This month’s wrap is doing double duty, since it falls on a Saturday! So let’s recap not just this month, but some of the specifics from this week!
Life Beyond the Blog
We’ll keep it simple and start with what happened this week, which boils down to three things. Least important of all is turkey. I have eaten so much turkey. I never want to eat turkey again. Of middling importance is work. Specifically, Black Friday and a series of eight hour shifts in retail throughout the week. Now that I’ve survived (mostly), I can definitively say I’m not paid enough for this.
And most important, I WON NANOWRIMO THREE DAYS EARLY. In an ill-advised frenzy, I slammed out 5k on Wednesday night to cross the finish line, and it’s actually the best choice I’ve made all week. Not having to scramble to carve out writing time on the three final days of the month (which are shaping up to be the busiest, tbh) is a relief. Way to go, me! That 5k dash was worth it!
And of no particular importance, but worth noting, I saw Knives Out this week, and to no one’s surprise, my ability to solve about 80% or more of a murder mystery in the first fifteen minutes is GOING STRONG. Not that that’s a bad thing, since I like doing that, and I like being proven right, AND since the movie was pretty good. Simply the way things are (and the reason my mother hates going to movies with me even if I don’t tell her my theories lol).
Looking at the month as a whole, though, this week seems more exciting than the three that came before it! The work-life balance has been basically non-existent, and I haven’t don’t anything especially exciting besides drive to work, drive home, and hunch over my computer, frantically trying to make the words go. More difficult than anticipated, but it’s always harder than I think it’s going to be. You’d think I’d learn, but I guess not.
And looking ahead, I can’t even begin to guess what December is going to be like. Maybe some things are best left a mystery?
Wait, hang on, this just in: anxiety brain is telling me things are NOT best left mysteries. We better go get our shit together. Be right back. Maybe.
Books Read and Reviewed
It hasn’t been a big reading month, but I did what I set out to do, and got through five books around NaNoWriMo. Reviews for The Caged Queen, The Skyweaver, Five Dark Fates, and A Blade So Black are coming in December, while you can read my review of The Guinevere Deception already!
Next Month’s Reads
The list grows, as always! I’m still trying to keep it as small as I can, though, because it’s still holiday season for retail, and I have a project I want to finish (or at least make some serious strides on). Gotta spend my time wisely.
Because of that, Ashlords, A Dream So Dark, The Alchemists of Loom, and Prophecy are all on my list to read, but anything beyond that will just be a bonus.
(Or they’ll be ARCs approved at the last minute, but shhhhh, it’s already happened with The Guinevere Deception. Let’s not invite it to happen again.)
My Top Three Posts
Hopefully you’ve had as much fun reading my blog posts this month as I have writing them, but in case you want to know where the fun is at, here are the three posts I’m most pleased with for November!
And tbh, shout-out to my review of Wicked Saints, the first one star review I’ve ever posted to this blog. Apparently, you all liked the salt so much you gave me almost 300 views in a single day, record numbers for me, and while reading that book and writing that review was TORTURE, I’m glad you guys got something out of it. 😂
Favorites From Around the Blogging World
Here we are, the most important part of the month! This here is THE GOOD STUFF. It’s hardly comprehensive, that’s true, but these are the posts I’ve enjoyed the most this month, and I hope you like them too!
CW @ The Quiet Pond recommends diverse heist stories that aren’t Six of Crows!
Rae and Jen @ Novels and Notions have 30 suggestions for bookish gifts this holiday season!
So that’s it for November! I’ll see you tomorrow (first Sunday of the month is new releases day, after all!), and I hope you’ve had an excellent November!
It’s so hilarious that your Wicked Saints review got you so many views! I agreed with literally everything you said in it though. Major props to you!
And thank you for linking to my review!
A little salt goes a long way, and a lot of salt goes even further, I guess. 😅 Thank you, though! I’m glad you feel like I hit the mark with it.
Not a problem at all!!! It was GREAT, plus it’s my mission to convince more people to read SoT now!
Whoooo congrats on winning NaNoWriMo!! You should be super proud 🎉 Your Wicked Saints review was soooo good. I knew it probably wasn’t the book for me, and you really helped reaffirm it. and OOF too much turkey can be real. My family doesn’t eat turkey for Thanksgiving but I know it’s such a popular dish!
Thanks, Tiffany! I am really proud of my project and excited that I reached the end early. And I’m glad my review helped you decide for sure! What a hot mess of a book.
Too much turkey is VERY real, oh man. Your family is doing the smart thing, not eating it for Thanksgiving! Solves that problem entirely!