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Books That Are Perfect For Winter

Jun 2, 2020

Before I start I do want to say a few things. Right now the world needs your voice. Black lives need your voice. Use it. And use it right. Here are some ways to help as well as some resources, please check them out. I’ve been posting and RT’ing more things on twitter. So please head over there and let your voice be heard. #BlackLivesMatter.

This week I’m sharing the books I think are perfect for winter! Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and Bookish and is hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl.

Winter isn’t my favourite season, it’s my least favourite really. I’m mostly a spring and autumn time of girl. And right now it’s getting pretty cold here. So I’m all rugged up in bed, writing this post up. But one of the things I do love about winter. Is curling up in bed and reading. So today I’m sharing the books that I think are perfect to read in winter. Like always these are in no order.

The Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas: If this isn’t perfect, I don’t know what is. I love this book and series so much. If you are thinking about picking any historical romance series – this is the one. It’s so much fun and perfect to binge read in winter – or any time of the year.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune: One of my favourite typed of books to read during winter are feel-good ones. And this book is up there. One of my favourites so far in 2020. This book will make you smile, laugh and just have a good time. You can check out my full review now.

The Last Time We Say Goodbye by Cynthia Hand: When I’m all rugged up inside, I can have a good cry and no one can see me. And this book will make you cry. But it’s also such a beautiful story that I loved reading. It left me a mess, but I am okay with that.

Rookie Move (Brooklyn Bruisers #1) by Sarina Bowen: What is better than reading a winter sports romance in winter? Not much. This one of my favourite books from Sarina Bowen and I love this series so much, especially the first three. This one just makes me smile a whole lot.

Serious Moonlight by Jenn Bennett: Being able to curl up and fall into a good detective and mystery story is so much fun. I adore Jenn Bennett and this one here is a blast to read. The protagonists are amazing and I just loved it. If you love a good mystery with some romance then this is the book for you.

Life on the Edge (Edge #1) by Jennifer Comeaux: Another sports romance that is perfect for winter. I always have so much fun reading this series. It’s just something that you can fall into and just love reading. It’s not heavy, but it also looks at things in life.

Midnight Pursuits (Killer Instincts #4) by Elle Kennedy: It is a few books into the series, but it’s also one that always makes me think of a cold, cold winter. We rarely see snow in my parts. So as soon as the snow is involved I love it. This is an action-packed romantic suspense and I love it.

The Hate U Give (The Hate U Give #1) by Angie Thomas: I haven’t talked about this book in a while, but right now I think I need to. If you haven’t read this book. Please do. It’s important. It’s one you need to take your time and read. The Hate U Give is a book that you need to sit down and just take everything that you read in.

When Michael Met Mina by Randa Abdel-Fattah: If you haven’t picked this one up please do. Its another one of those books that aren’t always a present read, but it’s the right one. I’ve say this all the time, but it show be on every school book list.

Bittersweet by Sarah Ockler: I don’t talk about this book enough. This is such a sweet, YA romance that I love so much. It’s one to make your feel all warm inside and perfect for winter. If you want to read a book that will make you smile then this one is it.

That is it for this post! What are some of the books that you think are perfect for reading in winter? Do we share anything that is the same? Let’s Chat!

Should I Read This Book?

May 31, 2020

You know those books that you want to read, but you aren’t really sure about. Those books that have mixed reviews that don’t really help with your decision. I have a lot of them. A lot that I own and a lot that I want to get. But I’m still not sure. So today I thought I should get some help. Some help from my lovely readers.

Today I’m sharing books that I can’t decide if I should read them. There are many reasons that this happens. Some of the books I own, some I haven’t bought yet. But I want to see what you all think of them before I do either. So I would love to hear your thoughts on the books in this post. Did you like it or not? What were your thoughts – anything really. Help me decided if I should read it or not. Like always these are no order.

Spark (Spark #1) by Rachael Craw: This has been on my TBR for some time now. I do own the first book and its one that I always just nearly pick up. But I never do. Some people love this series and some people don’t. It’s a mixed bag that I see. Plus it’s a little older now and I really don’t know. It sounds like something I would enjoy.

Thicker Than Water by Brigid Kemmerer: I don’t know why I haven’t read this one yet. I really don’t know. I love Brigid Kemmerer’s work. A lot! I’ve read nearly everything that she has written now. But not this one. Which sounds stupid because I love romance. What did you guys think of this one?

The Way to Game the Walk of Shame by Jenn P. Nguyen: This book has been on my TBR a long time. From 2016 to be precise. But I’ve never bought it. Again it’s got a lot of mixed reviews, yet it seems like something that I would enjoy. Should I pick it up? What did you think of this one?

Ninth House (Alex Stern #1) by Leigh Bardugo: I’ve been very hesitant about picking this one up. Adult fantasy isn’t really my thing. I’ve tried a couple here and there and liked them enough, but haven’t loved them. The reasons why this is still on my tbr is because it’s by Leigh Bardugo. I love what Leigh has written before.

Not If I See You First by Eric Lindstrom: This has been on my tbr since I read A Tragic Kind of Wonderful and really enjoyed it. I always want to read books that represent disability, but I’m also always so nervous about the representation. Again I’ve heard a lot of mix reviews about this one.

The Kiss Quotient (The Kiss Quotient #1) by Helen Hoang: I’ve always hesitant about reading romance books that get a lot of traction from people that don’t read romance normally. I don’t know why, but it happens. Hence why this one has been on my tbr list for a while. I’m still not sure though. Help me out here.

Red Rising (Red Rising Saga #1) by Pierce Brown: This is a strange one for me. I started reading this a couple of years ago but put it down for some reasons. And I’ve yet to pick it up again. I remember enjoying what I did read. But science fiction isn’t really my jam and I get confused a lot. And I think that’s why I haven’t picked it up again.

From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata: This is another one that has been on my TBR for a couple of years now. In the last couple of months, I’ve read a few Mariana Zapata books, so I think I’m going to pick this one up soon. Have you read this one? What did you think?

Ziggy, Stardust and Me by James Brandon: This one caught my eye as soon as I read the synopsis. It sounds like something that I would love, but something is holding me back. People I know have loved it. So convince me.

And that is it for this post! What books should I read? What should I give up on? Are there books that you can’t decide if you should read? Let’s Chat!

Why I Love Reading #LoveOzYA

May 26, 2020

This week I’m sharing the reasons why I adored #LoveOzYA. Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and Bookish and is hosted by The Artsy Reader Girl.

This was supposed to be last weeks post, sadly I ended up with a bad migraine and couldn’t get it done. However, I still wanted to share my love and write this post. If you don’t know what #LoveOzYA is – It’s a movement that happened to support and promote Australian Young Adult literature. You can check out more about it in the #LoveOzYA website.

Supporting, promoting and reading #LoveOzYA is something that I have always loved doing. So today I thought I would share some of the reasons by I love reading Aussie YA. Like always these are in no order.

Feels Like Home: Reading #LoveOzYA feels so natural. Sometimes I find when I’m reading books set in other countries, I still feel a distance and sometimes I don’t understand everything. But when I read Australian YA everything feels natural, I understand everything so much better. I know places, I understand the school system, the government and everything in between. I can naturally just fall into the novel.

Unique Voices: One thing that I think that #LoveOzYA does so well is having unique voices. No one else in the world sounds like us. We all have different experiences, but there is something unique about not only characters voices but authors as well. Most of the time I can tell if a book is written by an Australian author even before knowing.

Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash

The Community: The #LoveOzYA community is fantastic. I love that it’s this big community with so many different types of people. From readers and bloggers to publishers, librarians and booksellers. It’s this amazing community that just wants to support each other and show everyone else in the world how amazing Australian authors are.

Unique Stories: I know I’ve already spoken about unique voices but there are always unique stories that I don’t think you would find anywhere else. I think unique voices and stories go hand in hand. But I think there are so many stories that Australians can tell that no one else in the world can. And that just makes me so happy.

Knowing Places: One of the issues that I have with reading books not set in Australia is not knowing where things are. I have the good gist of where countries are in the world, but when it comes to states, towns and things along those lines. I have no idea. But in regards to Australia, especially books set in Victoria. I know where things are. I know the places that they are talking about. I’ve been to a lot of them. It makes it so much easier to visualise.

Slang: I love hearing Australia slang in books, and not just the typical things that you hear in shows. But just the natural way that we talk. I love seeing words that no one else uses but I know exactly what it means. It just makes for such a fun reading experience. Because it’s so natural when we talk, that it becomes so natural when reading.

Photo by Kinga Cichewicz on Unsplash

Range of genres: This may sound stupid here, but I wanted to talk about it. Sometimes, I feel that people think that #LoveOzYA is just contemporary. And it’s not. And while contemporary Aussie YA is what you do find most of the time. There are so many amazing fantasy and dystopian novels from Aussie authors. And I just love that.

Amazing Quality: It’s not often that I love up a #LoveOzYA book and not like it. It happens of course. But it’s not often. I just find that I love everything that I read and that just makes me so happy.

And that is it for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday! Have you read any #LoveOzYA? What has been your favourite? Would you like to see a list of the Aussie YA that I think everyone should read? Let’s Chat!