Fall Bucket List Book Tag | October 2022

I did this tag last year so since it’s that time again, here’s my 2022 version!

The original tag was made by Tiffany @ Read by Tiffany.


The Rules

  • Link back to the original creator in your post.
  • Feel free to use any of my graphics in your post, or create your own!
  • Tag 7 other people at the end of your post, and let them know you’ve tagged them.

A laugh-out-loud, opposites attract romance about three of the world’s most beloved C’s: Christmas, Coffee, and Cats.

Veterinarian and animal lover Kara Ingalls needs a Christmas miracle. Opening the Meow and Furrever Cat Café to find loving homes for adorable, adoptable cats was a dream come true—but with more cats than customers, it’s quickly turning into a nightmare. If Kara can’t figure out some way to get the café out of the red, it won’t last past the holidays.

Marketing guru Ben Reese may be annoyingly smart and frustratingly bossy, but when he hatches a plan to put the café in the “green” by Christmas, Kara realizes that she’d be a fool to turn down his help. And so what if he turns out to be an excellent problem solver and nerdy-hot—he can’t even handle fostering one little kitten. She needs to keep their relationship professional and focus on saving the cafe.

But if Ben and Kara can set aside their differences—and find homes for all the cats by Christmas—they might discover that, by risking their hearts, they’ll have their own purr-fect holiday . . . together.

Avery’s fortune, life, and loves are on the line in the game that everyone will be talking about.

To inherit billions, all Avery Kylie Grambs has to do is survive a few more weeks living in Hawthorne House. The paparazzi are dogging her every step. Financial pressures are building. Danger is a fact of life. And the only thing getting Avery through it all is the Hawthorne brothers. Her life is intertwined with theirs. She knows their secrets, and they know her.

But as the clock ticks down to the moment when Avery will become the richest teenager on the planet, trouble arrives in the form of a visitor who needs her help—and whose presence in Hawthorne House could change everything. It soon becomes clear that there is one last puzzle to solve, and Avery and the Hawthorne brothers are drawn into a dangerous game against an unknown and powerful player.

Secrets upon secrets. Riddles upon riddles. In this game, there are hearts and lives at stake—and there is nothing more Hawthorne than winning.

Freya Scott is getting married. Her wedding to Matthew, her long-term boyfriend, is the first of eight in her calendar this year, and as someone who prides herself on being meticulously organized, Freya is intent on making it the perfect day to remember.

But when Matthew calls things off hours before they walk down the aisle, Freya’s entire life plan goes up in smoke. Humiliated and heartbroken, the last thing she wants is to attend a summer of other peoples’ nuptials on her own.

Fortunately, her friends have an idea: together they devise a series of outrageous challenges for Freya to complete at each event, designed to distract her from Matthew and what might have been. From getting stuck in an old church bathroom and needing to be rescued by the vicar to making out with a barman at a French chateau, Freya realizes that despite herself, she might just be having fun.

By the time the final wedding arrives, she will discover that the road to a happy ending sometimes has unexpected detours, that “I do” is only the beginning––and that perhaps her own love story isn’t over just yet.

Willow has never felt like she belonged anywhere and is convinced that the only way to find a true home is to travel the world. But her plans to act on her dream are put on hold when her aloof and often absent mother drags Willow to Salem, Massachusetts, to wrap up the affairs of an aunt Willow didn’t even know she had. An aunt who may or may not have been a witch.

There, she meets Mason, a loner who’s always felt out of place and has been in and out of foster homes his entire life. He’s been classified as one of the runaways, constantly searching for ways to make it back to his mom; even if she can’t take care of him, it’s his job to try and take care of her. Isn’t it?

Naturally pulled to one another, Willow and Mason set out across Salem to discover the secret past of Willow’s mother, her aunt, and the ambiguous history of her family. During all of this, the two can’t help but act on their natural connection. But with the amount of baggage between them—and Willow’s growing conviction her family might be cursed—can they manage to hold onto each other?

From the New York Times bestselling author of Love & Gelato comes a poignant and romantic novel about two teens trying to find their place in the world after being unceremoniously dragged to Salem, Massachusetts, for the summer.

For Lila Reyes, a summer in England was never part of the plan. The plan was 1) take over her abuela’s role as head baker at their panadería, 2) move in with her best friend after graduation, and 3) live happily ever after with her boyfriend. But then the Trifecta happened, and everything—including Lila herself—fell apart.

Worried about Lila’s mental health, her parents make a new plan for her: spend three months with family friends in Winchester, England, to relax and reset. But with the lack of sun, a grumpy inn cook, and a small town lacking Miami flavor (both in food and otherwise), what would be a dream trip for some feels more like a nightmare to Lila…until she meets Orion Maxwell.

A teashop clerk with troubles of his own, Orion is determined to help Lila out of her funk, and appoints himself as her personal tour guide. From Winchester’s drama-filled music scene to the sweeping English countryside, it isn’t long before Lila is not only charmed by Orion, but England itself. Soon a new future is beginning to form in Lila’s mind—one that would mean leaving everything she ever planned behind.

Deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland for generations. Floods sweep away entire villages, while bloody wars are waged over the few remaining resources. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. In an attempt to appease him, each year a beautiful maiden is thrown into the sea to serve as the Sea God’s bride, in the hopes that one day the “true bride” will be chosen and end the suffering.

Many believe that Shim Cheong, the most beautiful girl in the village—and the beloved of Mina’s older brother Joon—may be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is to be sacrificed, Joon follows Cheong out to sea, even knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong’s stead.

Swept away to the Spirit Realm, a magical city of lesser gods and mythical beasts, Mina seeks out the Sea God, only to find him caught in an enchanted sleep. With the help of a mysterious young man named Shin—as well as a motley crew of demons, gods and spirits—Mina sets out to wake the Sea God and bring an end to the killer storms once and for all.

But she doesn’t have much time: A human cannot live long in the land of the spirits. And there are those who would do anything to keep the Sea God from waking…


I tag all of you to do this tag – no pressure!

The Animal Crossing Book Tag

I saw this tag on the blog Hundreds & Thousands of Books so check out her blog for more amazing book content! I wanted to do this tag since my daughter has been playing Animal Crossing New Horizons all week, so I thought this would be fun. 🥰 All credit goes to Bookish Things and Tea for the super cute graphics!

The Rules:

  • Please link back to the original creator of the tag, Bookish Things and Tea.
  • Answer the following Animal Crossing themed book questions.
  • Feel free to use graphics, but be sure to credit Bookish Things and Tea.
  • Tag some friends to spread the love!

So this was on my Kindle Unlimited for the past month and I still haven’t read it. I will eventually read it lol…sometime this year?

The first book was such a struggle to push through but I did and had no regrets because the rest of the series is amazing. So The Heart Forger had only room to go up after the slow first book, Bone Witch.

I’d say Crescent City is a pretty large fantastical city that SJM has built in her series. I kinda wish it was a real place I could visit! But nope, only in my mind will it exist lol.

I feel like I don’t read a lot of new releases, I guess I can count arcs that become new releases but as far as books I didn’t read arcs for and was released in 2022 – this book would be it.

I’m gonna go old school with this one and my first copy of this book was so tattered by the time I became an adult lol – I read this in 1991! I was barely a teenager and this book/series had me in a chokehold through all my teen years. I even read it in my 20’s, but yeah…it’s what made me love all things vampires, supernatural, paranormal – whatever that was different. I’ll always have a space in my heart for it, even with the new copies that I just don’t touch lol.

Patrick in The Guncle is a Character with emphasis on that capital C! lol He is the moment – he is the book – he is a mess sometimes, but he is really something. Add in his niece and nephew and this book is filled with so much character.

This is a book that I read last year and thought it was a unique account of the Jews that fled into the forest to evade capture from the Nazis. It’s a harrowing tale, but interwoven with mystical elements but an inspiring tale about survival.

I mean…just because it was a total miss for me, doesn’t mean it won’t be for you, but this was such a struggle for me to get through. I DNF’ed at 20% in but read the ending lol…


This was such a cute tag to do and I won’t tag anyone but feel free to do it if you want!

Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag – 2022

I was supposed to do this in June but I was recovering from covid and then things got crazy busy! SO let’s do it now since we are now in July.

BEST BOOK YOU’VE READ SO FAR IN 2022

I don’t have many 5 star reads this year. Guncle made me laugh and hurt my heart at the same time and it was my most recent 5 star read, so it’s my favorite so far!

BEST SEQUEL YOU’VE READ SO FAR IN 2022

I know this one was published at the tail end of 2021 but it is still the best sequel I’ve read in 2022!

NEW RELEASE YOU HAVEN’T READ YET, BUT WANT TO

I just read my first book by Tessa Bailey and loved it. I so want to read this one, hopefully I can borrow it sometime this year.

MOST ANTICIPATED RELEASE FOR THE SECOND HALF OF THE YEAR

I’m a broken record at this point! I think you’ve seen this book on so many of my TTT TBR lists. 😅 SOON!! I can hardly wait!

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT

I was bummed I didn’t like this one especially because I thought the first was so wacky, wild and funny! For this one the humor wore out for me – maybe I wasn’t in the mood for it? Not sure.

BIGGEST SURPRISE

This one surprised me with how much I ended up liking it! The dog was just a fun, sassy character that made the whole book wholesome and funny.

FAVORITE NEW AUTHOR (debut or new to you)

I enjoyed this book a lot and look forward to reading the next book and other books that author writes! And come on – look at that cover!!

NEWEST FICTIONAL CRUSH

How could I not crush on Brendan? I like a guy who can fix things, build things, not afraid of working hard and a generous lover! 🤷🏻‍♀️

NEWEST FAVORITE CHARACTER

I love an antiheroine – especially one as snarky as Violet.

BOOK THAT MADE YOU CRY

Anything with grief, dealing with abuse, broken families…UGH…these books made my heart hurt so much.

BOOK THAT MADE YOU HAPPY

Romance makes me happy and I had to throw in Guncle again because the kids made me happy.

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOK YOU’VE BOUGHT SO FAR THIS YEAR (or received)

I wish I had a copy of A Magic Steeped in Poison – I borrowed it from the library. But I did just get a copy of Ramon and Julieta. I love the colors!

WHAT BOOKS DO YOU NEED TO READ BY THE END OF THE YEAR?

FAVORITE BOOK TO MOVIE ADAPTATION YOU’VE SEEN THIS YEAR

Heartstopper is so heart-felt and sweet! You can’t just help but melt as the characters fall in love.

Meet the Book Blogger Tag!

Hello Friends!

Here we have the Meet the Book Blogger Tag and I was tagged by Dini @ dinipandareads. Check out her beautiful blog for more bookish content! Thanks for tagging me Dini!


The Rules

  • Thank the blogger who tagged you ☝🏽
  • Mention the creator: Lauren @Lala’s Book Reviews
  • Tag as many (or as few) people as you’d like
  • Have fun and get to know one another!

Introduction

INTRODUCE YOURSELF

Hi everyone, my name is Yolanda. Of course I love to read since this blog is about books. I’m a mom of 2 wonderful kids, ages 9 and 5. I was born and raised in Hawaii but went to college in California and even lived there for a tiny bit. I love to travel but haven’t left this island for the past 10 years while I was raising my kids, but that’s changing in a few weeks – so excited to travel! I’m a stay at home mom but used to (or still) work from home running my own Etsy shop. I ran it pretty much part-time when my son was younger and business was booming. I cut back tremendously when my baby girl was born and was gonna jump back into it as she got older, then the pandemic happened. I do it on a very small scale now, barely part-time haha, but I’m fine with it for now. I do metal-stamping and resin (sometimes).

SOMETHING MOST EVERYONE WANTS TO KNOW…DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS?

My daughter has a betta fish named True. And we have our 1.5 years old scruffy boy named Atlas. ❤️

This toothy boy is named Atlas
He loves soft fuzzy socks…to carry around and destroy lol

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE THING TO DRINK?

Mostly ice-cold water for everyday. On days I need caffeine (which is every day), I do decaf iced-tea or for a treat a decaf mocha cookie crumble frappuccino from Starbucks or a decaf cookies and creme ice blended from Coffee Bean.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE SEASON?

We don’t have much of a Fall or Winter in Hawaii. Fall feels like summer weather these days so I’ll say winter just because we get more rain and somewhat cooler weather.

DO YOU HAVE ANY SPECIAL TALENTS?

I can play piano but I’m rusty. I sometimes play when my kids are tinkering around, on the piano (electric) my hands are just not fast as before!


BLOGGING

WHEN AND WHY DID YOU START YOUR BLOG?

I started my blog when I heard about NetGalley! I wanted a chance to read arcs and I’m so glad I did it. The first year I started the blog I read so much I had a sore neck and headaches 😅. I told myself I could cut back the next year and I went easier on myself. I’m happy with the pace I’m going now, it’s much more doable.

WHAT IS SOMETHING THAT YOU WISH YOU KNEW ABOUT BLOGGING WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED?

That I should pace myself on requesting books on NetGalley and not try to do so much the first year! I almost burned myself out on reading.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE HARDEST PART ABOUT BLOGGING?

Having posts ready to go but I’ve gotten better at doing them ahead of time. Also trying to engage and read everyone’s blog. I try my best to do it though!

WHAT HAS BEEN THE MOST REWARDING PART OF BLOGGING?

Being a part of a community with people who have similar interests in reading is so wonderful! I’m not surrounded by many friends that read or have time to read and yet reading is a big part of my life so I love that about blogging and meeting fellow book lovers. 🥰

DO YOU WRITE YOUR POSTS AHEAD OF TIME OR WRITE THEM THE DAY OF POSTING?

Yes…and yes! LOL. I try to get most of them written a week before. Weekly wrap-ups get written a day before hence why sometimes I’m not on time with finishing or posting them. There are some days I will forget to get some things written up but for the most part, they are written ahead of time.


READING

WHO ARE YOUR TOP 5 FAVOURITE AUTHORS?

Not in any order because that’s too much pressure lol…

  • Holly Black
  • Kristin Hannah
  • Angie Thomas
  • Sarah J. Maas
  • Danielle L. Jensen

WHAT GENRE DO YOU READ THE MOST?

It has to have romance but I think I read more fantasy or romantasy lol…but yeah I think definitely more fantasy.

WHAT GENRE SURPRISED YOU BY HOW MUCH YOU LOVE IT?

I like the whole gothic romance or gothic thriller genre. Sometimes when I need a break from everything else, I look for something in that genre.

WHICH POPULAR BOOK DIDN’T LIVE UP TO THE HYPE FOR YOU?

This one was just okay for me but I still have to try her other books!

WHO ARE SOME POPULAR AUTHORS YOU HAVEN’T READ?

Oh so many! T.J Klune is one that is so popular right now that I want to read.

WHAT UPCOMING RELEASE ARE YOU EXCITED TO READ?

Here’s just a few! And why are the covers so dark? lol I need to add some light-hearted contemporary romance in this list for sure.

DO YOU LISTEN TO MUSIC WHILE READING?

No, I usually read at night when the house is nice and quiet – but when I’m blogging, for sure I need music!

WHERE ELSE CAN WE FIND YOU ONLINE?
  • Twitter: @ylmpastmidnight (I’m hardly on though)
  • Instagram: @ylmpastmidnight (I’ll post sporadically) or @fancifulwishcraft (crafting acct)

TAGGING

No pressure at all! I’m tagging:

Thanks for reading! 😘 ~ Yolanda

The Sunshine Blogger Award #4

Thank you to the love Dini at dinipandareads for tagging me for this award. Please check out her blog for so much amazing bookish content. I love her blog!

What is the Sunshine Blogger Award?

The Sunshine Blogger Award is given to those who are creative, positive and inspiring while spreading sunshine to the blogging community.

How does it work?

  • Thank the blogger(s) who nominated you in a blog post and link back to their blog.
  • Answer the 11 questions sent by the person who nominated you.
  • Nominate 11 new blogs to receive the award and write them 11 new questions.
  • List the rules and display the Sunshine Blogger Award logo in your post and/or on your blog.

Dini’s Questions:

Describe your current read in five words:

chemistry – food – southern belle – italian hottie – competition

What is your go-to comfort genre?

I’m go to comfort genre will always be romance! Whenever I need a break from fantasy, I head on over to contemporary romance and it’s a much needed vacation for my brain.

What’s your favourite song at the moment?

The whole Encanto soundtrack lol

What’s been your favourite read of 2022 so far?

It’s a backlist title but I haven’t read a 2022 published book yet that has been a 5 star read….mostly because I haven’t bought any, but there are a few I’m eyeing out so hopefully I can get a hold of them soon.

Is there one book that you would do anything to get a special signed edition of?

A Jane Austen book lol which is impossible so maybe a Sarah J Maas one or Holly Black since I have their books on my shelf.

What’s a disappointing book that you’ve recently read?

I am struggling through this arc! It’s taking me forever and I thought her first book was good, but the last arc I read from this author and then this one I’m trying to finish has made me struggling to connect to any of the characters. I don’t know what it is. 😞

How long have you been blogging?

It will be 4 years of blogging this year – wow!! I feel like I just started 2 years ago. How time flies!

What are some of your favourite tropes?

Enemies to lovers is my absolutely favorite. I also love friends to lovers. Bad boy/good girl is always fun, I mean…it’s so hard to resist the bad boys!

Is there a (sub)genre that is an absolute no-no for you?

Reverse harem because I don’t like sharing LOL. Also bully romances – I used to read a few because it was very enemies to lovers…and then some. But now the “and then some” edge just makes me want to punch the guys’ face if he is too much of a bully, it makes me want to get violent in behalf of the girl even if she loves him that way. 🤣 I can’t stand it.

If you could visit one fictional world, where would you go?

Probably to Velaris (A Court of Wings and Ruin) because it’s hidden and protected. But yes definitely into a fae world just because I love stories about the fae…even though they can be quite scary.

Name five characters you would love to spend a day at a theme park with!

I think it would be so much fun to spend the day with Savvy and her two besties, Maggie and Kotter. The three of them had so much fun together in Savvy Sheldon Feels Good as Hell – I can only imagine how much fun they would be at a theme park.

Also, I’d have fun with the guys from XOXO, especially Nathaniel and the younger guy who’s name I can’t remember!


I Tag

And please NO PRESSURE to do this…

Nikkie @ Stars Books & Tea

Marta @ Monogamist Reader

Trisy @ Bobo’s Book Bank

Felicia @ Stuck in Fiction

A Garden of Books

Etta @ Chonky Books

Ali @ Ali’s Books

Starlight Reading

Life with No Plot


My Questions:

  1. What is your most anticipated book for 2022?
  2. What is the most recent book you bought?
  3. What is the first book you ever wrote a review for either on your blog or Goodreads or wherever you write reviews?
  4. What is the last movie you watched?
  5. Do you review books you DNF?
  6. Do you keep a reading journal?
  7. If you could go to a concert right now, which concert would you go to?
  8. Do you have multiple copies of a book? Which book is it?
  9. How many books do you have on your Goodreads TBR list?
  10. Audiobooks, yes or no?
  11. What is your top 3 favorite books of all time?

😘 ~ Yolanda

Thanksgiving Book Tag 2021

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Whether you celebrate this holiday or not, I am thankful for your continued support of my little book blog. 🧡🤎

I saw this perfect thanksgiving book tag on a fabulous blog called I’m All Booked Up and the original tag creator is from Anna’s Book Nook. So go ahead and check out these great blogs. Let’s get into it:

Friends and Family: A Book with Characters that Feel Like Family

I feel like Lara Jean’s family and friends are my own because this story is so familiar to me.


Fallen Leaves: A Book that Fell Flat (didn’t meet your expectations.)

It wasn’t bad, but I just was expecting more. I definitely had high expectations for this one.


Thanksgiving Dinner: A Book You Want to Read Every Year During This Season

Just beautiful writing that gives me all the feels.


Turkey: A Book With a Bird in It

One of the books I wanted to read this year but never got to it. 🙁


Ham: A Book that Made Your Eyes Glaze Over (Boring.)

I expected a little more from this one and for some reason came away bored with the story. It has such a good premise though – not sure if I was just not in the mood for it. Wait when that happens!


Dinner Rolls: A Book that Melted Your Heart and Made You Feel Warm

Emilia and Wrath together are fire. lol…so they melted me and kept me warm.


Mashed Potatoes: A Book With a White Cover


Gravy: A Book You’re not Totally Sure Why You Love, but You Do

I do know why I love it but when you think of the premise of a young woman and her aunts trying to hide a dead body for a whole day and at a wedding of all places, even if it’s an accidental death…lol…it’s pretty ridiculous! It’s definitely not what would happen in real life…I HOPE. LOL…😅


Pumpkin Pie: A Dessert Book That You Love

The thing I remember about this book is the desserts! 🧁


Bonus: Black Friday: The Top 5 Books on Your TBR

I have such high hopes of trying to read these before 2021 is through but…knowing me I won’t get to it haha, and it’ll be pushed to 2022. Oh well – it is what it is!

Thanks for reading! ~ Yolanda 🦃🍁

Fall Bucket List Book Tag! | October 2021

I figure I need to add something Fall or Halloween-ish on my blog to get into the spirit of the season so here is a book tag I saw on Dini’s blog DiniPandaReads.

The original tag was made by Tiffany @ Read by Tiffany.


The Rules

  • Link back to the original creator in your post.
  • Feel free to use any of my graphics in your post, or create your own!
  • Tag 7 other people at the end of your post, and let them know you’ve tagged them.

This one made me laugh and smile and nostalgic for rom-com movies of the past! MY REVIEW

Hyped, spicy, steamy – it is ALL of it! Review coming. 🙂

Kate and Andy – besties forever. For me the love story was between these two friends and facing some challenges and getting through it. MY REVIEW

An inspiring story that left my heart happy! MY REVIEW

Pepper is a baker and everything she made in this book made my mouth water! MY REVIEW

I don’t know about jumping for joy but there was a lot of dancing for joy in this book. 🩰 MY REVIEW


I tag all of you to do this tag lol – no pressure – but it’s short and sweet and the graphics are super cute (thanks to the original creator of tag Tiffany @ Read by Tiffany, for letting us use her graphics!).

🎃 Thanks for reading! ~ Yolanda

The Last Ten Books Tag

I do so few book tags lately so here’s one I recently got tagged in by dini @ dinipandareads. She has the best blog graphics and amazing bookish content so please go check her out. The original tag was created by booktuber Marc Nash (thanks Dini for finding out that info!).

Let’s get started!

THE LAST BOOK I GAVE UP ON:

The whole parent trap situation was not for me and I couldn’t stand all the CAPS being used by one character.


THE LAST BOOK I REREAD:

I always reread this once a year because I miss Reykin 😭 and the third book in the series was just not good – even though I had rated it 5 stars at first read – it was mostly because Reykin and Roselle finally got together. But looking back at how crazy the story was- (sigh) it’s more like a 2.5 star read (5 stars for Reykin though haha). 😢


THE LAST BOOK I BOUGHT:

I bought this as an ebook. I’ve been on a hardcover book buying ban all year since I went crazy buying books during 2020 when we were in lockdown.


THE LAST BOOK I WROTE IN THE MARGINS OF:

And this was YEARS ago…I never write in margins. 🤷🏻‍♀️


THE LAST BOOK I HAD SIGNED:

It was for my daughter lol…and Kristi Yamaguchi there at the event so why not? Do any of you know who she is or am I showing my age? She’s an olympic gold medal figure skater and hey…figure skating was so huge back in the 80’s and 90’s, I was such a big fan. And hello she looks amazing, like she hasn’t aged!


THE LAST BOOK I LOST:

I have no answer for this! I really don’t remember the last book I lost.


THE LAST BOOK I HAD TO REPLACE:

I think it’s kind of crazy how low the reviews are of this book in Goodreads lol – I read this back in 1991 when I was 12 and young adult books weren’t what they are now. Goodreads was not around lol. I was obsessed with this series so much that the cover finally fell off and I had to get the combined copies just for nostalgia sake – this was the book that made me obsessed with vampires. And it did kick off the show The Vampire Diaries so…Damon and Stefan was born in this series. Sure it doesn’t stand up next to young adult books today but wow this was made 30 years ago. YIKES, I’m old. I also had to replace The Secret Circle series by the same author – honestly all her series could be tv shows. I think they tried with The Secret Circle but the show didn’t last? But Dark Visions and The Forbidden Game also? Teenage me was obsessed with this author!


THE LAST BOOK I ARGUED OVER:

I don’t argue much with anyone – except with my hubby! So very unpopular opinion – and I don’t know why but Harry Potter did nothing for me. And I reread this book twice, first when I was in my twenties, second time in my forties and it still didn’t do anything for me. I did read it the second time because my hubby told me to read it again. I think if I was in grade school reading this it might have interested me? I don’t know.


THE LAST BOOK I PRE-ORDERED:

But I will be preordering Steelstriker by Marie Lu because that cover belongs on my shelf and The Hawthorne Legacy by. Jennifer Lynn Barnes because I need to know what happens.


And that’s it! Who am I tagging?

Charlotte @ The Fantastical World of Book Reading

Sheri Dye @ Read Betwixt Words

Lee @ Callie’s Tales

Reading At Teatime

and YOU! No pressure to do the tag at all. It’s just for fun! ☺️

😘~ Yolanda

Mid-Year Book Freak Out Tag 2021

This tag was created by chami, but I saw this one on The Journeying Bibliophile and I thought it would be fun to do and look back. Check out her blog for more awesome bookish content!

Are we really half way through the year?! 😫

Best book you’ve read so far in 2021

I’ve been pushing aside fantasy for contemporary books in 2021. I don’t know why…but that’s what my mind, heart and soul wants for some reason.

For me, this one matched my mood of 2021. It’s got tarot reading, a relatable main character, an emotional journey that touched my heart, an enemies to lovers romance, and it just made my heart feel like it was too big for my chest. That hasn’t happened in awhile so this book has been my favorite of 2021 – it comes out in August.

Best sequel you’ve read so far in 2021

This was published in 2020 but I read it in January this year. I didn’t even like the main character in the first book, but I liked seeing her growth in Greythorne and I look forward to reading the third book next year.

New release you haven’t read yet, but want to

So many fit under this category but this one was just released and I need to read it asap.

Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

Again, I have a few books that fit in this category, this only being one of them. The covers for this series are amazing!

Biggest disappointment

I struggled so hard to get through this book and yes I read the first two books because of the hype. Decided not to continue on with the series.

Biggest surprise

I was expecting a funny romcom in paradise and got a heartfelt, emotional story that made me cry! In a good way though – I did love the story.

Favorite new author (debut or new to you)

This is the first book I’ve read of Sarah Wilson and I thought it was a fun read and look forward to reading more work from her!

Newest fictional crush

Killian from Savage Lands by. Stacey Marie Brown – I think he’s more of a 2020 crush but it was the end of 2020 so I’ll add him to my 2021 crushes. I need more of him in this series or maybe his own series?

Newest favorite character

Daunis from Firekeeper’s Daughter is an amazing character and very fleshed out. I learned a lot from her.

Book that made you cry

This made me tear up because of all the triggers in this story. I felt it all too strongly.

Book that made you happy

This was such a feel good book! Definitely me happy and smile.

The most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year (or received)

I love this book cover! It’s so intense.

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

Where do I begin?! lol…

Here is just a few haha


Feel free to do this fun tag to look back on 2021 and what you’ve read so far! Happy reading! ~ Yolanda

Books I Want to Read But Don’t Want to Read Tag!

I haven’t done a book tag in a long, long time but when I was tagged in this one, I knew it fit me.

I was graciously tagged by Ellie @ Ace Reader. Thanks for tagging me! So let’s get to it!

The Rules:

  • Link back to the original tag (this post: Ace Reader and Jami!)
  • Complete the questions with books you want to have read but don’t want to read
  • Tag some people at the end to do the tag next

A book that you feel you need to read because everyone talks about it.

I have this on my kindle app and I read one chapter. I realize I have to be in the mood to read this one. I loved the action in the beginning but I was putting it down to finish arcs. So I think I’ll finish whatever arcs I have on NetGalley and then get to reading everything on my kindle shelf and my actual bookshelf. I have so many books I need to read.


A book that’s really long.

I don’t mind a long book as long as it keeps my interest.

This one is 659 pages long and I read the other two books and the thought of reading one more book in this series and 659 at that? It makes me want to cry lol…so I’m not going to do it.


A book you’ve owned / had on your TBR for too long.

Where do I begin?? LOL

Will I ever get to this book? It’s on my shelf and I keep trying to pick it up and always put it back down. I added it to my TBR because it was all people would talk about for awhile. Now I don’t know if I want to read it because the first few pages do not hold my interest. Or should I keep it for a day where I have nothing to read? (Don’t know when that will happen…). So it sits there on my book shelf.


A book that intimidates you.

The classics intimidate me. I can read Jane Eyre and the Jane Austen books but I remember when they adapted War and Peace into a tv series with Lily James in the show and I loved it! So I thought okay, as a challenge, let me try and read the book. I got as far as chapter one and said, alright…enough of that. 😂


A book that you think might be slow.

I enjoyed the Red Queen series but in the last books my interest waned. So I do want to read Realm Breaker but a lot of reviews I’ve seen say that it starts slow. I don’t mind slow as long as the characters keep me interested so I’m still on the fence about this one. The reviews look good though!


A book you need to be in the right mood for.

I love to read books about witches around Halloween! This one is on my TBR but I didn’t have time to read it last year so I’m saving it for this year.


A book you’re unsure if you will like.

This one comes out in a few weeks and I’m excited for it since I loved the first book, The Kinder Poison. And I love the covers for the series so far, they are so good!

Since this is a sequel, I’m always cautious and wary and have high hopes. So we shall see if I like it or not.



And that’s the tag! I think this is the first tag I’ve done of 2021 🤦🏻‍♀️. Why are they so hard to do?

I appreciate Ellie for the tag and let’s see…

I’ll tag: Ali, Poulami, and Lucy.

No pressure at all if you do or don’t do the tag. If I didn’t tag you but want to do the tag, go for it!

Have a nice day!

~xoxo Yolanda