Monthly Archives: September 2023

August 2023 Recap: Just Summer Things

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And the year just keeps flying by… I haven’t missed a month of updates yet, which kind of surprises me, to be honest. There are plenty of other things I’ve neglected to stay on top of, but… We shall celebrate the small victories.

I managed to finish four books in August – lower than average, but there were a couple of long ones in the mix, and I’ve discovered that reading a physical book seems to take me longer than a Kindle book of the same overall length. The longest book I read this month was also a paperback, so I guess it’s not too surprising that it took me 12 days to get through just that one.

My first book of August was The Stone of Farewell by Tad Williams, the second in the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy. At 768 pages in the paperback, it nicely fit prompt #37, Read a book that is over 600 pages. It’s been almost two years since I read the first book in the trilogy, so my memory was slightly hazy on the previous events, but this installment was very interesting and gave a lot of insight into new areas of the world and the history of the Sithi people, and the writing was engaging. The third book in the trilogy is enormous enough to have been split into two paperbacks, so I’ll try to fit them both onto next year’s list somehow. [4.25 stars]

After that chunker, I foolishly decided to pick up another nearly 600-pager, The Lion of Senet by Jennifer Fallon. I’d had the book on my Kindle for a bit over 5 years, and happily it was suggested to me by whatshouldireadnext.com after I read the second in the Liveship Traders series, making it a nice fit for challenge prompt #26. Read a book recommended by whatshouldireadnext.com. This is the first in the Second Sons Trilogy that is part fantasy, part political thriller.

The beginning of the book was a bit slow, introducing the characters and the world, the political players (some of which was a little confusing at first), and the tip of the intrigue iceberg – but around the halfway mark I found it very engaging once some of the motivations fell into place and some characters crossed paths. I’m looking forward to picking up the next book – eventually, since this year’s reading is pretty much all planned out. [4 stars]

Next up, I picked a shorter book, since I was running out of August. I’ve never actually seen the Star Wars prequels, and I’ve heard great things about this particular novelization of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, by Terry Brooks. I’ve read a lot of Brooks’ other works, and enjoyed it, so this seemed like a perfect choice for challenge #33. Read a movie novelization book (movie to book, instead of book to movie).

The book was actually quite a bit shorter than the Kindle file indicated, since the Brooks novel ended about 66% through, and the rest of it was a short story from the perspective of Darth Maul, and sample chapters from other novels set in various eras in the Star Wars timeline. Still, it was well done, did a good job pulling me in and helping me visualize what the movie would have looked like (considering I’ve seen various screenshots and character photos as contrary to popular belief I have not actually been living under a rock). And it’s given me a little push to watch more of the movies and check out some of the other popular Star Wars media out there. [3.5 stars]

Just under the wire, I finished my choice for prompt #46, Read a book by a new author – Dead Man’s Hand, by James J. Butcher. If the name sounds a little too familiar to be a new author, well, that would be because he’s named after his famous dad, the longshot author himself, Jim Butcher. I’m not sure if I would have sought out the book if I didn’t see a Twitter post (I refuse to call it X) on Jim Butcher’s feed… and there’s a bit of a catch-22 where you don’t want to compare him to his father but you kind of can’t help it.

So I’ll just say this – James doesn’t have his father’s snarky wit, and the main character isn’t as engaging as Harry Dresden, but he shows a lot of promise as an urban fantasy author just getting started, and I’m intrigued to see where the series goes next. [4 stars]

Other than reading, I’ve continued my first watch of Veronica Mars, and finished the final episode of Ted Lasso on September 1st… and caught the pilot episodes of Lost and The Last of Us with a couple of reaction channels I follow. But most of my television watching has been back to Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and the Angel spinoff), as our bookworm buddy Linz has finally found the time to squeeze in some more watch party action… and the last weekend of the month I got the chance to be there as my honorary niece was introduced to the show (she’s a Xander/Willow shipper, y’all).

Favorite photos of the month follow, including my one nail art creation (vintage roses on black) before a cracked fingernail led to chopping them all too short to bother with, pics from the weekend with the bestie and her girls, and a couple of my fuzzy girl Fred, majestic, followed by furious. I took away the safety pins she wanted to play with. I am a mean mama.

So talk to me in the comments, please and thank you! Have you seen Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and how old were you when you first watched it)? What’s your favorite Star Wars movie/show/novel? How many books have you read so far this year? What’s up next on your TBR? And what are you most looking forward to in September?

The Linzthebookworm/Logophile 2023 Reading Challenge

Level 1: Book of the Month Club [11/12 complete]
1. Read a book recommended to you on social media or by a friend – Recursion – Blake Crouch
2. Read a book under 300 pages – The Courts of Chaos – Roger Zelazny
3. Read a book with a female main character – Tress of the Emerald Sea – Brandon Sanderson
4. Read a book by an author whose name is Samantha, Sam, or a variant – Seven Blades in Black – Sam Sykes
5. Read a book that was written by an author from your home state
6. Read a book you meant to read for last year’s challenge – Have We Met? – Camille Baker
7. Read a book with a basic shape on the cover (examples: circle, square, heart, star, diamond) – Call It What You Want – Brigid Kemmerer
8. Read a book you got from Project Gutenberg, a library, or another nonprofit source – The Blue Castle – L.M. Montgomery
9. Read a book about a hobby you enjoy or want to pick up (fiction or nonfiction) – The Bullet Journal Method – Ryder Carroll
10. Read a book that starts with the first letter of your name – Daughters of the Lake – Wendy Webb
11. Read the next book in a series you haven’t read in a while – The Lost Metal – Brandon Sanderson
12. Free Space – Pick any book! – The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England – Brandon Sanderson

Level 2: Casual Reader Club [11/12 complete]
13. Read a book by Mary Faulkner (or one of her aliases)
14. Read a book of short stories or a novella – Ford County: Stories – John Grisham
15. Read a book that involves a lot of traveling – Swan Song – Robert R. McCammon
16. Read a book published in 1998 (25 years ago) – Ship of Magic – Robin Hobb
17. Read a book with a yellow cover – The Likely Resolutions of Oliver Clock – Jane Riley
18. Reread a book you have recommended to someone else – The Imperfect Disciple – Jared C. Wilson
19. Read a book by Dean Koontz – Intensity – Dean Koontz
20. Read a book with a one-word title – Slayer – Kiersten White
21. Read book 1 in a trilogy – The Armored Saint – Myke Cole
22. Read book 2 in a trilogy – A Heart so Fierce and Broken – Brigid Kemmerer
23. Read book 3 in a trilogy – Red Country – Joe Abercrombie
24. Free Space – Pick any book! – Mad Ship – Robin Hobb

Level 3: Dedicated Reader Club [11/12 complete]
25. Read a book that takes place somewhere you’d like to live – Revenge of the Nymph: The Faeries Vol.2 – Ramon Terrell
26. Read a book recommended by whatshouldireadnext.com – The Lion of Senet – Jennifer Fallon
27. Read a book by an author who shares a first or last name with one of your friends – The New York Trilogy – Paul Auster
28. Read a book with a neon-colored cover – Exiles – Ashley and Leslie Saunders
29. Read a book that has under 1,000 reviews or ratings on a website or app – Joshua: Man of Fearless Faith – W. Phillip Keller
30. Read a middle grade book (8-12 age range) – Howl’s Moving Castle – Diana Wynne Jones
31. Read a book with the word “Time” in the title – The Last Time I Lied – Riley Sager
32. Read a book about a famous criminal(s) – Go Down Together: The True, Untold Story of Bonnie and Clyde – Jeff Guinn
33. Read a movie novelization book (movie to book, instead of book to movie) – The Phantom Menace: Star Wars: Episode I – Terry Brooks
34. Read a fiction or nonfiction book that motivates you to be a better version of yourself – Savor: Living Abundantly Where You Are, As You Are – Shauna Niequist
35. Read a self-published book – Duel of Fire – Jordan Rivet
36. Free Space – Pick any book! – Yumi and the Nightmare Painter – Brandon Sanderson

Level 4: Speed Reader Club [6/12 complete]
37. Read a book that is over 600 pages – The Stone of Farewell – Tad Williams
38. Read a book from ListChallenge’s Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge – The Art of War – Sun Tzu
39. A book by an author named David/Dave
40. Read a “Dark Academia” novel – The Secret History – Donna Tartt
41. Read a book with a title that starts with the letter V – Vanishing Acts – Jodi Picoult
42. A book set in Asia or an Asian-inspired culture
43. Read a book with a cat on the cover – The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern – Lilian Jackson Braun
44. Read a folklore book or book based on folklore
45. Read a book where the main character is a dancer – Someone Else’s Life – Lyn Liao Butler
46. Read a book by a new author – Dead Man’s Hand – James J. Butcher
47. Read a book that involves a conspiracy
48. Free Space – Pick any book!

Level 5: Overachiever Club [2/12 complete]
49. Read one of the New York Public Library’s Best Books of 2022 (any category)
50. Read a book where the main character is a villain or anti-hero
51. Read a book that has a title that is punny and/or alliterative – Murder’s No Votive Confidence – Christin Brecher
52. Read a “found family” story
53. Read a book that has a letter Q in the title
54. Read a book that has an illustrated cover – Naomi and Her Daughters – Walter Wangerin, Jr.
55. Read a book that takes place in at least two different decades
56. Read a book about an entrepreneur (real or fictional)
57. Read a book that takes place in Alaska
58. Read a book with the word “Justice” in the title
59. Read a book involving dinosaurs
60. Free Space – Pick any book!