Final Update on May 1 at 14:32 pm MDT.

I’m so excited! Dewey’s 24-Hour Readathon is finally here! Well, it starts in 6 hours anyway. During the readathon, all my updates will be posted on Instagram. (If you’d like to follow me on Instagram , click here.) Tomorrow, I’ll wrap everything up at the end this post so be sure to check back after the readathon ends.

During past readathons, I’ve gotten together with a couple of friends and we’ve read a couple of hours together, which was a lot of fun! We’re going to do the same this time around too. Around noon my time today, I’ll be over at Suey’s (It’s All About Books) house and shenanigans will be had between Suey, her daughter Tori, Kami (Kami’s Library Thoughts), and me.

Readathon TBR

I want to finish reading DEAR EMMIE BLUE by Lia Louis and start and finish THE HORSE AND HIS BOY, which is April’s installment for the Narniathon21. I also want to start the two read-along books for Wyrd & Wonder the Fifth, which begins tomorrow. The books are THE SUMMER TREE by Guy Gavriel Kay and THE DARKEST PART OF THE FOREST by Holly Black. I may start my IRL book club’s May book, CARVE THE MARK by Veronica Roth too.

Instagram Updates and Challenge Prompts

Here are the pictures I posted on Instagram during the readathon:

Totals

Pages Read: 404 pages
Time Read: 12h 7m 39s (according to Bookly)
Books Finished: DEAR EMMIE BLUE and THE HORSE AND HIS BOY
Books Read: I spent most of my time reading DEAR EMMIE BLUE. I listened to about 25 minutes of THE SUMMER TREE audio book and realized I’ll have to read the physical book because I can’t follow along. I spent quite a few hours reading THE HORSE AND HIS BOY, mostly trying to stay awake at the end of the readathon.
Comments: I read more during this readathon than probably all the other readathons I’ve participated in combined.

How did you do this readathon? Did you meet your goals?

I’m joining the Bout of Books readathon from May 9th to 15th. Since I’m taking a break from school this summer, I decided that Bout of Books would be a great way to spend my time that week.

For those of you who don’t know what Bout of Books is, here’s the official blurb from the Bout of Books blog:

The Bout of Books readathon is organized by Amanda Shofner and Kelly Rubidoux Apple. It’s a weeklong readathon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 9th and runs through Sunday, May 15th in YOUR time zone. Bout of Books is low-pressure. There are reading sprints, Twitter chats, and exclusive Instagram challenges, but they’re all completely optional. For all Bout of Books 34 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. 

From the Bout of Books team

At this point, I don’t know exactly what books will be on my official Bout of Books TBR, but I’ll post an update with my reading choices when Bout of Books begins.

Are you going to join in the fun?

Review: Stalking Jack the RipperTitle: Stalking Jack the Ripper
Author: Kerri Maniscalco
Series: Stalking Jack the Ripper #1
Genre(s): Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, YA
Pages: 392
Source: Own
For: Play Book Tag, Trim Your TBR Challenge
Rating:
Sexual Content: 1 Flames

Goodreads Amazon

Goodreads Synopsis

Against Audrey Rose's stern father's wishes and society's expectations, she often slips away to her uncle's laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine. When her work on a string of savagely killed corpses drags Audrey Rose into the investigation of a serial murderer, her search for answers brings her close to her own sheltered world.

My Thoughts

I’ve been fascinated by the story of Jack the Ripper ever since I was a teenager. I watched a couple of TV miniseries fictionalizing his rampage of terror with my parents and I often wondered who the real Ripper was and why he did what he did.

I’ve been excited to read STALKING JACK THE RIPPER ever since I knew the book existed. I just never took the time to read it. I’m so glad I finally did. I loved how Maniscalco wove the historical in with the fiction. I loved seeing the events of Jack’s murders through the eyes of Audrey Rose and the other characters around her.

Fear is a hungry beast. The more you feed it, the more it grows.

One of the things I loved about STALKING JACK THE RIPPER was reading about the science of the times. In Maniscalco’s author’s note, she said she tried to remain as true to the capabilities of the time as possible. I thought it was really interesting that even though most of society scorned the work of forensic scientists because they thought it ungodly and mad, scientists were able to do all they did without the many advancements we have today.

I loved the cast of characters in STALKING JACK THE RIPPER, including Jack. Even though I guessed who Jack was in the end, I was surprised how it all went down. It made for a fun, surprising ending that I really enjoyed. View Spoiler »

I’m glad I finally took the time to read STALKING JACK THE RIPPER. Even though I’ve watched several miniseries and movies about the infamous Ripper, this is my first book. I now want to read more books and see how they compare. I also look forward to reading more by Maniscalco as I enjoyed her writing.

Have you read STALKING JACK THE RIPPER? If so, what did you think?

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
Books I Put on my TBR Because the Covers are Purple

This week’s prompt is “Books with [___] on the Cover” and it comes with instructions. They are: Pick a thing (a color, an item, a place, an animal, a scripty font, a sexy person, etc.) and share covers that have that thing on the cover.

I’ll admit I often choose to read books based solely on how much the cover appeals to me. The cover’s the reason I first pick up the book to read the synopsis, getting the author’s foot in the door, so to speak.

Here are my top ten books I’m looking forward to reading (or I put on my TBR) because they have purple covers:

A couple of these books have been on my TBR for more than a decade. I’ll get to them someday … I hope, lol. Too many books, not enough time. Am I right? If you’ve read any of these books, please tell me which one I should read first in the comments.

I also want to share three books with purple covers I’ve already read and adored. They are:

I’m a sucker for purple and a gorgeous cover.

What about you? Which books with [___] on the cover are on your list this week?

Sunday Post and Sunday Salon are blog news memes hosted at Caffeinated Reviewer and Reader Buzz, respectively. It’s a chance to share news, recap the past week on your blog, and showcase books and other things.
Feeling

I’ve been feeling a little bit sad again for the past couple of days. Like I said last week, I’ll be graduating DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) in a few weeks. This means I’ll no longer go to group or see my therapist each week. My therapist will still be available if I need him. I just won’t have a set appointment day and time. I kind of feel like a fledgling about to be pushed out of the nest for the first time.

Blogging

This week on the blog:

Reading

I finished reading DREAD NATION by Justina Ireland last Sunday evening. You can read my review by clicking the link above if you want.

I started reading STALKING JACK THE RIPPER by Kerri Maniscalco this week. As I said last week, I’m fascinated by Jack the Ripper and, so far, I’m really enjoying this book. I love the banter between Audrey Rose and Thomas. I also think I know who “Jack the Ripper” is in this fictionalization. I hope to finish the book today.

I checked out DEAR EMMIE BLUE by Lia Louis because of Wendy’s charming review on her blog this week. I’m going to start reading that today, hopefully. Afterward, I’ll read THE HORSE AND HIS BOY for April’s Narniathon21 installment. Hopefully, I can finish both of these before next Sunday. Wish me luck, lol.

Listening

Whenever I feel sad, I love listening to “Dragostea Din Tei” or the “Numa Numa” song by O-Zone. I know this is a very polarizing song, lol. You either love it or hate it and I love it. “Dragostea Din Tei” can instantly put me in a good mood when I sing along to it.

Watching

I was so excited when I saw that season 5 of The Great Pottery Throwdown was finally available on HBO Max. I love The Great Pottery Throwdown so much and this season was so much fun. I loved all the contestants and enjoyed watching everything they made. My two favorite episodes of this season were 5 and 7. On episode 5 they had to make garden gnomes and on episode 7 they had to make sgraffito wildlife table lamps. I loved AJ’s gnomes and otter table lamp. AJ’s (they/them) style the whole way through the season was just so adorable and quirky. I always looked forward to seeing what they made. There are 10 episodes in total and I watched them all this week.

Corey and I also saw Fantastics Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore on Tuesday for my birthday. I really enjoyed it. I thought Mads Mikkelsen did a great job as Grindelwald. I really loved the story. If all the controversy surrounding the series kills the franchise, I think the ending was done in a way to give fans some closure. However, I look forward to the next installment if there is one.

Loving

I love my nails. I got my first mani-pedi in almost 6 months yesterday. It’s one of my favorite things to do in the spring, summer, and fall. (I usually take a break in the winter to help save some money.) I love wearing sandals, but only if my toenails look nice. Last year, I discovered as I was going through DBT that manis and pedis move me closer to one of my values and help me build a life worth living.

Wanting

I’m not sure I want to take any classes this summer. I know it’s good for me to stay busy. I also know school moves me closer to several values and help me build a life worth living. I just feel a little worn out after this semester with being as ill as I was for almost a month. Maybe taking the summer off would be good for me or maybe I need to suck it up and take the one class I was planning to.

Needing

I need to do really well on my trig final because I bombed my last test and got an 83% on the previous one. My teacher drops our lowest test score. I was hoping to do well on this last test so I could drop my 83%, but yeah. I got formulas mixed up and made really dumb mistakes. I was also pressed for time. Hopefully, I do well on the final.

How was your week? Anything exciting happen?

I’ve been learning in DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy) that life is full of dialectics, or two opposing truths. In this case, the two opposing truths are: 1) I don’t agree with JKR’s stance regarding trans people, and 2) I still love and will always love Harry Potter.
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