Grace > Recent Status Updates

Sincerely, I tried so very hard not to go five books deep on my Currently Reading list again. But I was in desperate need of an ebook option and none of the three I have on the go for myself had one available.

So I went with this free Kindle book. One, because I need to read my collection down. Two, because this is where my mood led me.

So I binged this a little bit. Let's just say, two events made me want to know what the deal actually is surrounding our main romantic characters.

One event has mostly been resolved. The other event is still pending. It's the one I'm worried about, because it could very possibly be annoyingly dumb. But I had to get sleep, so I allowed myself to let it hang.

I don't know if I like how the narrative keeps ravelling and unravelling in the way it is. It just makes me want to compare it so far to Redwall and I'm finding it relatively wanting.

I will give it that it could still surprise me in how it resolves the whole mess going on.

I saw this book get compared to the drama Grey's Anatomy. And suddenly I understand why I'm not jiving with this book. While the familiar setting of Toronto is some comfort, it doesn't overcome my malaise of how it is exploring the topic.

Also not a book to read when making food.

I'm doing a really piss poor job of getting through my physical TBR right now.

Of the last 20 books I've read, 3 were a physical TBR books prior to me picking it up.

Now, some are ebooks or audiobooks I own, but those don't take up space in my tiny home. Clearly, I'm going to have to refocus my reading efforts.

Here's to a physical TBR book dating back to 2016.

How good was Blood Over Bright Haven? I paused this rom com book to binge it.

To be clear, I'm really loving vibes of this book. So much so that I bought another Katherine Center book via a Kobo sale today in prep for a long vacation coming up. But wheb reading time is limited, sometimes you have to cede time for other things.

But I am looking forward to getting back to this.

The concept of this book exploring the grey areas that is becoming and being a doctor in Canada and Toronto particularly (that I see so far) is an idea that I feel I can get behind. The execution as a fiction book is something I'm struggling with.

Granted, this as well as most of my other books in progress has been sidelined by Blood Over Bright Haven both in urgency and interest at this moment. So there's that.

Oh this is good. Like, already don't want to put it down good. Like, wow I just hit a chapter that reshape everything about what this story means so far, although hints were sown in the lead up.

I may actually finish this book before my 7 day skip the line audiobook loan comes due.

And once again Erikson throws me into the middle of something completely blind and with no idea what the heck is going on. Though at least this time I recognize one of the characters. But not the context of the time period.

That I had to look up before I started to get what I'm looking at.

This has been exactly what I wanted when I sought it out and checked it out of the library. A cute, funny, fun, light romance to read.

Good thing too given how many books I own that I passed on seeking this kind of book. Turns out I don't actually own too many in this specific subgenre for reasons.

So here's the sitch. I'm close to finishing The Blue Castle and was perusing my options for the next book I should pick up, if it should be a library hold or something I own. With consideration to the fact that I've been leaning heavily towards audiobooks of late.

This book's audiobook then pops up on a 7 day skip-the-line loan. And my ebook is ready.

I went for it.

Why is this taking me as long as it has? It's mostly because I'm mostly in an audiobook mood these days after getting through A Great Game physically, but also to get on top of chores while caring for a little one.

It's gotten to be a good book with classic LM Montgomery prose. Valancy has definitely grown. But it's been a bit of work picking up an ebook.

You know how my main complaint with The Marriage Plot was the fact I despised the three primary characters the narrative evolved around.

It's happening again, although I've only really had the chance to get to know two of our ensemble cast so far. But yeah, they're terrible people. Even knowing why they are how they are doesn't make them enjoyable to read about.

At the risk of laying down spoilers, a thing happened in the last chapter that I was so completely underwhelmed by, it annoyed me. Mostly because I feel the older installments (such as The Bellmaker) did a much much better job at that kind of thing in terms of impact and emotion.

I do wonder if part of this shift is due to the changing definition of children's lit in the intervening years.

Should I be reading a book off her physical TBR and not another library hold? Yes.

But when one continues to be in a particular mood for a particular kind of book, one learns to keep riding that mood until she exhausts the horse. Or something like that.

This is merely me, continuing to ride my mood for romantic comedies.

OK I will concede, once Valancy took the muzzle off and stopped caring what others thought she became 100 per cent more interesting and hilarious. There's something about taking the mick off uptight snobs that is really entertaining.

There is shock value in her actions, especially in the context of the times. But for this modern reader, it suits.

The danger with buying books before you read them is that you may end up wanting nothing to do with them afterward.

Which is why I'm immensely relieved at how much fun I'm having with this book. While friends-to-lovers isn't my particular jam - and this friendship in particular isn't one I'm an enormous fan of - I do enjoy their chemistry. So I'm just going with it.

Here be the next book randomly generated off my TBR. I got the book out of a Little Free Library about a year ago and thus judgement must be passed on whether I keep it or I pass it on.

Honestly, I don't actually know what the book actually is about or even if it is fiction or nonfiction. I feel like I keep getting conflicting reports on that.

This isn't the cute read I was hoping it was going to be when I picked it out of the stack. But it also isn't the romance I was looking for it to be at its baseline either.

It's way too busy for the story it's telling me. There's so many balls in the air right now, with so many issues and plot points going, I'm having a hard time caring about anything.

On this morning I found myself at a juncture where I had unwittingly 3 different romances on the go and not one fantasy novel and no solid plans on what next to read.

Which is my sign to finally get the next Malazan book going. First because these are massive. Second because it is past time to make my return.

Well, so far all I've seen of Valancy is her being a wet blanket. She is the personification of all of Anne's perceived and imagined flaws with none of the strength of spirit. It's been a couple of chapters now of just nonstop self loathing.

I kind of hate it.

The fact I own this book before reading it entirely belongs to my bad habit of making impulse purchases, lured by the fact the copy of the book I bought had really pretty sprayed edges.

With that said, it's Emily Henry. I have enjoyed both books I've read by her to date. And this one is giving me good feelings so far.

This book feels a little all over the place for me. And I'm not sure if it is because our two main romantic characters are all over the place, if it is the plot is all over the place or it is the fact that it takes inspiration from gothic romances which isn't exactly my cup of tea, if not just something I don't get at all.

But halfway down and I'm struggling to care about what is happening.

Illnesses for both me and the pipsqueak had stalled any attempts at reading before bedtime for the last week or so. Not for lack of wanting, only for lack of energy on all parties parts. I only just managed to resume recently. Luckily, the story is simple enough where it is easy for me to recall events to this point.

But I still disagree with the fate of the owl.

Two things: one, I didn't realize the author was a former Globe and Mail journalist and the stance he is using includes a journalistic one.

Second, a quarter of the way into the audiobook and over a dozen bookmarks later, I decided I need to buy a copy of this. Call it meta or navel gazing, but it is incredibly relevant to my life in ways I didn't expect.

Dammit. Too late did I realize reading the introduction of the book in the copy I got would completely spoil the whole damn plot of the book.

Granted, the ending of romance books are rarely a surprise, but that still doesn't mean I want the details of the journey before I get there.

I guess we will see if the spoilation helps or hinders my reading experience.

One cannot help but straighten their back and scrutinize the details when reading a Sherlock Holmes story, seeking to catch the red herrings and any hints of clues suggesting the correct course.

This book in a way precedes itself in a way where I have a good idea what the ending may be, but you still want to catch the path that is laid out.

I'm just leaning into my current taste for a light, fluffy and fun romance with this one.

While I do queue up my next reads, I don't often hold fast to it. Mostly because it is hard to judge my reading mood in advanced. And for the sake of the books I'm reading, I often defer to moods that compliment the book.

Why force things? I'm not in school and this isn't required reading.

So many books written these days have lost their metaphors. So it is nice when beauty is a consideration when reading a description of anything. Although a book where poetry lays at the center of its magical system can hardly be told without a lyrical touch.

Even when pain and cruelty lay at its heart at times.

For a book written by a former prime minister, albeit about an obscure hockey topic, it is not as well edited or assembled as I had expected it to be. I catch occasional grammar errors or typos every couple of pages that makes me blink. But the most egregious is how the images are laid out on its pages, often falling well before or after its relevant paragraph. It's very confusing.