April Reading Update # 2

April is going much better than March in terms of reading. I’ve been reading a mix of thrillers, horror, fantasy, and literary fiction. That being said, I haven’t read a 5 star book in at least a couple of months (booo). I try not to give too much weight to my book ratings though. I still consider a 3.5 star rating a positive reading experience. I’ve just become pickier about where I give my 4 and 5 star ratings because I reserve those for my absolute favorite books. I’ll be closing in on nearly 30 books by the end of the quarter. Usually, my reading is slow at the beginning of the year so I’m surprised I’ve read this much already. And I’ve been reading less audiobooks.

Just Finished

• Evocation by S.T. Gibson // ★★★½
• Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates // ★★★½
• The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo // (TBD)

My reviews for the first two books are linked to my Goodreads. I haven’t yet reviewed The Familiar, but I linked my page for when I do. Not gonna lie, it was a disappointing experience for me.

Current Reads 

• All Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby // → 30%
• The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang // → 8%
• The House on the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune // → 1%

I’m hoping to finish out this month with a bang and get through these three books in the next couple of weeks. I’m really liking All the Sinners Bleed so far considering I DNFed the author’s previous book. I’m trying to squeeze in more reading this month even though I have still have stuff to get done in preparation for my trip next month. I’m also excited for my May TBR because Cindy just announced the 5th (or 6th) Asian Readathon and I’ve already picked out what I plan to read. I’ll make sure to share closer to the date.

In case I didn’t tell you all, I adopted a kitten a month ago and I can’t believe I didn’t consider it sooner. I adore my cat. She’s sweet and very high energy, which surprised me. Life has been meh lately so I feel like she keeps me on my toes. I do have a dog but she has become so lazy, haha.

I hope you’re having a good reading year so far.

See you soon!

-Vanessa

December Reading Update

I meant to post this sooner! But I got my period and had terrible cramps. Then I caught a cold. Yep, started the month a little rough but I’m still hanging on. I’m hoping to read 10 books this month to make that 75 books total this year! That would be a first for me. I doubt I’ll ever get to 100 books in a year (unless I read a ton of graphic novels or audiobooks on 2x speed).

Here are the books I plan to read for the first week of December:

Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir is a book I tried to start twice already. It’s confusing at first but on my third try, I’m think I finally understand what the heck is happening. I had no plans to read Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison but I watched the live show hosted by one of the Booktubers I follow and it brought about a lot of interesting discussion on religious trauma. I’m hoping to get to A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers this week. I read it earlier this year but I want to reread it again because it’s one of my favorite books of 2023.

As always, happy reading!

November Reading Update | 1st-7th

October was just overflowing with activities and books and scenic drives and mini road trips so I’m ready to become a winter goblin and self isolate to recharge. I dressed up as a wraith and even painted my face white and wore chains. I got sooo many compliments. I was a little disappointed that not many people dressed up in my town for Halloween though. Ugh. I guess I’m just getting older.

I’m not a TBR person anymore. I much prefer weekly updates and seasonal/monthly wrap ups since I’m such a mood reader. I’m excited to share which books I read to kick-off a new reading month!

Just Finished 

• Midnight is the Darkest Hour by Ashley Winstead → ★★
• Dark Archives by Megan Rosenbloom → ★★★★
• Monstress, Vol. 6 by Marjorie Liu → ★★★★

Midnight is the Darkest Hour is left over from last month. Initially, I DNFed but it’s only 350 pages (Goodreads says 400 pages) and I decided, why not? I’m still collecting my thoughts on it. RTC? Maybe? Dark Archives was AMAZING. I highly recommend the audiobook. It’s not a true crime in the traditional sense but it was about the history of binding books in HUMAN skin. If you’re doing Nonfiction November, add this one to your TBR. Technically, I already read Monstress, Vol. 6 this year but I could not for the life of me remember a SINGLE thing about it when I was ready to start the next volume. Suffice to say, I was due for a reread and it was just as amazing as the first read.

Currently Reading

• The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon → 60%
• The Atlas Paradox by Olivie Blake → 30%
• The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher →  0%
• All These Sunken Souls, edited by Circe Moskowitz → 0%

I’ve been reading The Priory on and off the entire year. I only have 300 pages left. I was excited to start the The Atlas Paradox but I’m losing interest, so I decided to wait for the audiobook on Libby to get it through it quicker. I have two NEW reads this week. One is an adult horror by one of my favorite authors and the other is a Black YA horror anthology. I’m so eager to start them both.

Life Updates 

I’m only really on this corner of the internet during Fall because it’s my favorite time of year. I like to use this space to hold me accountable with my reading toward the last couple of months of the year. And I also like to share my end of year reading stats on here every December/January.

I’m currently chipping away at a Nanowrimo project and I’ve already hit 8k!  But of course, I’m behind and planning to spend today playing catch up. I did finish my first round of revisions on my novella. I’ve read 60 books this year so far, which is a personal record for me.  My BEST friend got engaged on Halloween and asked me to be her bridesmaid.

You Can Find Me in These Other Cool Places

My Monthly Newsletter

Be My Nanowrimo Buddy

My Author Website

My (New) Bookstagram