This is ghost!me, coming to you with an update from February, which has clearly done me in.
And the biggest insult here is that even in my afterlife, I get no rest. Nope. Instead, I’m here, talking to you about books and stuff, when I should be off in some paradise, surrounded by books and coffee and dragons. I’ve been cheated y’all. Not that you’re not lovely, of course, but … my version of paradise includes none of you. That would just be too crowded. You can come visit, though.
I don’t even know where February went. We got an extra day and everything, but somehow it’s gone already? I’m not sure what the heck happened. I’ve been so busy with work and blog and reading that I’ve barely had a chance to eat and sleep, and I’m running completely on coffee fumes, ADHD, and hope at this point. But I’m sure it’ll be fiiiiine. Here’s how my month was:
✦ My Minion turned 9 years old, and my sister turned 13. One is officially a teenager … and the other just acts like it. Their birthdays are actually exactly four years and one day apart (one on the 14th and one on the 15th), so that’s fun. Minion dragged us to Chuck E. Cheese, and I’m pretty sure hubby and I had more fun than she did, but she was just happy that she got the unicorn stuffed animal at the end thanks to our combined efforts, so let’s call it a happy ending.
✦ I survived my first blog tour! Without spontaneously combusting! Which is a plus, because who would clean it up if I did? Pffft. I may do many things as a deceased person, but cleaning up my own ashes isn’t one of them. Even I have to draw a line somewhere. I’m the sort who gets really nervous doing new things, and I’m a really awkward onion and don’t always know what to say to people or what etiquette is, so I get tripped up on things easily. It’s why it’s taken me so long to even start the whole blog tour thing. But I survived! Better yet, you can expect many more blog tours going forward (several coming up this week, in fact).
✦ I secured my first author interview, and I can’t tell you with whom just yet, and it won’t be posted until the end of the year, but I’m freaking excited, guys. Re: me being an awkward onion. Interviewing is something I’ve wanted to do for a while, but I have this weird social anxiety where I think people are going to hate everything I ask, and then the world will open up and swallow me, and it’s probably really hot down there, and full of dirt, and I hate both of those things. So I just … haven’t done it. I’m really trying to branch out and try new things, though, so when it is finally time to post, I hope you love it.
✦ I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but today marks a 59-day post streak for me on the blog, and I have no idea how much longer I can keep this up, but boy am I tickled. My record before this is, like, 7 days? But by the time I hit 15, I was like … well, I should at least see how far I can take this, right? And now, every time I feel lazy and don’t want to write a blog post, it just feels like a shame to waste such a streak. Maybe we should start a betting pool for how long it’ll last. xD
✦ My director tore her meniscus, which is HILARIOUS. You know, because now she looks like me. A few weeks after I ditched my brace and cane, she’s now walking around with an even worse brace than I had. xD I offered her my cane, but then thought better, in case she decides to hit me with it. Does this mean I officially started a trend?!
Books Read This Month: 14
Click titles for my review.
- [1 Feb] Dread Nation (Dread Nation, #1) by Justina Ireland ★★★★★
- [6 Feb] Deathless Divide (Dread Nation, #2) by Justina Ireland ★★★★★
- [8 Feb] The Boy With the Butterfly Mind by Victoria Williamson ★★★★★
- [8 Feb] The Girl Who Lost Her Shadow by Emily Ilett ★★★★
- [8 Feb] Watch Hollow (Watch Hollow, #1) by Gregory Funaro ★★★★★
- [10 Feb] Twist by Sarah Cannon ★★★★★
- [13 Feb] The Unspoken Name (The Serpent Gates, #1) by A.K. Larkwood ★★
- [16 Feb] The Unbinding of Mary Reade by Miriam McNamara ★★
- [16 Feb] White Stag (Permafrost, #1) by Kara Barbieri ★★★
- [16 Feb] Marrow Charm (The Gate Cycle, #1) by Kristin Jacques ★★★★★
- [17 Feb] The Golden Key by Marian Womack ★★★
- [22 Feb] The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell ★★★
- [23 Feb] Black Leviathan by Bernd Perplies ★★★★★
- [24 Feb] The Wonder of Wildflowers by Anna Staniszewski ★★★★
- [25 Feb] Watch Hollow: The Alchemist's Shadow (Watch Hollow, #2) by Gregory Funaro ★★★★★
- [27 Feb] The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller ★★★★
- [29 Feb] Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Valor by Ally Carter ★★★★
- [2 Feb] A Day in the Life of a Book Blogger || Let’s Slay Some Misconceptions
- [9 Feb] Things I Want My Patrons to Know || The Ramblings of a Librarian
- [15 Feb] Minion’s Favorite Books (MG Recommendations from an MG Reader)
- [20 Feb] Superb Black Artists for Black History Month (Ft. Authors AND Singers – Two For One)
- [4 Feb] Tropes I Hate in Books I Love || They Obviously Did It Right
- [11 Feb] Why I Love Problematic Romances (Ft. My Favorite Unhealthy Bookish Pairings)
- [18 Feb] Bookish Worlds I Want To Live In (And Never Leave)
- [25 Feb] Characters I’d Follow on Social Media (Ft. Inappropriate Feeds, I’m Sure)
- [5 Feb] WWW Wednesday (February 5, 2020)
- [12 Feb] WWW Wednesday (February 12, 2020)
- [19 Feb] WWW Wednesday (February 19, 2020)
- [26 Feb] WWW Wednesday (February 26, 2020)
- [7 Feb] First Line 56 || Destiny and Spurned Gods
- [14 Feb] First Line 56 || Gothic and Haunted
- [21 Feb] First Line 56 || Dragons in the Deep
- [28 Feb] First Line 56 || Meet the Coven
Here are some great posts this month from other bloggers:
✦ Dini @ DiniPandaReads talks about her process for writing reviews (spoiler alert: panic is involved).
✦ Betty @ The Geeky Bibliophile discusses whether or not you should allow comments on your blog.
✦ Shannon @ It Starts At Midnight reevaluates her relationship with fantasy.
✦ Krysta @ Pages Unbound talks about states censoring libraries.
✦ Lin @ The Reader of A Thousand Stars talks about their favorite romance tropes and gives some great recommendations. ✦ For the spreadsheet inclined among us, Nicole @ BookwyrmKnits has shared a spreadsheet to track your owned TBR.
Not following me on Twitter? Maybe you should.
Agreed.
— Sammie (@srbetler) February 11, 2020
Adulting gets:
★☆☆☆☆
from me, too.
Too many obviously fake, unrealistic situations. Unlikable characters. A marked lack of dragons, magic, and necromancy. Nobody speaks like that. And don’t even get me started on the plot twists. 🙄 https://t.co/g0G0km1bdB
I (19, M) agreed to work customer service for Death (???, M) in exchange for not being crushed to death by a giant tree. It seemed like a good idea at the time. I still might die, but it probably won’t be nearly as quick and painless. The benefits are pretty good, though. https://t.co/tf0ckYjxng
— Sammie (@srbetler) February 28, 2020
So many thanks to Disney-Hyperion for my bookmail today. Look at this gorgeous book. 😍 Acheron thought so too. I set it down and next thing I know, he came running over and laid next to it. Is…is this his way of claiming it? Because I’m not sure I can take him in a battle … pic.twitter.com/gRQEpV8fAp
— Sammie (@srbetler) February 25, 2020
All I’m saying is they missed an opportunity here. This is Fifth Avenue. As in NYC. As in … the Harlem Renaissance? Instead of redoing classics by white authors, promote authors like:
— Sammie (@srbetler) February 5, 2020
✨ Langston Hughes
✨ Zora Neale Hurston
✨ Claude McKay
✨ Jean Toomer
✨ Sterling A. Brown https://t.co/eMgVabhgaf
Not following me on Instagram? Maybe you should.
Congrats on your first blog tour. I’ve learned over the years to accept invitations to blog tours very carefully, because they can get out of control fast and then you have nothing but other people’s deadlines to look forward too. Too much stress for me, but occasionally I do them😁
Tammy @ Books, Bones & Buffy recently posted…What’s On My Plate – March 2020
Thanks! I can definitely see how it could get out of hand really easily. I have four blog tour posts in the next week, because I didn’t realize that one company usually has a fast turnaround from signing up to scheduling you for a tour. So … oops? Lesson learned, though (and they were all books I really wanted, so I’m so not complaining!). I’ll definitely have to be choosier in the future, though.
Looks like quite a good reading month! I hope March is even better!
(www.evelynreads.com)
Evelyn recently posted…On the edge of the dark sea of darkness – ARC review!
Thank you! It’s been an all-around amazing month, so as long as March doesn’t squash me under its heel, we’re good haha.
Wow, that’s quite a posting streak–congrats! The most I’ve ever done is 7 days, so I am mightily impressed.
Thanks for the shout out!
Betty recently posted…Ellis Island: A People’s History by Małgorzata Szejnert, Sean Gasper Bye (Translator)
7 days is about where I can get before failing until this one. xD Seeing the numbers climb has *definitely* helped on the motivation aspect, though.
I love coming here to read your posts, coffee in hand, as it’s a treat. Good luck on your first blog tour and, as Tammy suggests, be careful, they’re tiring to do.
Thank you! I also enjoy writing them, coffee in hand. Really, I think coffee’s the key factor in this. 😉 I’ll definitely have to keep in mind not to overbook myself on them. It seems like it’d be really easy to do.
I survived February! Though, I did so with a cold, so the month was trying to do me in, also.
It looks like you got some great reading done, for being a ghost. I didn’t know ghosts could turn pages.
Nicole @ BookWyrmKnits recently posted…Pear & Ginger Scones!
Well, I’m glad to hear you haven’t joined me among the (un)dead. I hope you feel better, though. It seems like everyone was sick this month around here, too, but we at least held out until the past week or two.
Pffft, who needs to turn pages when you have a Kindle? And everyone knows ghosts can influence technology. 😉 That’s just a fact. I mean, the battery drain when I’m trying to read is a little annoying, but … that’s what chargers were made for!
Congrats on your first blog tour! And on your posting streak! I’m trying to work my way up to both of those, lol. Looks like you had a pretty awesome reading month 😀
Kerri @ Kerri McBookNerd recently posted…February 2020 Wrap Up
Thank you! It took me a long time to start taking blog tours. xD I’m so socially awkward that I’m afraid I’ll mess things up. I totally recommend doing a few blog tours, though. They’re fun. 🙂
You made me laugh too many times in this post. Now I’m dead. 😀
Good job with all the posting! Keep it up!
Happy March!
Freda Mans-Labianca recently posted…February Monthly News
Yay! We can start a club. The Undead Club! No badges, though. Where would we put them? xD
Teach me this sorcery that is posting every day! 😱 Seriously, I wish I was this committed or better, I wish I had that many ideas to post and would be able to write that many reviews.
Also, yay, for birthdays. (I have no idea what Chuck E. Cheese is but I gather it’s some kind of indoor playground?) Also, I don’t know if it’s right for your smol one yet but the Menagerie books by Tui and Kari Sutherland. I adore those books. I need everybody to read them. (I’m also always happy about Middlegrade recommendations. If you have one, immer her damit!)😃
If I knew what spell I cast, I would share it! I’m pretty sure it was an accident. Something probably backfired and did something right by mistake.
Chuck E. Cheese is like a big indoor arcade type thing, with a bunch of different games. The games give tickets, which you can turn in for prizes. It’s actually pretty fun. xD
Wow, that’s so funny. I actually *just* bought the Menagerie books 1 and 3 from a local book sale. They didn’t have two, so I figure I’ll grab it off eBay. I’m so happy to hear that you recommend them!
Oh wow that is quite the streak. I’m interested in seeing how long you can keep it up 😀
Annemieke recently posted…8 Books With Single Word Titles That I Loved / #toptentuesday 227
Me, too. I fear I may have jinxed it now. xD
Aww YAY! Thanks so much for featuring my post, Sammie 🖤 Ya girl has survived Feb but feeling halfway to ghosty. What a month! I hope that things go on the up from March onwards because I’m just done with all the sickness and blah feels! Haha it looks like you had a super awesome month of reading and blogging! I loved reading all your discussion posts and you have been seriously SLAYING these reviews! Go YOU! 😍 Hope March is less deadly but more awesome!?
Dini @ dinipandareads recently posted…#TopTenTuesday: One Word Titles
Only halfway to ghosty? Does that mean you can pass through walls but still also eat food? This seems like the perfect combination here.
Thanks! I honestly am not sure how I’ve done it? To be fair, I bought the Ultimate Book Blogger plugin, and it’s done wonders for my book review process. Cut down A LOT on the time for each review.