A detailed look at last week’s reading habits: My Weekly Wrap lists the three books I read, my progress on some reading challenges and the three historical fictions I can’t wait to read!
Updates
| Last Week’s Blog Updates | Last Week’s Goodreads Reviews |
|---|---|
| 📖 Weekly Wrap: January 17th to January 30th | None last week! |
Contents
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Weekly Review
What I’ve Read This Week
Key: 🔁 re-read | ❌ DNF | 📜 from my Up Next shelf | 📲 eARC
- You Sould See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson 📜 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Truth About Stories by Thomas King ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Commander (Men of Hidden Justice, #4) by Melanie Moreland ⭐️⭐️
My Reading Progress
Last week was a slow reading week for me. Despite my ambitious February TBR, I have a lot of school deadlines and readings to do that I need to prioritize.
Speaking of books I read for school, The Truth About Stories by Thomas King was such a well-written and thought-provoking book. I loved the exploration of how the past and present are intertwined through memory.
I also got around to reading You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson! While it was a slow start, the romance and plot were so cute. The overall book was such a feel-good experience.
Reading Challenges Progress
I’m currently reading my selection of the Buzzword Reading Challenge: My Heart Is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones. Despite not being a fan of horror (fiction or movie), I’m enjoying the book. It helps that I love books that take the time to construct and explore their characters.
A priority for February is the Winter Reading Bingo challenge. I have eight prompts remaining which is totally doable, but I just need to remind myself to prioritize those books. The remaining prompts and the books I’m planning to read for them are:
- Dark Academia: For Your Own Good by Samantha Downing
- Body Posivitiy: If the Shoe Fits by Julie Murphy
- Cursive in Title: The One Hundred Yeras of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin
- Athur from Norway/Denmark/Sweden: Beartown by Fredrik Backman
- Takes Place in One Day: No Exit by Taylor Adams
- Small-Town Setting: My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones
- Celebrates Winter Holiday (not Christmas): The Nature of Witches by Rachel Griffin (for Winter Solstice)
A reminder: my Up Next Shelf is comprised of all the unread books I want to read and have purchased.
Want to Read Updates
You will like Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco if you appreciate:
✨ Historical Fantasy
✨ Witches and Demons
✨ Murder mystery and revenge plot
✨ Enemies to Lovers
You will like The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee if you appreciate:
✨ Historical Fiction set in 1890s Atlanta
✨ Young adult
✨ Chinese American main character who is a lady’s maid during the day and the author of a subversive feminist column at night
✨ Explores being a Chinese American woman in the southern US
You will like The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray if you appreciate:
✨ Historical Fiction
✨ Books about books
✨ Based on the true story of Belle da Costa Greene (JP Morgan’s personal librarian)
✨ Exploration of “White passing” in 1905 US
The Upcoming Week
To Be Read
I’ve been putting off House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas for almost two years now. After reading her A Court of Thorns and Roses series, I needed a bit of a break from her writing (and tendency to take away powers from all her women characters 😒). I’ve decided to give this book a chance since I’m planning to buddy read the second book, House of Sky and Breath when it releases next week.
I’m also continuing to read two other books this week: Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge, and My Heart Is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones.
To Look Forward To This Week
Text for You by Sofie Cramer was released today, February 8th! Its premise: a woman grieving the death of her fiancé two years later texts his old number in an attempt to get closure. She doesn’t expect someone to text back! I love how serendipitous the meet-cute is between the main characters. However, I’m also looking forward to the promise of great character development. Also, the book is already being adapted to film starring Sam Heughan and Priyanka Chopra Jonas!
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I’ve been on a historical fiction kick, so I am excited to check out The Downstairs Girl and the Personal Librarian! Thanks for the recommendations! I recently finished reading such a fantastic Historical Fiction/Historical romance book – “Matilda Empress” by Lise Arin. This is about a true warrior queen who I’ve been researching and reading about ever since I finished the book. I think the author did an amazing job at bringing her to life and making this book as historically accurate as possible (but obviously doesn’t read like a history book). Matilda is the daughter of England’s Henry I and was destined to rule the empire. Her cousin, Stephen, Count of Boulogn, usurps the crown and this results in 20 years of a bloody civil war. Matilda and her cousin also have a relationship as lovers that is always teetering on the edge of hatred and obsession. They have a child together and he is now the rightful heir to the throne. I was truly swept away by this book, and I was sad when it was over. I hope the author writes another book about another badass woman of historical significance soon! If you’re interested, you can check it out here – https://www.lisearin.com/
I’m so glad you found my recommendations helpful! Matilda Empress sounds really interesting! Definitely a book I plan to investigate 🙂