Weekly Wrap Up – Mar 5 – 11

I’m back! Well almost. I’m feeling about 80% normal at this point. I’m still tired and recovering from the flu, and my life is still busy so I’m struggling with the balance of it all, but I’m starting to feel like I’m falling back into the routine of life. I don’t know if you follow astrology at all, but if you do, then you’ll know that the Taurus doesn’t like change. We are an earth sign, known to be like trees. Our roots are firmly planted in the ground – immovable if you will. We like to stay in the same place, don’t like change, and are creatures of habit. So when things like last month come into play my whole life is flipped upside down. Even the smallest change can throw me off completely. So I’m glad to be back to normal, or the closest I can get to right now. Because I’m getting back to normal AND because I’ve found a way to motivate myself, I managed to have a FANTASTIC reading week! Let’s get to it:

WHAT I READ THIS WEEK:

Bruno Guenard / BIOSPHOTO

First I read Gemina and it was so much better the second time around!! I’m so happy I decided to reread it though because there’s so much that happened and I forgot most of it. The characters involved and the events that brought them all together is so complex, not to mention all the events that started this series in the first place! Book 3 is coming soon!!

Next I read I Stop Somewhere. It’s been a very long time since I’ve read a book that crushed my heart into a billion tiny pieces. To say that this was heartbreaking is an understatement. It was just so…… SO…… wow. This is a VERY triggering book. Possibly the most triggering and descriptive book I’ve ever read when it comes to rape and abuse. It was so much at times I felt physically ill at times, had to stop reading, and just walk away. But the way it was written is so important. All the small elements of an attacker and a victim. Who is there to support or harm them, the elements of society that influence cases such as this, and so much more. Yes, this was a story of rape. An awful terrible story of rape. But at the same time there was so much more to it. There’s so much more I want to say but it’s going to have to wait for the review which is coming tomorrow.

And lastly, I read Every Heart a Doorway. I knew nothing about this book except for the fact that it was magical realism, which is VERY hit or miss with me. In the case of this book – it was a total HIT! I LOVED this book! The characters, the premise, the world(s), everything! My only complaint is that it was so short and I wanted more. So much more!

BOOKS I’M CURRENTLY READING:

After reading the heaviest book (emotionally) that I’ve read all year, I felt like I needed a break. I was looking for something upbeat, adventurous, and full of humour – The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue is fitting those requirements fantastically! I freaking LOVE Monty!!! OMG I LOVE HIM!!! He’s hilarious! Literally everything that comes out of his mouth I’m smiling. I definitely feel as though he’s got a thick armour to cover something up, but I don’t care – he’s extravagant and excessive and I love him!

Since I’m already quite a ways into Gentleman’s Guide, I know that I’ll be picking something else up. I’m just not sure yet what that will be. OBSIDIO is a definite! But it will all depend on when it’s shipped to me 🙂

OTHER BOOKISH NEWS:

TOP 5 TUESDAY

This weeks topic was the Top 5 authors I want to meet and it was such a fun one to do! I got even more motivated to want to attend a bookish event this year! Sadly, I doubt any of the authors on my list will be at an event near me, but I do hope to make it somewhere this year!

READING MOTIVATION

My random post talking about Reading Motivation and keeping your head in the game ended up being a huge success! I felt like I needed to take a look at my own motivations and, at the last minute, decided to talk to you all about it. I had an overwhelming response of people telling me that this helped them or came at a time that they needed it. Like I said, this post was totally last minute. I sent my kids to school and sat there for an hour in tears because I couldn’t think of what to post. So to have such a postivie response about something that I was struggling with at the time really made my heart mushy. I kind of wish now that I put a little more thought into the post, but maybe it was the impulse that made it better. Either way, I’m happy it reached so many readers!

IF YOU LIKE THIS THEN….. RECOMMENDATION

This one seemed to be out of left field for some people but as soon as I pointed out the similarities I had so many people tell me that they had a lightbulb moment. Initially to look at City of Bones and The Hazel Wood, these two books have nothing in common. It’s not until you sit back and take a really close look at the structures and elements that it becomes clear. It’s one of those things that as soon as you see it – you can’t unsee it!

So that was my week! WAY more productive in the reading department than expected. I managed to read 3 books in total and well over 1,000 pages! That number is huge! I owe it in part to Gemina being a reread and a new motivational page I have in my bullet journal. I will be doing an updated bullet journal post on Wednesday or Thursday next week so stay tuned! I still can’t believe I read as much as I did this week……. 3 books….. I read 5 in the entire month of February and I’ve already read 5 in the first 9 days of March!! INSANITY!!! I hope you all had an amazing week!

Until next time, happy reading!