Velvetinepages

Same @ on fable and tictok. 19 ♓️ 🇦🇺 🏳️‍🌈

649 points

0% overlap

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Reading...

Velvetinepages wants to read...

The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Set in 17th-century Puritan Boston, Massachusetts, during the years 1642 to 1649, it tells the story of Hester Prynne, who conceives a daughter through an affair and will not reveal her lover’s identity. The scarlet letter A (for adultery) she has to wear on her clothes, along with her public shaming, is her punishment for her sin and her secrecy. She struggles to create a new life of repentance and dignity. Throughout the book, Hawthorne explores themes of legalism, sin, and guilt.

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Den of Liars (Den of Liars, #1)

Jessica S. Olson

A young thief attempting a daring casino heist during a high-stakes tournament is torn between two warring brothers in Den of Liars, a thrilling YA fantasy romance by acclaimed author Jessica S. Olson.Lola St. James is the world’s best kept secret. When her father’s loss in the Liar’s Dice Tournament–a high-stakes competition where players are forced to gamble with their deepest secrets–made her a target, she was rescued by the Thief, the notorious leader of the Tentacles. But the Thief’s kindness came with a Lola’s heart. In the years that followed, she and the Thief formed a bond like no other, able to feel each other’s emotions because of their shared heart. Now, living under the pseudonym Astra, she is determined to prove herself and become a full-fledged Tentacle. But when a critical heist goes sideways, the only way forward is for Lola to compete in the Liar’s Dice Tournament herself. Lola is confident in her ability to pull off any heist, but the Thief's mysterious brother, the Liar, runs the game and he turns out to be more than she bargained for. As her attraction for him grows and illusions run wild, she will be forced to confront the secrets of her past, the truth of the brothers’ shared history, and the lies she tells herself.

Velvetinepages wants to read...

The Moonstone

Wilkie Collins

Wilkie Collins’s spellbinding tale of romance, theft, and murder inspired a hugely popular genre–the detective mystery. Hinging on the theft of an enormous diamond originally stolen from an Indian shrine, this riveting novel features the innovative Sergeant Cuff, the hilarious house steward Gabriel Betteridge, a lovesick housemaid, and a mysterious band of Indian jugglers.This Modern Library Paperback Classic is set from the definitive 1871 edition.

Velvetinepages wants to read...

Graceless Heart

Isabel Ibañez

A lush, atmospheric and achingly magical standalone adult fantasy romance set in Renaissance Italy from a #1 New York Times bestselling author.In 15th-century Volterra, sculptress Ravenna Maffei enters a competition hosted by a secretive, immortal family who offer an invaluable boon to the victor. Desperate to win so she can save her brother, Ravenna reveals a rare magical talent-a dangerous act in a city where magic is forbidden. Her revelation makes her a target, and she is kidnapped by the Luni family and taken to Florence, a city of breathtaking beauty and cutthroat ambition.There, Ravenna is forced into an impossible task where failure means certain death at the hands of Saturnino dei Luni, the family's enigmatic and merciless heir. But under his cold reserve hides a vulnerability that draws her closer than she ever intended.Meanwhile, Ravenna's forbidden magic does not go unnoticed. The Pope, waging war against Florence, the Medici, and magic itself, has his own interest in her abilities, seeing her as a potential weapon in his ruthless campaign.As alliances shift and war brews on the horizon, Ravenna must navigate the treacherous line between survival and betrayal, between love and duty. With time running out and her every move watched, the choices she makes will determine the fate of not just her own life, but the fragile balance of magic and power that could unravel Florence itself.

Velvetinepages wants to read...

Argylle

Elly Conway

A luxury train speeding towards Moscow and a date with destiny. A CIA plane downed in the jungles of the Golden Triangle. A Nazi hoard entombed in the remote mountains of South-West Poland. A missing treasure, the eighth wonder of the world, lost for seven decades. One Russian magnate's dream of restoring a nation to greatness has set in motion a chain of events which will take the world to the brink of chaos. Only Frances Coffey, the CIA's most legendary spymaster, can prevent it. But to do so, she needs someone special. Enter Argylle, a troubled agent with a tarnished past who may just have the skills to take on one of the most powerful men in the world. If only he can save himself first...

Velvetinepages finished reading and wrote a review...

Velvetinepages

Oct 19, 2025

5.0

Enjoyment: 5.0Quality: 5.0Characters: 5.0Plot: 4.5

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🌝

confused by the ending in a good way Well done charaters

Velvetinepages earned a badge

Horror Starter Pack Vol I

Champion: Finished 5 Side Quest books.

Velvetinepages created a list

Circus/carnival books

by Velvetinepages

15 books

Books set in or around circuses or carnivals

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🃏

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Where Dreams Descend (Kingdom of Cards, #1)

Velvetinepages created a list

Queer fantasy book recs

by Velvetinepages

16 books

Mainly fantasy but some from other genres aswell (I have to pick 3 enojis to be able to make the list

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These Violent Delights (These Violent Delights, #1)

Velvetinepages wants to read...

The Butcher of the Forest

Premee Mohamed

A world-weary woman races against the clock to rescue the children of a wrathful tyrant from a dangerous, otherworldly forest. At the northern edge of a land ruled by a monstrous, foreign tyrant lies the wild forest known as the Elmever. The villagers know better than to let their children go near—once someone goes in, they never come back out. No one knows the strange and terrifying traps of the Elmever better than Veris Thorn, the only person to ever rescue a child from the forest many years ago. When the Tyrant’s two young children go missing, Veris is commanded to enter the forest once more and bring them home safe. If Veris fails, the Tyrant will kill her; if she remains in the forest for longer than a day, she will be trapped forevermore. So Veris will travel deep into the Elmever to face traps, riddles, and monsters at the behest of another monster. One misstep will cost everything.

Velvetinepages DNF'd a book

Red Rising (Red Rising Saga, #1)

Pierce Brown

"I live for the dream that my children will be born free," she says. "That they will be what they like. That they will own the land their father gave them." "I live for you," I say sadly. Eo kisses my cheek. "Then you must live for more." Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class. Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.

Velvetinepages started reading...

I'm Thinking of Ending Things

Iain Reid

Now a Netflix original movie, this deeply scary and intensely unnerving novel follows a couple in the midst of a twisted unraveling of the darkest unease. You will be scared. But you won’t know why…I’m thinking of ending things. Once this thought arrives, it stays. It sticks. It lingers. It’s always there. Always. Jake once said, “Sometimes a thought is closer to truth, to reality, than an action. You can say anything, you can do anything, but you can’t fake a thought.” And here’s what I’m thinking: I don’t want to be here. In this smart and intense literary suspense novel, Iain Reid explores the depths of the human psyche, questioning consciousness, free will, the value of relationships, fear, and the limitations of solitude. Tense, gripping, and atmospheric, I’m Thinking of Ending Things pulls you in from the very first page…and never lets you go.

Velvetinepages wants to read...

A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life

George Saunders

For the last twenty years, George Saunders has been teaching a class on the Russian short story to his MFA students at Syracuse University. In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he shares a version of that class with us, offering some of what he and his students have discovered together over the years. Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, the seven essays in this book are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it’s more relevant than ever in these turbulent times. In his introduction, Saunders writes, “We’re going to enter seven fastidiously constructed scale models of the world, made for a specific purpose that our time maybe doesn’t fully endorse but that these writers accepted implicitly as the aim of art—namely, to ask the big questions, questions like, How are we supposed to be living down here? What were we put here to accomplish? What should we value? What is truth, anyway, and how might we recognize it?” He approaches the stories technically yet accessibly, and through them explains how narrative functions; why we stay immersed in a story and why we resist it; and the bedrock virtues a writer must foster. The process of writing, Saunders reminds us, is a technical craft, but also a way of training oneself to see the world with new openness and curiosity. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain is a deep exploration not just of how great writing works but of how the mind itself works while reading, and of how the reading and writing of stories make genuine connection possible.

Velvetinepages commented on a post from the Pagebound Club forum

Naturalmouse

Researching authors

I'm normally someone who searches for my next book by just looking up queer fantasy and choosing whatever sounds good. Otherwise I just go off someone's recommendation from their list of books they have enjoyed. In the last couple of days there have been a couple of posts on here that are making me think before choosing any books I need to research the authors better. One pointed out an author I had recommended to me was a Zionist and another was discussing AI covers. Personally I struggle to research authors before reading anything they have written as I get bored and overwhelmed. My questions to fellow readers are how much do you look into an author before you choose to read a book? And is there anything you do to make the task of researching your authors fun?

Velvetinepages commented on a post from the Pagebound Club forum

ThatSapphicLady

AI covers

I'm so annoyed right now, I need to rant (with a question at the end). I know we already had the discussion about books being written by/ with AI here, thanks to SamsSapphicReads (go read what the smart people have said there). And I'm sure we can all agree AI = bad, but I need to bring it up again.

So I am looking through new releases and I find a pretty interesting book. I add it here, put it in my plan, and then I look at the cover again and think, is this AI? I'm already screaming internally. Then I search for hints and find a few. I'm pretty sure that it's AI now. I'm disappointed because I don't want to read the book if that's the case. So I look through the author's profile and Instagram and don't find a shout-out to an artist anywhere, but I find other character art that looks like AI... At least the author is real and it's just the cover, but still. I can even understand indie authors that don't want to spend so much money to publish, but seriously? You wouldn't be ok with the people stealing your work for AI, why would you use it?

Now I've wasted like 15 minutes just to make sure I don't support authors that use AI. I am angry!! Why does it have to be like this 😭😭

My question: What do I do now? I've already added the book here. Do I go into the forum and point out that the cover is probably AI even though I'm pretty sure the book isn't? I've also recently written in a forum that I suspect a different book to be AI when I found a lot of things that didn't add up, but I don't have proof, and I'm still thinking about deleting it, because I can't be sure and I don't want to be wrong about something that could potentially be harmful to the author...??

Velvetinepages wants to read...