Tag: Book Meme

Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [29]

Dini @ dinipandareads4 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 been you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed with, or which book you wish you had time to read today!

This Sunday I spent part of my day in bed with The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule and friends, this book has me feeling some type of way and I don’t even know… I can’t even begin to imagine what it would do to someone knowing that a person you consider(ed) a friend is a serial killer whose trail you’ve followed so closely from the start. It’s terrifying! How she writes about Ted Bundy is creepy AF because the person she knew seemed legit like a pretty freaking decent guy. Saying that about a guy like Ted Bundy makes me want to gag a little but… How he was presented at the start of this book made me think that. I have a feeling this book is going to be a helluva ride. Just in case you don’t know the book I’m talking about, you can read the synopsis below.

Utterly unique in its astonishing intimacy, as jarringly frightening as when it first appeared, Ann Rule’s The Stranger Beside Me defies our expectation that we would surely know if a monster lived among us, worked alongside of us, appeared as one of us. With a slow chill that intensifies with each heart-pounding page, Rule describes her dawning awareness that Ted Bundy, her sensitive coworker on a crisis hotline, was one of the most prolific serial killers in America. He would confess to killing at least thirty-six young women from coast to coast, and was eventually executed for three of those cases. Drawing from their correspondence that endured until shortly before Bundy’s death, and striking a seamless balance between her deeply personal perspective and her role as a crime reporter on the hunt for a savage serial killer — the brilliant and charismatic Bundy, the man she thought she knew — Rule changed the course of true-crime literature with this unforgettable chronicle.

What are you currently reading?

It’s Sunday again (already) and surprise, surprise, I’m sad about it. Although my weekends have been relatively ‘chill’ recently, I usually do end up scheduling one or two activities that leave me feeling tired and productive enough to feel like I haven’t completely wasted my weekends away 😅 Yesterday I accompanied one of my close friends/colleagues to do one of her final prenatal check ups, followed up by lunch at what very quicly became one of our favorite places to eat for its delicious food and drinks! I had the tuna poké with a fresh summery fruit smoothie, and we rounded up our meal by sharing their delectable french toast. Friends, IT IS SO FREAKING DELICIOUS I CAN’T EVEN. My friend and I literally had dreams about eating that french toast again, which is why we decided to head back to get it again. You know when something invades your dreams it’s just really that good 🤤

Aside from that, I’m planning to try ‘Zero Gravity Float Therapy’ soon. One of my besties told me about it and she thought it might be something interesting for me to try out for my sleep and mental health related issues. I thought I’d booked my session for today but it turns out it’s actually next week 😅 So that was already a good start to my Sunday LOL I’m kind of glad that it’s next week though because it’s given me more time to get more comfortable with the idea of it. The thought of being enclosed in a small, dark space, surrounded by water and zero sound, kind of FREAKS ME THE F OUT… But apparently this therapy is pretty good and does things that normal therapy doesn’t! So… ehrm… I guess let’s do this?

Reading & Blogging Recap

I sadly haven’t read a lot this week and I think I’ve only managed to finish one book? November not off to the best start! A lot of that had to do with the fact that I’ve been trying to catch up on engaging on blogs and most of my nights after work have been spent writing and reading… Not to mention that I’ve been caught up in the Twitterverse a couple of times this last week… 🙃 Next thing I know it’s 2AM, I haven’t read, I’m not sleepy and I just spent the last 3 hours scrolling social media LMAO I know I’m not the only one this happens to, amirite?! But also, I spent a lot of time this week reading Wicked Saints. I’m so sad to say that it really didn’t blow me away like I was hoping it would. I was a little disappointed by it but I am looking forward to reading Ruthless Gods, the sequel, which I got an eARC of a few months back! You can check out my review listed down below 🙂

Like I said earlier, I’ve been trying to blog and engage a bit more this week. I haven’t been able to get back to the levels before mid-October threw me completely off my game, but I managed to knock out some tags and awards that I’ve been putting off for way too long. I love getting tagged and nominated for these things but I am undoubtedly the absolute worst when it comes to answering them 🤣🙃🤣 Please don’t stop tagging me though–I really do love it! 💜 I also started doing some of the weekly memes that I’ve missed over the last few weeks (Friday Favorites and Top 5 Saturday) and it felt good to get back into it! In case you missed them, you can check out the posts I’ve made this week down below!

Review: Wicked Saints (Something Dark and Holy #1) by Emily A. Duncan
Top 5 Saturday: Books with a Survival Theme!
Friday Favorites: Inspiring Characters
First Lines Friday: 08 November
Review: Under Locke by Mariana Zapata
Are You Ready for Sweater Weather: The Autumn Tag!
Real Neat Blog Award!
Review: Frankly In Love by David Yoon
#WWWWednesday: 06 November
#TopTenTuesday: Books Giving Me Those Autumn Vibes!
Down the TBR Hole – 06
Goodreads Monday: 04 November

A special music shout out to HAIM this week for their new song: Now I’m In It. Contrary to what it sounds like, this is actually about depression and falling back ‘in it’. These sisters are amazing and whenever I start listening to them I can’t stop!

How has your week been? Hope everyone has/had a great weekend!

Top 5 Saturday: Books with a Survival Theme!

Dini @ dinipandareads15 Comments

It’s time for another Top 5 Saturday, a weekly meme created by Mandy @ Devouring Books and this week’s topic is: books with a survival theme. So it’s been a hot minute since I participated in a top five saturday post because I’ve either been too busy on the weekend or I’ve just been too mentally drained to feel inspired, but I’m glad to be back this week. That said, I’ve pretty much drawn a blank for this week’s prompt because do I even have any books with survival themes on my TBR or read list? Then again, ‘survival theme’ has a pretty broad scope and can be interpreted in a few ways: actual survival from the elements/nature or survival of a trying situations. So I’m going to do my best with that for my list of five books that I want to read one day!

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
I’ve not read the book or seen the movie (with Reese Witherspoon!) but I’ve heard some pretty amazing reviews about this book. It’s definitely one I’m keen to check out!

The Stand by Stephen King
This is a story about those who survived after a worldwide plague killed off 99% of the population. I have no doubt that this post-apocalyptic story is going to be creepy AF (I mean just look at that cover?) and we all know how I am with creepy books. But it just sounds too good to not try!

The Revenant by Michael Punke
I really enjoyed the movie when it came out and have been interested in the book ever since. It sounds like a brutal story about survival and revenge after being left to die in the Rocky Mountains!

These Broken Stars (Starbound #1) by Amie Kaufman & Megan Spooner
I haven’t had this one sitting on my tbr for too long but I’ve been wanting to read another book by Kaufman for a while now! This is about survival in space with a bit of romance thrown in!

The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
This one is very obviously a different kind of survival story but it’s very much a survival story. I’m super keen to read it as I’ve heard so many great things; I just really hope it lives up to all the hype!

Have you read any of my ‘survival themed’ book picks? Any recs on which one to start first and any more recs to add to my list?!
Come let me know in the comments and let’s chat! 😂

#WWWWednesday: 06 November

Dini @ dinipandareads25 Comments

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:

  1. What did you read last?
  2. What are you currently reading?
  3. What will you read next?

What did you read last?

I haven’t read a lot since last week. As mentioned on my Sunday Wrap Up, I got really sucked into a Webtoons vortex, which resulted in me putting aside any and all reads that I had planned. I’ve read two books in the past week (and many fun Webtoons series)!

Frankly in Love by David Yoon ★★★★☆
I ended up really enjoying Frank Li’s story, and although there were elements of it that I didn’t like, it wasn’t enough to affect how I felt about the story in general. Despite not being Asian-American or having had any experience living in America, I grew up internationally and moved around a lot, so reading about Frank’s experiences and thoughts about his cultural/identity really hit him for me. I didn’t manage to write the best or most coherent review, but it will be going up later tonight, so be on the look out if you want to know more 🙂

Under Locke by Mariana Zapata ★★★★ ½
Yes, I’m still slightly in the romance zone but I’m slowly starting to leave it behind. I’ve been wanting to read this one since Jen recommended it as she thought I’d love it, and she wasn’t wrong. I’m officially a big Zapata fan, and even though I still have a few of her books left to read, I think she might be an auto buy author from now on?! Nobody does slow burns like her and they’re always so damn satisfying. RTC.

What are you currently reading?

I’m reading Wicked Saints right now and it honestly kind of feels like I’ve been reading it for forever? It’s not that I’m not enjoying it while I’m reading it… But I feel like there’s something missing. I really can’t put my finger on it, but that element that hooks me in and keeps me wanting to go back to it every time I put it down is just not there. Right now I don’t mind putting it down and it will take me a long time to pick it back up. I think I’ve almost reached the 50% mark now, so let’s see how it goes!

What will you read next?

I think my mood is really calling for me to read Darkdawn right now, but maybe after finishing Wicked Saints I’ll be better off reading a different genre first? I might as well pick up my first NF of the month since I’m giving Nonfiction November a try! I’m tossing up between The Stranger Beside Me (true crime) or Good Talk (“a memoir in conversations” graphic novel). But can’t decide. Maybe a nice quick graphic novel would be good… Thoughts?

What are you currently reading? How’s your week and reading going?
Leave me a comment and let’s chat! 🙂

Down the TBR Hole – 06

Dini @ dinipandareads16 Comments

We’re back with another episode of Down the TBR Hole! My TBR is currently sits at a whopping 1,013 books. I’ll be reviewing 10 books again today and I’m hoping that maybe this week I’ll be cutting out more than one book!

Down the TBR Hole is a weekly book meme created by the wonderful Lia @ Lost in a Story that attempts to organize our ridiculously long Goodreads TBR list by choosing either to keep or eliminate the books we’ve saved on there. Here’s how it works:

  • Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 (or even more!) if you’re feeling adventurous) books. Of course, if you do this weekly, you start where you left off the last time.
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go

Verdict: Keep

Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie. I’m a bit torn about whether I want to read this or not but it seems that a lot of my book loving friends love it, so I think it’s a keeper?

The Outlander Series (Outlander 1-7) by Diana Gabaldon. Okay, it’s ambitious to ‘keep’ all seven books on my list, but I do want to give this series a go because it’s so popular and seems like one I’ll enjoy? They’re all just slightly huge…!

The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. I honestly don’t even know why I haven’t read this one yet because it sounds 1000% like my kind of book.

Go Set a Watchman (To Kill a Mockingbird #2) by Harper Lee. I basically bought this the minute it came out and haven’t touched it since 😳 I’ve heard so many sad reviews about this and honestly, if I didn’t spend good money on it I’d probably say bye-bye-bye to it! But I’ll give it a chance.

The Fifth Season (The Broken Earth #1) by N.K. Jemisin. I’ve heard amazing things about this and I have a feeling I’ll really enjoy it!

Verdict: Bye-bye-bye!

Marley and Me: life and Love with the World’s Worst Dog by John Grogan. This movie had me feeling a hot mess but… I really don’t think I’m going to ever read the book! I shouldn’t be keeping this on my TBR just because of the pupperoni on the cover, right?!

A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea by Dina Nayeri. Argh, this one was so difficult to decide on. It sounds pretty interesting but… I also don’t know when, if ever, I will pick it up. So bye for now!

One Day by David Nicholls. This was a tough decision because I loved the movie and it had me bawling like the biggest baby ever, but I tried reading the book once, twice, three times and my strayed every single time. I have no idea why. Maybe the movie is too much in my head so when it doesn’t match up I get a little miffed? I’m sorry to say bye-bye-bye!

The Royal We (Royal We #1) by Heather Cocks. I don’t think I’m really a fan of the ‘royal’ trope? Reading this synopsis didn’t appeal to me so much anymore so away it goes!

Marrow by Tarryn Fisher. Although there’s something about this cover I adore, I have one Tarryn Fisher book on my Kindle shelf and I want to read it first before deciding whether to read more. This one seems interesting but let’s see!

bluepanda

WOO! I said bye-bye-bye to 5/10 books this week bringing my TBR tally to 1,008 books. Still a lot but we’re making progress with at least removing a few, right?! 😃 Some of these were a little tough to decide on since they do still sound interesting but I just don’t know when I’ll ever pick them up, which pretty much means never? LOL I gotta be real with myself; I already got an insanely overflowing actual TBR on my Kindle and physical shelves. I think I’m happy with my decisions!

Have you read any of these books? Would these make your keep list or would you say bye-bye-bye to them? Let’s chat!

Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [28]

Dini @ dinipandareads4 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 been you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed with, or which book you wish you had time to read today!

This Sunday I would’ve liked to spend the day in bed with Wicked Saints (Something Dark and Holy #1) by Emily A. Duncan. I’m about 100+ pages into the story and while I’ve found it interesting while reading it, it’s taking a bit more time than I anticipated to get into it. The one “complaint” that many have mentioned about this book are the names and I have to agree that it can be quite confusing/trying. I thought there would be a glossary for how to say the names but apparently not… To be honest, I find myself going over the names repeatedly trying to sound them out in my head which sidetracks me from the actual story 😂 I do like it so far though, but hopefully I’ll get more into it tonight! I have a feeling once the action really picks up I won’t be able to put it down! Let’s see if my gut proves right on this… I really hope I like it because I got granted the second book as an e-ARC last month! 🙈

A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself.
A prince in danger must decide who to trust.
A boy with a monstrous secret waits in the wings.

Together, they must assassinate the king and stop the war. In a centuries-long war where beauty and brutality meet, their three paths entwine in a shadowy world of spilled blood and mysterious saints, where a forbidden romance threatens to tip the scales between dark and light.

Wicked Saints is the thrilling start to Emily A. Duncan’s devastatingly Gothic Something Dark and Holy trilogy..

What are you currently reading?

Holy wow, it’s the first Sunday of November already! I feel like I’ve been sounding like a broken record every time I say this, but it’s absolutely true. I can’t believe the whole year has gone so quickly–where has the time all gone?! I can already feel all the October energy draining out of me and so I’m hoping that means I’ll be able to really settle into my routine from this week onwards. I’ve spent a portion of this weekend working (unfortunately) since the week had been frustrating with my brand new laptop breaking down (again) and pissing me right off. I regret moving on from my old laptop, which despite slowing down after 6 years of use, never actually gave me much trouble. Unlike this new one 🙄 I know it seems so trivial but I need a fast, functioning laptop for work as I design materials and the office laptops just can’t handle the design programs. *Le Super Sigh* but… not going to dwell on that. It is what it is, right?!

I went to watch Joker today and wow, friends. The movie doesn’t have the best ratings on Rotten Tomatoes but I still really enjoyed it! I thought Joaquin Phoenix gave such an incredible performance and (once again), I can’t imagine the impact getting into a role such as this would have on someone’s psyche. It was such a dark movie. But what can you expect when it’s a movie about how the Joker becomes the Joker? It was pretty heartbreaking? I mean, he’s definitely a psychopath but the system (and everyone in his life) really failed him and while I obviously don’t jam with all the killing, I really sympathized with his character. If you’re up for watching a movie that focuses more on character development and a little less on plot, and of course a story that’s psychologically dark, then I’d recommend it!

Reading & Blogging Recap

Although this week was a lot more chill compared to the previous weeks, I still only managed to finish two books during the week. I haven’t been doing much book reading this week but I have become obsessed with Webtoons. Some of these webtoons are damn amazing and whenever I discover a new one, I always get sucked right in and don’t stop reading until I find that I’ve devoured over 100 episodes in about two nights? Yeah, I definitely got sucked down the Webtoons Vortex this week and I have no regrets! Do any of you read Webtoons? Any favorites I should check out ASAP?

I think I’ve been doing better on the blogging front this week although I still ended up skipping two fo my weekly memes on Friday and Saturday. I was just not feeling inspired and knew I would struggle too much to write something so I just passed on them, but maybe I will catch up in the future! I’m still trying to get back into engaging more with other bloggers. Damn, that one week really sent me tripping huh? I’m sorry that I haven’t been as active with likes and comments on here as I was before. I don’t know what’s wrong with me–my brain just feels extra fried at the end of every work day and I don’t have the energy to spend more time behind the screen. I’ve definitely felt the loss to my blog though (and honestly I do feel a small part of me has fallen flat from not engaging) but I’m really trying my best to get back into the groove! For now, in case you missed any of my posts from this week, you can check them out below!

Review: Birthday Girl by Penelope Douglas
November Possibility Pile
October Monthly Wrap Up
First Lines Friday: 01 November
Review: The Dugout (Brentwood Baseball #2) by Meghan Quinn
The Book Blogger Memory Tag
Review: Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager
#WWWWednesday: 30 October
#TopTenTuesday: Spooky Books I’d Read If I Wasn’t A Chicken (Halloween Freebie)
Down the TBR Hole – 05
Goodreads Monday: 28 October

I’m leaving you with one of my favorite songs of the moment: Graveyard by Halsey. Serious girl crush.

How has your week been? Hope everyone has/had a great weekend!
Let me know how you’re doing in the comments and let’s chat, friends 🙂

#WWWWednesday: 30 October

Dini @ dinipandareads7 Comments

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:

  1. What did you read last?
  2. What are you currently reading?
  3. What will you read next?

What did you read last?

I haven’t been able to read as much as I’ve wanted to over the last week because life was still incredibly hectic but I’m slowly getting back into the groove and was happy with what I did read. It’s pretty clear from the list that I’m still on that romance kick and unfortunately, a few of the ones I read this past week were not my jam. I still have TONS of reviews to do but I promise they’re coming!

Falling For My Brother’s Best Friend by Piper Rayne ★★☆☆☆
Not even an Alaska setting could save this one for me and we all know how much I love Alaska settings!
Park Avenue Player by Penelope Ward and Vi Keeland ★★☆☆☆
Most misleading title ever and most disappointing Ward + Keeland book I’ve read to date.
The Dugout (Brentwood Baseball #2) by Meghan Quinn ★★★★½ (Yaas, gimme all that baseball!)
Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager ★★★★½
A chilling read that made me glad I never went to camp! My new favorite Sager.
To Have & Hate by Donna Alam ★★☆☆☆
I’m not gonna lie, I was objectifying the guy on the cover (he’s hot, please don’t judge me) and that’s why I decided to read this one. Welp, not my best decision 😅

What are you currently reading?

So I’m late for the buddy read because I totally forgot that I was also part of a Riley Sager buddy read and wow, bad organization panda! I’m about to finish up Frankly in Love tonight and… I’ve really been loving it and the fact that it’s more than just a love story. As a TCK I really relate to Frank’s cultural identity crisis and I was so ready to give five stars, but then Frank had to go and do something that made me so damn angry (I frankly don’t care what your damn ‘excuses’ are, Frank Li!) but let’s see how the rest of the story plays out.

What will you read next?

I want to give focus to Non-Fiction this November but I’m hoping to give Wicked Saints and Under Locke a read before diving into some non-fiction reads. I know me and I know that I won’t be able to stick to only non-fiction next month, so I’m definitely going to break it up with some more romances, maybe some SFF (THE TOLL!) and maybe even some thrillers. Also, eARCs need focus but we all know that 😅

What are you currently reading? How’s your week and reading going?
Leave me a comment and let’s chat 🙂

Down the TBR Hole – 05

Dini @ dinipandareads11 Comments

We’re back with another episode of Down the TBR Hole! Y’all, I’m proud to say that I’m down to 1,014 books. Over the last two weeks I’ve only reviewed five books each week and haven’t managed to cut out any books. It’s getting harder to do, friends. The pressure is definitely on! 🙈I’m back to reviewing ten books this week though, so let’s see how this goes…

Down the TBR Hole is a weekly book meme created by the wonderful Lia @ Lost in a Story that attempts to organize our ridiculously long Goodreads TBR list by choosing either to keep or eliminate the books we’ve saved on there. Here’s how it works:

  • Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 (or even more!) if you’re feeling adventurous) books. Of course, if you do this weekly, you start where you left off the last time.
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go

Verdict: Keep

Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. I’m a bit torn about whether I want to read this or not but it seems that a lot of my book loving friends love it, so I think it’s a keeper?

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak. I love historical fiction and especially books set during WWII. Everything about this book essentially falls under “things-I-love” so I honestly don’t know why I’ve been hesitating to pick it up.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I absolutely loved this movie and have been curious about the book. It’s got amazing reviews but I’m honestly a little nervous that I won’t enjoy the book as much as I loved the movie.

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield. Everything about this book screams at me to read it ASAP!

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. A classic that I feel like I’ve read in middle school but I honestly can’t remember… It sounds like a book I’ll love and I love the title; it always grabs my attention!

East of Eden by John Steinbeck. Just like Grapes of Wrath this is a book that I’ve had sitting on my shelf for a very very long time but it intimidates the heck out of me so I’ve been super hesitant to pick it up. It’s staying on my list though.

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. This is another tome that’s been on my physical TBR for an age but I’m too intimidated to pick it up. One day… One day (I swear)!

Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. I mean… It’s an insanely popular classic that I don’t want to pass up reading. When will I get to it? Eventually…

Things Fall Apart (The African Trilogy #1) by Chinua Achebe. I remember reading this in high school but for the life of me I can’t remember anything about it except the fact that I enjoyed it. So technically it’s a book I’ve read?

Verdict: Bye-bye-bye!

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. I found out about the movie before knowing it was a book first, and I was so excited to get into it. It’s got some really great reviews, but there’s just something about it that makes me also not want to read/watch it. So for now, I think I’m gonna say bye-bye-bye!

bluepanda

Alright friends, it’s safe to say that this week was another not so great week of cutting out books from my Goodreads TBR. I managed to remove 1/10 books 🙈It’s just so hard? All of these books are ones I really do want to read, I’m just either too intimidated to read them or they slip my mind because they’re so far back on my backlist. Oh well, next week is another week to try eliminating books? Lol

Have you read any of these books? Would these make your keep list or would you say bye-bye-bye to them? Leave me a comment and let’s chat!

Sundays in Bed With… #MyWeeklyWrapUp [27]

Dini @ dinipandareads8 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 been you’ve spent time curled up reading in bed with, or which book you wish you had time to read today!

This Sunday I spent the day in bed with Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager. In typical fashion, I’ve managed to sign myself up for TOO MANY group reads this month and until now I haven’t read any of the reads that have been scheduled for discussion this weekend. I’m a mood reader but I’ve never had so much trouble with following through on group reads before 😅 I usually manage to put down whatever I feel like reading and pick up what I’m meant to be reading but that hasn’t been the case over the last few months.

BUT I DIGRESS. Last Time I Lied is one of the books that is meant to be discussed this weekend (i.e. today) and I’ve only just started it. I’ve only read one other Sager book and although it was much slower in pace than I anticipated, I still really enjoyed it. I’ve heard lots of great things about this book of his, so I’m looking forward to seeing how I feel and whether it’s truly as creepy and thrilling as people say.

Have you ever played two truths and a lie?

Emma has. Her first summer away from home, she learned how to play the game. And she learned how to lie.

Then three of her new friends went into the woods and never returned . . .

Now, years later, Emma has been asked to go back to the newly re-opened Camp Nightingale. She thinks she’s laying old ghosts to rest but really she’s returning to the scene of a crime.

Because Emma’s innocence might be the biggest lie of all…

What are you currently reading?

It’s Sunday and I can’t even. We’ve also come to the end of October, with just a few days to go until November comes around. The last two weeks have been… Insane? One week was a holiday and the second week was diving straight back into high-intensity work loads due to it being the regional meetings. I’m wondering if I’m feeling extra tired because of the fact that I went from a pretty lazy holiday straight into an intense week without even one day of easing into things in between. I think I’ve managed to stretch myself pretty thin with everything this October and I’m trying not to let the guilt I feel at not being at the top of my game get me down. I’m feeling like there’s a lot of change coming in the last few months of 2019 and definitely in 2020. I’m just hoping that they all end up being positive ones!

Did I mention that the days are only continuing to get hotter here?! I want to keep my AC on 24/7 because honestly the days are stifling. The humidity is only increasing and the intensity of the sun’s heat down here is mind-numbingly hot.

Reading & Blogging Recap

Unsurprisingly due to the hectic life schedule, I’ve fallen quite behind on books and blogging over the last two weeks and the break in my regular programming has really disrupted my flow and my ability to get back into things. I’ve managed to read a decent number of books though and have noticed that I’m still very much in the contemporary romance mood and I think that’s mostly because I really don’t have to concentrate on the stories and I can still follow along fine. I’ve tried picking up some other reads that require more concentration and I find I so easily lose my place as I get lost in my own thoughts. Hopefully things pick up in November though!

One thing that I need to start working on in the coming week or at least at the weekend, is writing all the reviews I haven’t written for the books that I’ve read. Maybe it’s because I’m feeling extra lazy but I haven’t really been pushing myself to write the reviews down for the books right after I finish reading it when things are still fresh in my mind. As a result, I’m finding that I’m already forgetting why I loved or didn’t love a book. So these might all end up being mini-reviews! I’m trying not to feel guilty about it as there’s really no obligation (they’re not ARCs) for me to write these reviews, right? But I’ve really enjoyed writing reviews ever since starting my blog, so I think I’m just going through a funky phase where routine is disrupted and things feel a little bit in limbo? Anyway, before I digress even further and blather on about nothing, check out the posts I made this week below.

Friday Favorites: Magic Wielders
First Lines Friday: 24 October
eARC Graphic Novel Review: The Black Mage by Daniel Barnes & DJ Kirkland
Review: Rules for Vanishing by Kate Alice Marshall
eARC Review: On The Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness (The Wingfeather Saga #1) by Andrew Petersen
WWWWednesday: 23 October
#TopTenTuesday: Fantasy Book Title Generator!
Goodreads Monday: 21 October
Down the TBR Hole – 04
Cover Reveal: His Royal Highness by R.S. Grey

I’d like to give a special shout out this week to Leelynn who recently featured me on her blog and I’m seriously still shook that there are bloggers out there who want to share more about me! I never in my wildest thoughts would’ve expected anything like this to happen when I started my book blog this year. Leelynn is one of my favorite bloggers and she is so incredibly supportive of everyone in the community! She is such a force of positivity and I’m so lucky to have met her through blogging and to be able to now call her my friend. If you haven’t done so already, I strongly urge you to check out her fun and amazing blog posts and give her a follow! I’m planning to share the blogger spotlight post on my blog in the coming week as well, not to toot my own horn or anything but to share Leelynn’s work and amazing thoughtfulness for featuring me on her blog! So much love 🧡💙💜

How has your week been? Hope everyone has/had a great weekend!
Let me know how you’re doing in the comments and let’s chat, friends 🙂

#WWWWednesday: 23 October

Dini @ dinipandareads15 Comments

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:

  1. What did you read last?
  2. What are you currently reading?
  3. What will you read next?

What did you read last?

HEY FRIENDS! As I’ve probably mentioned a time or two before this, I was off on a staycation in Bali last week when my friends had come to visit, and because we had so much time chilling by the poolside, I managed to squeeze in more reads than I expected (three to be exact)! I’ve been feeling lazy AF though and haven’t written reviews for the majority of these reads (and I’m already feeling my memory slipping on me ARGH! Why is memory so bad?)! I enjoyed the majority of my reads this past week but I think my favorites were: Serpent & Dove and Rules for Vanishing (YES, it’s a scary book! I don’t even know who I am anymore 😂)! I enjoyed These Witches Don’t Burn and The Sea of Lost Girls (e-ARC), but thought Birthday Girl, while pretty steamy, was just OK. I’m falling behind on SO MANY reviews and my memory is already failing me, so I’m hoping to get to writing some this weekend! *fingers crossed*

What are you currently reading?

I’ve got a few reads going at the moment because I can’t decide what to keep on reading. I’m part of a group read for Frankly in Love, which we’re discussing at the end of the week, so I should probs get rolling on that one. I’m not sure I’m in the right mood though, but I also don’t know what I’m in the mood for 😅I’ve also picked up Wicked Saints and I’m thinking of starting Under Locke as well (I’me excited to see it’s under 500 pages too!). I’m also part of a group read for a Lisa Jewell book but I can’t actually remember which book I should be reading? Haha I’m clearly on the ball this week! I’m so glad it’s already Wednesday although I won’t be catching a “break” until Saturday evening!

What will you read next?

This message will probably continue to stay unchanged for the foreseeable future: I’m still trying to give priority to several eARCs that are well overdue! I’m still hoping to read TH1RT3EN soon because I’ve seen a ton of people posting about it and I think it’d be great to stick to my goal of reading more creepy books this month. I’ve heard great things! Shadow Frost is also a bit of a priority since it was just published earlier this month but I’ve heard so many mixed reviews (mostly not so great ones) that it’s making me reluctant to read it 🤦🏻‍♀️

What are you currently reading? How’s your week going? I’m hoping my vacation-brain-mode deactivates soon! Leave me a comment and let’s chat 🙂

Down the TBR Hole – 04

Dini @ dinipandareads7 Comments

We’re back with another episode of Down the TBR Hole! Y’all, I’m proud to say that I’m down to 1,015 books. PROUD PANDA 🐼Last week was a really quick post of five books and I think this week will be the same too because, life is still life! Let’s see if I manage to cut any out this week!

Down the TBR Hole is a weekly book meme created by the wonderful Lia @ Lost in a Story that attempts to organize our ridiculously long Goodreads TBR list by choosing either to keep or eliminate the books we’ve saved on there. Here’s how it works:

  • Go to your goodreads to-read shelf.
  • Order on ascending date added.
  • Take the first 5 (or 10 (or even more!) if you’re feeling adventurous) books. Of course, if you do this weekly, you start where you left off the last time.
  • Read the synopses of the books
  • Decide: keep it or should it go

Verdict: Keep

The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards. I remember seeing this one so much back in the day but never ended up purchasing it. It has a lot of amazing reviews, plus the premise sounds like something I’d really enjoy. Nothing in the blurb gives away why it’s called The Memory Keeper’s Daughter either, so I’m even more intrigued!

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. This is one of those books that you keep hearing people talk about. I do enjoy a good family saga and this one sounds like it has a bit of a mystery to it, so I’m definitely intrigued. I don’t know when I’ll get to it but it’s one of the books I want to read at some point!

Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay. Everything about this sounds completely up my alley. I didn’t remember it when I saw it on my list but it seems a lot of friends have read it and rated it very highly.

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. I honestly think the only reason I’m keeping this book on my list is because I have the physical copy (I got it from a former colleague who was giving away books) and I’m thinking: since I already have it I might as well read it, right? Lol

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. I remember really enjoying this movie and wanting to read the book after watching it. Never did get to it (obv) but I think I’m still interested in reading it!

bluepanda

Okay, that’s it folks. I clearly spoke too soon about being on a roll with taking books of my TBR list because it’s another week of reviewing five and removing none 😂 All of these do sound good (well, I’m still on the fence about the Poisonwood Bible) and like stories I’ll enjoy reading so… 🤷🏻‍♀️

Have you read any of these books? How easy is it to cull your TBR list? Leave me a comment and let’s chat!