Taking a quick break to do the Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag… This is a thing that happens over on BookTube, but I’m going to add my contribution over here on my blog.
1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2021:The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson 2. Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2021:Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries #6) 3. New release you haven’t read yet, but want to:Son of the Storm by Suyi Davies Okungbowa 4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year:Never Saw You Coming by Erin Hahn 5. Biggest disappointment:Poseidon’s Wake by Alastair Reynolds 6. Biggest surprise:Master of One by Jaida Jones and Danielle Bennett 7. Favorite new (or new to you) author: Micaiah Johnson 8. Newest fictional crush: Stoker from the Veronica Speedwell series 9. Newest favorite character: the telepathic fox from Winterkeep by Kirstin Cashore 10. Book that made you cry:More Than Maybe by Erin Hahn 11. Book that made you happy:The Checklist by Addie Woolridge 12. Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received): I am still waiting on my Fae Crate special edition of Son of the Storm, and I expect that is going to be pretty fantastic. However, since I haven’t received it yet, I’m going to have to go with the special edition hardcover I purchased of The Space Between Worlds (see photo below). 13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year? I haven’t made much progress on my “21 for 2021” TBR, yet (3/21 books read). So I should probably make an effort to read a few more of those before the end of the year…
What was the best book you’ve read so far this year? Let me know in the comments.
We are several weeks into the new year, but those weeks have been rather…eventful. Perhaps that’s why it’s taken a bit longer than usual for me to complete my 2020 reading wrap-up? Or maybe it’s because I just haven’t been that excited about sharing my reading stats and goals recap?
I think the ongoing pandemic plus the frustrating political situation (in the U.S.) has been taking its toll on me (like it has on everyone). Most days it feels like: “reading goals? who cares. what’s the point?” I suppose the point is that I will not let existential dread get the better of me. So, even though I considered just skipping this post, I’m going to put it up anyway.
How I did on my 2020 reading goals:
Read at least 52 books (or book-like things). — Done! I read a total of 68 books in 2020. That’s less than I read in 2019, but above average based on the past ten years.
Finish at least 5 series that I’ve already started. — Done! I completed seven series this year, including:
Read all purchased books within six months of purchase. — Nope! This did not happen. I think I have nine that I purchased between early 2019 and end of June 2020 that I should have read by now and haven’t. Nine isn’t terrible, but it is still a lot more than zero.
Read at least one owned book for every book I purchase. — Nope! And, as expected, this was a pain to keep track of.
Read more books by marginalized authors (measured by % of total books read).
At least 33% books by “non-white” authors with a stretch goal of 50%. — Almost but not quite… 28% (nineteen) of the books I read were written by non-white authors. Of those, eleven were written by Black authors. If I hadn’t been tracking this reading stat for the past four years, and I didn’t know that this is the lowest this stat has been since I started tracking, maybe I’d feel better about almost hitting my goal. But, I have been tracking it, and this is the lowest this stat has been in four years, so I’m disappointed with myself.
At least 15% books by queer authors with a stretch goal of 33%. — Almost but not quite… 12% (eight) of the books I read this year were written by an author who does not identify as “straight. This is best as I can tell. As I’ve said before, I’m not always sure how an author identifies, and I don’t think that I need to be. To that end, I will note that 19% (thirteen) of the books I read had at least one main (POV) character that was LGBTQ+.
At least 10% books by indie authors with a stretch goal of 25%. — DONE! 15% (ten) of the books I read were indie published books. However, I feel compelled to note that the only reason I hit this goal was because I read the Innkeeper series this year, which appears to be indie published even though (I think) Ilona Andrews’ other books are traditionally published.
At least 50% of books written by female-identifying authors. — DONE! 81% (fifty-five) of the books I read were written by female-identifying authors. Another six were written by a team of writers that included one male-identifying and one female-identifying person. And I read one book by a non-binary author. (Note: I have to make some assumptions for this stat because not all authors are clear about their pronouns.)
In general, I’m not super thrilled with how I did on my reading goals this year. Sure, I read more books than I planned to read. But I didn’t read as many books by marginalized authors as I have in previous years. And all my attempts to read the books that I purchase keep failing.
Based on this, I’ve decided to make some changes for 2021. The first is that I’m going to stop focusing on reading my backlist or keeping up with the books I’ve purchased. Buying books supports authors. I’ll read them eventually, or I won’t, but regardless, I’m happy to be supporting authors so they can keep creating. So enough with making myself feel guilty for buying books that I want to read and creating stats that are annoyingly complicated to track.
In general, I’m keeping my 2021 reading goals simple. I have only two, as I mentioned in my post on setting up my reading journal. The first is my “Goodreads goal” to read at least 52 books. The other is to make sure I’m reading marginalized authors every month.
I want to read at least twelve books by Black authors, at least twelve books by other non-white authors, and at least twelve books with queer main characters and positive queer representation (ideally written by a queer author). Twelve books and twelve months. The queer rep can be in a book written by a BIPOC author. So this means at least two books I read every month should be by a marginalized author. I hope that tracking it this way will help me meet (or exceed) this goal.
Other Fun Facts about my 2020 reading:
I had one DNF in 2020. This may be a book I come back to later, but it just wasn’t holding my attention like I thought it would. So, I set it aside.
Seventeen of the books I read (25%) were published in 2020. Two were published on 31 December 2019. So, if I count those two, that brings my total to nineteen (or 28%).
Sixty of the sixty-eight books I read (88%) were fiction.
I read fifty-one (75%) ebooks, eleven (16%) print books, and six (9%) audiobooks.
I only read twelve young adult books this year (18%) and no middle grade or children’s books. Everything else (82%) was adult.
Genre breakdown as follows:
Sci-Fi/Fantasy = 53%
Romance/Erotica = 19%
General/Contemporary Fiction = 13%
Self-Help/Business = 5%
Historical Fiction = 4%
Current Affairs / Politics = 4%
Science / Nature = 1%
Memoir/Biography = 1%
And that’s it. I’m finally done with all my 2020 wrap-up posts. Unless there’s something else you’d like me to write about? If so, let me know in the comments.
I’m curious, do you track your reading stats? If so, do you track these same types of metrics? What do you like to keep tabs on, and why? I’m always looking for ways I can improve my process, so I’d love to know your thoughts.
I’m going to keep this post short because I’m working on my end of the year wrap-up with all my reading stats and whatnot. But before I can post that one, let’s recap what I read and bought in the final month of 2020.
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I read four books in December. They were:
Return of the Thief by Megan Whalen Turner — I already posted about how this was one of my top five reads of 2020. This was an excellent end to a series that I love. I really hope, based on the ending of this book, that we get a spin-off series.
Strange Love by Ann Aguirre — The characters in this book are fantastic, especially the talking dog. I am really looking forward to reading more in this series and more books by this author.
Aurora Burning by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff — This was exactly the sort of action-packed, sci-fi romp that I’ve come to expect (and enjoy) from this author pair. I liked this book more than the first in the series and will definitely be checking out the next (and final?) installment.
Eight Will Fall by Sarah Harian — I received this in my Fairy Loot subscription box forever ago, so it’s not exactly the sort of book I’d normally pick up, at least not based on the description. It was enjoyable, but a little too much gore for me. I’ve passed it on to a YA reader in my life who might enjoy it more than I did.
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I bought two books this month: Colonyside by Michael Mammay, which I think is the final book his military sci-fi series, and Master of One by Jaida Jones and Danielle Bennett, which I knew very little about before it arrived in my Fairy Loot subscription box.
I’m working on my December reading wrap up, and calculating my 2020 reading stats. While I do that, I thought I’d share my top five favorite books I read in 2020.
My favorite books read in 2020 were (in no particular order):
I’ve already gushed about all of these in previous blog posts, so if you haven’t read those, go check out my monthly reading recaps.
Genre-wise, these books represent a little bit of everything that I like to read: contemporary (Such a Fun Age), contemporary fantasy (Sweep of the Blade), secondary world fantasy (Return of the Thief and Race the Sands), and sci-fi (Network Effect), but I think it’s a little unusual that they are all adult fiction. I have to go back and look, but I feel like previous years’ lists must have included at least one or two young adult books.
Another odd thing they have in common is that all but one of these books were published in 2020 (Sweep of the Blade was published in mid-2019). Technically, Such a Fun Age was published on the last day of 2019, but I’m counting it as a 2020 book. This was a little surprising, because I don’t usually read so many new releases.
And finally (and possibly most unusual for me), all of these books feature parent-child and/or caregiver-child relationships that play very important roles in these stories. Sweep of the Blade and Race the Sands both have badass mothers as main characters. The main character in Such a Fun Age is a nanny. Murderbot is put in charge of protecting a surly teen (Dr. Mensa’s daughter) in Network Effect. And The King of Attolia takes on a new, very young attendant in Return of the Thief.
Did any of these make it onto your favorites list? If not, what was your favorite read from 2020?
This is it. Last month of 2020. Last chance for me to finish all my in-progress reads, read all the books read that I meant to read this year, and figure out my reading goals and tracking system for next year. But first, let’s do a brief wrap up of what I read and what I bought this month.
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I read three books in November. They were:
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid — This novel was so good. REALLY good. Like, possibly best book I read in 2020, good. Bump it up to the top of your TBR right now. I promise, you won’t be disappointed.
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia — Oh boy did this author nail the Gothic novel vibes. Wow. That said, the setting is a lot more English than Mexican, even though it’s set in Mexico, which wasn’t quite what I was expecting. But, if Gothic novels are your thing, definitely check this one out.
Mating the Huntress by Talia Hibbert — This was a really cute novella that gave me Buffy and Spike vibes, except with consent. I really liked it.
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I bought books this month! I’m not even going to feel bad about it. Here’s what I got:
Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco — My October Fairy Loot box finally arrived towards the end of November (there were COVID-related shipping delays), and this was the book of the month. The stenciled edges on this special edition are so pretty, and the story sounds great. I have it in my reading nook because I want to start reading it very soon.
The Under a Winter Sky anthology — There are so many amazing authors with stories in this Anthology. I almost always neglect the short story collections on my Kindle, but I am determined to read this one soon. Hopefully while it’s still winter.
Warrior Wench by Marie Andreas — So, I’m basically a sucker for a mercenary space captain. I saw this on sale, read the description, realized that it sounded like fun and campy sci-fi romp, which was exactly what I was in the mood for, and I had to grab a copy.
Rescue Her Heart by K. C. Luck — Another sci-fi adventure involving a space captain, but this time a lesbian sci-fi adventure!
House of Scepters by Anne Zoelle — Anne is one of the writers in my Tuesday writing group, and the organizer of that group has been gushing about this book ever since she got to beta read it. This is the first book in a three book series that Anne rapid-released. Based on what I’ve heard, I probably should have gone ahead and bought all three because I suspect I’m going to want to keep reading once I start.
End of the Year Book Tag
Rather than talk about what I’m currently reading, or what’s on my TBR for December, I thought I’d do the End of the Year Book Tag that has been going around over on Booktube. I did this last year and thought I might try it again, even though the year is nearly over. The questions pretty nicely cover what I have planned for the rest of this year…
Are there any books you started this year that you need to finish? YES! I like to finish all my in-progress reads before midnight on New Year’s. It’s kind of a weird quirk of mine. Right now I have three books in progress. They are:
Poseidon’s Wake by Alastair Reynolds — I abandoned this one earlier in the year and have yet to get back to it. It’s been so long that I may need to start over…
Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy by Karen Abbott — This is non-fiction and interesting, but a pretty slow read. I am going to need to pick up the pace a bit if I want to finish before the end of December.
Eight Will Fall by Sarah Harian — This one I should be done with in a couple of days. I had to put it down for a bit to read The Return of the Thief (so good! more on that in my December wrap up…), but this one is pretty fast paced, and I am finding myself excited to pick it up again.
Do you have an autumnal book to transition into the end of the year? The short answer is yes. See last year’s post for which book(s) and why. I never did re-read either last year, and I still probably won’t re-read them this year, though I really want to re-read them at some point.
Is there a new release you’re still waiting for? YES! The third (and last) book in Michael Mammay’s Planetside series is scheduled to be released at the very end of December. It’s called Colonyside, and I’ve pre-ordered it so that I can read it right away. I plan to start book two in the series any minute now so that I am ready to go when book three drops onto my Kindle.
I’ve said this before, but if you like military sci-fi, OR if you like the idea of a something like the movie A Few Good Men, but set in space with a retired “one last job” protagonist, then you need to get your hands on this series. Do it.
What are three books you want to read before the end of the year? Okay, aside from all the ones I already mentioned in this post, here are the three that are calling to me the most right now:
Aurora Burning by by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff — This one is kind of a cheat because my friends and I just decided this was going to be our buddy read book this month. I didn’t love the twist at the end of the first book, but I did like the characters, especially my favorite space fae.
Stormsong by C. L. Polk — I promised myself that I would get to read this as my reward for finishing (and publishing) Hunter of the Fae. I am so excited to read this one.
Strange Love by Ann Aguirre — I’ve been super curious about this author for a while. She has a ton of books that seem like they would really appeal to me. This one is giving me Anne McCaffrey vibes for some reason, and I really want to see if it lives up to that.
Is there a book you think could still shock you and become your favorite book of the year? Possibly Strange Love, or maybe Stormsong, or Spaceside… Huh. Apparently books that have a title that starts with an “S” are most likely to be my new favorites at the moment.
Have you already started making reading plans for 2021? YES! But, this post is already very long, so I’m going to save that for my next blog post, which should be very soon. Here’s a hint, though, it has to do with the solution I came up with for the problem I mentioned in a previous blog post…
Talk with you more soon. Until then, happy reading!
Yikes. We’re already a week into November, and I am only now posting my October reading wrap-up. The past few weeks have been a busy and stressful blur. I’m still feeling a little overwhelmed, honestly. All I really want to be doing is reading, but my to-do list is keeping me too busy. At least I had a good reading month in October…
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I started the month with Murder on Black Swan Lane by Andrea Penrose. I picked this up because it looked like it might have a similar vibe to the Lady Sherlock series by Sherry Thomas and the Veronica Speedwell series by Deanna Raybourn. I am happy to report that it did, and I enjoyed it. I’ll definitely be checking out the rest of the series.
After that, I read Race the Sands by Sarah Beth Durst. You may remember that I read her Queens of Renthia series earlier this year and really enjoyed it. Well, I liked this book even better than that series, and that’s saying a lot. This may be my favorite fantasy release of 2020. It may even make my top five books I read this year. We shall see…
I listened to the audio book of The Unexpected Spy by Tracy Walder. This one was a memoir about her life in the CIA and FBI. It was really interesting, but also infuriating, at times. Her experience with the FBI was extremely frustrating to listen to, but it has a really heartwarming “girl power” ending that made me very happy.
Then, inspired by all the Halloween horror and thriller TBRs, I decided to read When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole. It was a very disturbing yet entertaining contemporary thriller. I mean, the story is based on historic and current events, and (as has been said before) truth is sometimes stranger and way more scary than fiction. If you like her other books (the revolution-era ones especially) don’t miss this one.
Finally, it took me all month to finish A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy. This is no fault of the book, which I really enjoyed. I was reading a hardcover edition of this book, and I do most of my reading these days on my Kindle just before bed. So I had to change my routine a bit in order to squeeze in more early morning and late evening reading time. This got a lot easier to do once we moved into the new house. I have an excellent reading nook now that is very cozy and perfect for curling up with a good book. I may finally be able to put a dent in my paper TBR.
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I didn’t buy or borrow any new books in October! Wow!
Currently Reading
I started the non-fiction book Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy by Karen Abbott in October. I’m enjoying it, but I’m only about a quarter of the way into it. I haven’t been reading much (at all?) in this first week of November. There have been too many other distractions (the elections, moving in to a new house, finishing copy edits on Hunter of the Fae, and getting started on NaNoWriMo, just to name a few…). But, I’m hoping to get back into my reading groove next week.
I’m also planning to start reading either Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid or Mexican Gothic by Silvia Morena Garcia next. I’ve already read two books by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and liked both of them, so I’m pretty sure I’ll also like Mexican Gothic. But, I’m buddy reading Such a Fun Age with my friends L. and S. So, I think I’ll start that one, first.
In general, I am really hoping that this year chills out a bit and lets us all get a little rest and relaxation before it’s time to ring in the New Year. Since it’s winter where I live, and the pandemic is getting worse again, I think it’s a great time to hide out with a good book.
September was a lot. Not a lot of reading, but a lot of other stuff, like finishing writing book four in my Modern Fae series, plus some life stuff, not to mention all the other things going on in the world right now. I am really, REALLY looking forward to taking a bit of a break in October. But first, let’s talk about what I read and what I hauled in September.
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I caught up on Murderbot in September. I finished the third and fourth novellas (Rogue Protocol and Exit Strategy), plus read the short story that is set between the fourth novella and the first novel (Home: Habitat, Range, Niche, Territory), and the first novel (Network Effect). I really love Murderbot. In a month where I regularly found myself overwhelmed by emotions (ugh, emotions), I found I could totally relate to just wanting to bury myself in consuming stories to make myself feel better. Especially old favorites. I’ve been really craving returning to some of my favorite movies and books.
The only non-Murderbot book that I read in September was You Should See Me In a Crown by Leah Johnson. This is a contemporary YA novel with a big prom theme, set at a high school in Indiana, featuring a bisexual main character who is also Black. It was really good. I really enjoyed it, even though it is definitely written for Real Teens (aka not adults, like me). I wish I had more teens in my life to share this with.
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I did another epic library haul and filled my Kindle up with ebooks. What do you see here that you think I should read first? The one I’m probably most excited for is Erin Hahn’s More Than Maybe, which sounds like a book that teen me would have LOVED. I’m also hoping that I’ll get sucked into some of these series now that I have more time for reading. It’s always when you get to read books in a series back to back.
Currently Reading
I am currently in the middle of A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy and Murder on Black Swan Lane by Andrea Penrose. The first is a YA fantasy novel with cool magic and world building. The second is a cozy mystery set in Regency London. It is similar in style to the Lady Sherlock series and the Veronica Speedwell series that I like. Lucky for me, this is also the first in an ongoing series.
What are you reading? What do you recommend from my book haul?
I didn’t read much in August, but I did do a lot of writing, and I made an effort to get outside and enjoy the last few weeks of summer. Most of that outside time was pretty active, though. I haven’t spent nearly enough time just sitting outside and reading. I’m going to work on getting in a little more of that in September.
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I finished the audiobook of F*ck No!: How to Stop Saying Yes When You Can’t, You Shouldn’t, or You Just Don’t Want To by Sarah Knight at the start of the month. I think that the first half of this book was much better and more useful (to me, anyway) than the second half of this book. What I realized from reading this is why I have such trouble saying no to things / people and also how to short circuit that thought process in my head. I didn’t really need the “how to say no” part in the second half, but some of the examples that she used were illuminating and made me think of more times that I probably should have said no and didn’t. Overall, I’m really glad I read it and recommend it to others who find themselves saying “yes” when they really should or want to say “no.”
After that, I (finally) picked up A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn. I wanted to read something like the Lady Sherlock series that I love while I wait for book five, and this seemed like a good option. I enjoyed it, but I didn’t like the main character as much as I enjoy Charlotte Holmes. I am hoping that she evolves as the series progresses, and I plan to read at least the next book in the series to find out. I sort of forgot how much I like cozy mysteries with plucky heroines, and it’s nice to know I have at least one other series I can go to when I am in the mood for that.
The last book I read this month was Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase. I wanted to check this one out because it had been spoken of in glowing terms by several romance authors I admire. Unfortunately, I was not impressed. It’s fine, but nothing special. The main conflict keeping the pair apart essentially boils down to their inability to be honest with each other about their feelings, which is a romance pet peeve of mine. I also really didn’t like the fact that the hero is considered ugly (big nose, large body, and dark skin) and a scoundrel because of his half-Italian ancestry. The term “blackamoor” (which I was unfamiliar with until I Googled it) was used repeatedly in connection to his appearance and his lustfulness and brutish behavior. Not okay. Especially not considering the 2009 pub date. I am really not sure that I understand the appeal of this one, or why everyone seems to love it so much.
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I bought two ebooks this month. One is a book that I’ve had on my wishlist forever that finally went on sale. Milady by Laura L. Sullivan is supposed to be a Three Musketeers retelling, but from the perspective of the villainess of that story, Milady de Winter. I’ve never read The Three Musketeers. I’m not even sure I’m familiar with the general plot of the story, but this sounded really good.
The other book I bought is one I’ve been anticipating since I first heard about it months ago. Seven Devils by by Laura Lam and Elizabeth May. First off, the title is a nod to a song by Florence and the Machine, which I love. Then there’s the team of women and the sci-fi setting. I have very high hopes for this book and really, really want it to be a five star read.
Currently Reading
I’m just over halfway through You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson. YA Contemporary isn’t my favorite age-group / genre combination, but I’m enjoying it. So far, I think the hype is justified.
Next up I’m planning to (finally) finish the Murderbot novellas. I’ve been saving the third and fourth, but now that there’s a novel to read (and more coming), I feel like I can safely read these. Plus, S. and L. want to buddy read the novel with me, and I can’t read that until I read these.
Now I need to get back to writing so I can finish this novel and send it to my beta readers. Then I can reward myself by relaxing on the deck with a book. Happy reading!
July was a pretty good reading month for me. I managed to finish ten books. A couple were pretty short, but there were some definite keepers in this batch.
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Here’s what I read in July:
I started the month with It’s Not All Downhill From Here by Terry McMillan. The only other book I’ve read by her is How Stella Got Her Groove Back, which I read before I saw the movie. I liked this one. It was a little meandering and repetitive at times, but I think it did a great job portraying a woman dealing with grief over losing her husband suddenly, and I really appreciate the way the author portrays female friendships.
After that, I read Intercepted by Alexa Martin. I wasn’t sure I was going to like this one because I’m not a fan of professional sports (other than swimming). I picked it up because the author was an NFL wife, and I listened to a podcast interview with her that I really enjoyed. I’m glad I finally read this because it was another solid win for female friendships, and I really liked the story and the romance. Definitely recommend this one for anyone who enjoys contemporary romance.
Then I read three more that I really liked. The first was Catfishing on Catnet by Naomi Kritzer, which was really cute and fun and light. Highly recommend. Then Chaos Reigning by Jesse Mihalik, which was book three in a space opera romance series that I’ve been enjoying. I think I liked this book the best of the three. If you like space opera you should definitely check out this series. And then I read another last book in a trilogy, Hurts to Love You by Alisha Rai. I like all the books in the Forbidden Hearts series, each for different reasons, but I think this might have been my favorite.
My virtual book club decided to read Beach Read by Emily Henry and The Deep by Rivers Solomon, Daveed Diggs, William Hutson, Jonathan Snipes. Both were really good with some superficial similarities, but they were otherwise very different books. Beach Read is (mostly) light romance about two writers who meet again after having secret crushes on each other in college. I really connected with the book-writing subplot and thought the romance was sufficiently swoony. The main characters in both Beach Read and The Deep are dealing with painful memories, but The Deep really dives into that and has only a small romantic subplot (which I wasn’t expecting, but was a welcome, hopeful touch). The other thing the two books have in common are incredibly interesting authors’ notes at the end. I love learning more about the story behind the story. I liked and recommend both of these books.
But wait, there’s more! I don’t know about you, but one of the biggest struggles I’ve had to deal with over the past few months of the “quarantimes” is all the FOMO from my decision to stay home and continue to do my socializing over the internet, or from a distance, outside. I’m kind of a people pleaser. It’s way easier for me to rock the boat on behalf of someone else than to speak up for myself. So, I’ve been working on setting and communicating boundaries. As such, I’ve found the Life Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck by Sarah Knight to be really helpful. I’m currently listening to her book F*ck No on Libby. When I saw she had a brief Christmas themed novella (How to Not Give a F*ck at Christmas), I thought I’d check it out. Unfortunately, it wasn’t that helpful. While I recommend the other two books, I don’t recommend buying the novella.
Last, but not least, I listened to two non-fiction books on Libby, White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo and The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio. Both were really good. I’d been putting off reading White Fragility because I was pretty sure it was all going to be review for me, and mostly it was review, but it was an excellent review and an even better resource for talking with friends and family about this stuff. I highly recommend bumping this to the top of your TBR if you’ve been putting off reading it, like I was. And, if you want to expand beyond how Black people are treated in America, definitely check out The Undocumented Americans. My husband and I traveled to Ecuador just over ten years ago and heard some stories like this first-hand from the folks we met there, but this book goes way beyond what I already knew. I love getting new perspectives!
Speaking of what I’m reading right now… There are two readathons going on this month, but I’m not participating in either of them. The first is The other option is Tome Topple, which starts today. The other is the NEWTs Magical Readathon. I’m planning on skipping both because I don’t think I’m going to have a lot of time for reading this month.
This round of NEWTs is going to be the last of the Magical Readathons associated with Harry Potter. Since I completed all but one of the OWLs back in April. I was looking forward to getting my Animagus certificate, and I was all set to try for a number of different magical career options. I may still try to see what I can manage, but if it doesn’t work out, I’m excited to see what G comes up with for next year.
Okay, it’s past my bedtime, and this post is already very long (and several days late). So, I’m going to cut myself off and get to sleep. Until next time, stay home and read, and if you have to go out, please wear a mask! ❤
Taking a quick break from writing to do the Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag. This is a thing that happens over on BookTube, but I’m going to add my contribution over here on my blog.
1. Best book you’ve read so far in 2020:A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine — I’ve talked about this already, but this book is really well written, I really enjoyed the characters and the plot and the world. I highly recommend it for anyone who loves Ursula K. LeGuin, especially Left Hand of Darkness. 2. Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2020:The Reluctant Queen by Sarah Beth Durst — I love the new character(s) introduced in this sequel. I was a little skeptical of the ending until I read book three. Now I can safely say this was the best sequel I’ve read so far this year. 3. New release you haven’t read yet, but want to:Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim — This is a Count of Monte Cristo retelling, and that book was a surprise favorite when I read it a couple years ago, so I’m excited to see how I like this retelling. 4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year:Seven Devils by Laura Lam — This book sounds so awesome. I’ve never read anything by this author, but I am very excited for this book. 5. Biggest disappointment:Red, White, & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston — I’d heard so many gushes and squees about this book before reading it. I liked it but didn’t love it. I think I was expecting too much. 6. Biggest surprise:The Last Emperox by John Scalzi — Not a surprise that I liked it, but tons of surprises in the story itself. There were definitely some bold twists in this book that I did not see coming. 7. Favorite new (or new to you) author: Ilona Andrews — I’m now caught up on their Innkeeper series, and I definitely want to try reading some other books by them. 8. Newest fictional crush: Jackson from Wrong to Need You by Alisha Rai 9. Newest favorite character: Maud from the Sweep of the Blade by Ilona Andrews 10. Book that made you cry:Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy — I cried when I watched the movie, and I cried again when I read the book, even though I knew what was coming. 11. Book that made you happy:Sweep of the Blade by Ilona Andrews — I love Maud and Arland! 12. Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received):Bone Crier’s Moon by Kathryn Purdie 13. What books do you need to read by the end of the year? Everything I’ve bought but haven’t read yet, specifically:
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