Nonfiction #ReadingBracket2025 November update
Better Not Bitter was a phenomenal read and is moving on to the next round. It's gonna be a tough decision come the end of the year...

November #ReadingBracket2025 romance edition
Loved the first book in the Game Changer series, but Rules for Ghosting is moving on to the next round

Fiction #ReadingBracket2025 November update
The tagged was this month's unexpected winner and it was a tough contender against the Bewitching

Finished last month for #JaneAustenThenAndNow @Crinoline_Laphroaig
1. This was my third time reading but first time in print instead of audio. Still tied for my favorite with P&P! 💌
2. This time around my favorite side character was Charles Musgrove. He acts truly brotherly towards Anne, with genuine care. Plus he is a saint to put up with Mary
(cont...⬇️)

The first 5 book ornaments from my advent calendar!
They even have the first chapter or two printed on the pages! Love them 💖

I got the cutest bookish advent calendar this year and of course forgot to start opening it December 1st 😅
Time for 5 days worth of surprise!

Cute fluff, what I expect from this series. I take issue with the title though - they are not foes. They had a competitive and slightly annoying relationship in high school, but they almost immediately decide to be friends when Remy moves back to town lol. The romance was simple and sweet. I like when demi rep is included
I started my Christmas reading early, finished this before Thanksgiving 🤭
#SeriesLove2025

This was a great deep dive into the women in Greek myths. Haynes gives these women their voices in a new way, using scholarship from original sources to better understand their stories, which have often been transformed over time to villainize them. Each essay on a different Greek woman is smart and funny, and brings a new perspective to a well-known myth.
#MonthlyNonfiction2025 @julieclair

Soft pick on this small town, single parent romance. I wanted just a little bit more from these characters, some issues resolved a little too quickly. Overall though this was a lovely read. Dani's family dynamic was wonderfully supportive in helping her raise her son, but I could see how she felt lonely and would seek out the company of the new cute librarian in town. Zoey is yearning for community and might have found it in little Peach Blossom

I'm really enjoying Tommy & Tuppence! I was surprised by the long time gap from their first adventure but glad they are still happily married, although a bit bored. The detective agency was such a fun way for them to spend their time & great for the short story format here. I admit, most of the references to famous detectives went over my head as I'm not familiar with most of them. But it didn't hinder my understanding or enjoyment
#SeriesLove2025

The tagged book was the pick for my in person book club last month. My sister really liked the first in the series so I decided to read it first. Well, I only got about 10% into both of them before bailing. The characters in Neighbor were sooo unlikeable. Filthy Animal was a little better but I think I'm just not a fan of Meghan Quinn's writing style. Every book I've tried of hers is just not for me.

I put off reading this book for a long time because I figured it would be too sad. But #QueerBC made me pick it up & I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. Yes, there are heavy themes of death & grief, and the title doesn't lie. But overall the feeling of hope prevails. I loved the found family elements, and the way smaller interconnected stories were weaved throughout showing how our lives impact the world around us in ways we don't realize

Setting up my December board and Oakley had to come supervise 😼

My finished November #BookspinBingo board and I got 2 bingos! Overall it was a great reading month and I took advantage of the DNF. And I'm almost through with two more #roll100 picks, but they'll roll over to December 😄
@TheAromaofBooks

Excited for my #castthedie picks! @PuddleJumper
Plus my #doublespin is to choose one of them and my #bookspin is any holiday book so I am set for December! @TheAromaofBooks

November #MonthlyNonfiction2025 reads @julieclair
#NonfictionNovember was a busy one ☺️

These chapter titles are so fun 😄

#ChristmasCrimeChallenge @Ruthiella @RaeLovesToRead

This is such an inspiring memoir! Yusef Salaam, one of the Exonerated Five, tells his story and how he endured and overcame horrible injustice by embracing a spiritual perspective and finding his purpose in life. During his years of incarceration he grew closer with his Muslim faith. And his community was a big support his whole life. He details the unfair systems that oppress people of color and inspires others to call for change.

I really wanted to like this book. Something about the pacing was just off. And I wasn't as invested in the characters as I ought to be. I loved the concept and the meet cute at the beginning but I was trying to struggle through the last half and finally decided it wasn't worth it.

I've been meaning to read this series, so with the Heated Rivalry tv show airing this month, it was the perfect time to start. I really enjoyed Scott and Kip's story. A chance meeting at the smoothie shop where Kip works leads to a secret romance between the two men. Poor Scott wrestles with his identity as a closeted gay hockey player and Kip won't stay a secret forever. I loved their chemistry together
#SeriesLove2025 #LGBTQIA2025 @Kenyazero

Ready for December! #bookspin #bookspinbingo
@TheAromaofBooks

Okay, after much shuffling through virtual tbrs, here is my holiday #castthedie list! @PuddleJumper

My Thanksgiving plans...

Hubby has to work so I have the house to myself. No turkey just a feast of books for me today 📚😂

Hope everyone is having a lovely Thursday, celebrating or not 🦃💖

Lovely thoughts on gratitude for the natural world and embracing reciprocity in our very competitive economy.
#RiseUpReads @Catsandbooks #MonthlyNonfiction2025 @julieclair

These books are like candy to me, sweet and spicy and nothing really of substance but so yummy lol
Colin is new to drag and starstruck when the famous Barbie Summers befriends him and decides to be his drag mentor. The two fight their growing feelings because of the professional relationship, but ultimately find solace in each other. Fun characters and a world I love to return to #SeriesLove2025

I was a bit disappointed by this one. I was looking forward to learning more about dragon boat racing but besides the race at the end it was hardly mentioned besides the two attending practices. Julie is a workaholic & Rae, despite their attraction for her, doesn't want a relationship with someone who won't put them first. Except this doesn't really stop them- their relationship builds quickly & without much conflict
#LGBTQIA2025 sports @kenyazero

This is a quintessential coming of age novel, with a lovely focus on queer identity and asexuality. Georgia is obsessed with the idea of being in love but has never felt that spark for another person. There is typical university romantic drama throughout plus an emotional reckoning of society's romantic expectations. Oseman as always writes a wonderful cast of characters who all struggle in different ways
#QueerBC @PuddleJumper

My December #Roll100 picks @PuddleJumper
These are all pretty summery so I don't know if I'll get to them next month, except maybe This Time Tomorrow

This was a lovely introspective memoir about living with depression & using nature as a balm for the soul. He opens up about his struggle with depression & how he found solace in taking nature walks (along with therapy & medication) to get on a healing journey. Each chapter focuses on an aspect in nature & relates to a life experience, while also giving solid facts about each animal or organism. His writing is very lyrical & poetic in the best way

There were aspects of this I really enjoyed and some that were just a bit too kooky. The quintessential small town that the monster creates is very tongue-in-cheek and definitely feels like Lemming is embracing tropes and laughing with us.
Not my favorite in this collection but overall it was a silly fun read
October review #SeriesLove2025

Such an interesting subject to learn about! Hundreds of thousands of ancient manuscripts were tracked down from homes throughout Mali and restored & displayed in Timbuktu. But they had to be secretly smuggled out of the city when Al Qaeda's occupation threatens their safety. Haidara's story, the archivist tasked with their collection & preservation, was so inspiring. My only complaint: the detailed backstory of Al Qaeda's leaders was unnecessary

October review - I really loved this witchy story. Harrison has a knack for writing so you're not sure what's actually real and characters that are complicated and a bit unlikeable, but you're still rooting for them. We read this for my book club and had a great discussion.

October review - My first Tommy and Tuppence novel! I really liked their dynamic. They took a lot of risks and were much more spy-like than Christie's other detectives. The mystery was intriguing, with a large cast of characters and some red herrings
#SeriesLove2025

I never finished all my October reviews...
This was a fun little story about demons scaring humans for energy, very Monsters Inc, except Gemma is terrible at it and ends up bonding with her first assigned human. I liked the world building
#SeriesLove2025

Work field trip to the Southern Christmas Show! Of course I brought my book to read while I was waiting for my coworkers to finish shopping 😂

Weeeeee!! Look at this pretty Jane Austen set I found at Costco! IN LOVE 😍
This is my first matching set and I just adore all the details! The edges!!! 🎨🌸🪻🌺

I got to meet Sara Raasch today! She was signing books at the Ren Fest and is the sweetest person 😍 We bonded over the correct spelling of our name lol

September/October #ReadingBracket2025 Nonfiction
Kelly Bishop just stole my heart and the quarter final spot. George Takei's graphic memoir was a close second. October's winner was the soothing nature memoir, Something in the Woods Loves You

I always say that historical romance isn't my favorite subgenre but apparently I love them as long as there is some madcap adventure plot because Earl Crush stole the show last quarter and joined A Shore Thing in the next round. Absolutely adored it. Rules for Ghosting is my pick for October, it was the perfect mix of introspection, romance, and paranormal.
#ReadingBracket2025 Romance

I realized I never posted my reading bracket from October OR September! So here we are. Some tough choices as I've read some great books. The World We Make is my latest quarter finalist, honestly the audio production pushed that one to the top. And for October I chose the Bewitching, great atmospheric story perfect for spooky season.
#ReadingBracket2025 Fiction

October #BookspinBingo board! @TheAromaofBooks
Can't wait to start a new month 😄

I still have a few reviews to post but here's my final point tally for #HauntedShelf 👻🎃
Thanks for leading the #GrimReaders @CSeydel I had fun this month!

This was a fun mystery. I liked going along for the ride with Oliver and Ricky as they veer from their travel writing to solve an unexpected murder. Oliver is autistic and uncomfortable with changing plans, but he builds confidence in himself with Ricky's help. The two try to get to the bottom of the disturbances of a self-driving car company without getting into trouble themselves.
Great start of a new cozy mystery series #SeriesLove2025

October #MonthlyNonfiction2025 reads @julieclair
Reviews to come, but I wanted to get my wrap-up posted before I forgot!

I'm really glad to have finally read this classic. It wasn't as spooky as I expected. I thought the creation scene would be more dramatic at least but a lot of the story is anticlimactic and Frankenstein doing nothing productive, only complaining how hard his life has become
#HashtagBrigade @BarkingMadRead #HauntedShelf #GrimReaders @CSeydel #AfterDarkBingo #BodyCountBingo @PuddleJumper

This was a fun little romp. The instant trust Dana has for the 'monster' was a little far fetched, but so are space vampires 🙃
#HauntedShelf #GrimReaders @CSeydel #SeriesLove2025 #AfterDarkBingo @PuddleJumper

Starting my Persuasion reread with this painted beauty
#JaneAustenThenAndNow @Crinoline_Laphroaig

I absolutely adored this book! Such a tender story about grief and family expectations, finding your place in life and love. I enjoyed learning more about Jewish customs surrounding death & funerals. As much as I was rooting for the romance between Ezra and Jonathan, I was also totally invested in the Friedman family's journey with forgiveness. While Ezra can see ghosts, this is less of a ghost story and more a contemplation of healing after death

I think this is my favorite installment of this series so far! Mansfield Park isn't my favorite Austen so I was hesitant to spend more time with these characters but I thought their growth was well portrayed. And I was so happy to have Jonathan and Juliet back together! Their reunion was so sweet. The mystery was fun to follow but I'm here for the slow burn romance lol. By the end the stakes were high and I'm so ready for the next book!

I don't normally read dark romance but I love this author's other works and I ended up really enjoying this! This was a stalker romance between two men who had previously hooked up. Reed is house-sitting at a fancy rich person home and Dax arrives to rob it. When he realizes who the sitter is, Dax decides to call him to scare him off. But things turn a bit kinky... In the end there was even more intrigue and an 'eat the rich' mentality I liked