April and May 2022 Reading Wrap-up

“Where’d you go, Emily?” I hear you ask. “I thought you had plans to enliven this blog again!”

Okay, maybe no one is asking that, but I’ll answer anyway. My stated plans to enliven this blog were rather dashed just after Easter when we noticed wet carpet in our living room. Long story short, while the issue could have been fixed (in our humble opinions), we ended up in the very stressful situation of having to find a new rental property instead, in a very short space of time. Let’s just say I don’t have much time for property management after this experience.

Fortunately, we have had very good luck and we are now somewhat settled in a new place, though the living room is still virtually uninhabitable due to being populated by full moving boxes.

I don’t want to jinx it, but I think coming into June, I have finally blasted the reading slump I was in, and I’ll be reading a lot more going forward. In the meantime, here’s what I’ve been up to over the past couple of months.

PAST MONTH’S READING:

1. Doctor Who: Twelve Angels Weeping by Dave Rudden (sci-fi/short stories – 4 stars)
2. Waking Romeo by Kathryn Barker YA sci-fi/romance – 5 stars)
3. The Mortal Word (the Invisible Library #5) by Genevieve Cogman (fantasy – 3 stars)
4. The Secret Chapter (the Invisible Library #6) by Genevieve Cogman (fantasy – 3 stars)
5. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch (fantasy – 4 stars)

BOOKTUBE:

I have a YouTube channel where I promote Australian books using the hashtag #AusReads, and also indulge my compulsion for signing up to readathons. Here are the latest videos:

1. Jurassic Journey Readathon TBR

BOOKSTAGRAM:

That heading has always said “favourite bookish photo” in the past, but recently I’ve been branching out into Reels rather than photos. So now this section can be for either and I’ll post whatever type of content I’ve enjoyed most during the month.

You can see all my bookish content (plus some RL as well) on my Instagram.

CURRENTLY READING:

Physical book: Nothing right now.

Ebook: The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie. My book club has chosen this as our next read and I am enjoying it thoroughly, though I’m only about 50 pages in so far.

Audio book: I am finally reading Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo, and I wish I had listened to Six of Crows as well, as I think I would have enjoyed it more that way. Each POV character has their own voice actor and it really adds to the experience. Having said that, I’m almost at the 70% mark and feeling rather confused about Kaz’s big plan.

PLANNING TO READ NEXT:

After Waking Romeo became my first five star read of the year, I immediately grabbed In the Skin of a Monster by Kathryn Barker from the library. I’m planning to read this one over the weekend and I hope it’s as good as its successor!

What are you reading? 🙂

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May 2021 Reading Wrap-up

Despite feeling like Six of Crows took forever to get through, I actually had a really great reading month in May, with a total of seven books. That being said, I didn’t rate any of them above 3.5 stars, but that’s not to say that I didn’t find them enjoyable and engaging.

PAST MONTH’S READING:

The Vanishing Deep by Astrid Scholte, Un-cook Yourself by Nat’s What I Reckon, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

1. Lifted By Water by Celine Jeanjean (urban fantasy – 3 stars –review) (read April, reviewed May)
2. Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow (MG fantasy – 4 stars – review (read April, reviewed May)
3. The Vanishing Deep by Astrid Scholte (YA dystopia/fantasy – 2 stars – review)
4. Uncook Yourself by Nat’s What I Reckon (memoir/self-help – 3 stars – not intending to review)
5. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (fantasy – 3 stars – not intending to review)
6. Down Among The Sticks and Bones (Wayward Children #2) by Seanan MacGuire (fantasy/magical realism – 3 stars – not intending to review)
7. Underneath the Sugar Sky (Wayward Children #3) by Seanan MacGuire (fantasy/magical realism – 3 stars – not intending to review)
8. Sky on Fire by Jesse Greyson (YA dystopia – 3.5 stars – review forthcoming)
9. The Other Side of Perfect by Mariko Turk (YA contemporary – 3.5 stars – review forthcoming)

Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire, Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire, Sky on Fire by Jesse GReyson, The Other Side of Perfect by Mariko Turk

BOOKTUBE:

I have a YouTube channel where I promote Australian books using the hashtag #AusReads, and also indulge my compulsion for signing up to readathons. Here are the latest videos:

1. April Wrap-up and May TBR

FAVOURITE BOOKISH PHOTO:

I struggled with Six of Crows a bit, and I have to admit it didn’t quite live up to the hype for me. But it was good to discuss thoughts with other readers in the comments on this photo. That’s why I love the bookish communities on various social media platforms so much.

You can see all my bookish photos (plus some RL as well) on my Instagram.

CURRENTLY READING:

Physical book: Spellslinger by Sebastien de Castell. A friend loaned this to me months ago, and I’m finally sitting down with it. I think it’s going to be a fun, quirky YA fantasy.

Ebook: Nothing at the moment.

Audio book: Butter Witch by Tess Lake. While the title is a bit unfortunate (the events of the story involve a butter sculpting competition), so far this is quite entertaining. A friend and I spotted it together and both bought it. We’re planning to read it this week and then get together to talk about it.

PLANNING TO READ NEXT:

I’ve got Reluctantly Charmed by Ellie O’Neill out from the library. I’m hoping I will be charmed by this one. I’m not sure whether there are actual fairies involved or whether it’s more the suggestion of them, but either way, I’m here for Irish folklore in the modern day.

What are you reading? 🙂

#Medievalathon and General May Reading Wrap-up

I thought this was going to be another slow reading month, but much to my surprise, I finished quite a few books! I managed to negate what I thought was a trend of reading fewer than five books in odd-numbered months and many more in even-numbered ones. So yay that!

Past Month’s Reading:

I decided to do a Medievalathon wrap-up and my usual monthly wrap-up in the same post, since there didn’t seem to be much point in repeating what I read during the month in two separate posts. So instead of just a list, you also get the prompts these books filled as well. The graphics show you what I earned by fulfilling each prompt.

 A Pristine Book: The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton (literary spec fic – 4 stars – review).

A book under 300 pages: Greythorne by L. M. Merrington (Gothic/historical fiction – 4 stars – review)

A book with a dragon on the cover: Ochre Dragon by V. E. Patton (fantasy – 4 stars – review)

A scary book: The King of Crows by Libba Bray (The Diviners #4) (YA historical fantasy – 4 stars – review forthcoming)

A book with orange on the cover: Oasis by Katya de Becerra (YA sci-fi – 2.5 stars – review)

A romance: Kindred: 12 Queer #LoveOzYA Stories edited by Michael Earp (YA short stories/various genres – stars – review forthcoming).

I also read Writing Killer Cover Copy by Elana Johnson, but it didn’t fit any of the prompts. It was a non-fiction four-star read. 

So to sum up, I made it to the rank of Queen at least, and Empress if you count the non-prompt-y book. Not a bad effort! 

Favourite Bookish Photo:

Uhhh… this was my only bookish photo this month. It also might be my most popular Instagram post ever!  You can see all my bookish photos (plus some RL as well) on my Instagram.

Currently Reading:

Physical book: Burn by Patrick Ness. Alternate history — with dragons! I’m really enjoying this so far. I don’t even notice the pages turning. I was hoping to finish this in May and also earn the shield for Medievalathon (a book you have high expectations for) but I guess if my weapon is bows and arrows, I can’t hold a shield anyway, can I? 

Ebook: Potency (Glow #1) by Aubrey Hadley. I haven’t had any ARCs for a while but I remembered I had two due in June, so I thought I’d best make a start. This was originally slated for release a year ago, but the consistent feedback they received from Netgalley led to them taking time to redevelop a lot of it. This is the updated version (I never received the original). I’m interested to see how it goes. 

Audio book: .Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman, number two in the Arc of Scythe. I didn’t love the first book enough to go out and buy the second, so I waited until my library’s copy became available. I’m really enjoying Greg Tremblay’s narration. I wonder if I might have liked the first book a bit more had I also listened to it. 

Planning to read next:

I’m taking part in the blog tour (my first one!) for What Unbreakable Looks Like by Katie McLaughlin, so I want to make sure I’ve read it well before the due date of my review. 

What are you reading? 🙂