Category: Misc.

Misc.

23 Books in 2023

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Salutations Chapterlings! It’s been a hot minute since we’ve sat down with one another, hasn’t it? I hope you’re doing well, staying hydrated and reading all of the books. Today I’m posting something I’ve never posted on my blog before. I know I said I wasn’t trying to pressure myself with reading or really make tbrs anymore because quite frankly, it really messes with my mood reading. However, this post is kind of an ‘in general’ year tbr post, in a way. Basically, books that I am and will be reading for the year of 2023. Some of these books I may have already read, some may be anticipated releases, and some may be arcs (or long overdue arc reviews) or recommendations from friends. Whatever the case may be, I wanted to share all of these books with you.

Without any further shenanigans and rambles, my 23 books I want to read in 2023!

✨ Starlings by Amanda Linsmeier ★★★★

This was an arc that I received back at the start of 2023 and has been on my anticipated 2023 releases list. I recently just finished this book and posted a review. While I won’t give any spoiler, I had a really fun time with this book and enjoyed many things about this book. Plus, if you love quotes like I do, so many quotes! There are so many!

✨ White Horse by Erika T. Wurth ★★★

I said at the very beginning of 2023, I was going to read this book, this year and I accomplished that! This book is unapologetically Native/Indigenous and a love letter to all urban and disconnected/reconnecting Natives out there. While there were things outside of the amazing themes of this book that hindered my reading experience, I love this book with my whole chest and encourage others to give it a chance.

✨ Dear Mothman by Robin Gow

This is an arc I’ve recently received and a book I plan on picking up very soon! This is a middle grade novel that follows a transgender main character who’s grieving and coming to terms with the loss of his best friend. In the midst of all of this, our main character, Noah starts writing letters to Mothman, in hopes that Mothman understands him and sets out to search for Mothman. If you’re new here, hi hello, I love monsters and cryptids. But also the cover is stunning and the synopsis has me very excited to pick this book up as soon as possible!

✨ Nanny for the Neighbors by Lily Gold

Now this book, I think I just hit the halfway mark within the pages. Yup, you guessed it, this is my current read! So my thoughts so far, I’m having fun! There are some difficult conversations that happen around the foster system and how it impacts children, what it means to be a new parent out of the blue, but there’s also steamy times and the real reason I picked it up is for the polyamorous representation. I’ve been trying to pick up more books that have polyam rep in them. So this hit my radar end of 2022, beginning of 2023. I’m excited to see where this book goes and if you love multiple povs, we get all four povs in this book!

✨ The Witch and the Vampire by Francesca Flores

While I need to update my GoodReads review, this is an arc that I need to get to soon! I have talked about this book in my 5 Star Predictions 2023 edition. All I know is the cover is stunning, the synopsis is intriguing, this is a Rapunzel retelling, and that’s all I want to know. I will hopefully be picking this up, hopefully sometime this month or in April, but I’m really excited for!

✨ Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree ★★★★★

This is on my backlog of reviews I need to write, but oh my goodness did I love this book with my whole chest! This was also on my 5 Star Predictions 2023 edition and this book didn’t disappoint. I was so immersed with the world and the characters. It made me miss D&D so freaking much. If you haven’t given this book a chance, it’s worth it. Plus, the second book was just announced!

✨A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger

Am I ever going to stop talking about this book? NOPE! Again, this is another 5 Star Prediction for 2023 and one of my most anticipated books I really want to read before this year ends. Darcie Little Badger is the first Apache author I have come across since entering the book community. I can’t begin to express how excited I am for this book and how much I know I’m going to fall in love with this book the same way I did with Elatsoe.

✨Bring Me Your Midnight by Rachel Griffin

Last year I absolutely devoured Wild Is The Witch while I was one vacation. I read it all in one day because I was so captivated by Griffin’s writing, the characters she wrote, and the world she built. When this book was announced, I rushed to preorder my copy and slam it onto my anticipated releases for 2023. This is not only a 5 star prediction read for me, but I’m just going to throw it out there now, it’ll probably be one of my top books of 2023, as well.

✨Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley

In 2023, I’m really trying to highlight more Native/Indigenous literature. And 2023 has some amazing books coming out by Native/Indigenous authors. This is one of those books! I’m so excited for this release. It’s releasing in my birth month and it’s my only read I actually have planned for the month of May. This is in my most anticipated releases for 2023 and I just know I’m going to love this book with my whole chest. Plus, the cover. Have you seen the cover?! STUNNING!

✨House of Roots and Ruin by Erin A. Craig

One of my most anticipated releases of 2023 is this book right here! I have been waiting, wondering if House of Salt and Sorrows was going to have a sequel and now we have our answer! I’m so excited for this release and the cover is beautiful. I haven’t read the synopsis, I want to go in knowing as little as possible, but this is the second book in the Sisters of Salt series. I haven’t seen on if this is just going to be a duology or a full series yet, but I’m really excited!

✨ Bad Cree by Jessica Johns

Keeping on the theme of Native/Indigenous literature, we have Bad Cree! I do have an arc copy of this book, but I also had to wait for my preorder to arrive. I ended up ordering the UK paperback cover and all I have to say is it’s gorgeous! I’ve been feeling my horror, thriller, and mystery books lately sop this book is right up my alley!

✨Tentacles & Triathlons by Ashley Bennett

Look, it’ll happen! Honestly, I had planned to read this in February, but life has a been a little bit of a whirlwind. I’m hoping to pick this up this month, hopefully. Either way, I loved Muscles & Monsters and I know I’ll love this one just as much!

✨ Greymist Fair by Francesca Zappia

Can we just take a moment to appreciate the cover of this book? Truly, it stole my breath the moment I first saw it. If I’m really being honest, I know nothing about this book except I’m intrigued and excited about it!

✨ The Moth Keeper by K. O’Neill ★★★★★

This has become my favorite graphic novel of 2023! K. O’Neill does it again by hitting the ball right out of the park! The artwork is absolutely breathtaking, the story itself is so moving, and even though I’ve finished this book, I’m still thinking about it. If you haven’t ordered this book and read it yet, you need to! I’m so glad I read it and as usual, I’m looking forward to the next book for O’Neill to release!

✨Hollow by Shannon Watters

You would think with how much I love spooky things, the Fall/Halloween season, adore Sleepy Hollow, that I would have read this graphic novel by now and put a review out for it long ago. NOPE! I’m very behind in my arc reviews, my backlog for reviews is kind of wild at the moment, and my mood reading has been taking me on a roller coaster ride. So this in pretty high up on my priority list!

✨City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab

Well… I guess I’m a Schwab stan now?! Honestly, when Gallant took me by storm and then The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue completely gutted me, on my knees ugly crying, not long afterwards – I knew there was no going back for me. I wasn’t expecting to fall in love with Schwab’s work the way I have. Truly, I thought I wasn’t going to connect with them, I thought her books were going to be added to my ‘books that were overhyped and didn’t live up to it’ list. I was very skeptical and so sure I wasn’t going to vibe with either of those books. I don’t know what magic happened, but the absolutely blessings! Now I want to read everything by Schwab and City of Ghosts is up next on my list!

✨ Broken Bonds by J. Bree

I’m back on my series kick with a new project in the works! I read a chapter sampler for Broken Bonds and it captivated me so much so that I lost all control, bought the whole series in paperback! Yup, that happened. So this is happening, I don’t know when, but it is.

✨ Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie

I’m not going to lie, I’ve been nervous on picking this book up. I’ve been hearing a lot of mixed things through the grape vine and now I’m nervous that I overhyped myself up about this book. I really, really want to love this book even more so because it’s one of my most anticipated books of 2023. Wish me luck because I’m scared!

✨ The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshni Chokshi

This is another book that I’m a bit nervous about. I’ve been hearing a lot of mixed things through the grape vine and now I’m nervous to pick this book up. I’m still excited about it, but I do wonder if I overhyped the book up. I do have an audiobook and a physical version of this book. If you’ve read this book or listened to the audio, please let me know your thoughts on which you prefer more!

✨ Mermaids Never Drown: Tales to Dive For edited by Zoraida Córdova

I want more anthologies! Plain and simple! Back in the beginning of 2022, I read Reclaim the Stars: 17 Tales Across Realms & Space and had a blast reading it! This year, I want more anthologies because I miss them. So when this anthology was announced and I got wind that Darcie Little Badger is one the authors, I started researching anything I could find on this book. There are so many incredible authors lined up for this anthology and I have a mighty need to read this book immediately!

✨ Sisters of the Lost Nation by Medina

Not just more Native/Indigenous literature, but also more horror, thriller mystery genre goodness! I’m very excited about this book to release. Honestly, I have no idea what to expect. I have some thoughts, but I don’t want to get ahead of myself in case I end up spoiling it. Just know, I really want to read this especially for the fall! It seems like the perfect fall/winter read!

✨Not So Much Appreciated by Clio Evans ★★★★★

I was so excited for this release and it’s no surprise I ate it up! Honestly, I enjoyed the series as a whole. You can find my full series review HERE. This book was such a bittersweet way to conclude this series, but it has me excited for the future. I’ll be keeping my eyes opened for more books from Clio Evans in the future!

✨ Fox Snare by Yoon Ha Lee

Finally! FINALLY! The cover for this book was announced back in January and I have been grasping at straws for any inch of information I can get about this book. I have fallen in love with this series and I’ve been trying to keep up with it as much as possible. Last year, I was blessed to have received an arc of Tiger Honor and adored it! I think I’m going to absolutely love Fox Snare, but sadly this book won’t be out till Fall 2023. So we have a bit of a wait before we can dive back into this world!

We have finally made it to the end, friends! We did it! I don’t know why I thought this was going to be a short list, but I really love the way this post turned out. I’m really excited for what this year has in-store, reading wise. If you’re planning on reading 23 books in the year of 2023, what are some titles you plan on reading? Are you anticipating the release of any of these titles? Come chat about it in the comments below! Until next time friends, I hope your reading plans are going well, you’re staying hydrated, and as always, I love you! ♥

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Misc.

2023 Reading Goals & Reflecting On 2022

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It’s that time once again! For… GOALS & REFLECTION!

Salutations Chapterlings! How has the new year been treating you far? Are you remembering to stay hydrated and to take breaks? I hope so, you’re worthy and deserve some self-love! Today friends, we’re talking about a post that I’ve recently started doing on my blog more recently. Yes, I’m talking about those past year reflections and the new year goals! This year I’m going to keep things more related to books because I’ve actually been doing a lot better with my more personal goals and don’t feel the need to have them listed this year. So if you enjoy reflecting and goal setting, pull up a chair with me, get cozy with a cup of hot cider, and lets get into it!

Please note: If you’d like to skip the 2022 Reflections, scroll on down to the 2023 Book/Reading Goals!

2022 Book/Reading Reflections

At the beginning of 2022, I set so many goals, book wise and content creation wise. Out of all five of those goals, I have actually completed at two of them! Those two being tbr related and arc related. Despite the chaos of 2022, throwing me for loops, I was able to still make tbrs. Though I didn’t always post about my tbrs, here on my blog or on Insta, I was still making sticky note tbr lists. These tbr lists were kept short (all of them except my November 2022 tbr which did make it onto the blog & Insta). I love making tbrs and that was something I really focused on because I really love making a tbr, deciding on the books to read, planning buddy reads, etc… And in 2022, I was really trying to surround myself with things that I love, enjoy, and what bring me happiness. So tbrs was a big success!

The other goal I managed to accomplish was choosing arcs more carefully! Honestly, I was surprised I was able to manage this. Out of all the goals I had set in 2022, this was the one I thought I’d never be able to succeed. I always get so excited about books and the opportunity to read new books, the possibility of discovering new authors, etc… However, I somehow managed it! I have only been requesting arcs for books that I’m really excited about like anticipated releases, books I was planning to buddy read with friends, or books that really spoke to my current reading preferences. This is excluding Native/Indigenous literature I was being reached out to for reviewing. I exclude this for two reasons: One, a lot of those books were final copies and final copies don’t fall in the ‘arc’ category & Two, I am automatically accepting anything that is Native/Indigenous literature or by Native/Indigenous authors. So those are the reasons why Native/Indigenous literature is excluded from being factored into accomplishing this goal. That aside, I managed to only requests about ten to fifteen arcs this year, in total. Now realistically, I probably requested closer to twenty books, but some of my requests were rejected. So those books aren’t counted due to not actually landing in my e-arc library. So I’m really proud of myself! Before I usually requested anything the intrigued me and now I’m more selective and picky about what I’m requesting.

Even though I only managed to achieve two out of my five goals, I’m really proud being able to achieve them. 2022 had a lot of stuff going on which I feel like ever since 2020, that’s just my new normal. But in 2022 I really tried to prioritize my book stuff and I really tried to focused on those goals of mine. For 2023, I really really want to focus those goals and hopefully this time in 2024, I’ll be able to say I did even better!

2023 Book/Reading Goals

We made it! Yes, we made it to the most exciting part of this post, goal setting! This section is going to be a slight combination with some content creation stuff sprinkled in with the reading goals. I want to make these goals realistic and achievable for 2023 and I want to be a little gentler with myself, not add so much pressure to the things I want to do. Granted, this is easier said than done, but either way, I’m really excited about these goals!

➸ If It Doesn’t Make You Feel Good, DNF It!

I have a terrible, terrible habit of forcing myself to finish books for the review, even if it throws me into a reading slump, gives me severe burnout, or physically makes me sick or upset. I did this with Ninth House, Mexican Gothic, and most recently, A Taste of Gold and Iron and The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires. While these are great examples for books that fall on the middle line for me (two/three star ratings, loved some things & disliked some things), these are all books I should have dnf’d, moved onto something else, and instead of doing that I did what I typically do when in this situation… forcing myself to push through it. *insert cricket noises here* Yeah, yeah… If you’re making a face or saying ‘I have so many questions’ then yes, this is not good or healthy behavior. Reading is supposed to be fun and enjoyable, not something you force yourself to do or push yourself with. So going into 2023, I want to be better about books that I’m reading. While I don’t mind having books that are three stars or lower (it happens, not every read can be five stars), I want to do better and stop reading the book if I’m not having fun or start feeling exhausted with that book. 2023 is the year of DNFing is in charge, TBRS BEWARE!

➸ Smaller TBRs

If my November 2022 TBR taught me anything, it’s that I still go too hard with my tbrs. If you’re like me who gets excited about books or the books you’re going to read each month, one of two things will happen to you. One, you get so excited about all the books, new releases and books from the previous year, you want to pile all the titles your most excited for on that monthly tbr. And Two, you get so excited by all of the books in your library, on your tbr cart, in your e-arc library that you get overwhelmed, then put a bunch of titles on your tbrs without seeing if they’re titles you really want to get to, and then you don’t read any of them because you’re overwhelmed, and you wanted to read another title instead. I know the feeling all too well. So this year I want to make my tbrs smaller so they’re more manageable, more achievable, and more enjoyable. More enjoyable, less pressure to read EVERYTHING!

➸ TBR Jar/Wheel Time!

With prepping to move, I want to work through as many of the books in my library I haven’t had the chance to get to in 2022. While I was hitting a nice chunk, I want to continue to keep this up going into the new year. This will allow me to work through my library, it’ll help with weeding out books to keep or potentially get rid of to make room for the future. Originally, I did have a tbr mug at one point, but that mug ended up shattering and since then I haven’t replaced it. I haven’t decided if I’ll get a tbr jar or use a new mug, or maybe this time I’ll try to find a wheel/randomizer, but whatever decide, it’ll be dedicated to helping me work through physical books.

➸ Bullet Journaling

This is all new territory for me. While I’ve been someone who has journaled throughout my life, the only time I use a notebook or notepad is when taking reading notes for current reads. However, this year I want to try my hand at bullet journaling for reading. I think this will be a fun, creative way to track tbrs, reading progress, and even be good for aiding with mental health. I am excited that at the time of typing this, I have a journal and new markers (House of Earth and Blood notes wrecked three of my markers) are on their way. I’ve even started looking into washi tape and already been thinking about layouts for January. Either way, this is something I really want to give a chance to and see how it goes!

And those are all my goals for 2023! I know it wasn’t a lot of goals. I think this year’s goals might be slightly shorter than last year’s, but either way I’m excited for them. One of the things I’m trying to do better in 2023 is to not overwhelm myself or make things feel unachievable. So going with goals that cater towards that goal feel really good. Have you set any goals for the new year or tried any of these above? Let’s chat about it in the comments below! Until next time, I’m wishing you all a lovely day! 💚

✨ Yearly Goals: 2020| 2022

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Misc.

5 Star Predictions 2023

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Salutations everyone! I hope you’ve been kicking the new year off with some amazing books and if not, that’s okay and valid, too! Today, I’m bringing back the 5 star prediction post. I feel like I do one of these every year, but it usually gets post in the middle of the year. I’ll be honest, this is a bit of solid tbr for the whole year and why I wanted to post this now while the new year is freshly starting. Of course, I’ll be reading other books this year. I mean, there’s so many amazing books that are slotted to come out in 2023 and as usual, I’m trying to play catch up with books from 2022. With all of that being said, all of the books listed here are ones that I’m really excited about and ones that I think I’m going to absolutely fall in love with. Truly, truly, I believe 2023 with be a year of amazing reads that I just end up adoring!

➼ A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger
November 23, 2021 by Levine Querido

✨ Elatsoe ★★★★★

This book should come as no surprise to anyone. Darcie Little Badger has become one of my favorite authors and is an author I constantly anticipate books from. So when I stumbled upon this book, I instantly knew my heart was going to feel so full. I have so much excitement surrounding this book and hopefully I’ll be getting to this book soon!

➼ Belladonna by Adalyn Grace
August 30, 2022 by Hodder & Stoughton

With the second book releasing in 2023, I want to make sure I finally read the first book! I have been anticipating this book since 2022, but sadly I never got around to reading it. So I want to make an effort that in 2023, I read this one and instantly hop into the sequel!

➼ Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
November 8, 2022 by Tor Books

This book looks like the perfect, wholesome, cozy read! I’m so excited to dive into this book! As a lover of DnD and RPG games, I just know that this is going to make my heart so full. Plus, have you seen the cover? It looks so cute and I’m excited to see this romance flourish!

➼ Not So Yours Truly (Warts & Claws Inc., #4) by Clio Evans
December 6, 2022

If you haven’t noticed by now, I’ve been flying through this series, having a fantastic time along the way! So it should come as no surprise by the fact that this ebook is making an appearance onto this list. I’m so excited for this one in particular because it’s going to be following the sibling of one of the characters we’re introduced to early on in the series. And she’s a healer and if you didn’t know, I’m always a healer in any of my RPGs, LARPs, or DnD sessions! So I’m bursting with excitement for this one!

➼ Song of Silver, Flame Like Night (Song of the Last Kingdom #1) by Amélie Wen Zhao
January 3, 2023 by Delacorte Press

By now you should know that this is one of my anticipated books for 2023. Not only did this stunning cover pull me in, but you know I’m absolutely weak for books involving dragons. However, this book is also based of Chinese mythology and I will always charge head first towards anything that’s mythology or a retelling. And if that didn’t sell you on this book, it’s going to be a duology! Look, I’m just really excited about this book and can’t wait to dive head first into it!

➼ White Horse by Erika T. Wurth

I’m so upset that I didn’t get to read this book in 2022. Not only is one of my goals for 2023 to highlight more Native/Indigenous literature, but one of my goals is to read this book. This synopsis completely sucked me in and I have been eager to read this book. Sadly, the end of 2022 didn’t give me the chance to read. Mark my words, I will read this book in 2023. It’s going to happen!

➼ Nanny for the Neighbors by Lily Gold
June 7, 2021

When I first heard about this book, I was excited. However, when I found out this is not only a reverse harem, but we get polyamorous representation, I was bursting at the rims with excitement to read this book. I don’t want to know too much about this book, but I’m excited for it. Also, the author is self-published and if you were looking for more authors who are self-publishing then you should definitely put this author on your radar!

➼ The Vampire and the Witch by Francesca Flores
March 21, 2023 by Wednesday Books

Remember what I said about loving retellings? Well, here’s a retelling to add to you list! While I didn’t mention this on my anticipated books for 2023, this is in fact one of the books I’m anticipating for 2023. This book is not only suppose to have lesbian rep, but this is a Rapunzel retelling with a paranormal twist. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m really intrigued and I think this is going to be a book I’m absolutely going to love!

➼ Mermaids Never Drown: Tales to Dive For by Zoraida Cordova
September 26, 2023 by Feiwel Friends

Look, if you don’t know my love for anthologies by now, let this be the sign that tells you I do! I’m both excited and conflicted. I’m not conflicted about the book itself, I’m conflicted on if this book will be my downfall or not. I say that because I have yet to find an anthology that I’m absolutely head over heels for. While I have high hopes for this book and have a strong desire to love this anthology, I wonder if I’m over-hyping myself. Either way, I’m slapping this book on this list because I really want to believe I’m going to love this book and this will be the anthology, my first anthology, that receives five stars!

➼ The Luminaries (The Luminaries #1) by Susan Dennard
November 1, 2022 by Tor Teen

I’m so excited about this book! I was teeter-totting back and forth on whether or not to take the plunge and read this book. After reading Caro’s Favorite Books of 2022, I was convinced that I needed to pick this book up! I love a good paranormal book and this one sounds right up my alley. This synopsis has me so intrigued and excited to see how the story will unfold.

I feel it in my heart, 2023 is going to be a year of many amazing reads! Looking at this list, I’m excited for not only the books I’m anticipating for 2023, but the books that I have yet the chance to get to. This list is only ten of my five star predictions. There are so many more books that I’m eager for and have high hopes for. However, on a more serious note, I will say that with the strikes happening with HarperCollins, making this list and thinking about my future tbrs has been difficult. And I want to emphasize that while the strikes are happening, all my reviews and reading of HarperCollins titles have come to a halt. I’m checking each book I put on any of my lists or tbr lists very thoroughly, and hoping that the current strikes with HarperCollins come to an end soon, in favor of the workers. With that all said, I hope you enjoyed this small list of ten five stars predictions. If any of these titles are on your predictions for the year or you have some titles not on my list, come chat with me in the comments below! Until the next post, Chapterlings, I hope 2023 is being gentle with you and you’re staying hydrated, resting well, and having some tasty snacks! 💚

✨ 5 Star Predictions: 2019| 2020| 2021| 2022

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Misc.

Most Anticipated Books 2023

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I’m finally getting this blog post out! When I tell you I feel majorly accomplished by this post, I mean, I feel really darn good right now! I feel like I haven’t talked about books I’m eager to read, anticipated releases, or anything of the sort for so long. And you know, disappearing for almost (not quite) two years will do that to you. However, I’m hoping that if this first week of 2023 has said indicated anything, I’m trying to do better this year. Shoutout to my amazing friends for helping me catch up with the 2023 books being released for the full year. They’re true blessings and I’m so, so grateful for them. As of today, January 4th of 2023, I’m going to share eight of the my thirty-three (possibly more) anticipated books for 2023. I’m really excited, you might be able to tell, but I hope you’re just as excited to see this list! Enjoy, friends! ♥

➸ Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley
May 2, 2023 by Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

Going forward into 2023, as a Native reader, I want to keep highlighting Native/Indigenous authors and their book. Angeline Boulley has been on my radar for a while now. I already have one book by her that I’m hoping to read this year and I’m hoping to get my hands on a copy of Warrior Girl Unearthed so I can do a dedicated post to both books by this author. Plus, the cover is absolutely stunning and reading the synopsis… my soul isn’t ready!

➸ Not So Yours Truly (Warts & Claws Inc. Series # 4) by Clio Evans
December 6, 2022 by author

This is the only book on this list where the book is already out. However, I really wanted to include this book on my list because I’ve been loving this series. I’ve been having a fun time, enjoying the characters, and of course, monsters! I’ve already read the first two books in the series and at the time of this post going up, I’m working on book three. And I’m hoping, fingers and toes crossed, I finish the whole series this year!

➸ Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie
January 24, 2023 by Redhook

I am so FREAKING excited about this book’s release! I’ve barely heard anyone talking about this book and trust me, I think more readers need to put this on their radar. The synopsis alone pulled me in and I’m hoping to be chilled to my core. The gorgeous cover aside, the little bread crumbs we get from the synopsis sounds like everything I want in my horror book and I just have the biggest need for it.

➸ Bring Me Your Midnight by Rachel Griffin
August 1, 2023 by Sourcebooks Fire

I read Wild is the Witch during the summer of 2022 and since then I have been craving more books from this author! I love Rachel’s writing, the way this author builds the worlds and characters, and I can’t begin to express how excited I am to dive into a new book by her. And can we take a moment to address this cover? I adore this cover and I didn’t know I needed a cover like this until I saw it. When I tell you my breath hitched, oh I was choking on air, friends! I was so captivated and after reading the synopsis, I just knew I needed more.

➸ A Hunger of Thorns by Lili Wilkinson
April 18, 2023 by Delacorte Press

I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about this book. Honestly, the cover is the thing that captivated me more than anything else. However, after reading the synopsis, I’m so excited and also realizing that I’m anticipating a lot of witchy, paranormal books in 2023. The cover is absolutely gorgeous, but I’m really excited to read this book. Out of everything I could take away from the little itty-bits I’ve come up with, the magic has me fascinated and I really want to know more. Plus, does the moth on the cover of the book actually tie in to the things in the book, I need to know.

➸ Song of Silver, Flame Like Night by Amélie Wen Zhao
January 3, 2023 by Delacorte Press

By the time this post is going up, this book will have already released. HOWEVER! Will this stop me from talking about it? No. Will I continue to tell everyone about this book? Abso-freaking-lutely! I have been anticipating this book since November 2022. Dragons, freaking dragons, and always dragons. You want to know how to make me fall head over heels for your book? Dragons. That’s all I needed to know and I was sold. Dragons aside, the last part of the synopsis really sunk it’s claws in me and after that I instantly preordered this book. So I’m really hoping to start this book soon because truly, I can’t wait to dive in!

➸ House of Roots and Ruin by Erin A. Craig
July 25, 2023 by Delacorte Press

I absolutely fell in love with House of Salt and Sorrows back in 2019. I gave it five stars and have been waiting for any inkling of news that involved a sequel to the book. Of course, I kind of disappeared from the book community for like a year or so and a lot of my intense researching and deep diving on books went onto a back burner. Flash forward to now and I’m just finding out about this book… NOW. Literally, I just found out about the night or so before drafting this. I have been so ready and my excitement can’t be contained since this knowledge has planted itself in my brain.

➸ Bad Cree by Jessica Johns
January 10, 2023 by Doubleday Books
ARC was given by NetGalley & Doubleday Books in exchange for an honest review.

The arc gods have smiled upon me and blessed my e-arc galley with a copy of this book! I’m very privileged to have received an arc of this book and I’m so excited to read this. Crows, freaking crows! I’m so excited to have a mystery thriller that has crows as symbolism or a potential role in the book. That aside, this is a book by a Native author and the book as a whole is Native/Indigenous. Again, this year I’m trying to unapologetically go really hard for Native/Indigenous literature and so you’re going to see a lot of them pop up on tbrs or see me talking about them. But this particular book, I’m really excited about it. This is a supernatural, mystery thriller book and the synopsis alone had me vibrating with excitement to read. Truly, 2023 is blessing us with some amazing books and I just had to tell you about this one. I think this book is going to be everything and I’m calling it now, five star prediction, favorite of the year, and top books of 2023. There, I did it and I can’t go back!

➸ Where Darkness Blooms by Andrea Hannah
February 21, 2023 by Wednesday Books

I wanted to list an honorable mention here, near the end of the post. I found out about this book in the autumnal season of 2022 and this became one of my first 2023 anticipated releases. As always, I’m a very sentimental soul and the sunflowers on the cover are what lured me in. This book took me by surprised and blew a lot of my predictions out of the water. If you love small town vibes, buried secrets, and characters that contain multitudes then I want to recommend this book to you. I really enjoyed my time reading it and finished my arc copy in two days. So if that tells you anything, I hope you’ll check it out and let me know your thoughts!

Okay, Chapterlings! Those are just a small portion of the books I’m anticipating or excited for in 2023! I have quite a few books on my radar and maybe you’ll see some reviews for those books coming soon. And hopefully this year I’ll be better at reading my 2023 releases because after disappearing for a year or so, playing catch up has been hard, and a struggle. Please let me know in the comments below if any of these books are on your radar for 2023 or let me know some of your anticipated releases. I’m constantly on the hunt for books to fall in love with and get obsessed over! I hope you’re staying hydrated and remembering to take little breaks, and until next time, I love you bunches! 💚

✨ Anticipated Books: 2019| 2020| 2021| 2022

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Misc.

My Favorite Books From 2022

ChapterMalliumpkin7 Comments

Salutations Chapterlings! I hope 2023 has been treating you with kindness and gentleness! 2023 has only been here for a small handful of days and has already been kicking off with a bang for me. Today, yes today, I wanted to highlight some of my favorite books I read in 2022. I know this isn’t a typical post I do. I think you’re used to my reviews or seeing hauls, maybe the ever anticipated monthly tbr post. However, in 2023, many changes are happening including giving some new posts room to exist. That includes today’s post! I’ve been wanting to make a post like this since 2020 and I thought this is the perfect time to give this a chance. So without any further jibber-jabbing, here’s a recap of some of my absolute favorite reads of 2022! 💚

➼ Garlic and the Vampire by Bree Paulsen

✨ Garlic and the Witch ★★★★★

I’m so thankful for Destiny recommending this book to me because I fell madly in love with it. This little graphic novel is so charming, has amazing anxiety representation, and was the perfect read to really kick off 2022! If you’re looking for some graphic novels to read this year, definitely put Garlic and the Vampire on your graphic novels adventure!

➼ Once Upon A K-Prom by Kat Cho

This is my first book I’ve ever read by Kat Cho and I absolutely love it! If you didn’t know, I got really into k-pop back in 2020 after a really bad car accident and since then it’s had a special place in my life. Though I don’t share or talk about it often. So when I saw that this book was coming out, I instantly wanted to read it. Two things that are close to my heart; reading and k-pop combined, I had to read it. This was probably one of my top five favorite reads of 2022 and honestly, I’m excited to pick up more literature by Kat Cho since reading this book.

➼ Her Soul to Take by Harley Laroux

✨ Her Soul for Revenge ★★★

This book really surprised me. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous going into this book because of the hype I had been hearing and seeing around it. Not to mention. sometimes I can go into a book with a bit of a bias because demons, cryptids, etc… are keywords for me and I get overly excited about that. However, I’m pleased to say this is one of the few hyped books I’ve read that I absolutely loved! Do I think this book will be for everyone, no. Do I think anyone who has similar reading taste to me give this book a chance? Yes, yes I do!

➼ Wild is the Witch by Rachel Griffin

I was on vacation when I received an arc copy of this book and I devoured it in one whole day. I was so captivated by the setting, modern day witches, and just everything about this. The magic was stunning, the freaking owl in this book was my favorite character, and the romance was chef’s kiss. I really enjoyed my time reading this book, I can’t recommend it enough, and the cover is absolutely stunning!

➼ The Woman in the Woods and Other North American Stories edited by Kate Ashwin

I have been trying to highlight Native/Indigenous literature a lot more and read more of. So when I found out about this anthology, I was desperate to get my grabby hands on it. And thank the NetGalley gods because my request was granted! I absolutely loved this anthology! It was so wonderful to pick this book up and see so many stories that I recognized. It was just everything and made me really soft, and squishy!

➼ The Sacrifice by Rin Chupeco

Welcome to another book that would be listed in my top five favorite reads of 2022! Rin Chupeco has easily become one of my new favorite authors. There’s something about her writing that I just get sucked into and it makes me devour any of her books in such a short time. I was really excited about this book because it has to do with colonization, gentrification, and how when foreigners come to a place that isn’t their own, they constantly demand and take. That aside, the mythology of this book was so captivating! I absolutely loved that I kept falling down rabbit holes of research. It was just a fantastic time and if you’re a horror/thriller lover then I definitely recommend putting The Sacrifice on your radar!

➼ Gallant by V. E. Schwab

2022 was the year of reading my first V.E. Schwab book! Yes, yes it’s true! Gallant was my first book by Schwab that I ever read and honestly, I might be turning into a Schwab fan. Gallant really touched a part of my soul that I wasn’t expecting to have touched. Honestly, I was kind of nervous going into this book because I was hearing a lot of mixed things about this book. But I fell in love and I sobbed. This book was beautiful and now that I’m reading The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, I’m just hooked and emotional.

➼ The Adventure Zone: Petals to the Metal by Clint McElroy, Griffin McElroy, Justin McElroy, Travis McElroy, & Carey Pietsch

✨ The Adventure Zone: Here There Be Gerblins ★★★★★
✨ The Adventure Zone: Murder on the Rockport Limited! ★★★★★

Look, I read a lot of graphic novels during 2022! It couldn’t be helped and plus, you know I’m an absolute gremlin for graphic novels and manga! And it should be no surprise that I’m continuing on with this series. I really love the Adventure Zone series. I know there’s a podcast for this series, but the graphic novels have just been a true blessing! They have been so good for my mental health and the times I’ve gotten slumpy, and this one might just be my favorite of the series as a whole.

Wow wow wow! I’m really proud of this post and looking back at all the amazing reads that I read has been such a lovely thing to do. It was really nice to go back through and read each review individually. I’m all soft and squishy now! Honestly, I would have listed more, but it would have been a whole lot of comics or graphic novels. Plus, I have a super secret post in the works and I couldn’t list two of the books because of that post. I hope you all enjoyed this post, though! Maybe you found a book that you want to read or maybe you’ve read some of these books. Either way, come chat with me in the comments below about some of your favorite books of 2022! Until the next post, I hope you’re staying hydrated and kicking the new year off with some fantastic books! 💚

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Misc.

Favorite Non-Bookish Things 2022

ChapterMalliumpkin4 Comments

At the end of every year, as a new blog tradition, I always try to write down at least ten things that have helped make a year better or perhaps helped make the year more tolerable. Basically, the things that allowed me to keep my sanity instead of descending into madness. Each year, these things can vary from things that brought me great joy to things that have brought me great comfort during the year. 2022 became a year of discovering that there was a lot of toxic things in my life and I spent the majority of 2022 cutting those things out completely. Also, I spent a lot of that time really making an effort to work through the scars that were left by a lot of those toxic things. Needless to say, by the time December hit, I have been exhausted, burned out, and I had to retreat into my gremlin cave quite a bit. So apologies in advance for just disappearing out of nowhere. I promise, we’ll sit down at a later time and catch up, a life update, but for now, enjoy these ten things that made a difference during 2022.

➸ 1. Squishmallows

I talk about mental health, chronic illness, and stuffed animals A LOT. All the time, actually. In 2022, I discovered Squishmallows and as someone who has sensory issues, severe anxiety, permanent PTSD, and more, these little plushies have been a big changer for me. They’ve helped make traveling by car a little easier, they’ve helped with talking and communicating with others during a flashback or helped with sleep during a night terror, etc… I know many people may not understand or maybe you do because you also like stuffed animals. They’ve really been making things so much better for me and I had to make sure they took the first spot on this list.

➸ 2. Weighted & Electric Heated Blanket

As I mentioned above, I have chronic illnesses, chronic pain and endometriosis to be exact, and I’m always looking for ways to help manage my levels of pain outside of medication. Enter my wedding anniversary present from my spouse. This has been a changer for my pain levels. While this doesn’t fully get rid of the pain, it makes things a little more tolerable when the pain is incredibly high. The weight of this blanket also helps with my sleeping as well. If you like weighted blankets or you use a weighted blanket to help with anxiety, sleeping pattens, or to help aid with night terrors then you might be interested in this blanket. I really love mine and it’s helped a lot. So I had to put it on this list.

➸ 3. Crystals

Crystals! Yes, crystals! In some of my book posts, you may have seen some crystals popping up. I have always been a lover and collector of crystals, but this year I’ve been rebuilding my collection due to having a lot of my pieces stolen from me. So I’ve been rebuilding and honestly, I forgot how much I loved searching for particular pieces, and then finally getting those pieces. While this has been a very emotional, soul quaking thing to do and work through, I’ve been enjoying my time searching, hunting, and finding. I’ve missed stepping foot in crystal shops and connecting with others who enjoy crystals. It’s been emotional, but I’ve been enjoying many parts of this process and it’s been a big part, since the summer of 2022.

➸ 4. Cozy Grove

As you may or may not know, I absolutely love gaming! I play a wide plethora of games from Dead By Daylight to Cyberpunk 2077, all the way to the cozier, more casual games like Cozy Grove! If you’re a lover of Animal Crossing or even Stardew Valley, I have to recommend this cozy, casual game. I have recently been reconnecting with my love of Cozy Grove and helping the bear spirits on this island. After the developers released the dlc, I have been playing as much as possible. It surprised me how much I missed this game, but it’s the perfect game for when my brain has very little brain power and I don’t have the mental capacity to read anything. I do want to emphasize that this game is a day based game. There’s only so much you’ll be able to do, like Animal Crossing. If you end up picking this game up or checking it out, definitely let me know your thoughts and which bear spirit is your favorite!

➸ 5. Coral Island

Another game! Coral Island has been another game that’s really nice to curl up with and decompress after a rough day. Coral Island has easily become one of my favorite games. It might even become one of my top ten favorite games. There is a wide plethora of things to do in this game, but the true highlight of this game is the diverse cast! There are so many diverse characters in this game like single, romanecable characters, body diversity, characters with scarring, a character with stretch marks, a plethora of characters of color, and so much more! This is one of the most diverse games, especially farming sim wise, I’ve seen be put into production. Now, this is an early access game which means the developers are still working on the game, still adding things, etc… So the game isn’t fully released yet, but if you’re a gamer, a farm simulator lover, or a casual game lover then you need to put Coral Island on your radar!

➸ 6. Waterloo Sparkling Water

I don’t know when I started going really hard for seltzer water, but this year was a huge year for seltzer water in my life. The funny thing is before 2022 I was never a seltzer water drinker or lover. Honestly, I drank kombucha more than I ever did seltzer water. Until I had a friend recommend it to me during a game night of Dead By Daylight. So when I found a case and gave it a chance, I was completely surprised how much I enjoyed it. That moment was a huge game changer and now it’s one of my go-to drinks for game nights, nights when I decompress and want something refreshing yet fizzy.

➸ 7. Hiking

Hiking has been taking over my life. In 2021 I picked up a lot of hiking gear and started hiking different trails and different places around my state. One of the places I end up hiking had actual ruins and waterfalls, and it was such a magical experience. Nature has always been a source of restoring my soul, finding balance within myself, and just always breathes new life into me. Truly, I’ve been trying to go on as many nature adventures as possible in 2022 even getting the chance to go to a beach for the first time in a long, long while! I’m hoping to carry this over into 2023 and continue going on nature adventures in the future.

➸ 8. Plants

Honestly, out of everything on this list, this one surprised me the most. Green became the color of 2022 as I began picking up plants any time I had to run to Home Depot. I’m not sure exactly when this started in 2022, but I’ve always had succulents or cacti in my home. 2022 just became a year where flowers and various types of plants started to brighten every table, every window sill, and even in the more low light areas, splash hues of green in them. Though we’re still house hunting and prepping our current home for market, it hasn’t stopped me from checking out all the plants in stores or stopping at local plant shops and greenhouses.

➸ 9. Rain Lofi

Rain lofi has been such a blessing with trying to focus during work, doing things at home, working on projects, and even reading. For all the reading I did this year, rain lofi was right by my side. Though I do feel like every time I make one of these lists, I’m just recommending the newest lofi video I’m listening to or watching while doing stuff. Truly, the lofi help. Just like asmr, the lofi music has been such a lovely way to help me stay productive in 2022. Even on my off days, rainy lofi helps me through it.

➸ 10. Fruit Snacks

Look… LOOK… Don’t question on why these are on this list, okay? 2022 was the year I thrived because of fruit snacks in my home and they have helped with making sure I’m taking care of myself. A lot of times having a pack or two reminds me of needing to make meals or they’re there for me when I need a snack break, to get that brain fuel going again. They also serve as a great snack for traveling, reading, working, and just for so many occasions. They’ve even helped on the hard days, the bad brain days, or the days when the chronic illnesses make things difficult. Now I keep two giant boxes of fruit snacks in my pantry and scatter them all throughout my home, and bags, just in case!

I feel like 2022 was a year that really highlighted the importance of self-care and taking better care of mental health. You know, I think that’s okay though. You’ll always have years that are ups and downs, and that smack you in the face with constant reminders. With 2022 now behind us, I’m truly hoping 2023 will be like a breath of fresh air for us. I want each and every one of us to prioritize self-care, self-love, boundaries & limits, and most importantly, the moments we’ll remember to infinity and beyond. And in case no one has told you, I’m proud of you for surviving another year (whatever that may have looked like)! I’m hoping with all my chest that 2023 is kinder, more gentle, filled with warmth and love, and plenty of rest for all of us. Let me know in the comments below some of the things that brought you joy or comfort in 2022, and I’ll catch you in the next post! 💚

✨ Favorite Non-Bookish Things: 2019|2020|2021

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Misc.

Life Update | Small Break, Returning May 9th-10th

ChapterMalliumpkin2 Comments

Salutations Chapterlings! How are you all doing? Have you been hydrating and taking a break when you need it? I hope you’re doing okay! Today is going to be a very brief update. I know I’ve been gone for about three weeks now and believe me, that was never supposed to happen, but life had so many other plans. So, I hope to clear up where I’ve been, what’s happened to make me disappear for a hot minute, and why I’m taking a short break.

DISCLAIMER: CW/TW for loss of loved ones and myself being sick

To start this off, I ended up getting really sick. It started off as the flu and as fate would have it, blossomed into a really terrible ear infection and bronchitis. This was the thing that knocked me out for the first two weeks of everything. Usually I’m sick longer due to having a weak immune system and chronic illnesses, but from the very first sniffle, I was being hyper-active with pushing immune support supplements, taking vitamin c, drinking tea for some of the sore throat stuff that was happening, lysoling everything, etc… Despite all this, I still got knocked on my butt for two weeks.

Now for the more sadder news to happen. During the time of me being sick, we had three family members pass away in a short amount of time, almost back to back to one another. This has been really hard on everyone including my spouse and I. Due to all of this, we’re spending a lot of time traveling for services/funerals and I’ve been kind of radio silent on social media, but with friends as well. Though, I’ve been trying hard to reach out to those closest to me to let them know, “Hey I’m not ignoring you or anything, this is what’s going on.”

This leads me into the final part of this post. My short break and returning May 9th. As the time of this post going up, we’re in prep for traveling for funeral stuff. With that being said, I’m really hoping that by May 9th or May 10th I’ll have some post going up on the blog, hopefully my tbr for this month will be going up, and just in general kind of catching up on Instagram as well. Though, I’ll probably post some photos on my IG stories of what I’m reading or listening to in my travels. So keep your eyes open for that!

I think that covers everything for this small life update. I wish this was a more happier or even a longer post with both good and bad things, but sadly things just didn’t turn out like that. I’m really hoping things will start turning around soon. Until next time friends, hug your loved ones a little tighter and take care of yourselves! I’ll see you soon! 💛

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Misc.

Discussion | My Book Blogging Pressures & Tips to Lessen the Pressure

ChapterMalliumpkin8 Comments

What’s blogging without chaos and stress?

Chapterlings, it’s time for another discussion post. Honestly, this has been a blog post idea I’ve had saved in so many places. Notion? In all capital letters! A sticky note? You betcha! Several different drafts and saves on pre-typing this post? Oh heck yes! Needless to say, this is something I wanted to talk about for a while now. So today we’re going to do just that. We’re going to talk about some of my blogging pressures and how I manage the stress that comes along with being a book blogger.

For starters, I’m a naturally stressed out and anxious person. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t stressed, worried, or anxious. Maybe when I’m sleeping? It’s a mystery the world may never know! However, I like to think I’m a person to who has high-functioning stress. I feel like I’m my most productive when I’m stressed. And this includes blogging.

Despite the stress and the pressure that comes along with blogging, I still love to do it. I enjoy planning posts and working on content for my blog or even just in general. But I noticed that over the time I’ve been blogging, I’ve developed some unhealthy habits and in recognizing those habits, I’ve developed ways to lessen the stress and feel lighter when blogging.

1 – Feeling like you have to read all the books and request all the arcs

My #1 stress of all time when it comes to blogging is the fact that there’s a huge pressure to read all the books, request all the upcoming releases, constantly hauling books, keeping up on upcoming releases… the list just goes on and on. Along with all of this, there’s also a huge pressure to read all of the popular books that have or are being released. If for some reason you don’t read them, review them, post or talk about them then you’re not relevant. It sucks, but it’s the truth.

I’ve talked about how hyped books impact me and how I usually don’t touch them with a 10-foot-pole. And if I do, most times they don’t make it over a 3 star rating for me. So I get very hesitant about hyped upcoming releases and even writing reviews for them make me nervous because I’ve seen people get attacked over their reviews for those type of books, and I’ve received that kind of hate just from receiving arcs. It’s freaking scary out there friends!

2 – Consistency and delivering perfect content

It’s no secret that consistency is key to success. If you’re posting consistently, on a regular basis, readers are going to see your content and that’s going to encourage them to come visit your posts and your blog. This results in comments from your readers, new readers who are discovering your content for the first time, and so on.

However, if you’re like me, this can come with a heavy weight to carry. I’m a workaholic at heart and any time I take a single day off from blogging, anytime I decide on a self-care or mental health day, just anything in general that puts me first feels like I’m failing. I talk a lot about how much I love content creation, but the dark side to that is I take it seriously and sometimes I put a lot of pressure on myself for making sure I’m delivering lengthy reviews, making sure my posts are the way I want it, if I make a grammar error it feels like the whole world is shattering.

3 – Having to be everywhere all the time

I love multitasking as much as the next person, but that’s just it… I’m one person. It can be the sweetest dreams or the more terrifying nightmare. I love to comment on blog posts, engage with people, sharing in topics that resonate with me… Sometimes I just can’t do it.

Keeping up with things is incredibly hard especially when fellow bloggers put out more than one blog post a day or perhaps you don’t want to miss a single comment and you want to engage with your community. It is a struggle. It can be the most rewarding, but it can destroy the spoons you have. This is a double-edge sword and where there is good, there is always the bad.

4 – I need to take better care of myself

Recently, in some of my latest posts, you may have seen me airing out the closet about some of my dark truths. Consider this post almost as an extension of all of that. The truth is a lot darker than you think. That wasn’t supposed to be as ominous as it sounded.

I became so obsessed with devoting large amounts of time to blogging and poured ungodly hours of hard work into the blog posts that I was creating. Again, I am a workaholic and sometimes I don’t know when to quit. My physical and mental health hit a peak of just deteriorating, and I got really, really sick. Here’s the thing, when you have chronic illnesses, getting sick is the last thing you want to have happened to you. And it took me a while to fully recover from that and feel 100% again.

How to lessen the pressure

Look, I’m not an expert and these tips aren’t going to be a cure all to the problems you may be facing. If I had all the answers and solutions, do you think I’d be the gremlin the hoodie, hunched over their laptop, trying to get things done? No, the answers is no and I definitely wouldn’t look like that.

However, these have been things that have helped me come back to blogging stronger, has helped preserved my love and happiness for blogging, and just breathe easier at the end of the day.

➼ Make schedules!

Truly, scheduling things and pre-planning things have helped a lot with the pressure of blogging for me. Also, setting cutoff times with your scheduling makes a huge difference! All those hours I’d spend into the dawn of next day has been thrown out the window.

Scheduling can take on many forms. Maybe it looks like planning posts or perhaps this means organizing when you need certain posts to go up and you’re checking when you can devote time to that particular post. Scheduling can even take on the form of when you devote time to respond to comments or even looking at blog posts, engaging with other bloggers.

➼ Take the break!

Sshh ssshhh sssshhhhh! I know this is going to be the thing you hear the most from other bloggers or even those in your personal life. Listen. LISTEN. It really can help. I think this advice gets such a bad rep due to seeing the time constrictions. Maybe you’re thinking I’m going to tell you to take a short break or I’m going to tell you to take a month off from blogging.

Well, you’re wrong. I’m not going to tell you any time restrictions because I don’t think breaks are something that should have time restraints on. If you need to take a break, you take that break, but you come back when you’re ready. And I’m telling you this because this is what happened to me. A lot of people told me to take a month hiatus or just take a short two week break and those time restrictions stressed me out. Before I knew it, I vanished from the book community and blogging for almost an entire you. Only occasionally popping in to fill in some of the gaps. This is one of those gaps. If you take a break, you are the wielder of your time and return to blogging, no one else.

➼ Do things that bring you joy!

This is a really obvious tip. Like, really freaking obvious. However, I think this is one of the most powerful tips I can give you.

Kurt Vonnegut once said, “Enjoy the little things in life for one day you’ll look back and realize they were the big things.” And I firmly believe that. Those little things bring us joy, make a moment more special, make something memorable, and I believe they have the power to calm even the stormiest mind when under pressure.

➼ Read & comment of posts that genuinely interest you!

It took me a long time to realize I didn’t have to comment on every single blog post and that I could respond to the posts that particularly caught my interest. I used to fill myself with so much guilt about not commenting on every single post my favorite bloggers would put out and I would get really twisted up inside.

Making yourself stressed out, filling yourself with guilt for not commenting all the time, or forcing myself to reading all the posts isn’t healthy for you. You don’t have to do this. There are plenty of ways to support your favorite bloggers or interacting with your favorite bloggers without putting yourself in a state of internal guilt or stress.

So… that was a lot to unpack. These may or may not be the pressures you’re dealing with and these tips may not be the cure all to your stresses. Everyone is their own unique self and experience things differently. My experiences are my own experiences and some of these may be normal or even something you don’t have to worry about. A lot of this post is me saying to myself, “You can breathe again.” And in a way, making peace with the old and putting some skeletons to rest. I do hope that some of these tips do help you and maybe make things a little easier for you. Maybe you just needed someone to tell you to breathe and try these tips. ♥

What things stress you out as a blogger? What kind of things do you do to lessen the pressure? Come chat about it with me in the comments! ♥

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Misc.

5 Books I Want to Read Before 2022 Ends

ChapterMalliumpkin6 Comments

Salutations Chapterlings! How are you doing? I hope you’re doing well and staying hydrated! I have a bit of a confession… This was technically a draft I had saved for 2021 that never got published and now I’m repurposing it for the year of 2022. This time, I’m getting it posted with some books that I really, really want to read before this year ends. And in a way, posting it now is a way to hold myself accountable for this mini tbr. Actually, this is a bit of a secret tbr and I hope you enjoy what I’m about to share! ♥

You’ve Reached Sam by Dustin Thao
“Seventeen-year-old Julie has her future all planned out—move out of her small town with her boyfriend Sam, attend college in the city, spend a summer in Japan. But then Sam dies. And everything changes.

Heartbroken, Julie skips his funeral, throws out his things, and tries everything to forget him and the tragic way he died. But a message Sam left behind in her yearbook forces back memories. Desperate to hear his voice one more time, Julie calls Sam’s cellphone just to listen to his voicemail.

And Sam picks up the phone.

In a miraculous turn of events, Julie’s been given a second chance at goodbye. The connection is temporary. But hearing Sam’s voice makes her fall for him all over again, and with each call it becomes harder to let him go. However, keeping her otherworldly calls with Sam a secret isn’t easy, especially when Julie witnesses the suffering Sam’s family is going through. Unable to stand by the sidelines and watch their shared loved ones in pain, Julie is torn between spilling the truth about her calls with Sam and risking their connection and losing him forever.”

Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
“With winter looming, a small northern Anishinaabe community loses communication. Days later, it goes dark. Cut off from the urban realm of the south, many of its people become passive and confused. They eventually descend into panic as the food supply dwindles, with few hunters left in the First Nation. While the band council and a pocket of community members struggle to maintain order, an unexpected visitor arrives from a city in the south to escape a crumbling society. Soon after, others follow.

The community leadership is faced with the dilemma of allowing the urban refugees to live with them on their territory. Tensions rise, and as the months pass, so does the death toll due to sickness and despair. Frustrated by the building chaos, a group of young friends and their families turn to the land and tradition in hopes of helping their community thrive again, while they grapple with a grave decision.

Blending action and allegory, Moon of the Crusted Snow upends our expectations. Out of catastrophe comes resilience. And as one society collapses, another is reborn.”

The King of Burbon Street (NOLA Nights #1) by Thea De Salle
“Hotel chain mogul Sol DuMont is about to learn that some of life’s biggest surprises come in deceptively small packages—namely a petite heiress named Rain who’s hell-bent on upsetting her family’s expectations—in this first book in the all new series by Thea de Salle, set against the sultry backdrop of New Orleans.

Thirty-seven-year-old Sol DuMont is a divorcee and the owner of a mid-sized hotel chain in New Orleans. Since Hurricane Katrina, his father’s death, and the decision that he and his ex-wife Maddy are far better off friends than lovers, he’s lost interest in almost everything he held dear—parties, people, and pushing limits.

All his limits.

Then Arianna Barrington checks into his hotel.

Twenty-four-year-old Arianna “Rain” Barrington could have been society’s sweetheart. Her family is moneyed, connected press darlings, and make sweeping headlines from coast to coast for reasons both good and bad. But when her mother shoves her at Charles Harwood—the obnoxious, entitled heir of Harwood Corp—to cement a billion-dollar business merger, Rain does the only thing she can think of to escape: she creates a scandal so big Harwood doesn’t want her anymore before fleeing to New Orleans for much-needed rest and relaxation.

All she wants is jazz piano, beignets, and to sail the Mississippi. What she gets is Sol DuMont, a whirlwind affair, and a hands-on education in sex, power play, and pushing limits.”

Night of the Mannequins by Stephen Graham Jones
“We thought we’d play a fun prank on her, and now most of us are dead.

One last laugh for the summer as it winds down. One last prank just to scare a friend. Bringing a mannequin into a theater is just some harmless fun, right? Until it wakes up. Until it starts killing.

Luckily, Sawyer has a plan. He’ll be a hero. He’ll save everyone to the best of his ability. He’ll do whatever he needs to so he can save the day. That’s the thing about heroes—sometimes you have to become a monster first.

Stephen Graham Jones returns with Night of the Mannequins, a contemporary horror story where a teen prank goes very wrong and all hell breaks loose: is there a supernatural cause, a psychopath on the loose, or both?”

Darling by K. Ancrum
“On Wendy Darling’s first night in Chicago, a boy called Peter appears at her window. He’s dizzying, captivating, beautiful—so she agrees to join him for a night on the town.

Wendy thinks they’re heading to a party, but instead they’re soon running in the city’s underground. She makes friends—a punk girl named Tinkerbelle and the lost boys Peter watches over. And she makes enemies—the terrifying Detective Hook, and maybe Peter himself, as his sinister secrets start coming to light. Can Wendy find the courage to survive this night—and make sure everyone else does, too?

Acclaimed author K. Ancrum has re-envisioned Peter Pan with a central twist that will send all your previous memories of J. M. Barrie’s classic permanently off to Neverland.”

Whew! I feel like this is a powerhouse of a list, don’t you think? I hope you enjoyed this list and maybe some of these books caught your eye. I truly, truly am keeping all my fingers and toes crossed that I’ll be able to read all of these before the end of 2022. It’s just time to get them read and clear a little space on my tbr. Until next time friends, I love you! ♥

Are any of these books on your radar? Have a/any books you’re hoping to read before 2022 ends? Come tell me about it the comments below! ♥

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Misc.

My Reading Habits: The Good, The Bad, & The WTF Malli!

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Today’s post is brought to you by me apparently wanting to show you all the skeletons in my closet!

Look, I know I just did my Random Bookish Facts About Me post, but then I had this thought… let’s go deeper! Let’s talk about those reading habits, let’s discuss the good and bad, but also let’s throw a few skeletons in there that many people may not know I do. This post will range from buying books, reading, note taking, even bookstgramming! And I’m kind of excited to share these reading habits. I think many of you will be surprised with some of the things I’m about to reveal. Buckle up readers, it’s about to get bookish up in here!

The Good

➸ I read diversely in terms of representation!
This was something I worked really hard to achieve and in no way am I saying that it’s perfect. I know for a fact that there’s always room for improvement, room to grow, to add more into the mix. That’s the beauty of the now and the future, we have the chance to keep doing better. What I am saying, over the years I’m more aware of the books I’m buying, the kind of representation in the book, and really upping my game in researching on who’s stories are being told and how they’re being told. It’s not perfect, but I’m constantly striving to do better.

➸ Reading in any format!
I never thought I’d be here saying this and maybe this comes from a place of privilege, as well. There was a long time in my life where books were earned through hard work (outside of school, you know) and now… I have physical books, but I also have access to audiobooks, kindle books, and I even get to receive arcs/alcs. I never thought I would ever reach this point where I have so much literature at my fingertips. Not only that, but I feel more comfortable and confident with these reading formats. All of this took a long time to be okay with, but I’m really glad I made it to this point in my life and I grateful to have these experiences.

➸ Better at prioritizing!
This is another one of those things that I really had to work at to be better about. What I mean by prioritizing is what books I need to read over others. Which in hindsight might come off as really weird phrasing or like I’m not giving books chances, but that’s not it at all. By prioritizing I simply mean commitments I’ve made. This may include blog tours, arc reviews, buddy reads, and even commitments to goals or posts I actually want to make. Remember when I talked about all the sticky notes I buy in bulk? Yeah, some of those get put on a wall as a way of helping me stay organized and prioritizing books I really want to read or the commitments that I make. This also includes blog posts, social media posts, etc… A way of having structure when I constantly feel like a chaotic gremlin.

➸ Being picky about arcs/alcs!
Again, this comes from a place of privilege because not everyone has access to arc/alcs or may not even be able to obtain those books despite requesting them, etc… This is another thing I worked really hard at being mindful about. I used to request any book that sounds interesting or even accept any email I would get offering an arc/alc. However, last year helped me realize that I have a huge backlist, but also that I don’t have to request every single thing that sounds good or like something I’d read. I’ve been slowing down my process and really taking the time to really debate how badly I want an arc, how excited I am about the release, and whether or not it fits into my current reading. This has eased up some of the pressure I put on myself as well and keeping my tbr a little lighter, in the process.

The Neutral

➸ Impossible not to take notes!
I’m not saying it’s a good thing or a bad thing, but what I am saying is don’t try to talk to me or ask me things when I’m in the process of taking notes. I literally can’t stop or pause taking notes. No matter where I am, no matter who I’m with. If you see me reading and taking notes, just wait till I’m finished because I’d rather answer questions afterwards than lose my train of thought, scraping my current notes, and then retaking them all over again. Yes… I will rip the page out of my notebook and start a whole new page of notes and yes, I will make little gremlin noises in the process.

➸ I can’t read more than two books at a time!
I feel like this is a neutral thing and one where I haven’t seen may people say, let alone discuss. I’m one of those people who doesn’t fit the mold of reading all the books at once or can only read one book at a time. However, I have learned, in the past few years, that I thrive with reading two books at a time. Actually, I thrive on this so much that I get more reading done than I thought I ever would. Being realistic though, there aren’t many pros or cons to all of this. Except the weird spike in reading due to switching to this method. Otherwise, I kind of feel like an oddball with this haha!

➸ I read with all the noise!
I like to have noise, a lot of noise. Now hold on, it’s not as wild as you think. I usually just put on a Chillhop or Lofi video and then I let the rest of the chaos, a.k.a my pets, create the rest of the environmental noise. Surprisingly, I get really focused or even more into a book with this.

➸ I can’t read hyped books!
Look, hyped books are not my cup of tea. What I mean is if a book is overly hyped by a lot of people even people I know, it’ll ruin a book for me. Even to the point of never picking up a book. Currently, I have over 20 titles on my back list that were overly hyped books recommended to me. It’s a bit of a problem and I might unhaul these books later. There’s also the chance that if I do read it, there’s a good chance it won’t make it above a 3 star rating. There’s only one person who has hyped books to me that actually turned out being books I really enjoyed and I think that’s due to having very similar reading tastes.

The Bad

➸ Buying books and never getting the chance to read them!
This is a really bad habit of mine that I’m currently working really hard to break. Surprisingly enough, with the move coming up, I haven’t been buying books. I’ve only been buying books in terms of what I’m actually going to read. However, before we decided to move, I was buying nothing but books and never getting the chance to read them.

➸ I read the most at night!
Out of all my habits, this is probably the worst one. I’m already have a difficult time sleeping due to chronic illnesses and insomnia, but add reading on top of that and you’ve got yourself a potion for disaster. This can lead to my sleep schedule getting really messed up to the point of being awake over 48 hours or more. I’m trying to fix this habit with setting a cut-off time for reading every night in hopes to prevent my sleeping time to descend into chaotic madness.

➸ I read all over the place, in various positions!
I’m labeling this as bad because it’s certainly not good for posture or when you have chronic illnesses that deal in pain. And I wish this was only limited to chairs, but it’s not. Counters? Yes. Laying across a coffee table? Sure, why not?! Draped over the back of the sofa smacking myself in the face with the book I’m reading? You bet your sweet booty I do! The limit does not exist of all the places I find myself reading. It’s a problem, a big problem. One that my body glares at me over every single day.

What are some of your reading habits? Do we have any in common or are your experiences different? Come chat with me in the comments below!

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