Continuing my attempt at playing catch-up writing micro-reviews of books I read two months ago and whose plots have subsequently been lost to the sands of time. May was a prolific reading month. Let’s get into it.

A Murderous Relation (Veronica Speedwell #5) by Deanna Raybourn ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Despite finally admitting to their feelings in the previous book, Veronica and Stoker keep it under wraps for most of the story—an unfortunate by-product of the slow burn. This final installment in my spring obsession features a high-class brothel, celestial-inspired jewels, royalty, and a brush with Jack the Ripper. #quelscandale

Silent in the Grave (Lady Julia Grey #1) by Deanna Raybourn ⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: After devouring Raybourn’s Veronica Speedwell series, this was a disappointment—the characters read like rough drafts of what she’d later create but without their charm. I gave up on this series after this one. #queldommage

Pretty Things by Janelle Brown ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: A promising synopsis that was “meh” in execution. I thought this was a free Amazon First Reads, but apparently, I paid actual money for this (loooooooong—496 page!) ebook. However, I see that the audiobook is narrated by one of my faves, so perhaps Lauren Fortgang makes it worth the slog.

Who’s That Girl? by Mhairi McFarlane ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: It’s Edie! Four stars for the line, “I’ve liked people, and people have liked me. I’ve never liked someone who’s liked me as much as I like them, at the same time. It’s that simple.'” #relatable

The Other Windsor Girl: A Novel of Princess Margaret, Royal Rebel by Georgie Blalock ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Have you seen The Crown? Then you can skip this book. Lady-in-Waiting Vera’s narration doesn’t add much to the story of Princess Margaret we’ve already seen, and Vera’s own story isn’t all that compelling.

Belgravia by Julian Fellowes ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: I read this because I started watching the TV series on Epix and was impatient to find out how it ended ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Either watch the series or read the book—they are almost line for line the same. It doesn’t quite scratch my Downton Abbey itch, but it was good.

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: This one has some Holly Black/Diane Setterfield vibes, which is my JAM. I love stories that play with fairy tales, especially in modern settings (and this cover? 😍). However, while I sped through this back in May, the story hasn’t stuck with me. Not planning to read the follow-up.

To Have and to Hoax by Martha Waters ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: High expectations for this one, but unfortunately Waters did not deliver the loveable characters, witty repartee, and hilarious pranks I was hoping for. Instead, it’s pages of inane misunderstanding that don’t progress the plot AT ALL. #Austenwouldnever

Beach Read by Emily Henry⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: This was ADORABLE. Funny, steamy, touching. I laughed, I cried.  Five out of five stars—the perfect beach read.

The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games #1) by Suzanne Collins ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Because #oldbrain, I decided to spend my 15+ hour flight from Israel to Houston re-reading the OG Hunger Games trilogy before diving into Collins’ new release. This was the right choice, and dang it if this story doesn’t still deliver. #TeamPeeta

Catching Fire (The Hunger Games #2) by Suzanne Collins ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: This one might be my favorite. So many great character additions!

Mockingjay (The Hunger Games #3) by Suzanne Collins ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: However, this one always felt like the weakest link to me. I liked it more on the re-read this time, but structurally, it remains the hardest story to follow.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (The Hunger Games #0) by Suzanne Collins ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: I don’t know why this book exists, other than as a vehicle for the occasional Hunger Games Easter Egg. “Oh look—that’s where the parachutes came from!” “Ah—mutts!” Clocking in at 540 pages, this is a tome, and the pacing in parts is glacial. Not enough plot/character development going on here to justify the page count.

My May standout was definitely Beach Read, which seems fitting given the season. Enemies-to-lovers has been and always will be my favorite romance trope. ❤️️

Well, now that it’s July, how about a wrap-up of my April reads? That tracks. Without further ado, follow my April reading journey, in which I fall deep into a Victorian mystery rabbit hole.

Sidebar: For real, I devoured those last three Deanna Raybourn books in a week.

House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J Maas ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: It’s the remix! If you’re a fan of SJM’s work, you’ll recognize many of her standard tropes and characters here. This one took me SIX WEEKS to get through y’all, mostly because the world-building at the top was so messy. However, once I got into it, I was into it. #ijustcantquityouSJM

If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: An enjoyable romcom featuring a classic #fauxmance to romance storyline. The fake dating trope is my trash and I will not apologize.

A Curious Beginning (Veronica Speedwell #1) by Deanna Raybourn ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Love me a take-no-prisoners lady detective! This series stars Veronica Speedwell, the afore mentioned lady lepidopterist (say that five times fast) and amatuer sleuth, who teams up with grumpy taxidermist slash natural historian (and hottie) Stoker to use scientific smarts to solve mysteries.

Know My Name by Chanel Miller ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: A sexual assault survivor, Miller writes beautifully and powerfully; as a reader, I don’t think you could help being moved by her story and her telling of it. It broke my heart, but I was also struck by her strength.

Her Royal Highness (Royals #2) by Rachel Hawkins ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: The sequel to Royals (AKA Prince Charming), this queer enemies-to-lovers story didn’t charm me as much as book one, mostly due to some pacing issues and flat characters, but I’m always down for some princess shenanigans and boarding school shenanigans and this book has both.

A Perilous Undertaking (Veronica Speedwell #2) by Deanna Raybourn ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Alternative title: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Underground Sex Club. Who says the Victorians were stuffy? This series definitely was definitely giving me some Bones and Booth vibes and all I want in life is for Veronica and Stoker to kiss. Bought in for the mystery, stayed for the slowest of slow burn romances.

A Treacherous Curse (Veronica Speedwell #3) by Deanna Raybourn ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: As a child, I loved learning about ancient Egypt, so this installation’s theme was right up my alley. Curses, conspiracies, and character development. This was a fun mystery with some added “will they or won’t they” sizzle. 🔥🔥🔥

A Dangerous Collaboration (Veronica Speedwell #4) by Deanna Raybourn ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Yessssssssss. The sizzle is heating up to a rolling boil and I am here for it. I am also here for the sheer volume of antiquated vocabulary found in these novels. I seriously looked up at least 1 new-to-me word every few pages. Bravo, Deanna. #tendollarwords

As far as recommendations go, Know My Name was certainly the overall best book that I read—it’s important and timely and really well-written. However, if you’re looking for something lighter that is historical, mysterious AND romantic (and will teach you myriad words you never knew you needed to know), then I whole-heartedly recommend the Veronica Speedwell series.

I always start with the best of intentions and then end up getting behind on here. And now I find myself once again playing catch-up…so please find here, now that April is three-quarters gone, my (much shorter) February and March reading lists. What can I say—I am at least consistently inconsistent.

First up: February and Single Awareness Month. I decided to #leanin to the holiday and went for straight fluffy chick-lit.

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: This debut YA contemporary is effervescently fun. It’s hard to hit that perfect sweet but not saccharine note in a romance, but this one definitely delivers. Also, I just remembered the MC’s are Pepper and Jack. Easiest ship name ever? #morepepperjackcheeseplease

Trophy Life by Lea Geller ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Only 3.75 stars,  but it was free for reasons I can’t recall, and I read it in a day. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

You Had Me At Hello by Mhairi McFarlane ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: I was worried this was going to end depressingly, but it came round in the end. McFarlane’s novels are proving to be a pretty reliable scratch for my near-constant British rom-com itch.

Staying at Daisy’s by Jill Mansell ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: This one was fine but forgettable–a perfectly adequate library ebook. #damningwiththefaintestofpraise

March’s reads were slightly more varied. Slightly.

Anna K by Jenny Lee ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Full-Disclosure: I have not read Anna Karenina, nor have I ever finished watching ANY film adaptations of it, so I can’t speak to how faithful a retelling this was. I can tell you it gave me major Gossip Girl vibes and I LOVE TO SEE IT. #thatsonesecretImgladtotell

Would Like to Meet by Rachel Winters ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Can our heroine successfully recreate classic movie meet-cutes in order to prove that when it comes to romantic comedies, art actually does imitate life? The answer is no…or at least not on purpose. Winters has fun recreating lots of the traditional tropes in this quick, fun romance.

A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: A multi-generational story centered around the lives of conservative Arab women living in America—the premise sounded fascinating, providing a glimpse into a world I know little about. However, the execution left me wanting, and the prose read like a below-average YA novel

The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: I adored the Winner’s trilogy, so I was pumped to see Rutkoski not only had a new book out but it took place in the same world. It was a slow burn to start, but that cliff-hanger ending has me counting down the days until book two.

If I could only recommend one book from this list, it is undoubtedly Tweet Cute.

In these uncertain times during which you can count on nothing except emails from every random store or service you have ever patronized assuring you that they take your health and safety seriously, it’s nice to take a break and lose yourself in the delicious drama of the American teenager. #youths

January has been a banner reading month for me—this is what happens when you binge read (seriously, I read four books in one weekend…the hermitting was real). I was planning to do reviews for each of these, but, really, who has the time? Instead, I’ll rank them from least favorite to favorite with tweet-length reviews thrown in for good measure.

13. Lost Hills by Lee Goldberg ⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Pretty sure Lee Goldberg was sponsored by Garmin—that’s the only explanation for multiple passages in this middling detective story featuring turn-by-turn route descriptions. #FirstReadsFail

12.  The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: See my full review of The Princess Diarist at the link above 😉

11. The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Another entry in the “Girls in Gowns” YA cover subgenre (see also: The Selection series, The Winners trilogy). I am not opposed to gratuitous fashion descriptions and overall found the story fun, but, wow, the pacing in this is WILD.

10. A Short History of the Girl Next Door by Jared Reck ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Discount John Green feels. A preponderance of basketball-related prose. A sadder story than the cover would lead you to believe.

9. One of Us is Next by Karen McManus ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: I really liked One of Us is Lying when I read it 3 years ago, but then I promptly forgot all of its pertinent details, which made this sequel hard to get into. A slow start didn’t help, but it ends on a high note.

8. Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart ⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: This is 100% a gender-swapped Talented Mr. Ripley told in reverse, and I don’t hate it!

7.  We Were Liars by E. Lockhart ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: An interesting look at a wealthy, dysfunctional family that also happens to be a pretty well-done mystery story.

6. Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Reese’s January Book Club pick, this funny and engaging novel examines the potential pitfalls of white “wokeness,” however well-intentioned. A great audiobook.

5. Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators by Ronan Farrow ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: This is non-fiction which really does read like a political thriller in a lot of ways. The story is important, but the vast number of characters in Farrow’s cast makes the action difficult to follow.

4.  Prince Charming by Rachel Hawkins ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Originally titled Royals (confusing), this book contains many of my favorite YA tropes: fake dating for reasons™, a Mr. Darcy-esque love interest, a fish out of water character, a makeover montage. I LitLol’d many times.

3. The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Jojo Moyes writes touching contemporary fiction featuring zany heroines and lovely historical fiction featuring strong female leads . This book was a bit of both.

2. The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: A great ending to one of my favorite crime series. Murder and mystery at a remote boarding school? Snarky teens who are too smart for their own good? Yes, please.

1. The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Tweet-length review: Is this magic realism? Historical fiction? I went back and forth. The writing is lovely and the story was engrossing—I’ll never say no to a fairy tale reimagining! This one will be a re-read for sure.

Bonus: Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center, which I finished on 1/31 ⭐⭐⭐

January by the Numbers

• Total Spent: $33
• Total Saved: $114
• Genre Breakdown:
  • 7 Adult, 7 YA
  • 12 Fiction, 2 Nonfiction
  • 9 eBooks, 2 book-books, 3 audiobooks

A combination of library loans, old Audible credits, gifted books, and some last minute Kindle sale purchases technically made in 2019 helped keep my book budget down this month. I actually only bought THREE new books in January, which is pretty dang good for me. However, I really only read one book from my TBR backlog, so less progress on that front. The B-ADD is real.

I have tried in the past to be a person who plans out my reading list for the year, but friends, that just isn’t me. Yes, I am a former English teacher who despises being on the receiving end of any kind of reading assignment, perceived or otherwise. I do, however, take great pleasure in adding books to my yearly “Want-to-Read” shelf, especially new titles by some of my favorite authors that I’ve been dying to read.

Full disclosure: my anticipated 2020 releases runs high to sequels and YA. If that’s not what you’re into, feel free to check out one of the internet’s other posts on 2020’s hottest new releases.

Alriiiight. Let’s get into it.

One of Us is Next by Karen M. McManus 

The sequel to One of Us is Lying, accurately billed as a “Pretty Little Liars meets Breakfast Club” YA thriller. I gave the original four stars out of five, and 2017 Me shared in my review that it was a “great YA mystery thriller with a well done reveal”…and nothing more. Nonetheless, I was excited to see that McManus was doing a sequel, especially after reading and enjoying her second book, Two Can Keep a Secret, last year. This one sounds a little bit like Gossip Girl meets that weird movie Nerve (you know, that one with Emma Roberts and Little Franco) and I am here for it.

The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson

The Hand on the Wall is the final installment of Johnson’s Truly, Devious series, and another murder mystery thriller with the added glamour of taking place at an alternative boarding school in Vermont. Johnson loves a cliffhanger, and I can’t wait to see how she wraps up this series that I know I’ve loved (as evidenced by my 5 star reviews) but also remember very little about because #oldbrain. Thank God for the enterprising souls who run all those book recap sites—truly, the heroes we need.

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

This is Mandel’s first novel since her bestseller Station Eleven, which was a National Book Award Finalist and one of the few books I suggested as a monthly book club pick that I actually ended up reading. The Glass Hotel sounds quite different story-wise—it’s straight literary fiction rather than speculative dystopia for one thing—but I fully expect it to be just as thought-provoking as Station Eleven.

The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson

I adore Erik Larson’s books—I recommend Issac’s Storm to pretty much everyone, and have devoured almost all of his other works as well. He’s a wonderfully talented storyteller and an impeccable researcher who writes microhistories that read like fiction. I always come away from one of his books with a new appreciation for history and a plethora of random facts with which to impress acquaintances. His latest oeuvre focuses on Winston Churchill and London during the Blitz.

The House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

Y’all, I’m nervous about this one. The House of Earth and Blood, the first book in Maas’ new Crescent City series, is billed as her first “adult” novel, which is frankly terrifying. I discovered Maas five years ago when I listened to A Court of Thorn and Roses on audiobook (yes, The Noun of Noun and Noun title formula is strong with this one) and was hooked. I immediately read all of the published books in her Throne of Glass series and was, for awhile, Harry Potter-level obsessed. Unfortunately the honeymoon didn’t last: Throne of Glass, which started out as fun and frisky YA, transitioned into ever-more cringey and very adult territory, and I absolutely loathed the final installment of the ACOTAR series. I was pleasantly surprised by Maas’ entry into the DC Icons series, Catwoman: Soulstealer, in which she regained some of her OG energy that made Throne of Glass so fun (and also managed to actually be YA-appropriate), but my hopes aren’t high that she’ll reign in Trashy Romance Novelist Sarah in a book that is actually meant to be marketed to adults, sooooooo….TBD.

The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkowski 

I’ve been DYING for Rutkowski to write another book after loving the Winner’s trilogy, so I definitely squealed when I saw that she was writing a duology set in the same world (which means I probably need to reread the original trilogy before this one comes out because, again, #oldbrain). Reviews of ARCs on Goodreads have been overwhelmingly positive, so I’m for sure looking forward to seeing if this one lives up to the hype!

The Damned by Renee Ahdieh 

This is book two in a series of (allegedly) four, breaking Ahdieh’s duology trend. The first book, The Beautiful, one had me at vampires in 19th century New Orleans; I ended up giving it 3.5 stars, proclaiming I would reserve judgement until the next installment, so we’ll have to see if my rating improves.

The Heir Affair by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

The Royal We was one of my 2015 reads, the first year I started tracking what I read year on year in Goodreads. I remember liking it a lot (I gave it 4 stars)—this is basically Will and Kate fanfiction with name changes and enough differences to avoid legal action (Curtis Sittenfeld’s does something similar in American Wife with the Bushes). A lot has happened in the actual Royal Family in 20-5, so I’m curious to see how Cocks and Morgan translate all the drama to the page.

Well friends, I hope you had as much fun as I did today, and that you’re as excited as I am to pull on some reading socks and continue to explore my TBR with me, and that you’ll join me next time, when I recap Lee Goldberg’s awful Amazon First Reads pick, Lost Hills.

Welcome to 2020! After seeing The Rise of Skywalker and the finale of The Mandalorian, I wasn’t ready for Star Wars season to end. Cue me redownloading Carrie Fisher’s last memoir, which I’d already started and stopped twice since buying it in January of 2018.

The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher

Why I picked it: Based on my initial purchase date (two weeks after the release of The Last Jedi), I probably bought it for the same reason I picked it back up—an insatiable need for more Star Wars content after feeling all the feels.

I was fairly neutral about Carrie Fisher, but this was billed as a behind-the-scenes look at the making of A New Hope, and as I had thoroughly enjoyed other behind-the-scenes looks at the making of cult classics (As You Wish by Cary Elwes is fantastic reading for any fans of The Princess Bride and I highly recommend the audiobook for the cast cameos and the impressions), I decided to give this a go.

Blurb in brief: “When Carrie Fisher discovered the journals she kept during the filming of the first Star Wars movie, she was astonished to see what they had preserved–plaintive love poems, unbridled musings with youthful naivete, and a vulnerability that she barely recognized. Before her passing, her fame as an author, actress, and pop-culture icon was indisputable, but in 1977, Carrie Fisher was just a teenager with an all-consuming crush on her costar, Harrison Ford.

With these excerpts from her handwritten notebooks, The Princess Diarist is Fisher’s intimate and revealing recollection of what happened on one of the most famous film sets of all time–and what developed behind the scenes. Fisher also ponders the joys and insanity of celebrity, and the absurdity of a life spawned by Hollywood royalty, only to be surpassed by her own outer-space royalty. Laugh-out-loud hilarious and endlessly quotable, The Princess Diarist brims with the candor and introspection of a diary while offering shrewd insight into one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars.”

What I thought: This was a hard read. Initially, because I found Fisher’s storytelling in this book to be distractingly frenetic. Lord knows I love a good yarn/pithy aside, but this was sensory overload in literature form and the main reason why I’d put this book aside twice already. However, sheer stubbornness forced me through the rest of this book, though I freely admit I skimmed a good deal of it.

First of all, this is not a memoir about the making of Star Wars. If that’s what you’re here for, move along. Other than a few brief cameos by Mark Hamill, the main story is Fisher’s relationship/affair with a fourteen years-older, married Harrison Ford during the filming of the first movie. This isn’t a kiss-and-tell by any means; Fisher offers no real juicy details and adopts a “fade-to-black and fill-in-the-blanks” approach for much of her story.

As someone who was once a teenage girl who kept a journal of my angsty musings and terrible poetry about unrequited love, the excerpts from Fisher’s diaries during this time felt both familiar and heartbreakingly sad.

There are plenty of fish in the sea

And you sure look like a fish to me

As soft as a crayfish with a mouth that opens and closes

And like a fish you don’t say pretty things

And you don’t send no roses

There are plenty of fish in plenty of seas

And like a fish you don’t bring shiny diamonds

And fall to your knees

If you’d never gotten close I wouldn’t have noticed when you were far away

But you filled up my nights and then emptied my days

There are girls who can be helped and there are girls who can be had

But you helped me and then had me

And now fish I need help again I need help real bad . . .

But, like the fisherman said, there are plenty of fish in the sea

And maybe someday some sweet salmon will come and swim away with me 

The book then switches gears into a kind of melancholy look at celebrity and fame and their effect on identity.

After receiving the call to let her know that she’d gotten the part, Fisher recounts that  she ran laughing outside into the street. “It was raining. It didn’t rain in L.A. It was raining in L.A. and I was Princess Leia. I had never been Princess Leia before and now I would be her forever. I would never not be Princess Leia. I had no idea how profoundly true that was and how long forever was.”

Fisher has real affection for the iconic character that vaulted her into stardom, but a role like that clearly comes with a price. So often we think of movie stars as having it easy, but Fisher really gives the reader a sense of what it’s like to mean so much to so many who don’t actually know you at all.

My rating: 3/5 stars; Goodreads rating: 3.67/5 stars

While this book did not meet my initial expectations, I felt for Fisher. The way she paints her affair with Ford reminds me a bit of an arc on the show Bunheads in which Bailey Buntain’s character Ginny develops a crush on the mysterious and taciturn Frankie. She later ends up losing her virginity to him despite their hardly having exchanged more than a few words.

“I never know what he’s talking about and he can go hours without saying anything at all…he’s just so beautiful. Can you love someone you’ve never had a conversation with?”

All in all, this was a sad book. It made me sad for teenaged Carrie and sad for present-day Carrie, who despite her glibness, had been clearly and profoundly affected by the lifelong experience of being Princess Leia.

After four years of successfully completing (and occasionally exceeding) a 60 book goal for my annual Goodreads Challenge, I upped my goal for 2019 to…wait for it…SIXTY-FIVE books. Dare to dream the impossible dream, amirite?

This slight increase notwithstanding, I resolved in January to try ramping up my reading rigor by improving my consistency and completing at least five books a month. In the past, my monthly reading volume has varied greatly—some months, I’d finish only a single book; other months (I’m looking at you, December ’18), I’d crush eighteen.

In addition, I decided that 2019 would be the year I got my financial ish together, so I created a line item in my budget specifically for book purchases. This meant that 1) I attempted to utilize my local library/Libby app to supplement my personal library and 2) I tried to shop my shelf a bit more.

So…how successful was I?

NOTE: I spent entirely too much time trying to tease out these numbers, and for whatever reason, they’re not all adding up. What can I say? #EnglishMajor

Reviewing my own snazzy infographic, I’m pleasantly surprised to see that between checking out books from the library on the Libby app and reading books I already owned, almost 50% of the books I read this year were “free.” I’ve never really kept track of how much I spend on books, but I can assure you, it was a lot, so this looks like progress to me!

What strikes me as crazy is how few physical books I read in 2019—only around 15, which is honestly shocking. I used to save my Kindle reading almost exclusively for when I was traveling, and my library is one of my greatest treasures (I think I’ve got somewhere between 400-500 titles on my shelves and I was in tears when I thought they might have all been damaged during Harvey). But between checking out ebooks on the Libby app and choosing to buy the Kindle version to help myself stay within budget, this, it seems, is the result.

I didn’t include it on the infographic, but I reread ten books this year—the entire Harry Potter series on Audible, as well as Bardugo’s Six of Crows and Shadow and Bone Trilogy to try and get myself reacquainted with Ravka before I read King of Scars.

Sidebar: Trying to remember what the heck happened in the previous books in a series never ceases to be a struggle. I long for the days when I actually remembered everything I read, but alas, those days are looooong gone.

I’ve reread the HP series more times than I can count (see my post on the Books That Built Me here), but I have to say, it was a slog to finish it this year. I normally zip through them all in about three months, but it took closer to EIGHT this year. After prepping for my 2nd Annual Very Harry Christmas Party and relistening to Binge Mode: Harry Potter on top of my reread, the burnout was real. Think I may skip it for 2020…

What wasn’t shocking was that I did not end up achieving my goal to read at least 5 books a month for the whole year. I don’t know what it is, but I always seem to have at least one dip where I just don’t read very much. I honestly don’t even know what I’m doing instead. Watching hours of “Epicurious: Four Levels” videos on YouTube, most likely.

Also not shocking—I again failed to complete the Popsugar Reading Challenge. I always start with the best of intentions, but I have a mental block when it comes to any kind of reading that feels assigned. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

All in all, it was a pretty good reading year. I even managed to squish in some non-fiction at the end of the year (Parkland by Dave Cullen was one of my favorite books of the year!).

Stay tuned for my 2020 reading goals!