Book Review | If I’m Being Honest

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

Title: If I’m Being Honest

Author: Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka

Format: Hardcover (borrowed)

Pages: 359

Categories: Shakespeare, Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary

High school senior Cameron Bright’s reputation can be summed up in one word: bitch. It’s no surprise she’s queen bee at her private L.A. high school—she’s beautiful, talented, and notorious for her cutting and brutal honesty. So when she puts her foot in her mouth in front of her crush, Andrew, she fears she may have lost him for good. 

In an attempt to win him over, Cameron resolves to “tame” herself, much like Katherine in Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. First, she’ll have to make amends with those she’s wronged, which leads her to Brendan, the guy she labelled with an unfortunate nickname back in the sixth grade. At first, Brendan isn’t all that receptive to Cameron’s ploy. But slowly, he warms up to her when they connect over the computer game he’s developing. Now if only Andrew would notice…

But the closer Cameron gets to Brendan, the more she sees he appreciates her personality—honesty and all—and wonders if she’s compromising who she is for the guy she doesn’t even want.

If I’m Being Honest grew on me and I ended up loving it! At first I was like this Cameron Bright girl is truly a Queen B. 🙄 And honestly I don’t remember Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare, it’s been so long haha. 🤷🏻‍♀️ But I read on to see how Cameron Bright’s character arc plays out.

Cameron Bright is a popular hot girl and her best friends are an aspiring actress and a youtube star. Her father is a successful Philadelphia businessman who barely cares he has a daughter living in California. Oh he pays her expensive high school tuition and rent for the apartment she and her mom lives in but other than that, he isn’t a part of her life. But she wants to desperately be noticed by him. 😔

When a boy she likes named Andrew, calls her the B word, she takes on the idea of “taming” her bitchy ways in order for him to like her again. She gets this idea from The Taming of the Shrew, which they are studying in class. So she makes a list of the people she has wronged, in hopes to apologize to them in front of Andrew to show him she IS a good person.

One of the first people she’s wronged a few years ago is Brendan, a computer geek who is anti-social due to the unflattering nickname she gave him. Making amends to the people she’s wronged makes Cameron realize she’s been mean, just like her father is to her and her mom…and that broke my heart. I loved her interaction with Brendan, and the two of them getting together was good! ❤️ But I also really enjoyed seeing Cameron make friends with people outside of her clique and how some friendships fall apart. I mean haven’t we all gone through that with friends in our past and present.

I like that she made an effort to say sorry and realize what she did wrong. Sometimes saying sorry doesn’t mend things and forgiveness is on the other side of that bridge. You can’t force anyone to forgive you. Love that lesson! Cameron learns a lot about herself and about love.

Overall it’s a great read and I look forward to reading more novels from these authors!


Ultimate Book Tag

Another fun book tag post from A Little Haze Book Blog! Check out her book blog for more book tag ideas and enlightening book reviews. Let’s see how well I do answering these questions:

1. Do you get sick while reading in the car?

I never used to but I haven’t tried it in forever since I’m always the one doing the driving lately!

2. The Harry Potter Series or The Twilight Saga? Give 3 points to defend your answer

Twilight

  • According to my Goodreads Read list, I’ve read 2 Harry Potter Books. I don’t even remember the second one. It’s not for me.
  • I read Twilight so long ago but I loved the whole ordinary girl gets noticed by a vampire and a werewolf. I was addicted to this series.
  • It has romance! I love romance – did Harry Potter have any romance in it? I don’t even know!

3. Do you carry a book bag? If so what is in it?

Nope, I have one bag filled with my essentials, and no room for a book. Plus I’m always with my kids and they never leave me alone enough to actually read in public.

4. Do you smell your books?

Um yes…doesn’t every book lover smell books? 😂 I love it new, I love it old.

5. Books with or without illustrations?

Obviously without illustrations for novels but I read a LOT of children’s books and soon middle grade books for my son. He’s moving onto graphic novels so I’m trying them out too.

6. What book did you love while reading but discovered later it wasn’t quality writing?

Long ago (I act like I’m a dinosaur sometimes 😆) – long ago, in late 1990’s, when I was in college, lol… I started reading Lauren K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series. It’s urban fantasy, and I thought it was really good, different, Anita Blake was a badass vampire slaying private investigator, it was addicting, kinda racy, a little kinky, sexy if you like seeing someone hook up with shape-shifters, ya know…but then each book after the first few started sounding the same. And Anita didn’t only now have a vampire lover and a shape-shifter lover…she had a few…like soon all the story was about who’s turn it was for her to have sex with and I gave up. And look, I don’t even mind sometimes if a book doesn’t have quality writing, but when it’s a series and the newest book reads like the last book, then we have a problem. I gave up…and I just checked goodreads and it says there are now 26 books in the series!! I think I gave up at book 10.

7. Do you have any funny stories involving books from your childhood? Please share!

Not that I can think of.

8. What is the thinnest book on your shelf?

The Little Prince by. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

9. What is the thickest book on your shelf?

Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning

10. Do you write as well as read? Do you see yourself in the future becoming an author?

I started writing in the 6th grade, writing some teen romance novel. I wrote in diaries since the 4th grade, journaling until I was about…33 – when my kids came, I found no time to write. But when I thought to tell my parents when I was young I wanted to be a writer/author…my immigrant parents said “what do you mean, writing? What is that? You can only be a doctor, lawyer or nurse.” 😂 SO…I wrote and wrote for years privately, never really finishing a story because I didn’t believe I could I think. I had a few blogs years ago to just write about what was going on in my life – especially when I was wedding planning. Did some paid blogging jobs also, which was was surprising and fun. But never sat down and finished a story. Instead I just read a lot, worked in a library (to be near books), and finally told myself to start a blog again to do book reviews since all I do is read so much. Will it happen? I don’t know. Maybe. My friends keep trying to encourage me, which is nice. But we shall see…

11. When did you get into reading?

I remember being fascinated with the Disney version of Cinderella at like 5 or 6. But getting INTO reading, like…when my addiction started? I’d say middle school when I read teen romance novels that my older cousins handed down to me. 😬

12. What is Your Favourite Classic Book?

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and of course, Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen.

13. In school was your best subject English or another Language Arts subject?

English and History

14. If you were given a book as a present that you had read before and hated, what would you do?

The only person who gifts me books is my mother-in-law! If someone did give me a book I hated I would donate it to the library haha.

15. What is a lesser known series that you know of that is similar to Harry Potter or The Hunger Games?

There are so many books on Amazon by indie authors similar to Harry Potter, but with a female protagonist. I’ll mention The Culling Trials (Shadowspell Academy Series).

16. What is your favourite word?

So hard to pick one. But one of my favorites is “Mana” – in Hawaiian it means “power”, the power inside of you or the power of nature, etc…

17. Are you a Nerd, Dork, or Dweeb? Or all of the above?

A book nerd for sure. Sometimes a dork, but aren’t we all? Dweeb…hmmm, what exactly is a dweeb?

18. Vampires or Faeries?

You really going to make me pick? Because I think my love for both them are EQUAL. Now would I want to get with a vampire or Faerie? I might like the lure of Faerie much more…they seem to have a lot of fun. 😂

19. Bookmark or Random Piece of Paper?

Both, because I love bookmarks but always lose them! I blame my daughter though, she takes them from me.

20. Love Triangle or Forbidden Love?

I love a good love triangle if it’s done well. I love anything with “love” in it. 😅

21. One book at a time or several books at once?

I used to only read one book at a time but when I started this blog I wanted to have all these posts ready to go and then I signed up for NetGalley and now I read several books at once. It’s taken awhile for me to get used to it and sometimes I get overwhelmed and take a break from reading. Hopefully I can get back to reading one at a time.

22. Can you stop reading at any part of the book or does it have to be the end of the chapter?

I shoot for end of the chapter.

23. Do you write in your books?

Nope. The only one I ever wrote in was my paperback copy of Jane Eyre but ever since then I don’t do it.

24. Can you read while listening to music or watching TV?

I can read while my kids watch tv – does that count? 😂 but I prefer quiet.

25. Do you read out loud or silently in your head?

Silently but sometimes when the writing is just so beautiful, I read a passage out loud to just appreciate how wonderful it is!

BONUS QUESTION: Physical book, e-book or audio book?

Physical and ebooks and NO to audiobooks. I don’t have the concentrate needed for audiobooks.

And that’s another book tag! If you think this was fun and you want to do it, feel free to leave me your link in my comments. I would love to read your answers! Happy reading book lovers!

First Lines Fridays

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

Okay I always use these Friday Lines Fridays post as a weekly update as well – so just a quick one: my sister-in-law and her family are here visiting us from upstate New York and they watched our kids so my hubby and I could go to the Phantom of the Opera that’s touring right now in Hawaii. While we were waiting for a friend to join us outside of the theater I noticed the sky was the color of cotton candy. 😍 Loved it! It’s been busy around here, I hope you all have had an awesome week. 😘

So back to the lines!

“Lara rested her elbows on the low sandstone wall, her eyes fixed on the glowing sun descending over the distant mountain peaks, nothing between here and there but scorching sand dunes, scorpions, and the occasional lizard. “

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I love Danielle L. Jensen books and saw this pop up on Amazon.com as an audiobook and I was like, wait, she wrote another book I haven’t heard about? WHEN? WHAT? WHY is it an audiobook? 😂😱 But I did find the ebook copy, I bought it, read it in one day and now I need book two. 😭 Review to come soon!

Book Review | Don’t Date Rosa Santos

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Don’t Date Rosa Santos

Author: Nina Moreno

Format: Hardcover (borrowed)

Pages: 336

Categories: Romance, Family, Coming of Age, Contemporary, Young Adult

Rosa Santos is cursed by the sea-at least, that’s what they say. Dating her is bad news, especially if you’re a boy with a boat.

But Rosa feels more caught than cursed. Caught between cultures and choices. Between her abuela, a beloved healer and pillar of their community, and her mother, an artist who crashes in and out of her life like a hurricane. Between Port Coral, the quirky South Florida town they call home, and Cuba, the island her abuela refuses to talk about.

As her college decision looms, Rosa collides – literally – with Alex Aquino, the mysterious boy with tattoos of the ocean whose family owns the marina. With her heart, her family, and her future on the line, can Rosa break a curse and find her place beyond the horizon?

Rosa Santos is supposedly cursed because the women in her family, her abuela (grandmother) and mother, have had devastating events with their loved ones and the sea.

The real curse is the fears that has lived with these women all their lives. The curse is on the verge of breaking them apart.

Rosa is trying to find her way to Cuba, and has chosen a college out of state, far from her abuela. Her grandmother has been her guardian for as long as she can remember, since her mom is always gone, and Rosa is afraid her school choice will anger her abuela. Rosa is that type A person who piles everything on her plate and can get things done! Like the festival they are throwing to help raise money for their town, she is hands-on, a leader and knows her way around planning. Working on the festival also throws her into the path of Alex Aquino, the cute guy that works down at the docks. A boy with a boat – oh no!

Between the curse, wanting to go to Cuba, her issues with her abuela and her mom – Rosa has a lot to juggle. This start off as a light-hearted contemporary young adult novel with some romance, though the romance is actually a slow burn. Alex and Rosa are so cute together. But the real love story resolves around Rosa and her family.

This story is rich in Port Coral life in Florida, Cuban culture (whatever Mimi was cooking I wanted to eat!), and even a little witchcraft. I loved getting to know a little more about Cuba through Mimi. Mimi, her abuela, had to live with her fears and nightmares about her experience fleeing Cuba – trying to protect Rosa from what she went through. I felt for all these Santos women.

And can I just say I love this Port Coral community and how they have these meetings and everyone knows each other. I love the support Rosa has through the community. Of course it sucks to have the small town gossip, because it’s what’s kept her mother away from that town, but overall, they watch over Rosa and it’s sweet.

This book was fun, heart-breaking, emotional and a journey in healing also. Also, I just have to mention I loved the flower details on the pages, it gave it such a summer, tropical vibe.

Book Review | This Time

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

Title: This Time (Nadira Holden, Demon Hunter Book 1)

Author: Azaaa Davis

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 250

Categories: Urban Fantasy, Demon Hunter, Adult Fiction

Legendary demon hunter Nadira Holden paid the ultimate price to end the war between demons and hunters.

Resurrected in present-day New York, many years have passed, everyone moved on without her, and the demons she once battled have made peace with humans. Nadira no longer has a purpose here. Dying again might be her ticket back to that “next life” she experienced.

Except humans are disappearing, and Nadira’s father is one of the missing. Feeling a strong obligation to find him before sorting out her own fate, she begins investigating.

She won’t rest in peace unless she can prove the demons are behind the disappearances. But Nadira is running out of time. The darkness within her is causing her to lose her humanity while the rest of mankind is on the verge of enslavement to the demons they now worship.

Fight with Nadira in a new urban fantasy series that combines monster-slaying action, family drama, and simmering romance. Experience why not even death can stop her.

Fans of Vampire Hunter Anita Blake, Succubus Georgina Kincaid, Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Vampire Death Dealer Selene are possessed and eagerly awaiting the next book by fantasy author Azaaa Davis.

I was asked to review this book by indie urban fantasy author Azaaa Davis and all opinions are my own.

This Time is about Nadira Holden, a demon hunter. The book starts off fast-paced and exciting. We learn about Nadira’s upbringing and belonging to the Children of Orion, a sect of demon hunters. She had a reputation as a top notch demon hunter but something happens, she dies, and then she is resurrected in present day, and things have definitely changed in the world the live in.

When the blurb of this book compares it to Anita Blake, I can see why, except Nadira is much more level-headed than Anita Blake. And there is way less sex in This Time. There is some heat and sexy scenes in this book but like I said, not Anita Blake level sex, and I actually appreciate that.

As a character, Nadira is a fearsome fighter and was trained to be. It was interesting to see the choice she makes concerning the Children of Orion, but I totally get where she is coming from. Secrets are revealed, and it just makes Nadira question everything. The middle of the book I felt slowed down a bit until we meet a character named Roquelle. Things start to get very interesting with this twist.

What I loved most about the novel is the diversity among the cast of characters. 👏🏼 I didn’t connect much to the characters, maybe because it’s the first book and I’m learning Nadira’s voice and everyone else’s. Like I said, she’s pretty even-keeled until Roquelle comes around. Then her personality shall we say, flourishes? I think her relationship with Jaime was nice, I liked their budding friendship after a suspicious first meeting. And of course, there is Derek, who is a hottie demon duke and their relationship sizzles. The world-building is creative and detailed but I can tell there is much more to learn about the Children of Orion and her family. The book ends strongly with a lot of action, because Nadira Holden can fight.

I think fans of urban fantasy will really like this series. This Time is an enjoyable, promising debut and I look forward to following Nadira Holden’s journey.

Azaaa Davis 

Writer of urban fantasy novels

She fell in love with reading as a high school freshman and continues to read, write, and draw today.Her background in social work helps her portray realistic characters in otherworldly—and sometimes terrifying—situations.

A New York native, Azaaa currently lives in New Hampshire (USA) with her husband and daughter.

Azaaa debuts with This Time, A Nadira Holden Novel, about demon hunters, family ties and the magic of love.

Azaaa is working diligently to finish writing more fantasy novels while raising her daughter. Thank you for showing an interest in her stories!

Random Tuesday Update

Aloha everyone – so I didn’t have time to prep a Top Ten Tuesday post. I have family visiting from out of state and they are staying with us so we’ve been busy. So I’m just gonna leave you all some nature photos of my week so far. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do and have an awesome week!

Another amazing sunset this week! 😍

White Plains Beach on Oahu – so many waves today!

I was sitting on the sand and looked up above me and saw this. 😱
So amazing!

I’m in love with it! Now I’ve never caught one in a photograph but is this what a sundog is? 🤔 Or just a sun halo? I was just in awe of it. I felt like I was given a blessing or something. In Hawaii, whenever it drizzles we call it a blessing. I didn’t feel drizzle but there was a lot of ocean spray! 😄

In book related news – here is what I’m currently reading. I’ve heard so many good things about this one:

What are you reading?

I hope you all are having a wonderful week so far and many blessings onto you. 😘

ARC Review | Our Wayward Fate

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Our Wayward Fate

Author: Gloria Chao

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 320

Publication Date: October 15, 2019

Categories: Family, Folklore, Contemporary, Young Adult, Romance

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Seventeen-year-old Ali Chu knows that as the only Asian person at her school in middle-of-nowhere Indiana, she must be bland as white toast to survive. This means swapping her congee lunch for PB&Js, ignoring the clueless racism from her classmates and teachers, and keeping her mouth shut when people wrongly call her Allie instead of her actual name, pronounced Āh-lěe, after the mountain in Taiwan.

Her autopilot existence is disrupted when she finds out that Chase Yu, the new kid in school, is also Taiwanese. Despite some initial resistance due to the “they belong together” whispers, Ali and Chase soon spark a chemistry rooted in competitive martial arts, joking in two languages, and, most importantly, pushing back against the discrimination they face.

But when Ali’s mom finds out about the relationship, she forces Ali to end it. As Ali covertly digs into the why behind her mother’s disapproval, she uncovers secrets about her family and Chase that force her to question everything she thought she knew about life, love, and her unknowable future.

Thank you to Simon Pulse and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this eArc.

This book was so full of many things: Ali’s experience living as a Taiwanese girl in Indiana, the secrets her parents are keeping, Chinese folklore, and a budding romance.

I love Ali! She’s outspoken, strong and spirited, she made me laugh out loud, a lot. I mean the girl isn’t even afraid to talk about pooping! 😂👏🏼 But Ali is tired of the racism she experiences in the all-American town she lives in. She’s tired of walking on eggshells at home where her parents never interact with each other and her mom never seems happy. Then one day a new boy comes to her school and he’s Taiwanese too. She was ready to dislike him for disrupting her school life, but having him around opens her eyes to a lot of things.

I felt for Ali and just could imagine how stifling it would be to live in a home where her dad is there but not present. Where her mom’s resentment just infects their way of life. I understood in the end where her mom was coming from but wow, the lengths she went through to ensure Ali’s future happiness, without knowing what would really make her daughter happy…it was a big miss on her part as a parent. Yet, like I said, I understood her mom’s fears, but it just made me sad.

Ali and Chase, are so cute together. It was so nice seeing Ali have someone to relate to because her high school friends were so not it. 🙄 I love Ali and Chase’s banter. Those kung-fu scenes just heightened the tension between them, I loved it. They are so silly together and fun. 😍

As for the larger issue in this book with the Chinese folklore and the history of Ali’s family. That was fascinating and it also made me realize, I don’t recall much about the history between China and Taiwan. You get a little idea of it in the book, but I really need to do some research on it.

This is a wonderful story about confronting family secrets, shame and regret. I really enjoyed reading about Ali’s journey as she faces the truth about her family and herself. Watching her come full circle with her family’s history is inspiring.

Get it here: Amazon

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Book Review | Circe

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Circe

Author: Madeline Miller

Format: Hardcover (owned)

Pages: 391

Categories: Greek Mythology, Adult Fiction

In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child—not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power—the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

I saw this book everywhere and was intrigued, so I finally bought it. I can see why so many people fell in love with this book!

I am not a hard-core greek mythology fan. I remember learning about them in school thinking the Gods were just so wild. The way Athena was born was pretty crazy, straight from Zeus head, kinda cool, kinda weird. Also there was nothing relatable to me about the greek Gods. They were all too powerful, their epic battles and adventures were pretty awesome, but I couldn’t relate since I was not a god.

But this book Circe, is relatable. Obviously I am a mere mortal, but Circe is so unlike the Titans and gods in her family or those on Mount Olympus that she almost felt human. How can that be?

The writing is exquisite, the story-telling just sucked me in, much like Charybdis and her whirlpool! I felt like I was there with Circe. Now one of the reasons reading greek mythology challenged me was the family tree. Because they are pretty much related to one another. There is the incest – then again, they are Gods – what is the meaning of sex or sexuality to them? Not the way we mortals perceive sex that’s for sure. But yes, I usually need a visual family tree to follow greek mythology. The author, Madeline Miller, did such a good job telling this story, I didn’t get lost or confused. I mean Circe lives forever – so keeping her story linear through centuries, without boring me or losing me, was impressive. Also there is a helpful Cast of Characters list in the back of the book in case I forgot who was who, but I didn’t. Yay!

Circe is so unwanted. She is not goddess material, or so everyone tells her. She’s not tricky enough, not smart enough, not hard and vicious enough, she was not pretty enough. All her life she is told she is not enough. And it takes her awhile to learn some hard lessons but soon she learns who she is and accepts her strengths.

Just knowing what Circe had been through for centuries, at one point in the story, I agreed with her sister Pasiphaë, Circe was just being walked all over and she didn’t fight enough. But when she does fight back, it is glorious.

What touched me most about this story is Circe is a survivor. Through centuries of not being wanted, of losing her family, her home, her lovers and child even, she comes through. She is quiet and strong and always want to do the right thing. And when she becomes a mother I laughed because Circe is a goddess and even she was tired taking care of a mortal child! Same, I could relate, though I am just a mortal mom! Telegonus, her son, sounded like my son who was colicky as a baby. 😂 Watching their relationship grow, is so bittersweet. Okay wait, I didn’t laugh though, when she gave herself a c-section 😫, I had two c-sections myself and oh hell no would I want to perform that on my own.

This story is truly epic, in story-telling, scope and emotion. It doesn’t shy away from the violence of the gods or that they were incestuous, and had a thing about mating with magical bulls or cows. 👀 These gods and goddesses were often blood thirsty or just cold alien beings. At times I thought, is this story about Circe because she seems to have no power or is it about everyone else who has more power than her? In this book we read about the glorious stories of Daedalus, Odysseus, Helios, Scylla, Perses, Pasiphaë, Achilles, Athena and everyone under the sun and ocean it seems. I enjoyed it because I didn’t know half the stories. But what of Circe? Is she just there to be witness to all their greatness and nothing more?! I was so frustrated for her. Because let’s be honest, they all seemed more fascinating than Circe.

But it was the fine line she walked, wondering if she was a worthy goddess or more like a mortal, that was the most interesting thing about her. She may have seemed weak against goddesses like Athena, but her true voice was brave and strong. She stood up for what she believed in, no matter how they tried to suppress and threaten her. Her love for her child knew no bounds and she took care of herself and the both of them all by herself! You go, woman!

As for immortality and power, would you leave it all behind to become mortal? I ended that book wondering what I would do in her place. In the end, her choice was brave, it made me tear up. It takes courage to chose a life knowing it will be short but filled with love, despair, joy, pain and happiness. And death will be waiting in the end. Brave, that is what Circe is. The goddess and the book.

All my life I have been moving forward, and now I am here.”

Circe, Madeline Miller

The Reader Problems Book Tag

I saw this book tag on A Little Haze Book Blog and it looked fun. Check out her blog for more fun book tags and awesome book reviews. So let’s get to it!

1. You have 20,000 books on your TBR. How do you decide what to read next?

With that many books, I’ll just pick whatever I’m in the mood to read. By the way, who has 20,000 books on their TBR? Because…wow, that’s a list to get through. 😅

2. You’re halfway through a book, and you’re just not loving it; do you put it down or are you committed?

I put it down and try to pick it back up again. If I borrowed it from the library, I may renew or just return it and pick it up some other time. If I’m reading an ARC, then I try to finish even if I don’t like it, just so I can give it a fair review.

3. The end of the year is coming, and you’re behind on your reading challenge; do you try to catch up? And if so, how?

I’ve already met my Goodreads goal, and I think early in my blogging I put up the Pop Sugar reading challenge, but I’m pretty sure I’m not going to complete it. And it’s TOTALLY ok…🤷🏻‍♀️

4. The covers of a series you love do not match, how do you cope?

Yikes..not sure if I’ve had that problem yet. But if that did happen and it’s a series I absolutely love, I’d buy the series with matching covers and donate the other one not matching.

5. Everyone and their mother love a book that you do not. Who do you bond with over your shared feelings?

Sometimes my hubby, but mostly on my blog – because there are always readers out there who share your feelings. They are out there!

6. You’re reading a book in public, and you’re about to start crying; how do you deal?

I do most of my reading at home so I’ve never dealt with this problem! I’d probably do a laugh/cry kinda thing if it did happen.

7. The sequel to a book you loved just came out but you’ve forgotten a lot of what happens. Are you going to reread it?

I used to reread when I wasn’t a mom and had more time to do so. These days, I usually just jump into the sequel and pray things from the previous book resurface in my brain.

8. You do not want anyone to borrow your books. How do you politely say no when someone asks?

This is so hard because I’m the only one who buys books among my friends and family. 😩 So I usually let them borrow because I want them reading something! lol

9. You have picked up and put down five books in the last month. How do you get over this reading slump?

Take a break and not read for a few days. Watch TV shows, I just binged the 1st season of Euphoria on HBO without meaning to! I realized I didn’t read for or write a blog post for two days and it was kinda nice. It helped me jump into a few books I was struggling with and write posts that I’ve been meaning to.

10. There are so many books coming out that you are dying to read. How many do you end up buying?

I don’t. I have kids, lol, money goes to their needs first. Thank god for my public library, online library, and recently – Book Outlet (so many discounted books)! It’s been a lifesaver and I just learn to be patient.

11. After you purchase all of these books that you’re dying to read, how long do they sit on your shelf before you read them?

I usually read them right away but lately the TBR list has grown very long and ARCs usually are a priority for me to finish.

I hope you enjoyed this book tag post, just to switch it up a bit from book review posts. Feel free to do it if you feel like it and if you do, please drop your links in my comments so I can see your answers. 😘

First Lines Fridays

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

Happy Friday book lovers! Another week in August is coming to an end and I just learned my son will have a spelling test every Friday. 😩 That emoji is the face I will be making every Thursday when I tell him it’s time to study for his test. 😂 I can already picture his face of annoyance. Sigh…oh well! So what book have I been reading this week?

“WHEN I WAS BORN, the name for what I was did not exist. They called me nymph, assuming I would be like my mother and aunts and thousand cousins.”

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I am slowly savoring this tale of Circe, I can see why so many people love it. I haven’t read a Greek mythology retelling in awhile because I felt like there was so much out there already. But this one feels fresh and the writing is beautiful, my goodness Circe’s siblings are such bullies though! Okay gotta get back to my book so I can write up a review for it soon. 😘 Have a lovely weekend everyone!