Where I Left Off

Reading Recap 11- Virginia Wolff, Alexandra Moody, & More!

• Kristen Bahls • Season 3 • Episode 9

Share episode

Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.

0:00 | 56:13

Send us Fan Mail

Come see me at the GetLit Bookfair on Sunday, May 3rd at TUPPS Brewery in McKinney, Texas from 11:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Books Mentioned:

Other Mentions:

Books Purchased:

For links to the books discussed in this episode, click the link here to take you to the Google Doc to view the list. 

For episode feedback, future reading and author recommendations, you can text the podcast by clicking the "Send us a message button" above. 

For more, follow along on Instagram @whereileftoffpod.

Welcome + Bookish Updates

SPEAKER_00

Welcome back. I'm Kristen Balls, and you're listening to Where I Left Off, a Bookish Podcast. And guess what? I okay, so this is a reading recap, but of course, I have to tell you a bunch of things beforehand. Uh, there's been a lot going on, so this is gonna be a little bit lengthy. Don't forget, you can always go to the show notes and skip to me actually talking about books if you want to skip this whole thing. But I have some pretty cool things to tell you about. So some author events that I've been to, some author events that I'm going to, all that kind of stuff. Uh I don't know, everyone's had their book tour stops around here. But anyway, so guess what? The last time I did a reading recap, which is really not that long ago, I said that I was hoping to get admitted to a book event, and I did, I got accepted. So I will be at the Get Lit Book Fair at Tubbs Brewery in McKinney, Texas on Sunday, May 3rd. And okay, I'm just really excited about this one because I've personally been to several of the Get Lit book fairs and I really enjoyed them. So the fact that I get to be an author at them is pretty magical. So anyway, it's on Sunday, May 3rd. The VIP section, if you want to pay for VIP, you can. Um, and it starts at 10:30, so that way you can get in and start shopping beforehand. But general admission is always free and it starts, I believe, at 11. So anyway, VIP are just like an optional paid option if you want to get in early, but general admission is free. And it goes until three o'clock. So it's from 11 to 3 for the general public. And like I said, I've been to several and I really enjoyed them. Um, of course, I have to tell you, not only am I gonna be there, but I have to tell you about the books that I'm definitely gonna be picking up while I'm there. Would it be me if I didn't pick up a couple? But okay, so Leslie McElroy, she has this Christmas novella that I actually don't have yet. I do have her other two books, uh, The Expiration Dates and The Sweetest Risk, but there's a Christmas novella that I have not gotten yet, and I wanted to get my signed copy. So I was gonna stop by her booth, and then I was also going to stop by Rachel Lewis's booth because her newest book in the Bardo siblings series just came out, and it is called Foolishly Yours, and I have read Unexpectedly Yours. I really enjoyed that, and there was a Christmas novella called Merrily Yours that I also really enjoyed, and I am a little bit behind. I haven't read the second book yet in the series, and I was kind of beating myself up about it, but then I realized that that means that I can just read book two to three back to back. So now I get to do that. So it actually turned out to be a good thing. But yeah, they they're really good. And both of those, they're also on Kindle Unlimited. So if you did want to check them out, if you don't live in the area, um, I would recommend them. And of course, I'll link them both down in the show notes. But yeah. Then don't forget about Pearls, Sunday, June 7th. I will be in Fayetteville, Arkansas, Sunday, June 7th from one to three for the Sunday signing. I'm excited to get to visit Pearls again and see what books I can find, also. Cause it wouldn't be me if I wasn't also shopping for books. Uh, but anyway, so I have been doing overall pretty well on the reading front lately, which is why I decided to have a reading recap again so soon, was because I just had some books that I wanted to tell you about. So I figured, oh, why not? And also I'm reading, I'm like in the middle of several thrillers right now. So one day I'm gonna finish one. And then eventually I will be able to talk about it. So I'll get there. I will get there. I also, as far as author events, like I said, everyone decided to have their book tour stop by Dallas. I don't know why, but I am very thankful for that. And I ended up getting tickets to Alicia Thompson. Uh so I'm gonna be seeing her too, in addition to the other authors I mentioned, which up left for the summer. Now I have Alicia Thompson, I have Chelsea Kurto, and I have um Ashley Poston coming up. So I'm very excited about all of those. Um, Alicia Thompson. So she wrote Love and the Time of Serial Killers, uh, The Art of Catching Feelings, which I've read, not never been shipped. That one is my favorite. I don't know why I suddenly blinked on the title. I don't know, but that's my favorite of hers currently. Um, and then she does have a couple others that of course I'm blanking right now, but they're really good. And they, yeah, her writing is nice too. Um, so anyway, definitely excited to see her. Whenever I saw those tickets pop up, I bought some so quick. So quick. Uh so yeah, I have a lot of really good author events coming up this summer, and I like I know that I am lucky that somehow I got all of these really amazing authors to stop by. Uh, speaking of authors, I get to tell you about some that I did get to see because of course I've already been to a couple author events. I've had them recently, so I have to fill you in. Um, okay, first up was Chloe Lisa and Alexa Martin was her in conversation partner, and that one was so fun. Um, and that was a book tour stop for her latest release, which is called Happy Ending. And I really think that you would like it if you enjoyed Funny Story by Emily Henry, because the plots, they are not the exact same by any means, but they just kind of sound a little bit similar. So if you did enjoy Funny Story, I think that this is probably going to have the same kind of overall like feeling that you got from that book. So I think it's definitely worth a try. And I want to read it. Hopefully, hopefully soon. Hopefully soon. But I actually won a pair of like beaded heart sunglasses that Alexa Martin made uh for being a Sarah Adams super fan. But I did win them actually from a game that Alexa came up with. So she would read the plot of like a popular romance novel, I know don't threaten me with a good time. And if you guessed it right, then you got a pair of the glasses. And she only did like three or four rounds. Normally, yeah, this was a little bit smaller room at the event, so you could actually like hear people, so you could like just shout it out. Um, and so I was freaking out because it took me a few seconds longer than I would have liked. I was like, someone's gonna guess it, someone's gonna guess it. Someone's gonna guess it. And then they did not. Uh, and I I guessed it was the cheat sheet, and the cheat sheet is one of my favorites. It is one of my favorites. And anyway, I did guess the plot of that correctly, and so I got the glasses, which was fantastic and a true, a true moment for a romance reader. Because as soon as she said they were popular, I thought, oh no, I don't know that I'm gonna get these because sometimes I'll read popular ones, but sometimes I won't. So like if this is like an Emily Henry book, I haven't read her whole backlist. You know, there are a lot of popular authors that I have not read yet. So I was really thinking my chances were gonna be slim. And of course, the first one was Rebel Blue, and she said Emmy, and I was like, what book is Emmy? I my mind just went completely blank. Duh, Donna Dusted, but it's fine. I got the glasses in the end. Uh, because of course it was for Sarah Adams. Anyway, um, in general, just author events are so fun. We played that game, we got to hear about Chloe's writing process. Alexa always asks really great questions, and it's fun to hear them go back and forth. Um, and we got pictures in the end, and of course, the signed book. You get to walk away with the signed book. So author signings are really cool. If you do have any in your area, I would highly recommend them. As I always say, you know, I end up making new friends, whether that's in line or the people sitting next to me. And then I have the best time getting to listen to authors that I admire and just hearing about their process and their book and getting to celebrate them a little. So that is really fun. Again, I met another author and I got to see Emma St. Clair. You know, if you've been listening to these, that I have been reading through the Appy series, and Emma St. Clair is one of the authors, and I got to meet her. I I don't I don't know why. And and bonus, it was at my favorite bookstore. So it just so happened to be at my favorite bookstore. So I got an excuse to drive there to see her, and to no one's surprise, she was just the nicest human ever. And now I officially have two signed books in the Happy series and a lot of stickers and magnets. And of course, I have one of her um other books as well, and I can't wait to read the rest of them. And it was so much fun, and it was the best day. Uh, me and my friend went and we just had the best day. We went to several um local indie bookstores where this was located. There are a couple like right around there, so we could kind of do our own little mini like indie bookstore crawl, and that uh was the best experience. So it was definitely a cloud nine moment for sure, and she ended up talking to us for like 10 minutes, and yeah, oh the other one of the other bookstores that we went to did not realize you can tell that means we are book people, but uh not not necessarily record people because it was national record day. So the line was at the door because everyone was in line for the vinyls. But luckily at that bookstore we could duck around everyone to get to the books, and they all looked at us like, What are you doing? It's like we're going to the books, of course. But anyway, yeah, it it was a whole thing. So apparently maybe avoid the bookstore on National Record Day, uh, because it was kind of insane. But like I said, me and my friend, we got to walk around. Oh, and then we also got gelato too, because you know, while we were there, we just we went all out. And like I said, there were a couple more bookstores that we got to walk to and like a vintage shore. So anyway, we had a lot of fun and it was a fantastic day overall. Um, and of course, now at the time of recording, indie bookstore day has passed, but don't forget that just because it's not indie bookstore day does not mean that you can't support your local indie. I love indie bookstores so much. Uh, most of the book clubs that I go to are at indie bookstores. I try to shop indie bookstores as much as I can. Also, don't forget if you don't have any indie bookstores near you, you can still support them on things like bookshop.org, which is why a majority of the books that I link are always from bookshop.org because you can support local bookstores that way and proceeds go to them. Also, uh, don't forget about Libro FM if you like audiobooks, because you can buy audiobooks and a portion goes to a local bookstore of your choice. So don't forget, you can still support them other ways. You don't have to buy the physical book in their store and or going to their book clubs, going to their events, reposting their stuff on social media, all of that helps. And yeah, I tend to do all of those things. So uh just throwing that out there. Those are some ideas. I will link bookshop.org and labor of them as well. So that way, just a reminder if you want to check those things out and support your local indie because they are doing the most. They always come up with the best events, they have the best craft nights, they just they put so much love and heart and effort in it. And I fully take advantage and go to as many things as I can there. And I try to buy as many books as I can from indie bookstores. Doesn't always happen because I'm not close, I'm not close to anything as far as a bookstore. I don't really have a lot of bookstores that are actually close to me. Um, I have a couple libraries, but I'm just mainly used to driving if yeah, I want to go to an indie. So things like bookshop.org and Libra FM are my best friend. Oh, I did forget to say, so technically, I'm not including them in the recap because I said I am not specifically going to talk about books from authors that I am interviewing, but I did just want to point out um that soon I normally don't do this, but okay, I am currently editing an episode with Leah Bruner and Katie Bailey, and their newest book, Rival Season, I got to read an ARC early. It is incredible. It is incredible. Rookie season is book one, which you know I loved, and Rival Season is book two, and it was so good. I finished it so quick, and it was amazing. Then also, um, I found a new to me author. So I I mean, I'm really happy whenever publishers send me authors that I had heard of, but I just hadn't read their books yet. And so I um got sent the suggestion for Georgia Stone, and I read her first book, The Friendship Fling, and then I did read The Arc Early of the Roommate Rule. And again, thank you to Harper Collins for that. But also, I found a new to me author that I absolutely loved. Her books were devastating in the most beautiful way. There was so much emotion, there was so much character development. They were just fantastic. And I feel like if you like Jessica Joyce, um if you like angsty and depth and emotion in your books, but also a really strong romance plot, I think that these are perfect for you. I feel like these are the kind of books that, well, I mean, this never happens to me, to be honest. I'm not super picky as a reviewer, but I'm not. I feel like because I've read a lot, I can, like, I know what I like and I know what I don't like. And the last like four books I've read were five-star reads, which never happens to me sequentially, like ever lately. And two of those were Georgia Stone, and she is just a new auto-byauthor. I loved her books. I think they're so incredibly well written, and I um will definitely be annoying about them again in the future. So no, I'm really excited to talk to her. So anyway, um just wanted to shout those, those couple books out. Again, I'll have them linked in the show notes, but they just really, really stood out to me in addition to all the other books that I am reading right now. So I just wanted to kind of call those out super quick. But focusing on the reading recap for today, up first, uh, we have To the Lighthouse by Virginia Wolf. So this is literary fiction. This was for my last month's literary fiction book club, and I liked it, and I am going to talk to you about it a little bit more. So, reading this book did make me want to try some of Virginia's other works at some point, and overall, I really enjoyed just the kind of like flow and pacing uh that happened for most of the book. The ending was kind of chaotic, and I definitely found it harder to keep up. Uh, so just keep that in mind. And there were parts that were kind of hard to keep up with. So it's like it would all be making sense, you would be getting the hang of it, and then something would just throw you off. This story is told in third-person omniscient, and it it's just wild how she can switch between like the male and female characters kind of inner thoughts and feelings uh within almost the same breath.

unknown

It was wild.

Grumpy Darling by Alexandra Moody

Wild Darling by Alexandra Moody

How to Not Die Alone by Logan Ury

Currently Reading

Book Haul

SPEAKER_00

And this is very stream of consciousness, so just keep that in mind. Um, and to the point, it this is what I mean by it was kind of hard to follow in some parts, because there were several times where she would not say like a character name whenever they first started speaking. So you would think that you were thinking of something from the other character, but then at the end she'd be like, oh no, no, no, it's this character. And then you'd really have to like focus to keep up and try to tell, wait, is that does that fit within that character's personality? Is that that character? Are we following this character? Are we kind of following another character? I don't know. It was a little bit difficult to keep up with um at certain points if you're not really paying attention. So this is definitely a book that you don't want to read too fast. You want to read it slow and just be able to pay attention to all of those little details to kind of really get it. Um, obviously, it had a lot of lines that were absolute standouts. And I listened to most of this on audiobook, and I did have to rewind my audiobook a few times to just re-listen to some sections, like I said, so I could just kind of comprehend her pace and structure. Um, but I overall really enjoyed my listening experience. And also something that we kind of talked about in our book club meeting was that the title of the book, you know, to the lighthouse, and I pointed out, which again, just keep in mind, I am no lip fig expert, and I could be totally off. But for me, uh the lighthouse represented happiness, and I feel like all the characters were constantly using their proximity or lack of it or like orientation to the lighthouse, and they were kind of orienting themselves through the lighthouse and kind of using it almost as like a litmus test uh the whole time for me. So it just kind of seemed like every time something bad would happen, a character like wouldn't be in view of the lighthouse or they couldn't visit the lighthouse that day, and that anything good um was kind of the opposite of that. And it was always a reference following shortly after to them viewing or visiting the lighthouse. So I took that as the symbolism of the lighthouse, but again, not a litfic expert. Try my best here. We talked about it in book club. Um, and that's the great thing, is that we can talk about it, and maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm right, who knows? But anyway, um, overall, I would recommend it if you are in a place where you can read it slowly and really digest it and know that you are going to have to reread some sections. Um, so this is definitely one that's a little bit more on the challenging side. It's not just a light, leisurely read. But the audiobook narrator had a really great flow, and I I feel like that made my reading experience more enjoyable and it was easier to follow because of her natural cadence. I felt like that ended up helping me a lot, and I could kind of keep up with what was going on from her kind of verbal cues. Okay, next up we have contemporary. No, actually, this is uh young adult romance, and this is Grumpy Darling by Alexandria Moody. You know that I read Rival Darling, which was book one. Grumpy Darling is book two in the Darling Devil series, and this, oh, I said it was young adult, but it is closed door. Um, and I I liked it. I really liked it. So this was an absolutely enjoyable reading experience. But the second book in the series, Grumpy Darling, it didn't have the same wow factor for me as book one, Rival Darling. Rival Darling just had something. I can't put my finger on it, but it had an extra special something. And this one was still really good. Um, and the series overall is very addicting, and I read this book fast, so it's not as if I had to like slog through it or anything like that. But it didn't have the same kind of zing that the first one had. So this is what the story is about. Grayson and Paige have been friends forever, and Grayson may be a little bit in love with Paige, but he is completely stuck in the friend zone, and she decides that it is her mission to get her first kiss, and so she recruits none other than the Grumpy Goalie himself, Grayson Darling, to help her out. Uh, but it's kind of hard for him to help her when he's obviously the one that wants to kiss her. So to find out what's gonna happen with all of that, you're just gonna, you're gonna have to read it. You're gonna have to get the fucking read it. Um, again, I thought it was adorable. It was fun. It was Alexandria Moody, her writing is just great. I feel like this is perfect. The series is perfect for fans of Lynn Painter or honestly, even not YA. I feel like if you like the Appy series, I feel if you like the DC Eagles or Katie Bailey's books, I do think you would also like Alexandria Moody. Like I said, these are young adults, um, but they don't feel young, but yet they are closed door, they're appropriate, so younger readers could read them. I don't know how they do that, but they kind of balance that line really well uh to where I think just a wide variety of readers would enjoy this series. So don't take the fact that it's YA as, you know, a sign that you shouldn't read it. I thought it was great. So again, liked it, wasn't my favorite in the series, but still would recommend reading overall, which brings me into the third book in the series. Yes, I am ridiculous. I finished that three book series. I'm hoping that there's gonna be a fourth book because this follows the darling brothers, but they have a sister and they constantly talk about how she's just going through like ice skating. She does ice skating, and so she's going through figure skating partners, trying to find her pairs partner, and I think that that's gonna be a book. So I'm hoping that that means that we're gonna get four books, but it hasn't been confirmed to my knowledge yet. Uh, but that is my guess, if I were gonna guess. So that's exciting. Yeah, I already read Wild Darling. And Wild Darling is Parker's book. If you're following along in the series, I loved it. And this is young adult romance um as well, and it is also closed door. What a great third book. This had this had the zing. It had the zing that I was slightly missing from book two. And you know that I love friends to lovers, so I don't know why book two fell just a smidge flat, but it all came back around in book three, because it was so great. And book three is like the YA version of Face Off by Chelsea Curto a little bit because they're both hockey players. Well, she does not start out as a hockey player, but okay, okay, okay. I'm getting I'm getting a little bit ahead of myself. Okay, it's not really a spoiler, but there's a hockey coach from a camp from a long time ago that Parker went to when he was younger that was this like all-star hockey camp from an all-star hockey player turned coach. And that coach comes back in his life. Yeah, there we go. That coach comes back in his life for his senior year. So Parker is trying to come to terms with the fact that he doesn't have his brothers Grayson and Reed by his side because they are off to college. So there is that safety net that he now doesn't have and he has to make a name for himself, and he wants to be captain of the hockey team to follow in Reed's footsteps. But, you know, it's it's hard because he's trying to make his own name now without his brothers. So he has that to deal with. Um, this hockey coach that he didn't have make a good first impression with comes back into his life. And that hockey coach has a daughter named McKenzie who is a goalie, was a goalie. She hasn't been playing hockey for a while. There's a reason for that. I'm trying to be super vague on purpose. This is really hard. Um, and she hasn't been playing hockey, has always loved the sport. Um, it's definitely missing it. And she moves to Parker's school. So now that they're at the same school, um, things get a little bit awkward. He's like, I have got to stay away from her. And of course, there is a goalie spot that needs to be filled, and she is just the only one that's gonna be able to fill it. So he gets to the point of kind of training her and helping her, and it's just they have a very tumultuous relationship at first. They are not friends at all. Um, and it's kind of hilarious because you hear their backstory in the beginning, and so you know kind of where the contention starts. And then the book really begins, and now they're meeting each other years later, back again at the same high school at the same time. So, anyway, that's really all I can tell you without spoiling it. I'm trying not to spoil that, but I loved Wild Darling. It was fantastic. I laughed so much. The banter is so great. Like I said, Alexandria Moody's writing, fantastic. If you are looking for a series that is just going to grab you from page one and is a joy to read and just a break from the world and the thing that you're really needing right now, do this. Um, I've had people ask me for recommendations that are in a reading slump. This is almost always one that I'm going to give them for sure. Uh, especially if I don't know their spice preferences, because these are closed door and they're young adults. So just keep that in mind. They are so good. You need to check them out. You need to read them. So, anyway, that is the Darling Devil series. I have talked about that long enough for sure. Next up, now I'm actually gonna tell you about um two books that I am in the middle of reading. Well, actually, I'm in the middle of reading three books, but I'm going to specifically kind of talk a little bit. No, I'm in the middle of four. Oopsies. Okay, I'm in the middle of four books right now. So I'm gonna talk about what I'm currently reading, but I'm almost done with several of them, so I can kind of give you pretty much a synopsis and tell you about them. So another book that I have read, and I'm honestly, I'm not sure if I'm gonna keep this in or if I'm gonna edit this out. I don't really talk about nonfiction books, and I didn't even want to log this on my Goodreads, to be completely honest, but I do feel like there were some helpful points and parts to it, um, and it was helpful in general, so I'm gonna go ahead and talk about this, but I don't know. I don't know. Okay. So the title of this one is kind of jarring, and again, it's nonfiction, which is not my normal MO. Um, I put okay, so first, the author. I heard about her on a podcast. Actually, I found her first on like a podcast teaser on Instagram. Then I listened to the podcast episode, and I thought her overall advice and demeanor was pretty sound. Um, and a lot of the things that she roots are based in logic and studies and psychology and different things like that. So it felt a little bit more like science-based. Um, but also she is a coach, so there's that too. Anywho, um, I really enjoyed hearing what she had to say, and they kept talking about her books, so I was like, okay, but I felt the need to like again, I don't really read nonfiction that often. So I didn't want to purchase the book. I wanted to get it through my library. Uh, so I did. I got it through Libby. It was not available in my hoop loss, so I did put a Libby hold on it. I completely forgot that I put a Libby hold on it until it became available because it always happens at the worst possible time when I have other reading deadlines. But wah-bam, this became available. So I decided to start reading it. Um, and it is called How to Not Die Alone by Logan Yuri. And like I said, the title is kind of jarring. I know, I know it sounds like, wow, that's really depressing. What a great book. Thanks for recommending that. No, no, no, no. I'm not going to give a rating to that because I don't rate nonfiction. I I don't think that's fair. I don't know. I can't, can't really rate nonfiction. Um, but yeah, so her book, How to Not Die Alone, is from Logan Uri. And if you haven't heard of her, like I said, she's a dating coach. She also um works on the data team at Hinge, and so she knows a lot about that algorithm. So she does have a whole section where she talks about dating apps in particular. But there are sections um of this book that apply to you whether you are single or whether you are in a relationship. So it's not necessarily just for people that are single. Um, based on her tips, it seems like it would be helpful for people that are also in a relationship. So just pointing that out. But she not only talks about like dating apps and how to, again, from her experience at Hinge and like how to um oh gosh, I don't I I'm not really familiar with like dating app stuff, so I'm probably gonna say all the wrong terms. But she basically um talks through like how to make your profile optimized and blah blah blah and like what things are good, but mainly the reason um that I write it is I do like to hear kind of some of the psychology behind things, and she always backs her findings in research and case studies and uh client, you know, experiences and stuff. And I thought a lot of the things that she said were really interesting. Um, she doesn't believe in a spark, and there's a lot of reasons why. And she had a really good point about, you know, whenever you get done with the date to think about, like ask these specific questions to yourself of how the person makes you feel and all of that kind of stuff, and what is a deal breaker versus just um a pet peeve and how to not let like pet peeves o overshadow um something into being a deal breaker and you just being like super picky. So anyway, I thought it was helpful um just to kind of hear some of the stuff from like a zoomed out lens. But like I said, there is some stuff if you were in a relationship that kind of talks about like when you should break up with someone and what was the other things I kind of tuned out more during those sections. Um it was when when to break up with someone, uh, how to break up with someone, what was the other thing? Um, I think it was just oh, like evaluating your relationship and seeing if it's where you want to be and what you want to stay in, and like just some of the different uh pieces and parts. Oh, and making everything clear whenever you like move on to the next stage um of the relationship and constantly checking in on your communication. And of course, I went into the attachment styles and attachment theory and all that stuff. And I have a communications minor, so I am very aware of attachment theory and the love languages and all that jazz. So that that was like one of the classes I took was like all that kind of stuff. So anyway, uh it was just a nice refresher on some of that. Uh, I listened to the audiobook. There is no way that I would have read the entire book. Of course, as with anyone, I feel like to an extent with nonfiction, you should always take everything a little bit with a grain of salt and just kind of listen and pick out the things that are important. And as many nonfiction books, they are definitely repetitive. They sum up key points because they want to, you know, get to that reader that is reading things in like small little chunks and may not be reading it like back to back. So similar to most nonfiction books, I would say it was the same, but I thought it was a decent refresher on communication things that I already knew. And yeah, it I mean, I think it was somewhat helpful. So if you would like to get it on Libby or something like that, I would suggest putting a hold on it on Libby and see what you think. Um, but yeah, not my normal MO. So it's a little bit harder for me to talk about it because I was like, hmm. And yeah, I again not not my normal book. Um, I normally would not read like a dating book, I guess you could call it. Or I don't like that section of is it self-help? Is it nonfiction? It's non-fiction, but is it technically self-help? I don't know. I have read um there was an author, I am blanking, so I'm gonna have to link him down below. But his, oh, it was crumbs, breadcrumbs, something about breadcrumbs. And he turned the whole like breadcrumbing thing into a positive and talked about like how to use breadcrumbs to basically show the other person that you care about them, like throughout the longevity of your relationship and how to stay connected to the person uh that you're in a relationship with. And I thought that that one was really good. So every once in a while I will listen to something like that, but it's not my normal, not my normal thing, but that one was really good. I am now going to have to Yeah, I'm gonna have to find that and I will link it down in the show notes the exact name. Uh, but it was all about bread crumbing, but in a positive way, and that one was really helpful. Again, sometimes like it's stuff you already know, but it just helps to hear it at like a 30,000-foot view and from someone that has like no emotional stakes in the matter. So yeah. Anyway, that is it for my nonfiction. Okay, so here's what I'm currently reading. I'm not almost done. I can't remember how much I have left of the audiobook. Um, hold on. I will check for you and I can tell you on hoopla. So I was listening to that one on Libby, but then on hoopla, I am listening to It's Mary Kabika, which I love her. Local Woman Missing is my favorite from her. But I have read like sorry, not sorry, and I feel like I've read another one. But I'm reading her latest release, It's Not Her. I'm listening to that on audiobook, and I am about 30% into this book. And I had to keep stopping because it is a little bit gory and it kept coming back. Like there's something that happens, and the characters are reasonably traumatized, and they keep coming back to that section. And so I can't, I'm squeamish. I can't read it while I'm eating lunch. So I and I'm listening to it. Um, so yeah, it's been a little bit slow going. So I'm only 30% in, but I am liking it so far. It's piquing my interest, and a lot of thrillers are not. And as much as I was liking Dear Debbie, I kind of got bored, and so I stopped Deer Debbie for the moment. Uh, so I need to get back to that eventually. But this one was keeping my attention, so I need to get that all figured out and eventually finish the thriller so I can finally tell you about the thriller. I am also reading Brawler by Lauren Groff. Um, I have book club coming up, so I need to get on that one fast. I need to be way farther than I am, but I kind of procrastinated it because I just got overwhelmed um with life and prepping for Get Lit and all that other stuff and writing. I've been amping up the writing, so yeah, the reading has not been there as much. So I do need to bump up Brawler um like now. And then so that's for Literary Fiction Book Club. And then the other book that I am reading um is podcast research, and this is Love Me Through the Grief by JS Taswell, because I simply must be reading a romance novel at all times, duh. And on that one, uh, I think I'm on almost on page 150 of I believe like 280. So I'm definitely uh working, working my way through that one. And again, it is romance. It is sad. I mean, the title is Love Me Through the Greed. So as you can tell, it's not, it's not gonna be Roses and Daisies and Sunshine. So um, yeah, I am about a hundred, about 150 pages in on that. So I'm reading all those books at the same time. Do I ever recommend actually doing this? No, but my Libby hold came up, so that's why I started reading the nonfiction. And then on hoopla, I wanted a book to listen to, so that's why I started the thriller. And then my book club was coming up, so that's why I was reading lipfic. And then I knew I had podcast research, so I'm trying to keep going with podcast research because I am a menace to myself, and I gave myself more homework by accepting another author. That did I have time for that? I don't know that I did, but I did. I did it, so now I have more arcs to read. So yeah, just when I was finally kind of getting out of my book homework and I was like, yes, I'm gonna be able to read some of the mini books I bought recently. No, that was very cute. No. Uh I will try to stop being a menace to myself, but it's really hard when it's a book that you want to read, that is an author, that you want to talk to, and then they send it your way. It's like impossible to say no, but then your calendar is crazy and you don't have time, and you're trying to write and you're trying to read, and it's a lot. So yeah, I am overwhelmed with book clubs. I am overwhelmed with book homework. So I'm trying to make a dent in my reading. So literally, as soon as I get done recording this podcast, I am going to go sit my butt on the couch and I am going to read and try to make more progress. But I will say I got one of those Kindle um clicker things and the like standing arm, and it is life-changing. I can fly through books even faster now. Not that my goal is to fly through books, but like when I have a deadline, I feel like with arcs, because it it depends. Like sometimes I will get sent to physical arc. Sometimes I have an earc on my Kindle. It just depends um what the book is, who the publisher is, who the author is. You know, like they may not have physical copies. It may be an indie author that has an e-arc for me. So they send it to me that way. So, you know, could be either or physical or e arc. I felt like anytime I had something on my Kindle, I don't know why. I know most people can read faster on their Kindle, but I felt like I was slower. And then I got the clicker and now I feel like, okay, okay, I can see what they're talking about because I can be, I can like be eating a snack or drinking my water or, you know, doing something, and I don't have to constantly set the Kindle down when I can't like touch the screen to go to the next page. I can just click the remote with one hand and then I can like drink my water with the other hand, which means that I can carve out more time for reading, which means that I can get through a book quicker. I don't know that my actual pace or speed is that much quicker per se. I read about a page a minute. So, you know, like that's not horrible, but that's not like super speed. So I definitely just have to carve out uh specific reading time. So all that to say, those are really long-winded way to say those are the books that I am currently reading. I am currently reading Brawler by Lauren Groff, uh, It's Not Her by Mary Kubica. I hope I'm saying that right. I am also reading Love Me Through the Grief by J.S. Taswell. And there's one more. What was it? No? That's it. Yeah, that's it. Because I just finished um How to Not Die Alone. Such a happy one. So anyway, that is what I'm reading right now. Um, you know, I can tell you a couple of the books that I've got recently if you are interested. So again, this sounds like a lot, but my birthday just happened, and so friends and family just know for any major holiday that I love books. So they will get me books. And half the time they will ask me and sometimes they won't. So sometimes I get recommendations of what they think that I would like, and then sometimes they'll ask me and I get books that I wanted. So either way, it's a win-win for me. Okay, so my friend, um, she actually recently, so I already had this book, uh, but I picked it for our book club, like I was saying, and she said it was really good, so I need to actually read it. Um, another book club, I know, I know. And anyway, it is uh dating after the end of the world. I think dating by the no, dating after the end of the world, I'm pretty sure I said that right. Um, and it is by Geneva Rose. I love Geneva Rose, and she said it was really, really good. So now I totally have to read it. I already had the book, so I just gotta read it. Um, but yeah, she was like, you suggested it, and I've read it before you. I was like, I know, I know. Um, and also on that note, uh, our book club, The Book Club Through the Library, their theme is going to be plot twist for this next one. So we will be bringing books that have crazy plot twists, and I know which two I'm bringing. Shocker, their thrillers. Uh, I mean, I could have brought a K-Synko book, to be honest. Yeah, definitely could have brought a K-Singo book, but I decided to go with two thrillers, and I think I'm gonna bring Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney. If you can guess that plot twist, then you win. I kind of think that that plot twist is like unguessable. I really think it's unguessable. I just think it's not that you can't guess it based on the clues that she gave you. It's just that it's so far off the wall that I just don't know how anyone would guess that. So if anyone has guessed that, please let me know. Because you win. I feel like I can guess uh the plot twist, or at least one of the smaller plot twists, or the killer or whoever, and thrillers, you know, maybe about like 80% of the time, but this one threw me for a loop. So Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney is my first rec. And then also for plot twist, I am doing uh Now You Owe Me by Aaliyah Wright. And I had Aaliyah on earlier, maybe it was technically last year. Time is irrelevant. I can't remember when I had her on. Um, but wow, when I read that one, again, that book is very, very dark. Um, it is a thriller, it has a lot of trigger warnings. Um, it is very dark because it's about two twin serial killers and the fur it's split up into three parts. And part one is from the perspective of those serial killers and how they came to be. So there is a lot. Obviously, they have suffered a lot of different forms of abuse and they have abused others uh to get to where they are today as serial killers. So extremely, extremely dark. But if you can get past part one, you're in the clear, and it's I'm not gonna tell you part two and part three, but it switches up and the plot twist, the plot twist, oh my gosh. I was kind of there for a little bit of it, and I was like, I bet blah, blah, blah. That's what I always do. I always think like, I bet blank, blank, blank. And then that ends up being normally what happens. But it was kind of that, but not. It was kind of sort of that, but also kind of not. And it just threw me and I went, what? Because there's a certain aspect to it where it was like, yeah, I was maybe like half right, kind of, but the real thing that tripped you up was say my jaw dropped as I was reading it. Wild, wild. So those are my two um two recs for plot. Twist. But anyway, sorry. Got off on that whole tangent. I normally am not, I guess I am when to get off on tangents on this, but I'm normally pretty focused on one thing. I don't typically um go off on tangents, but I had to talk about book clubs. Anyway, the other the books that I have bought recently. So again, it's been my birthday month. I've gotten gifts and stuff like that. And I have gone to a lot of local bookstores. I've had a lot of um author signings. So I've been in bookstores, I've been in used bookstores, I've been in, you know, um chain bookstores, all that kind of stuff. And yeah, so the prices vary for all of the books. It's not as if I bought um a million, but it kind of feels like a lot. So anyway, books that I have bought recently. I am literally glancing at my bookshelf with which also I have cabinets. So it goes up to the wall uh or up to the wall, up to the ceiling, but I have cabinets that my dad helped me take off the doors for so I could have more bookshelf space. So I'm literally looking down at my TBR shelf uh as we speak. And some books that I got was the newest um to Haramoffy. I still have like 37 pages in book one, but now I can immediately go into book two. And this one is called Release Me. So it is book two in that spinoff series from Shatter Me. Gonna be amazing. I love her writing. She is a master, an absolute master. She can have a super dystopian book, but then she balances so much humor and levity, and the found family is just immaculate. So anyway, love her writing. There's always still like underlying themes because it is very dystopian. Okay, uh, then I also got the Emma St. Clair books. Um, I got Runaway Bride and Prejudice, I think is what it's called. Um the next, okay, so I just finished A Groom of One's Own not that long ago, which was book three. And then book four is a Jenny Proctor book, and I'm blanking on what it's called. And then book five is the one I just mentioned by Emma St. Clair. So I have that one. That was the one I got. And then Happy Ending by Chloe Lisa, and I am excited to read that one. I'm a sign copy. Um, also, I got this ain't our first rodeo. Hold on, let me go gather the book so I can see the author's names. Here we go. So uh first up, I got Lessons and Falling by Christy Schilling, and I was able to get this in my local bookstore. I love Christy, she is amazing. Um, I do have her debut novel, Wish I Weren't Here, on my Kindle that I've yet to read. Um, but Lessons and Falling, it has teachers, so of course I love it. And so I cannot wait to read that. And I was able to get a signed copy that the indie bookstore had, so I was elated to find her book. And then my friend, um, so she gave me release me. She gave me Unbound by Peyton Corinne. Uh, we know I've already read an arc, but like needed a physical copy. And then, which I have, I have requested Undone on NetGalais, so we'll see if I get it. I haven't heard back yet, so I think they're waiting to reject me, but we'll see. You never know sometimes. They get busy. They probably had a lot of requests. Then she also thought I would like uh Better Than Revenge by Casey West, and they have a podcast, and it's really sweet because I think she said that uh the her grandma has Alzheimer's, and so she is recording a podcast uh about her memories in life to like help her remember. So it sounded really sweet. And then I have Heart Check by Emily Charlotte, hockey romance, not surprising. Um it looked cute and I'd seen the cover. So then, of course, I got BK Borison's latest and now back to you. I have read First Time Caller, and this is book two. So it's and now back to you. Uh, they are all all the books are loosely based on Noor Efron films. I love Noor Ephron, so gonna definitely read this. Um, and it has Meteorologist, so there's that. I also have this ain't our first rodeo. I was able to get a uh book plate, a copy with a signed book plate on it, which was so cool. The cover is absolutely stunning. And this is by Liera Timani. I believe I'm pronouncing her name correctly, um, but I will, again, I will have everything linked in the show notes. So if my pronunciation fails me on any of these authors' names, uh it will be linked down in the show notes to help you out if you are also interested in these books. Then I got still into you. I had one of my local indies order this for me. And I got still into you by Erin Connor. I have heard everyone whose book recommendations I really trust, who is very picky, who are very difficult reviewers, they have loved this book. Um, and I think she he is a musician, and I'm pretty sure she, yeah, she's a journalist. Yes. She's a blog. So she's a blogger slash journalist slash media personnel. And anyway, it sounds so good. And everyone said it was amazing, and it had a lot of um just character development. And I don't know, I think they said it was kind of more along the lines of again, like the Jessica Joyce and Georgia Stone, and like those kinds of books, which I I just love romance with substance. And this I think is going to be romance with substance. So I appreciate that. Um, not that all romances don't have substance in their own way, but I do like a lot of character development, emotional depth, slow burn, force proximity, like all that kind of stuff is my favorite. Um, but I do think there is something, honestly, to be learned in almost every romance, uh, from seeing things from other people's perspective, seeing how they handle conflict. Uh, there are just so many things that I feel like you can unintentionally pick up from a romance novel, even if it seems like just a fluffy fun ride, it is so helpful in just your overall understanding of how we behave and interact in relationships as humans, not only with romantic relationships, but also with friends and family, and how all of our perspectives, our backgrounds, um, our past experiences kind of give us, you know, the armor that we go into a relationship with. But anyway, not trying to go that deep, but I also got uh Meet Me Under the Lights by Cassie Miller, and this is a baseball romance, and it says this summer they're swinging for the fences, and it looks very cute. Um, yeah, if you have any, again, I'm I don't only read sports romance, but if you have any good sports romance recs that are maybe in a sport that I don't feature as much, I would love those. I I am always trying to find new ones, and it's just hard, you know, like you know what's in the market. Like I could probably find anything, but I was drawn to those books um for a reason. So those are the books that I've gotten recently that I cannot wait to read. So that was a lot of books thrown at you. I know, because they're on my TBR, so I know, I am aware. Um, I still have to read like Soul Searching by Lila Sage, duh. I'm kind of saving that one. But I I have both simultaneously been flying through books, but also uh it's hitting summertime, which is like release time, and so authors have just been releasing, releasing, releasing, and I am trying to keep up and I'm obviously failing. I am failing hard. Um, I need to catch up. So, but I'm also writing, which is a lot, and work has also been a lot. So, anywho, um trying to balance everything together, and hopefully I'll get to find more reading time. And I have some really fun author events coming up. I'm very excited for GitLit. Um, and if you ever want to go to GitLit, like you, you definitely need to. It's such a fun experience. Not only does it have authors, um, you get a lot of self-published authors that you get to meet and books that you may not have found any other way. You also, there are bookstores that will have booths there that have popular releases too. So if you're searching for a popular release and you want to support an indie bookstore, Git Lit kind of has everyone in one place. And then there are also a lot of like bookish vendors. Um, I've gotten like bookmarks and Kindle cases, and by Kindle and like bookcases, they are worth it. The one time I went on a plane without my Kindle case, I don't know why I forgot it. I think I was trying to fit so much in my carry-on backpack that I just completely forgot to put my book in a case and it ripped the dust jacket. So there is a reason that they sell those Kindle cases, and they are like padded and zipped and they're really good. They're from a book bow. Yeah. I'll link them also down below. Um, I love their cases, they're the best quality I've found, and they keep my books and my Kindles safe. So it's really cool to go to events like that. Also, check your local bookstores, check your libraries. Libraries are gonna start doing a lot of like summer reading events. Uh so check those. I need to go to my library and check some books out. I haven't been in a second because I've had so much on my physical TBR and I've been going to so many bookstores that I was a little bit booked out, and I didn't want to stress myself out by having more like library books with deadlines. I don't want more books with deadlines is the key to fit all of the other book club books. Uh the next book club book. Do I know any of them? Actually, again, I don't know that I know. I do know the next book for Litvik Book Club. Hold on, I gotta look it up. We really uh go all over the gamut, which is great. Uh next for book club, I just looked it up, is Isa's Ballad by Magda Sabel. And she is a Hungarian author. And so this is a translated book. Um, I went to again a local bookstore this weekend for Andy Bookstore Day. Uh, me and my friend went, and the cool thing was at the coffee shop next door they had like a kind of little free library of take a book, leave a book, but they had so many books that they were like, don't leave a book, just take the books. Uh, we need to clear this out a little bit. And there was a girl that was standing right next to me, and she was dropping off The Nightingale by Kristen Hanna. So I got a free copy of The Nightingale by Kristen Hanna. I do have this on Hoopla where I could access it audiobook, but it was cool to be able to get that version. I have not read Kristen Hanna yet. Historical fiction is not normally my genre, but the way that everyone has just been gushing over her and completely loves her makes me want to try. You know, sometimes I want to read a popular book, sometimes not so much, but like I have Dungeon Crawler Carl on my recommendation on my TBR list. I bought a copy of that, and now I have the Nightingale and um I have Theo of Golden. So like I do, I do have some books that are not just romance on my TBR um that are swirling around the Book of Sphere. And it's funny, because when I talk to people that are so not in the book of sphere, and then they're asking me for book recommendations. Sometimes I can recommend a book like that, and they're like, Don't you crawler Carl, I've never heard of that. And I was like, Well, based on what you said you wanted, that would actually fit you perfectly. So, you know, sometimes I can wreck a book even if I hadn't read it, and I know kind of exactly what all of these books are about. But anywho, so that was a really long tangent. Um, this was kind of a long episode when I only had a couple books. Thanks for listening to Where I Left Off, a bookish podcast. That was it for today, and stay tuned for my next reading recap. You know that I'm always reading books, so it will probably come along sooner than you think. Thank you for being here to listen to me just talk endlessly about all bookish things and author meetups and what I'm reading and what I'm currently reading and all the stuff I just bought and everything. So hopefully your TBRs will be checked off. You'll read great books. I hope that the next book that you read is a five star, and I will talk to you next time.