Weekly Wrap-Up: 2/27 – 3/5

It’s the start of a new week, and I’m finally feeling better. And I owe it all to last week – I did a ton of research on how to make myself feel better with my chronic illness, and it’s really helped.

Back to the blog, I’m honestly pretty happy with what I was able to post last week. I would’ve liked to get one more post out, but it’s fine. It was more than the week before, after all.

Tuesday 2/28: Weekly Wrap-Up #IDK

I don’t usually highlight my Weekly Wrap-Up from the prior week, but it was late, which was unusual. And it really felt significant to me while getting over being sick. So yeah, that’s what was up last Tuesday.

Wednesday 3/1: Shelf Control #11

Last Wednesday, I finally did another Shelf Control. It’d been a couple of weeks since I’d participated, so I was determined to make it happen last week.

Shelf Control is a weekly feature hosted by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. If you missed my post and are interested in what book from my bookshelf I highlighted last week, you can read it here.

Friday 3/3: First Lines Friday #5

On Friday, I managed to participate in First Line Fridays. First Line Fridays is a weekly feature (formerly) hosted by Wandering Words. It focuses on judging books by their words as opposed to their covers.

You can check out my post here if you’re interested.

Saturday 3/4: February 2023 Monthly Wrap-Up

Saturday, I finally got around to posting my reading wrap-up and stats for February 2023. I’m really happy with everything I was able to read and accomplish last month, even if I would’ve liked to read and review more books. I’ll definitely do better in March!

If you wanna see my reading stats from last month, you can read the post here.

Goals for 3/6 to 3/12

This week’s goal is the same one from last week: just to post more than I did the week before. No specific post goals again. I’d really like to do five posts, though, if possible. And I definitely think it’s possible, seeing as I’m feeling way better this week. I’m excited to see what’s in store for me!

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

See ya ~Mar

Shelf Control #11

It’s been a couple of weeks (again), but I started getting sick (again) last week, so I couldn’t post as often as I might have liked. But here it is – another Shelf Control post!

Shelf Control is a weekly celebration of the unread books languishing on our bookshelves created and hosted by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a whole lotta fun, so if you’re interested in participating yourself, click the backlink above.

This week I’m focusing on the first book in the Stalking Jack the Ripper series, eponymously named Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco.

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

Series: Stalking Jack the Ripper (Book #1)

Length: 464 pages

Genres: Horror, Mystery, YA, Fiction

Release Date: September 20, 2016

This #1 New York Times bestseller and deliciously creepy horror novel has a storyline inspired by the Ripper murders and an unexpected, blood-chilling conclusion.

Seventeen-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth was born a lord’s daughter, with a life of wealth and privilege stretched out before her. But between the social teas and silk dress fittings, she leads a forbidden secret life. Against her stern father’s wishes and society’s expectations, Audrey often slips away to her uncle’s laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine.

When her work on a string of savagely killed corpses drags Audrey into the investigation of a serial murderer, her search for answers brings her back to her own sheltered world. The story’s shocking twists and turns, augmented with real, sinister period photos, will make this dazzling, #1 New York Times bestselling debut from author Kerri Maniscalco impossible to forget.

Why It Languishes on My Bookshelf

When I Got It: 2019

Why I Wanted to Read It: I thought that it looked interesting at the time.

Why I Haven’t Read It Yet: I essentially bought it on a whim and checked out some (spoiler free for the story) reviews, and realized that this book was probably not for me and kind of ignored it. I was distracted by other stuff going on that was more important, too.

Will I Ever Read It?: Probably not. Mostly because I bought it on a whim (as I’ve mentioned) and I lost interest quickly. I’m considering trying out Maniscalco’s other series, though I haven’t bought or even borrowed a copy of Kingdom of the Wicked yet.

Have you read this book or any of the author’s other work? What did you think? Or is it just sitting unread on your bookshelf too?

Thanks for reading and have a glorious day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Weekly Wrap-Up: 2/13 – 2/19

It’s another Monday, so, as the start of a new week, it’s time to wrap up the last one.

This past week had a lot, Valentine’s Day probably being the standout. But as for the blog… I managed to post a few times.

So, without further ado, let’s get into it.

Tuesday 2/14: The Ballad of Never After Review / Valentine’s Day

On Tuesday, incidentally Valentine’s Day, I posted my book review of The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber. It’s the sequel to Once Upon a Broken Heart, and it has just as much of a banger ending. But it doesn’t have the most banger characters. More on that in the review – which you can read here if you want.

And also: Happy Valentine’s Day!! 💖🌹💌🍫

Wednesday 2/15: Shelf Control #10, WWW Wednesday #5

Shelf Control (graphic from BookshelfFantasies.com)

Last Wednesday, I actually managed to double post! Yay! First, I did a Shelf Control, a weekly feature I participate in, hosted by Bookshelf Fantasies. Later on, I posted for another meme I participate in, WWW Wednesdays, hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

You can check out the Shelf Control here, and you can read the WWW Wednesday post here.

Thursday 2/16: Birthstone Book Covers February 2023

Thursday, I finally posted my Birthstone Book Covers post for the month of February. Birthstone Book Covers is a fun thing hosted by Books Are the New Black. You can read my post here and see how to join in if you’re interested.

Friday 2/17: First Line Fridays #4

For Friday, I participated in yet another weekly meme that I like, First Line Fridays. It’s not really hosted anywhere anymore (to my knowledge) but I saw it over at One Book More.

For more info on the meme, and if you missed my post and wanna check it out, you can read it here.

Saturday 2/18 & Sunday 2/19: Error 404 – Not Found

Uhhhh… So this weekend I didn’t do anything. Sorry – was doing some family stuff and taking a bit of a break. It felt good at the time, but now I’m a little disappointed in myself for not doing at least one more post. Whoops. Hope this coming week goes better.

Goals for 2/20 – 2/26

So, like, I wish I posted at least a bit more. And I want to rectify that this coming week. Other than that, here’s the particular posting goals I’d like to do:

Majestic Monday
Shelf Control
WWW Wednesday
First Line Friday
at least two book reviews
…idk what else at the top of my head right now

So that’s it for this past week’s Weekly Wrap-Up! Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Shelf Control #10

Sooo… It’s been, like, three weeks. Whoops. Things got a little crazy after my medical thing at the end of January. But I’m back with another participation post for Shelf Control!

This week, I’m highlighting one of the books that’s been sitting on my shelf the longest: American Gods by Neil Gaiman.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Series: American Gods (Book #1)

Length: 635 pages

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction

Release Date: July 16, 2002

Description:

Days before his release from prison, Shadow’s wife, Laura, dies in a mysterious car crash. Numbly, he makes his way back home. On the plane, he encounters the enigmatic Mr Wednesday, who claims to be a refugee from a distant war, a former god and the king of America.

Together they embark on a profoundly strange journey across the heart of the USA, whilst all around them a storm of preternatural and epic proportions threatens to break.

Scary, gripping and deeply unsettling, American Gods takes a long, hard look into the soul of America. You’ll be surprised by what – and who – it finds there…

Why It’s Still Sitting Unread on My Bookshelf

When I Got It: June 2016

Why I Wanted to Read It: I’d heard nothing but good things about it, and I was at a point in my life where I was attempting to read more adult fiction (still hasn’t really happened yet, lol).

Why I Haven’t Read It Yet: I got distracted by a bunch of stuff. I was starting a new job, transitioning to university, and I got some big news about my favorite fictional thing ever that I go gaga over. But yeah, it kinda fell off the wayside and then I lost interest.

Will I Ever Read It?: I don’t know. That’s honestly the only answer I can give now, lol.

What books have you been reading lately? Which ones are languishing unread on your bookshelves?

Thanks for reading and have a great day/night!

See ya ~Mar

Weekly Wrap-Up: 1/23 – 1/29

Good [insert time of day of your choice here]! It’s the start of a new week, so it’s time to wrap up the past one. It’s time for a Weekly Wrap-Up.

This past week I posted a lot more, even despite the medical stuff I had going on, so I’m super satisfied with what I was able to do. I did so many posts, participated in some features/memes, and even double posted on a few days.

So, without further ado, let’s get into it.

Monday 1/23: Majestic Monday #8

This past Monday, I did one post – Majestic Monday. Majestic Monday is when I admire three pretty book covers that I’ve come across in the interim. Because pretty covers deserve recognition! If you missed the post, you can check it out here, to look at the books that I highlighted.

Tuesday 1/24: Spinning Silver Review

On Tuesday, I finally managed to get my review out for Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik. It was a truly fantastic novel that I definitely recommend. Fantasy, winter vibes, and fairies done right. What more could you ask for?

If you want to read the full review, you can read it here.

Wednesday 1/25: Shelf Control #9, WWW Wednesday #2

This was a double post day. The second one during the week, in fact! (The first was Monday, cuz I posted my last Weekly Wrap-Up for the week before then, too.)

Wednesday I posted my usual contributions to participating on the two Wednesday features I take part in. Shelf Control is a feature hosted by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies, and WWW Wednesday is a feature hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words.

I posted for both of them last week. You can read my Shelf Control post host here and you can check out my WWW Wednesday post here.

Thursday 1/26: Scarlet Review

Thursday, I did another book review, but this was a retrospective one. A retrospective book review is when I skim through a book I read in the recent years before I had a blog, and determine whether I like it as much as I did when I originally read it.

This time I did Scarlet, the second book in The Lunar Chronicles, written by Marissa Meyer. If you’re interested and you missed it, you can read the review here.

Friday 1/27: First Lines Friday #2

First Lines Friday is another meme that I’ve started taking part in very recently. It’s a fun little thing (formerly) hosted by Wandering Words, but I saw it on One Book More.

I posted my second contribution this past Friday. You can read it here if you missed it and are interested in checking out my post

Sunday 1/29: Deeplight Review

Yesterday, I posted yet another book review, this one on another book by an author I’d read earlier in January. That’s right – it was Deeplight by Frances Hardinge.

Deeplight is an unsettling, dark fantasy with both Frankenstein and Subnautica elements to it. Go read it if you like darker stuff, it’s pretty good. Check out my full review here, if you missed it.

Goals for the Week of 1/29 – 2/5

This week I did a lot of what I wanted. I was able to do all of my usual weekly posts and several book reviews. I also started looking into some stuff to make my blog even better. Due to some stuff going on, though, I wasn’t able to start a new post series that I was interested in doing.

So this week, my goals are:

Majestic Monday
Shelf Control
WWW Wednesday
First Lines Friday
a few book reviews
the new thing that I wanted to do last week that I wasn’t able to

Annnd that’s all for this Weekly Wrap-Up! As I said, did a lot, double posted, read a lot of books. Had a lot of fun doing it too.

Thanks so much for reading, and have an excellent day/night! Join me next post for more bookish things!

See ya. ~Mar

Shelf Control #9

It’s Wednesday, so you know the drill. It’s Shelf Control time! Shelf Control is a weekly feature hosted by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies.

It’s a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up! For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, go ahead and check out BookshelfFantasies.com.

This week, I’m talking about a book I’ve had for a couple years. It’s a science-fantasy called The Other Side of the Sky, and it’s written by Meagan Spooner and Amie Kaufman.

The Other Side of the Sky by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Series: The Other Side of the Sky (Book #1)

Length: 480 pages

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, YA, Fiction

Release Date: September 8, 2020

Description:

New York Times bestselling author duo Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner have crafted a gripping tale of magic and logic, fate and choice, and a deadly love. Perfect for fans of Laini Taylor and Brandon Sanderson.

Prince North’s home is in the sky, in a gleaming city held aloft by intricate engines, powered by technology. Nimh is the living goddess of her people on the Surface, responsible for providing answers, direction–hope.

North’s and Nimh’s lives are entwined–though their hearts can never be. Linked by a terrifying prophecy and caught between duty and fate, they must choose between saving their people or succumbing to the bond that is forbidden between them.

Why It Languishes on My Bookshelf

When I Got It: July 2020

Why I Wanted to Read It: I just saw it at the bookstore and it had a nice cover and the summary looked interesting.

Why I Haven’t Read It Yet: I kept having some issues (not with books or anything), that I will not get into here. It was very distracting at the time, before I started to get them resolved. But yeah, because of this I kind of forgot about it after a few weeks.

Will I Ever Read It?: I don’t know. I kind of still want to, but I’ve got so much on my TBR at the moment that I’m leaning closer to “maybe not” at this time.

Have you read this book? What did you think of it? What books are languishing on your bookshelf?

Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day/night! Join me for my next post for more bookish things, and next week for some more Shelf Control!

~ Mar ~

Weekly Wrap-Up: 1/9 – 1/15

Two weeks in a row! Haha! The beginning of the world’s smallest streak!

In all seriousness, welcome back to another Weekly Wrap-Up. I said that it was coming back, and I’ve kept my promise (so far)! This week, my blogging has been pretty good. It was better than most of December, so honestly, I’ll count that as progress. Now, let’s get into the posting.

Monday 1/9: The Return of Weekly Wrap-Ups

Normally, I wouldn’t acknowledge a Weekly Wrap-Up during a Weekly Wrap-Up. But since I wasn’t doing it for nearly a month, I felt that it was notable enough to be here, just this once.

If you haven’t been around for awhile and want to catch up, or if you’re new here, then you can easily check out the last week’s Weekly Wrap-Up here.

Tuesday 1/10: Birthstone Book Covers

It’s a new month, and with every new month comes a new Birthstone Book Covers. Birthstone Book Covers is an awesome book thing created and hosted by Leslie @ Books Are the New Black. This month, I once again chose five books of the five book minimum that featured the color of this month’s birthstone. You can check out my January 2023 post here.

Thursday 1/12: Shelf Control #8

On Thursday morning, technically a few hours over the deadline, I posted another Shelf Control. Shelf Control is an original series created and hosted by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies. This week, I highlighted a contemporary fiction story for once: Instructions for a Secondhand Heart by Tamsyn Murray. It’s one that I’ve had for a few years, but have never read. You can read my entire post about it here.

Friday 1/13: Unraveller Review (and Friday the 13th)

On Friday, I finally did another book review. It’s been far too long (about three weeks) since the last one I posted – and since the last book I finished, ew – and I finally got over the holidays and back on my game.

The first book that I read and finished this year was Unraveller by Frances Hardinge. It’s a wonderfully gruesome, dark fantasy about a boy who can unravel the very fabric of curses, who is on a quest with a former curse victim that he freed to break his own curse. You can read my full review here, if you’re interested.

Sunday 1/15: Red Winter Retrospective Review

Finally, on Sunday I did a retrospective book review. It’d been basically a month (to the day actually!) since my last Reading Retrospective, so another was more than overdue. (Just like Weekly Wrap-Ups. Haha?)

This time I retrospectively reviewed Red Winter, of the Red Winter Trilogy, by Annette Marie. It’s a Japanese folklore inspired fantasy, set in modern Japan, and follows a young miko and the kitsune that owes her a debt. You can check out my entire review here.

What’s in store for next week? I certainly don’t know, though I’d like to do another Majestic Monday, a couple book reviews, a retrospective review, and something else!

What have you guys done this week? How many books did you read, if any? What did you think of them, if you did?

As usual, thank you all very much for reading and join me next time for more bookish things! Have a wonderful day/night!

~ Mar ~

Shelf Control #8: Instructions for a Secondhand Heart

It’s that time of the week again (or thereabouts *coughs*), so it’s time for some more Shelf Control. Shelf Control is an original feature created and hosted by Lisa @ BookshelfFantasies.com.

This week I’m not talking about a fantasy book that’s been languishing on my bookshelf for years for once. This week I’m highlighting Instructions for a Secondhand Heart by Tamsyn Murray. (Yes, I do occasionally read something that isn’t even remotely SFF. Yes, it is very surprising.)

About Instructions for a Secondhand Heart

Length: 321 pages

Genres: Contemporary, Romance, YA, Fiction

Release Date: December 5, 2017

Book Description

A moving novel about grief, guilt, and the unpredictability of love, for fans of Everything, Everything and All the Bright Places.

Jonny knows better than anyone that life is full of cruel ironies. He’s spent every day in a hospital hooked up to machines to keep his heart ticking. Then when an organ donor is found for Jonny’s heart, that turns out to be the cruelest irony of all. Because for Jonny’s life to finally start, someone else’s had to end.

That someone turns out to be Neve’s twin brother, Leo. When Leo was alive, all Neve wanted was for him (and all his glorious, overshadowing perfection) to leave. Now that Leo’s actually gone forever, Neve has no idea how to move forward. Then Jonny walks into her life looking for answers, her brother’s heart beating in his chest, and everything starts to change.

Together, Neve and Jonny will have to face the future, no matter how frightening it is, while learning to heal their hearts, no matter how much it hurts.

Features select graphic novel illustrations from Jonny’s sketchbook.

Why It Languishes on My Bookshelf

When I Got It: January 2018

Why I Wanted to Read It: Unfortunately, I can’t really remember why. But upon rereading the summary, I think I can get a bit of an inkling of what drew me to this book. Angst and romance – a bit of a guilty pleasure for me, particularly when the angst doesn’t have to do with the actual romance itself.

Why I Haven’t Read It Yet: At the time I got this book, I was making my way through a series – The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer – so I had put this off and into my TBR. Then, a horrible thing happened in my personal life, and I just wasn’t feeling books for a bit. And then I forgot about it. Whoops.

Will I Ever Read It?: Hmm… I really don’t know. Maybe if I’m in the mood to break away from fantasy for a bit and/or I want a quick and easy read. But yeah, don’t know. It would probably be a spontaneous decision if I did, though.

Have you read this book? Or is it languishing on your bookshelf too?

Have a glorious day/night!

~ Mar ~ 🙂📚

Weekly Wrap-Up: 12/31 – 1/8

It’s been a bit (ei: a month) since the last time I did one of these, but since I’ve gotten my crap back together, I’ve decided to bring this back.

So without further ado, let’s get into the post. (Also, yes, I know this is technically nine days and not seven. … Shh, say nothing!)

Saturday 12/31: DNF’s of 2022, Five Star Books of 2022

On the left day of 2022, I did a double post after a several day hiatus. (I get busy around the holidays, okay?) These posts were concerning the books I read over the past year, specifically the ones that I DNF-ed and the ones that I gave five stars. If you’re interested and you missed them, you can check out the DNF post here and the five star books post here.

Sunday 1/1: Happy New Year

My New Year’s post was about… you guessed it, New Year’s! It was basically just a post wishing everyone a Happy New Year and going over my goals and stuff that I want to do in 2023. You can read the post here.

Monday 1/2: December 2022 Reading Wrap-Up, Majestic Monday #6

On the second day of the new year, I once again double posted. Firstly, I posted my December 2022 reading wrap-up, wherein I discussed my StoryGraph reading statistics from last month. Then, I posted the first Majestic Monday in like a month, but the sixth one chronologically. In this one, I highlighted A Coup of Tea by Casey Blair, The Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty, and Echo North by Joanna Ruth Meyer. You can read the reading wrap-up here and the Majestic Monday post here.

Wednesday 1/4: 2022 Reading Wrap-Up, Shelf Control #7

On Wednesday, I did another double post. (I’m noticing a trend here, lol.) The first was my year of reading for 2022, where I go over the my 2022 StoryGraph stats as a whole, and the second post was another Shelf Control, where I talk about Haunting the Deep by Adriana Mather, the sequel to How to Hang a Witch. If you missed it, you can read my 2022 year in review here and the Shelf Control post here.

Sunday 1/8: Anticipated First Quarter Books

Yesterday, I finally posted my anticipated books… for the first quarter of 2023. So January, February, and March. There’s waaayy too many novels on it to list here in a compact manner, so just check it out here if you’re interested in new fantasy, sci-fi, horror, and contemporary novels coming out.

Shelf Control #7: Haunting the Deep

It’s that time of the week again, so it’s time for some more Shelf Control. Shelf Control is an original feature created and hosted by Lisa @ BookshelfFantasies.com.

This week I’m talking about a sequel that I’ve had sitting on my shelf for a while. It’s Haunting the Deep by Adriana Mather.

About Haunting the Deep

Series: How to Hang a Witch Duology (Book #2)

Length: 344 pages

Genres: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, YA

Release Date: October 3, 2017

Book Description

Samantha Mather knew her family’s connection to the infamous Salem Witch Trials might pose obstacles to an active social life. But having survived one curse, she never thought she’d find herself at the center of a new one.

This time, Sam is having recurring dreams about the Titanic… where she’s been walking the deck with first-class passengers, like her aunt and uncle. Meanwhile, in Sam’s waking life, strange missives from the Titanic have been finding their way to her, along with haunting visions of people who went down with the ship.

Ultimately, Sam and the Descendants, along with some help from heartthrob Elijah, must unravel who is behind the spell that is drawing her ever further into the dream ship… and closer to sharing the same grim fate as its ghostly passengers.

Why It Languishes on My Bookshelf

When I Got It: October 2017

Why I Wanted to Read It: I thought the plot looked super interesting.

Why I Haven’t Read It Yet: I hadn’t even read the first one – How to Hang a Witch – yet, and when I did eventually read that one, I didn’t like it as much as I had hoped to.

Will I Ever Read It?: Probably not. Like I said, I wasn’t super into the first book, and I didn’t really like it enough to read its sequel. But who knows what the future holds? Things can change on a dime, after all.

§ • § • §

Have you read this book? What did you think of it? See you on the flip side for more bookish things!