Here is my #BookspinBingo for June. I will move the titles as needed when @TheAromaofBooks shares the numbers on June 2nd.

📸: A Superb Starling, who looks like he/she is scowling at me, at the Indianapolis Zoo.

#Bookspin #Doublespin

I‘m using a year long list like @TheAromaofBooks does. I used a random generator to pick two from the list on the right to maintain 20 books for the month. I‘m on vacation this week so not exactly wanting to rush the 2nd getting here 😄, but still excited for the picks!

#BookspinBingo list to come.

Title for #GuiltyPleasure is the next Anita Blake novel on my TBR (#16). Most reading this series agree that it‘s nowhere near as good as the first 8 or 9, but I just can‘t quit it. I go long periods between but I still enjoy them.
For tune, I‘m going with “Party in the USA.” When I worked in the office, I‘d turn the volume up and it would leak through my headphones and my neighbors would laugh at me and tell me to turn it down. ⬇️

In 1996, four friends go camping on an island. There is a zombie with a chainsaw and that‘s not the craziest or weirdest thing that happens. I‘m really not sure anything was left for Thompson to throw in the story. It‘s a bit over-the-top and bat-shit crazy, and I think I liked it. #Booked2023 #moreweirdthanexpected May #Doublespin

I really enjoyed the artwork in this, but I‘m not sure I got the full story. Maybe I needed a little more narrative, which is probably a me problem. #ReadSpooky2023 #Castle

Character artwork from author‘s website by Brian Kesinger

I thought this steampunk-like adventure with mystery and romance was a lot of fun. The characters have great banter and there is a good amount of cheekiness. There is supposed to be a second book in the future and I would pick it up too. #Booked2023 #GaslampFantasy

#BookReport #WeeklyForecast

I feel like I read a lot this week as I finished Brass and read the other three in their entirety. They were all picks and I need to review them.

I‘m about 80% into the Larson audio and I just started Worthless. Undertaking is up next due to library due dates and I‘m not sure what my next audio will be.

📸: Brown bear, Mi-kal, at Indianapolis Zoo.

My #Bookspin and #Doublespin for May. I have the SGJ on my Kindle, but I checked it out from the library since I always seem to prioritize library books. 🤷🏼‍♀️

April #wrapup #BookspinBingo

I didn‘t strategically try to fill out my categories in April so even though I read quite a bit I didn‘t get a bingo. Lol.

*I didn‘t complete The Brass Queen so please pretend it‘s not written in #18. 😁

15 Total
Short Story - 1
Audiobook - 5
Children‘s book - 3
YA - 1
Adult - 5

Read in April.

This is set in a dystopian future after WWIII, Manhattan is a POW camp. Sky and Phee, sisters, have only known this world. They winter at The Park ruled by Rolladin and her warlords. A group of Englishmen arrive on the island and the sisters learn that the war has been over for some time. After an incident, they and their mother escape with the men. On the run, can they escape the island and it‘s many dangers? ⬇️

@peanutnine Thank you for suggesting this book! I loved it so much. I don‘t know when I started crying but it continued on and off through the end. All of it just seem to hit perfectly for me. Florence and Benji‘s chemistry, the family, the funeral home, and the grief. #12Challenge

**Yes, I‘m still wearing my Christmas PJ pants even though I finished this on April 29. 🤷🏼‍♀️

This is my first experience with Jackson, even though I have a A Good Girl‘s guide on my TBR. Early on I would have said I was not enjoying it, but at some point I became invested in the characters and what was happening. I had what I would consider the big reveal figured out, but was still surprised by some of it. I do want to rant about a particular character but I feel that is a bit of a spoiler.

Book 1 in the Dr. Evan Wilding series. I read several reviews that thought this was too detailed and sort of a Dan Brown-like serial killer thriller, but it worked for me. I loved all of the info on runes, Vikings, and bog bodies. (Bog bodies are so interesting!) I thought I had the killer figured out and I was wrong. The second book is on my sooner rather later TBR. #SeriesLove2023

Fingers crossed my hold for the tagged comes in for #TitlesandTunes in May. For my song choice I had to go with Jimmy Buffett‘s Island. The book and song are in no way related. 😄

https://open.spotify.com/track/30EnCVSpZPb3fPbBqVutgz?si=bqlu0mW_RMWDAhRd_30Z7Q

#BookReport #WeeklyForecast

I had a few days off this week so read quite a bit. All finished were picks and I need to write reviews.

I would love to finish Brass Queen today, but I don‘t know if that‘s in the cards.

TMIW may have a hold on it so I want to make sure I get to it next.

📸: Meerkat at the Indianapolis Zoo

Here is my #BookspinBingo for May. I will move the titles as needed when @TheAromaofBooks shares the numbers on May 2nd.

**I visited the Indianapolis Zoo yesterday so many of my upcoming background photos will be from there for a bit.

#Bookspin #Doublespin

I‘m using a year long list like @TheAromaofBooks does. I used a random generator to pick two from the list on the right to maintain 20 books for the month. I‘m always excited for the second of month but I still have many BS and DS picks to finish even though the list on the right is getting smaller.

#BookspinBingo list to come.

#BookReport #WeeklyForecast

I didn‘t review the P&C audiobooks, but I enjoyed both. I would have probably picked up the next one immediately but my hold for Five Survive came in.

I‘m really enjoying At First Light even though it means I have started another series. 🤷🏼‍♀️ I hope I can wrap up Savages and Queen before the end of the month. They keep getting bumped for library books.

Sadly, I‘m bailing on this one after about 130 pages. It has all of the elements I would normally love, but I just wasn‘t interested enough to stick it out to page 460.

Howard Browning, formally the iconic killer in a series of 80s slasher films, is now stuck attending conventions. When a reboot is announced, Howard is excited to return to the role, but finds out he is being replaced by Trevor Mane. Trevor was a child actor and is trying to break out of that image and stay sober. Soon it seems that Howard will do anything to be The Reaper again. Trevor‘s addiction to heroin adds some weight to this story, but ⬇️

Definitely a pick! This is a short, but important book. I thought the audio narration by the author was well done. #Booked2023 #AboutReproductiveRights

I‘m giving this a low pick, but I think I have decided I‘m not a Ware fan. Even though this had many things I love like a group of people stuck in a secluded spot, death and dangerous cold weather, it was just okay. Also, it was too long IMO. At one point, I was wondering how I could have nearly three hours left. #aam #authoramonth

The short story was just okay too.

This collection of horror stories about what it means to be “other” was overall really good. It started off strong with McMahon, Katsu and new-to-me author, Michael H. Hanson. There were a couple I didn‘t love somewhere in the middle. Hailey Piper and SGJ was great as usual. The final two stories by S.A. Cosby and Tananarive Due were so good, especially Cosby‘s.

#BookReport #WeeklyForecast

Even though I read quite a bit this week, I thought I was going to have nothing completed. Thankfully I read two of the books I got for my nephew‘s birthday and finished Other Terrors last night.

I will probably finish Labyrinth today while doing chores. Then focus on Curse and Hollows due to library due dates.

Can you see the rainbow in the background? It was small but so pretty to see.

I know the closing of Book Depository is affecting many. I don‘t know if this Book Riot article will help, but I wanted to share.

https://bookriot.com/book-depository-alternatives/

#BookReport #WeeklyForecast combo

Everything I finished is a pick, but the Ruth Ware story and book are low. Reviews to come probably.

As far as current reads, I‘m a little all over the place. All are in print, except the Preston & Child book. I don‘t have anything else on deck as I just want to complete these before dipping into something else probably. 🙂

Don‘t mind me, I‘m just listening hoping that one character in particular dies shortly. 😏

#WeeklyForecast

I‘m almost done with Ejaculate Responsibly. I‘m reading a story or two of Other Terrors before bed each night. Burn Marks is my next V.I. Warshawski book.

The two Ruth Wares are for #aam and I also started my March #Bookspin , The Brass Queen, so we will see what I finish this week. I made the graphic before I started BQ so it‘s not pictured.

Here are my April #Bookspin and #Doublespin picks. Savages, I believe, has been on my shelves since 2016 from a Litsy swap. The Black Death I hunted down after @Michael_Gee posted about it a long while ago.

March #BookspinBingo #wrapup

I felt like I had a slow reading month even though my total is 18. Over a third of that was children‘s books. I got 2 bingos but did not read my #bookspin or doublespin picks.

Children‘s books - 7
Adult print - 6
Short story - 1
Graphic novel - 1
Audiobooks - 3

#BookReport

I‘m covering two weeks again. All were picks except for The Witch In The Well, which I gave so-so. I didn‘t review the children‘s picture books but I love all of Ryan T. Higgins‘ books. Pink is for Boys has lovely illustrations and a great message.

#Booked2023 First Quarter Wrap-up

As usual I have started off with a bang completing 13 prompts for the first quarter, but I will probably be racing to finish up in December. 🤓 I have filled out the quarterly form.

Thank you for running this challenge @Cinfhen @BarbaraTheBibliophage @alisiakae 💗

This was my pick for March‘s #12Challenge recommended by Soubhi. I loved this and it‘s my top read for March.

At least for a bit I wondered if some of this was too smart for me, but I was sucked in. I had to stop and watch videos of cuttlefish and then octopuses. This one definitely gives you a lot to think about. Just so good.

“The great and terrible thing about humankind is simply this: we will always do what we are capable of.”

This was my pick for March‘s #ReadSpooky2023 prompt of true crime. From 1935 - 1938 there was a serial killer dismembering people in Cleveland, Ohio. Sometimes called the Cleveland Torso Murderer or the Mad Butcher of Kingsbury Run, this graphic novel covers the investigation, including Eliot Ness, who was Safety Director at the time. This was interesting and I thought the use of real photos and documents added depth. #truecrime ⬇️

I‘m a Steinbeck fan. I love The Grapes of Wrath, East of Eden and Of Mice and Men, but this one is a low pick for me. One, it was not all one story like I thought but 4 short stories. Two, I think maybe it was not timed well in my life because it was just a downer. I know Steinbeck‘s books in general are not heaping with happiness and I went in prepared for an Old Yeller feeling but still not a favorite. #authoramonth #march #aam #Booked2023

#BookspinBingo

This is my #BookspinBingo list. Once the #Bookspin and #Doublespin numbers are announced I will swap them with corresponding book numbers and blank spaces. I hope that makes sense. #overthinker #overexplainer

Still trying loosely goose prompts this month except I added the previous #Bookspin and #Doublespin books I haven‘t completed yet.

#Bookspin #Doublespin

I‘m using a year long list like @TheAromaofBooks does. I used a random generator to pick two from the list on the right to maintain 20 books for the month. As always I‘m looking forward to April 2nd to see what gets picked even though I continue to be behind for the year. 😄

#BookspinBingo list to come.

Thanks to @BeeMagical ‘s review I knew this was not going to be a “human hunt” situation otherwise I might have been disappointed. However, I‘m not really sure how I feel about it. I almost bailed early on but I wanted to see how it would play out. In some ways, I feel a little like it‘s a story that just lies there, but yet I still want to give it a pick. 🤔

This isn‘t like the best thriller ever, but I enjoyed it. I have not tired of the old case/someone has a podcast/serial killer thing going on in some books. I did have what I would say was the big twist figured out and I knew another thing almost instantly, but not the rest of it. Especially one moment which surprised me. Could this review be more vague?

I thought this was a fun murder mystery. (I do question what it says about me that I can so easily put fun and murder next to each other in a sentence ?.) Ernest joins his family in a reunion of sorts at a ski lodge as they wait for his newly released from prison brother to arrive. There is lots of family drama à la Knives Out. It may have wrapped up too easily, but it worked for me and I only had it partially figured out. I will read the next ⬇️

This is my second read by Camila Bruce having read In The Garden of Spite previously. I enjoyed the format of journal entries, news clippings and blog posts and think Bruce writes well. I just didn‘t enjoy it much. I‘m not sure I have to have a likeable main character to enjoy a story, but the two main characters in this didn‘t do much for me, mostly the influencer. Also, these characters should be about 40 and their pettiness was exhausting.

Four suburban moms unknowingly release an evil presence while attempting to build a she-shed in one of their backyards. Even though I thought this was pretty predictable I enjoyed it and it probably would have been even better on audio. I laughed a good bit. It‘s definitely horror-lite. It would probably make a fun movie. #booked2023 #featuringneighbors

#WeeklyForecast also very late

I have been a little all over the place lately. Technically, I have finished 2 from my in-progress group. Library due dates are pushing me toward some and the others are for monthly challenges.

I think I may need to spend part of April catching up on #Bookspin and #Doublespin since I haven‘t read last month‘s or this months, lol.

#BookReport very late edition

This covers the last 2 weeks. I‘m probably not going to post reviews for the kid‘s books. They were all picks. Although Bad Guys and Olivia will be gifts. I need to post for SH and EIMFHKS.

I enjoyed The Story of An Hour, which I picked up because of @AshleyHoss820 ‘s review. 🙂

I was super excited to come across this the other day. The third Wild Robot book is scheduled to be released at the end of September! I know several people on my feed really enjoyed the first two Wild Robot books like I did so I thought would share. 💗🤖

Gods of Hunger #3 -This was another pick for me. I loved Dionysos. He is such a teddy bear. The romance and the steamy sexiness were all good 🔥🔥🔥🔥but I really loved the family interactions in this one. They had me chuckling and feeling extra emotional.
The one negative is that it really needed some editing. IMO, this was too long (504 pages) and could have been tightened up. I also noticed more grammatical errors than the previous two books.

#BookReport #Weeklyforecast

A little bit of a slow week for me. Both of my finished books were picks. My current reads didn‘t change much from last week, except I started a new audio. I can‘t believe we are already 5 days into March.

It‘s been 7 years since I joined Litsy and I just want to express how much I love this community. I‘m not always the best about commenting, but I read and ❤️ your posts. I treasure all of the book discussions and the little bits of life everyone shares. Litsy is one of my favorite places to be and that‘s because of all of you. 💕

This is just a small group of the women I admire:
Dolly Parton, Maya Angelou, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Shirley Chisholm, Michelle Obama, Taylor Swift, Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Fannie Lou Hamer. #independentwomen

I‘m late to the party but definitely wanted to participate. I started this list years ago because of my irritation with current bro-country music and their lack of playing many of the women on the radio. However, the list has evolved to be multi-genre and currently has over 400 songs. 😁

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/44UjwH5Jx5bhSgVUVxTInI?si=Yi9lkxfTSYyCwk7gL2Sg...

#independentwomen