Friday Face Off: Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett
22 November 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: book-blog, Books, Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales, fiction, Friday Face off, Heather Fawcett, reading
Today I’m returning to the Friday Face Off, originally created by Books by Proxy). I’ve missed these for the past few months and so would like to get back to comparing covers (and hopefully I will be updating this page with a new banner. This is an opportunity to look at a book of your choice and shine the spotlight on the covers. Of course this only works for those books that have alternative covers (although sometimes I use this to look at a series of books to choose a favourite). . So, if you have a book that has alternative covers, highlight them and choose your favourite. If you’re taking part it would be great if you leave a link so I can take a look at what you’ve chosen.
This week I’ve chosen a book that is on my shelf waiting to be read Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett, I can’t wait to read this, this series is just fantastic. Only two covers, take a look:
My favourite this week:
It’s so difficult to choose. I can’t do it – I love both themes for these books. They’ve been so consistently good.
Have you read this book already? What did you think and which is your favourite?
Join me next week in highlighting one of your reads with different covers.
Top Ten Tuesday: Newest (aka latest Books On My TBR)
19 November 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: book-blog, book-blogger, Books, reading, TBR, Ten Newest Books on my TBR, That Artsy Reader Girl, Top Ten Tuesday
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme where every Tuesday we look at a particular topic for discussion and use various (or more to the point ten) bookish examples to demonstrate that particular topic. Top Ten Tuesday (created and hosted by The Broke and Bookish) is now being hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl and future week’s topics can be found here. This week I’ve done the exact opposite of the prompt – which was earliest published books on my TBR. Instead I’ve chosen:
Newest (aka latest Books On My TBR)
For this week’s prompt I’ve chosen ten books that are not yet published that I am excited to start reading in the new year:
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix
Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney
Grave Empire by Richard Swan
Black Woods. Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey
The Crimson Road by AG Slatter
Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett
Wooing the Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis
Once Was Willem by MR Carey
Senseless by Ronald Malfi
The Devils by Joe Abercrombie
Countdown to 2025
16 November 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Reviews, book-blog, Books, Countdown to 2025, highlight-of-2024, new-year, reading
A short and sweet post to let you all know that once again I am doing my December Countdown where I tick off the days to the new year by spotlighting a book from the present one. This is a one per day prompt where I will literally post the prompt and the book I think fits the prompt. I’m hoping to use books read during 2024 where possible and use this as an opportunity to shine the light on some good reads. Books will be linked to reviews where possible or Goodreads. If you fancy joining me feel free to dip in and out. This is just a little fun and isn’t meant to be hard work. Starts on 1st December and concludes on 31st.
Here are the prompts: 31 days of December and 31 opportunities to give a very quick shout out to a book you’ve loved or are highly anticipating.
Prompts:
- Snow – a book set in a cold or wintry climate
- Shopping – the last book added to your wishlist
- Wrapping paper – a lovely cover
- Gifts – a book you enjoyed more than you expected to
- Chocolates – a book that was simply delicious
- Christmas stocking – stocking fillers – a novella or short story
- Christmas Tree – a winter read
- Baubles – these add some colour, a very colourful and striking cover
- Fairy Lights – something magical
- Under the Tree – a book you forgot you owned
- Mistletoe – a little bit of romance
- Holly and Ivy – a book with great world building
- Feast – a book that was magnificent
- Christmas pudding – if you could squeeze in just one more book for 2020
- Mince pies – a little sweet something
- Turkey Dinner– eye’s too big for your belly? A chunkster
- Glitter – A book that you simply have to have
- Christmas Cards – a book with a message
- Christmas Carols – a book with musicians, song or instruments
- Eggnog – a book that was out of your comfort zone
- Santa’s Snack – a book that was a ‘light read’ between heavier books
- Reindeers – a book with memorable critters
- Sleigh bells – a series that you want to ring out the praise for
- Christmas Eve – One of your most anticipated books for 2025
- Christmas Day – a book you received as a gift
- Boxing Day – feeling bloated, a palate cleanser
- Christmas Crackers – Ended with a bang
- Candlelight – a book that kept you up into the early hours
- A roaring fire – a book that was heartwarming
- Family and Friends – a book with great characters
- Bottle of Bubbly – your first read for 2025
Friday Face Off: The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E Pearson
15 November 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, book-blog, Books, fiction, Friday Face off, reading
Today I’m returning to the Friday Face Off, originally created by Books by Proxy). I’ve missed these for the past few months and so would like to get back to comparing covers (and hopefully I will be updating this page with a new banner. This is an opportunity to look at a book of your choice and shine the spotlight on the covers. Of course this only works for those books that have alternative covers (although sometimes I use this to look at a series of books to choose a favourite). . So, if you have a book that has alternative covers, highlight them and choose your favourite. If you’re taking part it would be great if you leave a link so I can take a look at what you’ve chosen.
This week I’ve chosen another book that is on my shelf waiting to be read. The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E Pearson is one of my current reads and I’m enjoying it very much. Only two covers, take a look:
My favourite this week:
Have you read this book already? What did you think and which is your favourite?
Join me next week in highlighting one of your reads with different covers.
Monthly Wrap Up/What’s On My Plate October/November
1 November 2024
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Book Review, book-blog, Books, Fantasy, Monthly Wrap Up, reading, What's On My Plate October/November
I’m trying to post a wrap up for the end of each month, mainly to help me to keep track of my reading and at the same time look at what I’m intending to read during the month ahead (inspired by Books Bones and Buffy’s What’s on My Plate.
In this post I shall be looking at the reading I completed during October and also setting out what I’m hoping to achieve during November. I pretty much recognised when I posted at the conclusion of September that October was going to be an impossible task. I had a lot of review books, three SPFBO books to complete and also another couple of book requests that I’d accepted without realising just how fully loaded I was. As it happens I still managed to read ten books this month. I completed Phase One of SPFBO, we chose our finalist and I reviewed the other three semi finalists that I read. In terms of review books I am behind but I think my November shelf is nowhere near as chaotic so I’m hoping that during November and December I can complete all my review books and have a fully finished list for the year. Next week I will be focusing on catching up with reviews which I’m a little behind with. Can I end 2024 with all my commitments uptodate? Time will tell. I think I can do it.
Here’s what I read during October:
- The Bog Wife by Kay Chronister
- SPFBO – Through Blood and Dragons by RM Schultz
- SPFBO – The Enchanter’s Counsel by Thalib Razi
- SPFBO – By a Silver Thread by Rachel Aaron
- And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
- Cold Snap by Lindy Ryan
- Magic by Sarah Pinborough
- Hear Him Calling by Carly Reagon
- The Book of Witching by CJ Cooke
- Run by Blake Crouch
For the month of October I actually had 16 review books (I know – *head/desk*), I also had three SPFBO books to read and two author requests. So, a total (even with my bad maths) of 21 – not in my wildest dreams would that ever be achievable – and as I mentioned above I managed 10 books (a little less than is the norm atm). For November I have five review books, plus another 9 carried over from October, plus my two author requests making a grand total of 16 – I think this is achievable by the end of the year as I have no review books in December in fact I’m hoping to squeeze in a couple of SPFBO finalists too if I stay on track and maybe complete a couple of books that I put down earlier in the year. Lets take a look at my review books for November:
- You All DIe Tonight by Simon Kernick
- Ink Ribbon Read by Alex Pavesi
- The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E Pearson
- The Last Hour Between Worlds by Melissa Caruso
- Blood by Sarah Pinborough
Add to this the books I’m carrying over:
- The Coven by Harper L. Woods
- The House at Watch Hill by Karen Marie Moning
- Candle & Crow by Kevin Hearne
- The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak
- Strange Beasts by Susan J. Morris
- The Fury of the Gods by John Gwynne
- Here One Minute by Alex Lake
- The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door by H. G. Parry
- The Queen by Nick Cutter
And two books sent to me by authors:
Land from Bjørn Larssen; and
Drown Deep by Phil Williams
This month I yet again have read no Backlist Books -I started the year so well!
Bookforager‘s Picture Prompt book bingo
This month I’m not ticking off any books – oh dear, will I complete this challenge?
PICTURE PROMPT BOOK BINGO 2024 (TEXT VERSION)
| A microscope | A partially unrolled scroll and a pen | ||
| A beehive (with four bees flying around it) |
So far this year I’ve read a total of 104 books.
How did you get on during October?
Books and travelling with Lynn 