Tag: WWW Wednesday

#WWWWednesday: 16 October

Dini @ dinipandareads8 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?

Since the last check in, I’ve managed to finish four books! I’m really loving Mariana Zapata’s books and finished two in the last week alone. Although the formula to her stories isn’t all that complicated and not entirely unpredictable, I really enjoy the journey I go through with her characters. Sometimes it’s just really satisfying to get what you sign up for in these reads, you know? I finished Dear Aaron and Wait For It. Dear Aaron was alright but Wait For It had me smiling constantly. I also finally finished House of Salt and Sorrows and I also read Faker, another contemporary romance.

What are you currently reading?

I started Serpent & Dove yesterday and um… I love it so much?! Lou is so bad ass and why am I developing a soft spot for Reid?! I haven’t had much time to read since my friend is visiting, but I’m really fighting the desire to read this book non-stop! At the same time, because my friend is here I’ve decided that NOW IS THE TIME to start reading Rules for Vanishing. It’s… TERRIFYING. I’ve only managed to read a little bit but my toes are curling thinking about how scary this is sounding. I don’t honestly don’t know if I’ll be ready for the scary shit, with or without my friend here 😅

What will you read next?

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?
Leave me a comment and let’s chat 🙂

#WWWWednesday: 09 October

Dini @ dinipandareads22 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 managed to finish four books since last Wednesday! I finally finished The Bookish Life of Nina Hill yesterday and even though I didn’t fall head over heels for the cast of very quirky characters, I still thought this was an adorable read! Nina was such a great bookish character and the whole story in general was very quirky and charming! Fairlady, Vol. 1 was a fantasy graphic novel that I enjoyed for the world building but I was disappointed that the stories were so disconnected. My Life As Marlee was an ARC I got from Book Sirens and which I’m so proud of finishing before the deadline (this is sad really lol)! While the book started off well for me, I didn’t end up enjoying the rest of the story as much as I thought I would. Maybe I’m just too old and cynical for these types of YA romances? The Wall of Winnipeg and Me was by far my favorite out of all of these and I’m so glad I picked up another Zapata book after being somewhat let down by the first of hers that I read. I’m a fan of the slow burn romance and this was one heckuva slow burn but never have I been so damn satisfied by it! All the reviews for these books are coming as soon as I finish getting my thoughts down and organizing them coherently 😅

What are you currently reading?

I’ve been reading House of Salt and Sorrows since last week and it’s taking me so long only because my last week was hella busy and I didn’t have as much time to read it at night, but it’s mostly because I’m too scared to read it alone at night in my flat. I’ve been trying to read it at work during my lunch breaks but people keep chatting to me 🙃and I’m trying to be a little less anti-social at work LOL that said, I’m almost done and I really don’t want to wait until tomorrow to continue reading it but will I be able to conquer the chicken in me? Not sure. It’s creepier than I thought it’d be!!! I’m also reading Dear Aaron by Mariana Zapata, which I started late last night as my melatonin was kicking in and will continue to read tonight, I think. I’ve been really bingeing on romances lately, it seems to be the mood I’ve settled in for now!

What will you read next?

I’m still trying to give priority to several eARCs that are well overdue! Even though I’m *obviously* not doing as well as I’d hoped in tackling them, there’s still time to improve! I’m hoping to read TH1RT3EN next 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 01 October! 🤦🏻‍♀️

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

#WWWWednesday: 02 October

Dini @ dinipandareads18 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 FINALLY FINISHED PRIORY OF THE ORANGE TREE LAST WEEK! 🎉

Excuse the all caps because I was SO excited that I managed to finish that hunk of a tome before the end of September. I was so certain that I’d be reading it straight through to October. I still haven’t written my review for it because I’m still not really sure how I feel about it. I enjoyed reading it and when I had it in my hands I would be speeding(ish) through the pages; but when I put it down I didn’t feel compelled to pick it back up again. I knew that I couldn’t have set it down to just read any other book too as I’d probably never come back to it 😂But I still enjoyed it. I think? Anyway, my review will hopefully be coming soon! I binged The Perfect Moment (review coming soon) and Two Weeks Notice (my review for Two Weeks Notice). on Friday night/Saturday morning (yes, both in one night lol) because my soul was craving something super light and fluffy after Priory, and I had no regrets staying up all night reading!

What are you currently reading?

I was feeling restless not knowing what I wanted to read after binging on two contemporary romances after finishing Priory last week, but I ended up choosing The Bookish Life of Nina Hill on a whim the other day and I’ve been speeding through it! The style is not at all what I expected and I wasn’t sure how I felt about Nina at the start, but the style and characters have grown on me. There’s a lot of quirkiness going on in this book and I’m actually really here for it! I’ve laughed aloud countless times since I started and it’s giving me some lightness that I need right now.

What will you read next?

Okay y’all, I have TONS of books outside of my ‘possibility pile’ that I need to get to this October before even turning to look at the ones I want to read! These definitely fall in the ‘must read’ category because they’re eARCs. I’m gonna give priority to several eARCs that are well overdue (I’m sorry pls don’t judge me) and ones whose pub dates are very quickly approaching! I’m actually pretty annoyed at myself for thinking the Shadow Frost pub date was later this month when it was actually yesterday! 🤦🏻‍♀️Epic fail, Dini! I’ve had this e-ARC for a while so I’m annoyed at my ability to push things off until they’re overdue. Someone tell me, why isn’t this a skill we actually need in life?! Lol

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

#WWWWednesday: 25 September

Dini @ dinipandareads9 Comments

YO, can you believe it’s already the last Wednesday of September 2019!? What is this sorcery with the time? I feel like if I close my eyes for too long I’ll open them to find it’s already NYE and the ball’s about to drop! 🙈So 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?

Since last Wednesday I managed to finish three other books alongside the one I’m still reading. I already posted my review for Fake Date (read it here!) but tl;dr, I was pretty disappointed and really wanted more from it! I still need to write reviews for The Hating Game (reread) and The Stopover (eARC). Oh hello, what are these things called eARCs you say?! Yah, it’s been a hot minute since I picked one up but I really needed to take a break from Priory and I decided to finally read this one contemporary romance. My review is going up soon but let me tell you, I am hella conflicted about how I feel because I know the relationship was toxic AF and the dynamic between screwing like wild bunnies to fighting over nothing got old pretty quick. BUT AT THE SAME TIME I also couldn’t put it down? Um, Like… What? Why? I don’t know. Is this how people felt when they finished reading the After series? Because if so, I think I get it now LMAO 😂

What are you currently reading?

GOOD NEWS FRIENDS! After whining about my struggle to get into The Priory of the Orange Tree, I’m now 80% of the way through and I’m really enjoying it! It does have me feeling a bit conflicted though. I’m attached to characters, but not necessarily all of the main ones (something bad just happened to one of the main characters and I felt… Nothing?). At the same time, even though I feel like I’ve sped through the last 40%, I also feel like it’s a little endless (I constantly wonder when, if ever, I’ll finish the book). But it’s really not because I’m not enjoying it, it’s just that it’s a tome 🙈 Shit hit the fan quickly and continuously in this story–literally just one thing after another going horribly wrong and it had my heart racing and me screaming out loud. I know that I don’t want to put this down until it’s over (but alas, life), especially now that I’ve made it to the final section of the book. I really can’t wait to see how it all wraps up!

What will you read next?

I’m still going to be keeping these three on here. Might pick up The Bookish Life of Nina Hill first though! I also missed the group discussion for Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1) 😅SURPRISE! But I think I’ll still give it a re-read. I’m not sure how I’m feeling about The Light Keeper anymore, as I tried the first three chapters and it just… Wow, confused and annoyed me, and that has me feeling a little yikes about it… Let’s see how it goes!

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

#WWWWednesday: 18 September

Dini @ dinipandareads17 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?

So… After writing my WWW Wednesday post last week, I managed to last ONE DAY before caving and picking up Godsgrave. That means I abandoned On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness, and I do feel guilty about that, but I just couldn’t resist! I NEEDED to know what happened and I’m really glad I picked it up. Kristoff managed to really screw with my feelings yet again, and now I’m holding off on picking up Darkdawn because I know I’m going to be a wreck while/after reading it. I don’t think I’m ready for it 😂 After finishing Godsgrave in the wee hours of Saturday morning, I decided I needed to take a break before moving on to the group read that I’ve been so skilled at avoiding, and I ended up finishing three books: a short graphic novel: Breaking Up Is Hard To Do… But You Could’ve Done Better (check out my review); and two contemporary romances: The Wrong Kind of Love and The Ingredients of Us (check out my review)! The Wrong Kind of Love was my first Lexi Ryan and I enjoyed it more than I thought I would! The Ingredients of Us was a mixed read for me… There was a lot of angst and that played against my anxiety, so I didn’t enjoy that, but it was still good for a debut. Plus I always enjoy books with baking/cooking 😍

What are you currently reading?

I’ve FINALLY picked up The Priory of the Orange Tree. We all know by now that this book is a definite chunkster and I gave up on reading the physical copy the other day because my arms just couldn’t deal with how much of a work out I was giving them 😂 So I caved and bought the e-book and my arms thank me muchly. I’ve also been so intimidated by how big this book is, so I hope that reading it on my Kindle will make it easier to digest! I’m kind of really feeling in the mood for a contemporary romance/romcom as well, so I think I might read Fake Date (Dating #2) by Monica Murphy at some point while reading Priory. I didn’t realize it was part of a series, but I loved the sound of it when I came across it this morning (on Alyssa @ A Lovely Book Affair‘s page), so yeah, IMPULSE BUY!

What will you read next?

After finishing Priory I expect that I’ll be feeling the need for some lighter reads, so I was thinking about picking up The Bookish Life of Nina Hill, which has been very hyped on bookstagram, and I just remembered I also signed myself up for a group read for Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1) 😅Woopsies! This’ll actually be a re-read for me. I didn’t like it the first time and didn’t see what everyone loved about it, but I’m wondering if I’ll feel differently this time around? Let’s see! I also need to read the ARC for The Light Keeper, which … is already out (I’m so sorry) and I just haven’t got around to it yet. Grr 😤This panda really needs to work on getting her ARC shit together!

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

#WWWWednesday: 11 September

Dini @ dinipandareads10 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?

Since last Wednesday, I managed to finish reading three books: Pumpkinheads (my review), A Different Time (my blog tour review) and The Love Solution (my review). I love graphic novels and I think Pumpkinheads has become a new favourite! It’s fall all over and while it left me salivating and craving all things that I can’t get here in the tropics, the ending left me feeling so warm inside.

What are you currently reading?

I’m currently reading On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness (The Wingfeather Saga #1) by Andrew Peterson, a middle-grade book I got on NetGalley. Apparently it was originally published in 2008, but a new edition will be published in March 2020, and that’s what I got the e-ARC for. I honestly requested this because of the cover and okay, it sounded cool too. I haven’t read middle-grade in an age but it’s been good so far with short chapters, which is always great! Interestingly enough, this new edition has footnotes in it and while that surprised me initially, I got used to it. Although the footnotes did remind me of Nevernight… Which then reminded me that I really want to read Godsgrave! I was planning to pick it up this week because you know how much I loved Nevernight. But I have a feeling that my ‘avoidance’ is kicking in and I’m not racing to pick it up for a reason; and the reason *probably* being that I’m worried that maybe I won’t like it as much? I don’t know. Feel free to check out my TTT post from yesterday to see just how amazing I am at avoiding reading books 🙃

What will you read next?

I really don’t know what I want to read next. I know what I SHOULD read next as it’s for a group read, but… I’m feeling wishy washy with it. I’ve tried reading the first page of the first chapter about ten times and my mind just won’t focus. So… I thought I’d try doing something new and ask for your help picking my next read! Yes, that’s right, I’m entrusting you, dear readers, friends, followers, to please help me choose what I should read next. Halp?

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

#WWWWednesday: 04 September

Dini @ dinipandareads4 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?

Since last Wednesday I’ve managed to finish four books and two of them were audiobooks (I followed along to the audiobook for Nevernight and it made me love this book even more)!
That Forever Girl (Getting Lucky #2): ★★★★☆
(Audiobook) Naturally Tan: ★★★★★
(Reread) The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #1): ★★★½
Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle #1): ★★★★½

I just finished Nevernight this morning and HOLY MOTHER. I can’t believe I waited so long to read this but now that I’ve started this series I know that I don’t want to stop. Perfect timing as well because now the final book has come out and I’ve only gone and ordered the Illumicrate box for it didn’t I? I’m planning to listen to the audiobook before then though because since I ordered the box yesterday it’ll only ship mid-October and you know I won’t be able to wait until then to read it! 😂 If the rest of the series continues to be as amazing as the first book, I think this will be one of my new favorite series! The hype was so real y’all 😍

What are you currently reading?

I’m part of TheWriteReads blog tour for A Different Time by Michael K. Hill and my tour date is this Saturday so I’m prioritizing this, no matter how much I want to be diving into Godsgrave right this very second! Pretty much everyone on the blog tour has loved this book and they’ve all said it made them emotional messes so I’M READY FOR IT! I love a book that can get me hard in the feels and since this is novella length I’m even more curious to see how hard it’ll hit!

What will you read next?

I’m joining two reading challenges this month: #SequelSeptember and #StandAloneSeptember and I’m excited to be taking part in both. For #SequelSeptember I’m planning to finally catch up on series that I’ve put off reading (for no particular reason) and finally finishing some that I don’t want to end! Since I just did a reread of The Cruel Prince, I’m planning to pick up The Wicked King while it’s still fresh in my mind. Obviously, I’m going to be starting up Godsgrave asap. #StandAloneSeptember is the first month of the year-long Hype-A-Thon reading challenge organized by Noly and Ellie, inspired by all the hyped and unread books on their shelves! Each month is going to have a different prompt, but what you read depends on the hyped books on your own shelf. I’m so excited for this–anything to knock more books off my TBR, right?

On top of those challenges, I’m also taking part in two group reads. One is organized by the amazing Leelynn (go check out her blog because she’s one of the most amazingly supportive people I’ve met in the book community) for The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. This tome has intimidated me ever since I snatched it up earlier this year, so I’m glad to be reading it with a group! My second group read is for Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1) by Sylvain Neuvel. I’ve read this a couple of years back and I really didn’t like it, but I’m curious to try it again and see if my opinion changes because everyone seems to love it!

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

#WWWWednesday: 28 August

Dini @ dinipandareads10 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?

Over the last week I managed to read these five books. While it’s not crazy impressive, I’m happy that I managed to keep the reading momentum going! Probably the Best Kiss in the World was okay but it wasn’t what I expected and felt a bit let down by it; you can read my review here! I still have to write my reviews for Stalking Jack the Ripper, Luna and the Lie and The Simple Wild, which I only finished last night, but completely loved! Luna and the Lie was my first Mariana Zapata and holy mother of slow burns! I mean, I’m all for a slow burn romance but when it gets to 80% mark and nothing indicates something more will happen between the characters, I felt a little miffed. Did I mention that this is probably the longest romance that I’ve ever read? It comes in close to 600 pages, and yet thanks to my sleeping issues, I managed to finish it in one day! SJTR was… interesting. Different to what I expected and while I enjoyed it, I’m sorry to say that I didn’t love it 😫 All reviews coming soon (I hope)!

What are you currently reading?

Although I’m not in a slump I’m still finding it difficult to choose what to read next, which is why I’ve been sticking to contemporary romances that I know won’t give me too much bother. That Forever Girl (Getting Lucky #2) by Meghan Quinn just released yesterday and I’m planning to start it tonight! I’m trying to get out of the romance stream, so I’ve also picked up Miracle Creek on a whim! This was one of the highly anticipated additions to my physical shelf since it released and it’s still been sitting untouched for a few months now 😅 I’ve also still got My Lovely Wife going but haven’t picked it back up again since SJTR was gorier than I expected and I needed a break (is this my age speaking?)!

What will you read next?

I feel like I’ve failed epically with #ARCAugust but I’m going to continue steadily whittling my ARCs down as I go. I recently put myself on a requesting ban but a whole bunch (that I forgot about since it’s been months since I requested them) got approved last week and whelp, here we go again! 😅 But September is coming up and with it a buddy read and a blog tour that will take priority! I’ll be participating in my second TheWriteReads blog tour this time for A Different Time by Michael K. Hill and I’m really looking forward to it! My date is set for the first week of September so I have to get cracking on that read soon. I’ll also be doing a buddy read for The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon, which will take place over the month of September coz have you seen the size of that tome?!

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

#WWWWednesday: 21 August

Dini @ dinipandareads17 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 talking about:

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

What did you read last?

So… I think I’m finally out of my reading slump thanks to these two great books right here! Despite the wedding shenanigans over the weekend, I managed to start and finish The Whisper Man by the time I landed back in Bali at midnight on Sunday. I’ll be honest and say that based on the insane horror hype it’s been getting on bookstagram, I thought this would be a lot scarier than it was. It was still sufficiently creepy, especially that rhyme (I mean c’mon), and there were some paranormal aspects that had me cowering, but for the most part it was okay. I survived! 🙌🏽I then picked up the ARC for The Grace Year by Kim Liggett afterwards, thinking it would be something completely different, and while it was, the story was also a lot creepier and horrific in comparison to The Whisper Man! I wasn’t expecting it, so I was a little shook, but WOW. THIS BOOK. I have no words for it. It might be one of my favorite reads this year. It’s dark, horrifically gory, but also beautifully crafted and carries a strong and important message that I think many (women especially) will be able to relate to. I can’t wait for everyone to read this book when it comes out in October! I’ll be posting my review for both these books soon, so be on the look out!

What are you currently reading?

I’m not reading nothing anymore (woot!) and I’ve actually got two books that I’ve been reading at different times during the day since yesterday, and I’m adding one more to the mix for a group read for Stalking Jack the Ripper (Stalking Jack the Ripper #1) by Kerri Maniscalo that I completely forgot about! I’m hoping to start that tonight as I think we’re discussing the first book at the end of this week before starting the second book in the series on Sunday. My current reads are: Probably the Best Kiss in the World by Pernille Hughes and I’m enjoying it so far. I forgot that it’s based in Edinburgh and uhm, have I mentioned that I’m a sucker for books set there?! My other read is My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing and all I can say is it’s so twisted, holy wow. It’s had its fair share of hype too, but I’ve gone into this only knowing the blurb. I was initially a little confused by what I was reading because why do I feel a little sympathy for this guy(?), so I felt compelled to keep reading to find out if I’m just a psycho myself 🙃 or if this guy is just that good at not letting his creep and psycho shine through. The truth is slowly coming out!

What will you read next?

I was tempted to join the #Owlcrateathon since 90% of the Owlcrate books from when I started subscribing late last year have been sitting unread on my shelf (the books must hate me)! But since I’ve just come out of my reading slump, I’m trying to take it easy and go with whatever strikes my mood at the moment! I think I’m leaning towards some contemporary romance, although the one that I’m desperate to read doesn’t come out for another week! But I downloaded a few off KU that I’m looking forward to try. Also, I’m still going to try to tuck away more ARCs for #ARCAugust so… MORE BOOKS YAY!

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

#WWWWednesday: 14 August

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 talking about:

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

What did you read last?

So… I did manage to finish reading two books: Party Weekend (Sweet Valley High #143) by Francine Pascal and A Random Act of Kindness by Sophie Jenkins. SVH was short and I read it pretty quickly, and while A Random Act of Kindness wasn’t particularly long, it took me a good four days to finish! This book slump though, am I right?! BUT two books is definitely better than no books, so I’m just going to keep pushing my way through this! Reviews for both coming soon(ish).

What are you currently reading?

I’M READING NOTHING!!!

Well, I’m still trying to find the next book that’ll stick for me after finishing A Random Act two days ago… It’s not going so well, but there’s one thing I haven’t tried yet and that’s switching genres. So I’m going to be attempting to read a few thrillers. I’m hoping one will stick! I’m looking at: Two Can Keep A Secret by Karen M. McManus, Truly Devious (Truly Devious #1) by Maureen Johnson and TH1RT3EN (Eddie Flynn #4) by Steve Cavanagh (because YAY for finishing another overdue ARC)!

What will you read next?

I’m hoping that in the spirit of ARC August I’ll be able to get to a few more of these overdue ARCs before the month passes me by! I mean, how are we already in the double digits of this month?! I mean, what? 😒

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