Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [260]

Dini @ dinipandareads14 Comments

We’re back with another Sundays in Bed With… meme! This meme dares to ask you what book has been in your bed this morning and is hosted by Midnight Book Girl. Come share what book you’ve spent your time reading in bed or wish you had time to read today.

I’ve spent my Sunday in bed reading Howl’s Moving Castle. This is my buddy read with Becky and it’s been an interesting experience so far! I keep comparing it to the movie because it’s one of my faves (in Ghilbi and general)! There are major differences but I’m not mad about it. It’s a whimsical

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#FirstLinesFriday: 6 December 2024

Dini @ dinipandareads5 Comments

Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First lines:

“Lalo Villalobos hated many things. Long walks, crowded streets, unkempt suits, people. But one thing he hated above all else was his word not being taken seriously. Tonight, he would prove to everyone he was no fool.”

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November 2024 Community Posts!

Dini @ dinipandareads7 Comments

✨ Happy Thursday, friends! ✨ It’s time to share some of my favourite posts of the month from across the book community. I’m in disbelief that the next time I make another one of these it’ll already be the new year, which means that this is the last monthly Community Posts wrap-up for 2024! As such, this might be longer than some of my previous roundups but I do hope you take the time to visit some of these blogs and share some love.

✨📖 Happy reading! 📖✨

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Monthly Wrap-Up: November 2024

Dini @ dinipandareads14 Comments

Do I even remember what I did in November? Not really, LOL! Honestly, this month just flew by and I have no idea at all where the time went.

Most of the month’s highlights had to do with material things. I bought a bunch of stuff online and my parents were able to bring it back from Japan including keycaps for my keyboard and vinyls. Plus, they surprised me with two bags from my favourite brand! I must admit I am a material girl and I love the goods, so these things made me very happy (especially the vinyls)! 🤭

I also went to see Wicked and I’m not ashamed to admit that I cried buckets. I think what surprised me most was the scene that made me the most emotional because while it made me sad when I saw it on Broadway, the movie scene hit so much harder! I won’t share when exactly but it has to do with a certain ballroom (iykyk) and wow, how the tears flowed! 😂 I was trying hard to not be a sobbing idiot in the theatre, haha (I think I succeeded).

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Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [259]

Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

We’re back with another Sundays in Bed With… meme! This meme dares to ask you what book has been in your bed this morning and is hosted by Midnight Book Girl. Come share what book you’ve spent your time reading in bed or wish you had time to read today.

I’m spending my Sunday night reading A Taste of Gold and Iron. I’ve been meaning to pick this up for ages and I came across it in my Kindle TBR the other day so I decided to give it a go. I found the world confusing initially but I’m getting into it now at 19%!

TBH, I might just end my night finishing Poison in their Hearts, which is my buddy read with Julie & Leslie. I need to know what happens! 🫣

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#FirstLinesFriday: 29 November 2024

Dini @ dinipandareads5 Comments

Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First lines:

“Primus Grey waited in the dark behind his print shop for his contact to arrive. Although she’d passed him secret information about the British before, he was the only member of the Sons of Liberty to know her true identity. To the others she was known only as Lady Midnight, the code name he’d bestowed upon her in honor of the time she usually appeared.”

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Thanksgiving Book Tag: 2024 Edition

Dini @ dinipandareads5 Comments

I was reminded that this tag existed after seeing Chris’s post the other day so here I am doing the same! I don’t celebrate Thanksgiving but this is a yearly meme I do enjoy so why not keep doing it with the books I’ve read over the year? I thought I did one last year but it seems the last time I did this was in 2022 so now is the time to rectify this error and get straight to it.

This is an original book tag by Anna’s Book Nook.

The Rules

  • Thank the person who nominated you
  • Give credit to the author (Annasbooknook)
  • Answer the prompts
  • Tag others if you desire!

1) Friends and Family: A book with characters that feel like family

A Rival Most Vial

The found family aspect in A Rival Most Vial was one of my favourite parts of the book. The shopkeepers of Rosemond Street who make up this wonderful crew quickly stole my heart and they felt very much like family by the end of the story! 💜

[my review]

2) Fallen Leaves: A book that fell flat (didn’t meet your expectations)

House of Frank

There have been a surprising number of books that could’ve fit this category this year. But House of Frank sounded like it could’ve been a 5-star read for me (and I predicted it would be) but I couldn’t have been more wrong. I was so disappointed… 🥺

3) Thanksgiving Dinner: A book you want to read every year during this season

Starling House

I can’t think of a more perfect read for this season! Whether it’s one that I’ll re-read every year remains to be seen cos I don’t re-read as much as I’d like, but this would be a contender!

[my review]

4) Turkey: A book with a bird in it

Black Sun

This had many birds and it was amazing. Gruesome and slightly terrifying at times, but I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this if you love non-Western mythology in your fantasy!

[my review]

5) Ham: A book that made your eyes glaze over (boring)

Dragon Pearl

This MG SFF had been on my TBR for years and I was so excited to read it. Unfortunately, disappointing would be an understatement. I didn’t get reeled in the way I expected and found myself bored despite all the action!

6) Dinner Rolls: A book that melted your heart and made you feel warm

The Exception to the Rule

This might be a short story but the magic CLo weaves into it is *chef’s kiss!* perfection! 😍 Had me melting with all the feels!!!

7) Mashed Potatoes: A book with a white cover

The Places I’ve Cried in Public

I love this cover so much even though this was one of the emotionally tougher books I’ve read this year.

[my review]

8) Gravy: A book you’re not totally sure why you love, but you do

Tentacles & Triathlons

I can’t really think of a book that would fit this prompt this week but I’ll go with this monster romance series. It’s not something I typically read but gosh, it was fun, emotional, sexy, and sweet!

9) Pumpkin Pie: A dessert book that you love

Magic, Lies, and Deadly Pies

It’s pie perfect! You might not want to eat all of these pies (because you know, they’re deadly) but they sure sound amazing! 🤤

[my review]

Bonus: Black Friday – Top 5 books on your “I want to buy them” list

Instead of choosing a Top 5 (because that would be impossible) I’m sharing the last 5 books I added to my TBR wishlist!

Someone You Can Build A Nest In by John Wiswell, Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy, The Pumpkin Princess and the Forever Night by Steven Banbury, Give Me Butterflies by Jillian Meadows, The Wild Huntress by Emily Lloyd-Jones

And that’s all from me, folks! I won’t tag anyone but if you want to do the tag, feel free to grab it and link back so I can see your answers! 😃

Blog signature that reads: Let's Chat! xoxo, Dini