Tag: tbr

TTT-Books on My Fall 2021 To-Read List

Lauren3 Comments

It’s time for Top Ten Tuesday! TTT “was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018.”

Wow. Is this a hard Top Ten Tuesday or what?

I’ll come up with ten books, but that doesn’t mean I’m actually going to read them. Because I don’t always read the books on my TBRs.

And, of course, I just have to remember to add them to my actual TBR’s over the next two months.

That’s not too much to ask, is it?

The Unbound Empire by Melissa Caruso

The final book in the Swords and Fire trilogy, I’ve been meaning to read this since last year! I just never got around to it. Shame on me. The first two books were great, so I have high hopes for this one.

We Could be Heroes by Mike Chen

Jamie and Zoe have no memories, but what they do have is superpowers. I picked this up through Book of the Month a while back and have been wanting to read it for a while now.

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

A school that wants you dead. This one has been sitting on my TBR cart for a while, so it’s about time I pick it up, right?

The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson

The sequel to Mistborn is on my current TBR, and I am determined to read it this fall!

The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

It seems like the fall is the perfect time for a horror book. Plus I really enjoyed the authors last book. So fingers crossed!

Ring Shout by P. Djeli Clark

A horror book in which some of the KKK are actual demons? Yeah, perfect fall/spooky season read.

The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor Lavalle

All Tom does is deliver a book. And it opens his world to the occult. This fantasy horror book sounded really interesting. And again, a good Halloween read…I hope.

The Night Country by Melissa Albert

I read The Hazel Wood last year and really enjoyed it, so I need to read the sequel. Here’s hoping I remember to pick it up!

A Cosmology of Monsters by Shaun Hamill

A story about a boy who sees monsters and lets them into his life. Now why does a horror book sound heartwarming? This will be an October read, for sure.

Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis

Who knew C.S. Lewis wrote Sci-Fi? I sure didn’t until I picked this up. I’m looking forward to reading this.

Well, there it is. My fall TBR. Will I actually accomplish something and read all the books on this list? Who knows? I surely hope so. Now I just have to figure out which books I’m going to read in which months!

Oh the choices!

A Very Ambitious TBR-September 2021

Lauren4 Comments

Another month, another TBR I am probably going to fail.

I should probably be more optimistic in an effort to actually complete the thing, huh? That might increase my chances?

I mean, at this point, with so many failed TBR’s under my belt, I wonder why I even bother.

Oh, cause it’s fun! And because, apparently, I am a glutton for punishment.

On to the TBR!

Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

The first in the Mercy Thompson series. Mercy is a mechanic who just so happens to be a were-coyote. Oh, and she was raised by werewolves. I love this series and have been meaning to re-read it for a while.

Dragon Prince by Melanie Rawn

Oh look, re-reading a book I wax poetical about all the time. I recently had to buy a new paperback copy of this, although it is available on Kindle for $2.99. This is the story of Rohan, a desert prince, who is forced to match wits with the High Prince Roelstra after the death of his father. Oh, did I mention the Sunrunners? I love this book.

The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan

Soon to be released as a series by Amazon, I started listening to this as an audiobook a few years ago, but I never finished it. This is the month I complete it…I hope. Will I finish it as an audiobook or a physical book? I have no idea. But I will do my best!

The Hike by Drew Magary

This is the story of a man who decided to go on a hike. And then it gets weird. This was a book club pick, and I got real excited when they picked it, because I already owned it! Talk about fortuitous.

The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson

The second book in the Mistborn series, I read the first book last December and I loved it. I know the hubs will be excited for me to read this one.

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter by Theadora Goss

This is another book club pick! Although I’m a little worried because I ordered this book on Wednesday and it’s not supposed to get here until two days before the book club meeting. Cutting it a little close, dontcha think!

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

The story of Wallace, who died, is given a week to cross over. He decides to live his death to the fullest in that one week. I got an ARC of this through NetGalley! Squee! I have much excite! I’ll have a review up for it soon, as I have already finished reading it!

So, a seven book TBR. I can do this, right? I mean, it’s all books I’ve been meaning to read. I can so totally do this.

Book Series I Need to Finish

Lauren1 Comment

So I seem to have a problem.

I start a book series, fully intending on finishing it, and then I get distracted by other books and simply don’t finish the series in a timely fashion. Often times this results in me wanting to start the series over and then, repeating the original problem of not finishing the series…again.

Or three new books in the series come out before I get to the end of the books I already do have and have to finish those new books and, well, see above paragraph.

Please tell me I’m not alone in this.

So below is a list of the series I have started, but haven’t completed.

The Hazel Wood Series by Melissa Albert

Alice’s grandmother wrote a book called Tales from the Hinterland. When Alice’s mother is kidnapped by someone claiming to be from the Hinterlands, she must go after her. And thus Alice’s adventures begin. I gave the first book in the first series, The Hazel Wood, 4 stars. One of the few YA books to get such a high rating from me. I liked it enough to pick up the second book (I’ve had it since last year), and the third book is on my Amazon wishlist.

Swords and Fire Series by Melissa Caruso

Raverran mages are closely regulated, and up until now Zaira has avoided being caught. But when Amelia accidentally tethers her, their lives become inextricably bound. I loved the first two books in this series, giving both books 4 stars. I just haven’t finished the last book yet. Didn’t stop me from buying the first book in the authors newest series though, did it?

Mistborn Series by Brandon Sanderson

For a thousand years the Lord Ruler reigned. They were going to overthrow him. Hopefully. I read the first book and gave it 5 stars. I love the fully realized magic system and the world the author created. I’m not entirely sure why I haven’t finished this series yet, but I need to. And the Hubs agrees.

The Wicked Years Series by Gregory Maguire

The story of the Wicked Witch of the West. I love the first book and have the entire series and the second book has been siting on my TBR cart for months. It was even on one of my TBR’s last year.

The Poppy War Series by R.F. Kuang

Rin is a war orphan who won a place at a prestigious military school. This is dark fantasy story about the horrors of war and normally I don’t go for the grim dark of it all, but this book gripped me. I gave it 4 stars and it was one of the first books I reviewed on the blog, back before this was even a book blog.

Crown of Stars by Kate Elliot

The Crown of Stars series is great, from what I can remember of it. I read the first few books fifteen years ago, and then never finished the series, even though I now own them all. I need to get to that. Also, I am of the firm belief that this series should be turned into a TV show ala Game of Thrones (and yes, I know, I still haven’t finished the books but I want a show!). Bonus points to it because this series is actually finished.

The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan (and the last few by Brandon Sanderson)

This 15 book series is largely regarding as some of the best fantasy out there, and I am only halfway through the first book. To be fair, I’m listening to it as an audiobook and that thing is over 30 hours long. Full disclosure, I’ve been listening to it for over a year, but I’ve enjoyed what I’ve listened to. I just haven’t finished it yet. Bad Lauren. Also, isn’t that special edition pretty? I’m having a very hard time convincing the Hubs that we need them, cause pricey.

So yeah, there are all the series I need to finish. I’m pretty sure there are more I own or just haven’t read in years. Because books.

What book series have you not finished?

A Month of Myths-An August 2021 TBR

Lauren1 Comment

As you can guess by the title, I have decided to dedicate this month to retellings. But not just any retellings. Greek myth retellings.

Why am I doing this, you may be asking? Well, it’s because I have a few of them (re:5) and I want to read them. Plus I bought one I had my eye on specifically for this TBR, so that’s fun.

On to the books!

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

The story of Patroclus, Achilles and the Trojan war. I have been told to expect feelings while reading this. So yeah.

Circe by Madeline Miller

This is the story of Circe, the sorceress from the Odyssey. It sounds fascinating and I’ve had it for a while, so I’m looking forward to reading it.

A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes

The story of the women at the heart of The Trojan War. Yes, another Trojan War story. It’s a pretty famous conflict.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

Some of the ancient gods rebelled, now every seven years they must walk the world as mortals, only to be hunted by ancient enemies. This one just sounds good, and, bonus, a friend of mine really liked it.

Ariadne by Jennifer Saint

Ariadne is the sister to the famed Minotaur of Crete. This is her story. The minotaur isn’t a story that gets told enough, so it will be fun to read this one.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

The half human son of Neptune goes to a camp for other half human children of the Greek pantheon. I’ve wanted to read this one for a while, basically ever since I saw the movie, which I have since learned is a very bad interpretation of the books.

And there you have it, my TBR for the month of August. Here’s hoping I can finish all of these!

Two Week Trip TBR

Lauren3 Comments

If you are reading this, I am on a two and a half week trip with my mom, my niece, and my nephew. We are going to be spending a lot of the time in the car. And while yes, I have brought my Switch with me, it’s battery only lasts a few hours, and even I can only play Animal Crossing for so long.

So I also brought my Kindle with me. I’ve already made the case for the Kindle, or really e-readers in general, so I’m not going to do that here.

I have quite a few books that I haven’t read on my Kindle, and since Amazon lets you share your Kindle library with those in your Amazon Prime household, I also have all of my husband books to choose from as well.

Let’s be honest, I’ve purchased so may books over the last few months that I’m just going to go with what I have!

For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten

Red is a second born daughter and she is going to be sacrificed to the wolf in the woods. I pre-ordered this back in June and I am really looking forward to reading this one, especially at 403 pages.

The Thousand Deaths of Ardor Benn by Tyler Whitesides

When Ardor Benn is hired by a priest to steal from the most powerful king the realm has ever seen, he must put together a group of thieves to achieve his goals. This is a long one, clocking in at a little over 750 pages. It should keep me busy.

The Mask of Mirrors by M.A. Carrick

The story of thieves and con artists and royal court life. This is another whopper, coming in at 615 pages.

Bow-Legged Buccaneers From Outer Space by David Owain Hughes

Space pirates. That was all I needed to know when my friend told me about this book. It’s short, so I feel it help with one of the shorter trips we are taking, at 147 pages.

The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo

A royal sent into a political marriage. A young girl sold into servitude. This sounds great! And at 124 pages should be a quick read!

Now, do I expect to read every single one of these books while I am on this trip? Nope, but these are the ones I am hoping to at least touch. Especially given that there are kids involved in this road trip. But a girl can hope! Wish me luck!

A Small TBR

Lauren4 Comments

I know I said I wasn’t going to do it anymore, but I’m going to do it. There are a few books I want to read to celebrate Pride month. Maybe you’ll find one that you want to read too!

Also, I’m not gonna run myself ragged trying to read all of these. If I don’t finish this list, I will not be ashamed!

How Y’all Doing? by Leslie Jordan

When actor Leslie Jordan learned he had “gone viral,” he had no idea what that meant or how much his life was about to change. On Instagram, his uproarious videos have entertained millions and have made him a global celebrity. Now, he brings his bon vivance to the page with this collection of intimate and sassy essays.

Bursting with color and life, dripping with his puckish Southern charm, How Y’all Doing? is Leslie doing what Leslie does best: telling stories that make us laugh and lift our spirits even in the darkest days. Whether he’s writing about his brush with a group of ruffians in a West Hollywood Starbucks, or an unexpected phone call from legendary Hollywood start Debbie Reynolds, Leslie infuses each story with his fresh and saucy humor and pure heart.

Oh my word! I restarted my audible subscription for this book. I’m a sucker for memoirs where the author narrates it. Who doesn’t love Leslie Jordan at this point?

The Unspoken Name by A.K. Larkwood

Csorwe does—she will climb the mountain, enter the Shrine of the Unspoken, and gain the most honored title: sacrifice.

But on the day of her foretold death, a powerful mage offers her a new fate. Leave with him, and live. Turn away from her destiny and her god to become a thief, a spy, an assassin—the wizard’s loyal sword. Topple an empire, and help him reclaim his seat of power.

But Csorwe will soon learn—gods remember, and if you live long enough, all debts come due.

I bought this last year and just haven’t gotten to it yet. I’m hoping to get to it this month!

Lost In the Never Woods by Aiden Thomas

It’s been five years since Wendy and her two brothers went missing in the woods, but when the town’s children start to disappear, the questions surrounding her brothers’ mysterious circumstances are brought back into the light. Attempting to flee her past, Wendy almost runs over an unconscious boy lying in the middle of the road…

Peter, a boy she thought lived only in her stories, asks for Wendy’s help to rescue the missing kids. But, in order to find them, Wendy must confront what’s waiting for her in the woods.

I pre-ordered this one cause I like Cemetery Boys so much. Here’s hoping I like it just as much. It would be nice to have another author whose works I collect.

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

The Emperor needs necromancers.

The Ninth Necromancer needs a swordswoman.

Gideon has a sword, some dirty magazines, and no more time for undead nonsense.

Tamsyn Muir’s Gideon the Ninth unveils a solar system of swordplay, cut-throat politics, and lesbian necromancers. Her characters leap off the page, as skillfully animated as arcane revenants. The result is a heart-pounding epic science fantasy.

Brought up by unfriendly, ossifying nuns, ancient retainers, and countless skeletons, Gideon is ready to abandon a life of servitude and an afterlife as a reanimated corpse. She packs up her sword, her shoes, and her dirty magazines, and prepares to launch her daring escape. But her childhood nemesis won’t set her free without a service.

Harrowhark Nonagesimus, Reverend Daughter of the Ninth House and bone witch extraordinaire, has been summoned into action. The Emperor has invited the heirs to each of his loyal Houses to a deadly trial of wits and skill. If Harrowhark succeeds she will be become an immortal, all-powerful servant of the Resurrection, but no necromancer can ascend without their cavalier. Without Gideon’s sword, Harrow will fail, and the Ninth House will die.

Of course, some things are better left dead.

Another book I’ve had since last year and just never got around to reading. Here’s hoping!

Well, there you have it. The 4 books I’m wanting to read this month. Not a long list, but it works for me. Send good vibes my way that I can get to all of them!

Skipping the TBR?

Lauren3 Comments

Yes, I am skipping the TBR this month.

I know!

What’s a book blogger to do without a TBR?

Mood read, that’s what.

See, I’ve been trying this TBR thing and it hasn’t really worked out for me. I mean, the first month I did it, I did well. But every month after, total failure.

Which is fine. We learn from failure. And what I learned is that maybe I shouldn’t do TBR’s.

See TBR’s feel too much like an assignment. Like something I have to do. And since I am a mood reader, well, that just kills wanting to read.

That’s not good.

I want to read all the books I have, and since I keep buying new ones, well, I need to mood read them. So lets see how this no TBR thing goes.

I hope it goes well for me.

What To Read-December 2020 TBR

Lauren1 Comment

Well, since I failed lasts month TBR by one book, lets see what I can do with this month’s TBR.

Maybe make it shorter?

Maybe read more books?

Maybe both?

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

Mistborn tells basically asks the question: What happens if the hero fails? 1000 years have passed since that happened and a new rebellion is rising, but will they succeed? This is one of the Hubs’ favorite books and he is excited for me to read it.

The Autobiography of Santa Claus by Jeff Guin

Jeff writes a story about Christmas, and he gets some of it wrong. To the point where a very important person from up north wants to chat with him. One of my book clubs is reading this book this month, and it sounds adorable!

Dune by Frank Herbert

This classic sci-fi story has been around for a long time. The story of Paul Atreides, the planet Arakkis, and the Spice. Because, as you know, “he who controls the spice controls the universe”. This is another book club pick. But I’m only supposed to read half of it for the month, which suits me just fine, since I didn’t really like it the first time I read it.

How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse by K. Eason

Rory was supposed to inherit the throne, but her father was assassinated and her mother gave birth to a son. Now Rory is betrothed to a prince and uncovers a plot to overthrow him. This book sounds like a fun space opera read.

And I think those are all the books I’m going to put on my TBR this month. Lets see how I do. Hopefully I’ll do better this month than I did in November!

Cemetery Boys- A Book Review

Lauren5 Comments

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can’t get rid of him.

When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his true gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free.

However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school’s resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He’s determined to find out what happened and tie off some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

So I just finished up Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas and wow. I was not disappointed.

Which is great.

Because right as I started reading this my ADD started acting up and you would have thought I had never read a book before. I couldn’t sit still. I would read twenty pages then I would put the book down only to come back to the book two hours later and get yet another twenty pages read. I finally got past that hump when there about a hundred pages left in the book. Thank goodness!

And please don’t let my inability to sit still and read lead you to believe this book is anything other than good. Because it’s very great. I couldn’t play Animal Crossing for very long either, and I play that for at least an hour every day.

I have no life. Cause Covid.

Back to the book!

I enjoyed the world the author created. And given that it is our world, it was pretty easy. But the picture they painted of the graveyard and Yadriel’s place in it (and the world at large) was wonderful.

The characters were rich and colorful. And I really felt for Yadriel on his journey to gain his family’s acceptance as a trans man. And Julian and Maritza are wonderful characters. I liked how alive Julian felt, you know, for a dead guy.

The magic system in this book is great. I really loved how the author used generational magic. It was such a large part of Yadriel’s journey in his struggle to be accepted.

I loved the plot, but I did have some problem with how certain things progressed here and there. I feel the book had some plot progression issues and that they kind of rushed us to the end of the story once we got there.

There were a few things I would tweak here and there, mostly to do with the writing style and the plot progression issues. And that’s why this book gets 4 out of 5 stars.

What? It’s a great book! It also happens to be the authors debut novel and I’m really excited to see what they do next.

The Priory of the Orange Tree – A Book Review

Lauren2 Comments

The Priory of the Orange Tree was written by Samantha Shannon

As I sat down to write this review, which was right after finishing the book, I realized that I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about it.

The premise: The kingdom of Inys has stood for a thousand years, and at it’s heart lies it’s queen, Sabran. Now it’s time for Sabran to do her duty and conceive an heir, but evil lurks in the shadows. A plot to undo her kingdom is at hand, and an ancient Dragon awakens in the deep.

This 800 page fantasy book is 3 parts political drama 1 part fantasy story. With a little queer romance thrown in just for good measure. And I’m not the biggest fan of pure political drama if I’m going to be honest. To much real political drama in the world, thank you very much!

The world building is the book was excellently done. Like, superbly done. The author paints a chaotic landscape in fear of the apocalypse to come.

The character building was well done. Sabran, Ead, Margret, Tané, Loth, Nicklays, and all the rest are very well fleshed out with strong backstories. They all have growth, if not all in the ways that you expect (here’s looking at you unexpected queer relationships!).

The plot, well that, that is where I have some problems. Overall, it’s good. The story is engaging and the world is thriving. But I had some problems with the little bits. Some things happened too slowly, some too quickly. There was an awful lot of “if it could go wrong, it will go wrong” happening here. But again, overall, it’s a good plot, with plenty of momentum to pull the story forward.

On the whole, the book was pretty good. I gave it 3.75 out of 5 stars.