March Reading Wrap-Up + A TBR

Hi, everyone!! I hope you had a lovely March! The month of March was hectic for me. It was incredibly busy school wise. It was also the mark of the end of the 2018 winter guard season and it is always incredibly busy when it comes to an end. I also participated in a social media fast and you can see a daily tracker of my thoughts and pages read here.

Books Read in March:

 

the witch doesn't burn in this one by amanda lovelace - 3 stars This poetry collection follows a lot of current thoughts on feminism but places it in the context of the witch burnings. It feels very reminiscent of The Crucible. lovelace has a lot of good poems in this collection, but there were a couple where the diction rubbed me the wrong way. Check out my review here. (Netgalley ARC)

The Sins of Lord Lockwood by Meredith Duran - 3.75 stars This was a complete surprise and a novel that I found randomly on Netgalley. I'm so glad that I randomly decided to request this one because it was dark. Lockwood is captured and shipped to Australia and is forced into labor at a worker's camp. This HR focuses on PTSD as well as topics and themes that are generally ignored in the HR genre. I'm a huge fan of revenge plots and it always ramps up my enjoyment of the novel if it's there. Check out my review here. (Netgalley ARC)

You Know How the Story Goes by Thomas Olde Heuvelt - 4 stars This story feels like a creepypasta and I love creepypastas. So, naturally, I love this story and it's free on Tor's website. Check out my review here (link to story in review).

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline - 3.75 stars I listened to the audiobook of this one and I must admit if I was reading this book I would have DNFed. I absolutely can't stand Wade as a main character and his progression gets worse and worse as the story goes on. I loved the Oasis and the hunt for that these players goes on and it was hands down what made me enjoy this story instead of despise it. However, the ending sucks and I'll probably end up deducting this rating as time goes on. 

The Price Guide to the Occult by Leslye Walton - 4.25 stars I was so excited when I found out that Walton was finally coming out with another YA novel. I really loved the concept and it was fun to follow this group of witches. I really loved it, but I had so many questions that I wanted answered and it wasn't as amazing as I hoped it would be. Check out my review here. (Netgalley ARC)

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank - 4.25 stars This was my first time reading this one and I have always wanted to read it. Since finishing Anne Frank Remembered in February, I kept thinking about the Franks and their story. I knew that I needed to finally read her story and the audiobook is absolutely stunning. The narration makes this story so personal and real. Check out my review for both The Diary of a Young Girl and Anne Frank Remembered here.

The Master Plan of Evangelism by Robert E. Coleman - 4 stars I finished my leadership training class in March and with that came finishing the novel that was assigned for us to read independently while in the course. I really enjoyed a lot of the chapters and the messages that Coleman discusses in this one. Definitely glad that I read it!

The Merry Spinster: Tales for Everyday Horror by Mallory Ortberg - 3.75 stars This short story collection had a lot of gems that I greatly loved. My favorite was the story about the Velveteen Rabbit who begins to suck the Realness out of the little boy who owns him and as he becomes more real the little boy begins to die. However, there are also a lot of busts, but they didn't completely ruin this collection for me. Check out my review here. (Netgalley ARC)

The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey - 4.25 stars I immediately bought the hardcover of this book when I finished The 5th Wave three years. I haven't touched since because I've heard how much people have hated this one. My library had the audiobook and I decided to take the plunge and finish the trilogy. I knew this wasn't going to be as good as The 5th Wave because that novel was a phenomenal novel for me. However, I don't think the flack this book gets is completely warranted. I am a huge fan of Yancey's writing style and the plot went where I wanted it to. The only problem I had was Ringer. I'm not a huge fan of her and at first, I hated her story and where it progressed to, but now it doesn't bother me as much.

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones - 4.5 stars This novel follows a black man and his newlywed wife and the journey that they are forced to embark on when Ray is accused of raping a woman and is sent to prison. It follows Ray's struggle through prison, Celestial's struggle with being a wife without a husband, and Andre Celestial and Ray's friend who has always been in love with her. The audiobook is amazing and I can't recommend listening to this enough! It was spectacular and as someone who is a native of Louisiana, Ray's accent was spot on. It doesn't get a full 5 from me because there was a time when these characters were making me so angry that I almost quit listening. LOL

The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon - 2 stars Once upon a time, Jamie and Claire were my favorite couple in literature and their story was one that I gobbled up ravenously. However, The Fiery Cross completely decimated my love for this series. This book was too long and had no real purpose. Almost all of this book could be taken out and you would still get the full scope. Half of it wasn't important to the actual story and it was just a whole lot of exposition and crap I couldn't care less about. I will no longer be reading the Outlander books.

 The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton - 3 stars DNF I was so excited for this one because it is a retelling of King Lear. However, the writing was too flowery and the world building wasn't as wonderful as I thought it would be. The characters were the best part of this novel, but my copy was only a sampler and the sampler that was 100+ pages and felt like 500 wasn't compelling enough for me to want to continue. Check out my review here. (Netgalley ARC)

The Last Star by Rick Yancey - 4.5 stars This one started off a little rocky, but picked up and sucked me. Y'all I loved this ending! It blew me away. Yancey went there and it made sense. I was shocked and happy that he went there because it was ballsy and freeing. So happy that I finished this trilogy. I hope to review the entire trilogy sometime this month.

2018 Goals

 -I want to finish at least three series (five doesn't seem doable). YAAAS 1/3 

*I finished The 5th Wave Trilogy with reading two novels!
-I want to read five sequels (I don't have to finish the series). 4/5 

*Flawless by Sara Shepard is book 2 in the PLL series. 

*The Infinite Sea and The Last Star by Rick Yancey are the 2nd and 3rd book in The 5th Wave series.

*The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon is the fifth book in the Outlander series.
-I also want to read four short story collections. COMPLETED 5/4 

 *Harry Potter and Philosophy. 

*Manga Classics: The Jungle Book

*Starlings

*Manga Classics: The Stories of Edgar Allan Poe.

*The Merry Spinster
-I want to read three classics that are not Stephen King novels. COMPLETED 5/3 

*Manga Classics: The Jungle Book

*Anne Frank Remembered

*The ABC Murders

*Manga Classics: The Stories of Edgar Allan Poe

*The Master Plan of Evangelism (Christian Classic)

-I want to read five Stephen King novels (I've already read one in 2018). 1/5  

*The Long Walk (5 stars)

Read 2018 ARCs. Read 12/14!
Books I Posted on End of the Year Survey. YES! 1/18

*The Fiery Cross 

Overall Thoughts:

I read 13 books in March! That's a lot and is a little bit more than I usually read in a month. I didn't read any 5 star novels which is kind of sad, but I did read some novels that I enjoyed and was completely surprised by An American Marriage! It deserves all the love it has been getting. Also I finished a series and finally finished the 1443-page novel, The Fiery Cross, that I've been reading since January 4th. I also finished four novels that were on my want to finish for March which is super exciting!

Currently Reading/ Hoping to Finish in April:

     

Already Finished: I Have Lost My Way, School for Psychics, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, and Gerald's Game
Netgalley ARCs: School for Psychics, Love and Death in the Sunshine State
Eldweiss:
First to Read: I Have Lost My Way
Physical ARC: Song of Blood & Stone (won from GR!)
I'm still currently reading A Wilderness Station, Helter Skelter, Against Forgetting, A Darker Shade of Magic, Amity, and rereading East of Eden. I started reading Song of Blood & Stone and Love and Death in the Sunshine State. I also started listening to The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

Books I'm Thinking About Picking Up:
ARCs
  
For April ARCs, I have Dimension Drift and it's only 125 pages. So, I'll give it a go. The Mars Room and The Luck of the Bride release on May 1 and I'd like to get to them both, but I don't know if I'll get to both of them. Hooked on a Phoenix is an ARC from March that I'd like to pick up. Out of these I'm most excited for The Mars Room. It was already on my TBR and when I saw it on Netgalley and got approved I squealed a bit!
Audiobooks:

I'm on hold for these books at my library and I'm hoping that I get to all of them in April!
I read The Hollow when I was in middle school and it was one of my favorite novels. I've been meaning to continue with this series since the second book came out I bought it the month it was released and still haven't continued. Y'all, Neil Gaiman narrates Coraline and I'm 100% here for that. I've been on hold for what feels like forever and I can't wait for this to finally become available for me. I'm going to give the Percy Jackson series a shot, but I don't know if I'll like it or not. I've always wanted to read The Chronicles of Narnia. In fact, when I was in fourth grade I started reading Prince Caspian, but it's hard to jump into a series and I never finished it. Peter from Peter Likes Books had such high praises for The Woman in the Window and its audiobook that I knew I needed to pick it up! I'm number 23 on the waiting list, but my library has 8 copies, so I may actually get to this one. Murder in the Bayou hits close to home and when I worked in traveling sales I went to Jennings and met a man who told me about the corruption in Jennings. I was interested and did some research, turns out there is a famous true crime novel revealing the corruption in a small town overrun by drugs.
Books I Own:
 
I've been meaning to finish the Burn for Burn trilogy forever and since I bought this book during Black Friday from Book Outlet it has been staring into my soul. Ashes to Ashes is going to be my next read for sure! I really want to read You. I've had this one for a while now (probably a year) and I always want to read it, but when it comes to books I really want to read I sometimes take forever to get to. I haven't read a Vonnegut book since I was a senior in high school. What is wrong with me? My parents gifted me with God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater for Christmas and this is one that I must read soon! I'm going to say that The Shining is going to be my next King read, but if I'm honest I never know what King I'm going to pick up next and that's what makes him so much fun!

What did you read in March? Have you read any of these books? What are your thoughts on any of these books? Love it, hate it, or can't be bothered? Let me know down below in the comments!

The Merry Spinster by Mallory Ortberg

The Merry Spinster: Tales for Everyday Horror by Mallory Ortberg

3.75 stars

Mallory Ortberg’s short story collection focuses on the fairy tales of the past or beloved children stories and twists them into horrifying and shocking heights. I will admit not all the stories in this collection are perfect, but I can’t remember the last time I read so many 5-star short stories in a collection. Ortberg is skilled at telling the story in a way familiar to the reader and then leaving the story with a mouth-dropping ending. The majority of the endings are not horrifying in the usual slasher film sense, but they are creepy in the same way that one knows that something far worse is to come, but it cuts off at just the right time Ortberg is strongest in this suite, but she is also weak in several other areas. I will review each story briefly to better clarify my exact meaning because overall, I think she is a strong writer, but she struggles to gain footing with certain stories and I think this is because she was trying a new approach to writing or a different writing style to emulate the original tales.


Whimsical Writing Scale: 3.75

The Daughter Cells – 3.5 stars

“I can think of a dozen better things I could do with a soul.”

The story of “The Little Mermaid” is famous and beloved my many ‘90s children who experienced the Disney adaptation. However, the original tale is quite dark and I would consider it to border on horror and it is definitely a tragedy. This story takes a delightful turn and the mermaid has more Ursula-like qualities that are quite bone-chilling. I love a good soulless mermaid. My biggest problem with this that it takes a while to gain its footing. The narrative is a little wonky and it isn’t until the mermaid talks to the sea-witch that the story takes a dark turn and was able to capture my attention and make me excited about where it could end. It ends on a high note if you were wondering.


The Thankless Child – 1.5 stars

“To be grateful is to be wakeful and watchful.”

This is a “Cinderella” retelling and I say that very loosely. There is a Godmother who acts as a deity for a household and if I’m being honest, this story is all over the place. I was struggling to follow the plot, the characters, and the point. The purpose of the overall story failed to go anywhere at the end and I was severely letdown. I dislike Cinderella anyway and I generally hold retellings at a higher standard, but this was not well-done. To say the least, I was underwhelmed.


Fear Not: An Incident Log – 5 stars

“The Voice of God, once heard, is not easily unheard.”

This is a retelling of Genesis from the point of the view of the Lord’s Angel. The main focal point is the wrestling match that occurred between Jacob and the Lord’s Angel before he became Israel and the horror and guilt this angel feels even though he swears he feels nothing of the sort. I absolutely loved this story. The writing was superb and I felt like Ortberg’s writing style was shining through. I love Genesis in general, but I really liked seeing a new perspective on it. Highly recommend!


The Six-Boy Coffin – >b>5 stars

“If the next child you bear me is a girl, then let the six others die, so that our wealth need not be divided and that she alone may inherit the kingdom.”

I was destined to love this story because it is based off of “The Six Swans” and my favorite fantasy novel is Daughter of the Forest. This story is so very reminiscent of Sorcha’s plight and her quest to restore her brothers back to humans while being forced into silence that it made me long to reread that wonderful story. However, this is a horror collection and while elements of “The Six Swans” are a little scary this took a delightfully satisfying turn with the last lines and the subtle shift in the main character. I was incredibly impressed by this one and I absolutely loved it.


The Rabbit – 5 stars

“Can you take the Real out of a boy, then? Can you take his heart into your own self and leave him stuffed with sawdust on the nursery floor in your place?”

This is based off the beloved children’s story “The Velveteen Rabbit” and it is hands down my favorite in this collection. “The Rabbit” is easily the most horrifying story in this collection as we see the rabbit’s obsession with becoming Real and taking the life force from a child who loves him. The illnesses the boy faces are horrifying and my stomach was churning thinking about all the toys I’ve owned as a little girl. I was definitely left feeling scared and creeped out.


The Merry Spinster –3.5 stars

“Everyone belongs to someone. You’re not allowed to belong to yourself.”

This is a “Beauty and the Beast” retelling and focuses on a girl who is called Beauty for ironic reasons. She’s plain, unremarkable and insights no inspiration in those around her. Her mother ends up being the one to have her daughter a captor of the Beast or Mr. Beale, a businessman of sorts. This was really promising, but the ending ruined it for me.


The Wedding Party – 1 star

Honestly, I can’t tell you what this story is about. They were talking about “The Goose Girl” at one point and I’m sure it is reminiscent of it in some aspect, but this was just bad. The main character was a complete misogynist who had a strong entitlement and I just couldn’t with him as a narrator. I get that some men are just insufferable and that this was commentary, but I didn’t get the story as a whole so I feel like the social commentary went over my head a bit since I couldn’t see the whole scope of the narrative.


Some of Us Had Been Threatening Mr. Toad – 3.25 stars

“We’ll rescue the poor, unhappy animal! We’ll convert him—why, he’ll be the most converted Toad there ever was by the time we’re done with him.”

This was a unique story with a gruesome twist. It follows a bunch of your average sweet, fluffy talking animals and they are not happy with their friend Mr. Toad. See, Mr. Toad has been stealing things and feeling entitled and they have had enough, so what better way to show him that he needs to repent than by torturing him. The concept was scary, but it is a little off-putting to read from the perspective of this narrator. I feel like it was just easy to get confused about plot points and it took me out the story.


Cast Your Bread Upon the Waters – 4.5 stars
“For our story, it all led to sin in the end, and it all began with the listlessness and self-forgetting that comes not from God.”

This story follows an old mother as she recounts her son’s greatest sin— falling in love with a siren. They struck a bargain that the mother was fine with, but when it started to impose upon her grandchildren she took matters into her own hands. Matthew 5:29-30 “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” The mother definitely stuck to this verse and it was scary.


The Frog Princess – 3 stars

“Beauty is a public good and you are responsible for it.”

This is based off “The Princess and the Frog” and it is an interesting twist, but it is not horrifying by any means. In fact, it felt very out of place in this collection. It was scary or intimidating and I was confused by Ortberg’s pronoun usage because it is never explained or specified and this lead to me thinking there was another character when there wasn’t it. It was a bit of a mess.


Good Fences Make Good Neighbors – 2 stars

This was a frustrating story. I honestly just can’t wrap my head around it being this collection because it wasn’t horrifying. It was frustrating. Human manipulation and being the brunt of someone’s tactics for power is scary, but it needed more.


Overall, The Merry Spinster is a strong collection. It has some fantastic tales, but it also has some complete busts. It’s your typical hit-and-miss short story collection. I just personally found there were more hits than misses for me.


Cover Thoughts: I’m living for this cover. When I saw it on Netgalley I was blown away! I love it so much.

Thank you, Netgalley and Holt Paperbacks, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

 

Are you interested in The Merry Spinster? Are you a fan of horror stories? What are some of you favorite fairy tales? Let me know down below in the comments!

A Journey into Social Media Fasting (How I Read More in a Month)

Hi, everyone! I'm on a social media fast (not a complete one, but I've given myself rules). A lot of people within the Christian community I'm apart of participating and I thought it would be a good idea to participate and see the improvement it would bring to my life. I'll discuss the rules I've laid down for myself, my reading progress (because that's what I'm doing a lot of now), and how I feel about it each day.

The RULES:

No Instagram, Twitter, or Snapchat. I can use Facebook because it is how my winter guard team keeps in contact and as a captain I may need to make posts on the page or respond to questions. 

I'm allowing myself to keep Goodreads and my blog because it focuses on books and my goal during this time is to read more and grow closer to God. 

I can only watch YouTube on the weekends. This means no distractions during the week and it forces me to focus on homework and studying.

I am only listening to Christian music. No secular music at all. No Asking Alexandria, Lana del Rey, or Paramore. Which is okay with me because I listen to a lot of Christian music.

No TV shows or movies. I have a slight tweak to this. I can't sleep at night without the light and sound from the TV, so I am only allowed to watch it before bed to fall asleep.

Day 1- February 27th

I woke up this morning not knowing I was about to embark on a fasting journey. One of my friends convinced me to partake in it and because I didn't have a good reason not to it, it made sense to make the sacrifice. 

Read: I continued reading Romans in the New Testament as well as Exodus in the Old Testament. 

I am still reading The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon and I read about 20ish pages of it.

I continued listening to The Hate U Give on audibook. It's amazing and wonderful! 

I read one chapter (11 pages) of The Master Plan of Evangelism by Robert E. Coleman for my Leadership Training Class.

Finished: I finished Tess of the Road and loved it!! Check out my review if you haven't! I gave it 5 stars!

I made a lot of progress with reading. I finished a novel, studied for a test three times (totaling about three hours), wrote a paper, and attended Life Group for two hours. 

Books Finished: 1

Day 2 - February 28th

I was really worried about how today would go. It's hard to not go on websites and just scroll when I'm bored. So instead, I read my Bible or I read a book on my Kindle app. That way I'm still reading and keeping myself occupied, but it's productive.

Read: I continued reading Romans in the New Testament today. I really love Romans and it's one of my favorite books within the Bible.

I read about 20 more pages of The Fiery Cross and I'm on page 645. I may read a little before bed tonight, but I don't know yet. 

I started listening to Ready Player One on audiobook. It finally came in at my library (I was waiting for almost a month!) and I'm curious to see if I'll like it or not. So far, I'm an hour in and it's decent.

I started reading The Sins of Lord Lockwood by Meredith Duran and I read 24% (about 88 pages) and I'm really enjoying it so far.

Finished: I finished Exodus in the Old Testament, which is exciting because it's my first time reading it all the way through. 

I finished The Hate U Give!! I'm so happy that I listened to this! Peter from Peter Likes Books on YouTube raved about the narration and it was amazing. I was so impressed with this audiobook and it was a wonderful, moving, gripping, heartbreaking novel that everyone should read. I gave it 5 stars!

Books Finished: 2 
Books of Bible Finished: 1

Day 3 - March 1st

I had a huge Linguistics this day and I have been studying like crazy for it, but once I took the test I relaxed by reading and playing on my rifle. So, it was a good day!
Read: Three chapters of Leviticus.
I continued reading The Fiery Cross by and read 113 page!! I hit page 758 and have an inkling that this will be the last Outlander book I read, which is sad.
I also continued listening to Ready Player One and it is hard to describe my exact thoughts on it. I think the concept is a lot of fun and I'm enjoying that, but Wade is a douchecanoe and I hate his personality.
Finished: I finished Romans in the New Testament for the first time and I love Romans a lot.
Books Finished: 2
Books of Bible Finished: 2

Day 4 - March 2nd
 Fridays are fun days for me because I can breathe.
Read: I continued to listen to Ready Player One and I stopped at chapter 9.
I read five chapters of 1 Corinthians and I love Paul's writing and 1 Corinthians is just amazing.
I read three chapters of Leviticus and it is kind of dull because it talks about sacrificing that Moses and his people, the Israelites, partook in.
I read 54 pages of The Fiery Cross. I finished part five and hit page 813. I'm almost to the 1000-page mark and I can't wait to get there.
I also read four chapters of The Sins of Lord Lockwood and finished my reading of the day at 49%.
Finished: I didn't finish anything on March 2nd and that was the first day I hadn't finished anything at all and it was kind of a bummer, but I had a wonderful day spending time with my mom, dog, and sister.
Books Finished: 2
Books of Bible Finished: 2

Day 5 - March 3rd
A busy day of cleaning and being an adult. Plus I had a lot of school work I needed to do. So, that took up at least five hours of my day.
Read: I listened to about eight chapters of Ready Player One and it was the best section of the novel so far. I think that's why I listened to so much. I stopped at chapter 16.
I read five chapters of 1 Corinthians. Still love Paul and the messages he conveys about Jesus.
I read three chapters of Leviticus.
Finished: I started and finished the witch doesn't burn in this one. I read 208 pages in three hours and it was a nice way to end a stressful day. I gave the collection 3 stars. Check out my review here.
Books Finished: 3
Books of Bible Finished: 2

Day 6 - March 4th
Today was a busy day because I had a four hour practice, but I wanted to read before and after to destress before the week ahead.
Read: I read three chapters of Leviticus.
I read three chapters of The Sins of Lord Lockwood and I'm now at 69%. I'm definitely loving this one.
I listened to a chapter and a half of Ready Player One. It has it a low and it isn't as fun as the end of part one.
I read 21 pages of the poetry collection Against Forgetting edited by Carolyn Forche. I don't pick this one up often, but I forced myself to read it for fifteen minutes and I'm glad that I did because I enjoyed it. Currently on page 298!
I read 32 pages of Helter Skelter by Vincent Burgliosi and I'm loving this true crime novel. I was hoping to love this one and it has not disappointed. The Manson Family is sick and twisted and the man behind it all is even sicker. I'm currently on page 222.
I am rereading East of Eden by John Steinbeck and I'm loving even more this time around. I originally gave it 4.5 stars, but I think I'm going to give it a solid 5 stars this time around. I read 23 pages today, but those pages were intense and crazy. Cathy is a ruthless sadistic psychopath and I was shocked because I forgot this happened. I'm currently on page 240.
I read a chapter of The Master Plan of Evangelism for my leadership class and it was amazing. I highlighted so many passages and I just loved everything discussed. I'm currently on page 71.
Finished: I read six chapters of 1 Corinthians and finished it! It was so inspiring to read this one all the way through for the first time and it is one of my favorite books of the Bible.
I read the short story "The Turkey Season" in the collection A Wilderness Station by Alice Munro and I gave the story 2.5 stars. It wasn't a horrible story, but I didn't gain anything from it like I have with other Munro stories in this collection.
I read eleven pages of The Fiery Cross before bed. Finished on page 824.
Books Finished: 3
Short Story Finished: 1
Books of Bible Finished: 3

Day 7 - March 5th 
Read: I continued listening to Ready Player One and read a large chunk while doing housework. I stopped at chapter 26 out of 39.
Read seven chapters of 2 Corinthians and it was full of good stuff (obviously).
Read 15 pages of The Fiery Cross and it isn't a favorite of mine, but I can't wait to finish this one.
I read three more chapters of Leviticus and it was a little hard to get through.
I started The Price Guide to the Occult by Leslye Walton and made it 5% before I fell asleep.
Finished: I finished The Sins of Lord Lockwood and thought it was a lot of fun. It has it's problem, but it is full of darker themes that really cemented my enjoyment of this novel. I gave it 3.75 stars. Check out my review here.
Books Finished: 4
Short Story Finished: 1
Books of Bible Finished: 3

Day 8 - March 6th
 Read: I continued listening to Ready Player One and stopped at chapter 37 out of 39. I was planning to finish it, but I was too tired to stay up any longer.
I read 65 pages of The Fiery Cross and made it passed the 900-page mark (903)! God bless! This book is far longer than it needs to be.
I read three chapters of Leviticus.
I read one chapter of The Master Plan of Evangelism for my leadership class and I'm really enjoying this small little novel. (page 78)
Finished: I read six chapters and finished 2 Corinthians and I really enjoyed 2 Corinthians as a whole. I didn't love it as much as 1 Corinthians, but I still really enjoyed it.
Books Finished: 4
Short Story Finished: 1
Books of Bible Finished: 4

Day 9 - March 7th
Read: I read the first three chapters of Galatians and I loved it. Galatians is so full of quiet love, devotion, and wisdom.
I read 24 pages of The Fiery Cross and made it to page 927. This took a surprising turn and got dark, but all of it was inconsequential. I read five chapters of The Price Guide to the Occult and made it to the 33% mark. I'm definitely loving this one!
I also started listening to The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank and I'm really excited about finally listening to this one because I have always wanted to read this one, but I can't pass up the opportunity to listen to this on audio.
Finished: I listened to and finished the last two chapters of Ready Player One and it was fun to listen to. The world of the Oasis is fun, but the main character, Wade, is horrible and that ending was so cliche. I gave it 3.75 stars, but I haven't reviewed it yet so that could change.
I read the short story "You Know How the Story Goes" by Thomas Olde Heuvelt and it was a fun creepy tale that was a nice twist on urban legends. I gave it 4 stars. Check out my review with a link to the story here.
Books Finished: 5
Short Stories Finished: 2
Books of Bible Finished: 4


Day 10 - March 8th 
Read: I listened to The Diary of a Young Girl and it's weird to finally be reading this famous historical piece. I'm happy that I chose to listen to the audiobook instead of picking it up to read.
I read three more chapters of Leviticus. I bet you are tired of seeing me say this over and over, but Leviticus is 27 chapters, so that's nine days of repetition. :D
I read a bit of The Price Guide to the Occult and made it to 43% and I'm really enjoying this story. I'm not sure if I love it as much as The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender or if I love it more, but it's definitely winning me over!
I read 40 more pages of The Fiery Cross because I wanted to make a dent in it before class started and I read about twenty-plus pages in twenty minutes. I made it to page 966!
Finished: Read the last three chapters of Galatians. I really enjoyed Galatians and I felt like I walked away with a lot of concepts and things to ponder.
Books Finished: 5
Short Stories Finished: 2
Books of Bible Finished: 5

Day 11 - March 9th
Read: I continued listening to The Diary of a Young Girl and I listened to a good portion of it. Events are happening at a faster pace than I thought they did.
I read three chapters of Ephesians and it was beautiful. All of Paul's writings are beautiful, but I love Ephesians a lot.
I read a huge chunk of The Price Guide to the Occult and hit the 61% mark. It is a wild ride so far.
I read 7 pages of Helter Skelter. I tried to read more, but I started watching a TV show with my mom and I got distracted. Currently on page 229.
Finished: I read three chapters of Leviticus, but I FINISHED IT! Chapter 26 was my favorite in whole book and it was scary, but it also instills hope.
I read 25 pages and finished "Labor Day Dinner" in Alice Munro's anthology A Wilderness Station. I would give it 2 stars. I was not impressed with at all. I did like the theme of loafing and not fulfilling dreams, but besides that it was a snooze fest.
Books Finished: 5
Short Stories Finished: 3
Books of Bible Finished: 6

Day 12 - March 10th
Read: Read the first three chapters of Numbers. I have heard that this one is a lot of fun, but the beginning is a little hard to get into.
Read one chapter (24 pages) of I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman and this is an intense story about those who have experience tragedy in different ways.
I read six pages of Helter Skelter. I'm making slow progress with this one because it is kind of depressing to read, but it is always fascinating.
I read 18 pages of The Fiery Cross. This day was really busy and I didn't do a whole lot of reading.
Finished:I read and finished the last three chapters in Ephesians. I greatly enjoyed reading this one.
Books Finished: 5
Short Stories Finished: 3
Books of Bible Finished: 7

Day 13 - March 11th
I had an incredibly productive reading day and usually when I'm under intense stress I read more.
Read: I continued reading three more chapters in Numbers.
I read a little bit more of The Price Guide to the Occult and made it to 79%.
I read 63 pages of Against Forgetting and made it to page 361. I was really happy to finally make a huge dent in this one and I finally finished the World War II section. I wasn't a huge fan of this portion because with as many poems as this section contained I was more underwhelmed and disappointed by the poems.
I read 35 pages of East of Eden and made it page 275. I am really enjoying my reread of this one and I greatly loved the two chapters I read.
I read 12 pages of The Master Plan of Evangelism and stopped at page 91.
I read 22 pages of I Have Lost My Way and stopped at page 46.
Finished:
Books Finished: I read and finished the four chapters of Philippians and I really enjoyed this one. I just really love Paul and his writings.
Books Finished: 5
Short Stories Finished: 3
Books of Bible Finished: 8

Day 14 - March 12th
Read: I continued listening to The Diary of a Young Girl.
I read 16 pages of The Fiery Cross and made it to page 1054. I love being over the 1000-page mark!
I read another three chapters of Numbers.
Finished: I read and finished the four chapters of Colossians. I'm in the portion of the New Testament where the chapters are short, so I've been finishing a lot of books in the Bible.
I read and finished the last 20% of The Price Guide to the Occult. I really enjoyed it and highly recommend it to fans of witches, Leslye Walton, and lyrical prose. I gave it 4.25 stars. Check out my review here.
I started treading The Merry Spinster by Mallory Ortberg. I made it 15% of the way through. I finished the story "The Daughter of the Cells", which is a Little Mermaid retelling with a horrifying twist. I wasn't really captured at the beginning, but when the grandmother witch is introduced I could see where this story was going and I really became a fan of it. I loved the ending. I gave it 3.5 stars.
Books Finished: 6
Short Stories Finished: 4
Books of Bible Finished: 9

Day 15 - March 13th
Read: I continued listening to The Diary of a Young Girl. I always start my day with listening to an audiobook as I get ready and I love starting my day with a book.
I continued reading Numbers and you guessed, I read three chapters!
I read 65 pages of The Fiery Cross and made it to page 1119. Over the 1100-page marker!
I also read a little bit of I Have Lost My Way, but I didn't track where I stopped or how much I read this day.
Finished: I read and finished the five chapters of 1 Thessalonians.
I also read and finished the three chapters of 2 Thessalonians. There was a lot of reading for my Bible reading plan, but I greatly enjoyed it.
Books Finished: 6
Short Stories Finished: 4
Books of Bible Finished: 10

Day 16 - March 14th
Read: I continued listening to The Diary of a Young Girl.
I read 31 pages of The Fiery Cross. I made it to page 1150.
I started reading "The Merry Spinster" within the collection The Merry Spinster and got to 59%.
I read 7 pages in The Master Plan of Evangelism. I stopped at page 99. I'm almost done!
Finished: I read and finished the six chapters of 1 Timothy and this one had a couple of messages about women that had me raising my eyebrows, but historical context is key.
I read and finished the four chapters of 2 Timothy and I loved it.
I continued reading The Merry Spinster and finished a large chunk of short stories in this collection.
"The Thankless Child" I didn't like this one at all. I was incredibly confused and underwhelmed by the content and I think it's a Cinderella retelling, but the message is skewed and the ending was just... unsatisfying. I gave it 1.5 stars.
"Fear Not: An Incident Log" I was surprised by this one because it follows the Angel of God that is sent down the wrestle Jacob (from Genesis). I thought Ortberg's style really shone in this one and I loved how the angel is confessing to this uncertain event where he thinks he has killed Jacob (who becomes Israel). I gave 5 stars.
"Six Boy-Coffins" follows the same vein of Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marrilier. If you didn't know that Daughter of the Forest is my favorite fantasy novel, then now you know and if you enjoyed that novel, you will probably enjoy this one, but it has a much darker ending. Pure evil. I gave it 5 stars.
 "The Rabbit" I love this one so much. It is the darkest story in this collection so far. It follows the Velveteen Rabbit and his desire to become Real. I gave it 5 stars.
Books Finished: 6
Short Stories Finished: 8
Books of Bible Finished: 12

Day 17 - March 15th
Read: I read three more chapters of Numbers and this is where the book gets interesting. I'm loving it!
I read 43 pages of The Fiery Cross and I made it to page 1993. I'm so close to the 1220-page mark and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I can't wait to finish this book and be done with it.
I read a bit more of I Have Lost My Way and made it to page 70.
I started listening to The Infinite Sea by Rick Yancey. I've heard that this is where the series becomes problematic for many readers, but I'm going to give the audiobook a shot because I don't think I will ever pick it up to read.
Finished: I listened to and finished The Diary of a Young Girl. I really loved listening to the audiobook and I feel like a lot of people will love listening to it more than reading it. I gave the diary 4.25 stars. Check out my review here.
I read and finished the the chapters of Titus. This one was interesting because I don't think I've ever had an encounter with this one, but I got a few spiritual messages from it.
I read and finished Philemon. This is only one chapter and I've read it before in a LifeGroup and really enjoyed discussing it. It was nice to revisit it.
I continued reading The Merry Spinster and finished "The Merry Spinster", which is a Beauty and the Beast retelling. I was really loving this one, but the ending kind of ruined everything for me. I gave it 3.5 stars.
Books Finished: 7
Short Stories Finished: 9
Books of Bible Finished: 14

Day 18 - March 16th
Read: I continued listening to The Infinite Sea and I quickly began to like it a lot more than I expected to.
I read six chapters of Hebrews and three chapters of Numbers in my Bible. Y'all the Bible App is one of my favorite apps and it is just so resourceful for furthering my relationship with God.
I read some more of The Fiery Cross and made it to page 1206. There wasn't a whole lot of reading that day.
I also read a little bit of "The Wedding Party" in The Merry Spinster, but I didn't finish it.
Finished: This is one of the days where I finished absolutely nothing and didn't read a whole lot either. It was kind of sad, but it was an incredibly busy day for me.
Books Finished: 7
Short Stories Finished: 9
Books of Bible Finished: 14


Day 19- March 17th
Read: I continued listening to The Infinite Sea on audio.
I read a minuscule 27 pages of The Fiery Cross and made it to page 1233.
I read another three chapters of Numbers. I'm going to be honest, Numbers is hard to get through but it is worth it.
Finished: I read and finished seven chapters of Hebrews. I really loved Hebrews and I thought it was a marvelous book with a lot of insight.
Books Finished: 7
Short Stories Finished: 9
Books of Bible Finished: 15


Day 20 - March 18th
Read: I read 10 pages of The Fiery Cross. Whump whump. I either read a lot of it or barely anything.
I read three chapters of Numbers.
I also continued listening to The Infinite Sea and was able to see how far I was in my physical copy. I made it to page 96.
Finished: I rad and finished five chapters of James. James is an interesting book of the Bible because it focuses on pain and finding joy in that suffering.
Books Finished: 7
Short Stories Finished: 9
Books of Bible Finished: 16


Day 21 - March 19th
AKA One of the Best Reading Days Ever
Read: I listened to a total of 108 pages of The Infinite Sea and page it to page 204. I listened to a large chunk of this, which isn't surprising because I listen to audiobooks while getting ready in the morning, walking to class, and while doing homework.
I read three more chapters of Numbers. Keeping up with habit!
I started reading The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton which is a King Lear retelling set in a fantasy kingdom.

Finished: I read and finished the five chapters of 1 Peter.
I also read and finished the three chapters of 2 Peter. There was a lot of Peter that day in my life.
I finished the rest of the stories in The Merry Spinster collection. I gave the entire collection 3.5 stars and I still haven't written my review for it because I've been super busy and I'm trying to get my life together. LOL *crying*
"The Wedding Party" - 1 star What a horrible story. Worst of the collection. I can't find a single praiseworthy aspect.
"Some of Us Had Been Threatening Our Friend Mr. Toad" - 3.5 stars Have you ever wondered what happens when forest animals decide to torture their friend after he has committed several sins? Well, here is your chance to find out how that plays out.
"Cast Your Bread Upon the Waters" - 4.5 stars This is a creepy siren story with a deep connection to selkie lore and I loved how demented and twisted it got at the end.
"The Frog's Princess" - 3 stars This wasn't horrible, but it wasn't memorable and at times it could be a little confusing.
"Good Fences Make Good Neighbors" - 2 stars I don't really know what Ortberg was trying to do here because all it did was make me annoyed and infuriated.
I read and finished the last 30 pages of The Master Plan of Evangelism and greatly enjoyed it. I give the novel 4 stars overall, but because it is a nonfiction Christian guide to discipleship it is hard to rate. 
Books Finished: 9
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 18


Day 22 - March 20th
Read: After finishing one audiobook, I started An American Marriage by Tayari Jones because I had been on the wait list for two weeks and it finally became available.  I didn't want to waste any time because by the time I started listening to it, it was already two days closer to the due date.
I read a little bit of The Fiery Cross before bed and managed a quick 13 pages.
Finished: I read and finished five chapters of 1 John and John is awesome.
I read another three chapters of Numbers, but I finished it!!
I listened to the last 96 pages of The Infinite Sea! I really enjoyed this one and it isn't as horrible as everyone makes it out to be. It has flaws and isn't nearly as good or comparable to The 5th Wave, but I really enjoyed it. 4.25 stars!
Books Finished: 10
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 20


Day 23 - March 21st
Read: I continued listening to An American Marriage and I have to recommend this audiobook with everything I have. I'm from Louisiana and Roy's accent is nailed fabulously! It's a wonderful cast of narrators.
I started reading Deuteronomy and I continued sticking to the three chapter rule.
I read some of The Fiery Cross and made it to page 1275.
I read 39% of The Queens of Innis Lear and I was digging it when I eventually got past the overly flowery prose.
Finished: I read and finished 2 John, 3 John, and Jude. The chapters were short, so I was able to knock out a lot more than usual.
Books Finished: 10
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 23


Day 24 - March 22nd
Read: I read three chapters of the book of Revelation. I've read Revelation before, but reading it cohesively with the entirety of the New Testament is so enlightening.
I read another three chapters of Deuteronomy.
I read 9 pages (LOL) of The Fiery Cross.
Finished: I finished An American Marriage and I loved it so much! I can't recommend it enough and it deserves all the acclaim and attention it is currently getting. I gave it 4.5 stars because there was a brief time when I absolutely hated the characters and almost stopped listening, I'm glad I didn't.
Books Finished: 11
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished:  23


Day 25 - March 23rd
Read: I started listening to The Last Star because I was determined to finish the 5th Wave trilogy and finally finish a series for 2018.
I read six chapters of Revelation. It got dark and depressing, but I love horror and I also love seeing how the horror of modern culture is heavily inspired by the deep roots of Revelation.
I read 25 pages of The Fiery Cross. I finally hit the 1300-page marker.
I read three chapters of Deuteronomy.
I read some of The Queens of Innis Lear and got to 44%.
I read some of I Have Lost My Way and made it to page 93.
Finished: Nothing!
Books Finished: 11
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 23

Day 26 - March 24th
Read: I listened to The Last Star by Rick Yancey.
I read three chapters of Revelation.
Not much reading done today because I was out of town for my last winter guard competition this season. We placed second!

Finished: None!
Books Finished:11
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 23

Day 27 - March 25th
Read: I read six chapters of Revelation.
I also read 14 pages of The Fiery Cross before bed. I made it to page 1333.

Finished: I didn't finish anything because I was driving back from the competition with friends after a sleepover. Not much time for reading.

Books Finished: 11
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 23

Day 28 - March 26th
Read: I continued listening to The Last Star.
I read three chapters of Deuteronomy.
I also read a bit of The Queens of Innis Lear.
Finished: I read and finished the last four chapters of Revelation. Revelation is one of my favorite books of the Bible and I was excited because this is the first time that I've read the New Testament.
I FINISHED THE NEW TESTAMENT! Super exciting stuff!
I read 110 pages of The Fiery Cross and FINISHED it!. This was a massive reading day for this book and me. I usually don't read this much, but I read a lot of it! I have been struggling this book for months and I finally finished it. It's sad, but I've fallen out of love with the Outlander series. 2 stars!

Books Finished: 12
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 24

Day 29 - March 27th 
Read: I continued listening to The Last Star.
I read six chapters of Deuteronomy. Since I'm done with the New Testament, it seemed fitting to devote more chapters to my reading of the Old Testament.
I started reading Gerald's Game by Stephen King and it is so  exciting because I haven't read a SK novel since January.
I read 10 pages of I Have Lost My Way. It's harder to make to read on my computer.
Finished: I read and finished The Queens of Innis Lear. Technically I didn't finish the entire novel, I finished the sampler that I was given. I originally thought it was the novel when I downloaded, but it wasn't. I'm okay with that. I'm chalking this one up to a DNF and gave it 3 stars. Check out my review here.

Books Finished: 13
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 24

Day 30 - March 28th 
Read: I continued listening to The Last Star.
I read five chapters of Deuteronomy.
I read 10 pages of Gerald's Game.
I started reading The School for Psychics by K.C. Archer and hit the 14% mark.
Finished: Not much reading done this day.

Books Finished: 13
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 24

Day 31 - March 29th 
Read: I continued listening to The Last Star.
I read five chapters of Deuteronomy.
I read 38 pages of Gerald's Game and made it to page 76.

Finished: Last day of classes before Spring Break!

Books Finished: 13
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 24

Day 32 - March 30th
Read: I read 53 pages of Gerald's Game. I love Stephen King so much and this story is so gripping. I  made it to page 129.

 Finished: I read the last six chapters of Deuteronomy. I really enjoyed Deuteronomy and it's awesome to say that I've finished Moses' books in the Bible.

Books Finished: 13
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 25

Day 33 - March 31st
Read: I read six chapters of Joshua and it was incredibly entertaining.
I started listening to The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. This isn't the actual novel which is a bummer. It's a dramatized version from the 1981 that was broadcasted by the BBC and it is brilliant. I'm not even salty that it isn't the novel.
I read 126 pages of Gerald's Game while sitting outside and enjoying the beautiful spring air with my dog. I made it to page 255.
I read 58 pages of I Have Lost My Way and hit page 161 which is the half-way marker for the novel.

 Finished: I finished listening to The Last Star. I really loved the ending for this one. Yancey wasn't afraid to go there and it made sense to me. As a whole the trilogy struggles to live up to the first novel, but as a whole it is a really strong series. 4.5 stars.

Books Finished: 14
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 25

Day 34 - April 1st (EASTER)
Read: I continued listening to The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
I read six chapters of Joshua.
I read 53 pages of Gerald's Game while sitting in the car driving to visit family.

Finished: I didn't expect to get much reading done with church and visiting family all day.

Books Finished: 14
Short Stories Finished: 14
Books of Bible Finished: 25

Overall Thoughts:
This social media fast was a huge blessing. I grew closer to so many people on campus by talking and not scrolling on my phone in awkward situations. I also read and listened to a lot of books. It's pretty awesome, but I also grew closer to God during this time and that was my number one goal. I definitely recommend fasting or giving up social media if you want to experience a stress-free and more personal world.  

I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman

4.5 stars

I Have Lost My Way follows three young teenagers who have lost their way in the world and through a random freak accident all come together to rescue each other in one day. Freya is an up-and-coming popstar who has lost her voice and has been abandoned by her father who is back in Ethiopia and has a rocky and nonexistent relationship with her sister. Nathaniel is a boy who is in New York for darker reasons that simple tourism and has found himself completely alone in the world. Harun has just lost the love of his life—a young man—and feels shame about what his Muslim family will think when they find out. These three people are diverse in feature, background, and experience, but they are connected by their feeling of loss and uncertainty. They don’t know what their way is and this is the story of them coming together. I love Gayle Forman. She was one of the first young adult authors I read when I got into the genre and I absolutely adored her writing style. Her style is still the same. It shines in odd moments and I’ve never thought that Forman’s strength lies in plot, her strength lies in characters. The characters are so strong in this story that they are the plot. Essentially this is a nearly plotless novel, but it packs an emotional punch. The type of punch that I expect Forman to deliver, but I didn’t blubber like I baby like I usually do with her novels. I think it’s because I’m reading this at a time in my life when I’m not lost, but if I had read this as a teenager, I can promise that I would’ve been bawling and that this would have had a severe impact on my life. This story isn’t easy to get through and at times it can be very overwhelming, but it is worth it.


Whimsical Writing Scale: 4.5

“When a broken bone heals, it’s stronger than it was before the break,” she replies. “Same holds true for broken hearts.”

The characters are so, so beautiful. Freya has a deep strength and desire to be loved but feels like she is betrayed turn after turn. The only people who truly love her are her fans and she is about to lose those. She is biracial and has deep connections to her Ethiopian roots much to her mother’s dismay. She is very isolated. Nathaniel’s father was eccentric and had full custody of him. He experienced his grandmother dying of cancer and has a prosthetic eye after one of his father’s experiments goes horribly wrong. He has been alone without contact for two weeks. He has been isolated. Harun is from a Muslim family and has recently been broken up with by the man he loved. He is afraid to tell his family who he truly is and isolated himself from the Muslim faith. These characters are so fleshed out and I felt as though they were real people with real stories. Forman did a remarkable job.


Character Scale: 5

Overall, I recommend this to fans of Gayle Forman’s previous works as well as readers who are looking for new adult that explores deeper themes outside of romance. There is romance in this novel, but it is not the forefront. The main theme here is finding yourself and that is a theme in many college students’ lives. An important novel for those within my age group, entering it, or leaving it. Highly recommended!


Plotastic Scale: 4.25

Cover Thoughts: Honestly, I hate this cover.

Thank you, First to Read and Penguin, for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Have you read I Have Lost My Way? Are you a fan of Gayle Forman? What are some of your favorite novels about finding a path in life? Let me know down below in the comments! 

The Long Walk Video Review + Books I've Read in 2018 #1-5

 

Hey, everyone! I forgot to post this a couple of weeks ago because I've been so busy, but here are two of my most recent videos on YouTube.:)

 

THE BOOKS:

 

*Reign of the Fallen by Sarah Glenn Marsh - 3 stars This novel had a lot of potential, but fell short in character development, world-building, and romantic buildup. Check out my review here.

*Deadly Sweet by Lola Dodge - 3 stars This is a fun story about a witch baker, but it is one of those fast-paced brain-candy novels. Check out my review here.

The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for Muggles edited by Gregory Bassham - 3 stars An interesting collection of essays on HP and philosophy. Better than the first collection and a kick-starter for a lot of great discussions. Check out my review here.

Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge - 4 stars I love the premise of a young girl being promised a demon lord and is both a wife and an assassin. The narration for the audiobook wasn't that bad and the story was a lot of fun. I particularly enjoyed the immersion with Greek mythology.

*A Devil in Scotland by Suzanne Enoch - 4.5 stars This is one of the best historical romances that I've read in a long time. I absolutely adored the suspense and the romantic tension between the couple. Check out my review here.

*=ARCs provided by author/publisher

Recommend the Most:

A Devil in Scotland is my favorite of this bunch. I flew through it and I highly recommend it to romance fans.

STATS:

Books Reviewed: 4
Books Rated Over 4 stars: 2
New Favorites: 1
Books That Changed My Life: 0
Owned: 2 physical  

Have you read any of these novels? Do you plan to? Let me know down below in the comments!