"Candidates are not truthful when asked why they‘re running for Congress, but I think the problem is the question itself. It almost demands a lie, which should ideally mention God blessing America, freedom, democracy, our Founding Fathers, that children are our future, and the bald eagle."

A fairly light reading month because it was Tour de Fleece. Tagged book was my favorite, with honorable mentions for Small Favors by Olivia Atwater and a reread of Howl's Moving Castle.

June books! Tagged book is my favorite.

I went in for one book for a coworker's birthday present. Whoops.

May reads! Favorites were:
The Comeback by Lily Chu
That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Human by Kimberly Lemming

Finished all the available volumes of a cute manga about a group of men who become idols in their mid-30s-to-early-40s. There is some body shaming and fatphobia, particularly earlier on. Later volumes either ignore or take more of a sympathetic view.

Last month wasn't a great reading month. It was a shit month at work. But I enjoyed House Perilous, the second book in the Sparks & Philtres series by Tansy Rayner Roberts.

Also a very solid start to yet another vampire knitting club spin-off from Nancy Warren with The Vampire Knitting Club: Cornwall.

By the way! I'm on Storygraph now and migrating away from Goodreads. Friend me!

First in-person book signing since pre-pandemic! Super excited for this book.

I realized I never posted a review of this, my favorite read of March! Ever wonder about the lives of the shopkeepers in fantasy adventure games? Love enemies to lovers? Need more queer fantasy? This is the book for you! I loved the two main characters, who are rival potioneers on the same street. Lots of found family vibes. Delightful and charming.

And if you feel like working erotica, write erotica. Make it dirty and obnoxious and queer and sweet and righteous, and build a fortress of horniness to protect you from this cold, ugly world.

Nita says books are boring; I should play with her instead.

I've been bingeing cozy manga and they are all so delightful!

This is the best dedication. The petty I live for.

From the story, "Some Cupids Kill with Arrows." I can totally relate to Cupid being distracted from a task because books. ??‍♀️

A super cute middle grade contemporary fantasy about a family moving to a DC suburb and discovering an opossum who can control luck, known as the Impossumble. It's a bit dated (it was originally published in 1992) but still very readable.

Currently it seems to only be available from Book View Cafe directly, but should make it's way over to the usual places eventually.

Screenshot from Bookmory, which celebrates when you finish a book.

I sped through this last night in one sitting. It was a marvelous slow burn of a story set in a world much like our own, about a girl in a community along the Gulf who sends a message in a bottle, and the political prisoner imprisoned over a volcano who receives it. This was so so so good. Lots to digest here about colonialism, classism, justice, and community. Highly recommended.

I really enjoyed this sequel to Donut Fall in Love. So much intersectionality here. I love Lau's novels which explore deeper themes than her shorter works.

Finished Iron Widow last night and loved it! Can't wait to read the sequel!

Really nice seeing my name in the acknowledgements. Now to read the published book and see what has changed since the beta read.

This list looks great! https://bookriot.com/books-like-studio-ghibli/

Grabbed from Facebook. As if I needed an excuse to stockpile books...

A very satisfying sophomore book from Sarah Pinsker. It didn't hit quite as hard for me as A Song for a New Day but I still loved it. Her genre seems to be dystopian hopepunk and I am here for it.

Next up! I loved Pinsker's debut, A Song for a New Day. I have high expectations for this one.

The third book in Atwater's Regency Faerie Tale series. This is hands down my favorite so far. It's decidedly less cozy than the first, and even the second. But this was an absolute joy to read. This is a book about death, but also about life, and choices, and even defying death with love. Gorgeous and queer AF.

A nice Cinderella-esque story. Great to see more of the world that started in Half a Soul. All the characters were great.

December reads! Tagged book is the favorite.
I started using Bookmory for my reading tracker app and I love it!

My last book of the year and what a lovely hug of a book. Fantastic!

Currently reading. Reads a bit younger than others by her but so far, so good.

Found a great little used bookstore in Ruidoso, NM!

I have finished this and I am now dead of happiness.

Do NOT read this without reading The Return of Fitzroy Angursell and The Redoubtable Pali Avarampul first.

Starting this tonight! I don't need sleep for work tomorrow right???

I haven't bought from Book Outlet in ages and I went a little crazy during their last sale...

I put my new bookcase together tonight and reshelved all my signed books. I can't stop staring at the pretty. Though I did drop the nearly completed bookcase on my big toe whole trying to lift it to put in the last screw. Ow. #shelfie

(Also why is there no Ikea in New Mexico? The delivery fees are $$$.)

This book gave me all the Asian-American feels and I definitely relived some painful childhood memories reading this. It also made me really miss my grandmother. This book is incredibly thoughtful, intelligent, honest, raw, and uplifting. Simu's story is every Asian-hyphen kid caught between impossible parental expectations and their own dreams. He also had some of the best job interview advice I've come across. Where was he when I was 21?

It's super gory but also super cozy! Maud dies and accidentally comes back as a soul-eating lich. She just wants to be left alone to raise her dead family and friends, and make crafts out of corpses, but people keep bothering her and trying to kill her. So liches must do what liches must do. So very enjoyable, if you can handle some matter-of-fact description of killing and disemboweling. Available on KU.

New #Goodreads redesign. Thanks, I hate it. 😡

This was great! An urban fantasy based in non-Western folklore and mythology. No elves or dragons here. And it was SO NICE to see an urban fantasy that I was able to see myself in. This also had a very classic UF feel - I got War for the Oaks vibes at times. I really hope this is the start of a series.

A few days late but here are my July reads. Really enjoyed them all except Afterglow.

My June reads! Tagged one was my favorite, thought enjoyed all the books I read last month. No 👎s at all!

Also, I realized I never posted my April reads. Here they are! Tagged was my favorite though overall I loved most of the reads.

My May reads. A mixed bag. Tagged book is probably the one I'd recommend the most.

The spicy, funny, diverse fantasy rom-com you didn't know in your life. There's lots of food, lots of sexiness, and an A+ plot too. I also binged the sequel novella and book 2 immediately after this, and signed up for the author's Patreon, if that tells you anything. (CW: violence, dubcon, light BDSM play)

I love when books just throw in a song lyric Easter egg. 🍺

And finally, the reason I made an order from Mac's. I just learned about Bill Arthrell after he passed away in February. He was a student at Kent State during the Vietnam War who threatened to napalm a (nonexistent) dog in order to get people upset about the war. Soon after, the Kent State protests happened.

The other signed book I treated myself to. I love this series, and this book is my favorite.

I treated myself to an order from Mac's Books and got a signed copy of two of my favorite books from authors local to the store. This is the first.

Another Sir Julius Vogel nominee, this one for best novella/novellete. Super cute story of a hidden witch community saving the world with help from their cat familiars. Not very deep and a bit predictable, but still fun.

This is one of the best novel nominees for the Sir Julius Vogel Award, which recognizes achievements in New Zealand speculative fiction. Horror isn't normally my thing but I was sold on the jazz age setting. and I'm really glad I read this because it was so good! Non-stop action, some nice plot twists, and some great characters. Loved this!

Found another Bujold fan! (Or at least their car...)