TTT

Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Secondary or Minor Characters

Hello all! It’s been a couple weeks! But I’m trying to get back into things, and that means participating in one of my weekly posts!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Favorite Secondary/Minor Characters. I’m going with one character per book or series.

In no particular order, here I go!

1: Poe (Emily Wilde Series)

I love him, he’s such a little guy.

2: Gurathin (The Murderbot Diaries)

He’s an a-hole, but I always enjoy his interactions with Murderbot and how much he annoys said SecUnit when they’re on page together.

3: Dancer (Strange Animals)

She was fun and weird from the moment she showed up, and I loved her immediately.

4: Alucard (Shades of Magic Series)

I haven’t read beyond the original trilogy, but I liked him the second he was introduced in A Gathering of Shadows. He was just so immediately charismatic and likeable.

5: Lucien (A Court of Thorns and Roses Series)

I really like him. I’m honestly a little bit nervous about what might be in store for him in the next installments. I’m not feeling the weird sort-of-a-love-triangle-thing he has going on with Elain and Azriel.

6: Sixteen (Piranesi)

She was so cool. Her determination was awesome. She’s got another name, but I’m loath to spoil anything about this book, so Sixteen it is.

7: Han (A Widow’s Charm)

Her character was one of the only things I really liked about A Widow’s Charm. I really liked her reserved personality.

8: Agnes (The River Has Roots)

The most interesting character in the book for me.

9: Denton (Sworn Soldier Series)

I really liked him in the first book, and I was really happy to see him return in book three. He was also given more of a background this time around.

10: Hakim (The Sandsea Trilogy)

I really enjoyed him and his brotherly bond with Mazen. I was really glad to see he had a larger role in The Ashfire King.

What are your favorite secondary or minor characters? What types of characters do you typically like?

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

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Have Been on My TBR the Longest

Happy Tuesday everybody! I’m cutting it a little close today, but I still wanted to participate, so here I am. This week has just been the busiest so far!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Freebie, so it can be whatever. I decided to do Oldest Books on My TBR / Books That Have Been on My TBR the Longest. I have a ton of books on said To Be Read List, some of which have been years, so this has been a really good reminder. Do I still want to read some of these, as it’s been so long? Which ones have been on there the longest? Let’s see!

Here I go! Incidentally, all of these have been on this list since before I started this blog, so I’ve never even mentioned some of them before.Also, I’m excluding sequels, because I just know if I didn’t I was going to feel guilty.

  1. The Bone Maker by Sarah Beth Durst: Added 2021. Not sure if I’m still interested enough.
  2. Sufficiently Advanced Magic by Andrew Rowe: Added 2021. From what I’ve heard since I added it to my list, it’s a pretty technical fantasy book and I’m not sure I’d be into that. But I also enjoyed a novella I read by the author last year, so I don’t know.
  3. The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern: Added 2021. I’m not sure about this one. The name is great, but I couldn’t really remember why I added it. I had to go back and read the book description, haha.
  4. The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell: Added 2021. This has been on my list for a while. I think this one is genuinely one that I still want to give a shot, and a series that I want to try. It’s just pretty long and time.
  5. The Diviners by Libba Bray: Added 2020. This has been on my radar for a long time. I’m not sure, though. I think I’d still like to read it, it’s just been so long and there’s just too many books I’m interested in at any given time.
  6. The Merciful Crow by Margaret Owen: Added 2020. This one has been on my radar for almost as long as the last book. I love the cover and the title, but like with The Starless Sea I also had to go back and read the book description for this one. I still think I might be interested in it, though.
  7. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie: Added 2021. Considering it’s been on and off my TBR over the years, I’m really not sure if it’s gonna happen. I might be leaving a bit towards “no” though.
  8. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch: Since 2021. Not sure about this one. It’s been on my TBR a long time, but sometimes I feel the same way about it that I do The Blade Itself. I don’t know.
  9. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle: Since 2016. I really want to read this one eventually. It’s a classic, and it’s something that I’ve wanted to read for a long time.
  10. The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman: Since 2015. I also really want to read this one eventually, as well as give this trilogy a shot. This is the oldest book I remember being on my TBR since before I started keeping track of that kind of stuff.

What books have been on your TBR the Longest that you haven’t read? What topic did you pick this week?

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

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: April Showers

Happy Tuesday everybody! It’s been a while, but I just wasn’t feeling the last couple of prompts (I don’t have a bucket list and I couldn’t think of ten books that described me). I’m cutting it a little close, but I really wanted to participate this 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. This week’s topic is April Showers. It’s a very open prompt, and can be anything from rainy day reads, to books that made you cry, to books that wash away a bad reading experience.

I’m going with Books That Washed Away a Not Great Reading Experience. And by this I mean: books I DNF-ed, books I read but didn’t like, or books I didn’t hate but were very slow for me to get through. (I consider a book feeling too slow to be a bad reading experience for me personally; even if sometimes I end up thinking the book itself is alright (around three stars) after the fact.)

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get into it! From most recent to least recent.

  1. Don’t Let the Forest In by CG Drews: I didn’t really enjoy the book I read before it.
  2. How to Defeat a Demon King in Ten Easy Steps by Andrew Rowe: It took me a while to get through the last two books I read before this one, even though I ultimately thought they were alright. It was a real slog for me to get through them though, and I was in a slump for a bit until I read this.
  3. Dark Moon, Shallow Sea by David R. Slayton: I DNF-ed the book I read before this one.
  4. This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone: I didn’t hate the book I read before this one, but it irritated me a lot. This book being so good helped turn my mood around.
  5. Piranesi by Susanna Clarke: I DNF-ed the book I read before this one.
  6. A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers: I didn’t really like the book I read before this one.
  7. White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton: I didn’t really like the two books I read before this one.
  8. The Chalice of the Gods by Rick Riordan: I really didn’t enjoy the two books I read before this one.
  9. In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune: The book I read before this one was a slog for me to get through. This was a real pick-me-up.
  10. In Deeper Waters by FT Lukens: I really didn’t like the book I read before this one.

What did you do for April Showers? What books washed away your not-so-great reading experiences?

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

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: Buzzwords or Phrases That Make Me Want to Read (or Avoid) a Book

Happy Tuesday everyone! I’m cutting it a bit close this week, but I’ve been looking forward to this week’s Top Ten Tuesday prompt!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Buzzwords or Phrases That Make Me Want to Read (or Avoid) a Book. They can be in the title, summary, marketing stuff, book reviews, blurbs, etc. These words or phrases can immediately grab your attention or immediately drive you away and make you go “Nope.”

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get into it! I’ve decided to do both sides of the prompt, so I’m going to do ten of each!

10 Things That Make Me Want to Read a Book

Found Family

I’m an absolute sucker for this trope! I love it!

Grumpy and Sunshine

Platonic or romantic, this trope rules!

Retelling/Reimagining

I’m a sucker for this kind of thing. I love fairytale retellings or new spins on classics or legends with a magical, sci-fi, or romantic twist.

Friends to Lovers

I love to see best buds fall in love.

Second Chance

It’s sweet to see characters giving a relationship another go. Plus, knowing two characters have a history is always interesting. I like it both as a friendship or a romance.

Stuck Together

I love it when two characters or a group of characters are stuck together and forced to get along. The friction is so fun, whether platonic or romantic.

Parodies

I don’t indulge too often, but when I see a parody alluded to, I know it’s probably gonna be a lot of fun. These are especially interesting when they’re played completely straight.

“Spine-tingling”

Reading this phrase makes my spine tingle with anticipation.

“Charming”

This makes me think the book will be a little cozy without being too cozy. I like it when my books are sometimes a little cozy without being too cozy.

“Dark/Terrible/Hidden Truth”

I read this phrase or its variants and I immediately want to know what is up with this novel.

10 Things That Make Me Want to Avoid a Book

Enemies to Lovers

I really hate this trope. Like, I just don’t like the concept. Especially because it’s mis-used so often – it’s usually something more like “reluctant allies to lovers” or “neutral to lovers” or something else, but it’s marketed as “enemies to lovers.” Ugh. And I also hate phrases that related to this trope, like “icy hostility to fiery passion” (thanks so much ACORAR).

Love Triangles

I absolutely despise love triangles. They are beyond irritating.

Amnesia

I hate amnesia plots that are involved with romance. All it does is reset half of a relationship and make the other half miserable.

Soulmates

If this is alluded to in the summary, I basically always walk away. I hate destined love.

Forbidden Love

I’ve just seen this one too much – I’m more tired of this trope than anything else.

Damsels

I’m tired of damsels of any kind. Let both the MMC and the FMC be capable in their own ways. I don’t want either locked away in a tower to wait or two be a plot device.

Bad Boys/Girls

I’m kind of tired of them.

“Fierce”

I still see this word pretty often in synopsis, but I mostly saw it everywhere like two to five years ago. This one is mostly a case of seeing it too much and getting fed up with it.

“Bold”

The same problem I have with “fierce.” But I also can’t stand the phrase “bold [new] debut.”

“Dangerous Temptation”

I hate it. I’m not a big romance reader, so that might be why, but I still hate this phrase.

What are words or phrases that make you want to read a book? Which ones make you want to stay away from a book?

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

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Spring 2026 TBR

Happy Tuesday everybody! Can’t believe it’s been a month since I last participated in this!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Books on Your Spring 2026 To-Be Read List. It’s pretty self-explanatory, so I’m not gonna elaborate this time.

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get into it! Here are ten books currently near the top of my ever-shifting TBR! From most likely to least likely to be read.

  1. One Piece (Volumes #73 – #78) by Eiichiro Oda
  2. Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
  3. A Widow’s Charm by Caitlyn Paxson
  4. Proven Guilty (Dresden Files #8) by Jim Butcher
  5. The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu
  6. Aurora (Volume #2) by Red
  7. Platform Decay (Murderbot Diaries #8) by Martha Wells
  8. The Rainshadow Orphans by Naomi Ishiguro
  9. Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawsett
  10. The Last Sun (The Tarot Sequence #1) by K.D. Edwards

What books are on your spring TBR? Which ones are you most excited to read? Are they upcoming releases, books that have been around awhile, or a mix of both?

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

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Covers Featuring Pretty and/or Unique Typography

It’s been a few weeks, but I’m here again (sort of) participating in Top Ten Tuesday.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Books for Armchair Travelers, but I wasn’t really feeling the prompt, so I went rogue and decided to do one from a couple of weeks ago that I was interested in, but didn’t have time: Book Covers Featuring Pretty or Unique Typography.

Anyway, without further ado, on with the post! I couldn’t narrow it down to just ten, by the way, so here’s twelve.

  1. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Jaysea Lynn – Both pretty and unique
  2. Girls of Dark Divine by E.V. Woods – Unique
  3. How to Defeat a Demon King in Ten Easy Steps by Andrew Rowe – Unique
  4. A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnson – Pretty
  5. A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers – Unique
  6. Prince of Fortune by Lisa Tirreno – Pretty
  7. Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawsett – Pretty and unique
  8. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle – Both pretty and unique
  9. Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco – Both pretty and unique
  10. Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir – Unique
  11. Tigers Trek by Colleen Houck – Both pretty and unique
  12. Of Owls and Oolong by Shari L. Tapscott – Both pretty and unique

What are some books with covers with your favorite typography? Do you prefer books with a pretty or a unique title font? Or do you like both equally?

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

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Discoveries I Made in 2025

Hey everyone, and Happy Tuesday! I’m here participating in another Top Ten Tuesday!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Bookish Discoveries I Made in 2025. There are a lot of options with this one: new-to-you authors, new genres, new bookish resources you found, new general bookish stuff, etc. I’m going with: New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2025.

Anyway, in order from earliest discovery in the year to latest, here we go!

  1. Christine Calella (via Liar’s Kingdom)
  2. Max Gladstone (via This is How You Lose the Time War)
  3. Amal El-Mohtar (via This is How You Lose the Time War and The River Has Roots)
  4. L.R. Lam (via Dragonfall)
  5. Katherine Rundell (via Impossible Creatures)
  6. M. Stevenson (via Behooved)
  7. Nicole Jarvis (via A Spell for Change)
  8. Andrew Rowe (via How to Defeat a Demon King in Ten Easy Steps)
  9. Brittany Cavallaro (via A Study in Charlotte)
  10. Lois McMaster Bujold (via Penric’s Demon and Penric and the Shaman)

What authors were new to you in 2025? How did you like their books? Will you be reading things written by them again, or was their work not for you?

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

See ya ~Mar

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2026

It’s almost no longer Tuesday, but I was determined to do this this week. (I have to get better about my time management in regards to blog posts.) Anyway, it’s time for Top Ten Tuesday.

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly post currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It celebrates lovely lists, wonderful books and the bookish community. This week’s topic is Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2026.

There’s quite a few new releases coming up that I’ve got my eye on, but I’ve decided to pick two books from each month of the in the first half of 2026 to make it even. Anyway, let’s get into it!

Strange Animals by Jarod K. Anderson – Releasing February 10th

Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawsett – Releasing February 17th

Green & Deadly Things by Jenn Lyons – Releasing March 3rd

Brighter Than Nine (Darker By Four #2) by June CL Tan – Releasing March 10th

The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu – Releasing April 7th

Deathly Fates by Tesia Tsai – Releasing April 14th

Platform Decay (Murderbot Diaries #8) by Martha Wells – Releasing May 5th

The Rainshadow Orphans by Naomi Ishiguro – Releasing May 26th

Nemesis Mine by Amy Archer – Releasing June 9th

Letters from the Last Apothecary by Bita Behzadi – Releasing June 9th

What books are you most excited about that are coming out the first half of 2026? Do we share any of the same ones?

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

See ya ~Mar