Bookshelf


There is no easier way to stress me out than to ask me what my favorite book is. To me my "favorites" are a highly subjective and constantly rotating ...Show more

My Most Notable Reads of 2024
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Jan 2


Whoops! A little late, but read this instead of watching The Super Bowl.

This Week in the Book World:

Ooohhhhh let's talk smut, because I don't know if you saw the Quill and Flame "#sickofsmut" campaign, but y'all that had me angry for days.

So, in case you missed it, an indie publishing house put out a campaign of posts talking about how they were sick of smut in their romance books and that they were committed to only publishing "clean" and "PG-13" romances. Which, is fine. Because, and I cannot say this loudly enough, no one is forcing anyone to read smut. If you don't want to read smut, don't read it. It's as simple as that.

As a bookstore owner, I get asked constantly for closed-door romances and I am happy to help folks find the kind of content they're comfortable with, because I believe strongly that engaging with books that sexual content should come with informed consent.

However, where this whole thing really started to go downhill and, well frankly, piss me off was with the brazen smut-shaming that came with it. In case you missed the sentence above where I said that no one is forcing anyone to read smut, these folks were out here acting like they were being held at gun point and forcing to read about "body part behavior"–yes that is a direct quote. Things started to fall apart more when they started throwing around words like "safe" and "good" and "darkness" when referring to sexual content, but it REALLY, REALLY, REALLY got me when I saw the words "YA" and "NA".

clears throat ALL YOUNG ADULT BOOKS ARE NOT "CLOSED DOOR ROMANCE BOOKS" AND ALL "CLOSED DOOR ROMANCE BOOKS" ARE NOT YOUNG ADULT BOOKS. Young adult books are books written for young adults. End of story. Sometimes those books contain sexual content, because–and this might blow some mind–teens need a safe, healthy way to learn and talk about and process their feelings about sex.

There are tons of authors who use their books to help teens learn about things like consent, healthy relationships, bodily autonomy, reproductive rights, and so much more. This is important work. And describing books written by adults for adults as "YA" simply because they don't have sexual content amongst a political backdrop of nationwide book bans, mom's for liberty, and publishers printing age labels on book covers, is nothing but dangerous.

I could stand on this soapbox for the rest of the evening, so clearly this should be topic I cover more in depth later.

Moving on...

This week's publishing news:

  • We finally got an announcement for Del Sandeen's second novel! Titled, Death is my Castle, this newest horror novel is about "two sisters who inherit a house in Savannah, Georgia, only to discover that it may be haunted by the man who built it in 1910."

  • Dinesh Thiru, author of Into the Sunken City, announced My Killer Family Reunion, which was pitched as "Knives Out meets Never Have I Ever". Also, excited about this one, because I do feel like true "mystery" and "whodunnit" books are a gap in the teen market. Not every teen wants to read an intense thriller/true crime book.

  • Tehlor Mejia's Marrow, which was described as "a dark academia fantasy in which a trans 16-year-old boy finds himself way in over his head when he joins a hyper-elite school with dark, potentially supernatural secrets"

  • AND! We got more news about Alix E. Harrows, The Everlasting, which according to her "rhymes" with her short story The Six Deaths of the Saint. She apparently wrote the story while plotting this newest novel, and I cannot contain my excitement!

This week's new releases:

  • The Lamb by Lucy Rose (Adult, Horror)

  • Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito (Adult, Horror)

  • Capitana by Cassandra James (YA, Fantasy)

  • Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey (Adult, Literary)

  • Wings of Starlight by Allison Saft (YA, Fantasy)

  • All Better Now by Neal Shusterman (YA, Dystopian)

What I read this week:

Listen to Your Sister (Finished)

I've talked about this book a lot and I'm going to continue to talk about it, because it deserves it. Holy hell this book was so good. I was not expecting to fall as in love with this one as I did, but it struck something deep in my core. As I wrote in my mini review, Listen to Your Sister is both a love letter to oldest sisters and Black women and a vicious rejection of the expectations the world puts on them to save us over themselves. It's so timely and so heartfelt. 5 out of 5 stars.

Also, it definitely reads more speculative fiction that horror, so I think it's got great crossover appeal for those of you who might be wary of scary books.

Gifted & Talented (Finished)

I hinted at it last time, but I'm here to confirm that Gifted & Talented is Olivie Blake's best book yet. I feel like all of her standalones throughout the last few years have been leading up to this story. When I tell you that I full-on, audibly, gasped not once, but multiple times, while reading this last night. It made me laugh. It made me cry. It made me send out-of-context screenshots of highlighted paragraphs to my husband. I know that her prose style is not for everyone, but wow do I love it.

This one also leans way more literary fiction than fantasy. It contains magical elements, but it is way more a Succession-esque family drama than anything. Also, I posted this on BlueSky last night, but the scene where the enemies become lovers in this one was... immaculate.

A Burning in the Bones (17%)

This is the third and final book in The Waxways series, and all I have to say is that I am so excited. I love this series. I can't wait to keep reading.

What I bought/shelved

Books I bought/received this week:

  • The Wayways series in hardcover

  • The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

  • The Library at Hellbore by Cassandra Khaw

Here are some books I shelved this week:

  • Dream by the Shadows by Logan Karlie

  • The Balance of Fates by Raquel Raelynn

Other musings:

Our February book pick is in and I'm thrilled to be reading One for my Enemy by Olivie Blake, this is the only standalone of hers that I haven't read yet, and coming off the high of Gifted & Talented I'm especially excited. Join here.

Feb 10


It’s finally here!!! The third book in the Waxways trilogy!! I started this series on a whim last year and was immediately hooked. It’s one of the mos...Show more

Feb 10


Finished Listen to Your Sister by Neena Viel this morning and cried off all my makeup on my way to work. I loved this book more than I ever imagined I...Show more

Feb 7


A little preview of my overall thoughts about my January reads. Overall, I read some great books, though one stood out over the rest. I’ll have my ful...Show more

Feb 4


And somehow I thought things couldn't get worse...

This Week in the Book World:

Honestly, I didn't pay much attention to what was happening in the book world this week. I was too preoccupied with everything else that seemed to come crumbling down on top of us this week.

If you caught wind of some important news or drama that I didn't, please drop me a comment and spill the tea.

This week's publishing news:

  • Author of one of my favorite YA books (Pride), Ibi Zoboi's announced a new fantasy book titled The Serpent, The Rainbow, The Island below. Based in Haitian mythology, it's about "three orphans who are the descendants of Vodou gods, on a quest to reunite with their loved ones and protect a magical underworld from shape-shifting monsters"

  • I've also talked a lot about queer horror this week, so was excited to see a new book announcement from Ryan La Sala's, author of The Honeys, called The Dead of Summer, about a teen in a queer resort town off the coast of Maine and "a mysterious, supernatural plague rising from the sea"

  • We also got another Johnny Compton announcement! This one is titled Chimera Skin, and is a science fiction horror novella "pitched as The Fly meets The Thing and I am Legend".

  • The sporror genre is alive and well! Laura Cranehill's debute, Wife Shaped Bodies, is "about an isolated newlywed, covered in mushroom growths like all the wives in her community, who strikes a precarious balance between following her husband's strict rules and pursuing an intense connection with another woman"

  • And I know nothing about this book, but looks like we might have another big Romantasy title coming soon. Cortney L. Winn's, Vesselless, won a 6-figure deal to Voyager and also won deals with 8 other publishers for international distribution. Definitely one I'll be keeping an eye on.

This week's new releases:

  • Old Soul by Susan Barker (Adult, literary/horror)

  • We Could Be Rats by Emily Austin (Adult, literary)

  • Black in Blues: How a Color Tells the Story of My People by Imani Perry (Adult, Non-fiction)

  • Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker (Adult, horror)

  • The Scorpion Queen by Mina Fears (Teen, Fantasy)

What I read this week:

Onyx Storm (Finished)

Well, I finished it and I thought it was fine. Maybe I had just mentally prepared myself for a cliff-hanger, because I wasn't overly phased by anything that happened. Am I pissed I have to wait til 2027 for the next book? Yes. Is my interest in this series waning a bit? Also yes. I'm definitely going to experience some fatigue if we don't wrap this up soon, because I predict this may go the way of From Blood and Ash.

The Afterdark (Finished)

This was a fun little queer YA horror novel! I listened to the audiobook over the course of a couple of days and it was a nice little brain break from the real world. It started out a lot stronger than it finished, but I still really enjoyed it. It was a nice little snack of a book.

Listen to Your Sister (36%)

Holy shit. I cannot stop listening to this book. THIS is the exact kind of horror I love. It's creepy, it's emotional, it has a ton to say. I'm literally going to start listening again as soon as I finish writing this post.

Gifted & Talented (20%)

Might this be Olivie Blake's best book yet? That is definitely possible. I love, love, love Olivie Blake's style and voice, but her books require a certain level of attention that can make getting into them hard. I usually struggle through the first 50% before falling hopelessly in love with the story and reading the rest in one or two sittings. This one, however, has been so easy to jump into and it already has its claws in me after only 100 pages. Woof, it is long though.

What I bought/shelved

It's here!!! I finally got my galley of my Bookstagram buddy's debut fanatasy novel, A Dance of Lies! It's going to be my next ARC as soon as I finish Gifted & Talented.

I also got both my Illumicrate (Watermoon by Samantha Sotto Yambao) and my Evernight (Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker) books this week.

Here are some books I shelved this week:

  • Prince of the Sorrows by Kellen Graves

  • Anathema by Keri Lake

  • Modern Divination by Isabel Agajanian

Other musings:

My husband I watched The Dead Don't Die, which came out in 2019 but somehow flew completely under our radar and it was so fun. It's one of the driest movies I have ever seen, but is absolutely a pop-culture gem. Their depiction of small town life–specifically a certain Steve Buscemi scene–had me cackling. 10/10 would recommend watching on Netflix.

I also started playing Lemoncake again after putting it down for awhile. If you love cozy games, particularly time management games like Diner Dash, this one is so fun to play on Switch.

Lastly, it's time to vote on our February book club! In February, we're going for grand, sweeping romantic gestures and I'm really excited about our options. They're all backlist titles that I've been wanting to read for years. Join and vote here.

Feb 2


I’m sure you all are aware that there’s… a lot… going on in the world right now. So much, in fact, that it is quite possible to scroll yourself into a...Show more

Jan 30


Not gonna lie, this week was especially exhausting, for a variety of reasons.

This Week in the Book World:

Onyx Storm. It's here. After almost a year of pre-orders and constantly emailing my publishing reps to ensure I had enough copies, Onyx Storm is finally on shelves and here's a bit about how that journey went:

  • Midnight Releases: This week was full of nostalgia and packed bookstores–special shout out to all my fellow indie owners, I hope you all are getting some rest. While most folks seemed to have a great time at the events, there was some chatter about how disappointing the B&N events were. Shocker, that a giant corporation didn't put a ton of extra effort into creating a special community experience.

  • Target: This is by far the biggest fumble of the entire release and I'm just shocked by how this all played out. There was a last minute Target exclusive edition announced just a few short weeks ago that promised exclusive art throughout. They did not take preorders and apparently some stores got as few as 7 copies total. From what I can gather from the internet buzz folks waited in line for hours only to have the first few individuals buy all (or most) of the available copies. Those that were lucky enough to snag a copy found out that the "original" art was just slightly altered stock art.

This week's publishing news:

Publishing deals I'm excited about:

  • We're getting new Rebecca Ross!! And it's set in the Divine Rivals universe!! Wild Reverence will be a standalone about a goddess and a human lord.

  • We also got an announcement about a new Sarah Beth Durst! I haven't had a chance to read The Spellshop yet, but I know it is beloved by many. This new one, Sea of Charms, is about "a sailor, a musician, a sea serpent, and a sentient shrub." Sign me up.

  • A debut that caught my eye: The Darkness Greeted Her by Christina Ferko. Pitched as "a sapphic horror set in the Appalachian wilderness about a remote therapy camp haunted by a shadowy monster". I love nothing more than queer appalachia.

This week's new releases:

  • Motheater by Linda H. Codega (Adult, fantasy)

  • We Do Not Part by Han Kang (Adult, literary)

What I read this week:

Elatsoe (Finished)

This was such a unique take on fantasy and I loved the way it seamlessly blended all of our favorite creatures, stories, and lore into a modern world while keeping Lipan Apache history and culture front and center. My very favorite thing, however, is that we got to see a main character who is CONFIRMED asexual, rather than just one that has to be inferred. Oh, and there were so many good dogs!!!

Fagin the Thief (Finished)

This one didn't make me cry quite as hard as A Tip for the Hangman, but it got close. Epstein has the unique ability to take a well-known character from history and pull them right into the heart of a modern day reader. Fagin the Thief adds depth and richness to a the original Dickens character, casting him in a new light while still keeping the nuances of the original tale.

Onyx Storm(86%)

I heard there was a cliffhanger. I'm going to riot.

The Will of the Many (56%)

We had part 1 of our fantasy book club for Will of the Many on Monday. We were supposed to read to the 50% point, but we heard from a few folks who finished the book that something wild is about to happen. I cannot wait to keep reading and see what comes next.

What I bought/shelved

The only thing I bought was the Onyx Storm audiobook this week, but I did shelve the following:

  • Keep It In the Dark by Justin Arnold (Teen, paranormal romance)

  • When Blood Meets Earth by E.A. Noble (Adult, fantasy)

Other musings:

Strongly, strongly recommend having a craft weekend with your friends where you make a charm necklaces and iron on patches on matching sweatsuits. I may not have gotten as much reading done, nor posted on insta as much as I wanted to this week, but I'm feeling rested after a very busy week.

Last thing, I'm on Bluesky! And I'm kind of loving it! If you're not, you can follow me here.

Jan 27


And suddenly, I’m cured? PS: Turn on sound for tea pouring ASMR. #cozymoments #readerlife #teaandbooks #booksandcoffee #booksandtea #littlemomentsofc...Show more

Jan 26


Shit got weird this week... like really weird.

This Week in the Book World:

RIP Booktok. I was hoping you and I would get to know one another a bit better this year, but looks like fate had different ideas for us. Seriously though, the last 24 hours have been a propaganda fueled nightmare and I would like to wake up.

Neil Gaiman. What is that quote about living long enough to see your heros become villains? Well that one hit real hard this week. I read half of the Vulture article, immediately wanted to throw up, and then mourned for several days. Please, please take care of yourself if you decide to read this article.

**Onyx Storm. **I'm going to say it. Some of y'all need to chill the f*ck out. It's literally a book. If you go into a target and swap the dust jacket on a book, that's theft. If you're digging through boxes that are unopened on the floor and causing a headache for underpaid retail workers, you're the asshole. If you're complaining about how a small business (who probably got their books on Friday) can't compete with one of the largest supply chains in the world, you're buying local for a pat on the back, not because you actually want to support local. I know someone is going to be a jerk to me this week about their book and I am going to lose it.

Also, low key am glad that B&N finally got fined for breaking the rules, which they've been doing for YEARS.

Also, also, people started preordering this book in like March, so watch me cackling at these videos of people crying about how they can't get a deluxe edition now. Like, friends... really?

This week's publishing news:

So many great gothic books announced this week! Here are some favs:

  • Necrogenesis by Ashia Monet's which is a dark academia gothic fantasy about a true crime fan who "resurrects a victim of a massacre to uncover what claimed the lives of six necromancy students at a secluded manor in the '70s"
  • Bloody Mother by Kim Bohyun (translated by Archana Madhavan) about a mother-turned-vampire "fated to a lifetime of man-killing time-travel to avenge her daughter's brutal death"
  • A Practical Guide to Dating a Demon by Hannah Reynolds's which was pitched as a " YA cozy romantasy" where a magic academy student tells suitors by telling she's engaged to a demon "only to return home and find a demon waiting for her, insisting she honor the engagement"
  • Two books from Kawai Strong Washburn's (Sharks in the Time of Saviors)–The Names of the New World, a literary ecothriller in 4 acts; and The Horizon Thief, a "Polynesian retelling of Lord of the Flies"
  • The Halls of the Dead by S.M. Hallow, described as "a queer, gothic romance set in Victorian London, in which a woman who has dedicated her life to protecting the necromantic secrets held in sentient grimoires bound with human skin" resurrects her murdered partner

This week's new releases:

  • Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao (Adult, fantasy)
  • Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor (Adult, sci-fi)
  • The In-Between Bookstore by Edward Underhill (Adult, fiction)

What I read this week:

Elatsoe (78%)

This has been such a fun middle-grade/teen read. I'm almost finished with the audiobook and I have LOVED the asexaual representation in this one. This one is fully focused on family and friendship, which has been so refreshing. I can't wait to finish it.

Fagin the Thief (62%)

I had to pause on this one this week to read my Underbrush fantasy book club pick–The Will of the Many.

The Will of the Many (31%)

Not going to lie, I was super intimidated by this one, but was up for the challenge when we chose it as our book club pick. I am thrilled to say that this one is actually super easy to get into. I started this one on a 7:30am flight and was almost immediately invested, which is saying a lot because I am NOT a morning person. I need to get to the halfway point of this one before meeting tomorrow, so excuse me while I read this for the rest of the evening.

What I bought/shelved

I've already posted two posts about new books in my collections, so I won't bore you with those again. If you're interested you can see my Indianapolis book haul here and my extremely exciting publisher book mail here.

Other musings:

Honestly, I'm tired. Like really tired. So, I don't really have any other thoughts. I'm sending all of you all so much love as we head into tomorrow. It's going to be an emotional rollercoaster, but we will get through it.

See you on the other side. Take care of yourselves.

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Jan 20