Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme created by Rukky @Eternity Books and hosted by Aria @Book Nook Bits, and it’s where we get to discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts! If you want to join, check out the April 2022 prompts and May 2022 prompts!
Now without further ado… The topic asks us about:
TO ANNOTATE OR NOT TO ANNOTATE…
(SUGGESTED BY ARIA @ BOOK NOOK BITS) Prompts:…that is the question*. Do you like annotating books? If so, how do you annotate them? Is there a difference for you between ebooks, physical books, and audiobooks? If you’ve ever had to annotate books in school, does this affect your willingness to annotate the books you read for fun? What are some downsides to annotating books in your opinion?
I’m back with more mini(-ish) reviews and today it’s for two Talia Hibbert books that I’ve read in 2022 but still haven’t reviewed. Talia Hibbert is one of my auto-buy romance authors—she brings the swoon and the steam and while I’ve read one or two of her books that didn’t entirely sweep me away, for the most part, her romances have been winners! Without further ado, let’s get to it.
WORK FOR IT BY TALIA HIBBERT
Goodreads: Work for It (Just For Him #4) Publisher: Nixon House Publication Date: 03 September 2019 Genre: Contemporary Romance, M/M Romance
Panda Rating: (4 pandas)
For men like us, trust doesn’t come easy.
In this village, I’m an outcast: Griffin Everett, the scowling giant who prefers plants to people. Then I meet Keynes, a stranger from the city who’s everything I’m not: sharp-tongued, sophisticated, beautiful. Free. For a few precious moments in a dark alleyway, he’s also mine, hot and sweet under the stars… until he crushes me like dirt beneath his designer boot.
When the prettiest man I’ve ever hated shows up at my job the next day, I’m not sure if I want to strangle him or drag him into bed. Actually—I think I want both. But Keynes isn’t here for the likes of me: he makes that painfully clear. With everyone else at work, he’s all gorgeous, glittering charm—but when I get too close, he turns vicious.
And yet, I can’t stay away. Because there’s something about this ice king that sets me on fire, a secret vulnerability that makes my chest ache. I’ll do whatever it takes to sneak past his walls and see the real man again.
The last thing I expect is for that man to ruin me.
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
What did you read last?
What are you currently reading?
What will you read next?
Since last week I’ve managed to finish four books. While one of them didn’t work for me, two were enjoyable and fun reads and one was a clear favourite for me!
An Arrow to the Moon by Emily X.R. Pan ★★★½ I initially rated this 4 stars but brought it down cos even though there was a lot that I loved, the more I thought about it, the more the ending disappoints me. It was still a great read though and if you love Pan’s beautiful writing I’d still recommend it! Check out my review
Josh and Gemma Make A Baby by Sarah Ready ★★½ While this had a lot of elements I tend to love in romances, the execution was lacking and I ended up being sorely disappointed especially because as the story progressed, the “heroine” became increasingly unlikeable and I couldn’t find anything redeeming about her by the end.
This week isactually a freebie and so I decided to do a topic that I don’t think I’ve done before:Bookish Merchandise I’d Love to Own but I wasn’t really vibing with the topic so I decided to put a spin and look at Beautiful Books I’d Love to Own!
Over the last year or so I’ve slowed down on purchasing any old physical book and have taken as many opportunities as I can to get my hands on beautiful special edition books! I’m definitely lucky to be able to afford these special editions when international shipping charges are often heartbreakingly high but I work hard to indulge in my love for books so, why not?! But I digress… I don’t know about you but I’m not just a sucker for gorgeous book covers but I’m wild for all the stunning sprayed edges, too! 😍
Here are a few that I would *love* to get my hands on plus the shops that they come from, y’know, just in case you feel like indulging too! 😉
Hello, friends! It’s my stop on the TBR & Beyond Tours for Sofi and the Bone Song by Adrienne Tooley and I’m excited to share my review and favourite quotes with you today!
Thanks to Margaret K. McElderry Books for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!
Click here or on the banner above to check out the rest of the amazing bloggers on tour!
Goodreads:Sofi and the Bone Song Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books Publication Date: 19 April 2022 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Panda Rating: (4.5 pandas)
In this gorgeous, queer standalone fantasy, a young musician sets out to expose her rival for illegal use of magic only to discover the deception goes deeper than she could have imagined—perfect for fans of An Enchantment of Ravens!
Music runs in Sofi’s blood. Her father is a Musik, one of only five musicians in the country licensed to compose and perform original songs. In the kingdom of Aell, where winter is endless and magic is accessible to all, there are strict anti-magic laws ensuring music remains the last untouched art.
Sofi has spent her entire life training to inherit her father’s title. But on the day of the auditions, she is presented with unexpected competition in the form of Lara, a girl who has never before played the lute. Yet somehow, to Sofi’s horror, Lara puts on a performance that thoroughly enchants the judges. Almost like magic.
The same day Lara wins the title of Musik, Sofi’s father dies, and a grieving Sofi sets out to prove Lara is using illegal magic in her performances. But the more time she spends with Lara, the more Sofi begins to doubt everything she knows about her family, her music, and the girl she thought was her enemy.
As Sofi works to reclaim her rightful place as a Musik, she is forced to face the dark secrets of her past and the magic she was trained to avoid—all while trying not to fall for the girl who stole her future.
It’s hard to believe that we’re already over a quarter of the way through 2022—the year feels like it has just begun and I can’t even process how quickly time goes! 😂 But I digress… I’ve seen a couple of bloggers do this tag and I’m a little late as it’s already mid-April (somehow?!) but it looked like fun so I thought I’d do it anyway!
This original tag was created by Roisin @ Roisin’s Reading over on BookTube. Check out her OG video below!
On that note, let’s get this tag started:
How many books have you read so far?
According to Goodreads, I’ve read 84/150 books this year putting me 42 books ahead of schedule! 🥳 I’ve never had such a fab start to the reading year before and I’m hoping I can keep up this momentum for the rest of 2022!
Have you already found a book you think might be a 2022 favourite? If not, what was your favourite book you read that wasn’t quite five stars?
I have a surprising number of 5-star reads already this year but I can definitely already pick out two that will for sure be in my top five(!): Jade Legacy by Fonda Lee and Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree!
Any 1-star books / least favourite book of the year?
I have one 1-star book this year: Now and Then by Brenda Rothert. I apparently purchased this NA Romance back in 2016 although I have no recollection of doing so and I found it on my Kindle when I was cataloguing my ebooks at the start of this year. I read it for a reading challenge prompt and it’s safe to say that it really didn’t work for me!
Most read genre so far?
It’ll surprise absolutely no one that my most read genre so far is contemporary romance. This has been the case since mid-2021 and these romances have really kept my reading momentum going. Give me all the romances, please! 😍
A book that surprised you?
This series was making rounds on romance booktwt and after seeing these covers I had zero expectations going into it. So I was more than a little surprised by how much I lovedThe Mindf*ck Series by S.T. Abby! Like holy granola, these covers are literally the worst (sorry not sorry) BUT the story? So forking good!
A book that’s come out in 2022 already that you want to read but haven’t yet?
One of my goals this year is to cut down on my backlist and according to my tracker, almost 60% of the books I’ve read this year are from my backlist so… WOO! 🥳 I’m really happy that I’m reading more of the books that I’ve already owned pre-2021/22. Let’s hope I can keep that up! 🤣
One goal you made that you need to focus on
Every year I make the goal to read more non-fiction… This year my goal is to read at least four non-fiction books and so far I’ve read none. Ha! I know it’s still early days but I hope I can at least get one read before mid-year? 🙃
New to you Bloggers*/Booktubers/Bookstagrammers/Booktokers for 2022 you recommend?
I don’t think I’ve discovered new booktubers/bookstagrammers/booktokers in 2022 but I have discovered new bloggers, so I added us to this prompt! 😉 There are honestly too many to name them all but here are a few new-to-me bloggers whose posts I’ve really enjoyed reading this year:
And that’s a wrap on my first quarter of reading in 2022! How has your year of reading been? Any new favourites? New bloggers to follow? I’d love your recs!
Hello, friends! It’s my stop on the TBR & Beyond Tours for An Arrow to the Moon by Emily X.R. Pan and I’m excited to share my review and journal spread with you today!
Thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!
Click here or on the banner above to check out the rest of the amazing bloggers on tour!
Goodreads:An Arrow to the Moon Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers Publication Date: 12 April 2022 Genre: Young Adult Contemporary, Magical Realism
Panda Rating: (3.5 pandas)
Romeo and Juliet meets Chinese mythology in this magical novel by the New York Times bestselling author of The Astonishing Color of After
Hunter Yee has perfect aim with a bow and arrow, but all else in his life veers wrong. He’s sick of being haunted by his family’s past mistakes. The only things keeping him from running away are his little brother, a supernatural wind, and the bewitching girl at his new high school.
Luna Chang dreads the future. Graduation looms ahead, and her parents’ expectations are stifling. When she begins to break the rules, she finds her life upended by the strange new boy in her class, the arrival of unearthly fireflies, and an ominous crack spreading across the town of Fairbridge.
As Hunter and Luna navigate their families’ enmity and secrets, everything around them begins to fall apart. All they can depend on is their love…but time is running out, and fate will have its way.
Hello, hello and welcome back to another episode of WWW Wednesday, a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World of Words, which means I’ll be answering these questions:
What did you read last?
What are you currently reading?
What will you read next?
Wow, since last week I’ve managed to read one book. I know I’ve spent more time with friends and gaming since I came to Bali, but I also didn’t realise I was barely reading! 🙈 Maybe I also didn’t realise it because I was reading something I was just doing it uncharacteristically (for me) slowly!
I buddy read GoJaS with Leslie and I’m glad that I can finally knock it off my TBR. It was a bit of a rocky start (for both of us) but we ended up really enjoying it! The world-building was lush, the mythology was fantastic, the characters were compelling, and THE ROMANCE. OML talk about angsty but absolutely EPIC—it truly had me in a chokehold! It was swoontastic, heartbreaking and so forking good. 😮💨 I’ll be posting a gushing semi-coherent review soonish, lol!
This week isactually a freebie and so I decided to do a topic that I don’t think I’ve done before: Authors I Haven’t Read, But Want To (Submitted by Deanna @ A Novel Glimpse)!
There are so many books and not enough time for me to read them all so I have *plenty* of authors to choose from for this week’s topic! I would stick to one genre but instead, I’ve decided to include authors from all the genres as there are truly so many that I haven’t read but can’t wait to read from maybe even this year! There’s absolutely no order to this list but these are the first ten that came to mind. 🤣
I’ve got quite a backlog of reviews that I want to share on my blog but with the number I’ve got going, it’ll take me forever to get many of them up so today I’m sharing mini-reviews for three romances that I’ve read in the last month! If you’re interested in reading any of these, all of them are available on Kindle Unlimited (at least for Amazon UK) if you have a subscription. 😊
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