caitlin starling

BOOKENDS: What I Read in November 2024

- Meg

Be Our Guest was for work, and it’s nothing exceptional. I hadn’t ready Judy Blume’s Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, but after watching the incredible film, I had to read it. The film is a faithful book adaptation, and I enjoyed both for their explorations of finding one’s place at the intersection of self and religion in the midst of so many other life changes. Harrow’s Starling House is an incredible exploration of what it means to be haunted. Chlorine was such an interesting take on mermaids and is being added to my fav weird girl lit shelf!! Frankenstein in Baghdad was part of my yearly challenge in 2024, and I think it had potential to be much more than it was for me. It was good, but not as good as I was expecting it to be. On Tyranny was a helpful reminder that is still too timely, and Barbie: The World Tour was a fun look back at the Barbie summer of 2023. Ending the month with Starling’s Yellow Jessamine was a great send off to spooky season, and I’ve enjoyed so much of Starling’s work and was happy to finally get to this novella!

WHAT I READ

💖 purchased/owned | 🌠 library/borrowed | 🔮 review copy | 💞 reread | 👻 dnf

🌠 Be Our Guest: Perfecting the Art of Customer Service, by Theodore Kinni
💖 Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume
💖 Starling House, by Alix E. Harrow
💖 Chlorine, by Jade Song
💖 Frankenstein in Baghdad, by Ahmed Saadawi
💖 On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century, by Timothy Snyder
💖 Barbie: The World Tour, by Margot Robbie and Andrew Mukamal
💖 Yellow Jessamine, by Caitlin Starling

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Most Anticipated Releases for the Rest of 2021

- Meg

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly discussion hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl (and formerly hosted by The Broke and the Bookish), and this week’s topic is “Most Anticipated Releases for the Rest of 2021”! I’m sure there are others that I’m forgetting about, but in a glance at my to-read list and things I can remember off the top of my head, here are ten books I’m looking forward to that are coming out in the latter half of 2021. I can’t believe the year’s halfway gone already!! It’s been such a busy year, but I have a good feeling that the rest of this year is going to be amazing.

  • Well, This is Exhausting: Essays by Sophia Benoit– I’ve followed Sophia on Twitter for so long and have loved her presence on social media, so I’m excited to read her essays!
  • The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling – I love the vibes of this cover?? It’s a witchy romance out just in time for the spooky season.
  • Little Thieves by Margaret Owen – I have not read her duology yet even though I own them, but this has all of the fairy tale vibes I’m here for.
  • A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow – I really enjoyed her debut novel, and this retelling and reworking of the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale is calling my name.
  • The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling – I thoroughly enjoyed Starling’s debut, and this looks like the gothic horror I’ve been wanting (especially after reading Mexican Gothic).
  • Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood – This is a Jane Eyre retelling, and I love seeing what writers do with that story.
  • Gilded by Marissa Meyer – I haven’t read the superhero trilogy of hers yet, but I’ve enjoyed everything else Meyer writes. The cover of this looks so good too.
  • Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia – After reading Mexican Gothic (and I’m in the middle of The Beautiful Ones now), I’ll read anything Silvia writes!!
  • The Penguin Book of Dragons by edited by Scott G. Bruce – Penguin puts out such great collections, and after their mermaid book a while back, I’m excited to see one come out about dragons!
  • Activation Degradation by Marina J. Lostetter – Having just read The Helm of Midnight by the same author, I’m looking forward to reading more of their work! This is recommended for those who like Martha Wells’ Murderbot series, and anything to do with robots/A.I./first contact is everything I enjoy.

What new releases are you looking forward to reading in 2021??

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Books on my Spring TBR

- Meg

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly discussion hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl (and formerly hosted by The Broke and the Bookish), and last week’s topic (that I’m doing this week instead) is “Books on my Spring TBR” and some of these have been on some form of a TBR at some point or another, and I’m going to read them by the time the spring season is over!! I read seven of the ten I chose for winter, and I’m currently in the middle of the eighth! The other two will be read eventually, but I am going to pursue this list as it’s something new and exciting!

  • Walk the Wild With Me by Rachel Atwood – This is a revisit to the mythology of Robin Hood, and I’ve been in the mood for these kinds of retellings, so when I saw this out on the shelves at my store, I immediately grabbed it and have kept my eye on it since. It feels like a spring read to me, so this is the perfect time to read it.
  • Phoenix Unbound by Grace Draven – I want to read more fantasy and romance, especially after catching up completely on the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, and this feels right along the lines of what I’m wanting to read.
  • Yellow Jessamine by Caitlin Starling – I loved her debut novel The Luminous Dead and this looks and feels very gothic fantasy.
  • Cherry by Nico Walker – This has been on my radar since its release, mostly because that cover is compelling, but now that it’s a movie with Tom Holland, it’s moved up my TBR a little bit.
  • The Wolf of Oren-Yaro by K.S. Villoso – The Chronicles of the Bitch Queen trilogy is complete this year, and now I can finally start it! I’ve heard so many good things about this book and its sequel, and for some series, I’m very weird and only like to read them if I can get my hands on the entire series…
  • The Princess Will Save You by Sarah Henning – This is a feminist retelling of The Princess Bride, and the second part of the duology releases this year, and I’m a super in the mood for fantasy everything.
  • Star Wars The High Republic: Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule – So many new Star Wars books have come out in the last year and I’ve bought so many of them, and I’ve been really excited for this next chapter in the Star Wars saga!
  • A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer – This trilogy is complete now, and the hardcovers all look beautiful, and again, I am in the mood for fantasy trilogies.
  • Persephone Station by Stina Leicht – I bought this on release day in January, and this is the only title I’m carrying over officially from the Winter TBR!
  • Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas – I don’t know why I’ve been putting off reading this, but after finishing A Court of Silver Flames I want to get caught up on everything she’s released so far because I’ve also not read the last three books in the Throne of Glass series!

What’s on your spring TBR?