Of Butterflies and Books

 Hello, my fellow readers. It feels like this year has just flown by. Now that we're getting into the new year, I really wanted to talk about some of my most anticipated books of 2024.  Ever since read Iron Widow , the sequel has lived rent-free in my mind and it seems as though we're finally getting a confirmation date as to when it's supposed to be released on April 30, 2024.   The next book is one I wasn't really aware of until about a month ago but the plot sounds like a lot of fun to me, how could I not want to check this out and that is A Fragile Enchantment  by Allison Saft. It kind of gives me vibes similar to the movie, The Wedding Planner with magic. I'll definitely be on the look out for this book on January 02, 2024, to read it as soon as possible.  Another book I'm excited about is the next installment in the Remixed Classics series with Gabe Cole Novoa's  Most Ardently: A Pride & Prejudice Remix . I can't wait to read this take on Jan...

Hello, my fellow readers, somehow it's December. It's always interesting when coming up with monthly or seasonal TBRs because if I haven't said the words, I'm very much a mood reader, and different months or seasons throughout the year evoke different moods for reading. Fall is always in this interesting in-between where I want to read and/or continue the major book releases in summer while shifting into more paranormal, fantasy, or mystery/thriller reads that give you that spine-tingling feeling of the fall season. Winter, for me, is still in that realm because I do still to a degree have an interest in reading all of those genres and more, but I think I am definitely, as evidenced by my current TBR, looking to have most of my books be in a more cozy mood.   So to start, and I should add there may be repeats for some lists such as my TBR games because the TBR deities were somewhat kind to me this month with the prompts I got.  So first for my monthly book challenge ...

Books read: 17 DNFs: 11 TRL(To Read Later): 10 books  Physical books: 0 Ebooks: 9 Audiobooks: 8 Rereads: 3 First in a series: 1  Continuations/Sequels: 7 Finished series: 1 Standalone books: 9 Total pages read: 1,990 Total hours listened to: 80 5 star reads: 3 4 star reads: 4 3 star reads: 5 2 star reads: 2 1 star reads: 3 Avg. rating: 3.11 Avg pages read: 221 pages Avg hours listened to: 10 hours ARCS read: 4 Longest book read/ longest audiobook:  Glory and the Master of Shadows by Grace Callaway at 404 pages and The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata at 16 hours.  Shortest book read/shortest audiobook: I've posted reviews of these arcs on this blog: Her Princess at Midnight by Erica Ridley at 96 pages and Starting Over Scottish by Tricia O'Malley at 3 hours.  Rollovers to the next month- 5 Highlights of the Month: I've been loving this journey of falling back in love with historical romances, and I couldn't have found a better series to do that than thi...

 Hello, my fellow readers, I'm sure like all of you can't believe we're in the final countdown to the end of 2023. Also like me, I hope, we're all trying to get those final books read or listened to to add to our 2023 reading goal. Here is my End-of-Year book tag of 2023.  Are there any books you started this year that you need to finish?  In short, yes. I try to do my best to finish my monthly TBRs but it doesn't always work out. Still, I'm very excited and interested in finishing the books I'm currently reading so I can add them to my reading goal of 2023. These books include:  The Other Princess by Denny S. Bryce My Name is Barbara by Barbara Streisand   The Court of The Underworld (Books 1-4) Vol 1 by Alessa Thorn I Hope You're Listening by Tom Ryan The Vanishing Stair by Maureen Johnson We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry Do you have an autumnal book to transition into the end of the year?  I would say I'm still in the fall season with mystery/thr...

 Hello, my fellow readers, it doesn't feel real that November is almost over and we're getting closer to the new year. Well I, like so many people I'm sure, have been taking full advantage of all the current major sales that have been going on online or in person. However, I would not say I've been going overboard. I've made some sensible purchases by putting in a lot of pre-orders that still applied to certain sales and taking advantage of sales and/or offers from different stores that I couldn't get through those sales, but that I could still get some kind of savings from others. Now, I will admit there have been the see, grab it, buy it kind of buys, but they were books I know I'm in the mood to read, and/or they are books I've really enjoyed and know I'm gonna reread again at some point.  So I'm going to go in order of most recent purchases.   First up, I have A Witch's Guide To Fake Dating A Demon  from Books A Million. And then, through...

 Hello, my fellow readers,           I wanted to give a little update as to what I'm currently reading.   I'm continuing as always with Brighton Walsh's Starlight Cove series,. I'm really loving the chemistry between the two main characters. Can't wait to finish this and for the next installment in this series.   The next book I'm currently reading is an audiobook of Jamie Wesley's Fake It Till You Bake It , just like Reckless Heart  I'm more than halfway through this delightful romantic comedy between a former football player, now bakery owner, and a young woman who is trying to find her own way.   Continuing to read this horror classic, I reread it every year I have only just started it, but really hoping to finish it this weekend.  What books are you currently reading? Let me know in the comments below. 

 Hello, my fellow readers,          I had a very productive day where I read for a full 24 hours and in that time, I finished 2 books that I had been meaning to get to and/or finish reading.   I've been loving Brighton Walsh's Starlight Cove series. This is the third book with all the hallmarks of another favorite: Enemies to Lovers, Marriage of Convenience, and He Falls First. Long-time rivals, Quinn and Ford are brought together through various reasons of their own and find the best way to solve their problems is to get married. Though they both know their time together is on a ticking clock, nothing stands in their way when they consider making the most of their time together, but neither of them truly wants to come to terms with the idea of being apart. I really liked this book and once again thought both of the main characters had great chemistry together. I gave this 4 stars because there was a slight "3rd Act Breakup" situation but I can fo...

  November TBR         It's hard to believe it's here, but November is upon us which means it's time for my November TBR.           I have two TBR games that help me get through my endless TBR. The first game is one I've named Shuffle. I use playing cards and assign general prompts to each suit's numbered cards, including 1 high-ranked card such as the King, Queen, Jack, Ace, and the Joker. I use the Joker as a wild card, if I choose to, I can replace a prompt that was picked with the prompt assigned to the Joker unless I'm not able to because if I don't complete the current month's TBR. I also have an additional part of my TBR game: for every 2 books read, I give myself 1 book credit for a future book purchase.          The books I have for this month for this TBR game are: Heart of a Monster by Shain Rose  Franklin by Billie Lustig  Pawn's Gambit by Rob J. Hayes  The Princess and the R...

     Hello, my fellow readers. It's that time again when I'm going to attempt another reading challenge. For this challenge, I've decided to choose a specific trope within the romance genre that is honestly one of my favorites which is contemporary royal romance. If anyone is unsure or unfamiliar with this trope it's pretty much what it says where it is a romance that is centered around some aspect of fictional, modern-day royalty. I can't wait to see what books I end up picking up for this challenge and sharing them with you all.  Are you a fan of the contemporary royal romance trope? What are some of your favorite books featuring this romance trope?

 Hello, my fellow readers, you know that feeling when you discover a new favorite book, author, or genre? I think the only better or could come as close as that is when you rediscover your love for one or all of those things. Recently, I have been rediscovering how much I love historical romance. Thanks to the power of read-a-thons and my monthly TBR games I have had the opportunity to reread some of the series that made me fall in love with historical romance in the first place, but I've also had the opportunity to discover some newly found favorites.  The series that I had an opportunity to reread was Sarah MacLean's Bareknuckle Bastards series.       If these gorgeous covers by themselves weren't enough to make anyone want to read these books, these books feature some of the most well-written, well-rounded female characters I've read in historical romance to date. Not only that, but they also have the most cinnamon rolls of all cinnamon rolls when i...