Review Round Up | A Vow So Bold and Deadly and All the Tides of Fate

Posted July 23, 2021 / Book Reviews, Review Roundup / 0 Comments

In an effort to cut down on posts and burnout, my Review Roundups will feature 2-4 books I’ve read or listened to recently. Sometimes they’re newer releases and sometimes they’re all backlist titles. My ARC reviews usually get the solo treatment. Enjoy the mini reviews! I enjoyed the first two books in this series but my mind was a blank when starting this final book in the trilogy. Even worse? All of my book recap websites didn’t have a summary for book two! I was able to piece everything together pretty well from spoilery reviews at least. Usually I get very sidetracked and unmotivated to read fantasy books, especially this year. I’m so behind on my challenge that I’ve been focusing on quick contemporary books or mysteries. However, VOW really kept my attention. I was always interested in reading it and didn’t feel like putting it down every two seconds to check my phone. Reviews for third or final books can be challenging because I don’t want to give everything away from the first two, but I’m going to hope most people reading this review read the first two books. I won’t say anything major though. The character in the last book who was very terrible is on the path to redemption, in a way, in this book. I didn’t remember the gory details from book two but remember thinking “since when is he like this?!” All in all, a very interesting character arc there. I liked getting all four character’s POVs […]

Top Ten Tuesdays #349: Read in One Sitting

Posted July 20, 2021 / Top 10 Tuesdays, Weekly Memes / 1 Comment

Books I Read in One Sitting/Day Top Ten Tuesdays were started by The Broke and the Bookish and are now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, where we make lists of our top ten books (or something else!) based on that week’s prompt. The topics are provided ahead of time and can be found here. Book links bring you to Goodreads or my review. I have a Goodreads shelving system that specifically allows for me to track things like this. I haven’t been reading a ton of books in one sitting lately because my reading is terrible but there are plenty of books I HAVE done this with in the past, as well as books where I certainly could have if time allowed! I have the “read in one day” shelf as well as “couldn’t put down” for these two occasions.

Top Ten Tuesdays #348: Question Titles

Posted July 13, 2021 / Top 10 Tuesdays, Weekly Memes / 0 Comments

Book Titles that are Questions Top Ten Tuesdays were started by The Broke and the Bookish and are now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, where we make lists of our top ten books (or something else!) based on that week’s prompt. The topics are provided ahead of time and can be found here. Book links bring you to Goodreads or my review. I always love the lazy TTTs where I can just scroll through my shelves and quickly find some examples. I also enjoy splitting these into books on my TBR and books I’ve already read, just to give it a little extra something! To Read Read

ARC Review: Coming Home to Seashell Harbor

Posted July 10, 2021 / Book Reviews / 0 Comments

I read the first book and the last book in the Angel Falls series last year around the holidays and never managed to get the second book read. I hope to get to it in the second half of this year because I actually have a review draft for the whole series that has been SITTING THERE since December of 2019. Regardless, I was excited for a new book by Liasson – this one is set in Seashell Harbor, which appears to be on the Jersey shore. The setup for this one was extremely fun. It’s a second chance romance between two high school sweethearts that return home for the summer. Cam (or Tony) made it big in the NFL as a tight end and had his career come screeching to a halt when he had too many knee injuries to play through. Hadley went out to LA to be a publicist for celebrities and endured a very public breakup when her actor boyfriend left her for a costar. I loved that this was not only a second chance at love for a high school couple, but they both went on to be pretty famous! Coming back to a small, beachside hometown is always something that will appeal to me in books too. There was a lot of tension between the exes because Hadley’s grandmother, after suffering a fall and needing to take time off from Pooch Palace (a dog boarding company), is contemplating retirement. Hadley wants to keep the […]

Bookmark Lit Bulletin | June 2021

Posted July 7, 2021 / Bookmark Lit Bulletin, Features, Wrap-Ups / 1 Comment

The Bookmark Lit Bulletin wraps up the last month in reading and what was on the blog, as well as what’s coming up next. You can check out my book haul, books read, posts shared, challenge updates, etc. You can read past bulletins here. If you’re looking for more personal updates, you can check out my Lauren Lately feature; it highlights my life events and non-bookish fun from the previous 30 days. I’m still slogging through RULE OF WOLVES (by that I mean letting it hang around on my currently reading shelf and not actually read it ever) so that will be a nice boost when it’s finally done. I’m hoping to blaze through some books this month because I’m in the mood. June wasn’t the best but it was the first month that felt somewhat normal around here and had a lot of plans. 6 books read in June 6 new books • 0 rereads • 0 DNF Pages read: 2233 • Average rating: 4.17 stars Sources: 5 review, 1 purchased Formats: 4 egalley, 2 mixed format Genres: 5 contemporary, 1 fantasy Age Target: 5 adult, 1 young adult Check out my 2021 challenge sign-up post for more details, goals, etc.! Popsugar Reading Challenge 1 read this month | 23/40 read total About art/artist A-Z Reading Challenge 1 read this month: V Calendar of Crime Challenge None this month Breakdown: 1 purchased | 0 borrowed | 1 free/gifted | 10 for review All review copies were provided for free in exchange for an honest […]

Top Ten Tuesdays #347: Reasons I Love Reading

Posted July 6, 2021 / Top 10 Tuesdays, Weekly Memes / 0 Comments

Reasons I Love Reading Books that Made Me Remember I Love Reading Top Ten Tuesdays were started by The Broke and the Bookish and are now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, where we make lists of our top ten books (or something else!) based on that week’s prompt. The topics are provided ahead of time and can be found here. Book links bring you to Goodreads or my review. I felt a little cheesy sitting here and writing about the reasons I love reading. It’s the same stuff as everyone else – being transported elsewhere, learning new things, having a relaxing hobby, etc. I thought it would be fun instead to share a few recent reads that made me remember how much I love to read. Reading hasn’t been a huge priority for the past year and a half during the pandemic so every once in a while I read a great books that makes me want to get back into it.

July TBR

Posted July 5, 2021 / Book Lists, Features, TBR Lists / 0 Comments

My monthly TBR feature here shows my progress based on last month’s TBR, my plans for this month, and anything else I might be thinking about from a reading perspective. Sometimes I feature a little poll at the bottom so you guys can help me figure out a certain title I should read from a group of books. July TBR I’m in terrible shape here y’all. I’m even further behind. I hope to read a few graphic novels this month to get slightly back on track. This TBR post is also late so I will cheat and include the book or two I’ve already read. I’m also ready to admit defeat on some of the books I keep carrying from month to month on my TBR, like INSTANT KARMA and MAJESTY. I want to focus on review copies for the next month or two because I somehow went wild on Netgalley and ended up with 10 more last month. Currently Reading and Just Finished Yes, RULE OF WOLVES is here. I put it on hold for a few weeks while I read another fantasy book because I don’t like reading two of the same genre at once. I do hope to do my “chapter a day until I finish” plan for this one beginning ASAP because I want it off my shelf. I started COMING HOME TO SEASHELL HARBOR right after finishing THE WOODS ARE ALWAYS WATCHING because I needed something contemporary right afterwards. That was a tough (but […]

Christmas in July: Upcoming 2021 Holiday Books

Posted July 1, 2021 / Book Lists, Features / 2 Comments

I always have the idea to do a “Christmas in July” feature on my blog because it’s riiiight around this time of year when I notice all of the holiday books coming out in September/October. I browsed Nick’s amazing list of romances coming out in the second half of 2021 and many of them were excellent-sounding holiday books! I thought now would be a great time to dive into back into this kind of post (last/first done in 2019). Duke, Actually by Jenny Holiday // I’ve adored every single Jenny Holiday book I’ve read so far and have plenty more to dive into still. She wrote a lovely royal holiday romance last year and this one will probably be just as excellent. Sleigh Bells Ring by RaeAnne Thayne // It’s not a holiday season without a book from RaeAnne Thayne! I’ve read a ton of her companion series books and usually there are some holiday stories sprinkled in. They’re always a touch cheesy and more wholesome, but usually have a cute small town holiday vibe that I love. A Season for Second Chances by Jenny Bayliss // I really enjoyed her debut last year and was so excited to see another holiday book from her for this year. British Christmas books in charming country towns? Sign me up, always. Also, her covers are super cute and wintry. The Christmas Village by Annie Rains // I feel like a broken record because all of these books so far have been from tried-and-true authors I […]

Top Ten Tuesdays #346: Most Anticipated

Posted June 29, 2021 / Top 10 Tuesdays, Weekly Memes / 2 Comments

Most Anticipated Releases July-Dec 2021 Top Ten Tuesdays were started by The Broke and the Bookish and are now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, where we make lists of our top ten books (or something else!) based on that week’s prompt. The topics are provided ahead of time and can be found here. Book links bring you to Goodreads or my review. This will likely be repetitive from my summer 2021 TBR post from a few TTTs ago (because I usually focus on new releases) but at least this is most anticipated through the end of the year. I actually decided to start at December and work backwards to guarantee a bit more variety. I also decided to skip holiday books too, for whatever reason. Here we go! IF THE SHOE FITS by Julie Murphy: new companion series based on “contemporary takes on Disney princesses” /// IN MY DREAMS I HOLD A KNIFE by Ashley Winstead: dual timeline book about a murder on a college campus and its present-day reunion /// THEY’LL NEVER CATCH US by Jessica Goodman: a new girl goes missing and star cross country athletes (and sisters) are at the center of it THE WOODS ARE ALWAYS WATCHING by Stephanie Perkins: the next thriller/horror novel from Perkins is FINALLY coming out! /// YOUR LIFE HAS BEEN DELAYED by Michelle I. Mason: a flight takes off in 1995 and lands 25 years later, while the rest of the world has moved on /// THE HEART PRINCIPLE by Helen Hoang: finally the third installment in this amazing companion romance series! /// THE […]

Currently

Posted June 23, 2021 / Currently, Personal / Information / Etc. / 0 Comments

I’ve been doing some kind of Currently post on and off for many years. Ironically, Hannah at So Obsessed With credits me for inspiring her to finally make a Currently post… and now here *I* am, stealing *her* Currently prompts. I just like the way she lays them out and it’s a nicer format than some I’ve done in the past. So here’s credit-ception for you. Bookish Currently reading: I’ve been attempting to read RULE OF WOLVES since it came out basically. I just haven’t been motivated to read fantasy lately. I had a similar issue with taking forever to read ACOSF. I finished a bunch of romance novels in a row on my Kindle and this one has been sitting around. I also just started WAIT FOR IT last night because I got approved on Netgalley and started reading it right away because I actually thought it was something different lol. Currently audiobook-ing: Even more embarrassing? I have RULE OF WOLVES on audio too. I’ve been mostly listening to podcasts though. Currently recommending: Seriously, the last 4 romance books I read received 4-4.5 stars, with the majority receiving 4.5 stars. If you want mostly fun rom-coms, try out: ROSALINE PALMER TAKES THE CAKE by Alexis Hall TO SIR, WITH LOVE by Lauren Layne SATISFACTION GUARANTEED by Karelia Stetz-Walters THE SOULMATE EQUATION by Christina Lauren Currently on hold at the library: I actually have run out of library holds, for the most part. The only one remaining is THE HEART […]