September 2024 Wrap-Up + Book Haul

Another month gone and we're finally into October and the spooky month! September was mostly a good month, particularly in terms of the reading I got done. I read a total of 14 books in September which officially pushed me over the 100-book total for the year so far. I have a couple new favorites and finished a series this month. That being said, most of what I read was more "easy" reading to escape into and won't find its way onto my favorites of all time list. But, overall, an enjoyable reading month with a few standout reads as well as a reread of one of my favorite series.  

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1. 

Title: Psycho Beasts

Author: Jasmine Mas

Rating: 3 // 5 stars

2. 

Title: Psycho Academy

Author: Jasmine Mas

Rating: 4 // 5 stars

3.

Title: Psycho Devils

Author: Jasmine Mas

Rating: 3.5 // 5 stars

4. 

Title: Psycho Gods

Author: Jasmine Mas

Rating: 3.5 // 5 stars

5.  

Title: The Blighted Stars

Author: Megan E. O'Keefe

Rating: 5 // 5 stars 

Review TK 

6. 

Title: Forbidden: Part One

Author: Emilia Emerson 

Rating: 4 // 5 stars

7. 

Title: Forbidden: Part Two

Author: Emilia Emerson 

Rating: 4 // 5 stars

8. 

Title: Cherished

Author: Emilia Emerson 

Rating: 4.5 // 5 stars

9. 

Title: Runaway Omega

Author: Ember L. Nicole
Rating: 3 // 5 stars

10. 

Title: Captivate

Author: E.J. Lawson

Rating: 3 // 5 stars

11. 

Title: Broken Bonds

Author: J. Bree

Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Series Review

-reread- 

12. 

Title: Savage Bonds

Author: J. Bree

Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Series Review

-reread- 

13. 

Title: Blood Bonds

Author: J. Bree

Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Series Review

-reread- 

14. 

Title: Forced Bonds

Author: J. Bree

Rating: 5 // 5 stars

Series Review

-reread- 

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August 2024 Wrap-Up + Haul

Book Review: "Midnight Sun" by Stephenie Meyer

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I hauled just three books in September. I'm pretty excited about all of them. I've found that being more intentional about the books I'm buying lately has led to more enjoyment out of the purchase and act of owning a copy. 

The first two books I got were The Fractured Dark and The Bound Worlds by Megan E. O'Keefe. These are the last two books in the Devoured Worlds trilogy, of which I read the first book this month. My library only had the first book on Libby so once I'd read that and knew I loved the story I bought the others to be able to continue with it. I have not yet read them, though I've started The Fractured Dark and they're on my immediate list to read soon. They're fascinating and complex and addicting but also require a lot of brain power that I find hard to give when I'm working a lot. 

The third book I got this month was Heir by Sabaa Tahir. To my understanding, this is a spin-off/set in the same world as the Embers in the Ashes quartet which is one that I haven't finished but have really enjoyed so far. I forgot I'd preordered this so it was a really happy surprise when it showed up on my doorstep. And the physical book is absolutely stunning! Under the dust jacket is a gorgeous case and the cover itself and spine are stunning. I can't wait to put this on my future shelf next to the Ember series. I will wait to read it until I've finished that quartet but it is on my rather immediate list. 

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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December '20 & January '21 Book Haul

Hello everyone! I hope your winter season has been going well (if you're in the Northern Hemisphere like me). I took a bit of a break from social media and whatnot so today I have a combined book haul that covers both December and January! I got a wide range of books these past couple of months and am super excited about all of them. Out of the eight books I got, some were gifts, some were sent to me for review, and some I bought myself!

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The first book that I got back at the beginning of December was Stay With Me by Jessica Cunsolo. This is the sequel to She's With Me which was one of my favorite books I'd ever read on Wattpad. The series is now being traditionally published and I'm so excited that this sequel is, at last, out and in my hands so that I can finally see what happens after the events of book one. 

The second book I got was A Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir. This is the fourth and final book in the An Ember in the Ashes Quartet and I am so excited and also so nervous that it's finally here. I haven't yet read the third book because I've been waiting on this final release in order to binge the series. Now that I have all four in my possession, I am excited to reread the first two and finally finish the rest. It's definitely scary, though, as I've heard this series causes readers pain. 

The third book I got was a gift from my boyfriend's parents for Christmas and it is King of Fools by Amanda Foody. I am incredibly excited to finally have a copy of this book as I've heard nothing but amazing things about this series! I'm already planning a series binge for these books sometime this spring and I hope I can actually make it happen!

The next book I got was the Fairyloot edition of Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova. This was one of my favorite books of 2020 and I set out to collect a bunch of different editions a few months ago. I found this Fairyloot edition for super cheap on eBay and had it shipped to my boyfriend's house to avoid massive shipping costs. Now that I finally have it in my hands I can definitely say it's even prettier in person! I can only hope that I'll be able to snag the matching edition for book two!

In January, I didn't actually get very many books until the last week or so of the month. The first of these books that I got was The Mask Falling by Samantha Shannon, specifically the indie signed exclusive edition. I knew the moment these editions were announced that I needed to snag one since they were so pretty! The black cover is stunning and I'm so excited to add another signed Samantha Shannon book to my shelves. My one inner debate at the moment, though, is whether to binge the series up till this most recent book now or wait a few more years for the series to be complete? 

The next book I got was sent to me for review as part of a blog tour in February and that is Hot British Boyfriend by Kristy Boyce. I was so excited to be picked for this tour because this book sounded so fun. Also, I have a hot British boyfriend of my own so I couldn't help but laugh at the parallels in that regard. Hopefully I'll enjoy it as much as I think I will!

The last two books I got in January were the new hardcover editions of A Court of Thorns and Roses and A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas. I already had the second book from my birthday last year and am so excited to have these matching editions. While I wasn't initially that pleased about the cover change, I do have to say that the covers are growing on me, especially in person! I really wanted to finally get these for my collection so that I could reread and annotate them into the lead up to the next book's release in February!

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Well, those are all of the books that I got in December and January! I have a feeling that February is going to be a very large haul for many reasons and I can't wait to share it with all of you at the end of the month! 

Did you get any exciting books over the holiday season? Let me know in the comments below!

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Thanks for reading!

xoxo

Lauren

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Sabaa Tahir Book Tour Experience!

So...I had the chance to meet Sabaa Tahir this past week on Tuesday as part of her Reaper Tour. It was amazing and I loved every second of the event! It was definitely worth driving 3 hours there and 3 hours back through rainstorms to be able to meet her! Since I didn't film the event, I'm just going to talk about it because I love hearing about other people's author experiences and I can't wait to share another of mine!

It started weeks ago when Sabaa announced her Reaper tour. Luckily enough for me, there were two both within 3-3.5 hours away from me (the closest any book signings will probably ever be to my city). I immediately sent the dates to my best friends. One of them ended up being in Florida this week but the other was available to go! She asked off work, I let my family know that I was going, and we started planning. 

Fast forward to the day of. My friend, Lexi, came over a few hours before we were going to leave. We wanted to hang out and such before we had to get into a car. Mostly that just meant watching AP Bio on Hulu and messing around. Come 3 pm, we left with plenty of time to make it to the signing. With us we had hummus and pretzels, edible cookie dough, and homemade chex mix as well as plenty of beverages. 

We arrived in St. Louis, MO an hour before the signing started, found parking in a lot, and started watching Wonder Woman and eating the rest of our snacks. About half an hour before the signing started, we walked the two minutes to the bookstore. It was located in this really pretty area of St. Louis that I would have loved to explore had we not been on a time limit and had it not bee raining. We went in, I purchased my friend's (the one who was in Florida) book for her, and we took our seats. Lexi's friend also showed up to hang out with her since they hadn't seen each other in a while. It was nice to finally meet him after hearing nothing but great things about him.

So then we sat for a while. My back started hurting in the weird folding chairs because I'm just a walking injury at this point but I powered through. When Sabaa got there, things started taking off. She talked a lot about her writing process and gave advice as well as talked about her characters and story. I am both excited and scared to finally read Reaper. 

After the closed discussion with the moderator, she started doing trivia. Well, she asked questions and if the person didn't know it then she whispered the answer. It was hilarious. She gave away a bunch of things including Ember swag and even a Wildcard arc! Then fans were able to ask questions and some of them were hilarious. Honestly, Sabaa is just such an amazing and funny person. I think she's my soul animal if I'm being honest. Plus, her phone case is goals! 

When the discussion, trivia, and questions finished, we all lined up for the signing. There were also some cute cakes and posters at the back for us. I grabbed one for me and one for my friend who couldn't make it, and had that poster get signed for her. Then we continued waiting.

I had injured my back the day before so I wasn't supposed to be lifting more than 20 pounds by myself, so I'm curious to see how heavy my tote bag was (I was carrying 6 of Sabaa's--double copies of each--as well as one that I was reading, a camera, film, a water bottle, and a book sleeve). It was interesting to see if I could balance the entire stack as well.

When we got up there, it was awesome talking to her. My friend and I went up almost at the same time and were chatting with her about book sleeves/subscription boxes, author friends, and even how Lexi and I were aspiring authors (Sabaa gave us high-fives--cue forever fangirling). She even signed my Fairyloot Ember-inspired book sleeve!

After we finished talking to her, we wandered around the store wishing we could buy everything and waiting for the rain to let up just a bit. I ended up asking for a plastic bag to cover my books so that I didn't get all of them wet! Luckily, the books stayed dry somehow on our walk back to the car and then we were headed back home.

I popped some Dramamine because I have debilitating motion sickness and managed to stay away for a little over an hour. We stopped at a gas station in a town that had a population less than my high school and got some unhealthy snacks and gas. I was able to stay awake for as long as I was eating something, but fell asleep almost immediately after that and didn't wake up until I was being dropped off at home. 

Overall, this was just such a fun experience for me. I had an amazing time with my best friend and meeting Sabaa. It's definitely an experience that I will cherish forever and I'm so grateful that I was able to go. The 6 hours of driving was definitely worth it, even if I was asleep for half of it. I can't wait to read Reaper and I just know that I'm going to love it!

A huge thanks to Left Bank Books and Sabaa for throwing this event! 

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Thanks for reading!
xoxo
Lauren

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