i'm ingrid, i read things. this is my literature sideblog, it's basically just a reading journal. i reblog and follow back from @someonelookingpretty. you can sort by tag.
I know, technically, this blog is on hiatus. But I had to pop back, because I finally finished my Wicker King fragrances!
This was the hardest set of fragrances I've ever made! I spent a solid week working tirelessly trying to get the blends right, back when I first had the idea, and I just wasn't happy. Then I got the flu, and lost my sense of smell for about two months, which was... great.
I finally came back to this project, and did the smart thing - I chucked everything away. All the different blends I'd tried, all my notes with recipes and ideas. The whole lot went in the bin, and I started totally from scratch. Sometimes, that's what you need!
Anyway, I made two fragrances, "The Wicker King", and "The Rapturous Blue". I'm really happy with the way they turned out!
They're available in my Etsy shop individually, or as a double pack, here.
More pics under the cut!
I read the book again this week, and it's one of those books that just gets better every time you read it. I'm so in love with it, and I bought another copy to send to Henry because I needed to share it with him. I was super relieved that he loved it too!
And one final thing - I also made "The Song of Achilles" fragrances while I was overhauling my shop this week, and a new Vampire perfume that I'm unreasonably smug about.
tagging the people who commented on the last post, but obviously feel free to ignore! @kaylapocalypse @jin-jamm-desu
If you're still following this blog, you might have noticed how inactive I've been for the last year. For pretty much the whole of 2024, I've been playing constant catch-up with my blog posts, falling further and further behind. I haven't had any drive to post, and it doesn't seem to be getting any better.
Honestly, I just don't have the same enthusiasm for reading that I used to. I still read a fair amount, I just don't have any passion for it. If you've been reading my (sporadic) monthly wrap-ups, you'll already know this... but I'm sorry to say, k-pop got me! I was losing focus on my reading at the end of 2023, so maybe I was feeling weak, looking for something else to fixate on. But my focus has definitely shifted.
So all I can do is apologise for my inactivity. I've not been updating, and I don't see that changing any time soon. I'm going to do one last yearly roundup, and then I'm putting this blog on indefinite hiatus. I won't delete, and I won't say for sure that I'll never come back, but for now, I won't be posting, and with no plans of returning.
I really enjoyed the three years I spent posting about my reading - I got so many nice messages, and I broadened my horizons through all the recommendations I received. But it's time to call it a day. I've cancelled the last of my book box subscriptions, because I don't get excited receiving them any more. I've stopping hunting down special edition books. I'm not setting any reading goals for 2025, as I don't think I'll stick to them. I'm still going to run my Book Club, because I love the social aspect, but that's about it.
So, without further ado, my final post:
2024 Yearly Round-up
Stats:
This year, I read a total of 56 books.
43 of these were new reads, 9 were re-reads, and I DNF-ed 4 books.
Goals:
This year, I set six goals to complete each month. I didn't do very well, and to be honest, I kind of gave up on hitting my goals towards the end of the year.
1. Take part in a “social” read (11 / 12 months)
2. Read a current subscription book (01 / 12 months)
3. Read a backlog subscription book (03 / 12 months)
4. Read a free book (02 / 12 months)
5. Annotate a book (02 / 12 months)
6. Read a sequel I’ve been putting off (06 / 12 months)
I had a total of:
twenty-five 5★ reads;
four 4★ reads (and two 4½★);
eight 3★ reads;
ten 2★ reads,
and five 1★ reads.
I read 9 hardbacks; 18 paperbacks, 26 ebooks, 2 audiobooks, and I tried to struggle through 1 ARC.
My favourite books of the year were: Butter (Yuzuki), These Violent Delights (Nemerever), The Full Moon Coffee Shop (Mochizuki), the Magnus Chase series (Riordan), and The Sunshine Court (Sakavic).
And my the thing I'm most salty about this year is Obsidian Moon Crate taking everyone's money and running. I know I'm never getting that money back now, and that's fine, it's not the end of the world. But it drives me up the wall that there's no way of holding the owner to account. The website has been shut down, and I doubt the email inbox is being monitored any longer. Short of flying to Georgia and banging on her door, there's nothing doing.
The Secret History - Donna Tartt (re-read) ★★★★★
The Little Friend - Donna Tartt ★★★★★
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte (re-read) ★★★★★
Heroes - Stephen Fry ★★★★★
The Bacchae and Other Plays - Euripides ★★★★★
An English Murder - Cyril Hare ★★★☆☆
Grieving Gold - Daniel McDaniel (DNF) ★☆☆☆☆
Castle in the Air - Diana Wynne Jones ★★★★★
An Enchantment of Ravens - Margaret Rogerson ★★★☆☆
The Invocations - Krystal Sutherland ★★★★★
The Salt Grows Heavy - Cassandra Khaw ★★☆☆☆
A Study in Drowning - Ava Reid ★★☆☆☆
The Stolen Heir - Holly Black (re-read) ★★★★★
The Prisoner's Throne - Holly Black ★★★★½
Summer, Fireworks, and My Corpse - Otsuichi ★★★★½
The Lamplighters - Emma Stonex ★★☆☆☆
Lockwood & Co: The Creeping Shadow - Jonathan Stroud ★★★★★
Lockwood & Co: The Empty Grave - Jonathan Stroud ★★★★★
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley (re-read) ★★★★★
House of Many Ways - Diana Wynne Jones ★★★★★
The Sunshine Court - Nora Sakavic ★★★★★
The Sunshine Court - Nora Sakavic (re-read)
My Sister, the Serial Killer - Oyinkan Braithwaite ★★☆☆☆
Butter - Asako Yuzuki ★★★★★
Magnus Chase: The Sword of Summer - Rick Riordan ★★★★★
The Sunshine Court - Nora Sakavic (re-read)
An Arrow to the Moon - Emily X.R. Pan ★★★★☆
The Mary Shelley Club - Goldy Moldavsky ★☆☆☆☆
The Last Man - Mary Shelley ★★☆☆☆
Touching the Void - Joe Simpson ★☆☆☆☆
The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde (re-read) ★★★★★
The Witchwood Knot - Olivia Atwater ★★★★★
We Were Liars - E. Lockhart ★★☆☆☆
The Spirit Bares its Teeth - Andrew Joseph White ★★★☆☆
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife - Ashley Winstead ★☆☆☆☆
By the Pricking of My Thumbs - Agatha Christie ★★☆☆☆
In Order to Live - Yeonmi Park ★★★★☆
The Picture of Dorian Gray (1980 version) - Oscar Wilde ★★★☆☆
The Wicker King - K. Ancrum (re-read) ★★★★★
Troy - Stephen Fry (DNF) ★★★★☆
Magnus Chase: The Hammer of Thor - Rick Riordan ★★★★★
Magnus Chase: The Ship of the Dead - Rick Riordan ★★★★★
Blacktop Wasteland - S.A. Crosby ★★☆☆☆
These Violent Delights - Micah Nemerever ★★★★★
Stalking Jack the Ripper - Kerri Maniscalco (DNF) ★☆☆☆☆
The Seventh Bride - T. Kingfisher ★★★☆☆
The Full Moon Coffee Shop - Mai Mochizuki ★★★★★
The Wind-up Bird Chronicle - Haruki Murakami (DNF) ★★☆☆☆
The Whistling - Rebecca Netley ★★★★★
We Have Always Lived in the Castle - Shirley Jackson ★★☆☆☆
She - H. Rider Haggard ★★★☆☆
Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop - Hwang Bo-Reum ★★★☆☆
The Hollow Places - T. Kingfisher ★★★★★
A December to Remember - Jenny Bayliss ★★★★☆
King Solomon's Mines - H. Rider Haggard ★★★☆☆
A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens (re-read) ★★★★★
It's been the best part of a year since I last did an unboxing post. I have still been receiving subscription boxes, and I've even been taking photos of them, with the intention of catching up on my blog posts, but it's now been so long that the idea of sitting down and catching up on ten months of posts is just too daunting.
So I'm just going to forget all the ones I've missed, and start afresh.
And here it is - the big one. Rainbow Crate's hardback editions of the original "All for the Game" trilogy!
There's been a lot of complaints online about these - they were a lot of money, and people have been really disappointed. But I have to say, I am so, so impressed with these books!
The reason people are complaining is that there are some printing errors on the dust jackets. Basically, some of the information on the flaps is wrong, and the blurbs have been mixed around. But it's only the dust jackets that are wrong, and that is such an easy fix.
And Rainbow Crate handled it really well, in my opinion. Before I'd even received my books, I had an email from them with a form to order replacement dust jackets for free. An easy solution.
I can't help but compare this to the last set of messed-up special editions I received, which was The Raven Cycle by Owlcrate. They had the exact same issue - the dust jackets were misprinted. For them, it was the colour that was wrong - they'd been printed green instead of blue. But instead of reprinting the dust jackets, they refused to acknowledge their mistake, and brushed people off.
Looking back, I really do think that was what made me lose my passion for this blog, and consequentially, for reading in general. I've really struggled to find joy in it ever since, and have moved on to new things. I just spent so much time stewing over it, that I got into a really bad mindset.
But maybe these Rainbow Crate editions will save me!
Dust Jackets:
I have to say, when they first announced their jacket design, I wasn't that excited about it. But it has grown on me, and I really like it now, despite the fact that it looks more like Enhypen fanart than Foxes artwork! Rainbow Crate also changed the jacket font after they went on sale. I don't know why they made the change after the artwork had already been finalised, but it made such a huge difference! The artwork looks so much better with the new, bolder font.
The inside of the jackets have the original (terrible) self-published cover designs, but they're sharper and foiled and not off-centre, so actually they somehow look professional?! I'm impressed that they managed to save those designs! The originals were awful, but the Rainbow Crate versions look nice!
Hardcase:
I actually almost wish that I had ordered two copies, although I really couldn't have afforded it. Because the hardcase designs are so gorgeous, I want to be able to display them! I've always loved this character art by llstarcasterll, so I'm thrilled to have it on the covers!
And I didn't realised there would be ribbon bookmarks, but I've never been so impressed with such a small detail! I always think a ribbon bookmark really makes a special edition, but these ones go so much further. They're each printed with a different quote! When I saw that, honestly, I was blown away!
Endpapers:
The endpapers are designed by my absolute favourite AFTG artist, ouijacine, so I was going to love them, no matter what. There are six different endpapers, two per book, and they're all beautiful.
I don't know what the rules are about selling art a publisher or subscription box has commissioned, but I'm hoping she'll be able to sell these as prints on her website, because I would definitely love to have some of these on my wall.
Sprayed Edges:
The edges are fairly standard, with the fox paw, key, and chess piece design stencilled in white, but I really like that the background colour for each one isn't just solid, it matches the dust jacket design. I guess this isn't quite so good if you're planning to display them with the reverse jackets or as naked hardcases. But I think they're still nice anyway.
And bonus points because even the outbox was amazing?! They'd had a special orange AFTG shipping box made, with a fox print on top, and quotes from the books. My one criticism with this is that it was very snug to the books, so if there had been any damage to the outbox, it probably would have transferred through to the books. A bit more room for bubble wrap would have been good. But it was so special coming home and seeing this beautiful orange box waiting on my doorstep, and knowing exactly what was inside!
I haven't read the bonus chapters yet, but I believe there's one at the end of each book. And all three books had tip-in signatures, which makes them extra special.
Overall, this was a total win, in my eyes. I think they've done a really good job with these editions, and there isn't anything more I could have asked from them. The only issue is with the misprinted jackets, and I was really impressed with the way Rainbow Crate resolved it so quickly and easily.
Have you read What You Are Looking for is in the Library?
I haven’t, but I definitely think I will! It was one of the books I looked at when I was searching for options for my next Book Club theme (which will be translations), and now it keeps cropping up on my Waterstones recommendations.
Have you read it / would you recommend it? From the description it definitely looks like something I would enjoy.
October’s theme for my Book Club is “Dearly Departed”!
Every month, I pick a theme, and three books that fit with it, and then my club members vote on which one they want to read.
Our choices for October were:
The Toll House - Carly Reagon
The Whistling - Rebecca Netley
Murder Road - Simone St James
For October, we obviously wanted to read something spooky, to get us into the Halloween spirit, so all three options were ghost stories! We chose "The Whistling", by Rebecca Netley. And this month, we're mixing it up a bit, and instead of breakfast, we're going for evening drinks! Luckily, our usual breakfast place also does great cocktails and tapas in the evening.
I came across this a while ago when I was looking for books for our upcoming Book Club "translations" theme. But it looked so good that I knew I wanted to read it right away. So I pre-ordered it, and chose different books for Book Club!
The idea of the book is that a café, run by cats, who are actually gods, appears to people who need help. The cats use astrology to give people advice, and as the book progresses, we find out what links all these people together.
Honestly, it was such a sweet, touching read, and I can't recommend it enough. I had a little cry at the end, as well!
Normally, I try to get at least a quarter of the way through a book before I decide I don't like it, and I'll try to get halfway before deciding to DNF it, just to make sure I've given it a fair chance.
I got 14% into this book, and I cannot possibly read any more. When you spend a forty-minute train journey staring into space, rather than opening your book, you know it's not going to be a good experience reading it.
I just could not read one more sentence explaining exactly why the main character is "not like other girls". Oh, I don't get taken in by a handsome face, not like other girls. (spoiler: that's exactly what she does).
When the boy she was swooning over said something along the lines of "from now on, I'll pretend you're just as intelligent as a man" and she thought it was a compliment?! I very nearly chucked my entire kindle right out the train window.
And the "19th century" language is like something a group of teenage girls might use at a Victorian-themed pyjama party, having done no more research than watching a few period dramas.
As I said, I'm only 14% in, but I can say with some degree of certainty that: a) she will fall in love with "totally annoying" Thomas who is already obsessed with her; and b) "perfect brother" Nathaniel who would "never, ever hurt her" is, in fact, Jack the Ripper. I just don't care enough to read the rest of the book to find out if I'm right.
September's theme for my Book Club is "Twisted Tales"!
Every month, I pick a theme, and three books that fit with it, and then my club members vote on which one they want to read.
Our choices for September were:
Cinder - Marissa Meyer
The Seventh Bride - T. Kingfisher
Hunted - Meagan Spooner
The theme was suggested by one of the Book Club members, who wanted to read a reimagining of a classic fairytale. I'm pleased with the pick this month, "The Seventh Bride", which is apparently based on Bluebeard, the fairytale that horrified me most as a child!
Working on some initial design ideas for the Wicker King fragrance I'm planning, and got distracted by decorating the envelope for my latest penpal letter - oops! I think the perfume is going to be pretty special though, I'm going to work on the scent this weekend.
Monthly Goals:
✔️ Take part in a "social" read
✖️ Read a current subscription book
✔️ Read a backlog subscription book
✖️ Read a free book
✖️ Annotate a book
✔️ Read a sequel I've been putting off
The Spirit Bares its Teeth - Andrew Joseph White ★★★★☆
This was my backlog book for the month. I think this was technically a good book, I just didn't really get on with it, personally. I think it just wasn't my style. It did get better the further I read, though, and the ending was great, so I'd recommend it.
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife - Ashley Winstead ★☆☆☆☆
This was just rubbish. It was trying so hard to be exciting, but actually it wasn't a very interesting plot. In order to keep us guessing, the author threw in about twenty unnecessary and unrealistic twists.
By the Pricking of my Thumbs - Agatha Christie ★★☆☆☆
My social read was another Book Club pick. I enjoyed this, but Agatha Christie does get same-y after a while. I didn't like this as much as the Poirots I've read previously.
In Order to Live - Yeonmi Park ★★★★★
This is the best autobiography I've read. I'm not normally a fan of non-fiction, but this was really emotional and moving.
The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890 version) - Oscar Wilde ★★★☆☆
I wanted to read the original version of this book, before it was edited for novel publication, but actually, it wasn't that different, so it wasn't really worth reading it.
The Wicker King - K. Ancrum (re-read)
This has probably become one of my favourite books. It's such an interesting read, and such a beautiful story. I've recommended this to so many people, and I've just ordered a copy to send to Henry. I will make him read it.
Tagged by: absolutely no one. No one ever tags me in these games, and I guess that's not unexpected, as I've been seriously neglecting this poor little book blog, and my main blog has become, frankly, a kpop embarrassment. I'm going to play anyway. I never need a tag to join in.
Make a poll with five of your favourite books and let booklr pick its favourite out of those, and tag five more.
Choose one of my faves...
The Foxhole Court - Nora Sakavic
The Secret History - Donna Tartt
The Martian - Andy Weir
The Cruel Prince - Holly Black
If We Were Villains - M.L. Rio
I haven't read any of these (but I promise I will!)
Voting ended onAug 10, 2024
The five people I'm tagging are: all those people who also don't get tagged in these games. This one's for you.
I'm so obsessed with this book. When I first read this, I loved it, but I kept wondering if it would be as good if it didn't have all the decorative pages and playlists and drawings, etc. I didn't know if the story would have held up on it's own, if I hadn't been so distracted by how beautiful the book is.
Reading it again, I realised - it doesn't matter. This is a mixed media book. It was written specifically to include mixed media. The playlists and the recipes and the doodles are as much a part of the story as the words.
I'd never say, "this is a great story, but would it hold up without the middle three chapters?" So why should I expect this book to hold up without mixed media elements?
By the way, the story is totally amazing. August and Jack are everything to me, they've got such an intense relationship. I want to sink into the pages. And the fantasy elements to a completely non-fantasy story are so, so good.
I am 1000% going to be making a "The Wicker King" perfume for my Etsy shop. I get the feeling it'll be one of those fragrances that never sells, but that will make me so happy to wear.
The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890 version) - Oscar Wilde
So, after annotating the novel version, I decided I wanted to read the original novella version of this book. My copy of the novel has some exceptional notes about the changes that were made before publication. I ordered this edition, just so I could see how it read, in its original form.
As it turns out, most of the edits were actually made by his editor before it even got printed in the magazine. The only real change I noticed was that some of the long rambling bits weren't in the novella.
It was a bit of a disappointment, if I'm honest, because I was hoping for more differences. I should have done more research beforehand.
What I really want is the original manuscript, before the editor got his hands on it, but I don't know if that's a possibility.
I received this email (full email under cut) from Obsidian Moon Crate about two months ago, and I've been to-and-fro-ing since then about writing this post.
It seems really harsh of me writing what is essentially a callout, considering most of the email is the owner talking about how poor her mental health has been because of this.
But I have to comment on it, because I'm a book blog, and this is a book subscription. And honestly, I feel like my trust has been totally betrayed.
I originally ordered one box from OMC, after hearing about it from one of my followers, and wasn't impressed by it. But I was interested in the concept of the box, because it was so un-commercial, and featured some less common fandoms. So I decided to give them another chance, and ordered the next quarterly box, along with a special edition box.
I was expecting these boxes in December and January, and they never arrived.
Whenever I emailed asking about my orders, there would be an update email sent round a couple days later apologising for the delays. But those were the only times I ever received an update, and she almost never replied directly to my emails.
Finally, we got this email, talking about how difficult things are for her, and how she can't cope. I want to feel bad for her, I do. But I have to say, it's really difficult to be sympathetic when she's taken so much money from people.
I would never consider selling something, taking someone's money, unless I could be 100% sure I would be able to deliver. I personally never list anything for sale unless I physically have every component I need to make the order, including packaging and marketing materials. Obviously, that isn't always feasible for every business, but I would always expect the same level of consideration in ensuring every order could be fulfilled.
I really, really wish I could be sympathetic, but god, if you start a business, you have to know what you're getting into. You cannot take people's money and then just say, oh, I'm having a really hard time, I'm so sorry. Because it's not your customers' fault, but it is their money, and their trust.
The most unprofessional part of all, is that she says that the delays are because she can't afford to pay the shipping costs. But she charged for shipping. I literally paid the full shipping costs for both boxes. So somewhere along the line, she has spent everyone's shipping money, and now can't afford to send the boxes out.
No matter how much she insists otherwise, I no longer have any expectation of receiving either of these boxes - and I know there's nothing I can do. If it was a UK business, I would just go to the ombudsman, and raise a claim, but she's in the US, so I'm powerless.
Basically, she's had over 200 USD from me, and I don't think I'm ever going to see anything for that money.
All I can say is, I hope she never tries to start OMC back up again, and I hope she never tries to start a new business.
Every month, I pick a theme, and three books that fit with it, and then my club members vote on which one they want to read.
Our choices for August were:
Blacktop Wasteland - S.A. Cosby
The Lies of Locke Lamora - Scott Lynch
The Great Train Robbery - Michael Crichton
We chose "Blacktop Wasteland", so I'm looking forward to reading that next month! If anyone else wants to join in, consider yourself an honorary member of our club, and send me your thoughts on the book!
janainaart
areudirty
dededos
dailybridgerton
gummygunk