Tag: amreading

Top Ten Tuesday – Debut Novels I Enjoyed!

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In today’s Top Ten Tuesday post I have the pleasure of sharing my list of ten debut novels I enjoyed and would love to pass on to my fellow readers. If you’ve landed on my blog, hopefully you have some overlap in reading tastes to me so some of these recommendations appeal!

I’ve broken down the recommendations by genre, which I hope helps you find the type of book you are looking for. Unsurprisingly, I have most in the fantasy genre, but also a few mysteries and non-fictions as well.

Let’s take a look!


Fantasy

The First Binding – R.R. Virdi

I have only read one book by R.R. Virdi so far, but I will be following his future releases.

I discovered The First Binding through taking part in a blog tour with Gollancz. If you love epic fantasy novels but want something a little different to the traditional Western style, then I can’t recommend The First Binding enough!

The First Binding has a traditionally more Eastern, Silk Road type setting. Combine that with a story structure like other favourites in the fantasy genre (Patrick Rothfuss’ the Name of the Wind and Jay Kristoff’s Empire of the Vampire), you can see why I’m a fan.

 

Elantris – Brandon Sanderson

Brandon Sanderson is one of my favourite all-time authors, so I’m ecstatic to be able to share his debut novel I enjoyed immensely! 

Elantris isn’t the first book of his I read – far from it in fact. I started with his Mistborn series and delved into other works from there. Although Elantris was written earlier, I don’t think that shows too much. It’s a fantastic stand-alone novel, although I do believe there may be a sequel in the pipeline…


Blackwing – Ed McDonald

Blackwing

I also discovered Ed McDonald because of a publisher-driven blog tour. I’ve featured the latter two books of this series (Ravencry and Crowfall) on the blog and I’ve even re-read them once already.

The grittiness of the world and the magical elements to the story appeal to me. The main character, Ryhalt, is far from admirable. He’s a bitter alcoholic, yet in a curmudgeonly way that we can’t help but let him grow on us readers.

Although a trilogy, there is plenty of detail in the stories to get stuck into. It’s an approachable and immersive read. Although I haven’t picked them up yet, I’m looking forward to trying his latest series, The Redwinter Chronicles, soon!

 

The Lies of Locke Lamora – Scott Lynch

I read this series as a teenager and loved it! As it happens, I want to pick up this trilogy again. There are a real mix of dates online for a release of a fourth book in the series. However, as the new release may be early next year, I want to pick this up again ready for that. It’s been far too long for me to pick it up without a recap!

 

Mystery/Thriller

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle – Stuart Turton

The premise of The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a unique one. We witness the murder of the titular character from the bodies/perspective of a new individual every day. Aidan can only move on once he’s identified the killer.

I thought the execution of each character perspective (how they are written – there’s only one murder here!) was fantastic and I thoroughly enjoyed the story. I hope you do too!


The Chalk Man – C. J. Tudor

I’ve recommended The Chalk Man to quite a few people by now. If you haven’t read my review of the book, you can find that here.

I’m pleased to feature C.J. Tudor in this post as she is an author I have gone back to several times since reading her debut. In fact, I am currently listening to a book of hers, The Other People, right now.

If you enjoy books in the mystery or psychological thriller genre with dual timelines and plenty of 11th hour twists, The Chalk Man is a book I would strongly recommend for you!


The Appeal – Janice Hallett

The Appeal introduced me to books written in mixed media format. I absolutely loved it in this book, and I’ve gone onto read several others in the same style since!

If it’s something you haven’t read before I strongly recommend giving it a go. It’s unique – and the ever-changing format keeps your brain engaged whilst making the reading experience a little different. What I particularly enjoyed about The Appeal and this reading format is that you end up reading just as much between the lines. It’s a book I was thinking about even when I wasn’t reading it. If that’s not a compliment, I don’t know what it is!


Historical Fiction

As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow – Zoulfa Katouh

I picked up As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow as part of a book club online. Honestly, I went into this book without too much in the way of expectation as it wasn’t something I would’ve picked up otherwise. How wrong I was! I’m glad I pushed myself out of my comfort zone because this was one of my favourite reads of 2023.

The book is very cleverly written and I love the perspective it gives. The love of the characters for their home country Syria shines through. It’s not a perspective I read very often, but it’s one I look forward to picking up again!


Non-Fiction

Unmasked – Ellie Middleton

Unmasked is a great practical guide to understanding neurodivergence and how everyone can be a little more accommodating for those who think differently.

Not only that, but it’s a great insight into author Ellie and her life and experiences. She offers the advice she has collected over the years through experience and trial and error. Not everybody should have to struggle, and it is for that reason Ellie wants to try to help those who currently receive little support from the world.

 

This is Going to Hurt – Adam Kay

This is Going to Hurt is about demonstrating the dire straits in which the NHS finds itself. However, that is not all. It is a book that will have you in stitches one moment and crying the next. It’s a heart wrencher!

If you enjoy narratives that dig deep to combine both humour and sensitive topics, Adam Kay strikes up the perfect balance. I have since gone on to read his seasonal sequel, T’was the Nightshift Before Christmas. It’s just as good!


Summary

These are some of my favourite debut novels I enjoyed. Now I ask you – what is yours?

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Sunday Summary – 21st July 2024

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Good evening reading friends and welcome back to another weekly Sunday Summary update post from yours truly! It’s been a productive week and I’m really happy with what I’ve read and shared in the last week.

My first blog post of the week was a discussion post asking how many books is too many? After a recent, sizeable book haul in Liverpool it’s a question I’d been asking myself.

Friday’s feature was a Shelf Control post in which I shared a book I would cast aside all my TBR for, if only it was out yet. It’s also from one of my favourite series of all time; can you guess what it is?


Books Read


Obsidio

In last week’s Sunday Summary I shared that I had around 200 pages left of Obsidio to read. I polished those off pretty handily!

Obsidio has been a very easy read and I’ve enjoyed the conclusion of the series. The mixed media format has been fun to read at a time when I’ve been busy and it’s kept it light and interesting. I’ve enjoyed this collaboration between Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman a lot!


Master of Sorrows

After a couple of weeks of shelving this read, I picked it up again after finishing Obsidio. I only had to skip back a couple of pages to the beginning of my chapter to pick this back up, so that was nice and easy.

Over the last few days of this week, I’ve read another 150 pages of the book already. It’s the most I’ve read for a few days and the story is getting really interesting. The combination of current events and the stories about the Gods and their history are a fun combination and appeal to me a lot. I love delving into the history of the fantasy worlds I’m reading about!

I’m hopeful that I’ll be progressing with and wrapping up this book very soon! If the last few days are anything to go by, I expect nothing less!


The Other People

Having finished You Coach You last week, I’ve started a new audiobook this week. For a change, I’ve picked up a fiction read in this format – The Other People.

Already I can see why this is my mum’s favourite C.J. Tudor novel. I’ve listened to 25% of the audio this week alone and I’m hooked to find out what on earth is going on!

Given I’m quite early in the story there are a lot of threads and no indication as to what it what yet. I’m not convinced it’s going to be as simple as you can be drawn in to believe – having read C.J. Tudor before, I highly doubt that’s the case anyway!


Books Discovered

I’m sticking to my ban this week and I haven’t purchased a single book. I’ve also kept my head down and not added anything new to my reading list either 😁


Coming Up…

I’m looking forward to the content I have prepared for next week. For once I’ve decided this ahead of time rather than putting it together as I’m typing this post.

My first post of the week will be a Top Ten Tuesday post and feature debut novels I’ve read and enjoyed! Having read extensively and taken part in blog tours before, I have a great opportunity to share my list with you!

Friday’s post is a First Lines Friday. I’m setting myself a challenge to feature a non-fiction book in that post. It’s been a while since I’ve set criteria for the post; it makes it more fun and challenging to find the right book! I have an ulterior motive doing this – I need to step up my non-fiction reading little to meet my goal before the end of the year. I’m hoping this will inspire me to pick one up very soon!

As always, I’ll be wrapping up the week with another Sunday Summary post to share what I’ve been reading and all my updates with you!

If you’re still here, thanks for reading my Sunday Summary! Until next time, have a great week, and happy reading!

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Sunday Summary – 14th July 2024

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It’s been a couple of weeks since I checked in with you for a Sunday Summary update, as I was on holiday last weekend. I hope you haven’t missed me too much! In reality, I only took a week or so I was break from blogging and I was back to the usual schedule this week. Let’s recap what I’ve shared since my last Sunday Summary update.

Before my holiday last week, I shared my Monthly Wrap-Up post recapping progress made in June. I read more than I thought I did last month, so I’m not disappointed with progress. I hadn’t taken into account progressing with carryovers from May. So in the end, I did reasonably well.

My first post of the week this week was my Mid Year Check In post. In this post, I took a look at the resolutions and reading goals I set myself in January and updated you on my progress. I have some action steps to take to try and meet some of my goals before the end of the year. I don’t expect to complete my Goodreads Challenge this year, but I will try to get as close as I can!

Next, I shared my Monthly TBR for July on Friday. That reading list includes the books I’m carrying over from June, with just a couple of new ones to give myself a chance to catch up. If you’re interested to see what I’m going to be reading in the next few weeks, that is the post to take a look at.

 

Books Read

 

Obsidio

In my Sunday Summary post a fortnight ago, I shared that I had started Obsidio and that I was only around 50 pages in. I took this book with me when we went to Liverpool mainly so I had something to read on the boat. I didn’t expect to read too much whilst I was away so there was no pressure from my side to do so.

I’ve continued with this book this week as it’s a nice and easy one to pick up. At work, quarter end is quite a big deal and it’s one of my busiest periods. Being able to pick up an easy read with multiple media formats has kept my brain interested. It’s also a lot more approachable to pick up and read in short bursts, as that’s the time I’ve had available.

As of this post, I have read a further 350 pages since my last update. I’m now down to just 200 until the books conclusion. I’ll be pushing on with this in the next couple of days and I’m looking forward to the end of the series (mostly!). I will be sad when it’s done though!

 

You Coach You

In this Sunday Summary update I get to share completion of my audiobook listen of You Coach You by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis.

I really enjoyed this audiobook, so much so that I followed through with my promise to get a physical copy. It’s definitely a resource I’m going to go back to again and again, and I might even keep it at work handy.

If you’re interested in self development and career progression, I cannot recommend this book enough! Not only that, but Helen and Sarah also publish lots of free material via their podcast and worksheets. There’s no financial commitment to benefit from their insight! If you want to try them material before investing in a book like this, I would definitely point you to their podcast, The Squiggly Career.

 

Books Discovered

I am here to confess my sins, and this section could potentially be quite a long one. When shopping in Liverpool last week I had the pleasure of a Waterstones store 3X bigger than at home, and only a stones throw away from our hotel room. You can guess what’s coming right? A book haul!

I bought no less than 11 books in that store alone, as well as one in The Works, and one in Tesco for my mum. Then, I grabbed myself a couple off Amazon and finally I picked up one in Tesco for me when I was back home!

I’m not going to beat myself up too much because I saved for that shopping trip and I might as well buy something I love! I may have to lay off buying books for a while a year though…

I picked up anything and everything… from Fantasy to non-fiction, with a good deal of historical (fiction and not) thrown in. It’s fair to say I picked up a variety.

 

Coming Up…

With being back home and the majority of my work commitments now covered, I will be back to my usual level of commitment when it comes to both blogging and reading next week.

My first post of the week will be a discussion post. With the subject of how many books I’ve acquired recently on my mind, I ask the question, how many is too many?

On Friday, I’ll be back with a regular Friday feature. This week, that’s a Shelf Control post. In that post, I’ll feature an upcoming read on my TBR, why I added it to my list and why I’m looking forward to reading it.

Last, but certainly not least, I’ll be back with another Sunday Summary update at the end of the week. Fingers crossed, I’ll have fewer no new books added to the list… 

Have you bought any new books recently?

 

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Monthly TBR – July 2024

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Given we’re about a third of the way into July, I’m overdue sharing my monthly TBR, no?

In today’s post I have a great range of books to share that I plan for read in the next few weeks. You’ll have seen a good few of them before as they are carryovers. At the same time, I have a few new faces too, so let’s get stuck in!

 

Fixed Reads


You Coach You

My last current read and carryover is You Coach You by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis.

As of this monthly TBR I have actually just finished this audiobook this morning. However, I spent at least a couple of hours this month getting to that point so it’s going on this TBR to mark that progress effort.

I’ve enjoyed this audio so much and see the value in its content that I’ve just ordered a paperback copy to refer back to and re-read in future!


Master of Sorrows


Master of Sorrows is on yet another monthly TBR… but not as a non-starter this time!

I’ve been trying to read the book since February and I finally started it last month. It is, however, a current read so it makes it onto July’s monthly TBR as a carryover. Can I say, may it please be the last?!

I’m about halfway through the book, so there’s no reason I won’t be completing this soon!


Obsidio

Another carryover from my June TBR is Obsidio by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman.

I started this last book in the Illuminae files trilogy last month after accidentally leaving Master of Sorrows at work. It’s been a refreshing change to read a mixed media book again! It’ll also be even better to be able to mark this series as complete once I’ve finished it. I’ll be sad to see it end, but there is another sci-fi series they’ve co-written I could pick up…

As of this post, I’m around a third of the way into the book. It’s a quick read, so again, I expect to finish it before long.


Mood Reads


The Other People

The only book on my June TBR I didn’t get to is The Other People by C.J. Tudor. It’s mum’s favourite book of hers so far, so I’m really looking forward to reading it this month instead.

I haven’t picked up a mystery novel at all this year, so it will make a refreshing change! I’ve enjoyed two of C.J. Tudor’s books already, so I have high hopes for this one!


Defiant

With my Mid Year Check In and Summer TBR posts still fresh in my mind, I’m adding a book to this monthly TBR that will earn me another series completion.

Defiant is the last book in Brandon Sanderson’s Skyward series. Honestly, I’ll be sad to get to the end of it, but I also want to see how Spensa’s story ends. For a series to which I’m not the target demographic, I’m getting on with it really well. Equally, I haven’t met a Sanderson book I’ve disliked…

Let’s hope I’ve met jinxed it!


The Power of Habit

Another selection with my 2024 reading goals in mind is a recent acquisition. The Power of Habit is both a non-fiction book and will, with any luck, help towards my blogging goal of using social media more!

In theory this is a win-win read, but we’ll see how that works out in practice.


Summary

July’s monthly TBR reflects a reading month in which I plan to catch up with ongoing reads. However, there are also a couple of new books I’m introducing here. I’m not planning a long list that I think is unachievable, so here’s to a productive month! 

 

Have you read any of the books on this monthly TBR? Do you have any tips on how I can get better at making social media a habit?

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2024 Mid Year Check In!

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Hello friends – after a week off it’s great to be back! In today’s mid year check in post, I’m taking a look at progress against my 2024 reading resolutions…

When I set my 2024 New Year Resolutions, I was ambitious in my goal-setting. I had a fresh start, plenty of reading motivation and a stack of great books. I still have that fab stack… and the motivation, but what I have encountered is a change of circumstances in the time I have available.

In January I read a whopping eight books, if that gives you an idea of the mindset I was in. However, at the beginning of February I started seeing my boyfriend. As such, my time available and priorities changed from then on. I’m still reading and blogging as they are hobbies I love. But, simply put, I don’t have the same amount of time for it.

And that’s okay! As you’ll see below, I’m still very happy with the amount I’m reading; I’ve not had to compromise the blog schedule yet either. But, I’m naturally not in a position to push myself in the same way as I anticipated at the beginning of the year.

Let’s take a look at the goals I set myself and check in on my progress against them.

 

Reading Goals: –

Goal: Goodreads Challenge – 60 Books

Current Progress: 23/60 Books Read

As of this mid year check in post, I am a little behind with this reading goal. But, given the change in circumstances I’m very happy with how much I’m still reading.

In some ways I have adapted my reading style in order to keep up. I’m listening to more audiobooks compared with last year and making the most of time available to listen. For example, I listen to a lot of audio whilst driving in the car, or even when pottering around the house cleaning or tidying.

Another change is that I’m not taking part as many blog tours as I was before. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, however. With the amount of books I have on the back list, it’s sensible that I am now looking to prioritise that over new releases. It also works well with another reading goal I feature in this check in… but I’ll cover that later.

 

Goal: Read >15 non-fiction

Current Progress: 5/15 NF Books Read

Although I am also a little behind on the reading of non-fiction for this year, it’s interesting to note that the percentage progress is not dissimilar to that of my Goodreads Challenge. In short, if I was reading enough books to get completion in that challenge by the end of the year, I would also meet this one.

As of drafting this check in update, I have completed five non-fiction reads this year. In addition to those, I am also currently listening to You Coach You by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis. So, I’m fast approaching 6/15.

The good thing about covering these reading goals is that it gives me the opportunity to adjust how I am tackling them. Now that I know I’m a little behind schedule, I’ll make more time to pick up non-fiction more frequently than I do currently. It won’t be a dramatic change, but it is a change I can control.

It works in my favour that I have been adding and picking up more non-fiction books to my TBR of late. I have plenty to choose from and get stuck into!

 

Goal: Finish 10 series by the end of the year

Current Progress: 5/10 series up to date or finished

I thought my progress against this goal would be terrible, but I find myself surprised. In order to assess myself against this goal in this check in, I am including completion of finished series (obviously), but also current ongoing series that I’m up-to-date with.

For example, I have been reading the Eagle of Mercia Chronicles by M.J. Porter in the last few years. As of this check in post, I have read all five of the five currently published books in the series. I physically cannot read any more of the series right now, so that counts as a point.

As of this post, I have caught up-to-date with, or have completed, five out of ten series. That puts me right on track! As a bonus, I will soon complete Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman’s The Illuminae Files. I don’t think any adjustments need to be made with regards to how I’m approaching this goal – I just need to keep it in perspective when setting my monthly reading lists to make sure it remains a priority.

 

Blogging Goals: –

Make Social Media a Habit

In my resolution post, I set myself a brand-new goal for the year, and I confess this one has fallen off a cliff.

With the change of circumstances and all that, I have not been very good with social media this year. In truth, I haven’t seriously considered my Instagram account since late February and I’m just as pitiful on Threads, Facebook et al.

This is something I do want to get back to, but I need to be more realistic about how I fit this in. When I set myself this goal I wanted to try to structure and curate my content a little more artistically and thoughtfully.

If I’m honest with myself, I need to be more realistic in my expectations for the time commitment I can put into social media. As of right now, this is a prompt for me to try and get back on social media full stop. Low expectations, no drastic plans for improvement or anything like that. Get back to posting on the platforms more regularly.

I’ll take that as a win if I can achieve that by the end of the year!

Thanks for reading today’s mid year check in!

What reading goals did you set yourself in 2024 and how are you progressing towards them?

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Monthly Wrap-Up – June 2024

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It’s scary how we’re back for another monthly wrap-up post already. Not only that, but we’re now halfway through the year! I’m curious to see how my half year stats and progress look compared to my reading goals. If you are too, I’ll be posting that update next week. Stay tuned.

For now though, we’re limiting scope to my reading progress against my June TBR. I don’t feel I’ve done that well this month as reading has been slow, but let’s see…

Books Read

Terry Pratchett: A Life with Footnotes

When I left off in last month’s monthly wrap-up post, I had just under 50% of the audiobook to go. It was more than I remembered, so I don’t feel so hard on myself for reading progress any more!

I loved this audio, although naturally the content at the end of the book was very sad. Still, I’m glad I read it! I really admire Terry and now I know more about his life beyond the documentary I’ve watched. That was interesting too, but this audio was far more intimate and knowledgeable over a longer stretch of time.

The Long Earth

Another Terry Pratchett book I carried over into June is The Long Earth. As of my last monthly wrap-up I was 65% into this book.

I enjoyed this jaunt into science-fiction with Terry and Stephen Baxter and I’m interested to see where the rest of the series takes us. From where we left off in The Long Earth, the series could really go anywhere. I’m interested to see where that is!

The talents of both authors shine through in this book as the lighthearted humour contributed by Terry blends well with the science-fiction elements that can only come from Stephen.

Master of Sorrows

I have intended to get to Master of Sorrows since February this year. June is finally the month I started the book. It’s been a long time coming, and so far I’m really enjoying the story.

As of this monthly wrap-up post, I’m just over 200 pages, or 45%, into this book. I’m so glad I’m now reading it and that I picked up the sequel a couple of weeks ago. That can be risky business, but fellow bloggers I follow have raved about these books so I was always confident I’d enjoy it!

I can’t wait to share more as I make further progress.

You Coach You

After finishing my listen of Terry Pratchett: A Life with Footnotes, I started You Coach You by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis.

I love these pair! I listen to a podcast they run called Squiggly Careers. If you ever want a resource for developing skills personally or at work, this is where I would point anyone. I’ve obviously paid for the audiobook, but they share a lot of free content as well. It’s approachable and engaging to all!

I’m 60% through the audio at the end of June. I love the formatting of the book and how it’s come together. I’ve already decided I want a copy in physical format to refer back to again in future as and when I need it! The audiobook also comes with a lot of supplementary content. Admittedly I’ve not looked at it all yet – that’s for after listening 😊

So far it’s proving a good resource and an engaging listen!

Obsidio

I always intended to pick up Obsidio this month… however not in the circumstances I did.

There were a couple of days last week when I had left Master of Sorrows on my desk at work. As a result, I couldn’t read it during the evening. So, instead I picked up Obsidio. It’s a nice light read, a conclusion of a series I’m part-way through and it was on my TBR already. Win-win!

As of this monthly wrap-up post to the end of June I’m 95 pages in and looking forward to reading more very soon!

Summary

Admittedly I’ve read more than I thought. On my June TBR I haven’t made a whole bunch of progress. However, I wasn’t taking into consideration the books I carried over from my last update.

What have you read this last month? Do you have any recommendations?

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Sunday Summary – 30th June 2024

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Good evening friends and welcome to this Sunday Summary catch up! It’s the end of another week and honestly, they are absolutely flying by. We’re at the end of June already! Next week is going to be hectic with work as it’s quarter end, but I do have a little holiday to look forward to.

With that said, check out the coming up section in today’s Sunday Summary below as I’ll let you know about changes to my blogging schedule there. For now though, let’s get into what I shared this week:-

My first post of the week was a book review for Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez. I really enjoyed this non-fiction book (with an obvious feminism slant) and it was a real eye-opener in terms of the variety of ways in which women are disadvantaged in today’s society. If you’re interested in this kind of book, above is a link to my review so you can take a look for yourself.

On Friday I shared the next instalment in my First Lines Friday series with the opening lines to the last instalment of a young adult sci-fi series I am currently reading. The author is also one of my favourites of all time. If you’re a regular reader, you may be able to guess who this is. If not, go check out that post here!

 

Books Read


Master of Sorrows

I confess that I haven’t read much this week. Reading has been pretty much limited to my lunch hours, and even then I ran errands on a couple of those days.

Progress in Master of Sorrows this week amounts to only 70 odd pages. However, in the 70 pages also I have read I feel like the story has progressed quite a bit and I’m looking forward to seeing what happens in Annev’s final test.

I would have read more of this book this week, but for the fact that I accidentally left it at work twice. I couldn’t pick it up in the evening like I intended twice! Instead, I ended up picking up a second book to read at home…


Obsidio

Obsidio was on my June TBR anyway, so I picked this up on both occasions when I left Master of Sorrows at work.

As such, I’ve read just shy of the first 50 pages of this last instalment in The Illuminae files series. I’m also enjoying this one already. We have some new faces to the story and I hope all the characters we’ve met to date come together for an epic conclusion.

I have the advantage of Obsidio and Master of Sorrows being very different from each other. Where Master of Sorrows is a traditionally written adult fantasy novel, Obsidio is a young adult science-fiction written in mixed media format. Both have been very easy to keep track of in tandem. My intention is to prioritise Master of Sorrows as that was always my original read. However, if I do fancy a change there will be no problem whatsoever in picking up Obsidio in between.


You Coach You

Progress in You Coach You amounts to another hour’s listening time this week.

It’s not a lot of progress, but at least I did pick it up a bit. In some senses, I feel like this book isn’t the type you want to rush through anyway. If you really want to make the most of the content, you have to take the time to go through it and reflect on each chapter rather than just jumping into the next one.

Once I’ve listened to this book, I plan to download the extra content that comes with it and have a go at the exercises in areas I think I would benefit from. I may even end up purchasing myself a copy of this book so I can refer back to it again. It’s that kind of resource book you want to keep hold of!


Books Discovered

I was little naughty and bought myself one book this week, which isn’t too bad. However, I was also gifted three in a series. At the same time, this was already on my reading list so it saves me purchasing a copy later. I’ll justify it anyhow 😁

The book I bought was The Tw*t Files by Dawn French. I bought it on a whim on the basis that it sounded hilarious, but it will also be a good read in terms of building self-confidence. It seems we all muck up from time to time. If someone famous can do it, then so can I!

The series I was gifted is Thomas Harris‘s Hannibal Lector trilogy. I already had Red Dragon on my reading list to pick up at some point in the future. Naturally, enjoying this book would go onto purchasing the rest of the series. My work friend Brita previously owned these books. Rather than taking them to a charity shop, she offered them to me first in case I was interested.. .and I was!


Coming Up…

Next week, due to work commitments and then a long weekend away, I only plan to share one post with you. As it’s the beginning of July, I will conclude June by sharing my monthly wrap-up post. After that, it feels like a good place to stop and enjoy my short break. I honestly don’t know how well I would be able to juggle blogging on the holiday in any case.

Instead, I will be back with you a week later with my monthly TBR for July, a half yearly review of progress in 2024 so far, and finally a Sunday Summary. That will all be in the week commencing the 8th of July. After that, we should be back to usual scheduling!


That’s all from me though in this Sunday Summary post. Thanks for reading! 

What books are you reading/listening to?

 

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Book Review: Invisible Women – Caroline Criado Perez

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Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez is a book that will naturally gravitate to more of a female audience. However, I would stress the importance of everybody reading this book. There is a lot of content in here that puts into perspective the female experience and why we are on the back foot of society.

From women in poorer countries being afraid to use the communal bathroom at night for fear of assault, to female crash test dummies not being regularly used when developing safety features in cars, there’s a lot to unpack!


Invisible Women – Caroline Criado Perez

Genre: Non-fiction

Pages: 411

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Portfolio

Publication Date: 12 Mar 2019

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟


Goodreads –  Invisible Women

 

Discover the shocking gender bias that affects our everyday lives.

‘HELL YES. This is one of those books that has the potential to change things – a monumental piece of research’ Caitlin Moran

Imagine a world where…

· Your phone is too big for your hand

· Your doctor prescribes a drug that is wrong for your body

· In a car accident you are 47% more likely to be injured.

If any of that sounds familiar, chances are you’re a woman.

From government policy and medical research, to technology, workplaces, and the media. Invisible Women reveals how in a world built for and by men we are systematically ignoring half of the population, often with disastrous consequences. Caroline Criado Perez brings together for the first time an impressive range of case studies, stories and new research from across the world that illustrate the hidden ways in which women are forgotten, and the profound impact this has on us all.


My Thoughts

If you feel women are under represented in society, then Invisible Women will reinforce that belief. The book focuses on data bias and how women are pushed to the background by an absence of data.

If you’ve ever wondered why speech recognition software picks up and understands the male voice better than a woman’s, it is because the data provided to the software in development is skewed by data bias. Sample data used features the male voice compared to female representation.

In the same example of vehicles above, car safety standards do not account for female differences in bone density and anatomical differences. In the past, women have been represented in tests with a scaled down male dummy. And even then, only until recently, in the passenger seat only…

It is these examples and more beside that should make readers angry. Although a non-fiction book, I found Invisible Women interesting and provocative in the right way. It made me want to advocate for my rights as a woman and for all the others out there who are currently not treated fairly.

The book covers a wide range of topics. From  personal to the workplace, and far more besides. There is something we can all relate to in this book. It goes a long way to stress that the problem is not limited to a small subset of the population. It affects all women.


Summary

I have gone on to recommend Invisible Women to a few people now, and it is out on loan at the moment to a friend of mine. Here I recommend it to you. Although it will naturally gravitate more towards women in the audience it attracts, I stress it’s important for everyone to read this book.


Have you read Invisible Women? Does it grab your attention and make you want to read it?

 

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Sunday Summary – 23rd June 2024

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It’s the end of yet another week, so I’m back with my next Sunday Summary update to tell you what I’ve been up to this week.

At the beginning of the week I shared a Top Ten Tuesday post. The subject of that post was my Summer 2024 TBR. I quite enjoyed writing these themed posts in 2023, and so I’ve decided to bring them back in 2024! If you want to find out what I plan to read over the next few months, that’s the post to take a sneaky look at…

On Friday, I posted another Shelf Control regular feature. In this week’s post, I featured a Stephen King novel that I’m looking forward to picking up. I want to make my way through his books anyway, but the synopsis of this one particularly caught my eye.


Books Read


Master of Sorrows

In last week’s Sunday Summary update, I shared that I had just started Master of Sorrows by Justin Call. It’s been a long time coming, but I’m glad I’ve finally picked up this book!

As of today’s Sunday Summary, I am 136 pages, or 30%, into the story so far. What I have read so far has made for an interesting introduction and I’m curious to see where events in the book are going to take us.


You Coach You

Audiobook progress has also been a little slower this week, but also an enjoyable pace. I’ve listened to just over another hour of You Coach You by Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis. I’ve just finished chapter 3 and ready to move onto the self-belief chapter.

I like the format that this book is taking so far. The book is well structured and gives plenty of examples and opportunities for readers to coach themselves, and teach themselves how to coach themselves going forward in different circumstances.

I’m looking forward to listening to more of this book in the coming weeks.


Books Discovered

After last week’s deluge of books, I am on a strict buying ban. I haven’t added anything new to my reading list without purchasing them either, so it’s a quiet week!


Coming Up…

My first post of next week is going to be a book review of Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez. I already had some idea of the content covered in this book when I picked it up. But, reading this really made me appreciate how much the world isn’t really designed for women. We’ll go into some of that, and more besides in my review in the next few days.

Later this week, I’ll be back with another regular Friday feature. This time, it’ll be the turn of First Lines Friday. Once again, I’m going to keep the post unthemed and not set myself any kind of challenge towards this week’s selection. I hope you enjoy it when that post goes live!

Hardly surprising I know, but my last post of the week will be my Sunday Summary weekly update.

That’s all from me in this week’s instalment though! What are you reading right now?

 

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Top Ten Tuesday – Summer 2024 TBR

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In today’s Top Ten Tuesday, I’ll be making plans for my Summer 2024 TBR and sharing the top ten books I plan to read this summer season.

Some of the books on this Top Ten Tuesday list carried over from my Winter 2023 TBR. This is the last time I did a post of this type, and given I enjoyed it so much last year, I’m bringing it back. I also want to keep myself accountable to these reading lists, so before publishing the next one I’ll be doing a check-in of what I have actually read from the list I’ve set.

Now, with that out of the way, shall we get into today’s Top Ten Tuesday list?

Summer 2024 TBR


Obsidio

Having nearly concluded The Illuminae Files trilogy, I’m keen to pick up this last book and to be able to mark the trilogy as complete. But, this is more than a tick box exercise. I have really enjoyed reading this young adult sci-fi series and seeing how the storylines come together.

I plan to pick up Obsidio later this month, so watch this space!

 

Wolves of the Calla

Another series I want to progress with him the near future is Stephen King’s The Dark Tower. Wolves of the Calla is a chunky instalment in the series, and I’m looking forward to getting stuck in.

Book in the series, Wizard and Glass, did not carry on the present-day storyline like I expected. Instead, it takes us back to the history of events to date and explains a lot about what’s been hinted at in the books. I’m hoping for a jump back to the present day so we can pick up the storyline again.


The Good Samaritan

I enjoyed listening to The Minders by John Marrs towards the end of last year. Having finished that book, I knew I wanted to pick up another of his soon.

The Good Samaritan has been on my reading list for a good while, so that is the book I want to pick up next. I’m also really intrigued by the synopsis and the conflict that I expect in this book.


Undoctored

I love Adam Kay’s writing style for his humour. As of today, I’ve already enjoyed reading both This is Going to Hurt, and his festive themed book,T’was the Nightshift Before Christmas.

I’m looking forward to going back to his non-Christmas themed writing. His books are full of humour, even though they discuss important and very thought-provoking, emotional topics.

 

The Kingdom

I added The Kingdom to my Winter 2023 TBR but never got to it. I’ve decided to carry it forward as I like the sound of the synopsis.

As fiction goes, it’s a little different to what I typically pick up. I was taken with the synopsis after hearing about the book on the Currently Reading podcast. Given it’s been an intention of mine to read the book for a while, I’ll try to include it on July’s TBR.


Jingo

If you follow my blog you’ll know that in the last couple of weeks, I’ve read two books written by, or about, Terry Pratchett. Neither of them were Discworld, but the autobiography has inspired me to continue with the next Discworld book and keep momentum going with the series.


Fool’s Errand

Another series I’m keen to keep progressing with is Robin Hobb’s Realm of the Elderlings series.

Fool’s Errand is the start of a new mini-series within the wider Realm of the Elderlings collection. It also goes back to a set of characters that we have seen previously in the first miniseries, the Farseer trilogy. I’m excited to see how these characters have moved on since those first books!


Breathtaking

I recently featured Breathtaking in a First Lines Friday post. Honestly, that introduction caught my attention so hard that I really want to read this book. I’ve also recently watched the TV documentary based on it, so it’s a topic that I want to explore more of.

I appreciate not everybody wants to deal with such a topic, but I think it’s important we as a society highlight what went wrong. Why were we were so unprepared, and how can we try and prevent the same mistakes being made in future?


Defiant

Another series I want to catch up on over the course of the summer is Brandon Sanderson‘s Skyward series. Last year I read Cytonic, which at the time was the last book published. However, a couple of short months later, this next instalment, Defiant, was published.

Now that I am reasonably on track with the series, I want to keep up with these as and when they come out. I’m a little late in starting Defiant as this came out in around November last year. But, reading this will mean I am back on track with the series and I can give myself a good old tick against my series goal!


Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon

The last book on this Top Ten Tuesday list is another non-fiction. With the next series of House of the Dragon coming out imminently, I want to read my copy of Fire Cannot Kill a Dragon.

If you are unfamiliar, this book is about the main Game of Thrones series. I honestly love it so much that I can read that, any spin off books and any books about the whole process and not get bored. It’s fat to say I am a little obsessed…


Have you read any of the books featured in my Top Ten Tuesday? Have any of them caught your eye and made you want to read them for yourself?

 

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