30ish mom, wife, nurse, avid reader, gamer, and Swiftie. Want to join my Taylor Swift Readathon? It's called Books Beside Your Bed and the link is in my linktree!
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February flew by compared to January! I know it’s two days shorter, but it felt weeks shorter! I almost hit my goal of 15 books last month. Here’s what’s on the TBR now! I have an extra book because I can’t decide what to cut!
I felt a little better about this month! I read more than last month, which was nice. I think overall I enjoyed my books more, too. Let’s jump right in to what I read this month!
I had two favorite books this month – The Shadows Between Us and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder! They were my only 5 star reads and so totally different. The Shadows Between Us is a fantasy about two bad people falling in love and being bad together. It was great. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder’s inspiration came from true crime podcasts and it totally had that feel!
My least favorite book was probably Second Star or Lock and Key. Second Star was a sci-fi Peter Pan retelling and I just didn’t really connect with anyone. Lock and Key was like a day-to-day in the life of a teenager and it just wasn’t very enticing to me.
Stats
Goodreads Goal: 21/165. I’m 5 books behind schedule now, which is one more than last month. However, I read more so I think if I can keep up the pace I can get back on track!
I read 3204 pages, almost double last month! I also listened to 12 hours, 45 minutes, which is only two hours less than last month. My average rating was 3.5.
I read 1 erotica, 2 fantasy, 1 historical fiction, 3 mystery, 3 nonfic, 1 romance and 1 sci-fi.
I read 6 YA, 4 adult, and 1 new adult! I read 6 ARCs this month which was way better than last month.
Yearly Goals Check In
I didn’t think about doing this last month, so we will start here!
Monthly goal of 15 books a month – I read 12, 3 more than last month. I’m slowly getting there!
TBR Goal – I’ve kept up my TBR posts and even did a bonus post! I want to read 20 books off my tbr. I think I am at 3. I probably need to pick up the pace on that. I also want to get my TBR below 1800. I’m at 1904 so we’re getting there!
Words & Whimsy – I’ve done one author chat so far this year and I’m already scheduled for a couple more! It was so fun and I remembered why I loved it so much!
Book Battle – I used a lot of arcs that have been released as recs this month so that was great! I think I only missed two days of my discussion this month so that’s better!
My Blog – I wanted to do more blog tours and I think I have 3 coming in March! I wanted to up my follower count to over 150. I’m already at 151 in two months! THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!! As of right now, I’m not going to up this. I”m just going to see where this year takes me. I also wanted to post at least every other day. Earlier this month I missed a few days, but I’ve been going good these last couple of weeks!
I wanted to keep up with my Owlcrate reading planner. That lasted all of a week. However, I have kept up with 3 book log spreadsheets, so I say that’s still a win! I also thought about getting back into bookstagram, but that’s on the back burner for now. I’m doing good just to keep up with what I got!
How many books did you read this month? What was your favorite and least favorite? How are you on your goodreads goal? Let me know in the comments below!
This is becoming one of my favorite posts to do! I love reading the first chapter of a book and really analyzing it. So far, I haven’t been far off in my predictions!
“”Ruby, where is your mother?” Ruby knows that the game is up. For the past few months, she’s been on her own in the yellow house, managing somehow, knowing that her mother will probably never return. That’s how she comes to live with Cora, the sister she hasn’t seen in ten years, and Cora’s husband Jamie, whose down-to-earth demeanor makes it hard for Ruby to believe he founded the most popular networking Web site around. A luxurious house, fancy private school, a new wardrobe, the promise of college and a future—it’s a dream come true. So why is Ruby such a reluctant Cinderella, wary and defensive? And why is Nate, the genial boy next door with some secrets of his own, unable to accept the help that Ruby is just learning to give?” Goodreads
So, I don’t know if I’ve ever read Sarah Dessen. I may have way back in the day, like high school days. I wasn’t super sure what to expect going into it.
The first chapter was LONG. Like, 32 pages. I’m more of a short and sweet kinda girl – I hate not ending on a chapter! So that was my first hiccup.
The first chapter was also LONG. It opened up with a ton of descriptions, which I don’t do well with. I don’t need to know the exact color of the carpet, walls, and drapes. Just tell me it’s nice and super expensive and I can imagine the rest. I found myself skimming the first few pages.
I also felt like nothing really happened in the first chapter. You meet Ruby, her sister Cora, and brother in law Jamie who she just moved in with. You find out she was living alone before that. But like, nothing else? I don’t know. It just seemed unnecessarily long.
My predictions for this book. Hm. I don’t think I’ll hate it, but I think maybe it isn’t really in my wheelhouse anymore. I feel like it’s going to be more of a day to day life thing instead of any action. I’m guessing it’ll be a 2-3 star read.
Have you read Lock and Key? What were your thoughts? Let me know in the comments below!
You can follow my live-reactions to this book on twitter here!
Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Teen for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and feelings are my own.
Movies, mansions, and murder in the Golden Age of Hollywood! Teri Bailey Black’s Chasing Starlight is a historical mystery from the award-winning author of the Thriller Award for Best Young Adult Novel.
1938. The Golden Age of Hollywood. Palm trees and movie stars. Film studios pumping out musicals, westerns, and gangster films at a furious pace. Everyone wants to be a star—except society girl and aspiring astronomer Kate Hildebrand, who’d rather study them in the night sky. She’s already famous after a childhood tragedy turned her into a newspaper headline. What she craves is stability.
When Kate moves to Hollywood to live with her washed-up, ex-silent film star grandfather, she walks into a murder scene and lands on the front page. Again. Suspecting someone living in her grandfather’s boarding house is the killer—one of the young men or maybe even her grandfather—Kate searches for clues. Kate’s too sensible to drop out of high school to work at a movie studio, hunt a killer on her own, and fall for a penniless actor with a head full of dreams. But that’s exactly how her stars are aligning.
Part Katharine Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, with a dash of Veronica Mars.
– Goodreads
Okay, first. This cover. I love the black and white, with gold writing, and the red hair. Omg. I saw it and immediately wanted to know what it was about. It just popped!
I did a twitter thread of my thoughts while reading! You can see it here! It was my first one, but I’m hoping to continue. It was fun to live react to the book!
Okay, let’s get into this review! The book had sort of a slow start for me. I was excited about an old Hollywood murder, but the first 30% was Kate moving in with her silent movie star granddad and his “unsavory borders”. Her granddad isn’t so famous anymore, and it shows. Kate eventually comes around, but man it takes a while.
At 30% the murder happens. I think it’s about to pick up! Which it did, but it was still a little slow. Also I found it weird the guy was murdered in their house, and they just cleaned up and kept living there like it was no big thing? Like, I would move. I would have to. That didn’t make a lot of sense to me.
The investigation was a little slow going, and at one point it felt like there was more than one mystery. I kept up fine, but it was just a lot happening, but not a lot happening at the same time? I don’t know how else to explain it.
Chasing Starlight is set in the 1930s. I know at that point in time, women were supposed to look pretty and be homemakers. But multiple things were said by men AND women that just made me cringe. Like, don’t talk about your astrology. You’re only as important as your husband. Like I said, I KNOW this is typical for that time, and Kate does fight against it, but it still just made me mad!
The characters were all okay. None of them really stuck out to me except Ollie, the granddad. He was super fun! I would love to hang out with him one day. There was romance, but it didn’t really stick out to me either. I would say it was like a slow burn, enemies to lovers, but like, it’s SUPER SLOW.
I did honestly enjoy this book. If I hadn’t been playing Overcooked 2 all weekend, I’m sure I could have finished it in a day. It’s a quick read that’s a standalone with a nice, wrapped up ending. I loved that I knew who dunnit, why they did it, and where everyone ended up! It’s a super easy mystery to read, and I think it’s worth a try, especially if you like old school Hollywood!
Below is a giveaway hosted by the author! You should definitely enter!
Thoughts: Four novellas by African-American women that each tackle some form of abuse. I’m trying to be more diverse in my reading, and these stories all sound great.
Thoughts: Four girls who have nothing in common get put together to create a fashion label. I probably would have liked this in high school, but not now.
Thank you to Netgalley and Electric Monkey for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and feelings are my own.
The case is closed. Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh. The police know he did it. Everyone in town knows he did it.
But having grown up in the same small town that was consumed by the murder, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic for her final year project, she starts to uncover secrets that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden. And if the real killer is still out there, how far will they go to keep Pip from the truth?
A debut YA crime thriller as addictive as Serial and as page-turning as One of Us Is Lying.
– Goodreads
Okay, I first featured this book on First Impression Friday. I started this late Thursday night – like 8pm. I read it until my husband begged me to go to bed because the kindle light was bothering him. I finished Friday at around 6pm. And I worked 8-5 on Friday. I read it ALL DAY AT WORK. Luckily we were all caught up. But I could not put this down.
This has so many true crime podcasts vibes I felt like I was listening to one. Going about the case backwards. Finding suspects, finding clues, interviewing people associated with the crimes, the players, the suspect, and the victim. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder is told in present tense, with bits of Pip’s senior project about the crime thrown in. I loved that formatting and really thought it brought a lot to the story.
The relationships in this book really stuck out to me, too. Pip and her dad were really close, which is something I don’t see a lot in YA novels. My dad and I have always been close, so it was nice to see that! She also has a cute relationship with her brother and her dog. Her mom didn’t make many appearances, but it seemed she had a good relationship with her as well. Pip had many friends that you saw throughout the story and how their friendship changes as she is investigating. My favorite was with Pip and Ravi. At first he wants nothing to do with her, then they become friends and it makes my heart soar.
The investigation was very well thought out. The clues were interesting, but it didn’t give everything away. There’s even a murder board! Who hasn’t wanted to make one of those?! The ending KILLED ME. I didn’t expect it and it just blew my mind.
I just felt like I grew so close to Pip. I can’t wait to see the next leg of her and Ravi’s journey in Good Girl, Bad Blood releasing April 30! Preorder here.
Add A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder to your Goodreads TBR here. I promise, you want to. Buy A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder at Penguin Random House or Amazon.
Have you read A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder? What did you think? If not, is it going on your tbr? Let me know in the comments below!
Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsury YA for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and feelings are my own.
In a sealed-off city, it begins with a hunt. A young woman, Lena, running for her life, convicted of being a mage and sentenced to death. Her only way to survive is to trust those she has been brought up to fear – those with magic.
On the other side of the locked gates is a masked lady, Constance, determined to find a way back in. She knows only too well how the people of Duke’s Forest loathe magic. Years ago she escaped before her powers were discovered. But now she won’t hide who she is any longer.
A powerful and terrifying storm cloud unites them. It descends over the dukedom and devastates much in its wake. But this is more than a thunderstorm. This is a spell, and the truth behind why it has been cast is more sinister than anyone can imagine … Only Lena and Constance hold the key to destroying the spell. Though neither of them realize it, they need each other. They are the blood and they have the thunder within.
– Goodreads
So many mixed feelings on We Are Blood and Thunder. Parts I loved, and parts I felt I would never get through. It did take me 9 days to read.
This was told in Dual POV – Lena and Constance. I liked Constance more. I could never tell if she was good or bad. I was questioning her thoughts and actions throughout the whole book, which I love. Lena was more one-dimensional to me. She was just always very flat. She never showed a ton of emotion, and when she did (or tried) I didn’t believe it. There was also a boy – Emris. He loved Constance once, and now loves Lena. It was a weird love triangle.
In the first 50% I loved Constance’s pov. I just wanted to keep reading her. At a little over the halfway mark Lena’s story picked up and gained some action. The last 20% or so was just hard for me to get through. I’m not sure exactly what it was. Everything was resolved. It just couldn’t keep my attention.
I also see on Goodreads this is book #1 in a series. I’m not sure what book #2 would entail – the story was very nicely wrapped up like a standalone. Maybe it will be in the same universe with different characters? I kind of hope so because I don’t know where else this trio could go.
I gave this 3 stars because I honestly liked a lot of the book. There were nice action scenes, magic, fighting. There wasn’t much of a love story, even with the triangle. But the last 20% or so really kept me from giving this over 3 stars. I was just ready for it to be over.
Have you read We Are Blood and Thunder? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below!
I’m so ready to trim the TBR again this week! The last two weeks I have added books to the tbr, so it really needs to get cleaned out. This meme is hosted by Zezee with Books. Here’s how it works:
The rules for Down the TBR Hole:
Go to your Goodreads to-read shelf.
Order on ascending date added.
Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
Read the synopses of the books
Decide: keep it or should it go?
Here are this week’s books. At first glance, there’s a lot of Christmas. I feel like I will get rid of a good many. I’m starting the week at 1934.
Thoughts: I saw it was suspense, and thought ok. I can do this. But honestly, there’s A LOT going on in the synopsis and I’m just not up for that.
Keep or Delete: Delete.
We are ending at 1919! Only 20 books and we are under 1900! Progress, people! So, my biggest surprise was A Promising Man. I didn’t think I’d keep any of the second set of 10.
Only 123 books to go and we are done with everything I added on June 27! I don’t know why I added so many that day. Like, I wish I could go back to me then and ask myself what I was doing. Cause it’s causing me some headaches now.
I may do a bonus post later on this week. I am so ready to be under 1900 on my tbr and to have a true tbr! But I’ll also probably add any arcs I request or receive, so that will skew the numbers a bit.
Anyway, did I make any wrong choices? What do you think about these books? Let me know in the comments below!
I did this post last week and loved it so I decided to do it again! Maybe this will become a weekly post. Who knows?
This meme is hosted by Tynga’s Reviews. Here’s how it works:
“Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!”
This week I got an amazing arc box! I also got five e-galleys from Netgalley. Let’s see what I got!
“My whole world changed when I stepped inside the academy. Nothing is right about this place or the other students in it. Here I am, a mere mortal among gods…or monsters. I still can’t decide which of these warring factions I belong to, if I belong at all. I only know the one thing that unites them is their hatred of me.“
I’ve seen this advertised as the new and improved Twilight. Honestly, I can’t wait.
“A dramatic page-turner that captures the devastating toll of war and the impact of women’s struggles and solidarity, through the lens of a little-known slice of history.“
Honestly, the cover freaks me out. This is set in 1917 Russia. A 17 year old girl goes to war – and finds she was very disillusioned.
“In this coming-of-age romance perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Sarah Dessen, scandal and romance collide when an ambitious teen returns to her hometown only to have her plans interrupted after falling for the town’s “bad boy”—a.k.a. her childhood best friend.“
Honestly, I did not expect to get approved for this. I haven’t read Jenn’s romances yet, so I’m excited to finally try. I’ve heard great things.
“The year is 1991. Scrunchies, mixtapes and 90210 are, like, totally fresh. Cassie Worthy is psyched to spend the summer after graduation working at the Parkway Center Mall. In six weeks, she and her boyfriend head off to college in NYC to fulfill The Plan: higher education and happily ever after. But you know what they say about the best laid plans…”
“Les Misérables meets Six of Crows in this page-turning adventure as a young thief finds herself going head to head with leaders of Paris’s criminal underground in the wake of the French Revolution.“
Adventures. Thieves. Set in France. Fans of Six of Crows? This book was written for me.
“For fans of Sadie and Serial, this gripping thriller follows two teens whose lives become inextricably linked when one confesses to murder and the other becomes determined to uncover the real truth no matter the cost.“
Again, fans of Serial. That’s me! I love these books. Keep them coming YA authors!
Have you heard of any of these gems? Are you on the lookout for them? What are you most excited for? Let me know in the comments below!
Another week done! I am super excited for this weekend. We are going to a zoo about an hour and a half away and there will also be a renaissance faire that day! My child, husband, and I all have costumes. My son will love seeing all the animals and I’ll love seeing all the faire!
“The case is closed. Five years ago, schoolgirl Andie Bell was murdered by Sal Singh. The police know he did it. Everyone in town knows he did it.
But having grown up in the same small town that was consumed by the murder, Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn’t so sure. When she chooses the case as the topic for her final year project, she starts to uncover secrets that someone in town desperately wants to stay hidden. And if the real killer is still out there, how far will they go to keep Pip from the truth?
A debut YA crime thriller as addictive as Serial and as page-turning as One of Us Is Lying.“ – Goodreads
Okay, see that last, bolded part? As addictive as Serial. I LOVE THAT PODCAST! I am a true crime freak. I’ve been reading Ann Rule forever and have recently gotten very into true crime audios. I also love true crime podcasts. I started with Culpable (a must listen. It happened about an hour away from where I live!), next was Serial, and I’ve just gone down the rabbit hole since. I saw that and knew I had to get this book. I am so lucky to have received an arc! Thanks Netgalley and Electric Monkey!
I read the first chapter pretty quickly. It is Pippa, or Pip, saying why she chose to delve into this murder that was “solved” five years ago. She is researching it as her capstone project for school – kind of like a senior research paper. I definitely got Serial vibes so far. Basically, Andrea, or Andi, left her home about 1030 pm. She didn’t pick her parents up at 1254am like she was supposed to. She was never seen again. They all think Sal, her boyfriend, did it. This sounds like the first season of Serial – which I devoured.
After a little intro, we then see the first part of Pip’s capstone project. We see her interview with a missing person specialist. She writes why she chose this topic and what she hopes to accomplish.
There are rave reviews about this one. I think I will be added to the bunch. The first chapter was so enthralling. I 100% feel this will be a five star read!
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder came out on February 4. Add it to your Goodreads TBR here. Order a copy from Amazon here!
What do you think of my first impression? Have you read this novel? Was it on point? Let me know in the comments below!
Mithah Reads 