To those of you seeing this newsletter pop up in your inbox after many months, thanks for sticking with me! I re-upped my commitment to the ALA awards committee I served on last year, so I was very busy evaluating hundreds of books and not necessarily writing about them. I had less time to read in my favorite genres, and spent a lot of time reading K-comics (manhwa) to avoid my responsibilities. I also took on a larger role at work, etc. All that said, I'm love reading annual favorites lists from my reader friends, and I figured it was time to pull my own list together again.
As you may have noticed, I lost my blogging energy for several months. I became Director of a public library, signed on to an ALA awards committee and hey, my home country is in crisis. No promises going forward, but here are some overdue reviews of FIVE Red Tower romantasy series-starters I read in the last few months.
Below I talk about Games Gods Play, Bloodguard, The Last One, The Never List and The Half King. A couple of duds and three I enjoyed! I didn't make content notes as I read, but most do have darker themes or scenes.
Ratings are based on whether or not I recommend them to fellow readers - DNF (Did Not Finish), Pass, YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary), Read It, Read It Soon.
Happy September! Let's eat some apple pie and read some books.
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It's August! There are new books!
I'll be honest, everything feels like a lot right now. School is starting, my partner is starting a new job, my workplace is going through some big change, plus I'm still reeling from the latest floods.
There's a lot to be worried and angry and sad about in our personal lives and in our communities (local, national, global). If you're here in the dread and doom pool with me, I urge you to take some action. It's proven to make you feel better, which is pretty cool. I've been reading the book Bowling Alone in prep for a library event I'm running and it's got me motivated to fight this "epidemic of loneliness." The Surgeon General's report linked in that article is worth reading. This fall I'm postcarding for the Environmental Voter Project and continuing to write for Postcards to Voters, volunteering in my city, etc. Little steps.
In other news, yesterday was my wedding anniversary and we went camping with the kids. If this post doesn't make sense, it's because I managed about 3 hours of sleep and I'm in a post-s'mores energy crash. It was quite lovely to hang out with my favorite people in the woods.
Happy end of summer, friends! Enjoy the new books.
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Look, I'm sharing the July list in July! Turns out I'm capable of making links while I have COVID and can't do much else. It finally got me after 4.5 years. I resent it immensely.
Here's a list of promising-to-me books releasing in July 2024 and a couple short reviews of books I read a bit early.
Happy reading!
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Continuing our new tradition of publishing the month's TBR way after the month is over, here are some June picks that I've already read and more I'm looking forward to!
July's list should be coming soon. Hope you've been reading something great.
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Title: The Wren in the Holly Library
Author: Heat: Re
Genre(s): Romance Fantasy Urban Fantasy
Tags: f-m bisexual white fae magic heist
Author: Heat: Re
Genre(s): Romance Fantasy Urban Fantasy
Tags: f-m bisexual white fae magic heist
Where to Buy or Read:
If you'd like to purchase a copy of this book, please consider buying local or through this link to support the site: Amazon
Synopsis from the Creator:
Can you love the dark when you know what it hides?
Some things aren’t supposed to exist outside of our imagination.
Thirteen years ago, monsters emerged from the shadows and plunged Kierse’s world into a cataclysmic war of near-total destruction. The New York City she knew so well collapsed practically overnight.
In the wake of that carnage, the Monster Treaty was created. A truce...of sorts.
But tonight, Kierse—a gifted and fearless thief—will break that treaty. She’ll enter the Holly Library...not knowing it’s the home of a monster.
He’s charming. Quietly alluring. Terrifying. But he knows talent when he sees it; it’s just a matter of finding her price.
Now she’s locked into a dangerous bargain with a creature unlike any other. She’ll sacrifice her freedom. She’ll offer her skills. Together, they’ll put their own futures at risk.
But he’s been playing a game across centuries—and once she joins in, there will be
no escape...
Some things aren’t supposed to exist outside of our imagination.
Thirteen years ago, monsters emerged from the shadows and plunged Kierse’s world into a cataclysmic war of near-total destruction. The New York City she knew so well collapsed practically overnight.
In the wake of that carnage, the Monster Treaty was created. A truce...of sorts.
But tonight, Kierse—a gifted and fearless thief—will break that treaty. She’ll enter the Holly Library...not knowing it’s the home of a monster.
He’s charming. Quietly alluring. Terrifying. But he knows talent when he sees it; it’s just a matter of finding her price.
Now she’s locked into a dangerous bargain with a creature unlike any other. She’ll sacrifice her freedom. She’ll offer her skills. Together, they’ll put their own futures at risk.
But he’s been playing a game across centuries—and once she joins in, there will be
no escape...
Let's go ahead and pretend I didn't entirely miss the month of May and instead celebrate the fact that I now have a whole bunch of reviews for you? IDK, all I can say is that I finally finished this thing and here it is.
Enjoy.
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I've been sharing these recaps over on Instagram for a couple of years now and they're a great way for me to reflect on my overall reading patterns and monthly favorites. I'm going to do something of a repost here for folks who don't use Insta. We'll see if I keep going :) Summary first, then the graphics.
These TBR posts are apparently replacing my mini-reviews? In this post I talk a lot about some of the April books I've read and then give a list of a bunch I'm looking forward to checking out.
Top on my list of not-yet-reads are Hannah Whitten's Hemlock Queen, Fine Print Vol. 2, by Stjepan Šejić and When I Think of You, by Myah Ariel.
Hope you find something great!
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