Not only is it now the best month ever (September may or may not be my birth month, haha) but it’s time for the Autumn Equinox at Orilium Academy! I’m excited to participate in yet another round of this super fun readathon that is filled with imagination. My character is well on her way to completing another year of study to become a Beast Master, but she has one more term to get through to become an Adept.
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: Exalted (440 gp)✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Conduit: Quarterstaff ✨✨✨ ✨✨✨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!
It’s time for another round of the Trope-ical Readathon! I noticed that I never did a TBR on the blog for the last round, which was in March. That’s because the last round is what helped me dig myself out of a reading slump that I’m still kind of battling. My reading has ben sloooow this year, but readathons are always a great way to find my motivation. Hopefully, this go around will help me kick my slump all together!
Before I tell you what I’m planning on reading this round, why don’t I tell you more about the actual readathon. The Trope-ical Readathon is a month-long, team-based readathon created and run by Jenny @ JenJenReviews and her partner, @BookRob. It 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! For all the info and to join a team, just check out the Trope-ical Readathon website.
All that said, let me share all the prompts and what I’m hoping to read for each one!
Team Fantasy Challenges
Team Book (New)
Masquerade by O.O. Sangoyomi
This African loose retelling of the legend of Persephone sounds like something I would absolutely love! It promises high stakes, political intrigue, and a woman claiming her power. Also, I’m in awe of the cover. It’s absolutely stunning! This book is a recent release but I’ve already heard amazing things about it. I can’t wait to give it a read in August.
Team Challenge #1: “Talking Animal” Trope
Wundersmith by Jessica Townsend
I’ve been meaning to continue my read of the Nevermoor series and, yet, I still haven’t picked up the second book. It’s been lost of the shuffle of all the new books I buy or check out from the library, heh. But this challenge gives me the perfect excuse to get back into the series! I’m excited to go back to the Wonderous Society and see how our girl Morrigan is getting on.
Team Challenge #2: “Unlikely Allies” Trope
Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland
I’ve wanted to read this book since I picked it up from Book of the Month Club. It features deadly people thrown together to complete a job who are, more than likely, ready to turn on each other in a heartbeat. If that’s not the definition of “unlikely allies”, I don’t know what is! I’m excited to see how they work together and what the end results will be. I’m guessing murder.
It’s time once again to go back to Orilium in one of my favorite readathons of the year! Having just completed my other favorite readathon last month (shout out to Trope-ical Readathon!), I feel myself being solidly back on my reading grind and it feels gooood. So I’m going into the Orilium Spring Equinox feeling refreshed and with high hopes!
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 a 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
✨✨✨ Name: Korrin Musgrave ✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Guild: The Order of the Crescent Moon ✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Current Guild Standing: Exalted (390 gp)✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Conduit: Quarterstaff ✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Legacy: Wolf familiar (Venandi) ✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Background: Wildling ✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Province: Irtheria ✨✨✨ ✨✨✨ Heritage: Earthling (earth element) ✨✨✨
If you want to learn more about these various choices, you can check out the Brief History of Aeldia on the Google drive. It’s awesome what G has dreamed up!
It’s time for another round of the Trope-ical Readathon! I have been in a very weird reading mood lately. Like a partial slump, I suppose? I’ve still been enjoying the books I’m reading except for a couple that are making me want to not read anything at all 😂 I finished one of them, so my reading mood is improving, and I’m powering through the last one today. Hopefully that means I’ll go into August feeling ready to tackle this TBR!
Before I tell you what I’m planning on reading this round, why don’t I tell you more about the actual readathon. The Trope-ical Readathon is a month-long, team-based readathon created and run by Jenny @ JenJenReviews and her partner, @BookRob. It 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! For all the info and to join a team, just check out the Trope-ical Readathon website.
All that said, let me share all the prompts and what I’m hoping to read for each one!
Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller Challenges
Team Book (Old)
White Smoke by Tiffany D. Jackson
I’ve wanted to read this book for so long, so it made choosing my team this round pretty easy. Not that you can’t read all of the team books, but I’m a slow reader, y’all. This book promises a creepy house, which is my favorite when it comes to horror stories. It also promises a bit of social commentary which is another thing that I love in a horror book. Add in that this cover is giving everything and I cannot wait to read it! Here’s hoping I love it as much as I think I will.
Team Challenge #1: “Isolated Setting” Trope
The Blackhouse by Carole Johnstone
I’m also trying to catch up some Netgalley ARCs in August and this is one of the ones I’m most excited to read. I loved Mirrorland, another book by this author, so I was excited when I received the ARC for The Blackhouse. And then I just never picked it up, heh. I’m easily distracted, y’all. This is set on an isolated Scottish island and the title might suggest that I’m getting another creepy house in the mix. Here’s hoping!
Team Challenge #2: “Cult” Trope
The Last Housewife by Ashley Winstead
This challenge was the hardest to pick a book to read! I, apparently, don’t have a lot of “cult” books on my TBR. Poking through Goodreads, I finally stumbled across this thriller. I’ve never read anything by Ashley Winstead, but I have heard good things. It focuses on a woman who is determined to destroy a powerful cult and I’m sure it’s going to be filled with tons of twists and turns. Not gonna lie, the cover kind of drew me in, as well.
It’s time for another round of the Trope-ical Readathon! I’ve been participating in this readathon for the last couple of years and it’s one of my favorites. As a matter of fact, it’s one of the only readathons I make a point to do every year! It’s a lot of fun and I always have my best reading months when I join in.
Before I tell you what I’m planning on reading this round, why don’t I tell you more about the actual readathon. The Trope-ical Readathon is a month-long, team-based readathon created and run by Jenny @ JenJenReviews and her partner, @BookRob. It 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!
There are also team-based challenges for each of the individual teams. You can click hereto learn more about the teams and their challenges, but I’m going to focus on the team I picked for this round. I’m usually a Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller woman, but this March, I’ve decided to make a pivot. I’m joining up with Team Fantasy and it feels like coming home, haha.
All that said, let me share all the prompts and what I’m hoping to read for each one!
Team Fantasy Challenges
Team Book (New)
The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi
I’m not gonna lie. This book is what cinched my team choice this year. I’m not a fast reader, so I always try to pick the team with a team book I’m interested in. I know you can read any and all of the team books, but that’s never gonna happen with me when there are already so many other prompts! After reading (and loving!) The Gilded Wolves, I’ve been wanting to pick up something else from this author. I’m excited to give it a read!
Team Challenge #1: Gods/Mythology Trope
Godkiller by Hannah Kaner
I was having a tough time coming up with a book for this prompt. Not that I don’t have a ton of books that would work for mythology (I have so many retellings, y’all), but none of them were piquing my interest. Then I remembered that I had recently received this book in an Illuimcrate box! It was kismet. I figured a book about a woman that kills gods for a living has to work, haha. Also it’s kind of gorgeous and I kind of can’t wait to read it.
Team Challenge #2: Gaslamp Fantasy
A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
This was a tough prompt for which to find a book because I wasn’t 100% what counts as ‘gaslamp’. So I searched the genre on Goodreads and picked the first book I found listed that I owned 😂 Well… not the first book. That was Jonathon Strange and Mr. Norrell and there was no way I was reading that chonky boi this month. Besides, I’ve been wanting to give this book a read for a long time. It sounds like it would be right up my alley!
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!
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!
What’s this? Another TBR? That’s right because, in March, I’ll be taking part in not one, but two readathons! The WomenInMythAThon is a readathon that speaks to my Greek mythology loving heart. It’s also put on by one of my favorite bookish people, Livy @ Shelves Of Starlight! There was no way I wasn’t going to give it a go. Check out her post to see all the rules and prompts for this fun readathon!
Now, if you read my Trope-ical Readathon TBR, you’ll probably noticed a lot of carryover from that one to this one. That’s because there ain’t no way I’m reading 12+ books this month! Maybe I took the entire month off from work I could make it happen. As it is, I’m going to try and make books I’m already planning on reading work for this readathon.
With all that said, let’s get to the TBR!
Athena – Read a book focused on academia.
Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett
So this doesn’t necessarily focus on academia. A big part of the story, however, is about a woman who is both witch and wizard delving into the world of the Unseen University… so I think that counts! It’s also short, so I could probably squeeze it in with all my other reads.
Aphrodite – Read a romance book.
The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary
This romance about two roommates that share a bed but have never met is not only on my other readathon TBR, but it’s on my 12 friends, 12 recs TBR. So it makes the most sense to stick it on this one! That just makes it more likely that I’ll actually read it! I’m so excited to give it a try.
Artemis – Read a book with ace and/or are rep.
Bloody Spade by Brittany M. Willows
I received a copy of this book forever ago from the author for review and I’m embarrassed that I haven’t gotten around to reading it yet. Life has certainly gotten in the way, but this seems like the perfect excuse to finally get to this one! I’ve heard great things about the novel and its rep, so I’m looking forward to diving in.
If you’ve been around the blog for any amount of time, you know I’m not one for monthly TBRs. I’m a mood reader (when I haven’t overbooked myself on blog tours 😅) and rarely stick to a reading plan throughout the month. The exception to this rule is when I’m participating in a readathon, which is brings us to the reason for this post. Today, I’ll be sharing my TBR for the Trope-ical Readathon! I participated in this last year and had such a great time! This will be occurring throughout the month of March and I’m so excited to participate again 💖
The Trope-ical Readathon was created by the awesome Jenny @ JenJenReviews and her partner, Rob. It’s focused around reading books that fit into certain bookish tropes. This is also a team-based challenge, where you chose a side and earn points to try and bring your team out on top! The five teams you can chose from are:
Team Romance
Team Science Fiction/Fantasy
Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller (the best team *coughcough*)
As mentioned above, there are five teams that you can chose to join when you register. I have stuck with my choice from last time and will be reading for Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller. The team books and challenges for the winning team *wink* are:
Team Challenge 1: Read a book with the “Haunted House” trope Team Challenge 2: Read a book with the “Whodunit” trope New Team Book: The Obsession by Jesse Q. Sutanto Old Team Book: Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones
To add to the individual team challenges, there are also 13 general challenges that you can read for extra points. The common challenges are:
Absent/Dead Parent(s) Trope: Read a book where the MC’s parents are either absent throughout the book or have passed away prior to the start of the book. Alternatively, read a book that has more than one “parent” (i.e. multiple authors).
War Setting Trope: Read a book centered around the theme of war. This works for real wars (like WWII) or for other types of wars (like ones you find in fantasy). Alternatively, read a book that you can use as a weapon. I.e. a book that is over 500 pages.
Small Town Trope: Read a book that takes place in a small town. Alternatively, read a book with a small (i.e. one-word) title.
Coming-of-Age Trope: Read a book where the protagonist goes through a process of self-discovery. Alternatively, (re)read a book that shaped who you are as a person/reader.
Dystopia Trope: Read a book that takes place in a dystopia. Alternatively, read a book that someone else has chosen for you.
Blast from the Past Trope: Read a book where the MC encounters someone from their past. Alternatively, read a book written before the year 2000.
Mixed Media Trope: Read a book that includes letters, texts, emails, etc. Alternatively, listen to an audiobook.
Artificial Intelligence Trope: Read a book that features an AI. Alternatively, read an ebook.
Boarding School Trope: Read a book that takes place in a boarding school. Alternatively, read a buddy-read with your friend(s).
Enemies to Lovers/Enemies to Friends Trope: Read a book that involves enemies learning to love/like each other. This includes hate-to-love/like as well. Alternatively, read a book that you previously DNFed.
Multiple POVs Trope: Read a book told through multiple points-of-view. Alternatively, read a book with multiple characters of color.
The New Kid in Town Trope: Read a book where the MC(s) have just moved to a new place. Alternatively, read a genre you don’t usually read.
Retelling Trope: Read a book that is a retelling. Alternatively, read a book that has been adapted to a TV show and/or film.
If you’ve been reading my blog for any amount of time, you’ve probably noticed a distinct lack in a pretty popular post among book bloggers: TBR posts. That’s because I am someone who is very much a mood reader. When I’m not reading books for review or for blog tours, I choose ones simply based on what sounds good to me at the moment. For that reason, I don’t tend to make monthly TBRs because it’s likely to change at the drop of a hat.
The one exception to this rule, of course, is when I participate in month-long readathons. And I just so happen to be doing so in August. The Trope-ical Readathon sounded like too much fun to pass up! It’s a competitive readathon created by Jenny @ JenJenReviews and her partner, Rob. The prompts are based off of popular bookish tropes and it runs through the entire month of August. If you’d like more information or want to register yourself, follow this link.
Now, it’s time to take a look at what I’ll be reading!
A Team Challenge
So I mentioned that this readathon is competitive, right? What does any competition need? Teams, of course! There are five teams to choose from that are genre-based:
Team Romance
Team Science Fiction/Fantasy
Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller
Team Contemporary/Literary/Historical Fiction
Team Non-Fiction/Poetry
Now, the idea is to choose the team that represents your favorite genre, but there are approximately eleventy billion people on Team Science Fiction/Fantasy, so I thought I’d try to even the playing field a little. That’s why I chose Team Mystery/Horror/Thriller!
Those are definitely my second favorite genres, after all. And it helps that I’m dying to read the team book!
Kerri McBookNerd 