Category: Features

2027 Preorders, Review Copies, and New Releases I Can’t Wait For

Posted October 5, 2026 / Book Lists, Features / 0 Comments

I love a fresh year for bookish goal-setting, and taking a peek at the new year of book releases is the BEST. There are some great books by favorite and new-to-me authors I’m so excited for in 2027, and lord knows I already have too many review copies and preorders out there. I thought I’d share some of the upcoming books I can’t wait for so hopefully you can add them to your TBR as well. Review Copies on my Kindle Already Preordered Highly Anticipated (Must Read or Buy)

Bookmark Lit Bulletin | September 2026

Posted October 2, 2026 / Bookmark Lit Bulletin, Features, Wrap-Ups / 0 Comments

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. September is always my busiest month in my personal life between birthday stuff and a ton of plans, so I had pretty high expectations compared to reality because I want to get back on track. I aimed to read 9 books but ended up with 8, which is honestly not bad! I was really gunning for that 9th book and I really think I could’ve pulled it off if if September had 31 days lol. Either way, it makes it really clean to read 10 books per month to finish off the year, since I’m at an even 70 books now. 8 books in September 8 read • 0 reread • 0 DNF/Hold Formats: 3 physical/audio, 2 hardcover, 1 paperback, 1 egalley, 1 egalley/audio Status/source: 4 purchased, 2 preordered, 2 review Age Target: 7 adult, 1 young adult Here are all the books I read this month with ratings! Shelf Reflection Challenge: 82% Read with Allison Challenge: 77% Buzzword Reading Challenge: 75% Buzzword Cover Challenge: 67% Breakdown: 3 hardcovers | 3 paperbacks | 0 ARC | 1 egalley […]

October TBR

Posted September 28, 2026 / 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. October TBR We’re getting into crunch time for the end of the year and I am absolutely determined to hit my reading goal. I know there will be some solid seasonal reading in November and December, and I have some novellas or shorter books I definitely want to read before the year is over. I hope to get myself really going here for Q4! Review Copies I did a pretty good job with review copies in September so now we have just a few backlist ones to prioritize along with the October release of ENTITIES TO LOVERS. I also swapped in LOVE FELT LIKE THIS because I know it’s now seasonally appropriate – less fall than the previous book and more heading into winter. We’ll see if I get to it in November instead, honestly… Recent Releases & General TBR October is a big month for holiday releases but I don’t plan on reading them this month, most likely. I’ll do my holiday TBR post later this year. I put my October review copies up top so the biggest one I plan to read, of course, is the new ACOTAR […]

Predicting the Books I Read to Finish My Reading Challenge (100)

Posted September 25, 2026 / Book Lists, Features / 0 Comments

It gets to a certain time of year where I’m looking at how many books I have left to read in order to meet my goal and sweat a little bit about how to fit in all the things. I make a lot of TBR posts that you’ve already seen and will continue to see, but this is more of a prediction post – which books do I think will make up the final 32 books I will be reading in order to finish my challenge. I’m going by category – the books I want to read to finish up series, the review copies I have, new and upcoming books, etc. etc. Finishing or Progressing in Series (6) I made a post the other day about some books I hope to read by the end of the year and I put quite a few books within series or entire series I want to finish. If I’m being realistic, I’m committed to finishing the EMMA M. LION books for sure, but only will probably get to one Seaside Cafe Mystery and Inheritance Games book. I also am desperately needing to finally read THE PRISONER’S THRONE this winter! Review Copies (6) I actually did a pretty good job, compared to other years, of (a) staying on top of review copies and (b) not requesting them willy-nilly. There are six books that I definitely want to and need to read before the end of the year, including some seasonal […]

Finishing Up Challenges (2026)

Posted September 17, 2026 / Book Challenges, Features / 0 Comments

I always try to lock in around the start of autumn to see where I stand with the reading challenges I signed myself up for. I never really expect to finish them 100%, but I still like to make attempts to get them done. This is a good place for me to see what I have left and how I may get as close as possible to finishing. This is as of September 11th and includes the two books I’m currently reading. Shelf Reflection Challenge 33 out of 45 prompts completed || 73% complete Estimated to complete 10 more, finishing at 96% Two books by the same author (2) | I knew early this year that I would use Abby Jimenez for this prompt. She has a holiday romance (A MARRIED LITTLE CHRISTMAS) coming out soon so I figured I’d read this, months after reading her normal release in Q1. With a title you’d want on your gravestone | This is one where I may just come across it while I’m reading, but LOVE YOU TO DEATH is a great one that I do have on my upcoming TBR. About a historical event not WWII | It occurred to me that these books take place in the 1800s and reference war quite a bit, so I think I may end up putting the next EMMA M. LION book here. Maybe it’s cheating, who cares. Memoir by a person you’ve seen as a villain | I don’t read a lot of memoirs so I’m going […]

Books with Fall Vibes (TBR and Read)

Posted September 7, 2026 / Book Lists, Features / 0 Comments

I’ve added a new Goodreads shelf called “fall vibes” when I noticed the recent trend of autumn-themed books. It kind of all started with THE PUMPKIN SPICE CAFE and exploded from there. I thought, now that we’re in September and my fall pumpkin-y decor is officially up, I would share some of the fall/back-to-school books I’ve read and the many that are on my TBR. I also found a cute roundup after writing this post on another blog, so check that one out for more! On My TBR A Season for Falling by O’Shaughnessy // This claims to be a Gilmore Girls-esque fall read, which I appreciate because I like the VIBE of GG but not the show itself lol. This takes place in Connecticut, which is another win for me. The Thoroughbreds by Cunningham/Hilderbrand // I enjoyed THE ACADEMY in a popcorn fiction kind of way. I love rich kids behaving badly so boarding school drama was very much up my alley in book one. The sequel is out this month and I’ve been resisting the urge to read it on my Kindle all summer. I knew it would hit harder in September when school starts (just like the book). Can’t Help Falling in Love by Sullivan // This book wasn’t on my fall shelf until I browsed some Goodreads lists and saw it was already on my TBR. This is very much set in autumn based on the synopsis! A Fall to Remember by Alexander // A small town with a […]

Bookmark Lit Bulletin | August 2026

Posted September 2, 2026 / Bookmark Lit Bulletin, Features, Wrap-Ups / 0 Comments

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 did a horrible job in August, despite thinking it was going to be a great reading month. I had a plan to read a ton during my week off from work but honestly it just didn’t happen. We traveled multiple days/nights and I spent a lot of time with friends or at various appointments. I had a good month of reading quality-wise but unfortunately now I’m behind quantity-wise lol. I essentially need to read 9+ books each month from here on out to catch up. 6 books in August 6 read • 0 reread • 0 DNF/Hold Formats: 2 full mix, 2 physical/audio, 1 hardcover, 1 egalley/audio Status/source: 2 library, 1 purchased, 1 review copy, 1 owned, 1 book box Age Target: 6 adult Here are all the books I read this month with ratings! Shelf Reflection Challenge: 67% Read with Allison Challenge: 71% Buzzword Reading Challenge: 75% Buzzword Cover Challenge: 67% Breakdown: 4 hardcovers | 4 paperback | 0 ARC | 3 egalleys | 1 ebook | 0 audiobook All review copies were provided for free […]

September TBR

Posted August 28, 2026 / 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. September TBR I definitely did not have a good reading month in August, which is annoying as hell because September is always a bad reading month too. I was hoping to stay on track and read a ton during my week off from work, but unfortunately I ended up with less time to read than expected. I went away for the weekend with friends and it took me like an entire week to read a book I could’ve read in a few sittings if I started it at a different time. Nevertheless, we’ll persist! Review Copies Unfortunately this list is the same as last month with the exception of the one book I managed to read (and adding in the last one to replace it)! (EDIT: I finished ROMANTIC HERO in August after this post!) A few of these are literally some of my most anticipated 2026 releases (the final three in particular) so I do really hope to read all of them this month. September – aka my birthday month – should be the very best reading month! September Releases The good news is that even though there […]

Authors I Need New Books From

Posted August 17, 2026 / Book Lists, Features / 0 Comments

This was a Top Ten Tuesday topic a while ago but I got sad about a few authors that passed away, like Huntley Fitzpatrick and Sophie Kinsella, and couldn’t decide if it felt “right” to include that. I was browsing last week around Goodreads and was reminded of a few authors I am really waiting for new book announcements from, so I decided to finally write this post! I would have included Lucy Keating (I’ve been missing her books!) but she just announced her adult debut, and I’m pumped. Megan Goldin | Read 4 of 5 books | Last book: 2023 Whereeee is the next Megan Goldin book!? I feel like she had a great (and popular!) run of thrillers, and her latest release was a widely read sequel that was featured in BOTM. I’m really hoping she’s been writing and is waiting for a new deal? It hasn’t been THAT long but I’m still eager to at least know if she has a new book coming out at some point… TJ Newman | Read 3 of 3 books | Last book: 2024 Another one from the not-so-distant past, only two years ago, but Newman had three books come out across three years and they were all bangers. I believe they were widely read too, so I don’t think it’s due to lack of publisher interest. I have wondered though how she’ll keep up with the “airplane thriller” theme she’s used. One book involved a hijacking, another involved a plane […]

Books I Want to Read by the End of 2026

Posted August 10, 2026 / Book Lists, Features / 0 Comments

I usually will write this post late in the year to try to keep track of things in the final hours, but I was thinking about a couple of series and books I really want to get to and thought I’d write an early one too. We’re just past the midway point of the year and there are quite a few books I either can’t believe I haven’t read yet OR just keep putting off and would love to check off my list in 2026. Finish off Emma M. Lion I keep putting these three “final” books on my TBR each month because I am definitely determined to read all of them before the end of the year. I know the author plans to continue the series and honestly I don’t know when the next ones (volume 9 and beyond?) are coming, but getting the current books done is a priority. Finish off the Seaside Cafe Mysteries I last read one of these cozy mysteries in the summer of 2024, which is totally crazy. CLOSELY HARBORED SECRETS involves Halloween so I wanted to read it last October and just never got to it. The final two books don’t seem to be holiday-based so hopefully I can just read them through the end of the year, with the fifth book happening sometime around Halloween. Make Progress in The Grandest Game/etc. Series THE INHERITANCE GAMES is one of my favorite series because of the fun world of games Barnes […]