Tag: bookworm

Shelf Control #37 – 15/10/2021

Posted on October 15, 2021 by fantasyst95

Happy Friday everyone and welcome to my Shelf Control post! Shelf Control is a regular feature here and is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a weekly celebration of the unread books on our shelves. Pick a book you own but haven’t read, write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up!

For more info on what Shelf Control is all about, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

I’ve been sharing these posts regularly so I can continue to review the books on my TBR and decide if I still want to read them. Over the last couple of years my reading taste has changed. A book on my list, added a couple of years ago, may no longer for me. I have genuinely taken a few books off this list by doing these posts. It’s a productive exercise and gives me some bookish content to share with you. And who knows, by featuring those books I still want to read, maybe I can introduce you to something that will take your fancy as well!

This week’s featured book is : –

Soul Identity – Dennis Batchelder

Goodreads – Soul Identity

You can’t take it with you… but what if you could? Most people believe their souls outlive their bodies. Most people would find an organization that tracks their souls into the future and passes on their banked money and memories compelling. Scott Waverly isn’t like most people. He spends his days finding and fixing computer security holes. And Scott is skeptical of his new client’s claim that they have been calculating and tracking soul identities for almost twenty-six hundred years. Are they running a freaky cult? Or a sophisticated con job? Scott needs to save Soul Identity from an insider attack. Along the way, he discovers the importance of the bridges connecting people’s lives.

My Thoughts…

I’m reading more science-fiction than ever before. It’s a genre I’ve always enjoyed but in the past I tended to read more fantasy. This is something I’m actively looking to change, and this change started a couple of years ago when I started adding more science fiction books to my list. Soul Identity is one of those books. I really like the sound of the book and I don’t think I’ve seen anything like it to date!

This has a lot of elements to it. It seems like one of those books that is very difficult to pigeonhole into a certain genre because it has so many overlaps. There is an element of mystery here, perhaps even crime. Because of that though, I’m confident that I’ll enjoy it and that many others will too! I enjoy most genres and so something in this book will appeal to me.

Have you read Soul Identity? Would you recommend it? As always I would love to know!

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

Sunday Summary – 10th October 2021

Posted on October 10, 2021 by fantasyst95

Sunday evening can only mean the end of another week… and that it’s time for my Sunday Summary post! It also means I have to get up early for work in the morning, but let’s not dwell on that bit! Instead, let’s look at what I’ve done this week!

Earlier this week I shared my Monthly Wrap-Up post for September 2021. This type of post has replaced my previous reading list; instead of sharing my planned reads for the month ahead of time, I’m recapping what I have read instead. I currently prefer this format as it puts less pressure on me to get through a certain number of books a month. In that post, I also take the opportunity to share links to the posts I’ve shared on my blog over the period. So, if you want a reminder of what I’ve read this month, and want to make sure you haven’t missed any blog posts, go and check out that post now!

On Friday I shared a First Lines Friday post. For this post, I hadn’t set myself a challenge to feature a certain type of book. Instead, I had a full rain did use whatever I like, and I ultimately chose a book based on a recommendation on my Goodreads discover tab. Whilst the book isn’t on my TBR, I have considered it. I like the sound of the premise and it’s recently been made into a popular film. Can you guess what it is based on the shared introduction?

Books Read

As of last week’s Sunday Summary update post, I was a third of the way through Red Rising by Pierce Brown. It’s fair to say from the pace in which I read the book that I really enjoyed this, because I finished this on Thursday! The next book in the series is already on my list to pick up. I really enjoyed the narrative and the combination of science fiction, action and it’s dystopian vibe.

After Red Rising I was at a bit of a loss as to what to read next. After reading such a great book it’s intimidating to find something else that will live up to it. After some deliberation I decided to turn to a firm favourite. I had to read a little reminder as to what happened in the previous book first, but I have decided to pick up Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson.

I deliberately didn’t read this too quickly after the first book. The Stormlight Archives series is planned to be ten books and currently only four (or so) are published. I didn’t want to read this too quickly and end up waiting a long time for the subsequent books. However, I think it’s been a couple of years since picking up The Way of Kings. That’s a decent amount of time to wait to be able to enjoy the next book. And it’s an epic. I’ve just over 1000 pages I have plenty to dive into!

Books Discovered

Aside from adding Golden Sun (the sequel to Red Rising), there’s nothing to add here. And since I ticked Red Rising off the list when I finished it, does this count as it nets off?

Coming Up…

It has been a few weeks since I shared an audiobook review with you, and so my plan is to share my thoughts on Whispers Underground by Ben Aaronovitch this week. I remember listening to this last year whilst I was doing some redecorating round the house. Sometimes this doesn’t feel like it was over a year ago and yet it certainly was! So it’s definitely time for me to share my review with you.

Later in the week I’ll be back with a Shelf Control post. This week’s featured book has a sci-fi theme with an interesting premise. I can’t wait to share with you!

However, that is all from me in today’s post. As always, I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s Sunday Summary update, and I look forward to seeing you in my next post!

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

First Lines Friday – 08/10/2021

Posted on October 8, 2021 by fantasyst95

Today I’m sharing another First Lines Friday post with you! If you are new to my blog, and this is a regular (fortnightly) series in which I take the opportunity to share the opening introductions of a variety of books. These may be books I’ve already read, are looking to read, or am even just a little bit intrigued about.

Sometimes I set myself a challenge with these posts, however this week I decided to leave it open. Sometimes it’s nice to have full creative freedom with my choice, and I hope this week’s featured book does not disappoint!

Shall we get into it?

Everyone my age remembers where they were and what they were doing when they first heard about the contest. I was sitting in my hideout watching cartoons when the news bulletin broke in on my video feed, announcing that James Halliday had died during the night.

I’d heard of Halliday, of course. Everyone had. He was the videogame designer responsible for creating the OASIS, a massively multiplayer online game that gradually evolved into the global network virtual reality most of humanity now used on a daily basis. The unprecedented success of the OASIS had made Halliday one of the wealthiest people in the world.

At first, I couldn’t understand why the media was making such a big deal of the billionaire’s death. After all, the people of planet Earth had other concerns. The ongoing energy crisis. Catastrophic climate change. Widespread famine, poverty, and disease. Half a dozen wars. You know: “dogs and cats living together… Mass hysteria!” Normally, the newsfeeds didn’t interrupt everyone’s interactive sitcoms and soap operas unless something really major had happened. Like the outbreak of some new killer virus, or another major city vanishing in a mushroom cloud. Big stuff like that. As famous as he was, Halliday’s death should have warranted only a brief segment on the evening news, so the unwashed masses could shake their heads in envy when the newscasters announced the obscenely large amount of money that would be doled out to the rich man’s heirs.

But that was the rub. James Halliday had no heirs.

Ready Player One – Ernest Cline

Goodreads – Ready Player One

IN THE YEAR 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade’s devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world’s digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator’s obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them.

But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade’s going to survive, he’ll have to win—and confront the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.