Bekah’s Reading Blog

Rebekah aka Bekah- 29, she/her pronouns. I have always been a huge bookworm- but I don’t have people to talk to and discuss books- so last year I made a reading journal and picked up my old goodreads.

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I’ll post here on tumblr my thoughts of the books I am reading-but I’ll give my goodreads account if people would like to follow/friend there.

Bekah

Bekah has 224 books on Goodreads, and is currently reading The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson and You by Caroline Kepnes

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50 /150

4/5

I read this because I was seeing it everywhere, and my friend J absolutely loves this book.

I finally picked it up and read it. I wasn’t a huge huge fan, and it was predictable, and I found it just middle road.

The writing isn’t the best, but I see how this write can improve later in line. I am aware this is a re-release, it came out years ago- so her works now are probably a lot better.

That said- I did like it. I read it in one sitting, over the span of half a day. I would text my friend, then a hour later again like a chunk ahead of the previous update. Even she was like damn.

It was easy to read and it had enough scenes and characterisations that it feels very much like a beginner friendly book or a good book to hand to your new adult offspring who is looking for a way to switch from YA to Adult books.

The rep of the main character’s mutism, is a bit dodgy, and it feels like something the author should have researched more- but it’s nothing bad, it just feels very surface level. I didn’t like how the FMC took charge and suddenly was just like ‘I’m his voice now’ from the get go. This was a insta-love but sprinkled with issues to make it seem like this wasn’t an instant love book.

I did enjoy it enough to give it 3 stars. I read it, and said that’s 3 stars, like 3.5 stars…and by the afternoon I thought about it and changed it to a four. I unhauled my copy, but I still think about the book from time to time. It was cute, and nice, and I’m not opposed to picking up more of her books.

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49 /150

5/5

Before I continued to the second book of the series I had to listen to this one. After the ending of the first book (no spoilers don’t worry), I couldn’t move on without some peace of mind. And this was it…kinda.

There is a second The Lost Years planned, so keep that in mind.

I absolutely loved this. As always if you like military sci-fi, creature features, the Fallout games, or Halo, this is a must.

It’s a post apocalyptic story where it’s an AU of history, the divergence happened in the 2nd World War. This takes place right after the first book, and before the second book. It was short, tense, and it was amazing. I cried…I worried…I was happy….this audiobook was an absolute rollercoaster of emotions. I listened to it in one sitting.

I loved this so much.

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Update on my reading buddy, Kovu, old man is going strong at 19. Recently got a new pillow and blanket that is Bluey. He loves them and stays cozy and cuddly.

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44, 45,46,47, 48 / 150

3/5, 4/5, 4/5, 4/5, 3/5

These are the Shivers Collection of Amazon Original Stories.

I will say I prefer The Trespass and Creature Feature collections to this one.

The Jackknife story, I did enjoy, but Joe Hill’s writing is suited for a longer novel. This one felt rushed and all over the place. I would’ve preferred it to be a slow burn build up story. I think this story would have been great as a novel.

The Indigo Room, was the absolute stand out for this collection, along with The Blanks. Stephen Graham Jones writes short stories, so his shorter novellas are always punchy and very interesting. This kept me interested and invested until the end. It was a very punchy and impactful narrative.

The Blanks, along with his other novella The Ankle Snatcher, work really well as a novella. But they leave me wanting a longer form novel for these stories. While Jack Knife was luckluster- this one left me wanting more. The story and the plot, needed a novel closure plot line.

Night and Day in Misery, was impactful and emotional. This was a classic Catriona Ward story, it was emotional, it was twisty, and it wasn’t at all what you expect from it.

Letter Slot, I enjoyed it, but I was bored. It didn’t really grab my attention or interest that much. Enough to finish it, but not much else. It’s one that I’m going to forget about after reading.

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My physical TBR

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43 /150

5/5

I had went to the library and stayed there for a little bit. I found this on the shelves and couldn’t resist.

This is a book about technology. There’s a reclusive man who has essentially made his house very state of the art and a smart house. He shares it with his wife.

One night the wife decides to invite some friends from her work over for dinner and to meet her husband. During the night things start to go wrong- and it may have to do with the AI android locked in the attic.

I loved this book. This book was described as the modern day Frankenstein and while I don’t wholeheartedly agree- I do agree with the sentiment. This was a blast. It’s a novella, and it reads easy- and it went by quick. I was shell shocked by the end of it. I loved it so much. There’s no way to talk about it without giving it away since it is so short. So I’ll make do with the summary.

For fans of Iain Reid and especially Foe. Definitely add it onto your list.

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42 /150

5/5

I am sad to say, this series is done…and I’m sad.

I put it off since it came out. I thought about listening to all the other books again. And I will say this is a series I will always come back to. But it had to come to an end at some point. 😭😭😭

I love this series. If you love RDR2 and Arthur Morgan (the narrator is his voice actor); this is just RDR2 meets The Witcher.

The narration is amazing. I usually listen at 2-3x speed, but with this series I’m content to just let it play and listen to it normally. I love these characters, I love this world. And I want more. This was a good ending for these books, and as much as I’m sad to see it go, I’m glad I have another finished series under my belt.

I need to finish more; but I seem to just starts them instead of finishing them.

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41 /150

4/5

I saw this was available on my libby app and picked it up on a whim. I went completely blind into this book. I think I say it only like once, but don’t remember where or what was said other than heist.

After the Beth Revis trilogy, I was looking for more heisty sci-fi, and recognised this one. I absolutely adored this book. I wanted more. The writing felt dry but lyrical.

This was certainly more character driven, and it was slow at points. I loved it dropping us into the world and building and explaining as it went along. I don’t like info dumps- so I love being thrust into a whole new world and having to learn along the way.

If you like literary fiction and want to step into sci-fi or fantasy, this would be a good stepping point into a new genre.

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40 /150

3/5

I picked this up on Libby after reading Paradise-1 and Revenant-X.

I do enjoy this author’s writing style, and I will always give any sci-fi a chance, especially horror sci-fi.

This one is a stand alone, and its premise was great. It’s a first contact horror, and I really enjoyed it. The pacing needed some work, but maybe it just wasn’t for me at the time. His books are slow build up with creepy and tense moments to stretch it out and build up to the reveal.

I like my horror sci-fi like the movie Alien; very quick and punchy and graphic. David Wellington is a bit slow build.

So while I did enjoy it, it wasn’t for me, and I just wasn’t interested because of the pace. I will say to at least try his stuff, because they are chunky, but they read really easy.

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39 /150

3/5

I used Libby for this book.

I was interested in this because I heard it was a horror sci-fi. I was quickly humbled.

This book has a ton of scenes that push boundaries over into horror, but I feel like it’s the equivalent of grim dark fantasy in a sci-fi story.

The writing was fine, it felt very dry and like it was just presenting the facts and what was happening. I didn’t connect with it at all, or the characters. The really horrific parts felt flat because of that.

I won’t be continuing the series, but I will say it was intriguing and interesting. The premise of the story was enough for me to have read this all the way through. It was just not for me.

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38 /150

5/5

I had bought this immediately when it came out and read it.

This book was very well written and planned out. It’s an original story for Mrs. Lovett; and more so her story rather than anything to do with Sweeney Todd. This added a whole new layer to her character in a way that really makes her more emphatic and human.

This is told in articles, letters, journal entries and correspondences. Very immersive. I read it in one sitting and absolutely didn’t want to put it down. This was very atmospheric and it felt like Sweeney Todd.

This was a wonderful and impactful story that will stick with me for a long while.

If you’re like me and love Sweeney Todd, I will absolutely recommend picking this book up to read it. It didn’t take away from the original source, it just gives a more different perspective of possibilities that could have played behind the scenes. It just adds a lot of flavour to an already beloved story.

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35, 36, 37 /150

3/5, 3/5, 3/5

I ended up getting all three books because I was convinced I would love these.

The first book is about a Farm Boy who ends up finding out he’s the chosen one and sets off on his adventure with a talking goat. There’s a whole cast of characters…even the evil Toby who just wants cheese…

This was sold to me as an adult Shrek fantasy, filled with humour and hijinks in like with Monty Python. As a kid who absolutely loved Shrek and Shrek 2 (the rest just went downhill); I absolutely grabbed these.

The humour got old really old really quick and seemed a bit juvenile. The characters were exactly as advertised in the summary and didn’t seem to deviate or grow out of their chalk outlines. It felt stiff and disjointed and just like everything was flat. I was reading the equivalent of a pop up book in how deep it was.

It was enough for me to be somewhat invested enough to finish the trilogy- but by the end of the first book, I was done. The second was just nothing, and the third was boring.

If it sounds interesting, I’d say try it. A lot of people do and are enjoying them- they just weren’t for me. And that’s okay. I’d never want to steer people away from a book. I will say I love the covers, and the little nods at the titles were nice touches. It tried and in my eyes reached for the sun a little too closely and crashed.

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34/ 150

5/5

This was an emotional read. It was much like The Tales from the Cafe.

We follow a young man who is dealing with grief and loss and is depressed and becoming a shut in. When he meets a talking cat who needs his help to save books.

This was a fun read, it took a day to read. I read through Libby. The writing was engaging and very lovely for this type of book. I found it fit the style and story very well.

Loved the characters, loved the cat. I now really really want to hunt down this cover and own this book. Really short read.

If you like Tales from the Cafe or Highway with Green Apples, I’d highly suggest this one to pick up and check out.

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My SummerWeen was a fantastic success; found some meh ones and found some new favourites.

Overall, I’m proud of myself. Anyone who was participating, please let me know how it went and what you read. I’d love to hear it 🖤

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Pangobooks - REBECCA775

Pangobooks - REBECCA775

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Here’s some finds from my store; there’s ton more on the site