WWW Wednesday: February 18th, 2026

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

The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2022 edited by Rebecca Roanhorse: I promise I’m still reading this 😭 I ran into a string of ‘meh’ stories, which is what always seems to happen to me when I read short story anthologies, and it’s made me feel pretty ‘meh’ about picking it back up. But the next story is by an author I enjoy, so I’m hoping it will get me back on board!
On by One by Ruth Ware: I’m listening to the audiobook for this one and the narrator is killing it! Which would be more exciting if I wasn’t already getting bored, lol. I want to shake one of our POV characters and that’s certainly not helping with my enjoyment. But anxiety is a hell of a mental illness and I don’t know all the details yet, so I should stop judging her so hard and give her a chance. I’ll try, at least…
I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman: I just started this novella and… um… I don’t know how I feel about it 😅 Is the narrator supposed to be insufferable? Am I meant to care about the mystery of why these women are locked in a cage? They don’t even care! Well… the narrator does and she’s making it everyone else’s problem. I really hope something actually happens soon cause this book and I are not getting on.

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goodreads monday

Goodreads/TBR Monday: February 16th, 2026

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Goodreads Monday/TBR Monday is a bookish meme hosted by Emily @ Budget Tales Book Blog invites you to post about what books are on your Goodreads “to read” lists or TBR lists, the progress you have made on your current books and reading challenges, and any other bookish news!

Hello, reader!

It’s the first day of my youngest’s February break and I’ve spent it reading and doing laundry cause he was off at a friend’s house, haha. Not gonna lie, it was a pretty relaxing Monday! Now it’s time to get to my Goodreads Monday post for this week. I do love taking a peek through my Goodreads TBR to remind myself of all the interesting books I want to read. My Want to Read shelf has risen to 834 books in just this past week because I have no self-control, but it’s hard when there are so many potentially great books out there.

Let’s see whether or not I’ll be reducing the TBR this week.

Random Goodreads Pick

Book:
A Clash of Steel

Author:
C.B. Lee

Publisher:
Feiwel & Friends

Publication Date:
September 7th, 2021

Pages:
432

Genre:
Fantasy

Synopsis:
Two intrepid girls hunt for a legendary treasure on the deadly high seas in this YA remix of the classic adventure novel Treasure Island.

1826. The sun is setting on the golden age of piracy, and the legendary Dragon Fleet, the scourge of the South China Sea, is no more. Xiang has grown up with stories about the Dragon Fleet and its ruthless leader, a woman known only as the Dragon Queen, all her life. Xiang desperately wants to set sail and explore—mainly to find her father, a presumed dead crew member of the Dragon Fleet. Her only memento of him is a pendant she always wears, a simple but plain piece of gold jewelry.

But the pendant’s true nature is revealed when a mysterious girl named Anh steals it, only to return it to Xiang in exchange for her help in decoding the tiny map scroll hidden inside. Rumor has it that the legendary Dragon Queen had one last treasure—the plunder of a thousand ports—hidden away on an island shrouded in mist that only can be seen once in a blue moon.

Xiang is convinced this map could lead to the fabled treasure. Captivated with the thrill of adventure, she joins Anh and her motley crew off in pursuit of the island. But the girls soon find that the sea—and especially those who sail it—are far more dangerous than the legends led them to believe.

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reading project

Project Library Love: February Visit

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Hello, reader!

It’s time for a check-in on one of my 2026 reading projects, Library Love! I figured I would share what books I check out each month to try and keep myself accountable. Maybe then I’ll actually read my library loans instead of letting them languish on my desk until my renewals run out 😅 I also reflect on my last month’s stack to see how many I managed to pick up.

So let’s see how January went and what books I’ve picked up in February!

Last Month’s Stack

In January, I ended up checking out four physical books and two audiobooks.

My physical picks were:

Automatic Noodle by Annalee Newitz
Every Day I Read by Hwang Bo-Reum
Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
Jane Austen’s Bookshelf by Rebecca Romney

My audiobook picks were:

His & Hers by Alice Feeney
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones

I’m happy to report that, out of the six I checked out, I’ve read five of them! I’m pretty proud of myself for that one, haha. The only one I didn’t get to so far is Jane Austen’s Bookshelf, but I’m going to be cracking that one open soon! Especially since it’s due back at the beginning of March…

Of the books I managed to read, my favorite was definitely one of my audio reads, The Buffalo Hunter Hunter. Stephen Graham Jones is quickly cementing himself as one of my favorite authors and I will be buying myself a copy ASAP. A close second is Hidden Figures, which I just finished reading today and absolutely loved. I haven’t been this enamored of a non-fiction book for awhile! That being said, none of the books I checked out were less than three stars, so my January library stack kinda started this project out with a bang.

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first lines friday

First Lines Friday: February 13th, 2026

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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
Finally… reveal the book!

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

Hello, reader!

Happy Friday the 13th! I always find it funny when we get a Friday the 13th the day before Valentine’s Day. The juxtaposition is just fun 😂 In honor of this weird, romantic time, I’ve picked a spooky book with a dash of romance for this week’s First Lines Friday! It’s also a bit of a sneak peek into what I picked up at the library this month.

So, without further ado, let’s see if the first few lines can wow us.

The Line(s):

“The gates were beautifully wrought iron, elegantly monogrammed with interlocking Ws. The motor-car’s headlights illuminated the black paint, the curlicues and details gleaming gold.”

The Build Up:

The Reveal:

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top ten tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday: 2026 Romance Reads

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Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish back in June 2010. It is currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl and, as is stated on the blog, it was “born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.”

Hello, reader!

It’s time for another Top Ten Tuesday! This week’s theme is an ode to Valentine’s Day; it’s a love/Valentine’s freebie. I’ve decided I want to highlight ten romance books I want to read in 2026! This is a mixture of new releases and books that have been on my TBR for ages. They are definitely all books that I’m eager to pick up, though!

Alright, let’s get to my picks 💖

Backlist Romance Reads

Our Vicious Oaths by N.E. Davenport

When the Tides Held the Moon by Venessa Vida Kelley

Well Played by Jen DeLuca

The Princess Trap by Talia Hibbert

Beach Read by Emily Henry

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goodreads monday

Goodreads/TBR Monday: February 9th, 2026

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Hello, reader!

Goodreads Monday is, once again, upon us. Another new start to the week and another random book pulled from my Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf. Which is down to 831 books this week… two down from last week! I mean, one of those is the book I removed from last week, but still!

Let’s see what I’ll pull this week 😊

Random Goodreads Pick

Book:
The Blood Trials

Author:
N.E. Davenport

Publisher:
Harper Voyager

Publication Date:
April 5th, 20222

Pages:
448

Genre:
Science Fiction/Fantasy

Synopsis:
Blending fantasy and science fiction, N. E. Davenport’s fast-paced, action-packed debut kicks off a duology of loyalty and rebellion, in which a young Black woman must survive deadly trials in a racist and misogynistic society to become an elite warrior.

It’s all about blood.

The blood spilled between the Republic of Mareen and the armies of the Blood Emperor long ago. The blood gifts of Mareen’s deadliest enemies. The blood that runs through the elite War Houses of Mareen, the rulers of the Tribunal dedicated to keeping the republic alive.

The blood of the former Legatus, Verne Amari, murdered.

For his granddaughter, Ikenna, the only thing steady in her life was the man who had saved Mareen. The man who had trained her in secret, not just in martial skills, but in harnessing the blood gift that coursed through her.

Who trained her to keep that a secret.

But now there are too many secrets, and with her grandfather assassinated, Ikenna knows two things: that only someone on the Tribunal could have ordered his death, and that only a Praetorian Guard could have carried out that order.

Bent on revenge as much as discovering the truth, Ikenna pledges herself to the Praetorian Trials–a brutal initiation that only a quarter of the aspirants survive. She subjects herself to the racism directed against her half-Khanaian heritage and the misogyny of a society that cherishes progeny over prodigy, all while hiding a power that–if found out–would subject her to execution…or worse. Ikenna is willing to risk it all because she needs to find out who murdered her grandfather…and then she needs to kill them.

Mareen has been at peace for a long time…

Ikenna joining the Praetorians is about to change all that.

Magic and technology converge in the first part of this stunning debut duology, where loyalty to oneself–and one’s blood–is more important than anything.

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www wednesday

WWW Wednesday: February 4th, 2026

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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

Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly: I’m really getting into this one now that it’s my main physical read! The author’s writing is really sucking me into the story of these “Black Computers” that worked to help our nation’s space race. It also makes me boil with rage to read about all the injustices they were facing even though they were just as good as (if not better) than their white counterparts. Like, I know that, was a thing (and is still a thing), so you would think I’d be used to it, but the rage still comes, heh. I suppose that is the author doing her job well!
The Things We Do to Our Friends by Heather Darwent: Oh my god, I am so BORED. It’s just a bunch of rich people (and one wanna-be) being unhinged and I don’t caaaaare. I’ve just arrived at part two after a plot point finally decided to make an entrance, so I’m hoping things pick up from here. Please…
The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2022 edited by Rebecca Roanhorse: I’ve read the first two stories in this collection and I’m happy to report that I loved both of them! This is a good omen for how I’m going to enjoy the rest of this anthology. Fingers crossed that they continue to be stellar.

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goodreads monday

Goodreads/TBR Monday: February 2nd, 2026

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Hello, reader!

It’s the start of another week, so it’s time for another Goodreads Monday! Time to leaf through my excessively large Goodreads TBR (currently sitting at 833 books 🤡) and pick a random book to highlight. Participating in this meme has been fun because I’m re-discovering books I had completely forgotten I wanted to read, haha. I am forever skilled at putting books on my TBR… not so great at actually reading them.

Let’s see what random book we get today!

Random Goodreads Pick

Book:
Fire & Sword

Author:
Dylan Doose

Publisher:
Spawning Pool Studios

Publication Date:
September 1st, 2015

Pages:
330

Genre:
Fantasy

Synopsis:
Three men condemned to die: Aldous Weaver, a lonely heretic monk turned sorcerer, is imprisoned for accidentally incinerating the leader of his order. Kendrick the Cold, an infamous crusader turned fugitive, is a villain who knows he can never be a hero. Theron Ward, an aristocrat with a penchant for slaughtering monsters, is a legend in his own mind.

A broken nation in need of a savior: Ravaged by plague, decimated by dark magic, Brynth is infiltrated by a foreign evil seeking to dominate from within.

An unlikely bond forged in the furnace of chaos: Three criminals become comrades when faced with the choice to escape the land that cries for their execution or, with fire and sword, march forth against the greater evil.

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first lines friday

First Lines Friday: January 30th, 2026

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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
Finally… reveal the book!

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

Hello, reader!

For today’s First Lines Friday, I decided to pick a book randomly off my shelf. I have so many stacks of books just chilling around me that I thought “Why not?” haha. This is a Book of the Month pick that I got last year and, as I am wont to do, I still haven’t read it. I know, I know… yet another reason why my physical TBR is out of control! So I suppose featuring this book for this post will give it a chance to finally move over to the “currently reading” pile.

Let’s see if the first few lines can capture my attention as well as yours!

The Line(s):

“In the city of Nuremberg in 1938, a man told his daughter a bedtime story.”

The Build Up:

The Reveal:

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monthly tbr

February 2026 TBR

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Hello, reader!

If you’ve been around the blog awhile, you probably know that I’m not typically a big monthly TBR person. That’s because, at heart, I am and will always be a mood reader. There’s something about setting a TBR that makes my mood reader brain immediately wants to read something else, lol. The thing is, though, that I’m also extremely indecisive. I have so many options for books (over 300 unread books on my TBR… and that’s just the physical ones 🫠) so when I let my mood dictate my read, I stand staring at my bookshelf for ages and can’t make a decision!

So I’m gonna do a little experiment! I’m going to try setting up monthly TBRs in 2026 but they are not going to be strict TBRs. I suppose that makes them more of “monthly hopefuls”, but I’m still going to call them TBRs. Hopefully this will work much better for my weird little brain, haha.

With that being said, let me share with you my February TBR!

The Book Club Reads

There are three online book clubs that I participate in on a semi-regular basis: the Weirdo Book Club, the Always Fully Booked (AFB) Book Club, and the Literally Dead Book Club. There are months where I’m not interested in the book picked, of course, but in February I’m intrigued by all three. Hopefully I can squeeze them all in!

Weirdo Book Club
- I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
- I have seen this book talked about all over the place, so I’m happy to jump on-board the book club read. It sounds weird and intriguing, which kind of makes it perfect for Weirdo Book Club!
AFB Book Club
- One by One by Ruth Ware
- I’m not gonna lie, Ruth Ware had a bit of a falling out after I started reading her backlist because I enjoyed The Turn of the Key so much. I just haven’t liked any of the other books I’ve read from her as much as that one! I’m happy to give her another chance, though… perhaps this will be the one to blow me away.
Literally Dead Book Club
- How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates by Shailee Thompson
- I was on the fence about whether or not I wanted to read this one, but then it popped up as an add-on through Book of the Month and it found its way into my box somehow 😂 This is why my physical TBR is ridiculous, y’all! Still, this does sound intriguing and this will help me read my BotM book the same month I got it!

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