OK, here‘s the deal… I read this book at the wrong time. Conspiracy theories? Political upheaval? Government coverups? A virus? Granted it is more of a zombie virus than anything else, but this hits too close to reality, and instead of giving me escapism give me anxiety. Top of that with the ending, I just couldn‘t hang. The writing is really well done. The research is thorough. @TheAromaofBooks for #bookspinbingo

I didn‘t update a lot for October, but here‘s the roundup. They Went Left was a very good story. 100 Sideways Miles captures dialogue super well. Finished the Gold Seer Trilogy, which was solid but I liked Fire and Thorns more. Which brings us to Soulless, my #bookspin. It had potential, but it had a lot of build up and a too-quick ending. Too neat for a zombie horror. @TheAromaofBooks October done, onto November!

I need a brag moment, because I just reached the bestsellers list. If you are interested, my YA satire that pokes fun at hipsters is free for today and tomorrow. Linktree in profile. And you all know me, I won‘t post endless self-promo. This is my reading platform, but it feels good to see that number 1 spot.

#listyauthors #yabooks

Here‘s the deal with Andrew Smith. He writes coming of age really well. He portrays the conversations that teen boys have really well. But a lot of his books tend to be in this same vein. I liked this one better than The Alex Crow. But man, did I hate the class clown types growing up. Cade and I would have fought, a lot. Writing is solid. Finn is wonderful, so it‘s a pick. #bookspin for this month! #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

I am not usually one for historical fiction, but this was done really well. It focuses on the aftermath of the war and the liberation of the camps, which is different from a lot of other books about this time period. The ending was really smartly done to and ended up catching me by surprise, which is a rarity and was really nice. #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

Mid-reading this one right now. Such a different take on the aftermath of World War II. Still reading it, and will post when I get to the end but I wanted to post my #bookspin for spooky October season!

I ended up really enjoying this book. The artwork was phenomenal, and White always produces a really fun story. It took me a really long time to get through, because I wasn‘t really in the mood for a graphic novel-esque work, but it was definitely worth the read and I do recommend it. #bookspinbingo hosted by @TheAromaofBooks

Loving this so far bur gosh I got off track for reading last month. Here‘s my September #bookspin. Will do bingo once I finish a novel this month. Only read 3 for last month and none were my spins 😳 bookspin is hosted by @TheAromaofBooks

I enjoy Westerfeld‘s writing a lot. It‘s quick paced, it‘s easy, it has good tone. Afterworlds is a book within a book, and quite a long read but worth it. It was honestly nice to be surrounded by Darcy and her writing world, because it made me feel more connected to my writing life, which I‘ve been feeling a bit disconnected from. Fun read. Read for #bookspinbingo hosted by @TheAromaofBooks

Day 6. And day 7! Playing catch up for #litsysummercamp. Bring on the toasted marshmallows! Not going to lie, getting to eat this was delightful. I read two books this week, as planned! Stand out was Turtles all the Way Down. I love too many spooky and campfire stories to pick just one. Hosted by @ImperfectCJ

I think for anyone who suffers from spiraling, this may help your friends and family understand what it‘s like to be stuck in you. As someone who has panic attacks, this was real. This was my brain, at war with itself, where logic does not make sense once the spiral has started to churn. Honestly, a fictional masterpiece about mental health. #bookspin hosted by @TheAromaofBooks and second book for #litsysummercampreadathon by @ImperfectCJ

Interesting take on the vampire story; having a vampire turn into a human again. First book for #bookspinbingo hosted by @TheAromaofBooks and #litsysummercampreadathon hosted by @ImperfectCJ

Day 5 of #litsysummercamp - take a bookish hike! I love listening to mysteries and murders while being surrounded by trees. Which… adds to the fear factor. Tagged a favorite YA mystery novel. Photo from last week‘s camping trip where I did get a lot of mysteries read. @ImperfectCJ

I am in love with Manchee the dog from The Knife of Never Letting Go. He would help gather firewood and chase the night critters away from camp. #litsysummercamp @ImperfectCJ

Don‘t have a photo for this one, but painting! Really want to get more into painting and drawing. Book binding also intrigued me as a kid. #litsysummercamp @ImperfectCJ

For #litsysummercamp, the weather is hot hot hot. I just got back from the much cooler (and damper) coast, and I miss it already. Would camp there again. But currently, hazy with an overcast of smoke. Eesh. Not the best outdoors weather (and this photo is much prettier obviously)! @ImperfectCJ

Yay! I love camp and camping. Did a variety of summer camps as a kid/teen and starting to get into camping as an adult.

1. Cabins are best for me (bad back) but I do love being under the stars!
2. Camp for Cozy Cats (I might be snuggling them right now)
3. I don‘t gravitate toward outdoorsy books. Hatchet, however, has stayed with me for a long time. My Side of the Mountain was memorable too.
4. 2 books!
#litsysummercamp @ImperfectCJ

Officially ready! No group reads this month (an author I am not the biggest fan of was chosen, so I am skipping) so time to get more of my giant TBR pile read! #bookspin #bookspinbingo hosted by @TheAromaofBooks

No bingo again, but here‘s the board from July. Maybe someday I will get a bingo. Read both my #bookspin and #doublespin. #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks putting together my list for August now!

Okay. I loved this book. I loved it because the dialogue was raw and sounded exactly like some of the people I knew in high school. I loved it because I needed a mystery, and this delivered. The motivation behind figuring out the who-done-it is fairly weak (would have preferred more brother and sister camaraderie), but alas, not everything can be perfect. Heavy language. Felt right for the setting. Last #bookspinbingo for July! @TheAromaofBooks

Sure, I am game! I have completely failed Bookspin Bingo this year, so my goal is to read 2 books that are from the same row as my bookspin so I can *maybe* get a bingo in August! Who is joining #litsysummercamp #litsysummercampreadathon @ImperfectCJ

This was for a goodreads book club. I would have walked away from it had it not been for the club read. I wanted to like it. So much potential and it reminded me of The Night Circus, but it had a severe pacing problem. Large parts of the book were dedicated to discussions instead of actually solving the mystery. The MC, despite her family dying, felt very disconnected from the events happening. #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks cont in comments

This one is a tough one for me to rate. The beginning of the book, about 200 pages, was phenomenal. One of the best YA horrors I had read in a while. Then it veers off into a multi-verse discussion/sort of a superhero realizing their powers, and I‘m not sure what to do about that. I love the beginning, I liked the concepts in the end, but it felt like two completely different books in one. This was the #bookspin for June. @TheAromaofBooks

These are honesty just fun books. Listened to the full cast audiobook and it went by like a breeze. Really well read, well cast, and overall a decent story. Can see a lot of things coming from miles away, but a good easy summer read. Would have definitely loved this more as a kid. #bookspin for July @TheAromaofBooks

I am struggling with this book. It started out so strong for me, was one of the best young adult horrors I have read in a really long time. But there is a severe pacing problem in the middle of the book. I got to about halfway through when the monsters don‘t really seem to affect the plot. I am hoping now that we seem to be into a new section of the book it will pick up again.

This book has a weird relationship with food. Yes, a part of the book is a survival story, where access to food and water takes center stage. But the parts that aren‘t, the MC says on three different occasions: “I‘m sure tasted good, but I ” continued in comments #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

I liked the book overall, but I felt like the main character found too many people on her side, if that makes sense. Every person she comes across (save for her adversaries) is on her side. It felt too… convenient? Writing was decent, pacing good, audiobook read well. Not too many complaints, but I‘m not sure if I‘ll pick up book two. #doublespin for this month. @TheAromaofBooks

I remembered to include my bookclub read and star it this month! Added the new titles from my long TBR pile of books I own and colored them orange so I would know what is old and what is new. And yeah, I have like 11 books from the Redwall series and have only ever read one 😅 #bookspin @TheAromaofBooks

Totally failed reading my actual #bookspin but managed to read a lot more than I thought due to #20in4 (got up to 16 hrs, decent first attempt!) reading White Space now, 1/3rd of the way through. Emergency Contact was cute. Skyhunter was super fun. Skinny was very realistic (in a good way). Rig was so so and Boneless Mercies disappointed. #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

I have no idea why this book has bad ratings. Thus far, I have adored the writing. This is also the first young adult horror that has made me nervous. I mean that in the best way possible, because I have no idea what is going to happen next and what nightmare is going to come to life. Excited to keep reading, this is my #bookspin for June but I doubt I‘ll finish with only a few hours left! Will be my first July read though! @TheAromaofBooks

What a disappointment. I had been looking forward to this book. I even bought it new, because the concept is great. A bunch of young women done with the death trade decide to quest for more in their lives. The downside? More talking about action than action. The MC only wants glory and fame (makes her unlikeable) and only has heartfelt convos with people she‘s about to kill. Huge bummer. #bookspinbingo #20in4 15 hrs @TheAromaofBooks @Andrew65

Only a few pages into White Space, and I am not sure the formatting and I are going to get along. It is so hard for me to read italics as dialogue. I will give it a bit longer to see if I adjust, because it feels like an interesting concept. Started The Boneless Mercies on audiobook as well, just in case. I love audiobooks when I have chores around the house. #20in4 ending Saturday with about 7hrs and 14 min. Better than I thought!

Despite this book being focused largely on the main character‘s feeling about her weight, there is a universality in feeling not confident in your own skin. Based on the author‘s own internal struggles, reads very real. Biggest complaint: the character names: Ever and Rat (yes, it‘s a nickname, but still). #bookspinbingo and #20in4 up to 5 hrs 49 minutes. @Andrew65 @TheAromaofBooks

It is going to be over 100 degrees the next two days, so I am joining my first #20in4 challenge. I am hoping to finish Skinny and read part of White Space. Looking for hours here, and I already read about 1 hour. I am bad at tracking, to be honest, but I‘ll try. Hosted by @Andrew65

I really liked this book. Read on audio book / paperback. It was a cute romance, but also covered a lot of not typical things in romance. Covers some hard topic, family relationships. It felt like a real story, not just a romance for romance‘s sake. Well rounded. Read as one of my #bookspin and #bookspinbingo reads. @TheAromaofBooks

I am taking a chance on publishing my next work on Kindle Vella. It‘s a YA contemporary novella called Break Free, and I am really excited about it. More information to come soon, but for now here‘s a quote from already released Girl Nevermore. I use Litsy for reading primarily, so don‘t expect author spam from me. ^_^ I read a ton of YA and love meeting other YA readers.

Interesting concept. This was actually similar to a novel idea that I had as a teen, which was really a trip reading it in someone else‘s words. I wanted to like it more than I did. For a maximum security prison, the main character has a lot of free range on the rig. The action sequences were a little disjointed, especially toward the end. #bookspinbingo #doublespin @TheAromaofBooks

Munster cat doesn‘t look impressed, but gosh I liked this book. It‘s fun. It has high stakes. There‘s no instant love, but a slow bond unfolding over time. There‘s loss. There‘s a heck of a lot of good writing. Excited for book number two.

Read as one of my #bookspinbingo reads. @TheAromaofBooks

That moment when you are so tired from the vaccine that you nearly forget the “u” in June. You know, normal things. Ready for this month‘s spin! #bookspin #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

There were a lot of quotable moments about this book, but the ending felt really rushed. While I recommend it for the writing, I‘m not sure it will ever stick out as one of my favorites.

Wrapping up the month! For book bingo in May, really happy that I got through five reads, and DFN‘d another, so did more of my list than usual. Maybe I will get bingo one of these days. #bookspin #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

Gosh I love her writing.

Need to jump back into this series since it is no longer just a trilogy.

#bookspinbingo #doublespin #bookspin @TheAromaofBooks

“Wanna” and “howzit” and “ur” — I can‘t do it. Also the MC saying she will only believe she‘s pretty if she gets a boyfriend in chapter one? This isn‘t for me.

I really wanted to like this because it has a natural disaster and is set in Hawaii, but I am not connecting with this MC.

#bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

“There is a dangerous truth within you.”
Really like this writing so far.

Well written. Interesting concept. I think, however, I was not in the mood for this kind of book. The alternative reality dystopian felt a little too real, what with everything going on the world. That being said, it was well written. The pacing was great. Story decent. It‘s a pick because of how well it was written, but I was not in the mood for it. Audiobook was done very well too. #bookspin @TheAromaofBooks

I enjoyed the book, but it wasn‘t a favorite. The end felt a bit rushed—hurry up and move onto book two. I appreciate how light the romance was and I appreciate that this featured female characters who weren‘t motivated by romance. Writing was solid.

Read as a #bookspinbingo read. @TheAromaofBooks onto the next one!

How did I not know that this was more than a trilogy? Why do I have a horrible book hangover? Where am I?

Used for a free space in #bookspinbingo because I always forget to add my current read to the actual bookspin list. Eesh.

Excellent 3rd installment of the series. I need to grabby hands book 4.

1. Yes, I‘m also an author of YA fiction.
2. Tagged a non-recent read, but I adore the writing by Courtney Summers.
3. Coming of age stories—strong and emotional pulls. Sometimes not thinking of the consequences. Main character usually is a teenager—usually.
@ozma.of.oz #sundayfunday

Ready for May‘s #bookspin! @TheAromaofBooks

This is the April #bookspinbingo wrap post. Loved the DotPK and DotSK series. So fun. Recommend for pirate goodness, but super light on character description. No bingo again, but May is already here!