Remember when I said I had Darknesses on my nightstand and needed to read it soon? Well, I finally did it; it was quite an adventure. Darknesses by Lachelle Seville is a sapphic, gothic, Dracula-inspired novel that has had traction in the book community circles I follow. I chose the book purely by faith in the readers that suggested, and as usual, I didn’t know what I was getting into. That’s nothing new. Now, having finished the book, I wish I would have asked them why they enjoyed it.

Meeting someone by chance is one thing, but purposely crossing paths with them again is another. Written in a dual timeline from the perspectives of Nina and Vanessa, a grifter and an heiress, Janelle Brown’s Pretty Things highlights how the world of these two women merge and impact each other amid a scheme gone awry. The twists and turns in this story culminate into a book you won’t want to put down.

Josh Winning’s The Shadow Glass wasn’t on my radar until a bookish friend of mine, Ven of Ven’s_Corner posted a review about it. He mentioned how the book had an 80s nostalgic feel to it because of the characters and storyline. ‘80s nostalgia’ seems to be a buzz phrase for me, so I took a chance and borrowed The Shadow Glass from my local library.

This short story collection evokes laughter, inspiration, and reflection, and cause pause and ponder as one considers conjuring the sheer amount of drive needed to emphatically say Angola is Wherever I Plant My Field.

Garlic is warm, cozy, and fully embraces being wholesomely cute. It’s sure to be a family favorite.

Bring a snack, a beverage, or just some good ol’ conversation. I will be on YouTube doing LIVE reading and productivity sprints August 4-6, 2023.

Resuscitating My Love for Reading This post may contain affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Bear with Me, I’m a Newbie I promise I’m working on other bookish blog posts. While they are in the works, please bear with me as I work on the aesthetics and overall functional layout of this blog. With time everything will fall into place, so for now please appreciate the blank canvas and foresee its potential.  I didn’t want to hold off on blogging due to my writing process and initially was…

Burn Down, Rise Up is a thrill of a book. The writing is informational, tense, and easy to digest. Set in the Bronx, New York, it’s observed that people are steadily disappearing without a trace. The disappearances command the attention of our main character Raquel, her best friend Aaron, his brother, Mario, and a friend ‘not a friend’, Charlize. Charlize’s cousin, Cisco is the most recent disappearance, and finding him requires Raquel and the others to play a dangerous game that could result in them disappearing too.

I recommend Cameron Battle and the Hidden Kingdoms to readers who like their middle-grade fantasy, fast-paced, full of adventure, combat, history, and West African-inspired mythology.

The tweet in this facebook post recently came across my feed, so I decided to pick up the author’s book. Luckily, the audiobook was available at my library and you all….it’s REALLY good so far. It’s been such a long time since I’ve reached for a middle grade series.

This year is my year of ARCs, and in the excitement of receiving something in exchange for an honest review, I went a little overboard and committed to many.

Title: Where the Crawdads Sing Author: Delia Owns Book Edition Read: Kindle Table of contents Quick Overview Characters Considered Pacing Plot Prose Favorite Quotes and Chapters New Vocabulary Final Verdict Questions of the Day Readerly Gists This post may contain affiliate links and as a Bookshop.org Affiliate, we earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. Quick Overview Two young boys find a dead body in the marsh off the North Carolina coast, a large and secluded area where nature prevails. The sheriff is alerted and the first and only person suspected of committing…