#look. my TBR just. keeps. getting. longer!

[raat-jaaga-paakhi]

I decided on not reading 'The Pale King' and then Wallace comes at me with such lines and the universe expects my resilience! I bemoan this to my mother and she calmly forwards me critical praise for the book! I am surrounded by ill-intent, is all.

— David Foster Wallace, The Pale King

[moonheavens]

real question how/why do y'all use the bookmark button on ao3...

I never really use it but I know a lot of people use it to track what they've read, or a place to collect their favourite fics for re-reads, or any other way (tbf I have a spreadsheet for all of these actions)

so if you could all please let me know if/how/why you use the bookmark button maybe it'll give me ideas lol

[in-my-loki-feels]

Lokius 😱 (H/C #13) for the bed sharing prompts? (Whichever flavor of Lokius variants strikes your fancy is just fine with me 😉)

Thank you for the prompt and for letting me pick the flavor! I got bit by the cowboy Lokius bug and, in my usual fashion, went way overboard. Sorry to dump 3k on you instead of a nice short fill, but I hope you enjoy it! (Feel free to add it to your TBR list 🤣)

Happy Yee Haw Sunday, everyone!

😱 Can't fall asleep (danger)

CW blood, mild injury description

The gunshots came first. Then the shouts for help. 

Mobius wheeled his horse around, one hand dropping to his revolver, and saw a man almost falling over himself as he ran towards them. Mobius had accompanied the stagecoach along its full route, worried about recent robberies, but it seemed trouble had found him in the next town over instead of on the road. This wasn’t his town to protect, but that wouldn’t stop him wantin’ to help.

“Shoot out!” the newcomer gasped. He wore an apron so it wasn’t much of a surprise when his next words were, “Saloon!”

There were gasps from those inside the stagecoach and the crowd that’d come to meet them.

Mobius swung down, hastily wound Brandy’s reins around the nearby hitching post, and pulled his rifle free of the saddle holster. The bartender came to a stumbling halt and Mobius grabbed his arm to keep him upright. 

“What happened?”

“S-shoot out. Dunno why. Jus’ had one customer, then some men came in—mean lookin’ fellas—and next thing I knew, they all started shooting!” 

“Where’s your sheriff?”��

The bartender shrugged helplessly. With Mobius’ luck, whoever looked after this town was sleeping off a long night of drinking somewhere. 

“Goddamn it,” he muttered, but he headed in the direction the bartender had come. The street had emptied, though not everyone had retreated inside. Gawkers pressed against buildings, watching him pass with wide eyes. Some people had no sense. 

Mobius flinched as another gunshot sounded, but it was just the one. It was a reminder for him to get his own damn self out of the street. He went left, hurrying along the building fronts. A few people still lingering to watch ducked out of his way. The general store sat on a corner, with the saloon around the bend, so Mobius paused there to peer around the building. 

A man in dusty black clothes stood out front, two pistols in hand. Mobius’ heart stopped, until he looked closer and saw the man’s profile was all wrong. Another figure in black lay crumpled in a heap on the saloon steps. 

“How much longer you gonna hide in there?” the man called to whoever was still in the saloon. “I got more men comin’ than you got bullets.” 

Well, wasn’t this a real bag o’ nails. The man could be bluffing, but if he was tellin’ the truth, whoever was trapped was in real trouble. Mobius didn’t know what their argument was—and frankly didn’t care. He only wanted to keep the town from being shot up any more than it already was. 

“How ‘bout we—” The rest of what Mobius planned to say was lost when he ducked back ’round the corner to dodge a bullet. The onlookers nearby finally went inside. Thank the Lord. Mobius stayed where he was and raised his voice. “Look, fellas, I got no quarrel with ya, but you need to take this outta town.” 

There was a brief pause, followed by a man—he assumed the man in black—yelling, “Who the fuck are you?” 

“Nobody,” Mobius answered. “I’m just lookin’ out for the townsfolk.” Naming himself might get even more bullets sent his way. 

“Mind yer own business!” 

Mobius chanced a look around the corner and saw the man had split his attention between the door of the saloon and Mobius’ hiding spot. There had been no movement from inside the building. 

“You sure anyone’s even alive in there?” Mobius said. “Your business might be finished already.”

Another silence, during which Mobius took another look. The man was watching the saloon doors, considering Mobius’ words. 

Mobius said, “Let me come out and we can go have a look together. How’s that sound?”

A shorter pause before the response came. 

“Alright, come on out, but keep yer hands up.” 

He didn’t say anything about weapons so Mobius took a chance. He raised both hands, one still holding his rifle, and began to slide around the corner. At this distance, he couldn’t see the man’s face clearly, but he caught the sudden narrowing of his eyes. 

“A sheri—” 

The first shot caught the man in the shoulder, spinning him around. The second dropped him like a stone. Mobius crouched, heart pounding, and waited for follow-up shots. The man had stood out there so long, Mobius really had thought the person inside must be dead or out of bullets. 

“Goddamn it,” he muttered again. Now he had to hope whoever was left had more sense than the dead men. 

He slid around the corner and hurried to the side of the saloon building. The man in the street had been in plain sight, but Mobius had the advantage of cover. 

“Alright,” he called, “if that man was tellin’ the truth, you ain’t got long before company shows up. Your best bet is lettin’ me in, so I can see about helpin’ you out of town.” 

Silence was his answer. Were they finally out of ammo? Succumbed to their wounds? Mobius hunched over—wincing as his back protested—and tried to stay below the windows as he crept towards the doorway. He paused there, but there was still no response. 

“I’m comin’ in.” He took a deep breath and then stood, raised his hands, and pushed through the doors. 

The saloon was a mess. Tables and chairs overturned, bottles behind the bar shot out. There were two more bodies, dressed much like the ones outside. So far, it seemed to match the bartender’s story of a gang ambushing one person. No sign of who that was, though. 

“Anyone alive in here?”

“Unfortunately,” came the strained response. Mobius’ stomach dropped. The voice had come from behind the bar and was worryingly familiar. He pushed his way through the mess and came around the edge of the counter to see Loki Laufeyson sprawled on the floor, half-propped up against the bar, his gun steady on Mobius. 

“Goddamn it.”

Loki wore his usual all black getup, but he had one hand pressed to his thigh and the palm was stained dark red. Mobius almost swore again, for all the good it would do. 

“What the hell’re you doin’ here?” 

“Enjoying a whiskey,” Loki said, feigning calm; his voice gave away the pain he must’ve in. “At least until this lot showed up.”

“And what did they want with you?” 

Loki shrugged. “I have made a great many enemies over the years.” 

“Yeah, well, I ain’t exactly been making friends either.” A lawman never did. Mobius glanced at the door. “Any idea if he was telling the truth about more comin’?” 

Loki finally lowered his revolver. “It’s possible. There are more of them than I shot here.” 

Mobius smoothed down his mustache and tried to keep a cool head. Last he’d seen of Loki, the outlaw had been slippin’ out of Mobius’ house before the sun had come up. That was how most of their encounters went these days and as grateful as Mobius was to see him, he coulda asked for better circumstances.  

He set the rifle on the bar and knelt beside Loki; he didn’t miss the way Loki’s gun hand twitched. 

“Where’s your horse?” Mobius asked as he pulled off his neck kerchief. He eyed Loki’s leg, wondering if one kerchief was enough—and tried not to think about how he oughtta know with as often as he’d had his hands on Loki—then reached for Loki’s kerchief. This brought the gun back up, Loki’s eyes wide and panicked, like a cornered animal. Mobius froze, then moved more slowly, turning Loki’s kerchief around so he could untie it. 

Then he tied the two together and tapped the hand Loki had pressed to his wound. 

“I need to bind this before you bleed out,” he said as calmly as he could; his stomach was churning at the thought. Loki’s chest was rising and falling too quickly for the composed facade he was clinging to, but he lowered the gun and moved his hand, looking away. 

Mobius wrapped the makeshift bandage around Loki’s thigh, wincing when Loki hissed in pain. He didn’t even know if the bullet was still in there—something he’d have to figure out once he got Loki out of here. If he could do that, if Loki didn’t die on the way. 

He shut that thought right down, rising to peer over the bar. Still no sign of anyone outside. He looked down at Loki, who watched him warily. 

“Where’s your horse?” 

“Out back.” 

And Mobius’ was with the stagecoach. His mind spun with possible plans. Did the townsfolk know who Loki was? The bartender hadn’t said Laufeyson was cornered, so they might not. Mobius could claim he was taking Loki to safety, but what would happen if word got out that the man he helped was the infamous bandit? Should he reveal who it was and say he was takin’ him in? Mobius didn’t see Loki going along with that one. 

“Can you ride?” Mobius asked, and couldn’t help the dubious note in his voice. It sparked annoyance in Loki’s eyes. He grit his teeth and dragged himself to his feet, leaning his weight heavily on the uninjured leg. 

“Of course I can.” 

Stubborn son of a bitch.  

“Two bucks says you collapse a mile outta town.” Loki’s glare bounced off him. “Look, here’s what we’re gonna do.” 

—

Loki refused at first—too uppity for such an undignified plan, Mobius guessed—but he must’ve been hurtin’ more than he let on because he didn’t push past Mobius to take his chances on his own. Mobius just hoped he didn’t bleed out before they got out of town. 

Mobius went through the doors of the saloon first to stand on the porch. 

“Everything’s alright now.” He spotted the bartender—along with several others—peering around the corner he’d used for cover. “Any sign of your sheriff?” 

The man shook his head, then cautiously came out of hiding. “They all dead?” 

“’Fraid so, and your bar’s a mess.” 

The man looked dismayed but not surprised. 

“Your customer was a wanted man, so I’m takin’ the body with me to report it. I don’t recognize the rest of ‘em.” He gestured to the bodies on the steps and in the dirt. “Maybe your sheriff will have some idea.” 

“O’course. T-thank you, sir,” the bartender stammered, and came closer to give him a clammy handshake. More people were starting to gather, but Mobius needed to get movin’. 

“I didn’t do nothin’,” Mobius said, and he really hadn’t. Unless you counted him distracting the bandit so Loki could take the shot. “Can someone fetch my horse while I get the body?” 

Every time he referred to Loki as a body, his chest tightened, but he tried not to show it. He went back inside, crossing to the bar quickly, before anyone followed him in. Loki was sitting out of sight, still conscious.

“You ready?” Mobius asked. 

Loki grit his teeth. “As much as I can be, I suppose.” He holstered his pistol, but tension radiated from him. 

“This’ll probably hurt,” Mobius said apologetically. “Jus’ try to keep quiet.” 

Loki’s eyes narrowed—as if he could look any more mad than he already was—but he said nothing as Mobius knelt down and pulled him closer. For a second, it was like they were about to embrace and Mobius’ breath caught at the thought. Then he bent and dragged Loki’s weight across one shoulder.

Loki made a noise through gritted teeth, his whole body tense, as Mobius staggered to his feet. Before Mobius could remind him, Loki went limp, his arms hanging down Mobius’ back. Mobius put a hand on Loki’s thigh, half-covering the kerchief bandage. He was glad the redness in his face could be attributed to the strain of carrying a grown man. Then he went out back. 

This was the hard part: transferring Loki to his horse. Mobius did it as carefully as he could, draping Loki sideways over the saddle. He knew it wasn’t painless but Loki stayed quiet. Seeing him like that reminded Mobius too much of when he’d taken Loki’s man back to bury him. He had to reach out and put a hand on Loki’s back to feel his breaths, shallow they might be. 

Loki’s mount nudged Mobius with his nose. Good thing all those apple bribes had brought the horse around, or this plan wouldn’t have worked. 

“Go easy now,” Mobius murmured as he gathered the reins, then slowly led the horse around to the front of the saloon. 

There were far more people gathered now, but someone had fetched Brandy, who whickered when she caught sight of him. Or maybe she was greetin’ the black stallion followin’ him.

“Thank ya kindly,” Mobius said, bringing Loki’s horse close enough to tie the reins to Brandy’s saddle. He looked around, catchin’ eyes with the bartender. “If anyone comes along, you tell ’em exactly what happened: there was a shootout and then Sheriff Mobius took the wanted man’s body with him when he left.” 

That’d put trouble on their tail, but Mobius didn’t want these innocent people getting tangled up in somethin’ that wasn’t their business. He swung up into the saddle and turned Brandy towards home, nudging her into as gentle a walk as he could. With Loki’s mount in toe, he headed out of town. 

Loki wouldn’t make it the whole way back in the condition he was in, so Mobius’ plan was to find a place to hole up and let the outlaw recover enough to ride on his own. On the way into town, he’d seen a spot that could work: a rocky hill with enough trees to obscure them. It would be an obvious place for anyone chasin’ them to look, but they weren’t exactly spoiled for choices. 

Once in cover, Mobius slid off his horse and hurried over to Loki, who had remained still and silent the whole ride. 

“Loki?” He put a hand on Loki’s back and felt his heartbeat, weak as it was. 

“Mobius…” Loki attempted to lift himself up and started to slide off the saddle feet-first. Mobius caught him with both arms around his waist, before Loki’s weight could land on his injured leg. Loki groaned at the sudden stop.

“I gotcha,” Mobius murmured and flushed at the intimacy of the hold. Not the time or place, he reminded himself. He dragged Loki over to the most shaded spot and lowered him down. Then he went to move the horses out of sight. 

He couldn’t help looking over at Loki again and again, watching for signs he was getting worse. Loki was propped up against a rock, eyes closed and lips pressed together tightly. He was awake, for now. 

One eye cracked open as Mobius came back to his side with a water bag, but he wouldn’t let Mobius help, taking it from him and raising it to his lips. Mobius chose not to comment on how Loki’s hand shook, instead looking at the wound. The kerchiefs were stained but with all the jostling, it weren’t a surprise to see it had bled more.

“Is the bullet in there?” 

Loki shook his head. “Passed through.” He glanced down, then away. “Or so I believe.” 

Mobius chewed his lip. “Can I check?” 

Loki eyed him, pale, drenched in sweat, and still looking dangerous as hell. Then he looked away again. “If you must.” 

Mobius placed a hand lightly on Loki’s thigh, feeling him twitch, then slid it around to the underside. It felt intimate, even under these circumstances. He probed with his fingers cautiously along the edge of the kerchief, then pulled back when Loki suddenly hissed. A knot in Mobius’ stomach loosened. 

An exit wound meant Loki wouldn’t have to suffer Mobius diggin’ around in his leg. Didn’t mean they were out of danger yet.

“We should wash it,” Mobius said. The outlaw pressed his lips together, then took a shaky breath and said, tersely, “Fine.” 

Aware they might be on borrowed time, Mobius worked as quickly as he could. He used one of Loki’s knives to cut his pant leg open so he could rinse the wound with water before following with liberal splashes of whiskey. Loki paled even further but stayed conscious. Mobius dug through his saddlebags for a clean shirt and tore it into strips to rebind Loki’s wound. 

He half-expected a dry comment about how often Mobius ruined his own clothing for Loki, but the outlaw seemed too focused on staying awake. Once done, Mobius checked the path they’d taken but saw no signs of pursuit yet. 

“Sun’s goin’ down,” he said, unnecessarily, but it got Loki’s attention. “You get some rest and we might be able to leave in the mornin’. I’ll keep watch til then.” 

Loki was looking a mite bit cornered again, which made Mobius sigh. 

“You went along with all that—” he waved towards the horses “—but can’t trust me to guard you while you sleep?” He could’ve pointed out the number of times Loki had seen fit to sleep in Mobius’ presence, but maybe the sex made that different. 

Or being wounded and vulnerable. 

Mobius blew out a breath and went back to the horses. He’d left the saddles on, in case they needed a hasty getaway, but he could brush around them. 

“Not like I’m stickin’ my neck out enough as is,” he grumbled to himself. Brandy flicked her tail in agreement, or so he told himself. Loki’s mount had nothing to add on the subject. 

He half-expected Loki to have passed out when he came back, but the outlaw was still awake…barely. 

Keepin’ himself conscious out of pure spite, Mobius thought grumpily. 

He began gathering up the remains of his shirt and damn near jumped outta his skin when Loki grabbed his wrist. He looked up into green eyes set in a face tense with pain. 

“Thank you, Mobius,” Loki said quietly. Mobius’ traitorous heart flipped in his chest. He laid a hand over Loki’s. 

“’Course. Get some rest. I’ll wake ya if I hear anythin’.”

Loki stared at him a moment more, then gave a small nod. He closed his eyes, head tipped back against the rock, and was out like a light. Mobius watched him—the frighteningly pale skin, the slow rise and fall of his chest, the slightly parted lips he knew too well—and went to shove the scraps of his shirt in his saddle bags. When he came back, he leaned against the rocks opposite Loki where he’d have a view of the road, rested his rifle in the crook of his arm, and prepared for the long night ahead.

From this prompt list. Other fills will be under this tag.

[separatist-apologist]

Hey MB<3 I just keep rereading your fics over and over and they hit everytime (like seriously they itch every scratch in my brain), but just wondering, do u have any elucien fics on your tbr rn, or recent ones that you recommend? I'm mostly looking for canon compliant bc that is crack to me but im not too picky, just looking for recs!

I ANSWERED THE WRONG ASK god kill me right now

You're so sweet. Sorry it took me so long to write this- I wanted to put together a good mix. I hope you like them- these are just one's I've read, there are more on @elucienweekofficials list of multi-chapter fics set in canon, too!

This is long so I put it beneath a cut. I tried to mix on-going fics with completed fics and not recommend the same ones I always do. If anyone finds this list helpful, be better than me and leave a review

I Believe The Word You're Looking For Is Friends by @kingofsummer93

Elain Archeron and Lucien Vanserra are haunted by ghosts of their past, unable to move forward, unsure where they belong.

Together they come to an agreement. He'll teach her everything he knows about Prythian. He'll take her anywhere she wants to go.

In return, maybe she can just stop slapping him so much.

All You Have Is Your Fire by @clockwork-ashes

'I can hear your heart beating through the stone.' For the briefest of moments, Lucien wondered if his mate would know exactly when his heart’s steady rhythm came to a sudden stop.

Elain goes to the Autumn Court demanding an audience with the High Lord to save the mate she can barely stand to be in the same room with. She ends up having to stay much longer than she bargained for.

What If I Told You I'm Back by climbingmountains

Come one, come all, it's happening again…Elain and Azriel have been married for ten years. Koschei is defeated, their family is at peace. And if she feels a hollow ache of something every once in a while, that’s just the price one pays for love and duty.

Until she comes home one day to the news that her husband has a mating bond of his own.

OR: I listened to nothing but The Tortured Poets Department for over a month and had a lot of angst to release.

Mockingbird by @avabrynne

After Lucien reluctantly agrees to meet with Eris, he’s shocked when his brother reveals his biggest secret: he has eight-year-old twin daughters. Unwilling to entrust them to anyone else and with Beron's gaze on him more intense than ever, Eris has Lucien swear to protect the girls and take them with him.

When it becomes clear they can’t stay in the human lands even when glamoured to look human, Lucien turns to the Night Court. While it’s easier to handle outbursts of young magic there, Lucien needs help. Enter Elain, who bonded quickly with the twins after their arrival. On top of everything else, Lucien and Elain start to navigate their bond while also finding out a few more secrets, like who Lucien’s actual father is. It's an Autumn and Day Court family drama Elucien and ErisxOC fic!

ACOWAR (Eluciens edition) by @crazy-ache

One moment. All it takes is one singular moment to change the trajectory of fate. Following the events of Hybern, everything changes when Lucien instinctively grabs his mate—Elain Archeron—and brings her back to the Spring Court with Feyre and Tamlin.

In the midst of war and ruin, Elain and Lucien will have to face the bond that connects them together if they hope to survive the unintended consequences. To do so, they’ll have to prevail through games of deceit, powerful forces of magic, and deadly enemies. And hope their hearts survive the journey.

A retelling of A Court of Wings and Ruin (ACOWAR) and a Canon Divergent AU.

A Court of Ash and Sunlight by aturner1205

“I know you’d rather not get help from me. I know you’ve rejected our mating bond and I’ve accepted that. But I still want to make sure you’re safe.”

Her heart twisted in its cage, filling her whole body with icy tears that would not spill.

Tell him. He deserves to know the truth. Tell him.

And because this time the voice inside was hers, because it was strong and clear and right, she did.

“I haven’t rejected the mating bond with you, Lucien,” she said quietly, her chest pounding so loud she could hardly hear the words. “But I think I damaged it, because—because I’ve never felt it.”

The Scenic Route by @bonecarversbestie

Elain grows discontent with her role in the Night Court as she grapples with grief for her human life and powers that she does not fully understand. One evening she accidentally winnows to Lucien's doorstep and he agrees to take her back to Velaris via the scenic route.

Can I Be Close To You by @temperedink

Elain and Lucien have been feeling out their tentative new relationship for a while, and Elain is getting antsy about the slow pace she's set for them. But maybe it's time to take things to the next level.

Set a few years post-ACOSF.

Oceans Apart (Never) by angryramen

Living in the Day-Court with her mate seemed like a damning at first. But slowly Elain started to enjoy Lucien’s company. They conversed together in the Day-Court gardens and slowly became friends. He even promised to charter a ship to take her to the continent, somewhere she’d always wanted to go. But when the time comes to say goodbye…

The Heirs of Fall and Flame by arosebetweenthorns

Eris Vanserra has always been a complicated male. Born as the first son to a tyrant of a High Lord, he was raised on cruelty, learning never to reveal weaknesses. But as Eris' allegiances to his father's court are questioned, his loyalties forming with those across borders, he realises enemies in his own court - especially his father - may be too difficult for him to keep at bay, especially when he inadvertently sets his father's sights onto his youngest brother. Then there's Rhysand's Inner Circle to contend with - one particular shadowsinger that Eris can't seem to avoid... but does he even want to? --- Lucien Vanserra always thought his suffering at the Autumn Court's hands was behind him. But when his father shows a vested interest in him years after banishing him, it's clear he will have to fight to keep the fragile peace he's built himself. All Lucien wants is to be with Elain and begin a life of his own, but when Elain's life is threatened by his father, Lucien learns just how much he has to learn before life can truly begin.

This is a direct continuation of the events of ACOSF. Joint POV of Eris and Lucien.

A Court of Breaking by @aldbooks

A year after the events of A Breaking, Elain feels a tug on the bond and realizes her estranged mate is in danger. Lucien, now returned to the Night Court, wonders if he might have been too hasty in his decision to leave, and if there might still be a chance for him with his mate

Summer Heat by @zenkindoflove

Lucien nodded his head, looking for any cue that he was dismissed. “Got it. Keep everyone in line and try not to make an ass of myself in front of my mate. I’ll see what I can do.”

Summer Court is hosting the Summer Solstice Summit and the Night Court is sending their best emissaries to attend. It will be Elain's first time mingling in another court, and it's a good thing she has an expert guiding her: the mate she's been ignoring for the last two years.

Meanwhile, Eris has been sent to the summit to spy on Summer's developments. What he doesn't anticipate is entangling in a steamy, forbidden romance.

Post-ACOSF, Elucien, Eris x OC, Multi-chapter.

Healer In The Night by @infinitefolklore

Lucien has been away on the continent on a mission. No one has heard from him in over two months. Elain is worried. On a dark and stromy night, he shows up bloody on her doorstep. Elain nurses him back to health.

The Luck Of The Draw by @sad-scarred-sassy

Elain Archeron is determined to end her unwanted mating bond with Lucien Vanserra. She has resigned herself to a loveless life, convinced she will never be able to experience true love without the fabricated weight of an assigned mate.

Her plans take a sharp turn when her mate arrives with a proposition to accompany him on a mission to a foreign court. When no one else believes her capable of succeeding Elain decides to prove to herself and others that she is not as hopeless as everyone else thought.

Only this will mean she will have to face him, and with that all that she has sworn off, battling between not knowing where the mating bond's influence ends and where her true feelings begin.

[richincolor]

Hispanic Heritage Month: The Spooky Version

Since it's spooky season and also Hispanic Heritage Month, I thought I'd highlight a few thriller/mystery/horror books by Hispanic authors that have come out recently. I haven't had a chance to read all of these books yet (my TBR list is long) but I'm looking forward to getting scared by these wonderful authors. Check out my review of "They Thought They Buried Us" on Nov. 1. 

They Thought They Buried Us by NoNieqa Ramos

Horror fan and aspiring film director Yuiza gets a scholarship to a prestigious boarding school. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. As one of the few students of color at Our Lady of Perpetual Mercy, Yuiza immediately feels out of place. A brutal work-study schedule makes it impossible to keep up with the actual classes. Every expense, from textbooks to laundry, puts Yuiza into debt. And the behavior of students and faculty is… unsettling. Yuiza starts having disturbing dreams about the school’s past and discovers clues about the fate of other scholarship students. It’ll take all Yuiza’s knowledge of the horror genre to escape from Our Lady’s grasp.

Click below to read more!

Flawless Girls by Anna-Marie McLemore

The Soler sisters are infamous in polite society—brazen, rebellious, and raised by their fashionable grandmother who couldn’t care less about which fork goes where. But their grandmother also knows the standards that two Latina young ladies will be held to, so she secures them two coveted places at the Alarie House, a prominent finishing school that turns out first ladies, princesses, and socialites. Younger sister Isla is back home within a day. She refuses to become one of the eerily sweet Alarie girls in their prim white dresses. Older sister Renata stays. When she returns months later, she’s unfailingly pleasant, unnervingly polite, and, Isla discovers, possibly murderous. And the same night she returns home, she vanishes. As their grandmother uses every connection she has to find Renata, Isla re-enrolls, intent on finding out what happened to her sister. But the Alarie House is as exacting as it is opulent. It won’t give up its secrets easily, and neither will a mysterious, conniving girl who’s either controlling the house, or carrying out its deadly orders.

Lucha of the Night Forest by Tehlor Kay Mejia

A scorned god. A mysterious acolyte. A forgetting drug. A dangerous forest. One girl caught between the freedom she always wanted and a sister she can't bear to leave behind. Under the cover of the Night Forest, will Lucha be able to step into her own power...or will she be consumed by it? This gorgeous and fast-paced fantasy novel from acclaimed author Tehlor Kay Mejia is brimming with adventure, peril, romance, and family bonds--and asks what it means for a teen girl to become fully herself.

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

Yadriel has summoned a ghost, and now he can’t get rid of him. When his traditional Latinx family has problems accepting his gender, Yadriel becomes determined to prove himself a real brujo. With the help of his cousin and best friend Maritza, he performs the ritual himself, and then sets out to find the ghost of his murdered cousin and set it free. However, the ghost he summons is actually Julian Diaz, the school’s resident bad boy, and Julian is not about to go quietly into death. He’s determined to find out what happened and tie up some loose ends before he leaves. Left with no choice, Yadriel agrees to help Julian, so that they can both get what they want. But the longer Yadriel spends with Julian, the less he wants to let him leave.

Check out Audrey's Review

[lamentationsofalonelypotato]

Hi there, friend! Finally coming over for the WIP tag game *rubs palms together* 🤓

Puh-lease tell me more about:

✨ Soldier Boy: Something Bad Is Happening, I'm Sure You Do Agree (Mini-Series) -> I looove that title! It sounds poetic but in a funny kind of way? Does that make sense? But I'd love to know what it's about. My mind is spinning!!

✨ Soldier Boy: Technical Difficulties (Series) -> Picked this one because SB and technical difficulties? I'd buy it. Gimme gimme gimme (a man who can't work his phone) 🤣

✨ Dean Winchester: Who Are You In The Dark? -> I got chills when I read this title!! It sounds perfectly angsty for my dark heart 👀🖤

Happy Sunday! I have a few things of yours queued for my reading list this week 🥰 And btw, I think I know what In The End I'd Do It All Again is about and I so can't wait for that one!! 😍

@waynes-multiverse

Hey Wayne! 🤗

Thank you so much for sending in an Ask about my WIPs!! I'm very excited to explain my unhinged ideas to you *evil laugh* 😂

Girl, I'm not going to lie, um... you picked the two Soldier Boy fic series/mini-series that are sequels to my other series and I'm not sure if you've read them yet 🤣😅

Something Bad Is Happening, I'm Sure You Do Agree

Pairing: Soldier Boy x Reader

I actually can't take credit for the title because it's a line from the ABBA song "On and On and On" 😂 (I know how much you like ABBA) But, this mini-series takes place about a year after my Take A Chance On Me Series (wanted to keep the ABBA theme lol). I don't want to give too much away, because I'm not sure you've read the first series yet and I know you said it was on your tbr😅

Technical Difficulties

Pairing: Soldier Boy x Reader

Okay... Um... this one is also a follow up to another series I wrote that was just a crazy, insane, multiverse idea with Dean Winchester and Soldier Boy. It's called It's Not A Big Deal, and it might be one of my favorite things that I've ever written tbh lol. But you can technically read this series as stand alone. I did already describe this one to somebody and I'm going to put the link here, so you can choose if you want to look at it or not. I just don't want to spoil the main series for you if you choose to read it 🥰

Technical Difficulties

Who Are You In The Dark?

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader

Trope: Soulmates, Being in love with someone who won't admit they love you?

Title Based On: In the Dark By Camilla Cabello

Oh yeah, this one is perfectly angsty 😈

Okay, this one is not based on a series I've done before and I am SO excited about it! I'm not exactly sure if I want it to just be a one-shot or a mini-series yet. It's going to be more of a Hades x Persephone vibes story I think! The reader is going to be the bright spot in his life (Persephone) and Dean will be the dark (Hades).

This one is inspired by Season 6 Episode 11 of Supernatural when Dean has to be "Death for a Day." So my idea is what if Dean was cursed to be Death forever in exchange for Sam's soul?

So he's been Death for maybe a few hundred years, Sam is long dead, Dean's kinda hardened a little bit and he's sitting outside a playground and a little girl version of the reader starts talking to him. She can see him for some reason when no one else can and she can also touch him without dying. (Touch Starved Dean Alert!) And as she grows up Dean kinda pops in and out to watch out for her, but then he realizes he's getting attached to her, and she's getting attached to him, and he doesn't want her to because he's death, he can't exactly be a permanent fixture in her life (he thinks), so he says terrible things to her, breaks her little heart (she's maybe 12ish) and leaves...

So she grows up, writes Dean off as some imaginary friend she had as a kid. While Dean is sending the reapers to check up on her, reapers who have been alive much longer than him and know exactly why the reader can see Dean when no one else can and can touch him... I've got a bit more, but spoilers lol.

Oooo Yay! I can't wait to see what you read this week and what you think! 😊

And yes, you would be correct about In The End I'd Do It All Again, lol. I did do a little teaser for it here and another one of the Soldier Boy WIPs if you want to take a look 😁 I am still very excited about Time After Time as well! I can't wait to see where you take it 💗

[someotherdog]

hey y'all. long time no see, sorry for my absence. unfortunately due to just... the general state of the world i have absolutely no desire to write a word. :/ i'm trying to get my muse back but i can't even force myself to read other people's work anymore even tho my tbr book list is like waist-high. (i did however finish my first quilt, it looks like shit but at least i'm not completely unable to express myself through art... small mercies) so i'm very sorry to anyone that's waiting on a reply from me, i truly can't say when i'll be able to write back so i understand if anyone wants to drop a thread or break mutualship. i'm gonna explain some more under the cut but no one is obligated to read it, i just don't have anywhere else to put my feelings.

2025 is my twentieth anniversary of roleplaying. of course i haven't actively roleplayed every single month of every year, there were a lot of long breaks, some even more than a year or so, but collectively yeah it's been since 2005 that i've roleplayed in some fashion or another. whether here on tumblr for the last ten years, or on sites like roleplayer.me (which i often dream about for some reason?) or myspace or even those forum boards way back in the day. so it's been part of my life longer than it hasn't. after my father died when i was a kid, i basically had free rein of the internet and eventually stumbled upon rp during my harry potter phase when i saw a myspace profile for padma patil and was like 'huh she's a fictional character?' and basically it just snowballed from there.

rp has been kind of a secret shame i've had, i've only told like two people in real life about it; i basically just describe it as 'collaborative writing' when i get even close to explaining what i'm doing on my phone or computer all the time, and tbh i rarely get close enough to anyone irl for anyone to ask, my family's just used to me being so secretive, but i don't volunteer that information to acquaintances or anything. idk why i'm so embarrassed of it, it's really not a big deal, but it just makes me feel like a loser somehow. idk. i guess because for a very long time, it was my only outlet and only way to socialize, so it and the internet in general was my only lifeline when my agoraphobia was at its worst. i guess i just feel that i should've been at the club instead of writing replies that don't matter, basically shouting into the void besides the writing partner in question and maybe like one or two random people that may come across my blog, but i didn't want to be at the club. i don't want to be at the club. my life has been pretty shit my entire life but i don't want any other life. not really.

so as i approach twenty years, i've been thinking a lot about retiring. not that i want to stop writing, muse permitting, but that at some point, i will have to stop roleplaying. i know that on other sites like jcink, it's normal for writers to keep roleplaying into their forties, but here on tumblr, there is a ceiling. a point where people stop putting their actual age and go with 20+, 30+, etc because no one wants to write with someone who is old. i know that a lot of people go on to write while having partners and kids, two things that are very very unlikely for me, but at some point whether we want to stop or not, we will just log off one day and... never return. we won't have time anymore, or we can't find anyone to write with, or just a sudden indifference, but eventually it all ends. and i don't really want it to end, despite my lack of inspiration. i just can't really imagine my life without roleplay, but i know that it will end, that i'll just run out of time or interest or feel too old for it (tho i don't feel like there are really... new younger roleplayers anymore, at least not so much on tumblr), but i find that prospect really scary. to have something be part of my daily life for twenty years and for it to just... go away.

i actually reread a fanfic i wrote in 2010/2011 last week. it made me a little sad because i was just a baby when i wrote it and i was so, so, so lonely at the time of writing it, but it was also a time when i didn't know it was should've not should of (lol) and i also plagiarized IT by stephen king for a single line (it must've been what i was reading at the time) but the bare bones of the way i write now was in it. the language was a little simplistic, but my tone of voice was in there. and it just made me feel bad for seventeen year old me because i'm still doing this. but i don't want to stop doing this, but i know at some point i will need to.

it doesn't help that i haven't felt inspired to write a narrative sentence in weeks. i go through dry spells and writer's block frequently, but this one has felt so much different than before. i'm stressing out a lot about politics (obviously) and also i've been having a lot of health anxiety. mostly about bird flu and the morality rates for cats, because i work a public facing job where i interact with hundreds of people a week, and while i mask at work and frequently wash my hands/use hand sanitizer, and i also never let my cats out or feed them raw food, there's still a risk of tracking it into my house on my shoes or my dogs bringing it in after going outside (tho that's not very often bc it's very cold in the midwest and they're not breeds that love snow) and after i had to put down my cat last summer, i truly fear losing my cats now after only having them for six months because i lost my soul cat after eight years together and it just wasn't enough. i also have health anxiety due to, as mentioned, my father's death at a young age and i've been basically having daily panic attacks. it's just creatively sapped me when my inspiration is fickle enough and generally only comes in short bursts (that's what she said). it makes me sad to not write, and when i look in my drafts for something that might inspire me, i just get overwhelmed because there's so many replies i've let sit for months. so i know anyone would say mental health over replies, but when my mental health is just so bad lately no matter what i do... idk it just feels like a bottomless pit or something. it doesn't help that i had a really bad group rp experience last year lmao but that's a story for a different day. so it's just made me question and ruminate a lot, and while i know i need help, i just don't have the money either to take care of myself in that way. i feel very stuck, but at least i'm not agoraphobic anymore? but it's kind of strange because i miss it so much sometimes. it feels sick to miss my metaphorical cage, but i do.

so anyway if you actually read all of this, i really commend you for being a trooper. thank you for listening if you did! and again sorry if you're waiting on any replies from me, i hope to be back soon.

[bookaddict24-7]

REVIEWS OF THE WEEK!

Every week I will post various reviews I've written so far in 2024. You can check out my Goodreads for more up-to-date reviews HERE.

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241. The Discovery by Katherine Applegate--⭐️⭐️⭐️

That poor snake.

I feel torn about this one because while in theory, it was a good addition to the series, something about how the characters were at the end of the book when they had to make a big decision sat wrong with me. Maybe it's because I've been spoiled by their easy decision making, or their teamwork when it comes to important decisions.

BUT then again, I know that these are just kids and they've been thrown into a deadly and near-impossible situation.

I do think it's a very convenient storyline to push through the next couple of books and to teach our Animorphs team a very important lesson about trust and the dangers of war.

In a way, THE DISCOVERY is a sad one. Yes, the poor snake, but it's sad to see the beginning of the end of a type of trust for these kids. And the levels that some people will go in order to survive or deal with their grief.

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242. Sing Anyway by Anita Kelly--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Okay, this was adorable AF.

I wasn't expecting to love this novella so much, but yes! It was adorable and the tension between the two MCs was palpable. I love that this takes place, for the most part, during one night of bravery since the one MC is incredibly shy and socially anxious.

I loved that even though this is a novella, we had a beautifully fleshed out story of two strangers letting down their insecurities for one night in order to connect. Even though we get hints of said insecurities, they both know the importance of letting themselves love every moment of their night.

My only iffy moment was the main conflict and how easy it could have been to avoid it, but I also understand the fear of something new, especially when you have presented yourself in a certain way instead of who you regularly are. But the ending was cute af and I like that the one character did the work and the other was pleasantly surprised. It was all so satisfying.

If you're looking for a seriously cute and sexy Queer novella, then I think you should 100% add this to your TBR.

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243. The 7-10 Split by Karmen Lee--⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was cute, but something about it didn't have me hooked enough to keep me from putting it down often. I did love the rep and was intrigued by the bowling!

I picked this up for a twenty-four hour readathon and while I was hoping it would be a quick read since it's not exactly long, but every time I picked it up it felt like I was swimming uphill. The story itself was fun and cute, with a really unique concept--the bowling was something I haven't seen in a romance novel before--but something about the writing made it feel so bogged down. If it wasn't for me wanting to finish this for a challenge, I might have taken longer reading this or even abandoned it.

I did like the second chance trope and the fact that the one MC essentially had to win back the trust of the other MC. The tension between the two of them was pretty good and it got pretty steamy in some instances. I liked the side characters and how they interacted with the MCs. I do wish we had gotten some poetic justice against the principal. What a dick.

Anyway, this isn't the first teacher sapphic romance I've read, but it IS the first one that just didn't immediately grab me. Oh well, at least the story was still fun?

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244. Pumpkin by Julie Murphy--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Immediately HOOKED!

Okay, I had forgotten how freaking cute these books were, or how well written they were! I loved Pumpkin and his personality. One of the things, I think, that's important when reading this book is to remember that the MC is a teenager. There are high emotions in here, as well as a journey to discovering who the MC is, even if it means being angry with his twin sister.

Also, please, I knew who the love interest would be from the very beginning because it would have been a crime otherwise. These two work so well together, especially because it teaches the MC to not judge others by his prejudices.

The process of how the MC finds what he likes was great and eye-opening. Drag has always been this concept that feels so much bigger than life and I think Murphy wrote a great story of a teen boy finding something that makes him feel whole and happy.

PUMPKIN also tackles that difficult concept of change--especially for teenagers because change can feel like the end of the world for some. Sometimes change can be difficult, but PUMPKIN shows that it's often necessary for growth, even if it makes a person uncomfortable or upset. AND with that concept of "change", comes the other concept of "figuring out what the hell you want to do with your life". It's okay to follow your own path, even if it doesn't look like everyone else's.

Being different is okay and being yourself is beautiful!

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245. Princess Academy by Shannon Hale--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was cute, but I definitely liked THE GOOSE GIRL more!

PRINCESS ACADEMY had that similar way of writing that THE GOOSE GIRL had and that made me really excited. Something about Hale's fantasy writing feels so easy, but in the best way. Her stories flow so well and have a way of capturing my attention. Maybe it's the straightforward way of writing the situations, or if it's the personable MCs, but I love these fantasy stories.

I liked the MC in this one because she was pretty dimensional. She wasn't just a girl who was fighting for the attention of a prince, she was someone who acknowledged that she had a past before going to the academy. She was also kind and empathetic, but also rebellious in her own way. I loved her connection to her small village and the magic that can be found in that connection.

I also loved how Hale handled the prince situation and the ending. I kind of saw it coming, but it also still surprised me. Also, the level of trust and friendship that grows between the girls throughout the book was great. I think it's a great thing for younger readers to read so they know that even in the most difficult of situations, you can still make unexpected friendships.

I'd recommend this for anyone who loves the classics like A LITTLE PRINCESS, since this has that magical feeling of friendship, family, and an MC who refuses to let go of her caring personality.

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246. Shut Up You're Pretty by Téa Mutonji--⭐️⭐️⭐️

When I first finished SHUT UP YOU'RE PRETTY, I was in a haze trying to come to terms with what I had read. On one hand, there were some pretty powerful moments where the MC realizes her worth and who she is as a person. On the other hand, however, this book just made me so incredibly uncomfortable. And as I finally write this review, I'm left with that icky feeling of discomfort.

I do, however, think it's important to acknowledge the great representation of that toxic friendship that verges on one's own sexual discovery. We never see into the best friend's mind during these sexually explicit times in their childhoods (ugh), but in their actions together we see two girls who are both seemingly escaping from either abusive lives and or that feeling of inequality that comes from being the "ugly" friend of a duo. That part hit me extra hard since my teen years and a good chunk of my twenties was full of me repressing my sexuality and being best friends with the "prettier white girl". It was a cycle that was hard to break and seeing the MC being pulled back in a few times until we never hear about the best friend again was lowkey triggering.

And we see how this lingers with the MC as she goes through an eating-disorder, body-issues, and a lack of self-appreciation in some of her relationships. The title is apt because this girl was verbally abused about her looks from a young age and despite her "physical change" as an adult, that young girl who was told she was ugly still lingers with her throughout her adulthood.

The lower rating was for the incredibly creepy things these two best friends did when they were younger and how it was described. The rest of the short stories were pretty powerful and a great exploration of how childhood trauma and grief can really change the trajectory of a life and how a person ends up seeing themselves and their worth for the rest of their lives.

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247. Land of No Regrets by Sadi Muktadir--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I love stories like LAND OF NO REGRETS because it explores the coming-of-age side of boyhood. The silly pranks, the moments of self-discovery, the naive perceptions of the world around them, and that hope that there has to be more/an escape from their current lives.

Muktadir's book was, of course, a harder to read version of that coming-of-age trope because these boys dealt with some serious abuse in this school. It showed the extremity of some branches of religion and how some parents will do anything to ensure that their children end up the way they want them to (without considering the fact that these children have their own autonomies). As a result, this was a great and tragic fable of a childhood stolen by parents' inability to understand that children are not extensions of themselves (among other things).

I really enjoyed the way LAND OF NO REGRETS was presented. It felt episodic and like we were being shown the most important points leading to that hell of a conclusion. We have the misadventures and the different people the characters meet. We see alliances form, and identities be challenged. They weren't short stories, but they were like snippets of a young life lived in a toxic and abusive environment.

And while religion is definitely an important topic in this book, I think this was more about the extremist side of religion and we hella know that all religions have their extreme nature. I liked that the MC still found his voice and questioned all that he could.

LAND OF NO REGRETS was poignant, powerful, and a bittersweet exploration of boyhood and the consequences of over-the-top expectations and what could happen when control becomes a weapon and self-expression/moral freedom is put into question.

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248. Napkins & Other Distractions by M.A. Wardell--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Honestly, this author never misses. Wardell knows what he's doing and in this one, he doesn't hold anything back.

NAPKINS & OTHER DISTRACTIONS was such a sweet addition to this series. I think these characters are the oldest I've read in romance and it was great seeing them get their happy ever afters! This also introduced a sexual concept to me that I didn't even know existed, so that was eye-opening.

I loved the character dynamics and how they were each others' safe place, even when they felt those moments of insecurity. The representation of OCD was interesting and I feel like I learned a lot about the topic (I didn't know a lot more than the stereotypical information beforehand). I found the older MC so sweet in his treatment of his love interest. Let's not even forget to mention the level of respect between these two characters!

AND OF COURSE, that SPICE. Holy crap, this was a spicy one. I loved it, but it had even me blushing a bit. These two have a very healthy and active sexual connection and PHEW. Please. Excuse me, I need to get a glass of water.

My one negative might be the conflict and how it was handled (even if it was brief), but I DID love how it was resolved. I just think that for a couple that communicates so well, a part of the conflict was a bit of communication.

Other than that, I loved this book like I did the other two in this series! I am craving a re-read, but I don't know when it will happen because it's almost that time of the year when all I want to read are horror books…

Anyway, LOVED and highly recommend this series to everyone who loves beautiful relationships, spicy chemistry, and the cutest couples around.

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249. Delinquent Daddy & Sweet Teacher Vol. 4 by Tama Mizuki--⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Devoured, as always.

I love this series so much and I'm so happy we got a new volume! In this one explores insecurities that can sometimes come up in relationships we think we don't deserve. I liked how these two characters worked through that and communicated, while also moving forward in their relationship.

There isn't much I can't say because of spoilers and it's further into the series, but this was just as cute as before. Even as things start to change and get a bit more serious when their secret relationship moves that forward step into maybe not being as secret.

I'm excited to see what's next for this couple! I'm loving their growth, not just as a couple but their independent growth as characters.

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Have you read any of these books? What were your thoughts?

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Happy reading!

[trulybetty]

Sunday Week in Review IV

It has been a really weird week this week. One of those weeks where you don’t feel right but you’re not unwell, but you know you’re not yourself. That’s been me the entire week. As a result, I didn’t read or really do much - but I’m hoping this long weekend will get me out of my funk and back to some sense of normality - whatever that is these days lol 🙃

Truly Betty Updates This Week…

Sick Day (Marcus Pike x f!Reader)

Plans for Gold Rush: I recently had a re-read and got to have a really good conversation with @gnpwdrnwhiskey about Charlotte and Joel this week, and it really made me realize how much I miss them. So, my plan is to go back and have a good edit of what’s posted - (both my writing and editing style have changed and Gold Rush is wordy in places it has no business being). Going to take the next week or so to do that and get back to the story that brought me to this community and even if it’s me and three other people reading it, I don’t mind - because I love these characters and want to see it through ❤️ 

Fics I Enjoyed This Week…

Shared Breaths by @frenchiereading I think I’m up to chapter six on this now, as of this week, complete fanfic! It’s a cute read of Frankie enrolling his daughter into Readers school and two having a magnetic back and forth that they can’t act upon until Frankie’s daughter is no longer in Readers class (boo school rules) and I can’t wait to see what happens when they’re finally able to be together! 

The Layover by @goodwithcheese How are we all doing? Have we all recovered from this chapter? Are we prepared for the epilogue that’s coming? This story has been a joy to read and I will honestly be revisiting this one with a permanent place on my fanfics to recommend list! 🙌

Talk Tonight  by @darkroastjoel Joel Miller. Delayed flight. One night in Paris. Did I mention Joel Miller and one night in Paris? This was a delight to get stuck into the opening chapter this week and I’m a suck for an OC. I’m really excited to see how the night plays out for Camila and Joel on the backdrop of Paris.

Late Night Texts by @mvtthewmurdvck Another series that had its last chapter this week and an epilogue on the way. This has all the hallmarks of a good rom-com and another that will be a re-read in the near future. I had an inkling of how this last chapter would play out, but rather than be predictable it keeps you on your toes to a very toe-curlingly sweet ending that will make you want to hug the screen.

Hungry Hearts | Independence Day by @atinylittlepain This is another that will always be on my permanent fanfic recommendation list. Things are reaching a peak between Cherry and Joel and I can't wait to see how things are going to come to heads between the two in the present day.

Delta Landscaping | Chapter 4 by @rhoorl Just realized I keep thinking this is chapter three and it’s chapter 4 (told you it’s one of those weeks 🤦🏻‍♀️) - anyway, another delight of a chapter from Jess and there’s so much to unpack here with the residents of Mulefall Court - so do yourself a favour and go take a read… or two! 

Supply & Demand by @wildemaven Between this fanfic, @rhoorl’s portrayal of Benny and the influx of Garrett Hedlund posts on my feed this week - I think I’m slowly being converted to the Benny side! This is a truly sweet one-shot that I don’t want to get too into here as it deserves a read to find out yourself how it plays out and how endearing Heidi’s Benny really is. Because even if you’re not a fan, you’re going to want to read more of him! Trust me 🥰

20/20 by @ladamedusoif This popped up on my feed this week and it’s always an instant re-read when it does as it has a place on my favourites list! Joel needs to get his eyes tested and the man needs glasses. However, he really doesn’t want them.

Fics I’m Looking Forward to Reading... My TBR List is still a work in progress, will share it when it’s done 💕

These two I was hoping to get stuck into this week, but mental headspace got away with me and wanted to make sure I gave them the attention they deserve because peep the premises for both! 🙌

Tempered in the Fire by @ladamedusoif Okay, so it’s a Blacksmith Din AU set some time after the Irish Rebellion of 1798 - the creativity in this synopsis alone is enough to have me mentally carving out some time this weekend to devour the first chapter.

Let’s Call this a Win Win by @jomiddlemarch Joel. OFC. No Outbreak AU. Sarah and Ellie at summer camp. Sign me up! Joel is dropping Sarah off at summer camp where he meets camp nurse Meghan. Did I mention that Joel is going to be working maintenance there too? I cannot wait to give this one the attention it deserves and find out what happens! 

Posts I Enjoyed This Week…

Pedro living his best life at a Beyoncé concert this week and everyone living for the pure joy of it. 

Things I’ve Enjoyed This Week…

Marry Me - I am a sucker for a rom-com, and I’m a sucker for a JLo rom-com. Throw in Owen Wilson with a batshit plot line that is absolutely unbelievable and you can just shut up and take my money (which Apple did because I bought it)

Something from Tiffany’s - this was on paper a ‘meh’ kinda concept, but I’m glad I gave it a chance as I adored every second of it and now have all the feels and ideas for seasonal one-shots and mini-series that are way above my ability to pull off lol

Discussing WIP’s and OC’s - got to indulge with both this week with some awesome mutuals about not only my own, but theirs too! It's always oo much fun hearing other people’s thought processes and bouncing ideas around. Highly recommend it!

This Week’s Song…

What's a rom-com without a good pop song? This was the bop of the week as I made my way through the week.

Hope everyone had a great week! Let me know if you have any good fanfic recs or your own lists to share! 💕 xx

[libertyreads]

November 2024 TBR--

I'm excited for my November reads which mostly consists of new releases/ARCs. I'm doing a very slow reread of one of my favorite books of all time which means Locke and Jean are spending November with me. I'm also finally reading another Hunger Games book for the first time. Let's get into the reads.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins-- This is going to be my first time reading the Hunger Games prequel. This one follows Coriolanus Snow as he mentors the female tribute from district 12 in the 10th Annual Hunger Games. I've heard some positive and negative things for this one so I am pretty nervous. I'm also usually not a huge fan of prequels coming out years after the original has finished.

Funny Story by Emily Henry-- Yes, I am now on the Emily Henry bandwagon. A couple months ago I read Happy Place and I am ready to get hurt again. I chose Funny Story as my next read since it follows a man and woman who are trying to save face in front of their exes by pretending online that they're together following humiliating breakups. I always love fake dating so don't even get me started. I'm so excited.

The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch-- This is the reread that I'm taking so completely slowly. I originally read this one in a week despite it being so dense because I was absolutely living for it. This time I'm only reading one or (at most) two chapters per day so I can really take the time to absorb it. The Lies of Locke Lamora follows an orphan who is raised to become a gentleman thief who charms people right out of their purses. There are aspects of found family and heists that just make my heart so happy. This is one of my favorite books of all time.

The Whispering Night by Susan Dennard (NetGalley ARC)-- I was shocked to find that I got approved for this ARC a couple of weeks ago. This one is going straight to the top of my reading priorities for the month since it comes out soon. This is the final book in the Luminaries series. We follow Winnie Wednesday who is looking forward to the Nightmare Masquerade which is a week long celebration of all things Luminary. But Winnie is confronted by a masked Diana and charged with an impossible task that threatens everything and everyone Winnie loves.

Against the Boards by Cynthia Gunderson (Kindle)-- My hockey romance for the month. I'm enjoying allowing myself to read a hockey romance every month and keeping this pattern going. There's hockey, there's romance, what's not to love? When Emma's controlling brother Sean tries to tell her who she can and can't date, Emma convinces his teammate Tyler to mess with Sean by pretending they're in a relationship for just one night. I assume that things spin out of control from there and the fake dating continues for longer than just one night. Also, I just now realized I'm reading two books this month with fake dating. You know what? I am not complaining.

Teen Titans: Starfire by Kami Garcia and Gabriel Picolo (New Release)-- After a bit of delay, we're getting the next graphic novel in the Teen Titans series. I don't know anything about Starfire, but we follow Kori Anders who has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and is asked to participate in a clinical trial with her sister that is designed to advance treatments for EDS. But during treatment, Kori begins to discover some strange powers that she's never had before. I enjoy these graphic novels so much and I'm excited to meet a new character and see how she ties into the overarching plot.

Games Untold by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (New Release)-- Am I a sucker for all things Inheritance Games? Abso-fucking-lutely. This is a collection of short stories and novellas in the world of The Inheritance Games. The synopsis on GoodReads includes: this collection "proves that when you love the way Hawthornes love, there is no going back." The story I'm most excited for, of course, is $3CR3T $@NT@. But anything new from this world is going to get read by me. It just is. I love the Hawthornes (and Avery and Libby).

[literaticat]

As an agent, how do you recommend authors handle review spaces? Most writers are also readers, but I understand it's probably looked down upon to go around giving 2-3 star reviews to who are essentially your colleagues. I enjoy having the data to look back on of my reads, but as I plan to be published in the future, I'm wondering if I need to make this private and find a private system.

A bit more broadly than your ask: In my personal opinion, writers may be readers, but reviewing spaces such as GoodReads, etc, are not for them. I would strongly suggest that for mental health purposes, authors not only NOT EVER go on GoodReads, but also block it from their computer like it is a naughty website. NSFW BABE. Don't look up your own reviews, don't look up your friend's reviews, for the LOVE OF GOD don't RESPOND to any reviews of your books or your friend's books you happen to see, and unless you have something glowing to say about a book that will uplift the author, for Pete's sake keep it to yourself. If you have potentially snarky things to say about a book or author, journal about it. Text it to the group chat. But don't post it.

As for your more specific ask: I totally understand wanting to keep book-reading data -- I do! I use the Reading List app, which is private. StoryGraph I just got but it feels like a nice interface, I'll be playing around with it, and I'd happily add books I'm reading, my TBR, etc -- but I would either keep my account private to whatever extent is possible, or I just wouldn't rate the books on that. Other people use cool personal spreadsheets, or cool notebooks. This is MY data -- I'm not keeping it to impress or inform anyone else, so why would it need to be public?

When I find books that I particularly adore, I'm delighted to post about them on socials, but I don't need or want to talk smack about books publicly, that would be totally inappropriate coming from me, and since I know and work with SO MANY editors, other agents, authors, etc -- There's pretty much NO WAY I could get away with that without inadvertently insulting somebody. And while you may be "aspiring" now -- the longer you stay in publishing spaces, the more people YOU will know and meet, too.

TRUE STORY from just this week: I was at a Little Free Library and found an old Sweet Valley High book - BEWARE THE WOLFMAN, #106. It has a hilarious jacket and cover copy, I had no idea that the Wakefield twins went through a paranormal "American Werewolf In London" era, I was obviously obsessed and posted about it on Facebook, with a pic of the front and back of the jacket. Now, this is a book that is WELL out of print, it was published when I was in high school thirty years ago, it was a friends only post and I'm not friends with the author, like, literally who would I be insulting if I made fun of this book? Oh -- well potentially my friend Dan, who chimed in immediately to say that he in fact wrote the funny jacket copy. My friend Elise, who is an agent now, but was Dan's boss in 1994 and in charge of these books. OH ALSO, I am friends with the publisher. Ahahahah OK! Yay! Luckily it truly is a bonkers book and they know that so it was all in good fun and haha teehee, but like -- it could have been WAY worse!

ANYwhoo, you asked what I think, that's what I think. This is just how I approach it. "As an agent" I would never tell my authors what they can or can't do with their lives - but this is MY philosophy: we're all here to SELL books, not bash them, so if you don't have anything nice to say, keep it to yourself, because believe me when I say, it's extremely upsetting for all parties when you give a book a shitty review and then are seated next to the author at a publisher dinner later. TRUST ME, I KNOW.

[mercerislandbooks]

My Mother, the Reader

I told my mom I was going to be writing about how much she fostered my own love of reading. She said, “You know, it all started in the library, when I had one of my first jobs as a page.” Back in the sixties, my mom was a teenager in the little desert town of Lancaster, California. I pictured my mom in her A-line dresses, pushing a library cart around to re-shelve books in the evenings. She said she got very distracted reading the titles of the books as she was alphabetizing them. Sounds like someone else I know, who also gets distracted reading the backs of interesting books that customers bring up to the register.

For as long as I can remember my mom read to us, me and my younger brother. She would read out loud to us on long car trips, books like Hatchet and The Fairy Rebel, complete with all the voices. Even though I was impatient because I could read faster on my own, I loved hearing a story unfold in her voice. We always had books in the house, either stacks from the library or gently worn paperbacks from the used bookstore or books ordered from the Scholastic Book Club. Mom put clear Contact paper on my paperbacks, the stuff that you use to line shelves, to make them last longer since I took them everywhere and read them to pieces.

She told me that at some point she couldn’t keep up with concurrently reading everything I was reading and had to just let it go. For birthdays and Christmas she would buy me the most recent (hardback!) books in whatever fantasy series I was obsessed with, lurid covers and all. When she needed recommendations for something new for me, she would go to Island Books and get advice from Cindy. I vividly remember her sending me Dorothy Dunnett’s Game of Kings my first year in college, thus kicking off my love for Lymond. When she chooses for herself, my mom often gravitates towards mysteries, especially ones with over-the-top titles. The winner so far is Pennies on a Dead Man’s Eyes. Nothing else about it but the title has been retained, but it still gives us a laugh. She read all the Sue Grafton mysteries, and she and my dad pass the Jack Reacher books by Lee Child between them. 

But she doesn’t just stick to one genre. She’s adventurous and wide-ranging in her reading. When she got into poetry, I remember collections of Neruda and Mary Oliver and Billy Collins around the house. On trips, she’ll always go to indie bookstores and ask the booksellers to recommend a local author or select something off the staff picks shelf. She reads the Seattle Reads Book every year. She’s willing to give nearly anything that sounds interesting to her a try. It inspires me to be more adventurous myself and venture outside my comfort genres.

Now, as a bookseller, I’m the one enabling my mom. I’ll bring her titles I think she’ll be interested in, or ones she’s asked me about. I pass on the books I’ve particularly loved, making sure her TBR is just as big as mine. Right now she’s catching up with the middle of Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series (I suspect she’s already read these, but she’ll happily read them again), and she just finished The Woman in the Room by L. Jane Hastings, a memoir of a female architect in Seattle that was written up in the Seattle Times. She’s got Percival Everett’s Erasure started, and several Rachel Linden books. She picked up Amy Tan's The Backyard Bird Chronicles. Her stack of started and unfinished-as-of-yet books is almost as tall as mine. I’m not sure if I can get away with giving her another book for Mother’s Day (unless there’s one she asks for). I feel lucky that I get to share this passion for books with my mom, and grateful for all the many ways she’s encouraged my love of reading throughout my life.

If you’re looking for a gift for Mother’s Day (coming up on May 12th), stop by Island Books to peruse our stacks of books, curated gift items and wide range of cards. And ask your mom — or the mother figures in your life — what they’ve been reading lately. The answer might surprise you!

— Lori

[theultimatenonbinarynerd]

March 2024 Reading Wrap Up

The Calendar

Another incredible reading month and I'm so glad I managed to keep my streak this time despite still recovering from illness. It's been a scifi packed month and I absolutely will do my best to fix that next month. I'm one of those people who want to do their best to diversify their TBR. I'd also dub this the Aftermath month as I decided to reread Aftermath to prep for reading Life Debt. And despite the still obvious flaws im so grateful I decided to give Chuck Wending a second chance.

The biggest excitement of this month is that I'm proud to announce that after three agonising months I finally finished Black Spire. When I re-read it in the future I can absolutely assure you that the read will be shorter. I don't know what happened it just took absolutely ages to read. It was a fairly decent novel and I adored the themes of Rebellion and Resistance. I just wish the other characters were fleshed out more as Vi and Archex are the only ones that are. 10th of March was the best day ever as I was just so glad to be finally rid of this side read as I have a whole block of other side reads I wanted to get too.

The High Republic comics are an absolute delight and I definitely want to get more of them in the future but they're still not my focus. The High Republic Adventures Vol.1 was incredible, I borrowed it off my brother and was really excited to read it and it was incredible. Lula and Zeen are an absolute power couple. The story telling was super enriching and fun. I definitely want to get my hands on Vol.2 sometime as I've also weirdly already read Vol.2. After I've read Fallen Star I definitely will need to re-read Vol. 3. I'm not suprised it took five days as that's normally how long comics usually take for me.

And then to finish off my side reads I managed to miraculously finish Vol.5 of the Animal Crossing New Horizons Manga. Vol.5 was really good and I loved how it incoperated the final 2.0 update and the dlc. Especially since Dark seems to be my reading mood preference I always love to incoperate a few lighthearted reads in there to save my shattered heart cos lord I need it, need it massively. This series is awesome and i'm happy it's gone on to have nine volumes but im definitely only sticking to eight of them thank you.

Then we have of course the Doctor Who Big Finish audio dramas. I'm very close to the end of The Eighth Doctor Adventures Series 1 now and have really enjoyed the series. It's gotten me deeply into Big Finish. Phobos and No More Lies were very fun and easy listens. I think unless it's a box set I'm definitely gonna be able to listen to single Big Finish stories in one day as you can tell by the calendar.

March has been fun but I really wish I'd read more than scifi and I hope April will be the chance to improve upon that.

March Stats

I'm using all my stats and log templates from LEEBEE_READS from now on as their all beautiful especially this flowery March theme. I've also got the hang of using it better so it looks neater. So here's a breakdown of all my stats for March from left to right.

I "read" 6 books in total this month. Four physical books and two big finish audio dramas. I didn't expect to read as much as I did in February due to missing my support group and getting another FNAF book off my friend but I shouldn't have been as I still have a lot of side reads I need to get through. Pages was good too as I didn't think I'd reach 1000 pages but I did. This March I read 1047 pages only 47 more than March 2023. I don't care about beating records but I still find that quite the achievement. For listening it went as well, I managed to listen to 2.43 hours. A number that will go up as I listen to the longer audios. We'll see what April brings but I'm very proud of myself.

Genre was very scifi this month. The only none scifi book I read was the Animal Crossing Manga which just cracks me up. Scifi is an amazing genre and I've love all the scifi stories I've listened too and read but I feel like it doesn't hurt now and then to go outside of the box. After hopefully getting to Brotherhood I have 3 none Star Wars books to help break this spell which should hopefully balance out the stats. So my genre's ended up being very simple with only Scifi, Fantasy, Video Games, Manga and Graphic Novel. 5 Scifi listens and reads is just mind blowing its definitely helped me understand and figure out what my favourite genre indeed is. With what I have planned for April I'm very curious how my genres will look.

Mainly reads like I said last time is budging as I'm into very adventurous books that are dark and also have mystery. I also still adore 300-499 page books and that's never gonna change but we'll see.

March was a very interesting month for moods as last year I only logged three moods but this year I've managed to log eight moods. Through out my reads and listens I've managed to pick up the moods, Adventurous, Tense, Mysterious, Lighthearted, Hopefully, Funny, Dark and Challenging which is in my opinion the most impressive streak of moods so far. Adventurous is always gonna take the top spot but im really happy at how balanced this chart is. I read a pretty Dark Comic in terms of The High Republic Adventures Vol.1 and then balanced it out with Vol.5 of The Animal Crossing manga series. People may want to read all dark reading month but I still think it's super important to balance things out with lighthearted stuff as Dark books are dark for a reason as they can be super heavy. Really curious about how April's stats will turnout.

Finally the Star Ratings which shocked me as for the first time ever I remembered quarter star ratings existed and rated too reads/listens 4.25 stars. In the future I'm definitely gonna try remember quarter star ratings and be more critical about how I rate books. I had two 4 star rated reads one being a re-read, two 4.25 star reads/listens as both were good but had flaws which meant it didn't quite deserve 4.5 or 5 stars and one 5 star read. That resulted in and average rating of 4.33 stars. Which is the same average rating I got a year ago. Haven't got an average rating below 4 yet but we'll see what happens.

Overall a very good month for stats I'm very intrigued to see what April shall bring.

Reads/Listens

Looking at this lineup is hilarious and amusing for me because you can tell the Animal Crossing Manga is the odd one of the group. It's giving and Peggy 🤣. I'm still proud of the lineup but I'm disbelief at how much sci-fi I've consumed.

Phobos and No More Lies were really good listens I'm super impressed at how talented the Big Finish team are. The Eighth Doctor Adventures Series 1 was definitely the best place to start as from Blood Of The Daleks it's only gotten better. I enjoyed both stories due to how experimental they were. No More Lies hit me right in the feels once the explanation for the timeloop was revealed and Phobos gobsmacked me at how dark it got. Judging on my journey I think I might enjoy the stories with orginal villians more.

I deserve a medal for how long it took me to read Black Spire I'm absolutely gobsmacked that it took me 42 days to finish this book especially since some of the chapters were short. Sure I took breaks so I could read my main reads and recover from being ill and it sending me into a reading slump. I did enjoy this book for the most part it was just a drag to get through. I'd still recommend it as it's themes are really deep and relevant for today. I loved the characters of Vi and Archex and definitely want to get my hands on the Phasma Audiobook so I can understand the story better. Good birthday present.

Oh the High Republic is my comfort franchise and I love it. I never planned on picking up the comics but when an opportunity presents yourself you take it. Very much enjoyed this volume and loved the themes of found family. Considering Zeen is queer it was very purposefully metaphorical that her friend betrayed her and disowned her after she had to out herself as a force user to save people. I also think it fleshes out the Nihil recruitment process and shows how easy it is to turn to the wrong people. I hope in the future I can get to reading Vol.2 but I'll definitely be re-reading Vol.3 of the High Republic Adventures that's for sure. Vol.1 was a delightful read and hit me right in the feels its well deserving of 5 stars.

Aftermath after mistakingly picking up the book as my first Star Wars read I was absolutely done with this novel. I knew I'd have to continue the Trilogy as a completionist but I was absolutely done with Aftermath as far as I was concerned. Having completely forgotten the events of the book though I knew it would be best to Reread Aftermath before I dug my teeth into Life Debt so I did and it helped a lot. Reading alongside Marc Thompsons narration on audio gave the book so much of the life it needed. It was a much more pleasant experience on Reread. I thought I'd hate it even more but the rating did not change. Infact it got me in the mood for reading Life Debt. Glad I gave Chuck Wending a second chance and I hope Empires End is even better than this book.

Finally Animal Crossing. One of my favourite video games and I think this manga series has not only faithfully adapted what made New Horizons charming but also actually added personality and life into the npcs and villagers. Vol.5 was a welcome suprise as I didn't think they'd add the 2.0 update and dlc into the series but its a very nice and welcome suprise. This manga series is just a nice breath of fresh air and I can't wait to get my hands on Vol. 6, Vol.7 and Vol.8. I seriously haven't enjoyed an entry in the series this much since Vol.2. Rumba does a wonderful job.

Conclusion

After the end of February's reading took a down turn I'm proud I managed to pick myself back up again. March was very interesting and I'm glad even if mainly Sci-fi that I managed to read and listen to a good bunch of stuff. I'm very optimistic for April and think it'll be just as good. I do know that the Calendar is for sure gonna be interesting.

If you want to see my full reviews for the audios and books featured in this post you can find me on The Storygraph and Goodreads.

Goodreads: Melody Soundy

Storygraph: melsage1823

Well this has been March's reading wrap up until next time...

-Melody-

They/Them

[libraryofjoy]

late to the ask game but for the end-of-the-year book asks:

4. Did you discover any new authors that you love this year?

6. Was there anything you meant to read, but never got to?

11. What was your favorite book that has been out for a while, but you just now read?

25. What reading goals do you have for next year?

Not too late, thank you!

4. There were a lot of authors I discovered for the first time this year (which is how I'm going to interpret this question, because I didn't always keep track of which books were debuts/new releases), but some of those whom I'm planning to read more from: Robin Wall Kimmerer, Shannon Chakraborty, and Louise Erdrich.

6. I have 9 different Libby TBR tags (one of which has 79 titles!), so yes, there very much were books I meant to read but didn't get to this year. I'd meant to read Journey to the West this year, but it looks like it'll be a few weeks before the audiobook is available so it might be January by the time I get through it.

11. I think maybe Kindred by Octavia Butler! I'd heard so much praise for Butler's writing but I went into this book without much context for the plot itself and it completely blew me away. I think her writing is so insightful and creative, and her characters have a multifaceted humanity and warmth even when the subject matter is really intense.

25. Next year I want to prioritize long books--in trying to get through a lot of books this year, I ended up avoiding audiobooks that were longer than 15 hours, so they've been adding up on my tags. I also want to take more time for poetry, historical texts, and other books that didn't fit neatly into a fiction/nonfiction binary.

[nerdby]

Ok, so I know that making pretentious posts about pop culture is kinda my thing, but I wanted to keep this thought to myself. Cause contrary to popular belief, I don't enjoy being pretentious. Like I don't like that I'm a know-it-all, but when I was a kid I usually only got positive attention from my teachers for being smart cause my parents were assholes and now here we are.

So in the Barbie movie Ken develops an obsession with horses before going back to Barbieland to overthrow the matriarchy and enact a 1950s-esque patriarchal society where all the Barbies were Stepford Wives. The reasoning behind this is because Westerns and cowboys were insanely popular in the US in the 1950s. That's also the same era in which President Dwight D. Eisenhower encountered the founder of The International Christian Leadership Abraham Vereide and decided to turn the US into a Christofascist police state with absolute bullshit like The Lavender Scare and Cointelpro. Though Vereide was kind of a puppy dog compared to his successor, Doug Coe.

These also coincided with a coup against the Iranian government that was carried by the US and UK governments. This coup toppled the Iranian government and in turn led to the 1970s Islamic Revolution which allowed extremist groups like Al Qaeda to rise to power.

If you want to read about these things, I recommend these books--

Also worth looking into is Abbie Hoffman's work as he literally dedicated his life to uncovering the existence of Cointelpro.

There are probably other people I could mention like Malcolm X -- his autobiography is phenomenal, by the way. I have a much longer list on my Goodreads TBR and if I ever figure out how to share that list on my cellphone I will. Bezos seems to have disabled that on the Android app, though that might just be my phone. I traded my iPhone in for a free phone to save money and the one they gave me is not exactly fancy. Currently saving up, so I can get a better model to transfer to the sim card to.

But that's what up with Ken and horses. It's just a reference to 1950s bullshit -- AKA John Wayne.

[thatinsufferablenerd]

Languishing in the Relentless Ache

The weather here is cool but cleared up from the rain we had last week. My husband started using our fireplace to keep our poorly insulated house warm without running up the gas bill. Our dogs like it. We all caught COVID again. Well, we’re not 100% sure it’s COVID since no one has gotten a test, but the symptoms line up and the misery is very, very real. It started setting in last weekend and has been kicking our asses since. My son spent three days home from school. All my energy has been focused on making sure he’s taken care of, that the bare minimum of housework is done, that our dogs go in and out and stay out of the litter boxes, things like that. My husband was affected differently and spent two days mostly asleep in bed. Between that and drumming up the courage to put out the call for a critique partner/writing buddy (and possibly finding one), I haven’t had the energy to do much. I don’t have the energy to be depressed about the election or worry about the actual nightmares I’m having at the decision to get a job. 

That being said, I am in the final chapters of the Arrancar saga of Bleach. The Big Bad has been defeated along with the other major players. I’m a little behind on my update thoughts and haven’t read much in the last few days being busy with other things. I’ve enjoyed the experience so much more in page form. I think anime is obligated to drag out fights a lot longer than necessary because they have a run time to fill and used to run week to week rather than the season model we get these days. I’ve noticed it less in more recent adaptations. Combat just feels snappier on page. I’ve learned that there’s a difference between watching fight choreography and watching UFC or HEMA (shout out to Scenic Fights on YouTube). It’s kind of the same in anime. I like a big dumb anime fight as much as anyone else, don’t get me wrong. When they hit, they really hit. I could name a dozen off the top of my head that are iconic and incredible for multiple reasons. But when they miss, they REALLY miss. Limited page space and chapter length really does help keep it from overstaying its welcome. 

Instead of reading anything else on my TBR, I made an author friend who generously let me read his books in exchange for my first draft. I’ve finished the first, barely started the second. Ruins of Ivy by Aaron Ramsby is book one in the Aurora Project series, Forgotten Steel is the second. Post-apocalyptic settings can offer quite a bit of material to explore. It’s a good opportunity for speculative biology, stories with themes of perseverance and the power of community, interrogating our relationship with the past or other institutions. Like other types of speculative fiction, it relies on worldbuilding and lore revealed throughout the story. Ruins of Ivy was a zippy read for me with approachable prose and some intriguing hooks that are keeping me engaged into book two. 

Making a friend with someone who’s a published author is always a treat. Most authors (at least self-published ones, in my experience) are happy to lend a helping hand to newbies or other up-and-comers. I’ve had more than one offer me encouraging words, compliment my work, give me some really helpful advice about the writing process or the publishing industry. In several cases, it’s led to free books too. Not as many lasting networking opportunities or friendships, though, but I’ll admit that’s partially my fault. I’m as bad at keeping friends as I am making them. I’m hoping to keep this friend. Having someone else believe in you is such a confidence booster. Sitting around thinking you write like a middle schooler on Wattpad and then having a stranger say you have an elegant, high brow style that inspires them to up their game? I cried. 

Aaron has been kind enough to look over my current project. While he’s currently not far into it, he has given me a lot to think about. That’s what’s taking up a lot of my time right now. Catching up on his books and talking nuts and bolts of prose to him. Well, that and being sick as a dog. It’s nerve wracking, of course. The constant critical questions and playing devil’s advocate. My knee-jerk reaction is panic and put up my boxing gloves, but I know he isn’t doing it to be an asshole. Critique is key to the editing process, and if I intend to publish, GoodReads reviewers will be way harsher than he could ever be. It’s easier now than it was at the beginning, and having reassurance helps. I wish I had more writing friends, though. Tolkien was lucky enough to have peers in two separate writing groups in his lifetime. That’s my dream. 

I have done a little bit of writing. Not a lot, but enough to say I wrote. A page or two. I’m more disappointed that I keep saying I need white board time and not getting it. I did get out my little one and jot some things down, but I need REAL time, with my thinking cap on, with notes and documents and research, like the old days. It’s harder when I have sick kids to care for. Other things have been taking up my time. Like sleeping. And crying over the new Dan Da Dan episode. 

Instead of rehashing in paragraph form all the good fucking good I watched YouTube this week, here’s a handy list: -Pop Culture Detective: “Human Nature, Hope and Ice Cream” 

-FD Signifier: “Edgelord Movies Finally BROKE ME” 

-Wrestling With Words: “If You’re Doing These 7 Things You’re Doing Worldbuilding Right” 

-The Legendarium: “What Makes Prose Good” (parts 1-3) 

-Tale Foundry: “The Kids’ Horror Spiral”

-Princess Weekes: “Main Character Syndrome and The Authenticity Trap”

-Curious Archive: “The Most Powerful Type of Worldbuilding” 

I know this post is much shorter than the last two, but I am very tired and sick. I’m looking forward to being better next week. 

Stay safe out there y’all. <3