readathon

Magical Readathon: Orilium Autumn Equinox TBR

August 4, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

Hello, reader!

That’s right. In the month of August, you get not one, but two TBRs from me! Readathons are great TBR-creating motivators 😂

It’s time to continue my character’s journey at the magical academy called Orilium in one of my favorite readathons: the Magical Readathon! I’ve been on-board with this Orilium journey since the beginning and managed to complete all the prompts for the Spring Equinox. Now it’s time to dive further into my studies with this latest round.

But what is the Magical Readathon? It is the brain child of the marvelous G @ Book Roast, who created the world of Aeldia, where Orilium dwells, and every aspect therein. It’s an incredibly creative readathon where you build a character, choose and guild, and guide your character through classes to achieve their calling. I am notoriously bad at giving all the details in a coherent way, so you should definitely watch G’s announcement video for the scoop:

My Character

Before I jump into my TBR for this round, I wanted to re-introduce you all to the character I created for this readathon! She’s living her best life at this magical academy so far.

✨✨✨Name: Korrin Musgrave✨✨✨
✨✨✨Guild: The Order of the Crescent Moon✨✨✨
✨✨✨Current Guild Standing: Assistant (110 gp)✨✨✨
✨✨✨Legacy: Wolf familiar (Venandi)✨✨✨
✨✨✨Background: Wildling✨✨✨
✨✨✨Province: Irtheria✨✨✨
✨✨✨Heritage: Earthling (earth element)✨✨✨

Don’t know what any of that means? You can check out the Brief History of Aeldia on the Google drive. The drive also has the syllabus for this round and lots of other incredibly imaginative information all from the mind of G!

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www wednesday

WWW Wednesday: Aug 3, 2022

August 3, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd6 Comments

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday! This is a bookish meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words where bloggers answer the 3 Ws:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

If you’d like to learn more about any of these books, click on the cover to be taken to the Goodreads page.

Current Reads

These Fleeting Shadows by Kate Alice Marshall: I’ve just started this spooky YA horror and, already, I’m entranced! The atmosphere is pitch perfect, the little hints that something is not right have me intrigued, and I’m truly interested in finding out more about our main character, Helen. I’m very much getting an The Inheritance Games vibes, what with her inheritance of this creepy house hinging on her staying in it a full year and some less than friendly relatives who seem upset about the will. But this is definitely got a more paranormal vibe and I am here for it!
Hide by Kiersten White: I literally just finished the first chapter of this horror novel and, in comparison, I’m not as immediately into it as I was with These Fleeting Shadows. Maybe it’s because I’ve only read one chapter so far. Maybe it’s because nothing has really happened yet. I’m definitely intrigued enough to keep going but the writing hasn’t really gripped me yet. The main character, Mack, certainly seems like she has a Past and I’m interested to find out more about her. Here’s hoping I get more invested as I continue.

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top 5 tuesday

Top 5 Tuesday: Books With Keys

August 2, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd6 Comments

Top 5 Tuesday is a fun, weekly meme that asks you to pick 5 books that fit that week’s theme. It was created by Bionic Bookworm and is currently being hosted by Meeghan Reads. You should check out their wonderful blog for more details and the list of prompts!

Hello, reader!

It’s pretty late on a Tuesday and I’ve had quite the day 😅 Still, before we roll into the middle of the week, it’s time for another Top 5 Tuesday post! The themes during August are all scavenger hunts and, I have to admit, this one threw me for a loop. I, apparently, have not read a ton of books with keys on the cover. That being said, I’ve cobbled together a list that only stretches the theme a teensy bit, haha.

Let’s jump into the post, shall we?

#1. Duma Key by Stephen King

So there’s definitely not a key in this beachy cover, but there is one in the title! This also happens to be one of my favorite Stephen King novels, if not my favorite. I feel like this is one that people don’t talk about often or really know about, but it’s absolutely incredible! It follows a man named Edgar Freemantle who moves to the beaches of Florida after a construction site accident leaves him without an arm. He gets back into art, something that used to bring him joy… and things get weird from there. This is well worth the read!

#2. Nightbooks by J.A. White

We’re playing a little bit more loose with this scavenger hunt with this one 😂 There’s no key in the cover image or in the title… but there is a keyhole! Shape! The suggestion of a keyhole at the very least! Look, I told you I had a rough time with this one, haha. All that aside, I loved this middle grade horror. It was spooky yet endearing and left me wanting more from this author. My favorite bits were the scare stories sprinkled throughout the already scary story, curtesy of our MC, Alex. I could read a whole book just filled with those!

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book reviews

ARC Review: These Deadly Games by Diana Urban

August 1, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd4 Comments

Title: These Deadly Games

Author: Diana Urban

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Genre: Thriller

Content/Trigger Warnings: Mention of anorexia, abuse, alcoholism, murder, death, kidnapping, child harm

Rating: ★★★★

Book Links: Bookshop::TBD::B&N::Amazon::
Goodreads

Goodreads Synopsis

Let’s play a game.

You have 24 hours to win. If you break my rules, she dies. If you call the police, she dies. If you tell your parents or anyone else, she dies.

Are you ready?

When Crystal Donavan gets a message on a mysterious app with a video of her little sister gagged and bound, she agrees to play the kidnapper’s game. At first, they make her complete bizarre tasks: steal a test and stuff it in a locker, bake brownies, make a prank call.

But then Crystal realizes each task is meant to hurt—and kill—her friends, one by one. But if she refuses to play, the kidnapper will kill her sister. Is someone trying to take her team out of the running for a gaming tournament? Or have they uncovered a secret from their past, and wants them to pay for what they did…

As Crystal makes the impossible choices between her friends and her sister, she must uncover the truth and find a way to outplay the kidnapper… before it’s too late.

Author of All Your Twisted Secrets, Diana Urban’s explosive sophomore novel, These Deadly Games, will keep you riveted until the final twist is revealed.

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readathon

Trope-ical Readathon TBR: August 2022

July 31, 2022July 30, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

Hello, reader!

It’s time for another round of one of my favorite readathons: the Trope-ical Readathon! This readathon is one of the only times I ever make a monthly TBR, haha. My mood-reader brain takes forever to try an build one that I a) won’t get bored with halfway through the month and b) is actually do-able. We’ll see next month whether or not I have achieved this goal.

What is the Trope-ical Readathon, you ask? Well, it’s a month-long, team-based readathon created and run by Jenny @ JenJenReviews and her partner, @BookRob, that centers around reading books that feature specific “tropes”. Think stuff like “found family” and the ever contested “love triangle”. There are thirteen general prompts geared towards thirteen different tropes, so there’s bound to be at least a couple you love!

As for my team this round, after turning traitor in the March round, I’ve decided to go back to my one, true team: Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller! As a fantasy lover, it never makes sense to me that I gravitate to this team, but here we are 😂

I’m sure you might have more questions about this awesome readathon as I’m crap at explaining things, so if you want all the relevant information straight from the source, head over to the Trope-ical Readathon Information page.

For now, though, let me share with you what books I’ve picked to read this round!

Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller Challenges

Team Book (Old)

Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant

This is a book that has floated around my TBR for quite some time. A dark, mermaid tale? Sounds intriguing, but not entirely up my alley. When I saw it was the older team book for this round, though, I figured it was time to give it a go! I know I love Seanan McGuire’s (Mira Grant is a pseudonym) writing, so I’m hoping that I enjoy this one.

Team Challenge #1: Mysterious Invite

All Your Twisted Secrets by Diana Urban

I couldn’t think of any books on my TBR that included this trope, so thank goodness for the recommendations page for the readathon! I recently finished a different thriller by this author and had a good time with it. The main character did kind of make me want to strangle her, but still a good read. Here’s hoping I like this one just as much or more!

Team Challenge #2: Undead

Fledgling by Octavia E. Butler

Once again, the recommendations page comes through! I don’t tend to read a lot of books featuring the undead. It’s not where I lean when it comes to horror. But I’ve been eager to read a book by Octavia E. Butler and this seems like the perfect time! I know next to nothing about this book, so fingers crossed that I have a good time with it. Then I’ll be even more hyped to read more from this author!

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book blogger hop

Book Blogger Hop: Jul 29 – Aug 4

July 30, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

The Book Blogger Hop was originally created by Crazy-For-Books and is currently being hosted by Coffee Addicted Writer. Every Friday, a new question is posted for book bloggers to answer in the coming week. The purpose of the hop is connection and community. You can discover new blogs to follow, new books to read, and you may end up with some new followers, as well!

This Week’s Question

If you are listening to an audiobook, do you follow along with the print version?

Submitted by Elizabeth @ Silver’s Reviews.

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first lines friday

First Lines Friday #55

July 29, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd4 Comments

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? If you want to make your own post, feel free to use or edit the banner above, and follow the rules below:

Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first (I cheat a little bit here *cough*)
Finally… reveal the book!

If you’re using Twitter, don’t forget to use #FirstLinesFridays!

Hello, reader!

Happy Friday! I hope, if you’re not working this weekend, you’re looking forward to a good time. If you are working, like me, I hope the weekend goes quickly and smoothly! Because that’s what I’m hoping for my work weekend, haha. Either way, it’s time for another First Lines Friday post! This week, I’m featuring a book that I’m hoping to pick up tomorrow once I get home.

Let’s see what the first few lines have in store for us.

The Line(s):

“The Amazement Park opened in 1953.
GET LOST IN FUN! posters advertised, and it was true: Crowds surged through the gates in the morning and didn’t stumble out again until the sun had set, and spotlights at the exit guided them free.”

The Hints:

This is a horror/thriller set in a theme park.

The end pages feature a pretty awesome map.

It currently has a *3.35* rating on Goodreads… and I’m nervous, lol.

The Reveal:

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down the tbr hole

Down the TBR Hole #34.5

July 28, 2022 kerrimcbooknerdLeave a comment

It’s time for a new round of Down the TBR Hole! This is where I go through my Goodreads ‘Want to Read’ shelf and do a bit of cleaning up. If you want to see the full description of what this post is all about, check out my first round HERE.

Hello, reader!

I hope you are having a lovely Thursday. I feel like I hit the ground already behind today, myself, haha. Just so much to do and too little time! That’s why this round of Down the TBR Hole is going to be a bit truncated. Instead of going through ten books and deciding whether or not they get to stay on me ‘Want to Read’ shelf, I’ll only be doing five. We shall see if I manage to remove any at the end of this round, haha.

That being said, I ended last round at 712 books on the TBR and I’ll be starting this one 711 books! Which is almost unheard of for me to not start with more books than I ended with previously 😂 Let’s see how this round goes… we might be sitting at the same number at the end.

Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan

I honestly don’t remember why I added this to my TBR. I’m not usually one who picks up contemporary novels on a whim. Though the concept sounds interesting, I don’t see myself picking this one up any time soon. Especially with how many books are on my TBR! So… I think this one will have to go, for now.

Verdict: Remove

The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

This is the sequel to one of my favorite books, The Shadow of the Wind. Though I don’t think it’s a direct sequel, but set in the same world? I think… Either way, after falling in love with the first book, I definitely want to give this one a try! I didn’t even realize The Shadow of the Wind was part of a series, but now I want to read them all.

Verdict: Keep

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www wednesday

WWW Wednesday: Jul 27, 2022

July 27, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd6 Comments

It’s time for another WWW Wednesday! This is a bookish meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words where bloggers answer the 3 Ws:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

If you’d like to learn more about any of these books, click on the cover to be taken to the Goodreads page.

Current Reads

Jade City by Fonda Lee: I’m not too far into this book but it certainly starts off with a bang! I also kind of already love Hilo and this seems like a bad choice to make? I dunno, there’s something about that hot-headed idiot that entices. The entire Kaul family are an interesting bunch and I can’t wait to learn more about them. I’m loving the writing, as well! So… so far, so good.
Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett: I’m finally continuing on reading the Discworld books! I’m glad that you can kind of pick these books up at your own place and easily fall back into the story. And I had forgotten how much I enjoy Sir Pratchett’s writing! I love the humor and the wit. The fact that this story centers around a girl who is determined to become the world’s first female wizard is certainly making this an interesting read. Esk is such a great character and I can’t wait to watch her kick the patriarchy’s butt.

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top 5 tuesday

Top 5 Tuesday: Illustrated

July 26, 2022 kerrimcbooknerd2 Comments

Hello, reader!

It’s time for another Top 5 Tuesday! This week, it took me a bit to find five books to feature because the topic is all about illustrated books. This could be books with full on pictures or just pretty chapter headers or end pages. But I quickly realized that I haven’t read a ton of books with illustrations! Thankfully, I did find five books I’ve truly loved to put on my list.

With that said, let’s get to the post!

#1. Frostheart by Jamie Littler

I read this book earlier this year and fell in love with the characters and the story. The fact that it had beautiful illustrations throughout the book was a bonus! They added to the fun of the novel and made me love it even more. I’m excited to continue on with the series at some point. Also, I feel like adult books should be taking a page from middle grade and start throwing in some illustrations!

#2. A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow

This book has a combination of illustrations and beautiful chapter headers that were just stunning. I wasn’t expecting it when I picked the book up and was pleasantly surprised! It gave the novella a storybook feel, which makes sense since it’s a retelling of Sleeping Beauty. This was a quick and engaging read that featured Alix E. Harrow’s beautiful writing. I’m hoping the sequel is just as incredible with more fantastic art peppered throughout.

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