Top Ten Tuesday

 

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and The Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week's topic is: Top Ten Covers with an Animal

*in on particular order

10. FOURTH WING by Rebecca Yarros--dragon
9. THE FOREST KING'S DAUGHTER by Elly Blake--butterfly, owl, and a fox
8. BLACK SHEEP by Rachel Harrison--black sheep ;)

7. MEDDLING KIDS by Edgar Cantero--dog and something with tentacles...I still need to read this one, so can't confirm what that thing is! Lol
6. THE QUEEN OF NOTHING by Holly Black--snake
5. HEXES AND HEMLINES by Julie Blackwell--pig

4. KITTY GOES TO WASHINGTON by Carrie Vaughn--leopard
3. RIVALS and Retribution by Shannon Delany--wolves
2. BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE by Annette Curtis Klause--shadow of a wolf

1. BITTEN by Jordan Stephanie Gray--wolf

July Wrap-up

We're now over halfway through the year! How is that even possible? Lol. I write this post extremely tired with very little sleep the past three nights as I was at the Forbidden Romance event in Nashville this week! So I was pretty much checked out of social media. Not sure how people can enjoy their time and still make reels and take hundreds of photos while they're at events. Kudos to them! I was just enjoying myself, lol! This month I pretty much only read TBR books as I was trying to read as many books as I could for this event. In the end, I fell short by 1.5. I was halfway through my second to last book and there was still one more book by an attending author I wanted to read, but oh well. I didn't do too bad though.

No ARCs this month

No New Releases this month

TBR Reads:

Arcana Academy by Elise Kova (7/22/25)
Nightweaver by R.M Gray (3/4/25)
Starchaser by R.M. Gray (11/4/25)
The Last Lost Girl by Casey L. Bond (5/3/24)
The First Lost Boy by Casey L. Bond (5/2/25)
The Mirror in the Mountain by Dana Evyn (12/3/24)

The count may not look as impressive this month, but these were all pretty long books! 500+, 400+, and 300+ and some of the formatting was intense, we're talking hardly any white space on the page so nothing but words! So it was a lot of reading word count wise! Lol.

Book Blogger Hop #422

 

This meme is hosted by Billy at Ramblings of a Coffee Addict!

This week's question is: If you had to stick to one genre forever, which would you choose and why? (submitted by Billy @ Coffee-Addicted Writer)

MY ANSWER: Pending that means there will always be books in the genre, I would have to go with paranormal fantasy/urban fantasy. Basically your paranormal types! I do love the fantasy romance genre as well and it is booming, but I guess depending on how some of those go, they could be loosely called paranormal fantasy as well, if the character types are right! Lol.

Books from the Backlog #196

 

Books from the Backlog is a fun way to feature some of those neglected books sitting on your bookshelf unread.  If you are anything like me, you might be surprised by some of the unread books hiding in your stacks. This is a fun meme hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books!

Caught between the devil and the deep blue sea…

Police Chief Delaney Reed is good at keeping secrets for the beach town of Ordinary Oregon–just ask the vacationing gods or supernatural creatures who live there.

But with the first annual Cake and Skate fundraiser coming up, the only secret Delaney really wants to know is how to stop the unseasonable rain storms. When all the god powers are stolen, a vampire is murdered, and her childhood crush turns out to be keeping deadly secrets of his own, rainy days are the least of her worries.

Hunting a murderer, outsmarting a know-it-all god, and uncovering an ancient vampire’s terrifying past isn’t how she planned to spend her summer. But then again, neither is falling back in love with the one man she should never trust.

I added Devon Monk's Devils and Details to my TBR pile in March of 2018 and I am pretty sure it's on my kindle. A lot of the traditional authors I read in the early days started doing my indie and self publishing and I was trying to follow them still but they were really belting out the books and I obviously fell wayyyy behind! I still need to start this series of Monk's but it sounds like a fun one! So hopefully one day I will get to it!

Can't Wait Wednesday #259

 

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Emma Hamm’s instant USA TODAY bestselling dark romantasy trilogy comes to a heart-stopping conclusion in The Endless One.

Jessamine survived betrayal, death, and the gods themselves—but survival was only the beginning. Her kingdom lies in ruins. Her throne has been stolen. And the man who once murdered her has succeeded in doing the binding himself to a god.

To reclaim her crown, Jessamine must defy ancient powers and betrayals alike—and face the enemy who once slit her throat. But now, she isn’t the innocent bride who fell to her death. She is the Gravesinger.

Captured and forced to confront a fate far worse than dying, Jessamine must decide how much of herself she is willing to sacrifice to end a war. Bound to Elric, the god who loves her, she must choose between the humanity that shaped her—and the power required to tear divinity down at its source.

Because this time, she isn’t just ready to kill a man.

She’s ready to kill a god.

I binged the first two books earlier this year and loved them! Cannot wait to see how it will all end later on!

TITLE: The Endless One
AUTHOR: Emma Hamm
PUBLISHER: Gallery Books
GENRE: Fantasy Romance
RELEASE DATE: September 1, 2026

They told me turning eighteen meant freedom. They never said it might kill me.

All I wanted was cake, candles, and a fresh start after aging out of the group home I’ve been stuck in for six years. What I got instead? A vampire crashing my party and trying to drain me dry.

Apparently, vampires are real and I can sense them.

Right before I become dinner, a gorgeous, broody vampire hunter named Asher swoops in and saves me. He tells me I’m not just some orphan with a bad attitude… I’m a legacy. A born Vampire Hunter. And now I’ve got a full ride to Nightguard Academy, a secret school for hunters.

Training to kill the undead? Kinda savage.

Except there’s one I’m hiding a secret so dark it could get me staked before graduation. And in a school full of monsters, secrets don’t stay buried for long.

Perfect for fans of Vampire Academy, Buffy and House of Night, this twisty, slow-burn supernatural romance will keep you guessing until the final tick.

With a title like this how can I not read it?! This baby was preordered during the last B&N sale and I cannot wait to read it!

TITLE: Slayer
AUTHOR: Leia Stone
PUBLISHER: Bloom Books
GENRE: Paranormal Romance
RELEASE DATE: September 8, 2026

Jaimie Vane’s promising career as a cellist came to a screeching halt when chronic illness took over her life, leaving her dealing with a disability her doctors don’t understand.

Then her vibrant sister Sybil, an influencer turned wellness consultant at an exclusive health retreat, leaves her a series of distressing messages that contain hidden cries for help…and a voucher for a free stay. Determined to find her sister, Jaimie finds herself chartering a tugboat across the frigid winter sea to the black-sand shores of Creag Dhubh, the tiny island that houses the elite Saoghal Spa and its enigmatic founder, Cyan Blache.

Searching for her sister under the premise of being a regular guest, Jaimie is pushed far out of her comfort zone, both physically and mentally, by the group healing activities and luxurious treatments. As time wears on and Sybil is nowhere to be found, Jaimie is shocked to find herself feeling…better. There is something at Saoghal, in the treatments and tinctures and the black mud itself, that has her chronic fatigue and pain melting away. And as she gets closer to the people around her, including the ethereal Cyan Blache, whose perfection seems to defy reality, she finds herself with more questions than answers.

But everything comes at a price, and transformation, it seems, requires sacrifice. When Jaimie’s investigation leads her to discover that something darker than mud baths and salt scrubs is twisting the residents of Creag Dhubh into something more than themselves, she must face an evil beyond reckoning in order to escape with her life.

Pretty much any Dawn Kurtagich book makes it to my TBR! I am super behind, naturally, but loved her horror style!


TITLE: The Wellness Retreat
AUTHOR: Dawn Kurtagich
PUBLISHER: Hanover Square Press
GENRE: Horror
RELEASE DATE: September 8, 2026

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays

 

Teaser Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by Purple Princess of The Purple Booker. 

Here are the rules:

1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a page
3. Pick out 2 lines that are SPOILER FREE
4. Name the title, author, etc.

After this week, I decided I am going to take a little break from Teaser Tuesday. I noticed at the beginning of the year, possibly even in December of last year that The Purple Booker website has been inaccessible. Not sure if she retired or what happened as I remember it felt abrupt, but I continued on with the teaser as I have for many years now. It's just that I noticed in the little bit of blog hopping that I do, that not many people were doing the Teaser post anymore. So for now, I decided I might step back from it for awhile at least. 

"'Don't bulls*** a bulls****er, Eva. And don't you dare try to lie to me.'" p 255

TITLE: The Mirror in the Mountain
AUTHOR: Dana Evyn
PUBLISHER: City Own Press
GENRE: Fantasy
RELEASE DATE: December 3, 2024

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and The Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week's topic is: Top Ten Books I HAD to Have Immediately But Still Haven't Read

*in no particular order

10. THEY FEAR NOT MEN IN THE WOODS by Gretchen McNeil--was super excited for her adult debut...and yet it's unread
9. FOR WHOM THE BELLE TOLLS by Jaysea Lynn--one that caught my eye by chance one day and it sounded good and it was pretty! Lol
8. WITCHLIGHT by Susan Dennard--the long waited epic conclusion...and I still need to read it! And I need a detailed summary of the previous books because wow!

7. EMBER ETERNAL by Chloe Neill--love Chloe's books and was excited for this one!
6. HOLLOW by Celina Myers--love me some vampires and this edge!
5. DIRE BOUND by Sable Sorensen--another one that called to me because of the wolves and I waited for the deluxe hardcover but the size has kept me from picking it up right away...it's been a busy year!

4. SILVER & BLOOD by Jessie Mihalik--was super excited for this one and yet...still haven't cracked it open!

3. THE HAUNTING OF PAYNES HOLLOW by Kelley Armstrong--really any of her books could be here because I am SOOO behind!
2. UNTIL THE WORLD FALLS DOWN by Jordan Lynde--one I've been DYING to read but my schedule this year has been nuts!

1. THE RETURN by Jennifer L. Armentrout--this one was actually the first one I thought of! Lol.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

 

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a fun meme where we gather to share what we've read last week and our reading plans for this week.

Last Week I Read:

The First Lost Boy by Casey L. Bond (4 stars)--technically I finished this on Sunday but was too tired to update this post! Lol.

The Mirror in the Mountain by Dana Evyn (4.5 stars)

Currently Reading:

The Shattered Mirror by Dana Evyn

What I Plan to Read Next:

The Nightshade God by Hannah Whitten

Other Posts of Interest:

Teaser & Top Ten Tuesdays
Can't Wait Wednesday #258
Books from the Backlog #195
Book Blogger Hop #421

Stacking the Shelves--The Dreadful, Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day Edition

Stacking the Shelves--The Dreadful, Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day Edition

 

Stacking the Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts, and of course ebooks! The meme is now hosted by Reading Reality.

Well, there's no good news folks. Yup. I started my week with the dreadful, terrible, horrible, no good, very bad news: I didn't get the house of my dreams. The owner went with another offer. It was devastating to say the least. I had never felt so positive about anything in the longest of time. I truly, truly felt like I was getting this place. Everything was perfect. Yes, there were a few minor flaws, but they flaws I could live with. The good outweighed the bad, let's just say that. It's definitely no way to start a long work week. It was hard. Not gonna lie. Tears were had for the first day and a little into the next. I got back on Zillow to look some more, but naturally could not find anything that could hold a candle to what I had within my grasp. Seriously, the other places were dumpy looking or needed so much work or were in shady looking areas. I basically needed to get off Zillow for a day or two because it was just making me depressed. I'm just hoping it won't take me another 3 years to find something perfect like that. I've been looking for what feels like forever. Lol. I know 3 years isn't that long, but I was browsing for probably a year or two before that, before I really had anything saved up. So I'm back at square one.

In lighter news, tonight I am at least going to a book signing! Albeit it's in the shady part of town, but what can you do? Tonight I'll be seeing Elise Kova! I just started reading her new Arcana Academy series and liked it and her Dragon Cursed was intriguing as well. So it will hopefully be a fun night. It is sold out, so I'm hoping I am not out too late! Then towards the end of the week, I'll be attending the Forbidden Love event in Nashville! I'm excited to see Stephanie Garber (again!) plus a slew of other authors and lots of new to me ones. Sadly, I can't see Stephanie on tour this year as everywhere is just too far to drive and costs like $500 to fly there and then I have to add in Ubers and hotel stays, plus at least 1 meal, and we're looking closer to $1K+ for a 2-3 day getaway. I just can't manage that...even without having a house to pay for. So hopefully I can order a signed copy or two...$100 or so is more manageable. Not sure if that cost is accurate really, just thinking cost of hardcover or two...plus shipping! Lol. Sadly I likely won't get that special stamp on anything that Stephanie mentioned in her Stories. Sigh...so yeah...lots of bad news this week.

Well, anyway, here's what I got in the mail this week:

Habits of the Sea by Shea Ernshaw--this is my replacement copy since my original went MIA. I sometimes wonder where all my missing books end up. I partially consider that someone in that mailroom likes to read.
The Shattered Mirror by Dana Evyn--I was originally supposed to receive this book on July 9th. Then Amazon said, JK, you'll get July 15-19. It arrived on July 22.
A Forsaken Prophecy by Stacey McEwan--an impulse B&N preorder...all these deluxe first print run editions gives me the biggest FOMO--actual FOMO and not KOMO! Lol. So yeah...I still need to read the first book but I have the pretty second book at the ready!

Then I got my Fairy Loot book, kind of wish I could've gotten it last month but oh well. Still trying not to give spoilers if there are people who avoid them still. Not sure really if anyone does anymore. I know I follow people who guess accurately so I know if I want to skip or not. Of course with FL I'm more like "can I live with it?" This one I could. Cover wise it wasn't bad...I just felt meh about it in some sense. I like it better than the standard US one, so I guess that's something at least. Lol. I might like it better after I read the book...eventually. It's a duology, so it's automatically put somewhere in the possible 2027 queue! Lol.

And then I had a little bit of retail therapy after the dreadful news I got at the start of my week. I was at TJ Maxx and was browsing the Halloween stuff that they were slowly putting out. I then saw the tiny rack of blankets and I was telling myself as I walked by that I was good on blankets. No. More. Blankets.

So Fate clearly said you need one more blanket. Because yes, yes I did need a ghost reading a book blanket!

And that was all I got this week! Of course, I wrote this post a little earlier then usual, so I don't entirely know what was in Saturday's mail just yet. But if anything good shows up, it'll be in next week's post.

What all did you get this week?