Posted in Monthly Wrap-Ups

December 2023 Wrap-Up 🎅🏼

Happy Sunday, bibliophiles, and happy New Year’s Eve!

2023 has been a year of growth for me; I’ve taken a lot of leaps that I never thought I would take, and all of them paid off. December has been busy, but now that I’m home for break, I’m glad that I’ll get some rest before the end of the year.

Let’s begin, shall we?

GENERAL THOUGHTS:

First off, I hit 600 followers a few days ago! Thank you all for sticking with me for all these years. Lots of love to you all.

Most of December was fairly stressful and chaotic, what with finals and all. The good thing about being an English major is that I typically don’t have any final finals that I have to take in class, but instead, I typically have to write rather long papers and slap some portfolios together. But now it’s all done! Now, I’m nearly done with my science credits, and I recently declared a minor in Women and Gender Studies, so I’m starting those classes next semester!

Blogging and reading are always slower around this time of year—the finals slump comes for us all. College (and getting older, I suppose) has slowed down my reading speed somewhat, but it makes me glad to spend more time with books on some days. (Doesn’t mean I still blow through books in a day sometimes. Happens to the best of us. The Siren, the Song, and the Spy was incredible.) It’s also been fun to introduce some book pairings to my Sunday Songs—I’m glad I can introduce a bookish aspect to them!

Other than that, I’ve just been getting work done pre- and post-finals, putting puzzles together, drawing when I can, celebrating the holidays with my wonderful family, and starting every week eagerly looking forward to Wednesday because of the new season of Fargo. (Dear LORD, what was that ending for episode 7?????? I’m SCARED)

READING AND BLOGGING:

I read 16 books this month! Inevitably slower going because of finals, but I’ve had a ton of great books towards the end of the month! I also passed my reading goal of 200 books—I read 207 books in 2023!

2 – 2.75 stars:

The Splinter in the Sky

3 – 3.75 stars:

Margo Zimmerman Gets the Girl

4 – 4.75 stars:

Into the Heartless Wood

FAVORITE BOOK OF THE MONTH: The Siren, the Song, and the Spy4.5 stars

The Siren, the Song, and the Spy

POSTS I’M PROUD OF:

POSTS FROM OTHER WONDERFUL PEOPLE THAT I ENJOYED:

SONGS AND ALBUMS THAT I’VE BEEN ENJOYING:

excuse me while I change into an excessively flowy dress and drape myself out the window
apologies for the whiplash but I can’t wait for this album (and this show!!!)
TASTES JUST LIKE CHICKEN!
can’t wait for this album and this show either!!! love is the fing.
joy straight to the veins
I’ve been meaning to listen to this album forever, and it was 100% worth it

Today’s song:

That’s it for this year (!) in blogging! I hope you have a wonderful day, and take care of yourselves! See you in 2024!

Posted in Book Review Tuesday

Book Review Tuesday (11/13/18)-To Kill a Kingdom

Hi there, everyone, and welcome to this week’s Book Review Tuesday!

 

Before I get into today’s review, though, I have a little something to say.

I was devastated yesterday afternoon when I heard that Stan Lee had passed on. Marvel has and will always be a big and meaningul part of my life, so thank you, Mr. Lee, for all of your wonderful contributions to this world. Excelsior. 💔

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Now for the review.

I recently checked this book out at the library, convinced by many months of seemingly endless praise. (It’s already been nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award, so awesome job, Mrs. Christo!) And though it didn’t quite live up to the massive amount of hype, it was definitely a  thrilling novel. To Kill a Kingdom is a rich and dark retelling of “The Little Mermaid”, where the main character still wants the prince’s heart, but…in a different sort of way. Let’s leave it at that for now. 😏

Enjoy this week’s review!

 

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To Kill a Kingdom

Lira, princess of the Sirens, is a formidable foe, with a collection of many human hearts and a bloody appetite to match. On a quest for another heart, she accidentally kills a fellow siren instead of the human prince she’s after, and her mother, the infamous Sea Queen, gives her a punishment and a task. By the time the Winter Solstice comes, she must kill the human Prince Elian and take his heart. But it’s easier said than done-she’s trapped in the form of a human until she can complete her mission.

With her new human body, she tricks her way into the ranks of the prince’s siren-hunting crew. Elian takes Lira in as one of his own, but is still suspicious of her origins and intentions. As the Winter Solstice draws nearer, Lira becomes entangled in the affairs of the human world, but is still determined to complete her task. Will Elian’s heart be hers before time runs out?

 

 

I’ll admit, I’ve never read the original version of “The Little Mermaid”, nor seen the 1989 Disney version in full (I have hazy memories of seeing a few clips when I was a little kid), but I know the basic gist of the story. And I must say, this an incredibly well-done retelling! Alexandra Christo does an excellent job of simultaneously staying true to the original tale and giving it a twist all her own. A truly enchanting, dark, and action-packed novel. Even if you aren’t familiar with the original works, I’d highly recommend it to anyone who loves a well-crafted fantasy novel.

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I know I’ve been saying this for at least a month now, but I PROMISE that I have more than just book reviews coming in the next few days (or weeks) or so. I’ve been a little bit busier, but Thanksgiving break is coming up, so I’ll probably have some time this week and next week for some new content. I PROMISE, GUYS! SORRY!!!

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Well, I hope you have a great rest of your day, and stay warm! (Or, just…maintain a decent body temperature, depending on what the weather is where you are. Sound good?)