I forgot to post my #BookSpinBingo list yesterday, but here it is! My #Bookspin is the tagged book, and my #DoubleSpin is Sabrina! Happy May, everyone 🌸💐🌷

My most recent #BookHaul, all from my favourite thrift store! 😊

Ready to go for April‘s #BookSpinBingo! @TheAromaofBooks

February went by in a flash! I started not one, but two new jobs and while I still managed to read lots, I didn‘t post at all! This month I‘m going to finally read the Wayward Children series - I had to edit them into this picture as my library holds haven‘t come in yet 😂 #BookSpinBingo

Look what arrived! 😍 Thank you @TheAromaofBooks! I can‘t wait to read this one and have added it to my #BookSpinBingo board for the month 😊

Ready for another month of #BookSpinBingo although I haven‘t read my #DoubleSpin pick for January yet 🙈

Excited to dive into my #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin picks for January!

Good thing Sarah is posting later than normal today so I can get my #BookSpinBingo list posted! 😂 Looking forward to another year of this challenge.

I completed all of my #BookSpin and #DoubleSpin books in 2021! Here they all are!

My favourite, and the only one that received a five star rating, was Long Bright River. In total, I had:

One 1-star book ⭐️
Seven 2-stars books ⭐️⭐️
Seven 3-stars books ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Seven 4-stars books ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
One 5-star book ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
One DNF book

I love this challenge as it forces me to read books that I otherwise might ignore! Thank you @TheAromaofBooks 💕

I haven‘t had a chance to sit down and write a real review for this one, but I was a bit underwhelmed by it. It seems to be one of those books that most people love, so I‘m sad that I didn‘t. 3⭐️

This was my #DoubleSpin pick for December. @TheAromaofBooks

Happy New Year and happy #Bestof2021Swap opening day! Don‘t forget to tag your match and I in your opening post.

If you haven‘t received your package yet, please let me know. Everyone has sent their packages, but some may still be stuck in transit.

Thank you all for participating! I can‘t wait to see what you received.

@jenniferw88 @Soubhiville @bookwormjillk @avanders @bibliobard @DinoMom @Chrissyreadit @rachelsbrittain

This won the Pulitzer? A novel where basically nothing happens and there is absolutely no character growth? I must be missing something, as other reviewers have called this book clever, emotional and beautifully written, while also referring to Arthur Less as loveable and fascinating. I think we must have read different books.

This was my #BookSpin pick for December. @TheAromaofBooks

Karen M. McManus remains my go-to author for quick, YA thrillers. This one wasn‘t quite as exciting as some of her others, but still enjoyable enough. 3⭐️

It is hard to review Hostage without spoiling it. My full review has spoilers: https://bit.ly/3miTs0p

Generally speaking though, this book lacked the tension that I expected it to have. Mackinstosh tried to tackle too many topics and one of the storylines felt unnecessary. I didn‘t like the motivation behind the hostage situation itself, and while I think Mackintosh had good intentions, the way the story was written sends the wrong message.

Friendly reminder to send your #Bestof2021Swap package out as soon as possible!

I am tagging everyone who hasn‘t posted about it yet. If you sent your package, but forgot to post, let me know in the comments approximately when you mailed it!

Forgot to post about my #DoubleSpin for November. I have yet to be blown away by a Lisa Jewell book. This one was just okay. The multiple timelines and points of view made the book a bit repetitive and caused it to drag at times. I thought Sophie‘s chapters were unnecessary and the ending wrapped up too quickly for my tastes. 3⭐️

It is hard to review Maid because on one hand I respect Stephanie Land for telling her story, but on the other hand, I just didn‘t love the book. 3⭐️

I did watch the Netflix adaptation though, which I enjoyed more than the book. The adaptation is only very loosely inspired by the book – a lot was changed to make it a more TV-friendly story.

It isn‘t often that I actively hate a book, but I HATED this one. It is an overwritten mess, with way too much irrelevant filler/backstory and some truly awful metaphors. And there are so many inconsistencies and errors that should have been caught in editing.

It is basically a story about rich people behaving badly (but not in an entertaining way) and there is so much sexism and misogyny.

Full review: https://bit.ly/3EZ7Ke9
1⭐️

I can‘t believe it‘s the last month of #BookSpinBingo for 2021! Where did the year go?! @TheAromaofBooks

Making my way through this one slowly, but surely. I‘m just past the half way point now and hoping that a nice warm bubble bath will help me read a decent chunk tonight! Happy Saturday everyone 🛁🕯📚

Honestly, I didn‘t gain anything from reading this book. The arguments were surface level, and Petersen did not engage meaningfully with the legitimate critiques and/or problematic aspects of the women she chose to focus on. I wasn‘t a fan of some of celebrities she decided to write about, but was especially disappointed that the “too queer” chapter was about Caitlyn Jenner.

This was my #BookSpin pick for November @TheAromaofBooks 2⭐️

This was my #BookSpin pick for October! I didn‘t write a review after reading it, but I enjoyed it for the most part. It was a bit slow at times, but I‘m happy to have finally read it! 4⭐️ @TheAromaofBooks

Based on true events, The Forgotten Home Child tells the story of Winny and her friends Mary, Jack, Cecil, and Edward as they are removed from the streets/orphanages of London, England and sent to Canada for what is supposed to be a better life. It is a fascinating and heartbreaking part of Canada‘s history – one that I knew nothing about prior to this novel. 3.5⭐️

Great cover, great title, great premise, but terrible characters and over-the-top writing/metaphors that ruined the entire thing for me. This could have been so good if the author really leaned into the Japanese folklore and the horror elements. 2⭐️

Emoni is such a great character and this book was fantastic. And this cover is just gorgeous 😍 4⭐️

Yikes, this was bad. I really hope people don‘t believe that this is what group therapy is like. Dr. Rosen‘s methods are unethical and it was infuriating to read about their sessions. I‘m also glad that I don‘t have to spend another second reading about Tate‘s sex life. She clearly has no idea what asexuality means and labels herself “borderline asexual” and a “sexual anorexic” whenever she experiences relationship problems. 1⭐️ bit.ly/3FhZPYS

Matches for the #Bestof2021Swap have been sent out! Please check your email and respond to it (or to this post) to let me know that you‘ve received your match!

Thank you to everyone who has already responded to the email. Happy stalking and shopping!

Thank you to everyone who expressed interest in the #Bestof2021Swap! The sign-up form is ready to go and will remain open until November 14: https://forms.gle/Q7CsPtKBWwS4Sy758

This year, there are no tier levels. Instead, everyone will be responsible for sending TWO books and FOUR gifts. Please check out the form for more details.

Feel free to ask me any questions you may have and please share to spread the word!

Hi friends! Last year I hosted the #Bestof2020Swap. The idea was to reflect on the things that brought you joy throughout the year and share them with someone else, by sending your match some of your favourite books and goodies.

I would love to know how many people would be interested in participating in a #Bestof2021Swap? If there is enough interest, I will post sign ups by the end of this week. Opening day would be January 1, 2022.

Thanks!

My #BookSpinBingo list is ready to go for November 🎉 @TheAromaofBooks

I bailed on my #DoubleSpin pick for October. I just wasn‘t feeling it 🤷‍♀️ @TheAromaofBooks

Wow! The Need has one of the most gripping first sections that I have ever read, which turned into a really interesting and weird story. I did not expect to love this as much as I did, but I couldn‘t put it down.

Lots of people have disliked this, but I‘m giving it 5⭐️

Happy October, friends. 🎃🍁🍂Here‘s my #BookSpinBingo list for the month. The mysterious red book is Hag-Seed by Margaret Atwood. I bought it at a library sale a couple years ago (remember when those happened?!) and it didn‘t have the dust jacket. @TheAromaofBooks

Others have called this the perfect novel, and although I don‘t quite agree, I did find it oddly compelling despite its quiet nature. This was my #BookSpin pick for September. 4⭐️ @TheAromaofBooks

My friend told me this is one of her favourite books. I have read a couple other books she has recommended and disliked them, and unfortunately, I disliked this one too. I think it‘s time to admit that our reading tastes differ wildly 😂

2 ⭐️ This was my #DoubleSpin pick for August @TheAromaofBooks

This book was fantastic. I was so invested in the characters and thought the story was masterfully crafted. 5⭐️ This was my #BookSpin pick for August @TheAromaofBooks

I frequently sell my books on Facebook Marketplace, but this is the first time that someone bought ALL of the books I have for sale. Here‘s the entire #unhaul of 49 books. I‘ve read and enjoyed 14 of these, but the rest I have lost interest in. I‘m happy to see them go to a new home.

Also, friendly reminder to my fellow Canadians to go vote! I went to an advance poll this afternoon. It‘ll be interesting to see how this election turns out 🗳🇨🇦

Woohoo! I completed my Goodread‘s Reading Challenge today. My new, unofficial goal is 200 but we‘ll see 😊📚

My #DoubleSpin pick for September. I probably would have enjoyed this more if I was familiar with H.P. Lovecraft‘s work, but as it was, I thought it was interesting and worth the hour or so it took to read it. @TheAromaofBooks 3⭐️

Ready for #BookSpinBingo once again. I still haven‘t got my Litsy mojo back, so I‘m relatively inactive here at the moment 😔 @TheAromaofBooks

I don‘t want to give a memoir about love, loss, and grief a 2-star rating, but I can‘t rate it any higher. I have no doubt that Jason and Amy had a happy, love-filled life together, but the way that Jason presented their relationship and their family was just too sugar-coated. Full review: https://bit.ly/3D1OBYo

I didn‘t enjoy the book, but I do very much enjoy this new vase that I purchased from a pottery market 😍

I think this is a great book for teens/adults who are just starting to read books about race, but unfortunately, it all seemed very surface level. I expected more hard-hitting, in-depth explorations of issues surrounding race in America, but instead I got a pretty predictable and underwhelming story. I feel as though the author tried to touch on too many issues for a 210 page book – racial profiling, police violence, affirmative action ⬇️

I read this book at the start of July and have forgotten most of it, but I will NEVER forget how many bad (and completely unbelievable) decisions Charlie made. I also couldn‘t stand Sagar‘s use of mental illness as a way to make Charlie an unreliable narrator. And that epilogue… insert major eye roll here. This was my #BookSpin pick for July. 2⭐️ @TheAromaofBooks

I enjoyed The Underground Railroad, but it wasn‘t quite as unique or emotionally impactful as I expected. I was very intrigued by this alternate history version in which the Underground Railroad is an actual railroad operated through underground tunnels across the United States. But the Underground Railroad played a surprisingly (and disappointingly) small part in this story – for most of the book, it was easy to forget that it even existed. ⬇️

Ready to go for #BookSpinBingo! The tagged book is my #BookSpin pick, while my #DoubleSpin is The Sisters Brothers. @TheAromaofBooks

I didn‘t post anything in July, so I‘ll be playing catch up over the next couple of days. But to start, here‘s my #BookSpinBingo list for August. @TheAromaofBooks

#BookHaul from my three favourite secondhand stores. I already own a couple of these, but will be swapping them out for the nicer editions that I found! Not pictured are the books my mom and sister wanted to read 😂

It is so nice to be able to browse in stores again. Ontario is slowly re-opening with limited store capacity. I have my second vaccine appointment this weekend, which is great considering it was originally scheduled for September!

My #BookSpinBingo card is ready to go. My #BookSpin is the tagged book and my #DoubleSpin is The Underground Railroad, which I am already about 1/3 of the way through! Happy reading everyone! 📚

Here‘s my #BookSpinBingo list for July 😊 @TheAromaofBooks

June was a pretty meh reading month for me. I didn‘t read as much as normal and most of what I read was just okay. I also didn‘t get a bingo for #BookSpinBingo as I read a lot of new releases from the library rather than focusing on my TBR 🤷‍♀️ My favourite from the month is the tagged book.