First Line Friday: 12/19

Happy Friday, everybody! Wow, it’s been a couple of months – I didn’t mean for that to happen!

(Edit: Who accidentally scheduled this for today and had to fix it in post? And also didn’t notice until now because they were busy yesterday and then crashed last night? Couldn’t be me. Definitely not. Ugh. I have got to stop doing this.)

First Line Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers (formerly) hosted by Wandering Words, but I saw it over at One Book More.

What if instead of judging a book by the cover, author or most everything else, we judged it by its content? Its first lines?

If you want to join in, all you gotta do is:

📚 Take a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open it to the first page
📝 Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
📙 Finally… reveal the book!

Here’s the first line:

My big brother reaches home in the dark hours before dawn, when Leven ghosts take their rest. He smells of steel and coal and forge. He smells of the enemy.

Any ideas on what book it is? If you don’t, here’s another couple of hints…

Still have no idea? Here are some lovely pictures of books to admire while you think about it…

Annnd the book is… 🥁🥁 An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir!

(Didja guess it?)

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

SERIES: An Ember in the Ashes #1

LENGTH: 464 pages

GENRES: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction

PUBLISHER: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

RELEASE DATE: 28 April 2015

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Laia is a slave. Elias is a soldier. Neither is free.

Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.

It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.

But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.

There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier – and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined – and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.

What books have you been reading lately? What’s on your TBR that you’re currently the most excited about?

As always, thank you for reading, and I hope you have an awesome day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Monthly Wrap-Up: November Reading 2025

Late again! Ugh, this is later than October’s. I’m tired of posting my wrap-ups this late in the month. But at least my book reviews for the novels I read last month are posted, unlike last time. So this being late was a sacrifice I was willing to make. Anyway, here comes my reading wrap-up for November 2025!

And I think November was pretty good. At the very least it matched the month before – I read two books two months in a row. The page count wasn’t quite as good as October, though. There’s certainly room for improvement, but with the way this year has been with books and reading, I’ll accept what I can get. Hopefully December is at least just as good.

Anyway, let’s just start talking about my StoryGraph statistics from last month!

November Reading 2025

I read 2 books and 189 pages

😐 MOODS: I had two Moods in November, which is one less than the month before. The Moods from this past month were: Adventurous and Mysterious.

👢 PACE: The books I read last month were both medium-paced.

🔢 PAGE NUMBER: The novels I read were between 129 and 160 pages.

📖 FICTION/NONFICTION: It was once again all fiction. As usual.

🎭 GENRES: There was one Genre on the graph this month, and it’s what’s almost always my top one to read – Fantasy.

📄 FORMAT: This pie chart was correct. Both books I read were digital.

⭐ RATING: My median star rating for last month was 3.75.

📉 PAGES READ DAILY: My reading was practically non-existent for the majority of November. It did finally ramp up near the end of the month, though.

The Books I Read in November

★★★★☆ • my review

★★★✯☆ • my review

Wrapping Up the Wrap-Up

So yeah, my reading in November was okay. I hope I at the very least keep up the pace for the last month of the year. I’d like to read more than two books in a month, but with how December has historically turned out, let’s just say that I’m not going to cross my fingers too hard. I’m planning on being better next year, though.

I have a few books I’m looking into reading next. Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao is one of them, as well as A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik, along with The Ashfire King by Chelsea Abdullah, which has been getting pushed back for months in favor of other stuff though I still want to read it. I’m not sure what it’s gonna be yet – it could even be some other book that I didn’t just list even.

Anyway, as always, thank you for joining me in checking out my StoryGraph stats for my November reading in 2025. Thank you also for reading, and I hope you have a great day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Weekly Wrap-Up: 12/8 – 12/14

It’s a new week, and before we can move on to the next one, we gotta wrap up the last one! I’m a little later than I usually am, but… eh, it’s not that bad.

Last week wasn’t bad at all. My novel reading wasn’t the best, but my blogging was pretty good, even if it was constrained to a couple of days. I wish my posting could have been more spread out, but considering I did four posts and am nearly caught up to my book reviews, I can’t complain.

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get on with the Weekly Wrap-Up!

Tuesday 12/9: What Stalks the Deep Review / Top Ten Tuesday

Last Tuesday, I finally posted my review for What Stalks the Deep. It’s really been a long time coming, honestly. And with the posting of it, I’m officially caught up on my October book reviews! Yay!

Anyway, What Stalks the Deep is the third installment of T. Kingfisher’s Sworn Solider series of novellas. And I thought it was pretty good. I’m not sure if I liked What Stalks the Deep as much as the first book, but I definitely prefer it to book two. I gave it ★★★★☆.

What Stalks the Deep Review

I also did another post last Tuesday. It’s been quite a while since I double posted, but I also wanted to participate in Top Ten Tuesday this past week.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. The prompt for last week was Books Set in Snowy Places.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books Set in Snowy Places

Sunday 12/14: Penric’s Demon & Penric and the Shaman Reviews / Bewitching Book Covers

On Sunday, I posted another book review. Well, I suppose I should say “reviews” instead as I actually evaluated two books. Or novellas, technically. Whatever, semantics.

So yeah, the two books I reviewed were the first two novellas in the Penric and Desdemona series by Lois McMaster Bujold: Penric’s Demon and Penric and the Shaman. I enjoyed both of them, though I preferred the first book over the second a little. I gave Penric’s Demon ★★★★☆ and Penric and the Shaman ★★★✯☆.

Penric’s Demon & Penric and the Shaman Reviews

I also double posted a second time last week on Sunday. It’s been a few since the last time I did a Bewitching Book Covers, so I thought another one was in order.

Bewitching Book Covers (formerly known as Majestic Mondays and Tasteful Tuesdays), is when I gush over a book cover that I like as well as analyze it (sometimes). I also typically give the book covers funny rating systems – not the usual blank out of five stars kind of thing.

Bewitching Book Covers: For Whom the Belle Tolls

Books I Read Last Week

Wrapping It All Up

So yeah, that was this past week, at least in regards to books and blogging. I would’ve liked to have read more, but I’m mostly satisfied with how everything ended up going. I hope that this coming week is a little better, though.

Concerning posts for next week, I definitely want to get out my reading wrap-up for November 2025. It’s halfway through the month now, and getting increasingly more ridiculous the longer I go without posting it. (I just wanted to get out my reviews for the books I read first, though, okay?) I also want to participate in a couple of my usual weekly posts, as well as my favorite monthly post. And last, but certainly not least, I’d like to do another book review. I’ve got one last one in the tank and it needs to go out!

For books, I want to read at least one new book, and I’d also like it to be from my To Be Read Stuff, as that’s been languishing for a while. Right now I’m thinking Water Moon by Samantha Sotti Yambao, but that could absolutely change. Then… I’m not sure. I’d like to start up the Dresden Files again and do Dresden December like I talked about last month, but I’m not sure if I’m feeling it anymore. Maybe the time has already passed? I dunno – I sure hope not!

The problem is I also recently acquired A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik, and now I’m kind of really interested in that and possibly it’s sequels, depending on how I like it. It’s also a much shorter series, both in book and page length per book. So yeah, what I’m basically saying is: Who knows what’s next for my reading?

Regarding stuff outside of books and blogging, I’m just kind of hanging out – mostly with my spouse. We’ve mostly been watching YouTube in our spare time lately, though sometimes other stuff around the house as well. We’ve also been eating more at home, which I’m happy about. Things in our lives are finally starting to go back to as close as normal as they can get.

Anyway, as always thank you for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Penric’s Demon & Penric and the Shaman by Lois McMaster Bujold | Book Review

“The gods do not act for our ends, but for Theirs. Presumably, the god has some interesting future in mind for you-for you two. This is not a blessing. Good luck. You’ll need it.”

Two book reviews in a week! Or, I guess since in this post I’ll be talking about two novellas, it’s three book reviews in one week. Haven’t done that in a while – not since earlier this year when I reviewed the first three books in the Ascendance Series.

Anyway, I read the first two novellas in the Penric and Desdemona series a couple weeks ago. And I enjoyed them both a fair amount. It took this long to do this review because I wanted to catch up on my other books reviews on books I Read before these two, and then I couldn’t decide if I wanted to either make this one or two reviews. Obviously, I chose to do the former.

But yeah, let’s get onto the review proper!

Penric’s Demon by Lois McMaster Bujold

SERIES: Penric & Desdemona #1

LENGTH: 129 pages

GENRES: Fantasy, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Spectrum Literary Agency, Inc

RELEASE DATE: 6 July 2015

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

On his way to his betrothal, young Lord Penric comes upon a riding accident with an elderly lady on the ground, her maidservant and guardsmen distraught. As he approaches to help, he discovers that the lady is a Temple divine, servant to the five gods of this world. Her avowed god is The Bastard, “master of all disasters out of season”, and with her dying breath she bequeaths her mysterious powers to Penric. From that moment on, Penric’s life is irreversibly changed, and his life is in danger from those who envy or fear him.

Set in the fantasy world of the author’s acclaimed novels THE CURSE OF CHALION, PALADIN OF SOULS and THE HALLOWED HUNT, this novella has the depth of characterization and emotional complexity that distinguishes all Bujold’s work.

My Review

“You looked a god in the eyes and bore witness for me, by which alone I am preserved.” She took a deep breath, through his mouth. “You looked a god in the eyes. And spoke for me. There is nothing in my power that I will ever refuse you, after that.”

My favorite thing about novellas in general is that they tend to be faster paced than full novels usually are. They’re shorter and therefore have fewer pages to get to the point, and I appreciate that. I tend to enjoy books that are fast-paced is all.

And Penric’s Demon is no exception to this – it’s pace is relatively quick and enjoyable. My favorite thing about this particular novella is the characters, however. Or, at least the two main ones (and another one who isn’t, but we’ll get to her). Penric is our protagonist here, and he’s a lovable ball of awkwardness that I enjoyed following. Desdemona is the demon that he accidentally acquires and is also a fantastic character. I felt that their growing bond and frequent banter was the strongest aspect of this book, and it was definitely my favorite thing about the novella.

I also really liked Ruchia, the old woman who dies at the very beginning of the book. (It’s not a spoiler because it happens less than ten pages in and is in the plot summary.) We don’t get to know her at all well before she passes away, but the stories that are told about her after the fact made me love her and wish we could have seen a little more of her before her death. But I understand why that’s not possible – she is the inciting incident, after all.

The plot and world building were both interesting, especially to someone who hadn’t been exposed to Bujold’s other works before this one. I know that the Penric and Desdemona series of novellas take place in a world the author has previously written in, and are spin-offs, but I had no trouble understanding anything. Bujold explains how her world works in a clear and concise way, and I didn’t feel like I was missing anything by not having read any other books in the World of the Five Gods. And I thought it was a solid little book.

So yeah, that’s what I thought of the first novella. Now, let’s move onto the next one!

Penric and the Shaman by Lois McMaster Bujold

SERIES: Penric & Desdemona #2

LENGTH: 145 pages

GENRES: Fantasy, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Spectrum Literary Agency, Inc

RELEASE DATE: 23 June 2016

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

Young Lord Penric now wears the white robes of the Bastard’s Order, complete with shoulder braids marking him as a divine and sorcerer, while he pursues scholarly studies in the court of the Princess-Archdivine. His demon of disorder, Desdemona, is, of course, present, accounted for, and offering clever commentary, particularly when she grows bored. And so when a Locator of the Father’s Order shows up on the Archdivine’s threshold in need of a sorcerer for a journey and she volunteers Penric, at least Des is thrilled with the prospect of an adventure. As they travel into the mountains to locate Inglis, a shaman accused of murdering his best friend, the situation grows into a test for all of Penric’s developing talents.

Multiple-award-winner and bestselling author Lois McMaster Bujold returns to her World of the Five Gods, the setting of her acclaimed novels The Curse of Chalion, Paladin of Souls, and The Hallowed Hunt. Set four years after the events detailed in the Hugo and Locus Award finalist for Best Novella, Penric’s Demon, Bujold’s newest installment of Penric and Desdemona’s tale is a breaktaking must-read novella for her legion of fans.

My Review

“Your head seems very, uh, crowded,” Oswyl offered at last, into the rather blighted silence that followed this.

“Very,” said Penric. He brightened. “But at least I never lack for tales.”

I found that I enjoyed Penric and the Shaman a little less than Penric’s Demon. Don’t get me wrong – it was still a good book! – I just preferred the first one.

Penric and Desdemona and their bond was the strongest part of book one, and I feel that it was the same way in this one. But this novella featured two additional point-of-views instead of just Penric’s like in its predecessor, so there ended up being far less of the two of them, which was disappointing. But I did like what the new character POVs – Oswyl and Inglis – added to the narrative and it was really interesting seeing Penric and Desdemona from the outside, so I didn’t hate it or anything.

There’s also a pretty decent time skip between the two books, but I didn’t mind it, even though it skipped Penric’s training arc. This also has the added bonus of us seeing how Penric grew into himself, and how he and his demon have finally synchronized as a team.

I also really enjoyed seeing more of this world. As I mentioned above, this is my first experience with this setting. I liked it during the first novella and I’m glad I got to observe more of it.

Penric, propped up on one elbow, studied him thoughtfully. He finally said, “A bit of free theological advice. Do not deny the gods. And they will not deny you.” As Oswyl stared at him, he went on, “Dangerous habit, mind you. Once you start to let Them in through that first crack, They’re worse than mice.”

So yeah, that’s what I thought about the first two novellas of the Penric and Desdemona series. They were both pretty good, even if I did enjoy one a little more than the other, and I definitely recommend it even if you havent read anything in the World of the Five Gods before. I think there’s a pretty decent chance I might come back to it someday, too. For now though, I’m gonna try to get back at my TBR.

And as always, thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have an amazing day/night!

See ya ~Mar

MY LINKS:

Goodreads

Instagram

What Stalks the Deep by T. Kingfisher | Book Review

“That is horrifying and I want to go home,” I said, although I pronounced it, “Ah. I see.”

What Stalks the Deep by T. Kingfisher

SERIES: Sworn Solider #3

LENGTH: 179 pages

GENRES: Horror, LGBT+, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Tor Nightfire

RELEASE DATE: 30 September 2025

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

The next novella in the New York Times bestselling Sworn Soldier series, featuring Alex Easton investigating the dark, mysterious depths of a coal mine in America

Alex Easton does not want to visit America.

They particularly do not want to visit an abandoned coal mine in West Virginia with a reputation for being haunted.

But when their old friend Dr. Denton summons them to help find his lost cousin—who went missing in that very mine—well, sometimes a sworn soldier has to do what a sworn soldier has to do…

My Review

“Another fungus?” I asked sharply. Denton drank down his whiskey and signaled for another one. Ingold watched me, his arms folded, and I wondered how much Denton had told him about what we saw in the tarn.

“Not a fungus,” Denton said, when the waiter had left again. “At least, I don’t think so. But more lights in the deep.”

I was very pleased with What Stalks the Deep. It was definitely a step up from What Feasts at Night and, to me at least, nearly on par as the first novella in the Sworn Solider series, What Moves the Dead.

Alex Easton and Angus are back in a brand new adventure, and they’re both just as wonderful as before. Especially Angus, he’s the best – the highlight of every scene that he’s in. Easton is great too, of course, and I love their narration, but Angus is just… Angus.

“We’ll get to the wasps in a moment,” said Denton. “May I introduce my friend, Mr. John Ingold? John, this is Lieutenant Alex Easton and Angus… ah… forgive me, it occurs to me that I don’t actually know your full name.”

“No one does,” said Angus gruffly.

This book also features the return of Dr. Denton, who was a major supporting character in the first novella. It was nice to see him again. Denton contacts the two for help locating his cousin, actually, which is what sets off the plot of the book. We’re also introduced to a new character, Ingold, who through his connection with Denton, is far more interesting than the characters introduced in book two.

The story here also pulled me in more than the one in the second novel, and the atmosphere was back on point. It’s a little different when compared to What Moves the Dead, but the vibes were similar enough to draw me in the same way. The setting was also a little bit more interesting to me. Nothing like a small town and a creepy old mine to set the tone.

Unlike What Feasts at Night, I actually enjoyed the monster here, as well as the twist involved with it. Similar to the story and atmosphere, the creature feature here was more akin to the one in the first book, which I felt was far better than in the second one. Less supernatural this time around, which I appreciated. The buildup also reaches a satisfying conclusion for me, and I enjoyed how things wrapped up.

“Rules of life,” Angus said. “Be true to your friends, don’t cheat at cards, don’t piss on the less fortunate, and don’t steal other people’s skeletons.”

“You just added that last bit now,” I said.

“Obviously should’ve been there all along.”

What Stalks the Deep was a solid addition to the Sworn Solider series, with a return to form with its monster, unsettling setting and tone, and fast pace. If there’s ever another addition to the series, I’ll definitely read it. I think fans of this series will like the continuation, as well as fans of Kingfisher’s other horror stories.

As always, thank you so much for reading, and I hope you have an amazing day/night!

See ya ~Mar

MY LINKS:

Goodreads

Instagram

Can’t-Wait Wednesday: Tailored Realities

Hey everyone and Happy Wednesday! It’s been a bit since I participated in a Wednesday (the day if the week) themed post.

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Tressa @ Wishful Endings (and was previously hosted by Jill @ Breaking the Spine where it was known as Waiting on Wednesday) to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. They’re usually books that have not yet been released.

This week’s book is:

Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson! ✨🌀

Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson

LENGTH: 464 pages

GENRES: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Tor Publishing

RELEASE DATE: 9 December 2025

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson―creator of The Stormlight Archive, the Mistborn saga, and countless bestselling works of science fiction and fantasy―comes Tailored Realities, a new short fiction collection including the never-before-published novella Moment Zero.

Spanning the genres of fantasy and science fiction, this collection features stories from beyond the bounds of Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere universe.

Along with the never-before-seen novella “Moment Zero,” Tailored Realities will include “Snapshot,” “Perfect State,” “Defending Elysium” (a novella set within the world of Skyward), and five other stories that were originally published individually elsewhere—never before collected into one volume, and many never before available in print.

Are you looking forward to Tailored Realities? What other books are coming out in the next few weeks that you’re looking forward to?

As always, thank you all so much for reading and have a fantastic day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Books I’m Thankful For: Legend of Zelda Lore Books & Strategy Guides

Ugh, this is later than I wanted it to be. Oh well, this week is always busier than normal for me, because of the holiday and all. But I’m still doing it. Here we go – the books I’m thankful for! (Edit: I scheduled this post wrong. I have to pay more attention when I’m doing that – or maybe I just shouldn’t do it when I’m so tired I feel like crashing, haha. I fixed it now.)

If you’ve been following me for a while, you might know that I’m a huge Legend of Zelda fan. But for those who don’t know, I’m a huge Legend of Zelda fan. It’s one of my favorite things ever, and it’s probably one of the bigger reasons why I’m a fantasy fan, among other things. I actually did a post about Zelda a couple of years ago, the day before Tears of the Kingdom came out. Zelda is also special to me this time of the year in particular, because one of my earliest and most profound memories with it was watching my cousin play a little bit of Twilight Princess on Thanksgiving in 2006.

Now part of the reason this is late is because I wasn’t sure what Zelda books I wanted to do this year and what Zelda books I wanted to do next year. Just because there are too many, and they can also be easily divided into categories. It was between what you see here or the Zelda manga, and seeing as I haven’t read all of the manga yet (even though I own all of it), I decided I’d save that one for next year. And I really wanted to do a Books I’m Thankful For post regarding Zelda stuff next year in particular because the Legend of Zelda series’ 40th anniversary is next year. I thought it would be nice and stuff.

Anyway, I love Zelda – I’m not sure if I’ve been clear enough about that or not, lol. And I really like the literature involved with it as well. All of it – to be clear! – but I’m only gonna focus on the strategy guides, and the lore and art books this year. (I’ll do the manga next year – promise!)

Regarding the strategy guides… Well, they were basically my first exposure to the “literature” side of the Zelda series. I got the strategy guide for Twilight Princess for Christmas in 2007 from my grandmother, who noticed that I was really fixated on the game, which had come out the year before. I treasure it greatly, because my grandma was very precious to me. Not just because Twilight Princess was and is my favorite game in the series, haha. But it was an incredibly memorable gift, and one I read more than once, even though I was already on my way to having the game memorized.

But that sparked an interest in me. And a few weeks later, I acquired a strategy guide for Phantom Hourglass from Best Buy. And years later, I bought the rest of the set myself. Seeing those books and their different colored spines is always so nice, and I’m glad I finally have them all. (Except for maybe one. I might be missing one strategy guide. But if I am it didn’t come with the set so that’s why. And I’m gonna correct it eventually if I am.)

And these guides are what got me hooked on the extra stuff in the Legend of Zelda. So when the Hyrule Historia came out for the 25th anniversary, you better believe I was all over that… translation. Yeah, they didn’t release that one in the west right away – we had to wait like a year for that. But in 2013 I did get a copy, and I adored it. The lore it added and/or confirmed was amazing. And it was just so cool in general.

And in the years after Art & Artifacts and the Zelda Encyclopedia released, and I got ahold of those immediately as they came out. They were just as awesome, even if the Encyclopedia did outright contradict or retcon a few things. (Art & Artifacts just has art and stuff – it’s really cool and very inoffensive noncontributory. I don’t think anyone has any problems with it.) I love seeing the green, red, and blue spines all lined up together. It’s beautiful.

So yeah, these are the books that I love, that I’m thankful for, that have had an impact on me, and that I’m gonna gush about this year for Thanksgiving. Also, it’s a bit late (again), but Happy Thanksgiving 🦃🥧 to everyone and anyone who celebrates it! I hope you all enjoyed good food with the ones you love.

What books are you thankful for? What are your favorite novels?

Thank you for reading. I’m always so thankful that anyone reads or follows my little blog at all. I hope you have a wonderful day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Weekly Wrap-Up: 11/17 – 11/23

Hey there. I’m a little late with this, but it’s still really early in the week, so I’ll take it. Ugh. Still getting back into things.

Like the couple of weeks of the month, I still haven’t really read any books, unfortunately. I really, really want to, though! I don’t know why it’s so hard to get into the mindset of novel reading right now, but I’m very annoyed about it. As for my blogging last week… well, at least there was some of that, even if I only ended up posting twice. Erghhhh. (I’m kind of frustrated with myself about this, lol.)

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get on with the Weekly Wrap-Up!

Friday 11/21: First Line Friday

Last Friday, I participated in First Line Fridays for the first time in a couple of months. First Line Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers (formerly) hosted by Wandering Words. It’s where you guess what book the post is highlighting based on the book’s first words.

First Line Friday: 11/21

Sunday 11/23: Bewitching Book Covers

On Sunday, I finally got around to posting another Bewitching Book Covers. The gap wasn’t as long as last time, but it’s still been over a month since the last time I did one of these posts. So I thought it was more than time for another one.

Bewitching Book Covers: Seven Deadly Thorns

Books I Read Last Week

Wrapping It All Up

So yeah, last week wasn’t what I was hoping it would be, but it definitely could’ve been – and absolutely has been – worse, so even though I’m annoyed about it, it’s not as much as I could be. I do want this coming week to be better, however. I really have to get back into gear.

I’m still debating about which book to read next, which has created the problem in which I don’t read anything at all. It’s very stupid, I know. I just gotta pick up a book and read, damnit! Ugh! My blog activity was okay, though. I would’ve liked it if it were better – and it should’ve been better – but it wasn’t, and I just gotta accept that. Hopefully I’ll be better with both reading and posting on the blog this coming week.

Regarding stuff outside of books and blogging, there wasn’t really anything big that went on last week, as usual. It was cleaning week, so we did that, but that was kind of it. I did do a couple of things to prepare for Thanksgiving as well, though. My spouse and I are also trying to watch what we eat more, and try to be healthier in general. We kind of fell off of that for a while, what with everything going on.

Anyway, as always thank you for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful day/night!

See ya ~Mar

First Line Friday: 11/21

Happy Friday, everybody! Wow, it’s been a couple of months – I didn’t mean for that to happen!

First Line Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers (formerly) hosted by Wandering Words, but I saw it over at One Book More.

What if instead of judging a book by the cover, author or most everything else, we judged it by its content? Its first lines?

If you want to join in, all you gotta do is:

Here’s the first line:

I never liked visiting my sister Mara, though I loved her so desperately that sometimes I found myself convinced the feeling was not love at all, but something much fouler: guilt, bone-crushing shame, a confused, defensive revulsion.

Know what the book is? If not, here’s another couple of hints…

Still have no idea? Here are some gorgeous photos of books to look at while you think about it a little more…

Annnd the book is… 🥁🥁 A Crown of Ivy and Glass by Claire Legrand!

(Didja guess it?)

A Crown of Ivy and Glass by Claire Legrand

SERIES: The Middlemist Trilogy #1

LENGTH: 553 pages

GENRES: Fantasy, Romance, Fiction

PUBLISHER: Sourcebooks Casablanca

RELEASE DATE: 27 June 2023

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

New York Times bestselling author of Furyborn, Claire Legrand, makes her stunning adult debut with A Crown of Ivy and Glass, a lush, sweeping fantasy-romance series starter that’s perfect for fans of Bridgerton and A Court of Thorns and Roses.

Lady Gemma Ashbourne seemingly has it all. She’s young, gorgeous, and rich. Her family was Anointed by the gods, blessed with incredible abilities. But underneath her glittering façade, Gemma is deeply sad. Years ago, her sister Mara was taken to the Middlemist to guard against treacherous magic. Her mother abandoned the family. Her father and eldest sister, Farrin – embroiled in a deadly blood feud with the mysterious Bask family – often forget Gemma exists.

Worst of all, Gemma is the only Ashbourne to possess no magic. Instead, her body fights it like poison. Constantly ill, aching with loneliness, Gemma craves love and yearns to belong.

Then she meets the devastatingly handsome Talan d’Astier. His family destroyed themselves, seduced by a demon, and Talan, the only survivor, is determined to redeem their honor. Intrigued and enchanted, Gemma proposes a bargain: She’ll help Talan navigate high society if he helps her destroy the Basks. According to popular legend, a demon called The Man With the Three-Eyed Crown is behind the families’ blood feud – slay the demon, end the feud.

But attacks on the Middlemist are increasing. The plot against the Basks quickly spirals out of control. And something immense and terrifying is awakening in Gemma, drawing her inexorably toward Talan and an all-consuming passion that could destroy her – or show her the true strength of her power at last.

What books have you been reading lately? What’s on your TBR that you’re currently the most excited about?

As always, thank you for reading, and I hope you have an awesome day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Monthly Wrap-Up: October Reading 2025

Ugh, this is so late. Oh well, what can you do. I’m still trying to get back into things, but it’s been a little rough. Anyway, reading wrap-up for October 2025 incoming!

Last month was pretty decent, especially compared to the last six months. I read two books! Yay! I hope I can either keep it up or get better before the end of the year. If not, then I’m gonna strive for better next year.

Anyway, let’s just start talking about my StoryGraph statistics from last month! (Edit: Shoot it didn’t post when I wanted it to again. Ugh. Oh well, I fixed it.)

October Reading 2025

I read 2 books and 515 pages

😐 MOODS: I had three Moods in October, which is the same as the month before. The Moods from this past month were: Adventurous, Mysterious and Tense.

👢 PACE: The books I read last month were medium and fast-paced.

🔢 PAGE NUMBER: The novels I read were between 179 and 336 pages.

📖 FICTION/NONFICTION: It was once again all fiction. As usual.

🎭 GENRES: There were several Genres on the graph this past month. They were Mystery, Horror, Contemporary, Young Adult and LGBT+.

📄 FORMAT: This pie chart was incorrect for the first time in ages. One novel I read was digital and one was a physical copy.

⭐ RATING: My median star rating for last month was 3.75.

📉 PAGES READ DAILY: My reading spiked in the first half of October, before dropping off during the second half of the month. My highest peak was on the 9th.

The Books I Read in October

★★★✯☆ • my review

★★★★☆ • my review

Wrapping Up the Wrap-Up

So yeah, my reading in October reading was definitely an improvement over the few months preceding it. I hope I continue to read at least a decent amount for the remainder of the year. We’ll see, though.

I’m not quite sure what I’m going to read next, and I’m not going to force it. I do have a general idea, however, and once I officially pick which book I want to go with next, I just have to ease myself into reading. Hopefully, I’ll be able to get into a new novel soon. I’m still recovering from the past few months of stuff. I’m definitely planning on getting reviews out for the two books I did read last month out soon, though.

Anyway, as always, thank you for joining me in checking out my StoryGraph stats for my October reading in 2025. Thank you also for reading, and I hope you have a great day/night!

See ya ~Mar