not eating in 8 hours I missed my connecting flight due to delays. I cried like a baby because the next flight wasn’t until the next day and all I wanted was to be at home. What’s the solution to crying literally non-stop? Retail therapy!!!
Some say “when in Rome” I say “when in the USA” because of course I had to buy myself some books from Barnes & Nobel of all places!!
AceReader 