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@readingoals
Im currently reading nock loose by patrick marlborough and having a great time. Took me a little to get into it but that was mostly because i started it at the end of my trip so didnt have as much time to read. But im roughly half way through now and really enjoying it.
Theres truly so much good stuff in Aus lit atm
A Very Short History of the Israel-Palestine Conflict is a great introduction to a very long standing conflict and it really helped me understand the modern politics of the area and how things escalated to the situation in the news today.
The audiobook clocks in at under 4 hours, so it's a very quick read and the narrator, Jonathan Todd Ross, does a good really good job.
But I do wish I'd read this physically. Or maybe just in different circumstances. I found myself losing track of what was said and multiple times had to rewind and relisten to parts to properly take them in. I feel like if I'd been physically reading I could have focused better.
Venice is the second in this series of 5 subtly interconnected novellas.
I actually loved this one. In it we follow Ryan who has recently lost his job and moved in with his sister and her family. He's helping around the house, making dinners and looking after her young son, Harrison, while she makes art (and waits to hear if she'll be the feature artist at the next Venice Biennale) and her husband has a busy dentistry career.
Harrison is a ipad kid and the story mostly focuses on how Ryan connects with Harrison and engages with him in a way his parents just aren't, culminating in them taking a road trip to pick up some materials for an art piece.
I found it very sweet and a little funny and I'm really enjoying this series.
Absolutely STUNNING!!! My Fairyloot and Waterstones editions of the Knight and the Moth are here and are beautiful!!
Solace House was so for me.
I knew I was going to like this book from the first chapter. The writing, the characters, the kinda uneasy vibes, amazing. And then things started to get a little weird with a disorienting house and some explorations of grief and obsession and I was so into it. And then there was a reference to a Queen song from my favourite of their albums (and the painting it's inspired by). And I knew this would be a 5 star read.
It felt like Will Maclean was in my brain when he wrote this. It is so unbelievably for me. I loved the way the dynamics between characters shifted and the unsettling atmosphere throughout. The 500 pages flew by because I could not stop reading. I finished it and was so tempted to immediately restart it.
Favourite book of the year, hands down. I will definitely be picking up more from this author too.
Death in the Cards by Mia P. Manansala ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
For a character who can real people really well, our MC Danika has a hard time telling when people are into her. As she helps her mom uncover what happened to a missing girl from her school things seem to get more and more complicated in the lives of people around her. All the while she’s realizing she’s more important to her friends and family than she really thought.
This story was filled with enough twists to satisfy and really keep you guessing right up until the end! With a why choose ending that’ll make you laugh, I really enjoyed this title!
Currently reading!
Just found this handy database of aro & ace short stories, which has quite a few in there! I need to have a good look when I get some time.
pick up that non-fiction book
not all of us can live in fantasy 100% the time like i see some people on here do and it's refreshing to learn something new. its been philosophy, essays, and history for me and i feel much more at home on planet Earth for it knowing that people have been struggling and wishing similarly for millenia.
its not that fiction doesnt have its place, its important and healthy to exercise the imagination, but non-fiction can do so much to boost and supplement that. if not for yourself, for your art or for the people you're around
"representation matters!" but you wont read or engage with non-fiction works about any demographic outside your own
this version of the post doesnt seem to be getting much traction but this is arguably the most important reason why we should be reading nonfiction in addition to fiction
I picked up this audiobook because I vaguely recognised the title and wanted something new to listen to. And that was a great choice on my part.
Firstly, the narrator Nasim Pedrad does a fantastic job, I so enjoyed listening to her.
This book felt like hearing the best office gossip. The opening set up where the MC, Jolene, gets caught out adding bitchy comments to emails in white text is truely just the tip of the iceberg of bonkers things that happen in this book. And every time some new thing kicked off or was revealed I ate. it. up.
But theres also so much real heart and depth to the characters. I went in expecting a silly fun time, which a lot of it is. But theres also explorations of grief, anxiety, parental expectations (especially from immigrant parents). And I think those more serious topics could be alienating for some because they're really not even hinted at in the blurb, but I found they made the characters feel more fleshed out which helped keep things grounded amongst the kinda crazy office shenanigans.
#80 of 2026
The third book in the Castle Knoll Files series, though it steps a little further from the prophecies that impacted the first two mysteries. We also move out of the quirky little town of Castle Knoll to London instead which gives the book a slightly different vibe.
It' still a dual timeline with the present day murder relating back to a crime from the 60s, and i really enjoyed the way the main relationship in the 60s timeline progressed in this one.
I liked this book a lot, though I think the first is still the best in the series. It was fun and cute and I ate it up and will continue to read this series.
HRCYED Check In: June (+ July 1-6)
That is a wrap on HRCYED2!
The final month (and change) of reading was all about trying to finish off a number of squares I was close to completing and, as you can see, I did manage to get two bingos! I am absolutely thrilled by this. My goal for most of the challenge was to get one bingo so to manage a second is really great. Especially with how busy June was (wrapping up work for the term, travelling overseas etc), I really wasn't sure what I'd be able to get through.
I really enjoyed attempting this challenge and I think participating in HRCYED pushed me to pick up more books both generally and specifically books I already owned (though there were a lot of new releases too). I liked having something to focus on when choosing what to read next but in a way that I still felt I could mood read because I had multiple options for different prompts.
So I think I will be participating in HRCYED3. Probably in a similar way I approached 2, where I just read whatever I gravitate towards in the first half and then focus on finishing squares in the second half. I'll be making some graphics to track my progress again, so keep an eye out for that I guess.
Books used + Prompts
Venice - Series Staircase (4+ series) + TBR Game
A Very Short History of the Israel-Palestine Conflict - Nonfiction + BIPOC Author
48 Shades of Brown - Award Season (winner) + TBR Jar
The Secret History - By The 100s (600) + Rainbow (orange)
Touch Grass - New Release (june) + Rainbow (yellow)
Vancouver - Series Staircase (4+ series)
Juneau - Series Staircase (4+ series)
The Grapevine - Awards (semifinalist) + Subgenres (historical mystery)
Lyrebird - Subgenres (mystery thriller) + Animals (wild animal)
June Wrap Up
At the beginning of the month I did not expect to get so many books read. I had hoped to, because completing certain books would mean I could complete squares on the HRCYED2 board and I had three novellas on the list of things to get to. And then I started The Secret History. What a slog. It took so much longer than I wanted and between that and knowing I'd be out of the country for the last week of June, I just didn't expect to get much more done.
But luckily Touch Grass was a fun, quick read and then I was able to do two of the novellas while overseas, finish The Grapevine on the flight back to Australia, and did a whole other audiobook I hadn't planned while we were driving around New Zealand. It also helped that I could listen to the two other audiobooks during my last couple of weeks at work before I went on holidays.
Books Read:
Venice by Nick Earls (Wisdom Tree #2)
A Very Short History of the Israel-Palestine Conflict by Ilan Pappé
48 Shades of Brown by Nick Earls
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Touch Grass by Mary Colussi
Vancouver by Nick Earls (Wisdom Tree #3)
Juneau by Nick Earls (Wisdom Tree #4)
The Reservation by Rebecca Kauffman
The Grapevine by Kate Kemp
I am home from my trip and have a lot of books to catch you up on.
First priority is my June wrap up and HRCYED2 updates since it's officially finished
And then book reviews - the last one I posted was my second read of May so defs quite a few to catch up on.
The second installment in this series!
I didn't quite know what to expect from this as the first book felt very self contained. I thought there was a chance this would come off as unnecessary or trying to stretch a premise that couldn't really be stretched much further. But I ended up enjoying it a lot!
I do think the first book is probably stronger but I liked this addition to the world and characters. It didn't feel too ham fisted, or gimmicky, to continue on with the journal entries that relate to a new murder and the whole "fortune telling" thing. All round, a fun time
