I've read 110 books this year because I was previously unemployed.

My unemployment has ended!🥳

And I'm too exhausted to read most days. I'll be lucky to get through a book a week🙃

I'm sad, but it's okay. I like my job. I work with really cool people. My bosses are actually decent people. I can get back on my feet because of this. And if it means I can't read as much, that's okay. The trade off is worth it.

I've seen quite a few posts lamenting that others can read so much, feeling defective because they can't. So I want to make visible the transition from one state of being to the other. I'm still going to read as many books as I can. And if it's not as many as before, that's okay. If I only read one book a year, I'm still a reader. It still counts ❤️

ughhhhh i really had to slog through this book. at first it was really interesting and it was especially fascinating to see all the little details of life in india, the hindi words and slang and the little cultural elements that really made the setting so much more believable. and being able to compare my own experiences in delhi with the raw, gritty version in the book was so satisfying. but the more i got through the book the more i realized that if you don’t speak hindi or know about these specific cultural concepts, half the book would just go over your head (unless you have a trusty indian bestie to hold your hand through it, and i’m available lol). it almost feels like it’s written for a very specific audience in mind, one that has similar experiences and knowledge as the author. but other than that, the book was loooong and convoluted, and the plot just spiraled out until it felt like each plot line was just being dragged out to reach the end. also it felt like half the book was just gratuitous violence that didn’t function to drive the plot forward at all - it was just thrown in to give the book this dark gritty feel. it pretty much seemed like all of the characters and plot lines and gritty descriptions weren’t all that fantastic on their own, but they served to contribute to the overall vibe of the book, and not so much to drive the plot forward. all in all, if you feel like you’d get a kick out of reading it, go ahead but be prepared for a lot of googling and monthssss of grinding through it for a pretty unsatisfying conclusion.

All this passive moralising coupled with a total lack of self awareness and refusal to confront her own complicity in these terrible people’s schemes is getting tedious 🥱

So, I’m waltzing into this book, blissfully unaware it’s a sequel to Shadow and Bone, basically the literary equivalent of showing up to a costume party in jeans. PB’s over there in full cosplay, and I’m just blinking at all these familiar names like, “Déjà vu, or did this author just hit copy-paste on the character list?”

So, I’m lurking in the forum, trying to see if anyone else’s spidey-sense is tingling, and I see Shadow and Bone everywhere. At first, I’m like, wow, so many people here also see the similarities. Turns out, not so much. It’s just…literally the same universe. Same crew. I’m sitting there at 22%, connecting dots everyone else probably knew before staring the book.

I’m begging you, someone tell me I’m not the only one who didn't know? Otherwise, I’m just the designated clown at this book party. 😂

"How do I mount?" Girl if you don't fix your language when speaking to this beefy merhorse rancher, he's gonna get the wrong idea

the merhorses are awakening my inner mermaid-obsessed child a little bit… former horse girls, are you feeling the same

as if the worth of a living thing is measured by how useful it is to another living thing.

Yeah that's humans for you

“Magic belongs to the people now.”

honestly i’m kinda living for the analog with magic to capital and how the revolutionists were basically magic-Marxists. spread the wealth Kiela!

Oh no :( a handsome man fixed your roof :( and cooked you food :(

The world building is confusing me here. I’m pretty new to cozy fantasy so idk if I’m just supposed to accept that there’s all these diverse humanoid species living on a tiny (what should be irl) homogenous island or if we’ll get an explanation sooner or later. Judging from the blurb and setup so far, we’re in for a romance element, but like… what IS Larran? Sure he’s a man but is he half horse? Furry? Antlers? Should I be picturing an animated fawn-like thing for Bryn or does she have a human face? Same with Kiela - as far as I know she’s just a blue hued human. Right now my mind is envisioning a my little pony-type cartoon world which is really throwing me off with the war talk (and I KNOW will be a problem if we get into romance territory).