I’m getting kind of a late start on today. I had a migraine yesterday like I haven’t had in a while. The kind where I go “white blind” for a while – and then just start looking for the license number of the truck that hit me. Attempting to read around the sparkles in my vision until they pass is always a special kind of treat – NOT. But they are a lot less frequent than they used to be, so I call that a win.

And there are always more books to read! That’s a win too!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Super Stocking Stuffer Giveaway Hop
$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Gratitude Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Lucky Leaf Giveaway Hop is Brittany

Blog Recap:

A Review: Death in Focus by Anne Perry
Super Stocking Stuffer Giveaway Hop
A Review: The Poppy Wife by Caroline Scott
B Review: All Fired Up by Lori Foster
Gratitude Giveaway Hop
Stacking the Shelves (366)

Coming This Week:

The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl by Theodora Goss (review)
The Sol Majestic by Ferrett Steinmetz (review)
Permafrost by Alistair Reynolds (review)
Drone by M.L. Buchman (review)
The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary (review)

I keep wanting to talk about just how fast the year is winding down. Tomorrow is Veterans Day and Thanksgiving is right behind it.

And they’ve already started playing Xmas Carols! Someone needs to receive at least a 15-yard penalty for rushing the damn season! The Xmas onslaught really shouldn’t begin until after Thanksgiving. Really Truly!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Lucky Leaf Giveaway Hop
Lady Derring Takes a Lover by Julie Anne Long
(3) Deluxe Gold Digger Prize Packages (Gold Digger Book, Gold Facial Mask, Peacock Feather Earrings, Flowered Fan)
(2) Print copies of Tell Me No Lies by Shelley Noble

Winner Announcements:

The winner of This Earl of Mine by Kate Bateman is Gloria B.

Blog Recap:

A- Review: Tell Me No Lies by Shelley Noble + Giveaway
A- Review: The Other Windsor Girl by Georgie Blalock
B Review: Gold Digger by Rebecca Rosenberg + Giveaway
B Review: Angel in a Devil’s Arms by Julie Anne Long + Giveaway
A- Review: Someone to Remember by Mary Balogh
Stacking the Shelves (365)

Coming This Week:

Death in Focus by Anne Perry (review)
Super Stocking Stuffer Giveaway Hop
The Poppy Wife by Caroline Scott (blog tour review)
All Fired Up by Lori Foster (blog tour review)
Gratitude Giveaway Hop

Did you remember to set your clocks back an hour? Did your cats (or dogs or other pets) remind you this morning that all is not right with the universe – meaning that you are sleeping too late and they want their breakfast?

Tonight, when it will feel like sunset has come too damn early, we’ll all be reminded that DST is a crock. On that other hand, falling back in the Fall is a forcible reminder that another year is winding down – whether we’re all ready for the holidays or not. Definitely not.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Lucky Leaf Giveaway Hop
This Earl of Mine by Kate Bateman

Winner Announcements:

The winner of Nothing to Fear by Juno Rushdan is Linda

Blog Recap:

A+ Review: Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory
B+ Review: Lady Abigail’s Perfect Match by Sophie Barnes + Giveaway
B+ Review: This Earl of Mine by Kate Bateman + Giveaway
A- Review: Those Who Came Before by J.H. Moncrieff
Lucky Leaf Giveaway Hop
Stacking the Shelves (364)

Coming This Week:

Tell Me No Lies by Shelley Noble (blog tour review)
The Other Windsor Girl by Georgie Blalock (blog tour review)
Gold Digger by Rebecca Rosenberg (blog tour review)
Angel in a Devil’s Arms by Julie Anne Long (blog tour review)
Someone to Remember by Mary Balogh (review)

Halloween is this week. Now that it is really Fall, the year seems to be winding down at breakneck speed. I always review something horror-ish or horror-lite or horror-adjacent for Halloween, and this year will be no exception. I’m down to two choices, and still don’t know which one will be my final pick. Thankfully most horror is short.

There’s probably something in the way that this week’s reviews line up as romance, romance, romance, scary stuff, giveaway. I get to load up on HEA before I scare myself half to death, and then give something away while I recuperate. That’s the plan, anyway.

I don’t much care for horror, as should be fairly obvious by this point. When I was 7, my parents took me to the drive in to see some children’s movie – which was totally unmemorable. I was supposed to fall asleep sometime during that first feature so that my parents could watch the second and third features in relative peace. I woke up in the middle of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, and was awake for the entire rest of the night. I remember the third feature extremely well (it was The Sons of Katie Elder with John Wayne and Dean Martin) because I tried not to close my eyes again for several DAYS – not necessarily successfully. I learned to only close one eye when I yawned so I didn’t have to see the awful pictures in my head again.

Current Giveaways:

Nothing to Fear by Juno Rushdan

Winner Announcements:

The winner of The Art of Theft is Diane S.
The winner of the Howl-O-Ween Giveaway Hop is Jeanna M.

Blog Recap:

B+ Review: Nothing to Fear by Juno Rushdan
A- Review: The Painted Castle by Kristy Cambron
B+ Review: Meant to Be Yours by Susan Mallery
C Guest Review by Amy: Clone Hunter by Victor Methos
B Review: Centurion by Anna Hackett
Stacking the Shelves (363)

Coming This Week:

Lady Abigail’s Perfect Match by Sophie Barnes (blog tour review)
Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory (review)
This Earl of Mine by Kate Bateman (blog tour review)
Halloween 2019 (either Those Who Came Before by J.H. Moncrieff or The Girl in Red by Christina Henry)
Lucky Leaf Giveaway Hop

Fall fell like a hammer in Atlanta. It went from 80 to 60 in what felt like the blink of an eye. Last Friday we had the A/C on, and now (this Friday) the heat is on. AND all the cats at least visited the cozy bed last night, which is the first time this season! Over the summer, while Freddie has slept with us, Hecate seems to have slept either UNDER the bed or in the bathroom and Lucifer has visited me before bedtime but slept on the stairs. We’re looking forward to a few “three cat nights” now that the seasons have changed.

Amy’s guest review of Dearly Beloved received LOTS of love on Twitter. If you haven’t read it yet, check it out – and the book she reviewed. Both are absolutely lovely!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Amazon Gift Card or $10 Book in the Howl-O-Ween Giveaway Hop (ENDS TUESDAY!)
The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop is Karen P.

Blog Recap:

A+++ Review: Jade War by Fonda Lee
B+ Review: The Art of Theft by Sherry Thomas + Giveaway
B Review: Escaping Exodus by Nicky Drayden
A Guest Review: Dearly Beloved by Peggy Yeager
A+ Review: The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal
Stacking the Shelves (362)

Coming This Week:

Nothing to Fear by Juno Rushdan (blog tour review)
The Painted Castle by Kristy Cambron (blog tour review)
Meant to Be Yours by Susan Mallery (blog tour review)
Centurion by Anna Hackett (review)
Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory (review)

This was the week of the hot mess in reviews. Honestly, three of the books I reviewed this week featured a hot mess in one form or another. Ivy Gamble in Magic for Liars is a hot mess, as was the entire situation of the French Revolution in Ribbons of Scarlet (although the book about this particular hot mess is very good!) and the story in This is How You Lose the Time War, well, it read like a hot mess to me, although opinions on this one certainly vary. It seems to be a book that people either really love or can’t quite get into – and for me it was the latter.

It also feels like Giveaway Hop season is starting to rev up. Whether that’s because people are in more of a giving mood near the holidays, or because some bloggers (including moi) enjoy having a day when we don’t have to produce a review, or a bit of both, it’s still getting to be that season. Speaking of giveaway hops, signups for the Black Friday Giveaway Hop are open! – even if I can’t believe I’m working on stuff for Thanksgiving already.

Current Giveaways:

$10 Gift Card or $10 Book in the Spooktacular Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Follow the Yellow Brick Road Giveaway Hop is Megan
The winner of The Price of Grace by Diana Munoz Stewart is Sharon
The winner of Coming Home for Christmas by RaeAnne Thayne is Danielle

Blog Recap:

A+ Review: Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey
Spooktacular Giveaway Hop
B+ Review: Ribbons of Scarlet by Kate Quinn
A Guest Review by Amy: Sten by Chris Bunch and Allan Cole
B- Review: This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
Stacking the Shelves (360)

Coming This Week:

Jade City by Fonda Lee (review)
Howl-O-Ween Giveaway Hop
The Lying Room by Nicci French (blog tour review)
To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers (review)
Pets in Space 4 by S.E. Smith, Anna Hackett, Tiffany Roberts, Veronica Scott, Pauline Baird Jones, Laurie A. Green, Donna McDonald, Regine Abel, Alexis Glynn Latner, E.D. Walker, J.C. Hay, Kyndra Hatch, Cassandra Chandler (review)

First things first. Now that it is, at least theoretically Fall, it’s time to begin thinking about the holidays. Including the annual Black Friday Giveaway Hop, hosted again by yours truly and the Caffeinated Reviewer. So if you can participate in the hop, sign ups are now open. If you’re hoping to avoid the Black Friday shopping crowds and stay home and curl up with a good book, we’ll be here to give you opportunities to win a present or two or three.

Speaking of giveaway hops, the Follow the Yellow Brick Road Hop ends tomorrow – just in time for Spooktacular to begin on Tuesday! It’s still so hot in Atlanta that the Wicked Witch would melt just by standing out in the sun – no water required!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Amazon Gift Card or $10 Book in the Follow the Yellow Brick Road Giveaway Hop (ENDS TOMORROW!!!!)
Coming Home for Christmas by RaeAnne Thayne
The Price of Grace by Diana Muñoz Stewart

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the September to Remember Giveaway Hop is Kelly

Blog Recap:

B+ Review: Lies in White Dresses by Sofia Grant
B+ Review: Coming Home for Christmas by RaeAnne Thayne + Giveaway
A- Review: Kiss of Eon by Anna Hackett
Black Friday Giveaway Hop Sign Up
B+ Review: The Price of Grace by Diana Muñoz Stewart + Giveaway
A- Review: The MacInnes Affair by Blair McDowell
Stacking the Shelves (359)

Coming This Week:

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey (review)
Spooktacular Giveaway Hop
Ribbons of Scarlet by Kate Quinn, Sophie Perinot, Laura Kamoie, Stephanie Dray, E. Knight, Heather Webb (blog tour review)
The Light Brigade by Kameron Hurley (review)
This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone (review)

Reading-wise, this was a terrific week, with not just one but TWO A+ books. That both are female-led space operas probably says a lot about where my headspace is at the moment. I also finished another one, and absolutely adored it, but haven’t written it up yet. It was a FANTASTIC week for space opera – or at least for me to go on them.

But this week is also fantastic, as it is Banned Books Week. The reason for Banned Books Week is, of course, not so fantastic. As a librarian, the idea that some people want to prevent other people from reading whatever they want is pretty much anathema. That someone does not personally want to read a particular book, a particular genre, or a particular author is not the issue. You do you – but I’ll do me, thank you very much. There are plenty of things I have no interest in, and find abhorrent or can’t be bothered with – or occasionally both. But I won’t stop you. And you shouldn’t stop me either.

If you check out any of the Banned Books Week lists at the American Library Association website, you will see some extremely surprising books on those list. Many books that are thought of as classics have been banned at one point or another, and some, like Slaughterhouse Five, To Kill a Mockingbird and The Grapes of Wrath, downright frequently. As has the entire Harry Potter series – and Dr. Seuss!

Celebrate your freedom to read, and see what it’s all about!

Current Giveaways:

$10 Amazon Gift Card or $10 Book in the September to Remember Giveaway Hop (ENDS TUESDAY!)
$10 Amazon Gift Card or $10 Book in the Follow the Yellow Brick Road Giveaway Hop

Winner Announcements:

The winner of the Hello Autumn Giveaway Hop is Stephanie

Blog Recap:

Follow the Yellow Brick Road Giveaway Hop
A+ Review: Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes
A+ Review: A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine
B Review: Don’t You Forget About Me by Mhairi McFarlane
B+ Guest Review: H20 by Irving Belateche
Stacking the Shelves (358)

Coming This Week:

Lies in White Dresses by Sofia Grant (blog tour review)
Coming Home for Christmas by RaeAnne Thayne (blog tour review)
Kiss of Eon by Anna Hackett (review)
The Price of Grace by Diana Muñoz Stewart (blog tour review)
The MacInnes Affair by Blair McDowell (review)