Hey y’all!
I’ve got a plan again this month for what I’ll read. These plans are sometimes a bit silly though, because by the time I write this post to share it, I’ve usually already finished a few of them. 😂 Today is no different, but I’ll include the books here anyway as I’m excited about them! It’s a tidy planned set of nine this month. 😊
The best obligations
These books are each ones I’m reading for A Reason Not Only My Own. I mean, to be real, I’m still the one deciding and benefiting here, but they’re in the list for more than just “I wanted to” reasons!
The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson is one that I already finished because I couldn’t resist plowing through it once I had started. I went in somehwat blind from a recommendation from my friend Elise (thanks again!), and WOW was this a fabulous recommendation! I really love it, as you can see in my review. 🙂
Notorious by Minerva Spencer is my lucky ARC for the month! This book comes out on November 24, 2020, and I can confidently say you should look forward to that date if you enjoy regency romances with feminist and cultural twists. This one’s from Bookishfirst, and was an absolute delight. (Yes… I finished this one too. xD)
The Queen’s Assassin by Melissa De La Cruz is one I had my eye on from well before it came out; and then it finally came out; and I had already moved on by then. So I’ve been looking forward to it for a while but just kept getting distracted! This month it’s firmly on the docket, though in large part because it’s fulfilling the last letter I need for my alphabet challenge this year. Let’s go, Q! Nearly there!
SG Reading Challenge
These three books are all fulfilling prompts for my StoryGraph onboarding challenge, which I am absolutely determined to finish. 😂
The Dragon of Ynys by MInerva Cerridwen is for the prompt of a book with three moods attached to it. This book was tagged as adventurous, light-hearted, and mysterious. I’m all about that, and combined with the gorgeous subtle artwork for the cover, it sounded like a winner. (I’m currently in progress with it, and so far, yes, it is a definite winner 🥰).
A Game of Thrones Graphic Novel Vol 1 by George RR Martin, Daniel Abraham, and Tommy Patterson is for the prompt of one of the top 5 oldest books you have on your TBR. And, okay, this is a 100% valid prompt, because do you know when I added this book? FEBRUARY 2013. SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS AGO. I HAD JUST STARTED COLLEGE WHEN I ADDED THIS BOOK TO MY TBR. That feels…. absurd. So I’ve finally read it, and it was really really good, and I will continue the graphic novel adaptations! Probably sooner than seven years from now, too.
Will I See? by David Alexander Robertson and GMB Chomichuck is for the prompt of a book that exactly fits another member’s book preferences: mood, pace, length, and fiction v nonfiction. I forget now whose profile I had picked this from, but I gave it a go and it was quite a work of art. I have no idea how relevant its content is now, though I really hope the answer is “not at all” and Indigenous women in Canada are no longer in such constant danger.
Book of the month
My lovely friend Erin has let me borrow many of her Book of the Month picks, and I finally just signed up for myself. 😂
Ties That Tether by Jane Igharo is one that I posted about for a Fast Forward Friday feature months ago. And I’m not gonna lie, that was the book that made me spring to finally sign up for BOTM. Because if they have a book that I’m that excited about? Okay, well, I guess I can finally give them enough trust to try it out.
These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong is one I have never heard of before, and I wanted to try a book from BOTM that I didn’t know already. I read the synopsis of “1920s Shanghai Romeo and Juliet” and that’s all I needed. I’m crazy excited about this and really hope it lives up. 1920s Shanghai is one of the liveliest eras and I can’t wait to step back into it. (I say, as though I lived through it myself…)
The Last Story of Mina Lee by Nancy Jooyoun Kim is yet another book that I featured as a Fast Forward Friday title a while back. Obviously I still want to read it, so I had BOTM hook me up. 😊 Plus this was further points to them for having several books I’d already posted about looking forward to.
4 Complete, 2 In Progress, 3 To Go!
I feel like I have a lot to look forward to this month, despite some bits of life feel like they’re completely crushing me. I certainly have a lot to look forward to in books if nothing else! If you’ve read any of these, let me know which I should prioritize first! And if you’ve already been doing Book of the Month, let me know what you think of it so I can get some more feedback and see if I’ll keep doing it. ✌
Stay happy y’all!
My Book Joy 
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