Top Ten Tuesday: Fall 2020 TBR

This week’s TTT topic is “Books On My Fall 2020 TBR.” I’m ecstatic it’s time for a seasonal TBR because I love compiling book lists! (Even though I haven’t been reading much lately and I completely failed at my summer TBR list aka only read 1 of 10. BUT we’re not gonna talk about that.) Ahhhh, it feels like it’s been so long since I’ve participated in a TTT (according to WordPress it’s been nearly 2 months?!?! crazy). I’ve definitely been in a weird funk and reading slump lately so fingers crossed this post helps me claw my way back into reading (and blogging tbh).

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

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1. The Deep by Rivers Solomon

Here for all the stories about mer-people and sapphic romances. I finally got my copy in early August and I can’t believe I haven’t read it yet! (Yes, this is a repeat from my Summer TBR.)

2. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Still repeatedly mentioning this book (yes, this was also on my Summer TBR). Really need to get on this reread though, because the end of the year and the release of the 4th book is coming upon us quickly!

3. Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert

This year especially, I have been continually obsessed with and craving romance books. I’ve heard great things about this book and author, so I actually purchased a physical copy of this novel for myself recently and I’m excited to get to it!

4. The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi

Meant to have this read before its release date today, but alas, the reading slump is real. I’m currently in the middle of rereading the first book in a buddy read with Sammie @ The Bookwyrm’s Den and we’ll definitely be moving onto this one soon! (well, hopefully)

5. The Mark of the Dragonfly by Jaleigh Johnson

My writing buddy recently started reading this book, reminding me that I actually own this book and haven’t read it yet?!?! Definitely wanna hop on this book soon so we can discuss. I also don’t read enough MG and really need to change that.

6. The Problem with Forever by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Been meaning to read this book for YEARS since I picked it up at a local bookstore as a underclassman in college.

7. The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson

Political intrigue fantasy, a sapphic romance, rave reviews…why haven’t I read this up yet??

8. Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

Whoa, how did this come out a year ago? And how am I still slacking on Leigh Bardugo books??

9. Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

Thriller, another genre I need to read more of. Also, still really need to read this so I can return it to my grandfather’s wife since she kindly loaned me her copy, oh, almost over a year ago.

10. The Girl in Red by Christina Henry

With the spooky season approaching, it would be fun to pick up a horror fairytale retelling, right? Even though I’m not sure I’ve ever read a true horror book before?!?

Wow, I’m really proud of myself for incidentally creating a TBR list with a wide range of genres and age categories.

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That’s it for my Fall TBR! Fingers crossed I actually get around to most of these!?! What books are you hoping to read this fall? Have you read any of the ones I mentioned above? If so, which ones do you recommend I start with? PLEASE, give me all the encouragement and motivation to kick this reading slump!

Also, if you participated in TTT this week, feel free to link up your post in the comments below–I would love to check them out!

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Book Releases for the Second Half of 2020

This week’s TTT topic is “Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of 2020.” Looking ahead to anticipated releases is both thrilling and torture, because I’m excited they’re coming but at the same time I’m like “why are they not already here?!”

I know I probably ended up forgetting a ton of great books, but I pulled these directly from my TBR shelf on Goodreads. Lol, I definitely ended up with some themes on this list (just like on my list for the first half of 2020).

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

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1. More Than Maybe by Erin Hahn

Release Date: July 21th

Artisty people, bloggers, media celebrities, unknown identities (I believe), and it sounds like it takes place in Michigan?!? I’m really liking these buzz words I’m hearing…

2. I Kissed Alice by Anna Birch

Release Date: July 28th

I mean it’s literally pitched as Simon vs. meets Fangirl AND it’s a hate-to-love sapphic romance between two girls unknowingly working on a graphic novel together? AND there are illustrations? TAKE MY MONEY NOW

3. Lobizona by Romina Garber

Release Date: August 4th

A contemporary fantasy that explores undocumented immigration alongside Argentine folklore (with brujas and werewolves!). I’m actually participating in a blog tour for this book (which I lowkey almost keep forgetting about), so I’m excited to pick this up soon!

4. The Dark Tide by Alicia Jasinska

Release Date: August 4th

A witch queen falls in love with the girl who steps in to take her brother’s place as the yearly sacrifice!?! Gimme now please and thank you *grabby hands*

5. The Roommate by Rosie Danan

Release Date: September 15th

A New Adult (?) romance that involves the protagonist and love interest accidentally living together? Bahaha, I love that trope, so like, I’ll take it now please.

6. The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi

Release Date: September 22nd

The sequel to The Gilded Wolves! I’ve had an eARC of this book for a long time now, but because the release date got pushed back, I haven’t actually picked it up yet, but I’m pumped to get around to it soon! (just gotta remember what happened in the previous book first…)

7. Storm the Earth by Rebecca Kim Wells

Release Date: October 13th

I enjoyed an eARC of the first book, Shatter the Sky, last year, so I’m curious to see how this duology wraps up. I wanna know how Maren will save the dragons! (and lowkey who she’ll end up with)

8. Beyond the Ruby Veil by Mara Fitzgerald

Release Date: October 13th

A dark, queer YA fantasy that involves a mysterious creature that turns blood into water and demands sacrifices? And our protagonist kills said creature to avoiding being sacrificed? I’m SO intrigued.

9. Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur

Release Date: November 10th

A contemporary f/f romance with fake dating AND Pride & Prejudice vibes?!?! (not excited about the Bridget Jones vibes but I’ll forgive it for the sapphic children).

10. Ruinsong by Julia Ember

Release Date: November 24th

I had very mixed feelings on Julia Ember’s The Seafarer’s Kiss duology, but I’m excited to give her another try. A monstrous protagonist, a rebellion, and a sapphic romance? Let’s go!

Bahaha, did ya notice a trend in my list? Bless 2020 at the very least for the being the year of all the f/f romances.

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What are some of your anticipated releases for the second half of 2020? Do we have any that overlap? Am I missing any that you think deserve to be on my list?

If you participated in TTT this week, feel free to link up your post in the comments below–I would love to check them out!

Review: Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann

Let’s Talk About Love

by Claire Kann

Genre: Contemporary, Romance

Age Category: New Adult / Young Adult

Publisher: Swoon Reads

Published on: January 23rd, 2018

 

A NA college-set summer romance?!? I’ve been desperately wanting more books like this and Let’s Talk About Love has only confirmed the unfairness the publishing industry is doing us by not giving us more college NA stories. PLEASE GIVE ME MORE AMAZING BOOKS LIKE THIS ONE!!

Let’s Talk About Love follows Alice during the summer after her first year of college. After breaking up with her girlfriend (who didn’t get why Alice didn’t want a sexual relationship), Alice immediately becomes enchanted with a new coworker, Takumi, at her summer job at the library. Between her growing feelings for Takumi, deciding what she wants to do with her education, and navigating her living situation with her best friends, Alice tries to figure out who she wants to be and what she’s willing to risk to be true to herself.

Besides the fact that is book is New Adult, I was particularly excited to pick it up because of the biromantic asexual representation. To be honest, I think this was the first book I’ve read with ace rep and it was super insightful. This book has made me realize that I really need to seek out more LGBTQ+ books beyond those with LGB representation.

Additionally, this book had me swooning alongside Alice over Takumi (or let’s be real: swooning over all of the characters), cracking up at the banter and snarky remarks Alice and her friends passed around, and simply flying through the pages to get more of these characters. Alice is a particularly beautifully fleshed-out character: she has her own cutie code by which she rates everything, lives with her two best friends and has weekly family nights, makes hilariously snarky comments in the narration, writes analytical essays about her TV show obsessions & theories, struggles to cook (relatable), and works at a library. Seriously, there’s no way you cannot love her.

Alongside the beautifully developed characters and circumstances, I also adored how this book showcased positive experiences of attending (multiple) therapy sessions. It seems like a lot of books I’ve read where characters are in therapy will mention it, but rarely ever show. I think displaying this new aspect of Alice’s life really helps to normalize therapy and I simply just appreciated it.

The only area of this book that could be critiqued would be the plot. The book was much more focused on exploring Alice’s relationship with others—whether that be with Takumi, her friends, her parents, or herself. In favor of focusing on Alice’s character development, the explicit plot became a bit blurred. But honestly, I was okay with this. I believe that if rom-com reads have an interesting enough characters (which this book most definitely did), they can get away with a little laxity in their plotting.

Whether you’re looking to add more cute rom-coms, or books with LGBTQ+ and/or Black representation to your reading, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND picking up this book up. It’s a cute and fun read and personally I can’t wait to read more from Claire Kann.

Trigger Warnings: aphobic comments (in the breakup at the beginning), parental pressure in regards to education, cheating (from a side character)

Rating: 4.5 stars

“…so, are you my book?”

“I was so cute it’s impossible not to say yes! Like Takumi, I also broke the Cutie Code scale. 😉 ”

Top Ten Tuesday: (Belated) Spring 2020 TBR

Okay, technically this week’s subject is “Ten Signs You’re a Book Lover,” but I totally missed posting my Spring TBR 2 weeks ago, and I can’t let a seasonal TBR post go by, even if I’m a bit late in posting it and even tho I only ever sorta follow my TBRs (is that sign #1 I’m a book lover? lol).

Also wow, it’s been so long since I’ve last written a TTT post! Usually I aim to participate at least once a month, but it’s been almost two full months (I think my last one was on Feb. 4, which technically still follows my goal, but it was still so loooong ago).

I was kinda up in the air about what I wanted to read for awhile, so I organized my thoughts by dividing my TBR into a bunch of sub-categories. It was really helpful, tho it resulted in me listing a wide variety of books, from YA to erotica to Sci-Fi, so bear with me!

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

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Books I Own & I’m Excited to Pick Up:

1. Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson

Magic, libraries, and monsters? I acquired this book last summer, and I don’t know how I haven’t read it yet. (sign #2??)

2. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

This will be a reread for me! Ever since I read the first book, I’ve been meaning to return to the series (I’m horrible at finishing series–sign #3 I’m a book nerd??). And now with the 4th book coming out in December, this will be the year for me to finally catch up on this series, so I need to start back at book 1!

Some ARCs I Want to Get Around To:

3. Lobizona by Romina Garber

Release Date: May 5th, 2020

I’ve been horrible about reviewing books in a timely manner, but I’m determined to stay on top of this one! (says all book people. Sign #4??)

4. A Queen in Hiding by Sarah Kozloff

Release Date: January 21st, 2020

Whoops, a bit behind on this one. Luckily, I won it in a giveaway, so I don’t feel too bad about not having picked it up yet, but I still wanna sometime this spring!

5. Two Girls, A Clock, and Crooked House by Michael Poore

Release Date: September 10th, 2019

Snagged an ARC of this one like a year ago, and still haven’t read it, eek! But it sounds cute, light, fun, and it’s MG, so now feels like the perfect time to read it! (If you follow me, you’ve seen this on a lot of my TBR posts, whoops)

Books from the Library:

6. The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

Was suppose to read this for part of a book club and even though I haven’t started it yet, I still wanna pick it up!

7. Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann

Been eyeing this one for the past couple of years, and now that I have it checked out from the library for awhile, I want to pick it up after my semester ends!

8. The Tea Dragon Festival by Katie O’Neill

Everything Katie O’Neill creates is so pure and adorable and I’m determined to read all of her graphic novels!

Books to Read before my Kindle Unlimited Trial Ends:

9. Smut by Karina Halle

A smutty romance novel about two creative writing students who write smut together and fall in love? I’ve been drooling over this book since I first heard of it, so I’m determined to read it before my Kindle Unlimited trial ends!

10. Aftershocks by Marko Kloos

Now this normally isn’t the type of book I gravitate towards, but 47North was kind enough to send me an ARC of the sequel, so I want to give the first book a try.

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That’s it for my Spring TBR! Fingers crossed I can get around to most of these!?! What books are you hoping to read this spring? Have you read any of the ones I mentioned above?

If you participated in TTT this week (or posted a Spring TBR 2 weeks ago, haha), feel free to link up your post in the comments below–I would love to check them out!