#WWWWednesday: 15 May 2019

May 15, 2019May 1, 2021 Dini @ dinipandareads5 Comments

Hey book friends! Hope everyone has been having a great week so far. My bestie has arrived from Brisbane today to spend a few days with me for my birthday this Sunday, so I don’t know if I’ll have much time to make more posts this week, but since Wednesdays are usually shorter posts, and the night is almost over, I thought I’d take a quick break from our catch up to write something. I’m so happy my bestie is here, she makes everything so much better and for the last few hours we’ve been reminiscing about our Melbourne days and catching up on all the latest face-to-face.

Anyway, without further ado, it’s time for another WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be talking about:

What did you read last?
What are you currently reading?
What will you read next?

What did you read last?

Most recently I finished an ARC that I had been “reading” for weeks, an upcoming poetry book and a popular contemporary fiction that I didn’t want to put down. Friends, I’ve finally finished Little Darlings by Melanie Golding. I think I really psyched myself out of reading this one for fear that it’d be too scary for my easily frightened imagination, but I ended up enjoying it well enough. You can read my review here. I read an ARC of a poetry collection called Between You and These Bones by F.D. Soul, which was published yesterday (14 May), and although I didn’t fully connect with it as much as I hoped I would, there were still some beautiful pieces that I really enjoyed. You can read my review here. Lastly, I stayed up late last night to finish Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. I’m still thinking over my review, but I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I haven’t read Ng’s debut so I didn’t really have an idea of what her writing would be like, but I can definitely understand why this book was so hyped! Definitely worth checking out. My review will be coming up (hopefully) soon so keep an eye out for that!

What are you currently reading?

The Wedding Planner (Whisper Woods #3) by Eve Devon. This is an ARC that was actually published yesterday too (14 May) — I’m so behind on my NetGalley reads because I’ve been feeling a little bit “slumpish” recently. I didn’t realize that this was actually the third book in a series, so to be honest I’m feeling a little bit lost with all the character and pairing mentions, but it seems to be a cute read so far. I hope that it won’t take me long to read! I’m also reading How to Find Love in A Bookshop by Veronica Henry. I recently looked through the books I’ve read and rated but didn’t write a review for and this is one of the ones I came across. I love books about books, especially when there’s romance involved, so I immediately felt the need to pick this up for a reread. It’s almost like reading it ‘new’ because my memory is notoriously bad, but some things are coming back to me as I read. Let me just say that I’ve already cried three times reading the first few chapters. I’m amazed at how this book has me so emotional so quickly!

What will you read next?

I’m hoping to also pick up The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine over my short little holiday. I’ve been told it’s a really good fast paced thriller and since I’ll be lounging by the pool/beach over the next few days, I thought it’d be the perfect book to start reading! It definitely sounds juicy, so I’m looking forward to it!

What are you currently reading? Have you written a WWW Wednesday post too? Leave your link in the comments below 🙂

#WWWWednesday: 01 May 2019

May 1, 2019May 1, 2021 Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

Happy first of the month, book lovers! It seems that there’s a lot to look forward to in the month of May. Work is going to be hectic this month but I’m also taking a week off to celebrate my birthday with my bestie who’s coming up from Brisbane to join me in Bali! It’s gonna be a week of awesome hangs, reading pool/beachside, exploring what Bali has to offer, and of course, eating. Also, we’re five months into the year already — can you believe it?!

On that note, iIt’s time for another WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be talking about:

What did you read last?
What are you currently reading?
What will you read next?

What did you read last?

Pride by Ibi Zoboi. I finished this book in the nick of time for it to be counted as my last April read! I’m a little bit on the fence about it because while I really enjoyed how Zoboi took this classic and made it into such a culturally vibrant modern tale, I wasn’t too keen on Zuri Benitez or Darius Darcy, the two MCs. Pride & Prejudice is one of my all-time favorites and while all the ‘boxes’ were basically ticked, I also felt that maybe the story could’ve done without some of them because not all elements added to this story. Still mulling over my review for this one, and I’ll hopefully post it soon!

What are you currently reading?

I’m currently reading three books. Little Darlings by Melanie Goldman, Mixed Signals by Mia Heintzman, and Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want To Come by Jessica Pan. Yes, I’m still reading Little Darlings. I can’t bring myself to pick it up at night and this week has been so busy with work and after work dinners and outings that I haven’t had much time to read. I hope to finish it by the weekend though! 🤞🏽 The other two are also ARCs because I want to cut my NetGalley reads down by just a little bit; my list on there has grown alarmingly fast and I’ve banned myself from requesting new reads until I read and review a few more! Mixed Signals is a cute little rom com that I’m reading alongside Little Darlings to keep myself happy, and Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want To Come is a non-fiction about the author’s experience as an introvert living the extrovert life for a year. As an socially anxious introvert, this book really appealed to me and I’ve enjoyed what little I’ve read so far!

What will you read next?

Next up are two buddy reads that I’ve committed myself to with my bestie and an IG group. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett and All Your Perfects by Colleen Hoover. I’m hoping to read Good Omens before the show comes out this month!

What are you currently reading? Have you done a WWW Wednesday too? Leave your link in the comments!

Sundays In Bed With… My #WeeklyWrapUp! [03]

April 28, 2019December 4, 2022 Dini @ dinipandareadsLeave a comment

The Sundays In Bed With… meme dares to ask you what book has been in your bed this morning! This meme 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!

I’ve spent my Sunday literally in bed and even though I feel a little guilty about the on-off napping/reading, I’ve been getting such lousy sleep last week, I guess my body really needed it? To be fair, my weird ass woke up at 7:30AM (on a Sunday!) and I jumped out of bed thinking it was well into the afternoon; I hate waking up feeling so disoriented! Since I couldn’t get back to sleep, I let myself laze for a long as I wanted, browsing through bookstagram, blogs, and eventually picking up Little Darlings again. I won’t lie, this book is giving me next level anxiety feels and I’m getting frustrated with the MC, which is making it difficult to get into the book. I’m only 42% in and I don’t want to get creepy feelings when I get back in bed tonight, so I’ll leave it until tomorrow.

What are you currently reading?

It’s also that time to share my weekly wrap up! I think it’s been a pretty decent blogging week. I still haven’t really had much opportunity to diversify my blog posts outside of the regular weekly memes and occasional reviews because the work days have been long and my brain is mush by the time I get back; and I still haven’t mastered the art of writing my posts ahead of time 😅 So in case you’ve missed them, here are my posts from the past week:

First Impression Friday & The Friday 56: Little Darlings
Review: Normal People by Sally Rooney
WWW Wednesday: 24 April
Top Ten Tuesday: The First Ten Books I Reviewed
Mini Reviews Monday with A Lost Man, A Summer Friendship & Naughty Princesses!

This week I also watched Avengers: Endgame and let me tell you, my feelings were not ready to be so thoroughly fcked with. I was bawling my eyes out along with about 90% of the movie theater and when the lights came on and the credits started rolling, we all stood up and started clapping and cheering. It was a moment. After catching a morning showing, I walked through the rest of the day like a zombie–I was so emotionally drained! I had to do some major retail therapy to distract myself from my drowning emotions, so I guess that was a perk, but it didn’t really work because I couldn’t stop thinking about that ending! What a journey… Have you watched Endgame yet?

Hope everyone had a great week and a fun weekend! Can you believe it’s Sunday already? Here we go Monday… Have a great week ahead!

#WWWWednesday: 24 April 2019

April 24, 2019May 1, 2021 Dini @ dinipandareads5 Comments

We’ve come to the last Wednesday of April! I’ve seen a lot of people posting about trying to fit in their last few reads for the month and I am too! I think it’s been a pretty decent reading month though and I think it might even be comparable to March! Hope everyone has been going well with their April reads too! But without further ado, let’s get back to it… It’s time for another WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be talking about:

What did you read last?
What are you currently reading?
What will you read next?

What did you read last?

Monstress, Vol. 3: Haven (Monstress #3) by Marjorie M. Liu. I discovered this gem earlier last year when I started exploring graphic novels. If you can’t tell by the name and the cover, it’s a pretty dark tale. Set in a matriarchal 1900s steam-punk Asia, the story is full of violence, magic, and supernatural monsters. While the story is still a little bit confusing, the world building is mind-blowing and the artwork by Sana Takeda is so beautifully gothic. We follow Maika Halfwolf, who’s on the run from coalition forces and who embarks on a journey to learn about her late mother’s secrets, and to learn how to cope with the monster living inside her. If you don’t mind a bit of a twisted gorey read, I would definitely recommend this to you!

What are you currently reading?

Normal People by Sally Rooney. When this book exploded on my bookstagram feed earlier this month, I was quite hesitant to pick it up because of how I felt about Rooney’s debut novel, Conversations with Friends. It was one of my least favorite reads last year and it left me feeling angry and full of discomfort, and I was sure that I wouldn’t pick up another of Rooney’s books again (a big statement, I know). So when I was facing my two-book hangover last week and picked this up on a whim, I didn’t think it would be the one to pull me in, but I was hooked from the start! It’s honestly shaping up to be one of my favorite reads so far this year, although it should come with a trigger warning for major depression, suicidal thoughts, depictions of physical and sexual abuse, and consent.

I’ve also started The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides on the side. I’m only a few chapters in but I can sense that this is going to be a thrilling and fast read that will be keeping me on my toes until the very end! This is another book that’s been very hyped everywhere, so I’m hoping it’ll live up to my expectations!

What will you read next?

One of the books I am going to stop waffling over and will definitely be picking up at the weekend is the e-ARC for Little Darlings by Melanie Golding. When I requested to read this on Netgalley, there was no mention in the description that it would a supernatural thriller, otherwise I probably wouldn’t have requested it. Supernatural horror is really not my jam. I’m not even gonna lie, I’m weak like that and I’m absolutely okay with it, so the thought of reading this is making my imagination jump from 0-100 and I’m basically just shit scared. Hopefully it won’t be as bad as I think but best believe I’ll be reading this under the full light of day and I’m aiming to finish it before sundown!

Have you read any of these or are you planning to?
What are you currently reading? 🙂

#WWWWednesday: 10 April 2019

April 10, 2019April 30, 2021 Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday! This is a meme hosted by Taking On A World of Words. I can’t believe how quickly the week is going. Hope everyone is having a great week so far?

The three questions are:
1. What did you read last?
2. What are you currently reading?
3. What will you read next?

What did you read last?

I finished a few books this past week: Midnight Radio (Graphic Novel ARC), Nocturnal (ARC Poetry), The Stillwater Girls (read my review here), and The Dreamers. I read The Dreamers with some lovely ladies in the Traveling Friends Instagram Reading Group organized by The Traveling Sisters. I’m glad that I read this with others because I definitely wanted to discuss my thoughts on it. Plus, these ladies were so friendly and fun to talk to, I’m so happy that I joined! I’ll be posting my review tomorrow, so stay tuned 😉

What are you currently reading?

There are a couple of ARCs that I’m trying to get through this month but I also want to balance these out with other reads. Just yesterday, I picked up these books: Don’t Even Breathe (ARC, coming out 18 April), The Hunting Party, and Pride. I started Don’t Even Breathe yesterday and it basically had my head turning in the second chapter! I’m only 40% through, but it’s fairly fast paced, so I hope it continues to deliver!

What will you read next?

I’m planning to start a bestie buddy read for The Dry by Jane Harper. I’m really excited to read this as I’ve heard lots of good things about it, but thankfully it’s not as hyped as her more recent book, The Lost Man (*phew*). I’d also like to start on The Silent Patient, but I think I’m going to have to break up this slew of thrillers with a lighthearted YA, The Goodbye Summer by Sara van Name, another ARC coming out 01 May 2019!