Sometimes, when you really love a book, you gotta try your best to replicate the cover—but with a less cool outfit—and way more greenery.

I loved THE VICTORIAN & THE ROMANTIC. Half memoir of Nell Stevens‘s life, half biography of Elizabeth Gaskell, wholly unputdownable. This is a story of love and loss and literature, and if you‘re looking for some great nonfiction, I cannot recommend it enough.

You need to read SADIE. Yes, you. Stop scrolling. Go pre-order it from your favorite independent bookstore. I‘ll wait.

Contemporary mysteries aren‘t usually my thing, but SADIE blew every expectations out of the water. Fast-paced and unputdownable, I fell in love with every bit—especially Sadie‘s ruthlessness. And the plot twist at the end, oh! I literally gasped and screamed while alone in my apartment. It‘s that good. Go pre-order it.

When visiting New Orleans, I stopped by all the bookstores I saw while wandering the French Quarter—almost all of them were used bookstores. One of my favorites was the Librairie Book Shop, a cute little place on Chartres Street. I visited twice!

Used bookstores have a magical quality to them—a hint of mystery and excitement, because you‘re not quite sure what you‘ll find inside. And if I can find a stack of mass market fantasies? Even better.

MELMOTH—about the legend of a woman doomed to walk the earth, and of one woman whose life gets dragged into the myth—is fantastic and incredibly relevant in a way that I didn‘t quite expect—and the way the book itself is crafted, narratively, is so clever and lovely.

Perry‘s writing is, of course, gorgeous but the story she weaves in MELMOTH (while not particularly fast-paced) is something special and that I‘ll be chewing on for a while.

“Language is a tricky thing, especially when we try to capture what‘s happening in our bodies and our culture. Words like ‘health,‘ ‘healthy,‘ ‘sick,‘ ‘illness,‘ and ‘disability‘ are always relative and loaded, rarely static, and often problematic. Words like ‘women,‘ too. Our definitions are constantly in flux—as are, for instance, the laws that govern our rights. Whose bodies count? Whose bodies do we systematically inconvenience or overlook?”

What beast haunts the waters of Essex? When Cora Seaborne's husband dies, she sets out to chase the monster, whatever it is—but she doesn't expect her adventure to take her into a town where she falls in love with her own freedom, her intellect, and somebody who she should not have. This lush Victorian novel explores the line between science and religion alongside what happens when we (relentlessly!) pursue our own happiness. Invocative; gorgeous!

I am absolutely blown away. This feminist novel-in-verse imagines a teen Artemisia Gentileschi, one of the most famous female painters in history and a rape survivor who refuses to allow the truth to be silenced. Raw and unflinching, McCullough doesn‘t shy away from exploring the limits of a woman‘s power—what we are given and what we demand. It is a masterclass in crafting an emotional, impactful, stunning story with just a few chosen words.

Can we talk about this gorgeous pile of bookmail?! The book I‘m most excited for is OBSIDIO—I love the found document format of the lluminae files so much that the authors slipped me into the second book. (That‘s a scavenger hunt for you—can you find my name?) But I love the new cover of WHEN THE MOON WAS OURS—it definitely feels aimed at a crossover audience!—and I‘m curious about that little book on anxiety. Did you get any bookmail this week?

Started reading A THOUSAND BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS this week! ⭐️ This beautiful YA anthology takes East and Southeast Asian mythology and reimagines it in short stories from authors I adore. I‘ve been reading a story a night from this beautiful anthology before bed and so far I‘m really impressed. I don‘t know much about Asian mythology and so each story being accompanied by some backstory has been as fun to read as the stories themselves.

Happy release day to UNEARTHED! 🚀⭐️💥🌏😍📚 If you‘re looking for a fast-paced sci-fi with totally shippable main characters, @AmieKaufman and Meagan Spooner‘s new one is for you. I love their work — if you love YA sci-fi and haven‘t read their backlist, you‘re missing out! Inspired by Lara Croft and Indiana Jones, UNEARTHED is great for fans of ILLUMINAE, THESE BROKEN STARS and SHADOW RUN.

What didn‘t you read this year that you meant to? I wanted to blaze through my HUGE pile of galleys but didn‘t have a chance with everything going on this year. But 2018, watch out: I‘m gonna do my own private readathon and knock these stacks outta the park! What about you? 📚

I‘m almost finished with Kat Howard‘s AN UNKINDNESS OF MAGICIANS and I‘m really enjoying it — it‘s like somebody made Lila Bard grow up in the world of THE MAGICIANS. Have you read it? 📚

My laptop has kicked the bucket in almost every conceivable way, so I buckled down and ordered a new one. The most exciting thing? Being able to put new stickers on it, like the Hagrid and Buckbeak one that came in the @owlcrate that @Juliecaughtreading bought me for my birthday! Do you decorate your laptop?

“The balm to the pain, to the rage that lay underneath it, was the idea that she could change things. Could end them. Could make sure that no one else was broken and cut into pieces for the ease of other people‘s magic.”

I started reading AN UNKINDNESS OF MAGICIANS last night and I‘m really enjoying it so far! Maybe it‘s my thing for ruthless magical girls, but I keep thinking Lila Bard and Sydney would either be besties or murder each other...

“October extinguished itself in a rush of howling winds and driving rain and November arrived, cold as frozen iron, with hard frosts every morning and icy drafts that bit at exposed hands and faces.” - THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX

As we sink further into November, I keep daydreaming of someplace as warm as Hagrid‘s cabin or the Gryffindor common rooms. My tiny apartment has no fire to curl up besides while reading a book, but oh! Wouldn‘t it be nice?

Using leaves to frame the title of a book has popped up quite a few times on my feed over the past couple of weeks and I wanted to try my hand at it, too - and what better way to do that than with one of my favorite autumny books of 2017? AN ENCHANTMENT OF RAVENS is fun, fast-paced, and makes me happy; it resparked my love of YA fantasy. Have you read it yet? Because you should! 🍁

What was she thinking, accepting Rayama-tun‘s challenge? He is only a boy. And now he will be the boy who dueled One-Stroke Shizuka, the boy whose sword she cut in half before he managed to draw it. That story will haunt him for the rest of his life. — THE TIGER‘S DAUGHTER

I'm about a third of the way into THE HAZEL WOOD and I am loving it so far! 😍 The style of @Mimi2 gives me the vibes of a YA Cat Valente. The world is really original and beautifully written, and I'm fascinated by the fairy tale mythologies Albert is creating. THE HAZEL WOOD releases this January - is it on your radar?

#spookstagram17 day ten: supernatural

Lada hated herself for it, but she loved the food. Delicious spiced meats with cool, contrasting sauces, roast vegetables, fresh fruits—every bite she enjoyed felt like treason. She should miss everything about Wallachia. She should hate everything about Edirne.
But oh, the sweetness of the fruit. Perhaps she had a bit of Eve in her after all. — & I DARKEN

Started this yesterday and holy hell, Batman - it's incredible. Can't wait to keep reading!

I need to get out of my book slump soon so I can start diving into my TBR, including THE BELLES! 😍 @Brownbookworm's debut fantasy takes place in a world where Beauty is controlled by magic and where one girl is scheming to be the most powerful Belle in New Orleans - but not everything in the gilded walls of New Orleans' royal castles are as they seem. Will you read it?

#adarkershadeofoctober day 6: antari (books with magic)

Let's start the month with a book and the prophecy within. 🎃👻💛💀📚✨

Do y'all do bookstagram photo challenges? Why or why not?

Loads of challenge sheets popped up for October. I dropped off early on September challenges, but I'm tempted to pick them up again. I love having a nudge of what to post on a certain day - it gets my creative juices flowing for what I want to photograph and what y'all might be interested in. Let me know in the comments if you do them (and recommendations for ones I should join)! 👇

"The dragons could never understand why they generated such abject fear in common folk." - DRAGONFLIGHT, and occasionally me

One of my friends is flying in to visit me on Sunday before her panel at NYCC! I'm psyched to have her visiting. It does mean I need to finish cleaning my apartment and find a place to stash my gazillion Anne McCaffrey books, including the beautiful new DRAGONFLIGHT. Is there any author whose books you have way too many of?

I'm so excited for FOREST OF A THOUSAND LANTERNS to come out soon, even if I am wildly behind on my to-read pile. 🐍

Julie C. Dao's debut YA novel is an Asian fantasy reimagining of Snow White. Xifeng plans to become the Empress, but in order to achieve greatness, she must spurn the young man who loves her and exploit the callous magic that runs through her veins...

This is the first in a trilogy releasing October 10th. Will you be reading it?

A bookseller in her natural habitat. 😎📚💪

It's been a wonderful week of new releases for fantasy fans. Not only do we get ENCHANTMENT OF RAVENS and THE LANGUAGE OF THORNS, but AN UNKINDNESS OF MAGICIANS - there is a theme to fantasy titles - released yesterday as well! 🎉

I loved @katwithsword's debut ROSES & ROT and UNKINDNESS OF MAGICIANS looks like it will equally catch my heart. In New York City, magic controls everything. But the power of magic is fading...

Happy release day to Leigh Bardugo and THE LANGUAGE OF THORNS! 🌹🦊📚

I've been reading Leigh's books since ARCs of SHADOW AND BONE. She's one of my go-to authors for getting folks hooked on YA fantasy, and I'm so excited that this fairy tale extension of her Grisha universe is out in the world today.

Thanks to Imprint for sending me this gorgeous LANGUAGE OF THORNS box (complete with this letter from Leigh) - it's the cutest!

ENCHANTMENT OF RAVENS releases tomorrow! You need a copy of this book. 😍📚🎉

A few of my bookseller friends read ENCHANTMENT and adored it, so when a galley of it arrived at the store, I snatched it right up and I'm so glad I did. The writing is beautiful and fun and reminds me of all the reasons I fell in love with YA fantasy in the first place. I'm stoked to pick up my hardcover tomorrow and reread it.

I've never read a Star Wars novel and I've only seen the movies once. 🙈 But I have a soft spot for the badass ladies of Star Wars and want to learn more about them - Rey and Leia and Padme and lesser known characters the non-fandom world like Ahsoka. I think Claudia Gray's new Leia novel will be a great way to start, don't you?

Who is your favorite pirate? Some of mine are:
• Jacky Faber
• Lila Bard
• Elizabeth Swann
• Raven the Pirate Princess
• Kairi Sane

I'm gonna try something new with my Instagram feed and weave in shots of the actual books I'm reading as well as the books outdoors. This is the opening page of BLOODY JACK by L.A. Meyer.

"It's easier bein' a boy, 'cause when someone needs somethin' done like holdin' a horse, they'll always pick a boy 'cause they think the dumbest boy will be better at it than the brightest girl, which is stupid, but there you are." - BLOODY JACK

#fortunefavoursseptember day 19: Penelope (badass women)
#allthebookssept day 19: pirate books

What could I be reading on this fine autumn day? 🚀 That's right: I'm finally starting Ashley Poston's HEART OF IRON! This sci-fi retelling of #Anastasia is getting nothing but love from all my friends and I can't wait to see how the story goes. What sci-fi retellings have you read?

#fortunefavoursseptember belated day 16: Argonauts (adventure)

Sick days are for burning candles and reading books. I think I'm gonna settle in with a reread of my new editions of DRAGONFLIGHT to match @hafsahfaizal's gorgeous custom candle. 😍🐉📚

One of the next books on my to-read list: CITY OF BRASS. This Middle Eastern fantasy takes place in 18th century Cairo. Con artist Nahri - despite not believing in magic - is gifted with the ability to heal, in an almost SIX OF CROWS meets TOUCH OF POWER story (with an infinitely cooler setting). CITY OF BRASS releases this November - do you plan to read it?

#AllTheBooksSept: big books
#fortunefavoursseptember: Odyssey (wanderlust)

I think it's safe to say that fall is here to stay. Prepare the blankets and the steaming mugs of tea, the cozy sweaters and scented candles! ✨

"Hope is a beautiful thing. Some say it's a different breed of magic altogether." — CARAVAL

Spending the morning catching up on projects and fighting the lingering burnout of the past few months. But still fighting! Still hoping! Because dreaming of bigger and better things in the face of those who want to crush your spirits is one of the strongest things you can do. May your day be sweet and still, a deep breath in the midst of the storms.

Kicking off my fall with crunchy leaves and some new books in the to-read pile. And shocker: they're not fantasies. One contemporary YA and two memoirs, one from a vet and one from Idina Menzel's sister. Gotta break the mold sometimes! What's in your fall TBR?

Happy release day to THE GLASS TOWN GAME! ✨
The Brontë siblings, as children, fall into their made-up world of Glass Town and must find their way home in this enchanting middle grade novel. It's not just an homage to the Brontës, but what it means to be a sibling and to stories itself. I absolutely adored it and can't wait to reread it. If you love stories and reading, it should absolutely be on your to-read list. ?

Happy Sunday, friendos! What's in your to-be-read pile today? I'm still working my way through a bunch of library books, but I'm hoping to finish so I can get to some upcoming fantasy books I'm excited about, like CITY OF BRASS. 😍
#fortunefavoursseptember day three: Gaea (books outside)

Back to witches and wizards and magical beasts, to goblins and ghosts and to magical feasts...
September 1st always means a return to Platform 9 3/4 and Hogwarts, don't you think? 👻⚡️
#allthebookssept day 1: Hogwarts TBR

It's my Oblongversary! I hit my proper three-year anniversary this past week. It feels like I've been there so much longer, but I started a month or so after graduating college and just never left. I love this little store and don't know what I would have done if I hadn't started working here. Bookselling is *the* best job, and I'm so glad I get to do it. Here's to another three years! 📚

PS: Yup, there's an essay about us in MY BOOKSTORE. 😍

Happy release day to WONDER WOMAN: WARBRINGER! 😱📚😍 I read WARBRINGER as a galley months ago and really loved it. Leigh's writing holds up outside of her Grishaverse for a Wonder Woman origin story that's inclusive and fun with some unexpected twists. I can't wait for all of you to get your copies and read about Diana's New York explorations!

PS: Can't afford a copy today? We have THREE up for grabs on Queership.com!

Burned out and exhausted today, so I'm spending the day trying to recoup energy and prevent myself from getting ill. That involves coloring my #PJcoloringbook (courtesy of Disney-Hyperion) and drinking a lot of tea. So much tea.

(We have a giveaway for the coloring book on yainterrobang.com right now - visit the website by Monday night to enter to win!)

Blood. It smelled like the promise of something thrilling as much as it smelled like the thrumming end of the adventure. It smelled like her father when he came home from battle [...] and as she smashed her skinny, child's body against his thundering chest in welcome, he smelled to her only of good things.

Now that she was a woman and knew blood intimately, Bluebell loved and feared it—and appreciated its beauty splashed crimson across the snow.

If you give a girl a bookstore, she's going to ask to read some books. When you give her the books, she'll probably scream and disappear into the back room to read. — IF YOU GIVE A MOUSE A COOKIE, but with books

But seriously - who could resist these beauties? Which one are YOU most excited about?

Last week's pile o' #bookmail! I've only heard amazing things about THE CITY OF BRASS and, while I knew nothing about DAUGHTERS OF THE STORM, it looks right up my alley. (A sister story from an award-winning Australian author = hell yeah.) And who can resist an Ursula K. LeGuin essay collection? Certainly not me. Did you get any exciting books in your mailbox this week? 📚

"But surely we are not allowed..."
"Allowed?" I counters. "We're allowed to do anything in this world until someone says we ain't allowed and that someone can back it up." — Jacky Faber

#bookishemoji17 day 21: ⚓️

I will not be bandied about by men any longer. I am not a prize to be bought or sold. — FLAME IN THE MIST

#fortunefavoursaugust day 20: vesta (fire)

#bookishemoji17 day nineteen: 🌈
I'm working my way through the short stories in THREE SIDES OF A HEART (edited by Natalie Parker, coming this December) and I'm really loving it so far. Each story tackles love triangles from a different angle, genre be damned. I'm really excited to keep reading; if y'all like short stories, this better be one on your radar.

"Lessa woke, cold." The new covers of the Dragonriders of Pern series are here! ? I didn't realize they'd finally come out until the first one arrived at the bookstore... and now I'm just waiting for the next two. I'm a huge Pern fan (if my custom #iceydesigns candle didn't give it away) and these covers actually reflect the weird, wonderful Pernese dragons. I can't wait to have the whole trilogy for my too-large McCaffrey collection.