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shadowspeak17
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Birthday books! 😄📚

review
shadowspeak17
I'm Glad My Mom Died | Jennette McCurdy
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Pickpick

I honestly wasn‘t a huge fan of the writing style, but otherwise I thought this was a good memoir, and I have a lot of respect for McCurdy sharing her story. The abuse and mental health struggles etc. that she experienced were heartbreaking and hard to read about at times, so it couldn‘t have been easy to write about them. I really appreciate how candid she was about her experiences.
#AuldLangSpine #catsoflitsy #Ember

IndoorDame 😻😻😻 13mo
44 likes1 comment
review
shadowspeak17
The Book of Cold Cases | Simone St. James
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 1/2
I had a lot of fun with the first half of this. The mystery was intriguing, the paranormal aspects were nice and spooky, and I was really interested in seeing where the story would go. The second half had some issues with pacing that ended up making things less interesting for me by the end, but overall, I still enjoyed it.

#AuldLangSpine #catsoflitsy #Ember #Phoenix

Leftcoastzen 😻😻 14mo
FantasyChick I had some of the same issues with the second half but I find that with almost all of her books I've read. This one is by far my favourite from this author! 14mo
41 likes2 comments
review
shadowspeak17
Little Eve | Catriona Ward
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I really enjoyed this gothic tale. The mystery aspect hooked me right out of the gate, and I enjoyed how the writing created a somewhat disorienting effect at times.

#AuldLangSpine #catsoflitsy #Ember

Leftcoastzen 😻 1y
FantasyChick So happy you enjoyed it! I'm really getting into books by this author. They are just the right balance of creepy, weird and questionable! 14mo
shadowspeak17 @FantasyChick Oh, do you have any other books by her that you would recommend? I‘m definitely interested in reading more of her work. Creepy, weird, and questionable sound right up my alley, haha! 13mo
44 likes1 stack add3 comments
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shadowspeak17
Little Eve | Catriona Ward
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Now that I‘ve had the chance to take a good look at your list, @FantasyChick, I‘m intrigued as well! I haven‘t read any of the books on your list, and I‘ve only heard of five of them. I think in January, I‘ll probably end up picking from the ones pictured since they appeal to me the most, but it‘s possible that might change depending on my reading mood. Regardless, I can‘t wait to get started! 😄

#AuldLangSpine

monalyisha I‘ve only ever read one book by Jennifer McMahon but I keep meaning to check-out more! I enjoyed it and the synopses of her stories always intrigue me! 1y
29 likes1 comment
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shadowspeak17
House of Books | Kent, CT (Bookstore)
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Visited House of Books while I was in Connecticut a couple weeks ago 📚

Megabooks This was a really interesting collection. Enjoy! 1y
29 likes1 comment
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shadowspeak17
Interpreter of Maladies | Jhumpa Lahiri
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#MayWrapUp
May was a decent reading month. I gave out my first five stars of the year to Interpreter of Maladies, and I enjoyed both of the nonfiction books I read. I also finished one of my friend rec challenge books.

Total: 5
Print: 2
Ebook: 1
Audio: 2

Fiction: 3
Nonfiction: 2

#lmpbc: 1
#Booked2022: 1
#friendrecchallenge: 1

review
shadowspeak17
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Mehso-so

#FriendRecChallenge book 1 of 5

I honestly expected to like this one more since I really enjoyed the first Mistborn trilogy, but it fell flat for me. It had its moments, but on the whole, I just didn‘t care that much about the characters or what was happening, and there were some things that kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I might give the next book a try at some point anyway, but idk. It‘s disappointing.

#catsoflitsy #Phoenix

Leftcoastzen So cute!😻 2y
30 likes2 comments
review
shadowspeak17
Interpreter of Maladies | Jhumpa Lahiri
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
My first five-star read of the year! I didn‘t really know what to expect going into this, but it didn‘t take long to realize I was in for something special. Lahiri‘s writing was beautiful and absorbing, the stories moving and beautifully crafted. There were nine stories and I enjoyed them all. There wasn‘t a single dud in the bunch.
#lmpbc #GroupC #catsoflitsy #Phoenix

Megabooks I started this years ago but put it aside for some reason. (I was in vet school so studying was probably why!) excited to get to it now, especially since I‘ve loved all her other fiction. 👍🏻👍🏻 2y
Megabooks @Readergrrl I‘m running a bit behind on where I‘d like to be because of a couple of bad long Covid days. I should get the Novak mailed to you on Tuesday. 2y
Readergrrl I am SOOO glad you liked it! This is one of my favorites!! 2y
jlhammar Such a good collection. Loved this one! 2y
Readergrrl @Megabooks No worries! I‘m a little late too. End of the school year chaos. You‘d think after 20 years that I‘d be used to it! 🤣 2y
36 likes5 comments
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shadowspeak17
Jane Eyre | Charlotte Bront
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#AprilWrapUp
April was a good reading month for me. I finished Amazon‘s Trespass collection, which I started last month. Bloody Summer was my favorite of the collection. I also finished Jane Eyre. I didn‘t really expect to like it much, but I ended up loving it.

Total: 11
Print: 3
Ebook: 5
Audio: 3

Fiction: 9
Nonfiction: 2

#lmpbc: 1
#Booked2022: 1

review
shadowspeak17
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Pickpick

Another light pick for me. Naturally, not all of these stories worked for me and some were more memorable than others, but several were clever and funny and I enjoyed the time I spent reading them.

@Megabooks I mailed this yesterday. It should get to you by Tuesday. 😊👍🏽

#lmpbc #GroupC #catsoflitsy #Ember

Leftcoastzen 😻 2y
Megabooks Great! Looking forward to it. 2y
37 likes2 comments
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shadowspeak17
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Time to start the next book for #lmpbc #GroupC. 😄📖

Megabooks So excited to read your thoughts! 2y
Readergrrl What a fun swap! I‘m a bit late on sending mine out! I swapped out my book for another at the last minute and I‘m so glad I did!! It will be in the post tomorrow!! 2y
34 likes2 comments
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shadowspeak17
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I felt like my reading slowed to a crawl this month, but I ended up finishing more books than I thought I would. Empire of Pain was a major standout and my favorite of the month, but all of these were picks.

Total: 5
Print: 1
Ebook: 1
Audio: 3

Fiction: 2
Nonfiction: 3

#lmpbc: 1

#MarchWrapUp

review
shadowspeak17
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Pickpick

I enjoyed the weirdness and unique ideas in this collection, but it lost some steam for me in the second half. A light pick.

I‘m planning on mailing this tomorrow, @Megabooks . I‘ll send you the tracking number when I have it. 😊

#lmpbc #GroupC #catsoflitsy #Ember

rubyslippersreads Lovely bookrest. 😻 2y
Megabooks Fantastic! Thanks. Your cat is very cute 🤩 2y
RaeLovesToRead That face 🥰🥰🥰 2y
See All 7 Comments
shadowspeak17 @Megabooks Okay, it‘s on the way. I just emailed you the tracking number. 😊 2y
Megabooks It arrived! I saw your note about using post its and that‘s cool, but I did notice a few underlined sentences. Is that okay? To underline when warranted? 2y
shadowspeak17 @Megabooks Oh, good! I was hoping it wouldn‘t actually take until Monday to get to you. 😄 I actually underlined using clear sticky notes. I sent some along with the book if you want to try them out, but if you‘d rather do it on the book that‘s okay. :) 2y
Megabooks Ah! I‘ve never used those before. Excited to try them out! 2y
42 likes7 comments
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shadowspeak17
Jane Eyre | Charlotte Bront
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1. Tender is the Flesh, Empire of Pain, Three Moments of an Explosion, All Systems Red, and Jane Eyre
2. I‘m currently reading Jane Eyre.
3. Of Mice and Men… One of these days I‘ll get to it.

#weekendreads

23 likes1 stack add
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shadowspeak17
Subdivision: A Novel | J. Robert Lennon
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I am really happy with the amount I read in February, but most of these I feel pretty meh about. My favorites this month were Subdivision and American Baby, which were both great.

Total: 7
Print: 1
Ebook: 4
Audio: 2

Fiction: 5
Nonfiction: 2

#Booked2022: 2

review
shadowspeak17
Bridge of Clay | Markus Zusak
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Mehso-so

This one was a dud with my book club. Opinions ranged from okay to bad. I didn‘t like it, but I do understand why people would enjoy it. I think there was a moving story in here, but it was marred in the telling. The writing style was often hard to follow and felt like it was trying too hard to be profound. The constant hinting at things to come and the tendency to dance around things rather than just say whatever it was explicitly drove me nuts.

thegirlwiththelibrarybag This is one of the few books that library patrons have gone out of their way to tell me they didn‘t like or were disappointed with. I haven‘t read it - but have wondered if it‘s got anything to do with how beloved The Book Thief is… 2y
RaeLovesToRead Awww Ember!! 🥰 I am one of the few people who didn't like The Book Thief, so I doubt this one is for me. (The whole thing felt like writing. I don't think there was a single minute that I wasn't aware I was READING A BOOK.) 2y
42 likes3 comments
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shadowspeak17
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1. All Systems Red, Unwell Women, and Jane Eyre
2. A Cure for Suicide by Jesse Ball
3. Priestdaddy by Patricia Lockwood

#weekendreads

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shadowspeak17
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Mehso-so

There were a few parts of this book that I really liked, like the behind the scenes look at a couple nature documentaries, but the rest I didn‘t love. While the information was interesting, I don‘t think the way it was presented was very good for someone unfamiliar with the subject matter.

#catsoflitsy #Ember #booked2022 #InvolvesAnExploration

RaeLovesToRead 😻😻😻 2y
Leftcoastzen Kitty face says so-so too!😻 2y
Cinfhen Awww, sorry it wasn‘t a pick. I like learning new things from books but it needs to be well organized and explained, otherwise it comes across as dry. 2y
25 likes3 comments
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shadowspeak17
Subdivision: A Novel | J. Robert Lennon
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Pickpick

Reading this felt like reading a dream, and I loved it. I‘m sure I didn‘t understand everything, but I enjoyed trying to figure it all out.

#catsoflitsy #Ember

GondorGirl She's beautiful! 😻 2y
36 likes1 comment
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shadowspeak17
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Hey, #GroupC! 😊 What do you guys think of these?

(The Diving Pool is apparently novellas rather than short stories, but I decided to include it anyway because if the page count is right, it looks like the novellas must all be on the short side.)

#lmpbc

See All 9 Comments
Jadams89 All of these sound amazing. Three Moments of an Explosion has been on my TBR for awhile, but The Glassy, Burning Floor of Hell sounds really good too. I‘d be happy with any of these 2y
Megabooks Three Moments piques my interest too as does Wicked Wonders, but I have not read any and would be fine with all of them. 👍🏻 2y
shadowspeak17 What do you think @Readergrrl ? :) 2y
Readergrrl Sorry I‘m late to the thread! They all look great! I love China Miéville is one of my favorite authors, but I‘m interested in any of these collections! Im still looking for mine. I‘ll be posting soon! Fun, fun!!! 2y
shadowspeak17 Looks like Three Moments of an Explosion is the winner! 😄 @Jadams1776 @Megabooks @Readergrrl 2y
25 likes9 comments
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shadowspeak17
Which One? | Clare Beswick, Sally Featherstone, Martha Hardy
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I received both of these books as gifts for Valentine‘s Day last year, but I still have yet to read either one. 😬😅 I‘d like to try to read one of them this month, but I‘m not sure which one to go with. What do you all think? Which one should I read first?

EadieB Jane Eyre would be my pick! 2y
AshleyHoss820 Jane Eyre is one of my sister‘s favorites! 2y
melissajayne Jane Eyre 2y
34 likes4 comments
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shadowspeak17
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#JanuaryWrapUp
I read way more this January than I usually do. I finished 2 books for #NYWD22, one of which (We Begin at the End) was a favorite this month. In Cold Blood was another favorite. My least favorite was the Watkins. I‘d been looking forward to it for months, but I ended up strongly disliking it.

Total: 7
Print: 1
Ebook: 4
Audio: 2
Fiction: 5
Nonfiction: 2

#NewYearWhoDis: 2
#Booked2022: 1

review
shadowspeak17
Lemon: A Novel | Kwon Yeo-Son
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
I‘ve seen this book described as a mystery and a thriller, but I think it‘s good to know going in that 1) there is a mystery, but solving it is not the focus, and 2) it‘s not a fast-paced thrill ride. I enjoyed its focus on the characters and how they each faced what happened, but I felt like it was too short. There was a lot that could have been expanded on, and I kind of wish the author had taken that route.
#catsoflitsy #Phoenix

Leftcoastzen 👏😻 2y
RaeLovesToRead Aww Phoenix is so cute!!! 🥰🥰 2y
Kappadeemom Pretty kitty! 2y
AlaMich Your floof looks irked at being disturbed! 😂 2y
43 likes4 comments
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shadowspeak17
Goldilocks | Laura Lam
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Mehso-so

I thought the premise sounded great, but sadly this just wasn‘t for me. I thought there was too much telling rather than showing, and still there were certain things that I felt needed more explanation to feel believable, but they just didn‘t get much explanation. I found it more entertaining towards the end when the pace picked up, but I still had so many questions of how and why that I never fully got on board with what was happening.

monalyisha Aw, bummer! I thought the premise sounded interesting, too! 2y
34 likes2 comments
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shadowspeak17
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My friends have spoken. These are their picks for my 2022 #friendrecchallenge! 😄 The goal of this challenge is to get me to read more of the books that my friends recommend for me, since I‘m usually not very good about doing that. So I let each of my friends pick one book for me that they‘ve read before and would recommend, and I have to read and review it before the end of the year.

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shadowspeak17
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I honestly didn‘t like Whitaker‘s writing style, but I did enjoy the story and characters he created, especially Duchess, which mostly made up for that. This story was heartbreaking and engrossing, and I was sad to see it come to an end.

#NewYearWhoDis #NYWD22 #catsoflitsy #Ember

rubyslippersreads 😻😻😻 2y
Leftcoastzen 😻 2y
JamieArc I recently finished this and felt the same way. 2y
Caroline2 Yeah I‘ve heard his writing style is a bit marmite. Glad you enjoyed it in the end. 😉 2y
59 likes4 comments
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shadowspeak17
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There‘s a new book by Anthony Marra coming out this year?! Oh my gosh, I‘m so excited! July 19 can‘t come soon enough. 😄🙌🏽

Blueberry !!! 2y
33 likes1 comment
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shadowspeak17
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Pickpick

This is a light pick. The information and various examples were interesting, but it left me feeling a little underwhelmed.

#Booked2022 #weathertermintitle #catsoflitsy #Phoenix

rubyslippersreads 😻😻😻 2y
Cinfhen Enjoying the weather prompts!!! Some very cool titles so far😎 2y
Leftcoastzen 😻 2y
BarbaraTheBibliophage Okay, I would pick this up and read the blurb just on the title alone!! 2y
42 likes4 comments
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shadowspeak17
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Out of the 66 books I finished this year, 29 were nonfiction. These are the top 10 of those 29.

Special mention to The Library Book, Exercised, The Lost City of Z, and The Debt Trap which were all so close to making the list, and perhaps would have on a different day.
#bestof2021 #bestnonfiction

Trashcanman I Love NF too. Beautiful list ❤️ 2y
shanaqui Oooh. I need to take notes on these; I need more non-fic. I read more fiction, but I go through my non-fic backlog so much faster, somehow. 2y
Chelsea.Poole Great list! 2y
44 likes3 comments
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shadowspeak17
The Hole | Hiroko Oyamada
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2021 was a great reading year for me. I finished 66 books and 21,200 pages, both of which are new records for me. Of those 66 books, 37 were fiction. Here are my top 10 fiction books of 2021!

Also, special mention to The Ghost Variations which came very close to making my top 10.
#bestof2021 #bestfiction

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shadowspeak17
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#DecemberWrapUp
December was a good reading month for me. I got through six books and enjoyed all of them. The Ghost Variations was a pleasant surprise. I like short stories, but I don‘t usually like them if they‘re as short as the ones in this collection (only about 2 pages each), but I ended up really enjoying them.

Total: 6
Print: 1
Ebook: 3
Audio: 2
Fiction: 4
Nonfiction: 2

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shadowspeak17
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I was hoping one of my holds for #NewYearWhoDis would come in in time for me to start today. Then two came in yesterday and I had to choose. 😬 I decided to go with this one first since I‘ve heard so many good things about it.
#NYWD22

AmyG Good choice. 2y
Caroline2 I really liked this one. 👍 2y
38 likes2 comments
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shadowspeak17
Battle Royale: Remastered | Koushun Takami
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I meant to post this last month, but apparently I forgot. Whoops!
I finished my 2021 #friendrecchallenge! I ended up liking all of the books this time, but Battle Royale was my favorite of the bunch. Kind of funny because that one was recommended with the least amount of confidence. My bf was completely unsure whether I‘d like it or not.
I‘m looking forward to seeing what my friends pick for me for 2022! 😄

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shadowspeak17
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Happy new year! 😄
My last book of 2021 was The Woman in the Purple Skirt, and my first one of 2022 will be We Begin at the End for #NewYearWhoDis.
#lastfirst

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shadowspeak17
Lemon: A Novel | Kwon Yeo-Son
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So many books this year! 😍📚
I can‘t wait to read them all!

#ChristmasBookHaul (2/2)

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shadowspeak17
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So many books this year! 😍📚
I can‘t wait to read them all!

#ChristmasBookHaul (1/2)

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shadowspeak17
The Way of Kings | Brandon Sanderson
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#NovemberWrapUp
Only three finished this month, but one was a chunkster, so I‘m not complaining. I enjoyed them all too.

Total: 3
Print: 0
Ebook: 1
Audio: 2
Fiction: 1
Nonfiction: 2

#booked2021: 1
#friendrecchallenge: 1

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shadowspeak17
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I can‘t wait to start reading from your list @Caroline2! 😃 I‘ve read The Name of the Wind and Kindred before and agree that they are great. I‘m a bit of a mood reader, so I‘m not 100% sure which of the others I‘ll start with, but I‘m currently thinking it will be one of these five.
#NewYearWhoDis #NYWD22

JamieArc We Begin at the End seems to be on a few lists! It‘s top of my list for January. 2y
monalyisha I‘m a mood reader, too. 😉 But my vote is for 2y
Caroline2 Yay! I hope you like them! 😃 I‘m a mood reader too so I totally get it! 😉 👍 2y
48 likes3 comments
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shadowspeak17
The Library Book | Susan Orlean
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1. Surprisingly only two at the moment: The Way of Kings and The Copyeditor‘s Handbook
2. The Library Book by Susan Orlean
3. I currently have 17, so I won‘t list them all, but my most recent one is I Love You But I‘ve Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins.

#weekendreads

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shadowspeak17
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#OctoberWrapUp
Bad Blood was my favorite of October. Uzumaki was also good and was a hit with my book club. I also FINALLY finished Flights after starting it back in June. I didn‘t really end up enjoying it, but I‘m glad I stuck it out and finished it.

Total: 6
Print: 1
Ebook: 3
Audio: 2
Fiction: 4
Nonfiction: 2

#lmpbc: 1
#booked2021: 1
#friendrecchallenge: 0

kamoorephoto Have you listened to the Bad Blood: Final Chapter podcast? You should check it out!!! 2y
shadowspeak17 @kamoorephoto Oh, I hadn‘t heard of that. Thanks for putting it on my radar. I‘ll definitely check it out! 😃 2y
36 likes2 comments
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shadowspeak17
Norma | Sofi Oksanen
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Panpan

⭐️1/2
I like the idea behind this book, but the execution just didn‘t work for me. I felt like I was being held at a distance the whole time, so I couldn‘t truly engage with anything. Several aspects of the story felt underdeveloped, and I spent a lot of time confused while trying to understand what was happening.

Thanks for a great round, ladies! 😊 @magyklyXdelish I‘m planning to mail this tomorrow. I‘ll let you know when it‘s on the way.

magyklyXdelish I completely understand. This was definitely not only an odd story but the way it was written was strange as well. 2y
33 likes2 comments
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shadowspeak17
Norma | Sofi Oksanen
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Next up for #lmpbc #GroupS!

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shadowspeak17
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#SeptemberWrapUp
The Tsumura was great! It was my favorite read in September. My book club finished the Ishiguro in September too and gave it mixed reviews. I‘d say it‘s a light pick for me, but I totally get the criticism. And I had my first encounter with an audiobook narrator I couldn‘t stand (Underland). Can‘t say I enjoyed the book itself much either. 😬

Total: 7
Print: 2
Ebook: 2
Audio: 3
Fiction: 4
Nonfiction: 3

#lmpbc: 1

review
shadowspeak17
The Troop | Nick Cutter
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Mehso-so

⭐️⭐️1/2
There‘s a lot about this book that felt excessive. Sometimes that worked for me, and sometimes it didn‘t. I really liked how creepy and unsettling the beginning was, but that ended up fading, and then it was just gross, which didn‘t work as well for me.

#lmpbc #GroupS #catsoflitsy #Ember

Leftcoastzen Awww!😻 2y
wellreadredhead It should have been shorter for sure!! 2y
Hazel2019 There were definitely pieces I didn‘t read in detail because they were just too much 2y
45 likes3 comments
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shadowspeak17
Heaven | Mieko Kawakami
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This weekend‘s #bookstorehaul 😊📚

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shadowspeak17
The Troop | Nick Cutter
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The next book for #lmpbc got here today. I can‘t wait to get started! 😄

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shadowspeak17
Heaven | Mieko Kawakami
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1. Oh, definitely. I‘ve picked up books I normally wouldn‘t pay much attention too just because the title sounded cool and stuck with me.
2. Heaven by Mieko Kawakami

#Two4Tuesday

TheSpineView Happy Tuesday! 💜📙 3y
20 likes1 comment
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shadowspeak17
Battle Royale: Remastered | Koushun Takami
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#AugustWrapUp
Battle Royale, which I read for my friend rec challenge (3 books down, only 1 to go 😄), was my favorite this month and left me with a #bookhangover. How the Word is Passed was also great.

Total: 6
Print: 3
Ebook: 1
Audio: 2
Fiction: 3
Nonfiction: 3

#lmpbc: 1
#booked2021: 0
#friendrecchallenge: 1

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shadowspeak17
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#Bookmail from my bestie today! 😄📚

Tamra I liked Dark Matter! 3y
33 likes1 comment