September Wrap-Up

 Well, I completed all 7 challenges for the Orillium Readathon. However, I definitely switched out some of my choices. This is what I read.

1. Read a book with a map- I read Malamander by Thomas Taylor. This is a middle grade book focusing on a local legend of a fish man who lays a magical egg one night. Two children get caught up in the mystery. It was fun, but nothing special. I gave it 3 stars.

2. Top of my TBR- I eagerly picked up TJ Klune's Under the Whispering Door. The very latest of his books focusing on a man named Wallace Price who dies and only learns his humanity after he meets a ferryman who is supposed to lead him to the next stage. I felt Wallace was so unlikeable that his growth seems unrealistic. Also it was dark, missing the levity of his usual books. I gave it 3 stars.

3. Read a standalone- I read The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Maryanne Cronin. A heartwarming story of a young girl who befriends an elderly woman while they're both in the hospital. Through flashbacks, we see what happened in their lives to shape them into the people they are today. Plus queer rep. I really enjoyed this though it was very sad. I gave it 4 stars.

4. Read a book featuring supernatural elements- For this one, I picked up The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden. This is the second in the trilogy, focusing on politics of the capital and a shifty sorcerer. I can't say much due to it being a sequel but I enjoyed it immensely. I gave it 4 stars.

5. Read a thriller or mystery- I finally decided to try a Nicci French novel with Losing You. It's about a woman whose teenage daughter is missing and she searches desperately to find her or figure out what happened. I found the pacing incredibly slow, especially since the plot happens in one day. Additionally, I guessed what happened about halfway through. Not believable or enjoyable really. I gave it 2.5 stars.

6. Read a 5 star prediction- I chose When Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed. A graphic memoir that also had an audiobook. It tells the story of Omar and his brother growing up in a refugee camp. It was very compelling but not quite a 5 star book. I gave it 4 stars.

7. Read a book with a school setting- I chose another TJ Klune book with Flash Fire. Another sequel, this time following teenage superheroes. I liked the characters and felt their growth was believable. I gave it 3 stars.

Orillium Readathon/September TBR

 The Youtube channel Book Roast is resuming her magical readathon with all new fantasy worlds. I'm hoping this will be the kick I need to get out of my reading slump. There are seven prompts but I need to complete at least 2 to participate in the upcoming April readathon. I will pick 7 books but will still consider it a success if I can read 2. I'm a mood reader so some of these are subject to change.

Here are the prompts:

Read a book with a map- Endurance by Alfred Lansing

Top of my TBR- Climbing the Date Tree by Shira Glassman or The Road to Jonestown by Jeff Guinn

Read a standalone- We Run the Tides by Vendela Vida

Featuring ghosts or supernatural elements- The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden or The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Thriller or mystery book- Losing You by Nicci French or Hostage by Clare MacIntosh

5 star prediction- When the Stars are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson

Book with a school setting- The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan or The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik

August Wrap Up

 Surprisingly, I finished one book this month. I'm actually proud of it, because I started several books and fizzled out quickly.

The book I finished was How to be a Movie Star by TJ Klune. This is a companion novel to How to be Normal. It focuses on Josiah Erickson who lives in L.A. trying to make it as an actor. He's an affable stoner who is great at radio trivia and wins a prize to see a poetry reading. There he meets Q-bert and the rest of the story is their relationship developing. They were fun, likable characters with some real issues and great representation for mental health and demi-sexuality. A lot of it was absurd, but it made me laugh out loud and hopefully broke my slump. I gave it 4 stars and highly recommend.

July Wrap Up

 In July I was ill but I managed to read 5 books. I have since not been reading so there won't be an August TBR.

The first book I finished was Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid. This is my fourth book of hers I've read, and I will say she does a good job creating fake celebrities. The book focuses on a family whose father is a rock star and the impact he has on them. I enjoyed it and felt it was a compulsive read, but pretty forgettable. I gave it 3 stars.

Then I listened to The Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson. This is a children's fantasy story about a magical land that can only be accessed for a limited time and a child is stolen. A band of magical people vow to get him back. I enjoyed it but wanted more. I gave it 3 stars.

Next I picked up Dealing with Dragons by Patrica Wrede. A cute story about a princess who runs off to live with dragons and doesn't want the knight to rescue her. I gave it 3 stars.

Afterwards, I read The Space Between Stars by Michaiah Johnson. I really enjoyed this science fiction story about a woman who could travel to parallel universes. While it took a while to get going, I really enjoyed the main characters and how the story resolved. I gave this 4 stars and will eagerly anticipate any future books by this author.

Lastly, I picked up the novella The Psalm of the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers. She is one of my favorite authors, but this was not on her usual level. I felt the characters were undeveloped, her world-building was almost non-existent, and no real plot. It felt like a slog to get through. I gave it 2 stars.

July TBR

 I hoping this will be a better month but if I find my reading doesn't want to follow a list, then I will stop making them. I'm going to aim for 4 books.

1. Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

2. The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson

3. A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers

4. Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine

June Wrap Up

 Well, this was by far my worst reading month. I read two books.

The first was a re-read of The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune. This was magical, hopeful, and delightful. I gave it 5 stars yet again!

The last book was The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James. This was a creepy supernatural mystery about a young woman who disappeared and her niece trying to piece together what happened 35 years later. I really enjoyed the mystery and felt compelled to keep reading. I ended up giving it 4 stars.

DNF'd Books From the First 6 Months

 I've DNF'd many more books than I normally do. In the first half of 2021, these are the books I stopped reading:

Kent State by Derf Backderf. This is a graphic biography of the Kent State shooting of anti-war protesters in the 1970s. I read about 40 pages but felt I needed more background knowledge to read this. Additionally, the print was really tiny and the artwork did a poor job in making characters look distinctive so I knew who was in the scene. Also, it's a super depressing topic and I found myself not wanting to pick it back up.

The Liar's Dictionary by Eley Williams. This was just an example of a book not being for me. I found it boring, with little to no intrigue. I read about 95 pages before giving up.

Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. I didn't read very far into it before giving up. I am not in the mood for dystopian with a dangerous and charismatic leader. I will try again at some point.

Kink: Stories edited by R.O. Kwan and Garth Greenwell. This is a collection of short stories focusing on the BDSM lifestyle. I'm very open-minded and thought I'd enjoy this. However, I read 4 stories which all included something not sexy that took me out of the story. For example, talking about dirty sex and then thinking about gutting a fish, religious ideations, and a woman having sex even when she didn't want to. After loathing picking up the book, I finally decided to quit. This was a difficult decision because this was an ARC and the only ARC I've ever refused to finish and review.

Lost at Sea by Bryan Lee O'Malley. This is a graphic novel about a group of teens making a road trip. I stopped roughly 40% of the way through, mainly due to boredom. I felt the characters weren't well fleshed out, the plot was weak, and the art style was nothing special. It's a bummer because I've read his work before and enjoyed it.

The last one is Sick and Tired: An Intimate History of Fatigue by Emily K. Abel. This is a nonfiction book about the history of fatigue and how it long wasn't considered a medical problem, just a symptom of other illnesses. I read three chapters but it was very dry and I wasn't in the right place to read it. I will likely pick it back up at some point, but wrong timing caused me to DNF.