Review - A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal 3.5 on the Bookter scale. PSA: Spoilers, big ones, abound, so read with caution. And I promise to keep my SJM mentions to a minimum. https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B09JMX14J7&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_RGXZQ2MZZWF0WER42A2W I was very much looking forward to this book, I will admit - vampires, plus I really enjoyed the Sands… Continue reading Here’s the tea…
It’s Okay To Not Like Something.
Please stop internalizing bad book reviews. I feel like this really goes without saying, but as a reader (as a consumer of any art at all), you do not have to like everything you read and it is okay to leave a bad review on your preferred reviewing platform saying as much. In the vast… Continue reading It’s Okay To Not Like Something.
Daily Prompt
Is there an age or year of your life you would re-live? Well if this isn’t a loaded question I don’t know what is. Can I relive my 20s? I’d only do it if I could keep the boobs that I grew after gaining weight in my 30s and trade the rest of the body… Continue reading Daily Prompt
Fourth Wing Read-along – Chapter 1
Normally I wouldn't comment after just one chapter, but I'm 20 pages in and already I can tell that this is ACOTAR with dragons. Let me be clear, I'm not looking for nor expecting sophistication with anything I read; I'm a big proponent and fan of lots of light, fluffy, brainless bathroom reads. I've read… Continue reading Fourth Wing Read-along – Chapter 1
Fourth Wing Read-along!
I figured it’s finally time I start this monstrosity, so why not take the internet along for the ride? Expect my thoughts and ramblings as I make my way through this thing. I haven’t started it and I know only the basics of the plot, but I’ve seen enough fan art (quite a bit of… Continue reading Fourth Wing Read-along!
The Letdown
Book Review - Kingdom of the Feared by Kerri Maniscalco https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B09PL5XDJW&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_B3ZKXHN6VESYFKJK1PP7 Have you ever wondered what it would be like to run a marathon, a really hard one (like Boston) and trip, fall, and suffer a compound fracture of your femur only a few feet before the finish line? Well, if you haven't, just read… Continue reading The Letdown
Becoming an author, or at least trying to…
Daily writing promptWhat have you been working on?View all responses A novel, believe it or not. Anybody that knows me and has experienced the self-doubt and ADHD symptoms that basically make up the bulk of my character should know how difficult this is for me to admit, but here I am, somewhat anonymously putting on… Continue reading Becoming an author, or at least trying to…
It’s Not You, It’s Them…
Inexplicably Popular Books, quality smut, and the pleasures of the Bathroom Read. I have DNF'ed an embarrassing number of books so far this year. So much so that I'd probably have hit my annual reading goal already. I used to feel guilty about this but, as I discussed in my previous post on the joys… Continue reading It’s Not You, It’s Them…
Playing Favorites
Daily writing promptList three books that have had an impact on you. Why?View all responses Talk about an impossible question. It's easy for me to pick the first two books; those jumped into my head immediately. The third one is going to be a doozy, so let me at least talk about what I can… Continue reading Playing Favorites
The Deck Is Stacked Against You
Review - "The Cloisters" by Katy Hays https://read.amazon.com/kp/embed?asin=B09ZVJX964&preview=newtab&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_GFWEB8NK0PCQQ2EGFFX9 I feel like I have to make some sort of joke about this book being a “Cloister”fuck because, I mean, who wouldn’t, but I would be lying. At least partly. The story is good, nothing revolutionary, but it’s quick paced and short enough that I was able… Continue reading The Deck Is Stacked Against You
The Foxglove King – Review
I finally understand the adage about not judging a book by its cover ★★ Don't judge me too harshly here - In my defense, the cover is extraordinarily pretty, plus the blurb made it sound like this was a story that ticked a ton of boxes for me - magic, fantasy, mystery, romance, etc. The… Continue reading The Foxglove King – Review
Stop Trying to Make Oak Happen
The Stolen Heir - by Holly Black. A Review. I was so conflicted on how to rate this book. I still am. On the one hand, you have Holly Black's prose, which remains as excellent as ever. She's just able to craft words and sentences and entire paragraphs with an elegance that really remains unmatched… Continue reading Stop Trying to Make Oak Happen
Get Bent and Go To Hell
A Review of Hell Bent (Alex Stern #2) by Leigh Bardugo Spoilers Abound. Reader Beware. I’ll get the lame joke out of the way right off the bat and say that I devoured this book almost as fast as that hell beast devoured Darlington in Ninth House. As far as sequels go, this doesn’t surpass… Continue reading Get Bent and Go To Hell
The Canker in the Heart of the Rose…
The Brilliance of Pt. IV Chapter 3 of "The Vampire Lestat" Puttering along in my audiobook re-read of TVL and this morning I had the pleasure of making it to the aforementioned chapter and discovering anew what makes this book, and this character, so special. Lestat's conversation with the Children of Satan is a perfect… Continue reading The Canker in the Heart of the Rose…
Let’s Talk About Tamlin…
If Rhysand gets a free pass, so should Tamlin. AKA Literary hypocrisy born of author laziness sucks. No denying the ACOTAR books are popular and that they've spawned many demon children along the way. That's a lot of exposure to romantic and interpersonal ideals that's being shopped to young, impressionable brains. Post-ACOTAR incosisties, such as… Continue reading Let’s Talk About Tamlin…
Unpopular Opinion: The Mortal Instruments Movie
It's been some time since I've read the original Mortal Instruments series, and I don't think I've watched the movie since it came out. Don't ask me why I suddenly decided to rewatch, but it probably had something to do with the fact that it was readily available on streaming, I had a general hankering… Continue reading Unpopular Opinion: The Mortal Instruments Movie
One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig – Review
I am such a sucker. All you would need to do to lure me down a dark alley at night would be to dangle a book like One Dark Window in my face. It’s Danielle crack, or rather, a full box of extra toasty Cheez-its, which incidentally, is also crack. It is a large fountain… Continue reading One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig – Review
An Extraordinary Fiend…
AMC's "Interview with the Vampire" needs to fast forward to the Legacy of Magnus section in The Vampire Lestat...like stat. Trigger Warning: Some discussion of rape as it relates to events in "The Tale of the Body Thief" Mon Dieu, I'd forgotten how absolutely brilliant Lestat's transformation sequence was. It's a perfect encapsulation of everything… Continue reading An Extraordinary Fiend…
Well hello again, Lestat.
Reflections on an audiobook revisitation, character retcons, and a podcast recommendation. Translate all that to mean this: We have no money to launch a real ecclesiastical career for you, to make you a bishop or cardinal as befits our rank, so you have to live out your life here as an illiterate and a beggar.… Continue reading Well hello again, Lestat.
The Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing
I'm a self-help book junkie and I look forward to scouring BN.com and Amazon.com weekly for new releases. I've found that on more than one occasion I've looked further into a new book that looked promising only to find that what I thought was something with a psychological or philosophical bent was actually some weird… Continue reading The Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing
Adaptation is the sincerest form of flattery?
Thoughts on AMC's version of "Interview With the Vampire" and book adaptations in general. I feel the need to preface this with the fact that I'm at least one week behind on episodes for this show as I'm not an AMC+ subscriber. I'm aware of spoilers for the show ending, and being that I've been… Continue reading Adaptation is the sincerest form of flattery?
To DNF or not to DNF?
How far does author loyalty take you when you just don't like a book? My TBR and "currently reading" list on Goodreads right now is a massacre. I've finished a few books lately, but they've all been ones I've started after the ones that are still on my CR now, after months. Before I go… Continue reading To DNF or not to DNF?
Reacquainting Myself With Old Friends
I recently began my first "re-read" of the Vampire Chronicles in a significant amount of time via audiobook. I hope to write about it more in the future, as it was an integral part of my adolescence, but for now I'm just enjoying reveling in the magnificence of passages like this: Remarkable, if for nothing… Continue reading Reacquainting Myself With Old Friends
Not like other YA Fantasy Heroines…
High-school me would be really pissed off over the Caraval series. We are probably in the golden age of Young Adult Fantasy Fiction right now, as much as we can be in the golden age of anything with the world as it is. Man, the kid I was would be so excited to be alive… Continue reading Not like other YA Fantasy Heroines…
I’ve got the ick…
...but probably not for the reason you think. I admit it. I've fallen prey to the pretty covers and sprayed edges that are so prevalent these days more than once. Almost always this winds up not working out in my favor, so I've largely taken sprayed edges and special editions (at least on books and… Continue reading I’ve got the ick…
I Want to Kick This Book in the Mothballs
The Knight and the Moth, by Rachel Gillig https://www.amazon.com/Knight-Moth-Stonewater-Kingdom/dp/0316582700/ref=sr_1_1?crid=377KGU3ZK085Q&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.gRTWmTGdhw_TPnDivH5GwoBAbQkX-d1vZv0ttcLOilh5qBo4xjkc0bkJsjrj6ISZpVzEbP3lWAJE5D3Fmp4Kfao2bjuibevjjMsWTgVOllfWc125su92Ds9qcMxCIpwgQ-7t417MGxNYPp5Fc-dctjS321oVP60PDaWT6AL_m0mY340gqI1jMyRMNy78Yyq2AolSB_gcLz-i_hwYxWf2XYkByNs3x8U5PMz9u-zl7Tc.8SMADa9Ysr-6e28cwyEqkDjiTxBuw6VetAu5fT3eZEg&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+knight+and+the+moth&qid=1749216870&sprefix=the+knight+and+the+moth%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-1 It's funny how, if you've read at least one book by an author who wrote something you love, even if you've read something else by that same author that you did not love, you can still get excited for a new release, hoping that it will… Continue reading I Want to Kick This Book in the Mothballs
Fourth Wing Read a long – Chapters 6-15
I am weak, and this is bad.... Don't judge me, but I am struggling with this big time. I'm at Chapter 15 and I'm at the point where the only way I can read this is to force myself to physically pick the book up. I have actually started reading other things at the same… Continue reading Fourth Wing Read a long – Chapters 6-15
Fourth Wing Read-along: Chapters 4-9
I feel like I'm in a hyperbolic oxygen chamber here... So now that I've gotten at least a hundred pages into this, here's how I know already that I'm not really going to like it - I am not shirking every adult and personal responsibility I have just to eke out more time to read… Continue reading Fourth Wing Read-along: Chapters 4-9
Fourth Wing Read-along
Chapter 2 Holy shit, so this school condones straight-up actual murder? Sounds like a group I'd really want to be a part of. How do they let someone so obviously mentally unstable (Jack) join this academy? Especially Violet just got done saying that a wing or a group or whatever is only as strong as… Continue reading Fourth Wing Read-along
Keep It To Your Shelf 