Let’s Talk Bookish: Favorite Romance Tropes & Book Recs for them | 2/14/25

Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly bookish meme originally created by Rukky @ Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @ Book Nook Bits, where every Friday, bloggers write discussion posts based on a weekly prompt and Dini @ dinipandareads has cohosted since the beginning of 2025.

This week’s topic is:

Favorite Romance Tropes & Book Recs for them (Aria)

Happy Valentine’s Day! What are your favorite romance tropes? What books would you recommend that have those tropes? Are there any books with those tropes on your TBR? Do you have any least favorite romance tropes?

What are your favorite romance tropes?

I LOVE enemies to lovers, it’s my favorite because of the hating that takes place lol. I just love a romance filled with tension and explosions I guess. I love good chemistry!

What books would you recommend that have those tropes?

Here’s a few books that have this trope, some old, some new:

Heartless Hunter by. Kristen Ciccarelli
The Bridge Kingdom by. Danielle L. Jensen
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
A Monsoon Rising by. Thea Guanzon
Quicksilver by. Callie Hart

Are there any books with those tropes on your TBR?

Rebel Witch by. Kristen Ciccarelli
Rivaled Crown by Holly Renee

Do you have any least favorite romance tropes?

miscommunication tropes – I lose my patience quick when the main problem is miscommunication.
I don’t love fated mates – especially if in the book they use the word mates over and over and it’s overkill. I don’t mind if it’s mentioned, it happens and they don’t go on and on about being mates. Like, we get it, you will be together forever…fantastic, let’s move on.😅 I used to love it until everyone started using it in romantasy.

TOPICS FOR FEBRUARY:

February 7: Reading Challenges: Do we love them or hate them? (Dini)

Prompts: What do you think of reading challenges—do they motivate you or do they feel restrictive and end up making reading feel like a chore? Are there any challenges you participate in yearly? What reading challenges are you joining in 2025?

February 14: Favorite Romance Tropes & Book Recs for them (Aria)

Prompts: Happy Valentine’s Day! What are your favorite romance tropes? What books would you recommend that have those tropes? Are there any books with those tropes on your TBR? Do you have any least favorite romance tropes?

February 21: Non-Romantic Love (Dini)

Prompts: It’s the month of love but it’s not always about romantic love. What are your favourite non-romantic relationships to read about (i.e. siblings, parent-child, etc.) and what do you love most about them? Do you prefer to read about them over romantic relationships? What books would you recommend with your favourite non-romantic relationships?

February 28: How Many Books Do You Read in a Year?
(Jillian @ Jillian the Bookish Butterfly)

Prompts: Prompts: How many books do you typically read in a year? Do you always track your reading? Does keeping track of the books you read motivate you or stress you out? How do you keep track of the books you read? Do you have a 2025 reading goal?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Reading Challenges: Do we love them or hate them? | 2/7/25

Let’s Talk Bookish is a meme where participants discuss certain topics, share their opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts. Topics for each month will be posted a month in advance here on my blog, and will be available in their own posts as well as here in the archive. You can also suggest topics and download the official header images from this page.

This week’s topic is:

Reading Challenges: Do we love them or hate them? (Dini)

What do you think of reading challenges—do they motivate you or do they feel restrictive and end up making reading feel like a chore?

I’m always curious about reading challenges and love seeing the ones that people join. I do think they motivate me but I can’t say I’ve actually completed one yet! I think my fear is it will make reading feel like a chore and I already sorta feel that way with arcs – which is why I have requested less of them.

Are there any challenges you participate in yearly?

I do not but I do take note of challenges other book bloggers join just in case maybe I might do one.

What reading challenges are you joining in 2025?

I’m actually doing a reading challenge that my son dared me to do. I was doing a post for the Spell the Month book meme and he asked me if I would be reading all the books selections I listed on there. I said no, you just post a book photo and it’s synopsis. And he said…why don’t I read all the books I choose for the meme. I thought…hmmm…maybe this is a book challenge I can do! So I credit him for motivating me. 🥰

TOPICS FOR FEBRUARY:

February 7: Reading Challenges: Do we love them or hate them? (Dini)

February 14: Favorite Romance Tropes & Book Recs for them (Aria)

February 21: Non-Romantic Love (Dini)

February 28: How Many Books Do You Read in a Year?
(Jillian @ Jillian the Bookish Butterfly)

Let’s Talk Bookish: 2022 Reading & Blogging Reflections | 12/30/22

Let’s Talk Bookish is a bookish meme that was created by Rukky @ Eternity Books and now is hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, where each Friday, bloggers write posts discussing the topic of the week! Definitely check out her blog for more bookish content plus more Let’s Talk Bookish topics and the schedule.

This week’s topic is:

December 30: 2022 Reading & Blogging Reflections

How many books did you read in 2022?

According to Goodreads and I think it’s mostly up to date – it says I read 116 books!

Did you meet your reading goals?

Yes, my goal was 52 books.

What were some of your favorites?

What were your least favorite books you read this year?

How did you feel about your blogging in 2022?

I think I felt more comfortable. This is my 4th year blogging I believe and I felt more sure of what I wanted to do and what posts I wanted to make. I feel like I found a good rhythm and schedule for posting

What are your favorite posts you wrote in 2022?

I don’t have a favorite post but this are the top 5 of my most viewed posts in 2022:

The Final Gambit by. Jennifer Lynn Barnes | Book Review

10 Book Quotes from Book Lovers by. Emily Henry| Top Ten Tuesday | 5/24/22

Reminders of Him by. Colleen Hoover | Book Review

Kingdom of the Feared by. Kerri Maniscalco | Book Review

The Serpent and the Wings of Night by. Carissa Broadbent | Book Review

What are some of your favorite posts from the community that you read this year?

Let’s Talk Bookish: Do Bloggers Owe Their Readers and Vice Versa? by. DiniPandaReads — love all her Let’s Talk Bookish posts

Birthstone Book Covers: November! by. booksarethenewblack — this was a fun book tag to do

The Modern-Day Christmas Song Book Tag by. acereader — another book tag I want to do

2023 BOOK RELEASES by. KristinKravesBooks — she has great booktube videos!

TOP TEN TUESDAY – BOOKS I WANT YOU TO GET FOR CHRISTMAS by. birdiesbooknook- another fun blog with great posts!

There were so many favorites posts but I have so little time to find them on here lol…but definitely check these blogs out!

Let’s Talk Bookish: Holiday Books | 12/23/22

This week’s topic is:

December 23: Holiday Books (Aria ~ me)

Christmas books and movies dominate the media during the winter season, but Christmas isn’t the only holiday being celebrated. Do you like reading holiday books at all?

It’s not my favorite genre (I like Christmas movies more than books) – but I like to read 1 or 2 Christmas romance books during the holidays, at least! Sometimes it’s too cheesy for me, or maybe I’ve just become to cynical in my old age lol…but a holiday romance here and there is fun during the holidays.

Have you ever read a holiday book about another religion?

I’m not Jewish but my husband is and that’s what made me decide to read The Matzah Ball and I thought it was great to see how other religions are celebrated around the holidays. Hanukkah and Christmas sometimes coincide and they both include celebrating with festive lights so I thought it was a fun holiday romance book.

What about a holiday book not set during the winter season?

There are some books where they celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas in the story maybe because they are only a few weeks away. I love Fall because it’s spooky season, but I guess Halloween isn’t exactly a holiday? We don’t get it as a day off at least. I’m trying to remember if I’ve read any books celebrating Diwali and I feel like I have but can’t come up with a title in my head off the cuff.

If you’re religious but don’t celebrate Christmas, do you feel represented in the holiday media?

I don’t think a lot of other religions get much representation when Christmas is in full force. My child did come home with a Hanukkah menorah craft she did at school which was nice to see along with her other Christmas arts and crafts. I definitely don’t see much about Kwanzaa though I know when my son was in Kinder he did a coloring activity for Kwanzaa. It would be nice to see more holidays represented.

Let’s Talk Bookish: Do Book Titles Matter? | 10/21/22

This week’s topic is:

October 21: Do Book Titles Matter? (Hannah @ Hannah’s Library)

How much do book titles matter?

I think they matter a lot. I think a good title sets the tone for the book.

Have you ever read or not read a book based on the title alone?

Yes, most definitely – because if I’m not attracted to the title but the cover art is amazing. Well, I’m a sucker for a good book cover so I’ll read it. As for not reading something because of the title…🤔, I’m trying to think of an instance but am coming up blank. But I’m sure there have been titles I’ve skipped because of the title.

Do you like long or short book titles better?

Keep it short and sweet!

Do you think the title has to connect to the story in some way?

Yes, I feel it should connect because as I said before I feel like it sets the tone for the book. If I read a book that doesn’t match the title, I feel a bit mislead. For example…

This story to me needed more Christmas things about it because the cover is very Christmassy and the title says Christmas Clash. The things clashing in the story was two families that had bad blood and they have rival restaurants. It’s set around the holidays but that’s about it for the Christmas part.

What are some of your favorite book titles?

I love titles that get straight to the point! 😆 The Grace Year and the Hunger Games made me wonder…what is a Grace Year? What happens in the Hunger Games – and whoa, do we find out!! As for Fable and Guncle – one word titles are short and sweet. I think all the titles in The Inheritance Games series were spot on and strong. It totally tied into the story.

Of course on the opposite end of short titles are those with long, fancy titles which we usually find in the fantasy genre. I have a love/hate relationship with those. Sometimes they sound so pretty…and other times it’s just too many words lol. For example, the SJM titles are always fitting and I kinda blame her for starting this trend lol…

All these titles that start like: A Court of, A House of, A Storm of, A something something something….titles was fun for awhile and then I started to roll me eyes. 😅 It got to be too much but I believe finally it has died down!

At least I know when I see a title like that it’s going to give me fantasy or romantasy. So I guess that’s one good thing about it!

I want to know what some of your favorite titles are, let me know in the comments below!

Let’s Talk Bookish: DNFing Books | 10/7/22

This week’s topic is:

October 7: DNFing books (Mint @ Mint Loves Books)

DNF is an acronym that stands for did not finish.

What makes you DNF a book?

If I am constantly putting down a book because it’s boring me or I have a hard time concentrating then I either DNF or tell myself to come back to it at a later time. I still have a hard time DNF’ing arcs though – so if I get halfway through the book and that’s all I can push through – I’ll skim the rest.

How often do you DNF books?

Not a lot – but if I have too many books I’ve borrowed, or arcs due in a month, I find myself letting the borrowed books go past due date. I can always come back to them. I think I’ve been DNF’ing a book every other month this year lol.

What’s the silliest or pettiest reason why you DNF’d a book?

A main character who gets on my nerves to the point I cannot continue reading about them anymore. I feel like my will is pretty strong to push through any book and I sometimes like unlikable characters. But if it comes to the point where everything about them just puts me off then I DNF the book.

Do you review books that you DNF?

If they are arcs – yes I do review them as best I can. It’s super rare for me to give a one star review, even for a DNF’d book because someone else out there might actually love the book. But books that aren’t arcs? If I have the energy to write a review after DNF’ing it I will – but most times, I don’t.

Let’s Talk Bookish: Reading Seasonally | 9/23/22

This week’s topic is:

Reading Seasonally

Do you read seasonally?

I think I’ve done much better at reading seasonally but I never used to care about it before. I think joining the blogging community made me more excited to read seasonally. I look forward to reading more spooky reads near Halloween and of course holiday romances near Christmas.

Do you like a beach read in summer, a spooky book in the autumn and holiday themed ones in winter?

Definitely spooky books in autumn and holiday ones for winter but as for beach reads…I like a good contemporary romance for summer time. What happened to spring?! lol…are there no books for spring? I guess spring break would include beach reads also.

What’s your favorite season?

I like all things about fall even though there isn’t much seasonal changes here where I live. But I love when pumpkin flavored foods makes it way into the grocery stores and I really love Halloween. The longer nights make me want to get cozy to read also.

Do you have any favorite seasonal reads?

I don’t have any favorite seasonal reads that I re-read every year. But here are some of the books I want to read this Autumn!

Let’s Talk Bookish: Tips for Newbie Bloggers | 9/16/22

I’ve seen this one around on many blogs that I follow and always wanted to give it a try so why not now? This week’s topic is:

Tips for Newbie Bloggers

What have you learned since you first started blogging?

I’ve learned that patience is key and do what you can. When I first started blogging I struggled to come up with posts that wasn’t a book review but following other bloggers and researching book memes and prompts really help add other things to my blog other than book reviews. I was reading so many books just to have something to post and it was killing my enjoyment of reading. So the second year of blogging I told myself to scale back on book review posts and add other things to the blog. I think this is my 4th year of blogging now? And I finally feel like I’ve enjoyed more this year because I put less pressure on myself.

What advice would you give to new bloggers?

It’s okay to take breaks!
Pre-write you posts especially if they are memes or prompts like this one or Top Ten Tuesday. I try to pre-write my posts a month ahead, meaning I will do all my Top Ten Tuesday posts for the month of September in one go so it’s set and I don’t have to think about it anymore. Same with New Release posts and Arc Reviews.
You don’t have to tag anyone on book tags if you feel uncomfortable, now I just say I tag everyone lol.
If you need help with making graphics for your blog, try Canva.
If you are on NetGalley – remember don’t request more than you can read. I felt so much pressure to finish the books I requested and it was a long list in the first 2 years. I’ve gotten SO much better at pacing myself. Because remember you are going to read books you borrow and books you buy too…so it can pile up quick!

What is your favorite thing about blogging?

I love books, have always loved reading and I have found my community here in the blogging world. I can count on one hand the amount of people in my life that read as much as I do or like the same books I read. But here….I have found hundreds of you who mostly like the same books I love to read! It’s wonderful. I love meeting all of you new bloggers from all over the world, it’s so much fun. Also having this blog gave me access to arcs on NetGalley which is the best thing ever…it’s why I started blogging in the first place and I accomplished that goal!

What is the hardest part of blogging for you?

I made it a goal to post something everyday. I guess it’s an experiment to see how much I could make through ad revenue alone because I’m curious! It was not a lot when I first started this blog because I wasn’t posting as much as I do now. So when I made it my goal to have a post everyday it became a challenge. But it became a challenge that made me think up more topics, and made me try out more book prompts/memes like this one. I’ve found that there is so much you can post about! You just have to actually sit there and write the post lol. Sometimes it’s hard finding motivation to type something up but that’s why I love the prompts and memes. If you have nothing – they have topics for you! So thank you to all of you who hosts them!

Is there anything you wish you’d done differently with your blog?

I fussed a lot about the graphics on my blog. I think I’ve changed the look of my blog at least 10 times! lol…I have finally gotten it to a place where I hope I can just be satisfied with it and leave it alone. I’ve also written my reviews differently over the years. So of course I kinda wish off the bat I knew how I wanted my blog to look but that wasn’t the case. It’s okay do, I think trial and error is good and it’s made me learn a lot.

That’s all I got for newbie bloggers – I say dive in! The learning kind of happens as you go along and you will know how you want your blog to look eventually. Just keep in mind why you have the blog in the first place, even if you don’t get much views and likes in the beginning…it will come! I made a blog to get NetGalley arcs and and now I get to read books before they are published (yay!)…and all I have to do is leave a review for the book! Easy peasy! Now that I succeeded with the NetGalley goal, my blog is here to give people some book reviews, bond with my fellow book lovers, see what other book lovers are reading and see what’s happening in their lives if they want to share. I’ve found that it’s been a fun and safe space for me to share my love of books and I appreciate that about this community. ❤️ Thanks for reading!

Blogging | New Layout

Hi everyone!

I was playing around with a new blog theme yesterday. I wanted one that showcased many things on the home page instead of just my latest post, so I think I finally got it looking somewhat close to what I envisioned?

Are you someone who likes to stick to the tried and true or do you like to change the look of your blog often, like I do?

What’s your favorite wordpress theme to use for your blog? The one I’m using right now is called Maxwell and I like the clean look of it even with so many things going on with the homepage.

Every time I mess with my blog, I end up seeing the Pages section which I don’t update regularly. I haven’t updated the Pages since the end of 2020. Here we are at mid 2021 and I’m wondering if I should update the Book Reviews list and Bookish links right now since I’m updating my blog. How often do you update your Pages info? Are you consistent about it or wait until the end of the year like me?

I really should be writing four book reviews though….so let me get it and leave this layout alone before it changes again! 🤪

Thanks for reading! ~ Yolanda

WWW Wednesday | 10/23/19

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:

What are you currently reading?

What have you just finished reading?

What are you going to read next?

What are you currently reading?

I am 60% done with this and hopefully will finish soon. I am approved to read the sequel on NetGalley so I definitely needed to bump this TBR up my list. It’s intriguing and definitely not what I was expecting but I think in a good way so far.

What have you finished reading?

This releases in January 2020 so my review will post nearer to the publication date. But I was surprised by this book – I enjoyed it! Here is the book blurb:

Veronica sees ghosts. More specifically, her mother’s ghost. The afterimages of blinding migraines caused by the brain tumor that keeps her on the fringes and consumes her whole life haunt her, even as she wonders if it’s something more…

Golden boy Sawyer is handsome and popular, a state champion swimmer, but his adrenaline addiction draws him to Veronica.

A girl with nothing to live for and a boy with everything to lose–can they conquer their demons together?

What are you going to read next?

Another NetGalley arc that I’m going to finish up next so I can take it off my list. And it sounds perfect as a October read, though it’s official release date is in December. Here’s the book blurb:

We stand in a tight cluster, high above the lake. One-by-one, we made our way up the narrow trail from the edge of campus. Now, we wait shoulder to shoulder behind the police tape. Nineteen summer students.

All but one.

When Nora gets accepted into her dream summer program at the prestigious Winthrop Academy, she jumps at the chance to put her coding skills to use. But then a fellow student goes missing—and the tech trail for the crime leads back to Nora. With no one else to trust, Nora must race to uncover the truth and clear her name…or she might be the next to disappear.