Tag: monthly wrap up

Monthly Wrap Up | September & October 2026

Posted November 1, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 4 Comments

Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

September and October 2026 Wrap Up

Wow, it’s been a while since I posted and I completely missed last month’s Wrap Up post so I’m putting the two months together. My husband’s computer broke and he had to use mine while waiting for a replacement, and then I got sick for a couple of weeks in October, so in between the two things and both of us having to catch up with all the work we missed, I’m feeling overwhelmed with all the backlog of things I haven’t done.

I’m not even sure if I will review any of the books I read the last couple of months, even though I didn’t read as much as I normally do. I guess it’s also the time of the year when I’m anxious and already thinking of the next year, so I’m anxious both about the backlog and setting up for the new year!

I’m also feeling a little pressured about finishing my reading challenges for this year. I’m usually very aware of them and try to finish them way ahead of time, but I’ve been in a slump the last few months and haven’t been reading as much as I normally do, nor purposefully reading books that fit into the challenges because of mood. There are still a couple of months left but I have so many other things to do too!! Get me a clone or a time machine or something!

    Books Read in September 2026

    1. A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
    2. The Tropic of Serpents by Marie Brennan
    3. The Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan
    4. In The Labyrinth of Drakes by Marie Brennan
    5. Within the Sanctuary of Wings by Marie Brennan
    6. Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty

    Books Read in October 2026

    1. The Infinite Extent by Dennis E. Taylor
    2. Paladin’s Grace by T. Kingfisher
    3. Paladin’s Strength by T. Kingfisher
    4. First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston
    5. The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich
    6. Sounds Like Love by Ashley Poston
    7. The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn
    8. The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel

    Notable Books

    The Memoirs of Lady Trent were wonderful and I was just completely immersed in them. I wasn’t able to read a lot of books in September, but I’m glad that I spent the month with Lady Trent and all her adventures. I love her voice and attitude, and I love the way the story flowed and how all the different elements of science, language, anthropology, and natural history in this world seem so plausible.

    I also really enjoyed the first two books in the Saint of Steel series by T. Kingfisher. I’ve only finished Paladin’s Grace and Paladin’s Strength so far. I didn’t realize that each book was a different story featuring a different character with an overarching plot in the series; I love each story and I have fallen in love with the characters in both books so far, but it does interrupt the flow of the series for me a little bit.

    The real standout for me these last couple of months is The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn. First of all, I finally read a full-length novel by Quinn! Second of all, what a great book to debut my love of a new-to-me author! The Diamond Eye is based on a true story about Lyudmila Pavlichenko, a female sniper during WW2 with 309 confirmed kills. What a badass! It’s fictional but it seemed like Quinn tried to stick closely to many of the known facts, and the made up stuff are things that could’ve plausible fit into what is known about her. Either way, this was such an exciting read and I loved it!

    November 2026 TBR Intentions

    I have maybe two books left for the 2026 52 Book Club Reading Challenge, so I’ll focus on that. The 2026 Nonfiction Reader Challenge is pretty chill and I’ve already read more than 12 books for that so I’ll consider it done.

    I have been slacking with The Stephen King Constant Reader Challenge and The Classics Club challenge but they run past the end of 2026, so I’ll read more if I can before the end of the year but if not, I’ll catch up next year! Fingers crossed.

    1. The Girl With A Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean
    2. Mythos by Stephen Fry
    3. The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
    4. The Shippers by Katherine Center
    5. Something by Margaret Atwood (I haven’t decided yet!)

    How was your reading last month? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful upcoming month with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | August 2026

    Posted September 2, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 2 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    August 2026 Wrap Up

    August went by faster than I expected. The good and fun thing is that there were a lot of summer events, and we were busy with musical fests, night markets, and other exciting local stuff. The not so good thing is that I didn’t read as much as I normally do, but I guess that’s okay.

    My August 2026 TBR Intentions

    Second month in a row I failed on these books! I won’t give up on them but I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get to them in September either! I seem to be on a series kick and I’ve already started my next one – The Memoirs of Lady Trent.

    1. To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
    2. The Shippers by Katherine Center
    3. The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
    4. The Ides of April by Lindsey Davis

    Books Read in August 2026

    1. This is Our Story by Ashley Elston
    2. Bobiverse Series by Dennis E. Taylor
      1. We Are Legion (We Are Bob)
      2. For We Are Many
      3. All These Worlds
      4. Heaven’s River
      5. Not Till We Are Lost

    Notable Book(s) This Month

    I only really focused on the one series this month, the Bobiverse Series, but it was a really good series and I’m excited about the next one which is supposed to be coming out on September 10, 2026.

    September 2026 TBR Intentions

    I’ve already started reading the Lady Trent series so that’s probably going to be my focus this month, plus the sixth book in the Bobiverse series!

    1. A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
    2. The Tropic of Serpents by Marie Brennan
    3. The Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan
    4. In The Labyrinth of Drakes by Marie Brennan
    5. Within the Sanctuary of Wings by Marie Brennan
    6. The Infinite Extent by Dennis E. Taylor

    How was your month in August? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful September with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | July 2026

    Posted August 1, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 2 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    July 2026 Wrap Up

    July was quite an eventful month, we happened to have a lot of pre-scheduled appointments and events planned ahead for the month and I feel like I was mostly caught up in the flow and not really directing any of it! That’s okay though, I may not have been able to progress with some of my goals as much as I wanted but I did gain other things this July and it’s all good.

    My July 2026 TBR Intentions

    I did not end up reading a single book I originally intended to in July. Hopefully I do better next month!

    1. To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
    2. The Shippers by Katherine Center
    3. The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
    4. The Ides of April by Lindsey Davis

    Books Read in July 2026

    1. Venco by Cherie Dimaline
    2. The White Darkness by David Grann
    3. Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey
    4. The Sword of Kaigen by M.L. Wang
    5. The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
    6. Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
    7. Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross
    8. The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore
    9. The Seventh Bride by T. Kingfisher
    10. Illuminations by T. Kingfisher

    Notable Book(s) This Month

    Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey and The Women They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore are my non-fiction standouts this month. I loved McConaughey’s energy and introspection in his book and I’m curious to check out more of his works now. I hadn’t really watched many of his movies previously, but I did love Interstellar and How To Lose A Guy in Ten Days.

    Kate Moore wrote Radium Girls, which I read and loved previously, and The Women They Could Not Silence is another angry-making true story about a woman who was committed to an insane asylum in the 1860s because she disagreed with her husband’s opinions. Ugh! Such a great book though!

    For fiction, I really loved The Correspondent by Virginia Evans. I typically enjoy epistolary storytelling; I love the romance and nostalgia of it, and this book really made me miss letter-writing and snail-mail. I’m also very happy about reading two T. Kingfisher books this month! I enjoyed The Seventh Bride, but it was Illuminations that I truly fell in love with. It’s categorized as middle grade and it’s so fun and imaginative, I couldn’t help but love it.

    August 2026 TBR Intentions

    Trying these books again in August. Let’s hope I read at least a couple of them this time!

    1. To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
    2. The Shippers by Katherine Center
    3. The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
    4. The Ides of April by Lindsey Davis

    How was your month in July? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful August with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | June 2026

    Posted July 2, 2026 by Haze in Blog News, Monthly Wrap Up / 2 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    June 2026 Wrap Up

    To be blunt, June sucked.

    We lost another one of our cats, Pepper, last week on the 26th of June, after losing Loki in June last year. She stopped eating on Monday so we took her to the vet. They took x-rays and a blood test, and then gave her meds and told us to force-feed her with a syringe if she didn’t start eating on her own. We did it for a couple of days but she wasn’t getting any better, and she also stopped drinking and we had to force her to drink as well.

    The blood test results showed she probably had kidney disease and we took her back to the vet on Friday. She’d lost about 1.3kg in just five days. The vet said it didn’t look like she’d be able to make it without hospitalization and extensive medical intervention, and we obviously didn’t want her to starve herself to death and suffer any more than she had to, so we decided to let her go.

    It sucks. I hate it. She was the baby and the most spoiled cat of all. I can’t believe she’s gone.

    Button is the only one left. She’s Loki’s and Pepper’s mother, and she was very attached to Pepper. Now that Pepper’s gone, Button’s been sleeping with us every night and following us around a lot. We ended up taking Button to the vet too, this week, just to check that everything’s good with her and prevent any issues before they crop up. The good news is that her bloodwork came back great, but we’ve got to get her in for dental work later this year.

    It’s still new and raw, and I find myself coming across memories and things that remind me of Pepper, and I’d just cry randomly. We just bought a new cat backpack so she could come with us on walks this summer and I have so many regrets when I see it sitting in the corner. She had only gotten to use it once.

    I think when I posted about Loki last year, I’d had more time to process it before sharing about it and Pepper’s passing just happened last week so I’m rambling way too much. I know it’ll get better eventually.

    My June 2026 TBR Intentions

    I didn’t end up reading very much in June. I’m also behind on my book reviews, replying comments, and general blog maintenance. I did get a few of my Top Ten Tuesdays topics done ahead of time and pre-scheduled, so that’s one less thing to worry about.

    1. The Talisman by Stephen King & Peter Straub
    2. Black House by Stephen King & Peter Straub
    3. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
    4. The Ides of April by Lindsey Davis

    Books Read in June 2026

    1. The Talisman by Stephen King & Peter Straub
    2. Black House by Stephen King & Peter Straub
    3. North by Scott Jurek and Jenny Jurek
    4. Till Summer Do Us Part by Meghan Quinn
    5. Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman by Lucy Worsley
    6. The Gift of Fear by Gavin de Becker
    7. Tuesdays At The Castle by Jessica Day George

    Notable Book(s) This Month

    The Talisman and Black House were wonderful and immersive reads. I loved the journey and I’m so excited for the third book in the series, Other Worlds Than These, coming out this October.

    The Agatha Christie bio by Lucy Worsley was also really good! I read a fictionalized book about Agatha Christie, The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont, recently and didn’t like it very much, but this one made me want to know more about Christie and reread her books again.

    July 2026 TBR Intentions

    I kinda want to let myself chill and read all the happy, cozy books after the month I had in June, but I also love the feeling of satisfaction when I cross off books that fit the prompts of the reading challengs I’ve taken on. Let’s see if I can find a balance.

    1. To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
    2. The Shippers by Katherine Center
    3. The Romance Revival by Christina Lauren
    4. The Ides of April by Lindsey Davis

    How was your month in June? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful July with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | May 2026

    Posted June 1, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 4 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    May 2026 Wrap Up

    I spent most of May trying my best to get ahead of deadlines so that I can get back to being more present on the blog. It feels like a constant struggle but I’m getting closer to my goals. I’m also trying to read more books on print than on audio, but it’s just easier to read more books on audio when there are chores (and other audiobook compatible activities) to do!

    My May 2026 TBR Intentions

    I mentioned how excited I was about Book 8 of the Dungeon Crawler Carl coming out in May and that I wanted to reread Books 1 through 7 before diving into it. Well, I couldn’t wait and dove right in the day it released without rereading the other books! I’ll probably reread the whole series again at some point because there were a lot of details I forgot while reading Book 8, but it was totally worth it!

    1. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
    2. Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
    3. Stiff by Mary Roach
    4. Rage Becomes Her by Soraya Chemaly

    Books Read in May 2026

    1. Stiff by Mary Roach
    2. Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman
    3. Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
    4. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
    5. The Blue Fairy Book by Andrew Lang
    6. A Parade of Horribles by Matt Dinniman
    7. My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney
    8. Horns by Joe Hill
    9. The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose
    10. Start Where You Are by Sabrina Pace-Humphreys
    11. Bag of Bones by Stephen King
    12. The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
    13. The Incomplete Book of Running by Peter Sagal
    14. Elevation by Stephen King
    15. High School by Tegan Quin and Sara Quin

    Notable Book(s) This Month

    Yesteryear was a big standout, not necessarily because I loved it but rather because it’s still sticking with me. It says a lot about our current social media culture and influencer’s public persona. The story and characters are fictional but I know there are real people like Natalie and her husband out there and that scares me deeply.

    The other standout is of course, Book 8 of Dungeon Crawler Carl, A Parade of Horribles, because I loved it! I love listening to it on audio. I miss the characters, Jeff Hay’s protrayal of all of them, and it still makes me laugh and cry at all the right places. Definitely planning a reread once I have my other reading challenges squared off.

    I also read a couple of nonfiction books about running; one is a guide/how-to, Start Where You Are by Sabrina Pace-Humphreys, which was actually quite informative and helpful, specially targeted to women runners, and the other is a memoir, The Incomplete Book of Running by Peter Sagal, which was really interesting because he talks about being a guide for blind runners, plus he was present at the Boston Marathon bombing.

    June 2026 TBR Intentions

    I have a few books I’m itching to read and I’m sort of wanting to read more running memoirs, but I’d also like to finish as much of the 2026 52 Book Club Reading Challenge as possible. I have other reading challenges as well, and I’m doing well with the 2026 Nonfiction Reader Challenge but falling behind with The Stephen King Constant Reader Challenge and The Classics Club. I’ll have to find a balance!

    1. The Talisman by Stephen King & Peter Straub
    2. Black House by Stephen King & Peter Straub
    3. The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
    4. The Ides of April by Lindsey Davis

    How was your month in May? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful June with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | April 2026

    Posted May 1, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 6 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    April 2026 Wrap Up

    As expected, April was another busy month and quite disorganized, to be honest. But the good news is that I’m getting more exercise; I’ve been getting up early almost every morning to run and/or go to the gym, and so far it’s sticking! Fingers crossed!

    The other good news is that I actually managed to get a lot of books read because of all the exercising, through audiobooks! Out of the 15 books I read this month, 14 were audiobooks! That would be sad except that I know I’d have read significantly fewer books this month if it weren’t for the audiobooks, so you know what? I’ll focus on the good and be grateful for them!

    Still, I do miss the printed books and I’ll try to make time for focused reading in May.

    My April 2026 TBR Intentions

    I played it safe and only listed three, and finished them all! Yay!

    1. Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
    2. Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett
    3. Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett

    Books Read in April 2026

    1. Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
    2. Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett
    3. Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett
    4. Radium Girls by Kate Moore
    5. Into the Wild by Job Krakauer
    6. Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn
    7. The Librarian of Crooked Lane by C.J. Archer
    8. The Medici Manuscript by C.J. Archer
    9. The Untitled Books by C.J. Archer
    10. The Dead Letter Delivery by C.J. Archer
    11. Secrets of the Lost Ledgers by C.J. Archer
    12. The Journal of A Thousand Years by C.J. Archer
    13. Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle
    14. Educated by Tara Westover
    15. The Hot Zone by Richard Preston

    Notable Book(s) This Month

    The nonfiction were the standouts this month!

    The Radium Girls and Educated had me feeling all kinds of feelings. For different reasons, of course. The Radium Girls was devastating on a “where-is-the-humanity?!” level, but Educated touched me on a personal level.

    The Hot Zone was very good too, in a scary, horrifying way. I learned more than I wanted to about the terrifying and painful ways we puny humans can die, and I don’t know what to do with this.

    I’ve been on such a nonfiction binge though, which is great. There are still so many books on my 2026 Nonfiction Reader Challenge TBR, and I’m adding more every day!

    May 2026 TBR Intentions

    Okay soooooooo…. Book 8 of the Dungeon Crawler Carl series, A Parade of Horribles, is coming out on May 12th! I have already pre-ordered it and I am very excited to read it, but not before rereading Books 1 through 7 again… Which means the series is probably going to take up my whole month, or I have to be more patient and space them out while I read other books in between, or I have to forget about rereading the previous books and just read Book 8.

    I haven’t decided! But I do have to read the other books below as well, for bookclub obligations and other reasons!

    1. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
    2. Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
    3. Stiff by Mary Roach
    4. Rage Becomes Her by Soraya Chemaly

    How was your month in April? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful May with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | March 2026

    Posted April 1, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 12 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    March 2026 Wrap Up

    March was a whirlwind! I was kept busy for most of the month with regular stuff and some spring cleaning. And we also had some friends come to visit during spring break with their family. We spent full days with them doing activities we don’t normally do anymore and we were exhausted but so happy to see them and spend time with them. These are people we love, so even though it was tiring, we would’ve love for them to stay even longer. It also made us realize that we’re too young to feel so old, and they’ve given us the inspiration to get more active. New fitness goals coming up for the new month and beyond!

    My March 2026 TBR Intentions

    As for books, I only ended up reading two out of four books in my March TBR and a total of five books for the whole month, but one of them is the Sherlock Holmes collection, and as I mentioned in last month’s wrap up post, it is massive at 72 hours or 1796 pages and is technically made up of an equivalent of nine books? So it’s not too bad I guess.

    1. Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection by Arthur Conan Doyle
    2. The Glass Château by Stephen P. Kiernan
    3. The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer, MD
    4. This Is What It Sounds Like by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas

    Books Read in March 2026

    1. We Met Like This by Kasie West
    2. My Friends by Fredrik Backman
    3. The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer, MD
    4. Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection by Arthur Conan Doyle
    5. Replay by Ken Grimwood

    Notable Book(s) This Month

    Well, obviously most of my time was spent on Sherlock Holmes! I listened to the definitive collection on audio narrated by Stephen Fry, and it was the most wonderful experience. I was always looking forward to getting back to it and was so sad when it was over. I had such a strong urge to restart the book from the beginning once I got to the end. It just feels like such a comforting book, and Stephen Fry is just the best narrator, I really felt completely lost in the Holmes’ world and I loved it!

    The other books were good too, I didn’t have a bad read this month, but Sherlock Holmes was obviously the standout.

    April 2026 TBR Intentions

    I’ve already started rereading Foundryside, the first book in The Founders Trilogy, and my aim is to finally finish the series. I’m actually anticipating another busy month so I’m not sure if I’ll be able to read as much as I want to and I don’t want to disappoint myself but I’m hoping to get to as many of the books on my Spring TBR as possible.

    1. Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
    2. Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett
    3. Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett

    How was your month in March? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful April with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | February 2026

    Posted March 2, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 5 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    February 2026 Wrap Up

    February went by too quickly! I completely reorganized my workspace this month and it took up a whole week and a half, which is basically almost half the month! I still have little bits and pieces to clean up but at least I can actually use the space now. It made a short month feel even shorter, but I did manage to read a lot of good books anyway.

    My February 2026 TBR Intentions

    Yeah, I didn’t do so well reading from my TBR in February because of the mental load of reorganizing, but I did end up reading a lot of good books and even got one single nonfiction in!

    1. The Women Are Not Fine by Hope Reese
    2. The Glass Château by Stephen P. Kiernan
    3. The Hummingbird by Stephen P. Kiernan
    4. Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree
    5. The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer, MD
    6. This Is What It Sounds Like by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas

    Books Read in February 2026

    1. The Heavens May Fall by Allen Eskens
    2. The Deep Dark Descending by Allen Eskens
    3. Forsaken Country by Allen Eskens
    4. Dare to Lead by Brené Brown
    5. Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King
    6. Strange Houses by Uketsu
    7. The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth
    8. Never Flinch by Stephen King
    9. Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth
    10. Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree
    11. The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont
    12. The Hummingbird by Stephen P. Kiernan

    Notable Books This Month

    Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King, and The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth were just pure enjoyment for me this month. It was the storytelling – both books were different to each other, but it was just the way the stories were told. I felt completely immersed and felt all the feelings.

    The Hummingbird by Stephen P. Kiernan also made a huge impact on me. It’s a reread, but it’s been a while and I’d forgotten everything except the impression it made on me the first time. It hit me harder this time around and I’ll probably talk about it more in a review soon.

    And of course, Dare to Lead by Brené Brown makes the list because I love everything she puts out and this is no different. I finished the book in a single sitting, and I’ve restarted the book again because I want to savor it this time around.

    March 2026 TBR Intentions

    I’m keeping this month’s list short because the Sherlock Holmes collection is massive at 72 hours, or 1796 pages, and two of the other books on the list are nonfiction that require more attention.

    1. Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection by Arthur Conan Doyle
    2. The Glass Château by Stephen P. Kiernan
    3. The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer, MD
    4. This Is What It Sounds Like by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas

    How was your month in February? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful March with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | January 2026

    Posted February 2, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 3 Comments

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction and Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    January 2026 Wrap Up

    I had a great reading month in that I felt like I had a good balance between reading from my TBR and for bookclubs and buddy reads, and reading whatever I felt like in the moment. I binge read a bunch of romances that I’ve been sorely missing and it was so healing to my heart!

    I think I also did pretty well with keeping up with my book reviews and replying comments. I haven’t finished writing all the reviews or replying all the comments, but I’m trying my best not to let them accumulate too much. It does feel a little challenging at times and I’m hoping this is not a new year’s thing that tapers off, but rather something that I’ll get better with in time!

    My January 2026 TBR Intentions

    I didn’t do too badly, I think. I’m also trying not to worry too much about reading from the TBR as long as my bookclub commitments get read! I’m keeping it chill. 😂

    1. Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green
    2. The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
    3. The Women Are Not Fine by Hope Reese
    4. The Glass Château by Stephen P. Kiernan
    5. The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston
    6. The Will of the Many by James Islington
    7. The Strength of the Few by James Islington

    Books Read in January 2026

    1. The Will of the Many by James Islington
    2. The Strength of the Few by James Islington
    3. The Turn of the Screw by Henry James
    4. The Kaiju Preservation Society by James Scalzi
    5. Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
    6. The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins
    7. Everything Is Tuberculosis by John Green
    8. Cover Story by Mhairi McFarlane
    9. The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
    10. The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
    11. The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston
    12. Better Than Revenge by Kasie West
    13. The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens
    14. The Guise of Another by Allen Eskens

    Notable Books This Month

    Firekeeper’s Daughter surprised me because for some reason I thought it was historical fantasy but it turned out to be contemporary fiction, and a really important story at that. I loved how nuanced it was and the story it told about Indigenous culture. It focuses on the current lives of Indigenous people, but it also shows how Indigenous history shapes what’s happening now. It doesn’t shy away from the difficult topics either and I think that’s important.

    Everything Is Tuberculosis is another notable book for me this month because I learned a lot about how tuberculosis shaped history, and also a lot of infuriating things about how race, class, and money influence how cures are distributed in the world. I’m not surprised necessarily, just pissed off, but overall glad I read the book.

    I’m also really just happy about all the romances I’m bingeing on. I feel like they are just what I need to balance out some difficult reads with some books that make me happy and lift my mood. I need some of that especially with all that’s happening in real life.

    February 2026 TBR Intentions

    I’m not as concerned with reading from the TBR anymore, but it’s nice to have some books in mind for what’s next. Plus, I do still have bookclub reads and buddy reads that I need to read and some nonfiction I really want to get to.

    1. The Women Are Not Fine by Hope Reese
    2. The Glass Château by Stephen P. Kiernan
    3. The Hummingbird by Stephen P. Kiernan
    4. Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree
    5. The Mind-Gut Connection by Emeran Mayer, MD
    6. This Is What It Sounds Like by Susan Rogers and Ogi Ogas

    How was your month in January? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful February with lots of great books!

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    Monthly Wrap Up | December 2025

    Posted January 5, 2026 by Haze in Monthly Wrap Up / 1 Comment

    Welcome to the Monthly Wrap Up hosted by Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction to share our monthly wrap-up posts that summarizes our month in books, our favorite books of the month, what we did on our blogs, and anything noteworthy we want to share.

    December 2025 Wrap Up

    Happy 2026, everyone!!

    I had a busy, but good, December and I feel very happy and hopeful for the new year. I do feel like I’m constantly playing catch-up with my blog posts and book reviews though, and I am truly sorry for neglecting my blog and all of you who have been very patient with me.

    My intention is to catch up with all my reviews for December, and I really want to participate in the Top Ten Tuesdays and Sunday Posts more regularly this year. I also really love the End of Year Book Surveys and booktag memes, and I’ll try to do them throughout this rest of this month.

    I’m making new year resolutions for better time management and I’m going to do better in 2026!

    My December 2025 TBR Intentions

    I was trying to take it easy in December so I only had four books on my TBR intentions, and I cannot believe that I completely forgot to read one of them! I forgot I had it on my list! Oh well, I’ll read it this year. 😅

    1. Emma by Jane Austen
    2. Stoner by John Williams
    3. The Wedding People by Alison Espach
    4. My Friends by Fredrik Backman

    Books Read in December 2025

    1. The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
    2. The Fated Sky by Mary Robinette Kowal
    3. The Relentless Moon by Mary Robinette Kowal
    4. The Martian Contingency by Mary Robinette Kowal
    5. The Wedding People by Alison Espach
    6. Emma by Jane Austen
    7. Stoner by John Williams
    8. The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley
    9. Starter Villain by John Scalzi
    10. Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller

    Notable Books This Month

    The Lady Astronaut series by Mary Robinette Kowal were really good! I didn’t expect them to be alternate history because the title made me think sci-fi, not history, but it made a whole lot of sense and I really like the stories that she told with each of the individual books.

    Stoner was also another standout, and it’s interesting that it is because the MC is such an ordinary, unremarkable character, who’s just wanting to live a simple life. I love that we follow him throughout his life and see him through his ups and downs; the challenges that he faces, the good times he enjoys, his occasional bursts of brilliance, his passion about certain issues and then his passivity on other issues. It’s just such great writing.

    January 2026 TBR Intentions

    Other than BOTM obligations for January, I’m also wanting to get to some of the books on my TBR that I didn’t manage to get to last year.

    1. Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green
    2. The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
    3. The Women Are Not Fine by Hope Reese
    4. The Glass Château by Stephen P. Kiernan
    5. The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston
    6. The Will of the Many by James Islington
    7. The Strength of the Few by James Islington

    How was your month in December? How was your year in 2025? What were your most memorable bookish moments? I hope you have a wonderful 2026 with lots of great books!

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