Category: book discussion

2023 Bookish Goals

kerrimcbooknerd8 Comments

Hello, reader!

I hope you’re having a great weekend. Today seemed like a good day to finally share my 2023 bookish goals! Now, a few of these goals are going to be holdovers from 2022 (*cough*), but I think the main goal of 2023 is trying not to do ALL THE THINGS. Ya girl just does not have the time. I’m also going to talk about my blogging goals and the reading challenges I’m planning on trying to complete this year.

That being said, let’s jump in!

In 2023, I’m trying not to set myself too many goals because I’m the type of person who beats herself up if she does not achieve some arbitrary goal that I made up in my head 😅😂 So I’m trying to be kind to 2024-Kerri’s mental health and set some achievable goals that are a little more ambiguous in nature. Only one hard number here, but it’s definitely something do-able and I can’t go a year without setting a Goodreads goal! So let me share my reading goals for 2023.

#1. Read 100 books

An image showing my 2023 Goodreads goal set for 100 books!

This is my one reading goal that actually has a number attached to it (not counting reading challenges, of course). This is also the highest I’ve ever set my Goodreads goal! I’ve read over 100 books the last two years and, with blogging and Netgalley, I think it’s something I can do again. Blog tours and ARCs have certainly upped my reading in recent years and I can’t imagine 2023 being any different. Still, seeing those triple digits makes me a little nervous 😅

#2. Read from my owned TBR as much as possible

This was a goal last year and it did not go well, lol. I got distracted by a lot of blog tours and new, shiny releases so I’m fairly certainly my owned TBR has grown rather than shrunk. I’m planning on cataloguing my owned TBR… soon. Looking at all the stacks around my bedroom and on my TBR bookshelf is daunting, to say the least, but I want to know where I’m starting so I can see how well I stick to this goal in 2023. I don’t have a specific number that I want to hit, or an amount I’d like to reduce my owned TBR by… I’m just hoping to end the year with less instead of more.

#3. Stay on top of Netgalley reads

Now, there’s definitely a number involved with this, but I’m not setting myself a specific number that I’m trying to achieve. I’m already pretty close to the recommended feedback ratio, so I’m not stressed about that. Mostly, I want to stay on top of my Netgalley reads instead of letting ARCs languish on my shelf until they are already published… heh.

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Top Ten Reads of 2022

kerrimcbooknerd4 Comments

Hello, reader!

Happy New Year! I always enjoy looking back on a year of reading and looking forward to a brand new one. Part of looking back, of course, is thinking about all the books I adored this year.

I had 24 five star reads in 2022 which is just wild to me. I think my most common rating was four stars, but I’m excited that I found so many books this year that just blew me away. That being said, there were definitely some stand outs, even among my five stars. That’s why I decided to narrow it down to my top ten books that I read this year! I’m sharing these in no particular order because I think I loved them all equally, if for differing reasons.

Now, let’s jump into the list!

The Thirteenth Hour by Trudie Skies

The Basics: Adult gaslamp fantasy featuring gods and twelve dazzling realms and CHAOS.

What I Loved: I could just say ‘everything’ for all of these books, but I’m gonna try to be more specific 😂 The characters in this book are what captured my heart. Kayl and Quen live in my head rent-free and it’s weird but I love them so much. I do have a full review that you can find here.

The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

The Basics: A woman finds out that a mysterious map that caused her to have a falling out with her dad may also be the reason he died. Hijinks ensue.

What I Loved: This was compulsively readable! I’m not a fast reader and this book is around 400 pages, but I read it in a day. I enjoyed this mixture of mystery and fantasy. You can read my full review here.

The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

The Basics: A group of morally grey characters plan a heist in 1889 Paris. You like found family? *slaps the cover* The beauty has so much found family!

What I Loved: I discovered in 2022 that I really love the found family trope and this book absolutely delivers in that realm. The characters wormed their ways into my heart. I also really loved the writing in this book.

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22 Reads In 2022

kerrimcbooknerd7 Comments

Hello, reader!

A couple of weeks ago over on Instagram, I shared a post about another reading challenge I want to accomplish in 2022. I picked 22 books that I want to prioritize reading this year. Now, to keep myself accountable, I wanted to bring it over to the blog, as well!

Now I tried to wiggle out of my comfort zone a bit and now choose all fantasy novels. Fantasy is definitely a significant portion of the stack, but I wanted to make sure I had a bit of variety. I’m really happy with the books I’ve chosen and I think it’ll make for an even more exciting reading year! Let’s go through my choices by genre.

Fantasy

Though I tried to choose more than just fantasy, it doesn’t mean I can’t start with my favorite genre! It also makes up the majority of my list because, being a fantasy lover and someone who loves completing challenges, I want to give myself a fighting chance of finishing this, lol. Twelve of my 22 books fit in the fantasy genre and they are as follows:

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
Jade City by Fonda Lee
The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri
House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas

These Violents Delights by Chloe Gong
Midnight in Everwood by M.A. Kuzniar
Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune
A Psalm of Storms and Silence by Roseanne A. Brown

The Part About the Dragon was (Mostly) True by Sean Gibson
For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski
Equal Rights by Sir Terry Pratchett

Mystery/Thriller

The rest of the genres that make up my stack of 22 are sprinkled throughout in smaller numbers. The next highest would be the mystery/thrillers! I found three that I’m desperate to read and I’m hoping I’ll love them! The three books I chose from this genre are as follows:

While Justice Sleeps by Stacey Abrams
Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby
Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson

Science Fiction

This is another genre that is high up on my favorites list. You wouldn’t really know it with as little sci-fi I read in a year, though 😅 I don’t know why I don’t pick it up more… I tend to really love the books I do read in this genre. Hence it being one of my favorites! I’m hoping the same holds true for the two science fiction books I picked. Although one could be considered fantasy, but I felt like it had more of a sci-fi feel. The two books I chose from this genre are as follows:

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

Romance

As I may or may not have mentioned before on the blog, I’ve been feeling the urge to read romance rising as of late. I’m not sure where this urge is coming from as I’m really not a big romance reader. No shade, it’s just not a genre I gravitate towards. I blame my generally apathetic attitude towards most rom-com movies. Lately, though, I’ve noticed that if the rom-com is in book form, then I am totally on-board! That being said, I’ve chosen two romance novels for my stack, and those are as follows:

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
Well Played by Jen DeLuca

Horror

There was no way I was making a list of books to read in 2022 and not including any horror novels! What would I read during the spooky season? Or whenever I feel like a good scare? Horror is a genre that can be pretty hit or miss for me, so I tend to be a little wary when I pick them up. I’m hoping that the two I chose will be hits! The two horror novels I picked are as follows:

The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle
The Book of Accidents by Chuck Wendig

Poetry

Rounding out my list is a genre that I rarely, if ever, pick up: poetry I talked about this in a recent Book Blogger Hop, but poetry is definitely on the low end of genres I willingly choose to read. But I honestly think I just haven’t found the right poetry for me! So, though there is only one poetry book on this stack, it hopefully won’t be the only one I read in 2022. I really want to give this genre the chance it deserves. That being said, the one poetry book that made it on my stack is as follows:

The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman

Did you make a list of 22 reads you want to read in 2022? Have you read any of the books I’ve included in my stack? Let me know in the comments!

And, as always, happy reading!

The 12 Challenge: 12 months, 12 books, 12 friends

kerrimcbooknerd13 Comments

Hello, reader!

If you spend anytime in the online bookish community, you probably already know what this post is about. You probably saw a certain graphic floating around the internet at the beginning of 2022. If not, let me give you a peek at the beautiful template made by @shadowbooker over on Instagram!

Image

This graphic/challenge prompts you to read 12 books that have been recommended to you by 12 friends. It sounded like fun (and was literally everywhere), so I figured I would give it a shot! So, through a mix of both online and IRL friends and family, I cobbled together a TBR of twelve recommendations that I wish to read in 2022.

My 12 Challenge

First, I want to say “Thank you!” to everyone who gave me a recommendation! I made sure to ask for books beyond my usual SFF realm and y’all certainly delivered. I think I have a good mix of SFF, mystery/thriller, and romance going on here and that’s exactly what I asked for. I do love my fantasy and science fiction, but 2022 feels like a good year to try and branch out a little more. That being said, let’s take a look at the books that I ended up choosing from all your wonderful recommendations ❤

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2022 Reading Goals

kerrimcbooknerd7 Comments

Hello, reader!

We’ve made it to 2022 mostly intact, which is nothing to sneeze at these days. Now that we’re here, I figured it was time to share my reading goals for this new year. I realized, as I was preparing to write this post, that I never made a 2021 reading goals post. It’s not that I didn’t have anything I was striving towards, reading-wise, but after the year that was 2020, I wasn’t feeling putting anymore pressure on myself.

Now, you’re probably thinking “Why would sharing your goals put pressure on you?” And the only answer is because of who I am as a person 😂 The need to seem On Top Of Things is real in Kerri-land, so putting goals out there for people to see makes my brain see them as something I have to do. But 2022 is the year that I’m trying to be much kinder to myself. I’m trying to look at these goals as something fun, not like they’re chores. As goals that would be cool to achieve, but won’t send me into a shame-spiral if I don’t quite get there. It’s… a work in progress, lol.

That being said, I’ve only set myself a few reading/bookish goals this year that I think I quite attainable. Let’s take a look at what I have in mind for 2022!

My Main Bookish Goals

As I mentioned, I don’t have a ton of bookish goals I’m focusing on this year. I think that will help me not only focus to achieve the goals I’ve set, but not stress myself out too much in 2022. I was a ball of stress by the end of last year and it was not fun. So I’ve picked out four goals that I’m hoping to focus on throughout the year:

#1. Read more of my owned TBR.

Ya girl has… a lot of books that I own, but have not read. Like…

My overstuffed TBR bookcase

A lot. And that’s just the bookcase! There are three stacks in my office that aren’t included in this picture! So my main focus for 2022 is to the actually read some of these before adding even more books to this fire hazard.

And maybe get a new bookcase.

First, though, I’m gonna read more of my owned books! These are all books that I bought because I truly wanted to read them at some point, but they’ve all been neglected for newer, shinier books. I really got caught up in the new release hype last year which is how my owned yet unread library has grown so monstrous. My plan for right now is no new books until I’ve read a significant portion of my owned library. The only exception to that rule is my Illumicrate subscription (which is already paid for since I pay every 6 months) and my Book of the Month subscription (which I’m going to limit to just my BotM pick… no add-ons!). I have yet to decided what a “significant portion” entails because I have yet to actually count the number of books that encompass my owned TBR.

Mostly cause I’m scared 😅

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Five Star Reads of 2021

kerrimcbooknerd4 Comments

Hello, reader!

Seeming as 2022 is literally right around the corner, it seemed like a good time to reflect on my reading in 2021. Now, last year, I made a top ten list for my top reads of the year, but I found that left out a lot of books that I truly loved. So we’re doing it a little different in 2021! This year, I’m going to include all my five star reads and I’m not ranking them. I read a lot of fantastic books and I honestly don’t think I could pick a clear winner out of the bunch if I tried.

So here, in no particular order, are my favorite reads of 2021!

Adult Fantasy lead the pack

If you’ve been around the blog any amount of time, you know how much I love fantasy. It is my top genre and I don’t see that changing any time soon. So it probably comes as no surprise that most of my five star reads this year were in fantasy. I was a little surprised that adult edged out YA, though I probably shouldn’t be. I am 39 years old, after all 😂

  • Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse was probably my most recommended book this year. Anyone who asked for an adult SFF recommendation had me shoving this book in their faces 😂 It was such a stunning read, I couldn’t help myself! It was vivid and lush, with masterful world-building and characters that immediately captured my interest. I read this book and instantly added Rebecca Roanhorse to my auto-buy author list, it was just that good! Also, give me more epic fantasy that isn’t Europe-centric, pleeeease.
  • Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe might be another little cheat. I’ve already read the entire Webtoon series (at least what is out so far), so I knew I loved it. But there is something about reading the physical bind up of the first few chapters that made me fall in love all over again! The art is gorgeous, the story is incredible, and I can’t wait to have the other chapters in my greedy, little hands.
  • The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune was a book that I went into with a sprinkle of trepidation. It was just so hyped! Everyone was in love with this book. Well… almost everyone. There was some controversy about where the author got his inspiration for the orphanage featured in this story. As a non-indigenous reviewer, I highly suggest you seek out reviews from the affected community. All I can say is that this was one of the most heart-warming books I have ever read and it certainly made me want to read more of T.J. Klune’s work.
  • The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo was another hyped book that I was a little scared to pick up. All the raving gave me high expectations! Thankfully, this book not only matched, but far exceeding them. For such a short book, it certainly packed a punch! I adored the writing, the story-telling, and the characters featured in this novella. I can’t wait to continue the series!
  • Stones of Light by Zack Argyle did what not a lot of sequels can do: it far surpassed the first book! It was such a fantastic sequel that leveled up everything I loved about Voice of War! The world-building was top notch. The writing was even better than the first. And the character growth was just *chef’s kiss* There was definitely no middle-book-syndrome here and I cannot wait to see how this series ends. You can bet that the last book is high on my 2022 TBR!
  • The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang was my first five star read of 2021. Talk about starting the year on an emotional rollercoaster! This book absolutely gutted me, which could explain why I’m so nervous to pick up the last book in this trilogy 😅 I certainly want to know how Rin’s story ends, but I know it’s gonna hurt so bad… Still, this was yet another sequel that was just as good, if not better than, the first book.
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Five Star Predictions 2021

kerrimcbooknerd9 Comments

Hello, reader!

I’ve somehow made it to the third month of 2021 without sharing with you my new five star predictions! I could blame it on my busy schedule and all sorts of things, but I’m gonna be honest… I was waiting for the cover reveal for my most anticipated read of this year. I wanted to be able to share it whilst gushing about how much I think I’m gonna love this book, lol. Now that the gorgeous cover has been revealed, it’s time to throw my list together!

Now, last year I don’t think I had any rhyme or reason to the books I tossed on the list. This ended up in me going back to see if my predictions were accurate and realizing I hadn’t even read half of the books! So we’re trying to be more intentional in 2021. What does that mean? It means I’ve chosen ten books (five backlist and five new or soon-to-be realeased) that are already on my admittedly very loose 2021 TBR. These are books that I have every intention of actually reading this year. We’ll see how well I’ve done with both my predictions and my reading once December rolls around 😅

That being said, let’s get to the list!

New Releases

Redemptor by Jordan Ifueko

We’re going to kick off this list with my most anticipated book of 2021! I read Raybearer, the first book in this duology, around this time last year and was instantly in love. I adored everything about the book and immediately wanted to read the next one! I’ve been not-so patiently waiting for this book and I just know I’m going to end up giving it five stars.

Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas

I love Angie Thomas and I will read absolutely anything she writes. So when I heard that a prequel to The Hate U Give that was focused on Maverick, I knew I was going to pick it up. I’ve also only ever given her books five stars, so this is kind of an easy pick for the list, lol. I can’t wait to read this one!

The Cost of Knowing by Brittney Morris

This is the sophomore novel from the author of SLAY, a book that I adored! I’m excited to see what Brittney Morris with a contemporary story that has a little magic sprinkled in. Why do I think this one will be five stars? Because I’m enraptured by this author’s writing and the story sounds fascinating! Also, just look at that cover 😍

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