Tag: dystopia

Monthly Wrap-Up – March 2026

Posted on March 31, 2026 by fantasyst95

***Today’s monthly-wrap-up contains an affiliate link to Amazon if you wish to purchase the book. If you follow this link, I will earn a small commission from that purchase at no cost to you.

If you wish to obtain a copy of the book based on this review, I would really appreciate you following this link and showing my content some support by making your purchase***

This March, I set myself a very ambitious TBR. With hopes that I could read and get all the achievements in the Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge, I set myself a long list of books on top of my reading obligations. It was always going to be a big push, so I’m not too disappointed I didn’t get through everything. I am the type of person who thrives on a target or deadline. I’m not disheartened I didn’t quite get there; I’ve gotten the closest I ever have. And, if at first you don’t succeed… try, try again!

Before I get ahead of myself, back to my March reading list and monthly wrap-up updates!

Books Read

Throne of Glass

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

I’ve set myself a challenge this year to read Sarah J. Maas Throne of Glass series. Unfortunately timing slipped a little and I ended up carrying the end of book 1 forward into March. As timing goes, I’ve extended book 2, Crown of Midnight, into April. So, if you have yet to join in my readalong you have time to catch up with Throne of Glass and read Crown of Midnight with me in the coming weeks.

Throne of Glass surprised me in the best of ways. For a romantasy book, the fantasy elements of the plot weighed in heavier than the romance. That suits me. As someone who isn’t really a romance reader, I could get comfortable with the romance sub-plot without it distracting from everything else going on in the wider world. The world-building and intrigue behind the main characters was on-point. My sister was right to recommend this series to me – it’s definitely fantasy first, and I’m excited to read on and discover more about this world and events that I expect to play out.

Wild Dark Shore

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

Wild Dark Shore was a fun read, if not quite the book I expected it would be. Set on an isolated island, an intriguing mystery unfolds when a woman washes up on the remote, barely inhabited island.

The descriptions in this book are beautiful and make for an easy experience visualising the setting. It’s desolate, dark in places and it was a refreshing change. I’ve enjoyed picking up a thriller with an interesting and bit different premise this month. The family left on this island are waiting for their last boat off. The seed bank based here for protection being emptied. The tides are rising dangerously, as Rowan knows all too well when she nearly loses her life in the waves.

The atmosphere in this books is spot on. Both reverence for the beauty and power of nature and sinister vibes shine through in the narrative. I had a library loan return deadline for this book, but I didn’t really need it. I stayed up late into the night finishing this one. Fabulous read. 10/10

1984

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

A book I started this month, but will get carried over due to competing priorities, is George Orwell’s 1984.

This is my third time reading the book. As anticipated, I’m enjoying revisiting this classic dystopian novel and reminding myself of the details. The reason I picked this up was so I could then go on to read Julia by Sandra Newman towards the Retellings prompt in the Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to this book in time to earn the award, but I will still carry this forward into April.

Aside from meeting the retellings award, I set myself a personal challenge to read both 1984 and Julia back-to-back. These books are on my fixed reads list for 2026. So, watch this space for a return to this dystopian world very soon…

As of this monthly wrap-up, I’m 127 pages or around third of the way through the book. Fingers crossed the remainder of the book flies by and I can get to Julia imminently.

An Arcane Inheritance

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

My first audiobook of March was An Arcane Inheritance. This book qualified for the Black Heritage achievement in the Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge.

I had added this book to my TBR back in January anyway. Thanks to the challenge, this was pulled forward a little earlier than I would have likely read it. And you know what, I’m glad! It’s been a hot minute since I picked up a dark academia book. I loved returning to the genre and this cultural twist into the narrative. The magic was intriguing and like Wild Dark Shore, I loved the underpinning mystery to the storyline.

As a result of reading this, Kamiliah Cole and future books are on my radar. I can’t wait to try more of her books. If they live up to An Arcane Inheritance, I won’t be disappointed!

The Astral Library

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

The final audiobook to feature in this monthly wrap-up post is The Astral Library. Reading progress with The Astral Library has been pretty quick. It’s not an overlong read anyway, but the plot line is engaging and reminiscent of another of my favourite reads.

Reading a book about books, and featuring snapshots of well-known titles, makes for an entertaining change of angle. Dipping in and out of the margins of classics has been fun, but of course, it’s not over yet. As of this monthly wrap-up, I’ve got three hours of audio left. I’ve chipped away at this audiobook commuting and listening a little before bed. I can reasonably listen to an hour a day. So, I’m sure you can do the maths and come to the same conclusion that I’ll finish this one shortly!

Rose Red

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

One of my final reads to feature in this monthly wrap-up is Rose Red by Sarah Biggerstaff. Progress with 1984 stalled as I needed to prioritise reading Rose Red for a social media blog tour.

This fairytale retelling was a fun foray into fantasy… again. It’s my favourite genre for a reason, and I always love going back to it. More than that, though, this Snow White inspired tale has elements of witchcraft, romance and challenging family dynamics. Whilst in principal the description of this book sounds suitable for YA, I wouldn’t say it is. It has elements of gore and violence that may be too much for a younger audience.

My favourite aspect of this book, however, is that Rose doesn’t find magic instinctive and she has to learn. Often, the hard way. I’m going to share more on this book in the near future. For now, know it’s a solid read.

Storm of Mercia

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

Finally, in anticipation of a review due in just a couple of days, I started and made good progress with Storm of Mercia. On Sunday I made good headway into this ninth instalment of M.J. Porter’s Eagle of Mercia chronicles.

This historical fiction series is compulsively readable and I got back into this book very quickly. On Sunday, I read the first third of the book. Yesterday, another 10% just before bed. I’m hoping for a little more progress tonight before bed, though that may be a push taking into account when this monthly wrap-up post goes live.

I’m reviewing this book on Thursday, so I need to get my skates on. Needless to say, it’s my immediate priority…

Summary

Considering there were 11 books on my March TBR, I made a noble attempt and managed to progress with seven of these. I’ll take the unread books forward into April, so they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Storm of Mercia is naturally going to be my priority, with 1984 returning to attention shortly after. In the coming days, I’ll release the rest of my monthly TBR for April. This month, the other books on my TBR aside from Crown of Midnight and my March carryovers were decided by a TBR jar. I’ve got an unusual mix, so there is something on the list for every reading mood! I hope you can check that out when it goes live later this week.

What was your favourite read of March? Have you read any of the books in today’s monthly wrap-up post?

Sunday Summary – 15th March 2026

Posted on March 15, 2026 by fantasyst95

Good evening all – I hope you’re looking forward to this latest Sunday Summary update. Whereas the last few weeks have been a little bit crazy, this week I’ve enjoyed some downtime. I’ve enjoyed a week off work with the other half, and we’ve made the most bit by doing as little as possible! Well, that’s not strictly true. We’ve enjoyed going out at leisure, and we made most of some great weather on Wednesday this week and went for walk on an 8 1/2 mile course. Needless to say, I felt that afterwards…

Although my downtime has taken priority this week, that’s not to say I’ve sacrificed content production. Here on the blog, I’ve still written and posted a book review of The House on the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune, as well as a First Lines Friday instalment. This week’s feature was by an author I read as recently as February… and she has a sizeable backlist I had to choose from. Can you guess who?

On YouTube, I’ve also published two videos with you this week. My first video of the week was a short list of fantasy series I want to start (or in some cases restart) in 2026. The second of my videos was also a review. This was for The Great Passage by Shion Muira which went live yesterday.

Books Read

Throne of Glass

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to finish my readalong of Thrones of Glass before the end of February. As of last week’s Sunday Summary, I was around 60% into the narrative. I made a real push to finish this book this week. With my plan to pick up the sequel, Crown of Midnight in March, I needed to finish this first book so I can move on.

Admittedly, I enjoyed this book more than I anticipated! For a book with romantic sub-plots, that aspect of the narrative didn’t dominate the plot and/or take away from the fantasy elements of the storyline. When you think Sarah J. Maas, you think romance. That’s what I went into the book expecting, but in reality the balance is far more suitable to my preference of not too much romance.

I’m glad I took my sister’s advice with this series to try this author with. It was the right choice, and I’m keen to get stuck in with this second book ASAP.

An Arcane Inheritance

As of last week’s Sunday Summary, I was only a few chapters into An Arcane Inheritance. Over the course of this week, progress has picked up a little and I listened to about 3 hours, or around 25% taking into account the x1.25 speed I’m listening to. Not bad, considering I’ve not really had as much solo time and therefore opportunity to listen. I’ve made up for the lack of solo commutes and gym listening time by instead listening before turning in at night. Overall, it’s worked reasonably well. I did have to go back a couple of chapters one night; I fell asleep unusually quickly that night…

Now I’m further into the book, I’ve got a better feel of the narrative direction and I like where it’s going. I’m intrigued by the magic, symbolism and occult vibes plaguing Ellory. There’s definitely a mystery to unravel here and I can’t wait to listen on to figure out more. As far as the dark academia genre experience is going, I’m loving revisiting the genre. The character dynamic between Ellory and Hudson is more tolerable than the early chapters. Well, at least a bit healthier. A bit…

1984

Whilst not strictly contributing to any breeding challenge books, 1984 is on my fixed reading list for 2026 as I set out in my 2026 resolutions. Not only that, but the companion book I want to read alongside it, Julia, does qualify for the Goodreads 2026 Winter challenge. Before I go into that retelling, I want to pick up 1984 and refresh myself on the original world as set out by George Orwell.

As of this Sunday Summary, I am currently 126 pages into the book. I’ve enjoyed reading all of the setup in the first section of the book to appreciate the detail and nuances of the dystopian world. When reading these books over a stretch of time, it’s easy to forget the details. That’s precisely why I wanted to pick up the original 1984 novel first before reading the retelling on my March TBR. Although this is my third read of the book, I’m not bored with revisiting the book. I had sizeable chunks of time between the re-reads so it doesn’t feel repetitive.

Wild Dark Shore

A priority read on this Sunday Summary was starting and finishing Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy.

I had a notification from Libby that my digital download of this library loan was due earlier today. By the time I looked at this notification, I had just over two days left to read the book. But, unfortunately I was unable to extend my loan. How dare other people want to read the same book as me and put a hold on it, right?! 😅

So, with all due haste, I started and finished this 298 page book in a relatively short time. Thankfully, this book and its mystery is very compulsively readable. Did I read it a little quicker than I would have in other circumstances? Probably yes. However, I was gripped by the storyline and having the deadline didn’t jeopardise my enjoyment of the book.

I have to say, this book wasn’t quite what I expected. However, it was also a little bit better. It was very cleverly written, which is what I expected. The storyline and The mystery were a bit of a different angle than I anticipated, but that’s okay! It was nice to be surprised and it helped overall with my wanting to pick up this book.

The good news is, reading Wild Dark Shore contributes to 2 Goodreads achievements this week. I’m now 8 out of 12 achievements in towards the Goodreads 2026 Winter challenge.

Books Discovered

Thankfully, this week I’ve ticked a couple of books off my list and there are no new additions. I’ve added quite a few books to the TBR of late. This week, I haven’t added anything new, so I’m making progress back towards the 200 books mark.

Interestingly, I caught a bit of a milestone when looking at my books recorded on Goodreads. According to my Goodreads records, I’ve got a total of 500 different books ‘Read’ 🎊🎉

Coming Up…

If you were salty with me for revelling in being off work this week, you can laugh now. I’m back to the daily grind in less than 12 hours, and it promises to be busy! Still, it’s no excuse and I won’t be slacking off of content creation…

Blog

On the blog next week, I’ll be taking a look at the longest of books nominated for the 2026 Booker Prize. The list was published last month, and reviewing whether each book is something I want to read or not. I’ve never paid much attention to this list before, so it could be fun. If there are enough books I want to read, maybe I’ll make a readalong or some kind of challenge to incorporate these into my reading list later this year.

On Friday, my usual Shelf Control feature will go live and share a non-fiction about one of my favourite tv series (based on books, obviously). It’s one I’ve been looking forward to getting to, so it’ll be fun to share this on Friday and get psyched to pick up the book!

YouTube

I’ve recorded two videos today that I’ll edit and push out next week. The first of these is my review of Throne of Glass. I wanted to document my thoughts on this first book of the series before I get stuck in to Crown of Midnight. That way, my view can’t be coloured by what I’ve ready later.

Later in the week, I’ve got a list of dystopian book recommendations if you enjoy books like 1984. In this video, I share what these dystopian books are about, as well as their similarities and differences compared to 1984. Hopefully in this video you can find a recommendation of a new book to pick up.

Summary

This Sunday Summary is a sizeable update. If you’re still with me – thanks for sticking around!

Have you read any of the books featured today? If not, what are you currently reading?

Monthly TBR – March 2026

Posted on March 5, 2026 by fantasyst95

***Today’s monthly TBR post contains affiliate links to Amazon if you wish to purchase any of the books featured today. If you follow this link, I will earn a small commission from that purchase at no cost to you.

If you wish to obtain a copy of the book based on this feature I would really appreciate you following this link and showing my content some support by making your purchase***

My March monthly TBR is probably my most ambitious to date! With a goal of completing the Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge, plus books to read for blog tour obligations, my own readalong and book club… I have a hearty mix!

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

Following on from 1984, it shouldn’t be a surprise then that Julia is going to be the next book on my list. After enjoying the refresher of the world as originally written, I’m keen to see how closely or far out this retelling is. I have no idea as of writing this March monthly TBR post. I’m looking forward to being surprised one way or the other. The added bonus of picking up these two books is that Julia qualifies for one of the Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge prompts. Under the achievement for retellings, Julia naturally is a perfect fit. Plus, it’s a great opportunity to tick two books on my fixed reading list for 2026 off.

It’s also been a little while since I got my copies of these books, so it’s exciting to get to them at last!

A Study in Scarlet Women

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

A Study in Scarlet Women qualifies for the Goodreads prompt Swoony Stories. As I shared in my Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge announcement video on YouTube, it’s the prompt I found the most difficult to find a book for. Not being a big romance reader (not that you’d know it from this TBR, or even my last one), I need something other than a romance in order to keep my engagement with a book.

What appealed to me about A Study in Scarlet Women is that it’s almost a spinoff or variation on the character of Sherlock Holmes. Whilst the main character isn’t the main man we know and love, the pseudonym is used by a female protagonist to investigate and clear the names of family members accused of a crime. The mystery element is definitely going to help me with this romance. Not only that, but I’m keen to see how the reimagining of Sherlock Holmes plays out in this completely different narrative.

An Arcane Inheritance

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

It’s been a little minute since I picked up a dark academia novel. The last time I picked up the genre, I did so in the form of If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio. This is very different from An Arcane Inheritance in that that first book tackles a group of actors and the group dynamics of a troop who specialise in Shakespeare.

An Arcane Inheritance is very different. I’m picking up this book because it was on my TBR and qualifies towards the ‘Black Heritage’ prompt. I had hoped my recent listen of Barack Obama’s Dreams from my Father would have qualified. That’s not necessarily the reason I picked it up, but the timing was perhaps a little influenced by this challenge. Nevertheless, it was a great read. Instead, I get to pick up another book and I’m looking forward to getting back to dark academia. It’s not a genre I read a lot of, so it’s a refreshing change when I do.

Looking at Women Looking at War

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

When I shared my Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge list, I had to take a guess at a book that would qualify for the Women’s History challenge. The list of qualifying books was only released on the 1st March. I had hoped to read Eve by Cat Bohannon. This is a book about the evolution of humanity and how women’s biology and evolution shaped that. Unfortunately, this book does not qualify. If it had, that would have been another read that overlapped with my fixed reading list in my resolutions post. Never mind!

Instead, I am picking up a book called Looking at Women Looking at War. This book is an interesting one because it focuses on some very recent history.

A young woman, Victoria Amelina – a writer living in Ukraine – started documenting war crimes in Ukraine after Russia’s invasion in 2022. Unfortunately, she would never see the end of the war. She was tragically killed just a year into the conflict as a result of a Russian missile.

However, not letting that stop her hard work from getting noticed, her efforts were published as Looking at Women Looking at War. Obviously, this is far from a complete account given the conflict is still ongoing. However, as a fairly recent history, I’m looking forward to both seeing what’s really going on behind the scenes. That, and to commemorate the bravery of a woman willing to expose the truth.

Crown of Midnight

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

Unsurprisingly, given I’ve already published my intended timeline for this readalong, I’m looking to pick up the second book in Sara J Maas’ Throne of Glass series later this month.

As this one is for my own deadline as opposed to for the purpose of meeting a challenge, I have put this towards the end of my March monthly TBR. However, I’m hoping to catch up so I’m not overlapping too far into April at the very least. If Crown of Midnight is anything like the first instalment Throne of Glass, I’m hopeful it will be very easy to read. It’s also only a few hundred pages, so not too big of a commitment. The later books in the series are longer and will require more time investment. However, I can’t get away with some flexibility early while the books are only 300 pages or so…

Mood Reads

The Astral Library

Goodreads

Amazon Purchase Link

Finally, I have an audiobook on my March monthly TBR for a relatively new release of February. On YouTube, I shared a video of new releases in 2026 I was really looking forward to. The second book on this list (the first was Dear Debbie, which I finished listening to very recently) is The Astral Library.

This book caught my attention because it sounds similar to a book I love. Reminiscent of Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library, the premise involves a form of living a life through pages in a book. If you have read The Midnight Library, you will know that the protagonist explores multiple variations in how their life could have gone by picking up a book in which this life is encapsulated. This is purely the protagonists interpretation as opposed to a fixed idea in the book. The protagonist had a special relationship with a librarian at school. So, this is how the idea manifested for her. As an avid reader, this clearly resonated with me. Exploring something similar in The Astral Library is something I’m looking forward to!

Summary

I’m aiming high in this March monthly TBR – I don’t think anyone can argue against that! The heat is on to complete the Goodreads 2026 Winter Challenge. Will I achieve it? Place your bets now! 😂

Thanks for reading today’s March monthly TBR – are you having a go at this challenge?

First Lines Friday – 27/02/2026

Posted on February 27, 2026 by fantasyst95

***Today’s First Lines Friday contains an affiliate link to Amazon if you wish to purchase the book. If you follow this link, I will earn a small commission from that purchase at no cost to you.

If you wish to obtain a copy of the book based on this review, I would really appreciate you following this link and showing my content some support by making your purchase***

I’m looking forward to reading a retelling. A specific retelling at that. I featured this book in a recent YouTube video about an upcoming attempt to complete the 2026 Goodreads Winter Challenge. It’s also a book on my fixed list of reads that I shared in my 2026 Resolutions post.

Can you guess what it is from the list? If not, the opening might give you a hint!

It was the man from records who began it, him all unknowing in his prim, grim way, his above-it-all, oldthink way. He was the one Syme called ‘Old Misery’.

He wasn’t truly new to Julia. Fiction, Records and Research all took second meal at thirteen hundred, so you got to know everyone’s face. But up to then, he’d really just been Old Misery, the one who looked like he’d swallowed a fly, who coughed more than he spoke. Comrade Smith was his right name, though ‘Comrade’ never suited him somehow. Of course, if you felt foolish calling someone ‘Comrade’, far better not to speak to them at all.

Julia – Sandra Newman

Genre: Dystopian Fiction

Pages: 400

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Mariner Books

Publication Date: 24 Oct 2023

Goodreads – Julia

Amazon Purchase Link

London, chief city of Airstrip One, the third most populous province of Oceania. It’s 1984 and Julia Worthing works as a mechanic fixing the novel-writing machines in the Fiction Department at the Ministry of Truth. Under the ideology of IngSoc and the rule of the Party and its leader Big Brother, Julia is a model citizen – cheerfully cynical, believing in nothing and caring not at all about politics. She knows how to survive in a world of constant surveillance, Thought Police, Newspeak, Doublethink, child spies and the black markets of the prole neighbourhoods. She’s very good at staying alive.

But Julia becomes intrigued by a colleague from the Records Department – a mid-level worker of the Outer Party called Winston Smith, she comes to realise that she’s losing her grip and can no longer safely navigate her world.

Seventy-five years after Orwell finished writing his iconic novel, Sandra Newman has tackled the world of Big Brother in a truly convincing way, offering a dramatically different, feminist narrative that is true to and stands alongside the original. For the millions of readers who have been brought up with Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, here, finally, is a provocative, vital and utterly satisfying companion novel.

My Thoughts…

Next month, which starts this weekend, I’m reading a modern take on George Orwell’s acclaimed dystopian novel, 1984. I’m reading both of these books together to compare the traditional, well-known narrative with the feminist version from the perspective of Julia.

I’m looking forward to this retelling and what new angle it can explore from Julia’s side. It’s funny, because when I first read 1984 in school, I didn’t enjoy it. In hindsight though, it wasn’t so much the book I took umbrage with as opposed to the way I was forced to study it. Fast forward to my re-read as an adult, I loved it!

Dystopian fiction is one of my favourite genre of all time. I have no doubt I’ll enjoy both my re-read, as well as this new perspective.

Have you read either 1984 or Julia? Does this feminist dystopian narrative appeal to you?

Don’t forget, you can support me as a creator and follow this purchase link to get yourself a copy. Then, readalong with me! 😊 I’m reading the book this March along with the original 1984. So, if you want to read and discuss either book, let me know!

Thanks for checking out this First Lines Friday!

Sunday Summary – 14th September 2025

Posted on September 14, 2025 by fantasyst95

Another week has come and gone! I can’t believe how fast this week has flown. So yes, I’m back here again with another Sunday Summary update, and it’s a good one! I hope you’ve had a good one too?

It’s mostly been a return to normal this week. After our trip to Iceland last week, we had Monday off to relax and catch up with the usual house admin. Washing… it’s always there for you, no?

Otherwise though, it’s been a case of getting and into routine. Work and home, books and blogging. So, what’s been on the agenda this week?

My first post went live on Monday. No rest for the wicked here! With us being nearly a third of the way through the month, I figured it was time to share my September 2025 monthly TBR. And, I’m in a really good place with that reading list! Although it looked ambitious, I’m ahead of where I need to be to complete it by the end of the month. More on that below 😌 Who knows, I may even get some extra in. Let’s not get ahead though!

On Friday, I shared the final book I’m reading towards my ChatGPT book recommendations challenge/post. I’m planning to pick these books up in October, so ahead of that timeline I’ve teased the final book in my First Lines Friday. If you’ve yet to take a look and fancy a dark, gritty fantasy where delusions shape reality, go take a look at that feature.

On Patreon, I shared my review of The Anxious Generation. This is a non-fiction I recommend everyone read. It’s really informative and backed up by science, but in an interesting and engaging way.

Books Read

Sensitive

In last week’s Sunday Summary I confided my confidence that I’d finish the remaining 2 hours I had of Sensitive soon.

And that’s true. I chipped away at this audiobook whilst commuting to and from work; I finished it about halfway through this week.

It’s been a good listen and I recommend it to anyone and everyone. No doubt we all have someone sensitive in our lives, or are sensitive ourselves and maybe don’t yet recognise it. It was a really validating read.

A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poison

This week I also finished A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poison. You may recall this is the book club read over at the Cottagecore Fantasy Book Club.

It’s the first time I’ve finished a club book early, and I’m not the only one. It puts me in a great place to prompt readers and discussion about the book. It’s a habit I want to continue; it’s much less stressful than making apologies for being behind 😂

I enjoyed this book. Although there is a romance element to two of the main characters development arcs (and this isn’t something I love in my books), it was okay. Obviously if you love this sort of thing, great!

The mystery was interesting, although somewhat predictable. However, there was a comfort in seeing broadly where the storyline was going. The details and finer points of the storyline were the interesting and less predictable points.

Gran Familia

In the last 24hrs, I’ve read a manga I’m planning to feature on my blog later this month! I don’t read manga very often, but I enjoyed picking something up that’s very different.

As I’ve read more in the way of traditional prose lately, I blitzed Gran Familia. The book is only around 200 anyway, but being image-based, it was really quick to read. In fact, I read most of the book today. I’m looking forward to sharing more about this book on my blog soon.

Betrayal of Mercia

The next audiobook I’ve made progress with this week is Betrayal of Mercia.

It’s the first time I’ve picked up a book in this series as an audiobook. Admittedly, that’s because I’ve always kept up with these books and read advanced reader copies for the tours. I somehow missed this instalment, and for ease, I figured to try the audio.

So far, it’s going well. Personally, I find the archaic names easier to read than listen to, but at the same time, I’m familiar with most by now to catch on. It’s a small thing though, and I’m enjoying the story so far.

So far I’ve listened to two and a half hours of the audio and I’m looking forward to listening to the rest (hopefully) next week!

The Pagan Lord

Finally, the last historical fiction book I’ve picked up this week is The Pagan Lord. I’ve only just started this book, so I don’t have a lot to discuss with you other than my eagerness to return to the series. It’s also the only physical book on my TBR left other than the sequel to my current audiobook. Naturally, I need to finish that before I read Shield of Mercia.

I’m not going to let that slow me down, though. If I need to pick up another read in the meantime, I have plenty to choose from! The other consideration is that I’ve borrowed this digitally from my library, so I don’t have forever anyway.

Books Discovered

Overall, this week is amazing for progress! I’ve ticked several off the list and not added anything new either.

I need more weeks like this…

Coming Up…

My first post next week will be a book review. There’s a real historical fiction theme here, because the next book due review is Wolf of Wessex by Matthew Harffy. I hope you’re looking forward to my review as much as I am sharing it!

On Friday I’m breaking back into my old schedule of sharing a Shelf Control post. It’ll be nice to take another look at my TBR, or reading list, with you so I can share why I’m excited for my next book.

Finally, you know what’s coming. Next week I’ll wrap-up with another Sunday Summary. Let’s hope I have as much reading progress to share in next week’s instalment.

Thanks for reading today’s Sunday Summary instalment. If you’re still here, thank you so much!

What have you read recently?

Monthly TBR – September 2025

Posted on September 8, 2025 by fantasyst95

My monthly TBR post is a little later than usual. If you read yesterday‘s Sunday Summary, you’ll know that I’ve just been away. However, now I’m back into full swing and I have a great list of books I’m planning to read in September. Make yourself comfy, and then we can go through the list of books I have been and I’m due to read this month.

Have you read any of the books featured in this monthly TBR?

Fixed Reads

The Atlantis Covenant

The first book on this monthly TBR was the Atlantis Covenant by Rob Jones. If you are a regular reader here, you’ll know I read this book early as I had a blog tour obligation on the 4th of September.

If you are a fan of Indiana Jones and like this kind of high-stakes action with history and archaeology combined, go check out my review of this book!

The Giver

The next book on my list was The Giver. You may recall this book was on my August TBR as we were picking it up for our workbook club. Due to summer holidays, we ended up pushing this meet-up back to tomorrow. In the end, I ended up reading this quite last minute. However, I was able to read the book in just a couple of sessions whilst travelling.

I really enjoyed this children’s dystopia. Although this book is aimed at a younger audience, it didn’t oversimplify the dystopian setting or the message behind the book. It was a really easy and interesting read. And, as you can tell by the way, I’m discussing this book, it’s the second I’ve already ticked off this list.

Sensitive

Switching to audiobooks, my next and current read is Sensitive.

Admittedly, this book is near completion as well. I have just a couple of hours of audio left and I expect I’ll make light work of it.

I’m interested in reading this book as I am pretty sure I fit into the classification of a ‘highly sensitive person’. As the book iterates, there are different ways people can be sensitive and some overlap with other traits. I’m pretty confident I’m an emotionally sensitive person, so it’s been validating to know my feelings and experiences aren’t unique.

We’re getting to a useful section of the book shortly – the authors share strategies for sensitive people to put into practice. That’s one of the main takeaways I’m looking for from this book, so I’m keen to progress with this audiobook!

A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poison

Another fixed read for the month is the Cottagecore Fantasy Book Club read, A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poison. As progress goes, I’m already halfway through this book as of sharing this monthly TBR.

Whilst I’m already ahead, I’m going to prioritise this book so I can encourage conversations about the book in the Discord group. For the last couple of books, I’ve been behind and it’s made the job a little easier. As I picked this up as an ‘easier’ read whilst away, I’m going to keep going.

HR Disrupted

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to HR Disrupted last month. As it’s a loan, I can’t put this book off.

It’s also a short one, so it’s carried forward from August but will absolutely be read soon!

Betrayal of Mercia

Ahead of another upcoming blog tour review next month, I need to catch up on the prior book of the series.

Somehow, I missed reading Betrayal of Mercia as part of the publication blog tour at the beginning of the year. In fairness, I’ve been doing a lot less in the way of tours, so it’s not a surprise I missed this email.

Regardless, I didn’t miss the email for book eight, Shield of Mercia. So, first things first, I’m revisiting the series with Betrayal of Mercia and then heading into book eight.

Mood Reads

The Pagan Lord

Another carry forward, but this time originally featured in my July TBR, is The Pagan Lord.

Historical fiction is more prominent towards the end of this monthly TBR. This isn’t the first historical fiction on this list. But, in practice, I think I’ll start with this well-loved and reasonably short seventh instalment in Bernard Cornwell’s The Saxon Stories series.

Gran Familia

In a completely different change of pace, I’m hoping to read a manga and feature/review the book ahead of its official publication at the end of the month.

As it’s a 200-page manga, I expect it will be a very quick read. It’s also a complete change of pace to the other books on this monthly TBR. I don’t read manga very often, but I think it’ll be nice to introduce some to my reading and my blog content.

Stay tuned for more about this manga in due course.

Shield of Mercia

If I get time at the end of the month, my aim is to start Shield of Mercia ahead of next month’s blog tour review date. It’s early next month that I’m due to review this book. So, it makes sense to start as early as I can!

Summary

I have a large number of books on September’s TBR, but thankfully they are shorter than a lot of the books I have on my wider reading list…

Have you read any of the books featured in this monthly TBR?

Sunday Summary – 7th September 2025

Posted on September 7, 2025 by fantasyst95

Welcome to today’s Sunday Summary, fellow readers! I hope you’ve had a great week?

It’s been a really busy one for me. I’ve been on holiday for the last few days— not that you’d really know it from the blog schedule. I don’t like to announce these things ahead of time, but I’ve had a fun few days in Iceland this week.

Even still, I managed to keep the blog schedule pretty normal and fit in some reading on flights. Shall we take a look at what I’ve shared?

My first post of the week was my monthly wrap-up for August 2025. Knowing I had a busier schedule later this week, I was keen to get this out the door early. If you want to catch up on how I got on with my August TBR and 20 Books of Summer Challenge, that’s where to look.

Next, I published a blog tour review of The Atlantis Covenant on Thursday. Did I regret my life choices trying to draft and schedule this post whilst on terrible WiFi in a UK hotel during an overnight stay at the start of my holiday? Yes. I certainly did. Battling to get this post scheduled contributed to my only getting four hours’ sleep ahead of a 2:30 am start the following day…

Books Read

The Atlantis Covenant

This week, with my blog tour post due imminently, I prioritised reading the remaining 75% of The Atlantis Covenant. I finished the book on a flight to the UK on Wednesday. In the nick of time, it’s fair to say!

I enjoyed this book, and fans of Indiana Jones and high-action books will get along with this read nicely. Obviously, if you’re intrigued, you can find my full review here.

Sensitive

I started strong this week and made a further three hours’ progress with Sensitive. Whilst I didn’t listen to any of the audiobook whilst I was away, I’m happy with my progress.

As of this Sunday Summary update, I have just two more hours of audio left. With how easily I made progress with this audiobook last week during ‘normal’ scheduling, I reckon I’ll polish this off soon.

The Giver

Whilst away, and after reading The Atlantis Covenant, I picked up The Giver. If you recall, I popped this book on my August TBR as our book club is meeting to discuss it next week.

With plenty of downtime today on an hour coach ride and a two and a half-hour flight, I pretty much blitzed the whole thing!

I’m a huge fan of dystopia and this book was a very easy read for me. You can tell this book is geared towards a younger audience, but it didn’t oversimplify the genre either. It was perfect light reading and I’m looking forward to discussing this book with my peers on Tuesday.

A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poisons

Another read I’ve picked up this week is A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poisons. This book is the Cottagecore Fantasy Book Club pick for September.

The last couple of months, I’ve been behind with these reads. Keen to get ahead of the game this month whilst I decide on the rest of my TBR, I’ve read half of this book.

I’m intrigued by the underlying mystery of what is happening to the Unwanted Girls, although I have some theories. If you are a romance fan, you’d also enjoy the dynamics between Bisma and Xander about now. Although it’s not really my jam, it’s not dominating the narrative or deterring me from reading the rest of the book.

Books Discovered

I didn’t last very long in my travels before I bought some books. Shock, right?

In our local airport departure lounge, I picked up Katabasis and Never Flinch.

More topically, I also picked up a small book in Iceland on its volcanic history. At least that one won’t take long to read…

Coming Up…

We’re nearly a third of the way through September, so I suppose I should get around to posting my September TBR, no? That’s my plan at least! Although it’s a little late, I’ll draft this post as if we were starting near the top of the month. Some of the books will already be ticked off the list, but there’s plenty more to follow!

On Friday, I’ll tease the last of my ChatGPT book recommendations I’ll be reading shortly. I’ve already shared the first two, so I hope you’re keen to see what this third and final book is!

Sunday sees the return of my Sunday Summary update post. In the next week, I hope to share even more reading updates with you. Stay tuned to find out more about the books I pick up.

Thanks for reading today’s Sunday Summary! I’ll be back online very soon to share my September TBR, so stay tuned! What are you reading?

Shelf Control #94 – 15/08/2025

Posted on August 15, 2025 by fantasyst95

Dystopian fiction is the feature of today’s Shelf Control post. In today’s post, I’m sharing a book I added to my reading list just days after the book was published. However, over five years on I’ve yet to pick it up. That should change soon!

Before I share more, let’s take a look at what Shelf Control is about and then I’ll share why I want to read The Choice.

Shelf Control is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a celebration of the unread books on our shelves! The idea is to pick a book you own but haven’t read and 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.

If you want to read more about the Shelf Control feature, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

The Choice – Claire Wade

Genre: Dystopian

Pages: 368

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Orion

Publication Date: 26 Dec 2019

Goodreads – The Choice

Imagine a world where…

Everything you ate was monitored by the government.

Every step you took was counted.

Your children were weighed every day at school.

Neighbours reported on neighbours and no one was safe from judgement.

Sugar was illegal, and baking was a crime.

Imagine if that world was here… What would you do?

Toe the line or fight for your freedom…

My Thoughts

The premise of this book is an interesting one. In modern society we are regularly told what we ‘should’ and ‘shouldn’t eat’ as part of our diet culture. The Choice takes this to the extreme, mandating what food can and cannot be eaten. Personally, I think I’ll like this book. It promises to explore an interesting topic. As someone who does not have the healthiest of relationships with food, I’ll likely feel more strongly about the narrative and the restrictions imposed. I am working on it, but I also don’t care to be perfect.

I would not do very well in this world 😂 I enjoy treats and I can’t lie! My love of cake would land me in the Perspex box on many an occasion!

I’m looking forward to reading this one as it’s a debut novel. New authors (and featuring new authors) is always a pleasure. If I can, I like to share new and/or less mainstream authors.

The reviews of this book on Goodreads are a little polarised. As to what I make of this book remains to be seen. In principal, I can always get behind an #eatcake campaign, so I’m optimistic.

If you’re still here, thanks for reading today’s Shelf Control post! Have you read The Choice… or anything like it?

Monthly TBR – August 2025

Posted on August 5, 2025 by fantasyst95

It’s the beginning of August and I’m with you today to share my monthly TBR. It’s the final month of the 20 Books of Summer Challenge. Whilst I fully expected to be a little behind with this challenge as it was a stretch goal, I’m hoping to read as much as I can from that list before the end of the month.

When I shared my monthly wrap-up post just a few days ago, I was very close to completion with both of my current reads. It feels like great progress to share in this post that I have finished both of those books. They won’t feature in this TBR, but mentally it helped set me up for what I can only hope to be success with this monthly TBR.

So, shall we actually get round to talking about the books on the list?

Fixed Reads

The Giver

Starting off with my book club commitments, the first book I need to read is The Giver by Lois Lowry. Following on from The Measure, The Giver is also set in a dystopian world and was very clearly one of the inspiring stories behind this book. When talking about it in our book club discussion last week, Meg recommended picking up The Giver as it’s a great book itself. However, we also decided it would be interesting to see how this book influenced The Measure.

The good news is The Giver is quite a short read. This book is actually aimed at a middle grade or young adult audience. As a result, its page count only sits at around 240. That should be plenty easy to get through!

The House Witch

Next, I am picking up The House Witch with the Cottagecore Fantasy Book Club, over the course of this month. I came to the party late last month. Consequently, I ended up bingeing House of Frank in order to catch up. Instead, I’ll be picking up The House Witch incrementally so I can contribute to the discussion on a weekly basis.

As a result, you’ll see me chipping away at this slowly over the course of the month. That is, unless I get carried away and binge the whole lot early on. We’ll see how my experience goes of the book 😌

If We Were Villains

The next book I’m including in this early section is If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio. I’m including this as a fixed read on this monthly TBR because I have started already. As of this monthly TBR post, I have read around 100 pages so far. Although I can be very hit and miss with Shakespeare, its influence on the narrative isn’t putting me off. In fact, it’s been nice to read a book that dabbles with Shakespeare but isn’t so heavily that I’m put off.

If you are unfamiliar with the premise of the book, If We Were Villains is about a group of theatre students in their final year of education. The school of arts they attend specialises in Shakespeare. Now, I haven’t got to the juicy bit where someone gets murdered. Not yet. However, the parallels of tragedy between Shakespeare’s writing and what inevitably comes to pass are starting to weave their way into the narrative. I’m excited to see what happens and so I imagine this book will be read pretty quickly!

HR Disrupted

I often talk books at work, and a conversation with our HR lady has resulted in my borrowing HR Disrupted from her. She started explaining to me what an HR Disruptor is and what it means in terms of breaking the traditional moulds and practices of HR. I was intrigued, and you know me 😉 I’ll read books on pretty much any subject!

This is a fixed read this monthly TBR as naturally I want to return the book to its rightful owner ASAP ☺️

Mood Reads

The Pagan Lord

Regretfully, I didn’t get to The Pagan Lord, which was on my monthly TBR for July. This is a carry forward, and I’m still looking forward to continuing with this series.

This TBR is a little on the long side, and I will admit that it is ambitious. However, with some shorter books on the list, The Pagan Lord among one of those, I’m hopeful I can catch up with my Goodreads reading challenge. I’m looking forward to reading this 300-page book to get myself back into the Last Kingdom, also known as the Saxon Stories series by Bernard Cornwell.

The Dragon Republic

Another carryover from my July TBR is The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang. I’m looking forward to this second instalment in The Poppy War series.

I’m planning to pick this one up later in the month. Whilst momentum is strong, I want to try and blitz my shorter reads. The Dragon Republic is about 650 pages – it’s not short by any means. If my experience of the first book is anything to go by, it’ll be a slower and more detailed read.

Tyrant’s Throne

A final book of a series I’m looking forward to listening to this month is Tyrant’s Throne by Sebastien de Castell.

It’s also my main audiobook of the month! Naturally, I hope I can finish this in good time and squeeze in another 20 Books of Summer entry before the end of August. The audiobook is 16 and a half hours at x1.2 speed, so not unachievable…

Having just listened to Saint’s Blood, I’m eager to finish the series whilst events are fresh in my mind.

Summary

With a total of seven books, 2200 pages, and 16 and a half hours of audio on this month’s TBR, I’m optimistic for a productive month of reading.

I’ve already made a great start finishing two carryovers from July that aren’t featured in today’s monthly TBR; I’ve wrapped them up already! Let’s hope we can keep the momentum going!

What are you reading this summer?

Monthly Wrap-Up – July 2025

Posted on August 1, 2025 by fantasyst95

In today’s monthly wrap-up, I have a number of books to update you on progress for. Over the course of July, I finished three books in full. I also have two carryovers into the beginning of August (but not long left for either) and one DNF to report.

Let’s dive into today’s monthly wrap-up so you can see which is which!

Books Read

Saint’s Blood

An audiobook carryover from June was my listen of Saint’s Blood by Sebastien de Castell. Admittedly, as of my monthly TBR post, I only had an hour and 15 minutes of the audiobook left.

I finished it off pretty quickly! It was fun to get back into this series as it’s been a little while. Now I’ve finished this book, I’ve only got one book left in the series before I can mark this as complete.

The Anxious Generation

The next and final carryover from June was my physical read of The Anxious Generation.

I had more of this book to read into July. In June, I read the first 60 pages of the book, but that was all. By the time we were four days into July, I’ve progressed to 50% and I finished the book a few days later.

The Anxious Generation was a really informative read. I’d go so far as to say that I think this book should be more widely read. Understanding the changes in childhood experiences (both ways – this book compares and contrasts play-based childhoods and phone-based childhoods throughout) has opened my mind to why we’re seeing generational challenges today.

I rated The Anxious Generation four stars. It was an easy read even though it cites data and statistics. It’s written in layman’s terms so is approachable for all.

Alan Turing: An Enigma

Unfortunately, I have a DNF to share this month. I started listening to Alan Turing: The Enigma this month and I put it down within a couple of weeks.

I couldn’t get on with the book. The early narrative covers Alan’s early life and it was just dry. I was bored. Ultimately, I decided it wasn’t worth pushing on with an audiobook I wasn’t enjoying. I didn’t want to listen to it, nor risk getting into a reading slump over it. So, onwards and upwards….

Stormdancer

… and straight into Stormdancer I went!

Stormdancer has been a much better experience and I’m glad I made the switch. It’s an unconventional genre mash-up – Japanese fantasy and steampunk!

Not that I really had any doubts. Jay Kristoff is a regular feature on my blog now and I haven’t read a book of his I didn’t like. It’s also got me excited as I’ve got another standalone of his, more similar to this series than anything else I’ve read, upcoming on my TBR.

I’ve listened to Stormdancer for the rest of the month of July and as of this monthly wrap-up post, I only have two hours of listening time left.

The Measure

I picked up The Measure on Kindle Unlimited as it was the book I chose for book club. The Measure was already on my TBR and I was sure the premise would make for some great talking points.

It didn’t disappoint! This book was everything I hoped it was and I enjoyed getting to talk through my thoughts on this book. As dystopian books go, the narrative was set in a world very like our own so it was totally relatable. I also enjoyed how the story zoomed in on individual characters and impacts but also looked at how the knowledge of your lifetime impacted society as a whole.

House of Frank

A last-minute addition to my reading list this month was House of Frank. I’ve started to moderate a book club online via Discord and that is the club’s chosen book.

As of this monthly wrap-up I do still technically have a third of the book left to read. In my defence I was late starting it as I joined partway through the month. It’s not stopped me participating in chats about the book so far as it’s broken down into sections for easy participation.

I will, however, try to read this last section of the book over the next couple of days. Then, we can wrap up the discussion before moving on to our next book!

Summary

That’s all from me in this monthly wrap-up update! Have a good weekend and happy reading!

Have you read any of the books I’ve featured in today’s post? What did you read in July?