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  • Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Was Reading On This Day In The Past Ten Years

    Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Was Reading On This Day In The Past Ten Years

    Hi and welcome back to another Top Ten Tuesday post! This week’s topic is submitted by – or rather stolen from – Anne @ Head Full of Books and let me tell you, I’m glad The Storygraph entered the landscape of reading tracker apps, because this week’s topic is Books I Was Reading On This Day Over The Last Ten Years. The reason why I’m glad The Storygraph exists is that it’s easier to filter your stats and read books. I’m able to solely show my stats for August of the last ten years and can look at the books I’ve been reading on August 11 all those years ago. This is harder with Goodreads, because on that app it’s hard to filter. Impossible even. So, let’s take a look at the books I have been reading from 2025 till 2016! The final year might be a bit tricky, because I sucked at documenting my reading at that time, I started doing this religiously from 2017 onwards. Let’s see what I can find!

    Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

    Some books are sequels in a series, these are indicated with an *. This way you can decide whether you want to click the link directing you to the book page or not.

    As you can see, I wasn’t documenting this much of my reading back in 2016. I probably wasn’t even reading all that much at the time as I wasn’t active in the book community, I hadn’t even heard of such spaces back then. Thirdly, I was still in college, working on my bachelor thesis. So, hardly any time or feeling any urge to read. However, I’m not sure if I read more at that time, because I’m sure I also started picking up The Selection around that period. Anyway, I had several years where I was reading multiple books at once, only for my reading to slow down significantly afterwards. This is actually pretty interesting, as it’s really reflective of my reading behavior! Some books I even forgot about LOL.

    Do you find it interesting to see what books you were reading on this day years ago?

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  • Book Review: Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    Book Review: Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    Once upon a time, you come across a book that immediately grabs your attention and piques your interest. Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is such a book. The title doesn’t reveal anything about the content of the novel at all, but with this author you’re guaranteed a reading experience addressing urgent topics and serious themes. Another thing Adichie’s books have in common is that the characters have African roots, just like the author herself. Adichie hails from Nigeria, so do her characters. Was this novel able to uncover its mystery to me?

    About the book

    Book Review: Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi AdichieDream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
    Published by Knopf on March 4, 2025
    Pages: 399
    ISBN: 9780593803479
    Genres: Adult, General fiction, Literary fiction
    Rating: ★★☆☆☆

    A publishing event ten years in the making—a searing, exquisite new novel by the bestselling and award-winning author of Americanah and We Should All Be Feminists—the story of four women and their loves, longings, and desires

    Chiamaka is a Nigerian travel writer living in America. Alone in the midst of the pandemic, she recalls her past lovers and grapples with her choices and regrets. Zikora, her best friend, is a lawyer who has been successful at everything until—betrayed and brokenhearted—she must turn to the person she thought she needed least. Omelogor, Chiamaka’s bold, outspoken cousin, is a financial powerhouse in Nigeria who begins to question how well she knows herself. And Kadiatou, Chiamaka’s housekeeper, is proudly raising her daughter in America—but faces an unthinkable hardship that threatens all she has worked to achieve.

    In Dream Count, Adichie trains her fierce eye on these women in a sparkling, transcendent novel that takes up the very nature of love itself. Is true happiness ever attainable or is it just a fleeting state? And how honest must we be with ourselves in order to love, and to be loved? A trenchant reflection on the choices we make and those made for us, on daughters and mothers, on our interconnected world, Dream Count pulses with emotional urgency and poignant, unflinching observations of the human heart, in language that soars with beauty and power. It confirms Adichie’s status as one of the most exciting and dynamic writers on the literary landscape.

    My thoughts

    Before reading

    My first introduction to work by this author was when I picked up Amerikanah back in 2020 or 2021. Can’t really remember. The synopsis for this particular novel drew me in, but the execution wasn’t able to fully captivate me and therefore convince me. However, I always think authors should get a fair chance and I will be giving that by reading more of their books. So, when I saw Dream Count being significantly discounted, I knew this was my shot at a second chance for Adichie. Again, the synopsis drew me in, but my previous reading experience was still lingering somewhere in my mind. I therefore went into this reading adventure with modest expectations. This book is described as urgent, so I was keen on finding out why it is seen as such.

    Characters

    In this book, we follow four women who are somehow related to each other. The story starts of with Chiamaka, to be followed by her best friend Zikora, her niece Omelogor and her maid Kadiatou. They all live different lives, but have one thing in common: there comes a time they have to reflect on the choices they made in life and whether these were good choices. As this book is divided into four parts, all women get their own portion of the book and therefore their own voice. Adichie doesn’t switch points of view, she simply dedicates each part of the novel to one of the women. This way, we get to know them well, albeit to a certain extend. The problem with this way of storytelling however, is that it leaves little room to really elaborate on each individual character in depth. Therefore, these characters feel lacking. Their character growth exists of them reflecting on themselves, but it is hardly visible as their stories aren’t continued. At the moment they become interesting, Adichie jumps to another character. Therefore, these four women don’t really stick. All except one to be honest, Kadiatou. The other three, and especially Omelogor, are outright insufferable. I know they have tough choices to make, but most of them act their privilege and this makes them loose my sympathy very quickly.

    Writing

    Unfortunately, the writing isn’t much better. The author is not using difficult words or phrases – at least in Dutch –, but as this book mainly consists of the characters’ musings, it’s hard to find a logical order in the text. To me it feels like Adichie is jumping from one topic to another and this makes it hard for me to connect to the writing and therefore the book.

    Plot

    Even though the author addresses several important themes, this novel could be seen as plotless. Apart from the aforementioned inner musings of these characters and them reflecting on their lives, truly nothing happens. And if something happens, it barely gets followed up as it is connected to the aforementioned themes. All women have to deal with racism in the “promised land” they see America for, some more than others. However, Adichie doesn’t shy away from addressing the gap between rich and poor, wealth and privilege in Nigeria either. This way, the differences between the characters gain even more visibility. Apart from elaborating on such important social justice issues the book didn’t really manage to keep me intrigued. In fact, I was bored and was glad when I finished it. It is unclear to me what the aim of this story is, what does the author want to show or tell the reader? I truly can’t answer this question.

    Final thoughts

    I wasn’t sure what to expect from Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie at first, but I have to conclude that this is not the book for me. It isn’t inherently bad as the author explores several important social justice issues, but I just wasn’t invested. In fact, I was confused and so bored out of my mind that I decided to skim-read the final chapter. All women have inner musings the author puts on paper, but that’s about it. I understand this book’s appeal to other readers, but this is just not my genre and I just learnt this lesson the hard way. I have to admit that writing this review was hard as well.

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  • WWW Wednesday | 08/05/2026

    WWW Wednesday | 08/05/2026

    WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words, where bloggers share the books that they’ve recently finished, what they are currently reading and what books they are planning to read next. Essentially you have to answer three questions (the Three Ws): What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish reading? What do you think you’ll read next? Since I’m a mood reader, you have to take my last W with a grane of salt though. So, let’s take a look into my 3 W’s, shall we?

    What did you recently finish reading?

    Last week I’ve been reading several books. At first, I decided to DNF Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman. Although I made a pretty good dent in it in one sitting, I quickly lost interest and didn’t pick it up after. I had to conclude that this is just not the book for me. I’m not surprised to be honest, but I was hoping for a different outcome.

    Furthermore, I finally picked up The Wind Weaver by Julie Johnson. As I really enjoy another series by this author, my expectations for this romantasy were through the roof. Moreover, it has been a really popular book in the blogosphere and other parts of the community. I have to admit that I find myself getting a bit bored of this sub genre, perhaps this book could turn the tide. Whereas this was an enjoyable read, it lacks substance for me. I was a bit bored and expected some more action. I didn’t feel any tension or urge and am not sure whether I will pick up the sequel.

    Finally, I read The Ocean Would Paint Me Blue by Zoulfa Katouh. I wasn’t aware of this book’s publication until I saw it on Instagram a number of times. As Long As the Lemon Trees Grow was a novel I couldn’t put down a few years ago, so I again had high expectations. It definitely is an interesting story with some deeper layers added by the themes the author addresses, but it’s much more YA than Katouh’s aforementioned debut. Not that this is inherently bad, but it therefore was harder to truly get lost in the story for me. I still would recommend this book though.

    What are you currently reading?

    As you can imagine, it was time to pick up a new book. I started Heart the Lover by Lily King, but I only read a few paragraphs before falling asleep. However, I opted for another book instead, These Summer Storms by Sarah Maclean. I’m not too far in it, just a few chapters in. I therefore can’t judge it yet.

    What do you think you’ll read next?

    After finishing this book, I truly am not sure what to pick up next. I extended my TBR significantly, but I also have a seasonal TBR I still have to finish. To be continued!

    Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

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  • Monthly Wrap Up | July 2026

    Monthly Wrap Up | July 2026

    I keep saying this, but I can’t believe how fast this past month has flown by. July started with a holiday, but I already told you guys about that. I was hoping to return to blogging soon, but that failed miserably apart from the Top Ten Tuesday posts I published. But whereas I haven’t reviewed anything and therefore am still incredibly behind on reviews, I have read quite a number of books. And they were of alternating quality. I unfortunately had 1 DNF, but that is not the book’s fault. When looking at my monthly statistics, I found out I read more books than I initially thought, so let’s take a look!

    My read books

    1. Say You’ll remember Me by Abby Jimenez

    I bought this book as I found it for a discounted price, which seemed pretty reasonable for an author whom I hadn’t read back then. In the meantime, I did read one of Jimenez’ books, which still needs to be reviewed. I’m sorry. However, this premise slowly started to pique my interest, so I bought the book and left it on the shelf for a bit. I decided to pik it up on holidays, as it felt like an emotional yet fast-paced novel. I put it on my July TBR – which I never posted on my blog – so I was planning on reading it this month eventually. I have to admit that I enjoyed this book more than Part of Your World, but that it didn’t do any emotional damage to me. I do understand wy this author’s books do appeal to plenty of readers though, but I’m still not able to convincingly jump on the hype train.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired (April 2026)
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 06/30 to 07/01
    • Rating: 3.5/5

    2. Dire Bound by Sable Sorensen

    Some books are just unavoidable and this is one of them. It’s yet another romantasy and whereas I stated before that I’m growing a bit bored of this genre, I was still curious for this hyped book. I have to admit that I do understand the hype. Main character Merin is more feisty and fierce than her genre peers, but despite these character traits she doesn’t really stand out. The ending is pretty predictable, but I had an enjoyable time reading this on holiday. Enough so that I got myself the sequel.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired (April 2026)
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/02 to 07/04
    • Rating: 3.5/5

    3. Wish Upon a K-Star by Kat Cho

    Earlier this year I listened to Once Upon a K-Prom and really enjoyed this experience. Now I picked up its companion as it felt like a nice holiday read. I really had to get used to the audiobook narration, I wasn’t too fond of this at first. Luckily it grew on me, as there is no ebook available for this. Although it progresses pretty predictably, it still covers some really important themes in today’s society. If you’re looking for a book with KPop and fake dating alongside more serious themes, this is your go-to novel.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired (February 2026)
    • Read format: Audiobook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 07/05 to 07/06
    • Rating: 3/5

    4. A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross

    This was the first bitter pill I had to swallow this month. Whereas I rated A River Enchanted 5 stars earlier this year, this sequel was a letdown. The writing was still mesmerizing, but the story itself felt a bit sloggish. I found it quite unnecessary, and the ending of the previous book was a well-rounded ending for the story I believe. It therefore took me more than a week before I managed to finish it, I didn’t feel the urge to pick it up. I left it lying around for days.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired (March 2026)
    • Read format: Audiobook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 07/07 to 07/15
    • Rating: 2.5/5

    5. The Berlin Letters by Katherine Reay

    After the previous book I needed a change of scenery, so I decided to pick up this historical fiction novel set during the Berlin Wall era. Most of this book – apart from the prologue – is set in 1989, a turbulent few days in history. I did enjoy the concept, but didn’t enjoy the execution. The characters are falling flat for me, as well as the historical context. It was not bad at all, but I expected some more depth to the plot and characters. The characters bare more depth with them than said plot, but for me it wasn’t enough to be fully convinced.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/15 to 07/17
    • Rating: 3/5

    6. Did I Mention I Need You? by Estelle Maskame

    This book has been on my TBR since forever. Definitely a decade. I already finished the first book in this trilogy back in 2021, but I never followed it up with the sequels. Until now. I just needed something lighthearted. Well, this not truly is, as Maskame touches upon serious and heavy themes. They provide depth to the story, but are not able to disguise the tropes that were popular at the time. I still had an enjoyable time nevertheless.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/17 to 07/19
    • Rating: 3.5/5

    7. Did I Mention I Miss You? by Estelle Maskame

    I am usually not that kind of reader who reads (parts of) series back-to-back, but after finishing the previous book, I simply had no choice. I wanted to know how Eden’s and Tyler’s Story would continue. I again was glued to the pages, but it still counts as a palate cleanser for me though.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/19 to 07/20
    • Rating: 3.5/5

    8. Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman

    This is another book I simply could not avoid and I was truly curious about. Excited even. However, this book is not for me, I’m just not the right audience for it. This book is amazing for gamers, something I’m not. I mean, this story really would make a great video game, but just not a great book. I quickly lost all interest and never picked it back up.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/30 to 07/31
    • Rating: DNF @ 22%

    9. Zijn jongen by Carry Slee

    This is a Dutch book by a very renowned Dutch author of children’s and young adult books. I’ve devoured them all when I was younger, they are rightful classics of my youth. However, this author has also written some books for adults, mainly biographical ones. This is the newest addition to that part of the bibliography and I’ve been wanting to read it for a while now. I decided to listen to the Audiobook as I never bought an ebook.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Kobo Plus
    • Read format: Audiobook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/20 to 07/21
    • Rating: none, nonfiction

    10. On Wings of Blood by Briar Boleyn

    I’ve been hearing a lot about this book, mixed things mostly. I still was curious and wanted to decide for myself. Whereas it fits the popular and trendy romantasy formula on so many levels, I still had an enjoyable time. I even want to read the sequels, in hopes for them not to be disappointing for once. 

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired (June 2026)
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/21 to 07/24
    • Rating: 3.5/5

    11. Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

    This is another book that is simply unavoidable and also gets mixed reviews. I wasn’t sure whether I would like it, but I never know until I try, right? Admittedly, I still was pretty sceptic for a very, very long time. I was invested, but not really if that makes any sense. This changed towards the end, especially for the final few chapters. The pacing picks up there and the end made me think of something that has been all over the news here in the Netherlands a few years ago. I can’t elaborate more on that because of spoilers, but it really fell into place for me. I had to think about the rating though, because I really didn’t know how many stars to give this one. I’m not easily rating books 5 stars these days, so that’s what I was dwelling on. Should I give this novel all those precious stars or shouldn’t I?

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Other legal source
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 07/25 to 07/26
    • Rating: 5/5

    12. Finding Mr. Write by Kelley Armstrong

    I found this a few months ago for a nicely discounted price, so it wouldn’t hurt too much to try it. I never read anything by this author before, so had no clue what to expect. Rom-coms are usually not my cup of tea, so this was going to be interesting. This book is on a whole other level than the previous one, that was obvious from the get-go. It was okay, your typical palate cleanser that wouldn’t stick though. It’s a fast read, but it lacks depth.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired (April 2026)
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/27 to 07/28
    • Rating: 3/5

    13. The Goldens by Lauren Wilson

    Even though I’ve seen this book around a few times on the Dutch side of Bookstagram, I still bought it on a whim. The premise didn’t really sound like something I would typically enjoy, but I found it worth the try for that nicely discounted price. I haven’t seen this book around in the international book community though, so I wasn’t really sure of what to expect. Anyhow, I had an enjoyable reading experience. True, the characters made some questionable decisions, but it was indeed the fast-paced palate cleanser it was supposed to be according to my expectations. However, I don’t think it is too tense, but this could differ for other readers.

    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired (March 2026)
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 07/28 to 07/28
    • Rating: 3/5

    My bookhaul

    1. Fury Bound by Sable Sorensen

    Okay okay, I am totally caught of guard by my tiny bookhaul of this month! I was convinced I hauled more, but that’s just a nice surprise. I made up for this already in August though, trust me LOL.

    How was your July?

  • Top Ten Tuesday: How Am I Doing On My 2026 Backlist Titles?

    Top Ten Tuesday: How Am I Doing On My 2026 Backlist Titles?

    Hi and welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday post! This week’s topic is a throwback topic from 2022 and is Books I HAD to Have Immediately but Still Haven’t Read. I mean, I could go on and on and on with this list, but they end up on my backlist anyway. As this is pretty backlist adjacent, I decided to use this week as a moment of reflection. At the start of 2026, I compiled a list of backlist books I want to get to this year, and as we’re nearly in August, it’s time to check in on those. How many have I read so far?

    Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

    1. A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang – Let’s start off with a book I haven’t read yet, nor have I read anything by this author yet. I have to admit that I considered picking this one up numerous times, but always opted for another book.
    2. This Time It’s Real by Ann Liang – The same applies to this one, as it’s by the same author. Whoops.
    3. The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic – This is on my summer TBR actually, so I definitely should pick this up. But guess what? I Haven’t.
    4. Lavinia by Ursula K Le Guin – Nor have I picked this book up! I mean, I keep forgetting about its existence all the time.
    5. All the Feels by Olivia Dade – Haven’t picked this one up either, but I have to admit that it doesn’t really pique my interest anymore. The first book in this duology was just okay, but I used to buy plenty of books on a whim back then. And since I can’t sell ebooks, I just can’t unhaul it as it’s some money wasted.
    6. Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez – Finally one I have read, but I still haven’t reviewed it.
    7. Binding 13 by Chloe Walsh – No, haven’t read this one either. I heard rumors of a Dutch publication anytime soon, so I’m not sure if I just should wait on this one.
    8. Shiny Broken Pieces by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton – This post is probably getting boring to read, but I haven’t read this one either. I’m not totally sure why not.
    9. The Ravens by Kass Morgan and Danielle Paige – The same applies to this book and I’m truly not sure I ever will. This is the same situation as with All the Feels actually.
    10. The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston – Finally, let’s close this list with a book I did read and review! I quite enjoyed this one.

    Well, this is… not so good. From the 10 books I put on my backlist list, I only read 2. I notice that these never end up on one of my seasonal or monthly TBRs and that’s why they’re probably backlist titles. I have to admit that The Foxhole Court, Lavinia and the Ann Liang books only pique my actual interest. Oh and probably Shiny Broken Pieces. The rest? Not so sure. I just randomly pick some books at the start of the year LOL. Many of those are bought on a whim too, because I was totally not cautious a few years ago.

    How are you doing on your backlist titles?

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  • Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Live In My Mind Rent-Free Or Whatever That Means

    Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Live In My Mind Rent-Free Or Whatever That Means

    Hi and welcome back to another Top Ten Tuesday post! This week’s topic is a hard one for me to interpret as I’m not familiar with trendy language and English isn’t my first language either. However, Jana “stole” this topic from Damppebbles and Emma wants to know what books live in our mind rent-free. Does this mean something like books that immediately come to mind whenever you need to recommend one or more? I have no idea, but I’ll take it as such. I’m sorry if I completely misunderstood it. Anyway, here are books I keep thinking about when I need to recommend titles to people!

    Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

    1. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas – I don’t care that this author is seen as problematic on bookish social media where people seem to be unable to think for themselves, because I’m not diving so deep into an author’s life to dig up information. I care for the books and this is one of my favorite series.
    2. The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer – When people are looking for some easy sci-fi, this series is their go-to. And my go-to in terms of recommendations.
    3. Swimming in the Dark by Tomasz Jedrowski – This book is criminally underrated in today’s book spaces, but is the perfect recommendation whenever you are looking for a pride novel set outside the West.
    4. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara – A chonker with lots of serious themes. I admit that I had a rough start, but was totally blown away closer to the end.
    5. A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole – Please don’t judge this book by its title, because it might seem shallow at first glance. However, this story is very, very deep. Never expected to rate this book 5 stars.
    6. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid – Another book that doesn’t need an explanation I guess, I’ve read it multiple times.
    7. Babel by R.F. Kuang – Are you curious about colonialism, the importance of language and do you love dark academia? Then this might be one for you. This is still on my mind as I need to reread it, because I found it way and way too hard to grasp in English. It finally got a Dutch translation, so it’s finally time for a retry.
    8. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong – Books you keep thinking about do not necessarily have to be the ones you rated 5 stars. This one is such an example. I rated it 3 or 4 stars, but it keeps coming back.
    9. The Pearl that Broke Its Shell by Nadia Hashimi – If you want to feel all the emotions, this is your book.
    10. The Light of Luna Park by Addison Armstrong – This book is one I’d recommend whenever you want to read more about a subject in history that barely gets covered.

    What books keep coming back to you?

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  • Top Ten Tuesday: Books By New To Me Authors That Are On My TBR

    Top Ten Tuesday: Books By New To Me Authors That Are On My TBR

    Hi and welcome back to another Top Ten Tuesday post! I’m writing this post in advance, so whenever this post is published this list might have changed already. Still, I now have time and I want to avoid writing these posts last minute as much as I can. So today’s Top Ten Tuesday post topic is: Books I Want To Read By New To Me Authors. I scrolled through my long TBR and I have to admit that it’s hard to just pick ten, because there are so many books by authors who I never read before. I also wanted to avoid adding books I’ve added in past lists, to keep a wider variety in my posts. That proved to be a challenge as I often shelve books by authors I in fact, did read before. Well, want to know which books and authors I picked? Keep reading!

    Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

    1. Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman – Whoops, my attempt of adding different books is failing already as this one is on my TBR for this summer. Oh well. I haven’t read anything by this author though!
    2. A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow – I totally forgot about this book’s existence until I saw it on another top Ten Tuesday post recently, I can’t remember whose post it was though. However, It has been on my TBR for ages and I haven’t read it.
    3. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick – Okay okay, I haven’t read this peak YA classic, so it’s time to read it. I never read anything by this author anyway.
    4. Finding Mr. Write by Kelley Armstrong – You probably will be surprised when I tell you I haven’t read anything by this author yet, although The Darkest Powers is considered a YA classic when the genre was at its peak in the 2000s and 2010s.
    5. Twelve Kings in Sharakhai by Bradley P. Beaulieu – This author seems to be beloved among fantasy lovers and whereas I love me a good romantic fantasy, I often don’t do well on high fantasy. However, there is lots of praise for both book and author alike, so I guess it’s time to find out whether this is deserved.
    6. Kin by Tayari Jones – This author seems to be beloved by many, but I haven’t read any of Jones’ books yet. So when Kin crossed my path and the blurb immediately spoke to me, I knew what I had to do. Put it on my TBR.
    7. Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver – Another well-beloved author, whose books I haven’t read yet. However, this one is still on my TBR.
    8. The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel – This book also has been on my TBR forever, but I haven’t read anything else by this author either.
    9. Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth – I’ve seen this author being mentioned a lot, but I never read one of her books. This one keeps demanding my attention, so it’s time to change that as soon as possible.
    10. Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim – Another book that was hyped, and another author that seems to be beloved. However, I haven’t read any of Sim’s books, so I can’t judge at all.

    What books by new to you authors do you hope to read in the foreseeable future?

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  • Mid-Year Freak Out Tag: 2026

    Mid-Year Freak Out Tag: 2026

    It’s that time of year again, or actually it’s a little bit overdue. I often want to have this post up at the start of the second half of the year, but due to several reasons this didn’t happen. However, it’s still July, so it’s time to recap the first half of 2026. And what better way than doing this by the Mid-Year Freak Out Tag! I already have seen this tag being filled out by many fellow bloggers, and I did it several times as well. Compared to last year, my reading is progressing slowly, as I still haven’t met my reading goal of 50 books yet. Nearly though! Without further ado, let’s take a look about my findings of 2026 so far.

    1. Best Book You’ve Read So Far in 2026?

    To be quite frank, my reading is not extremely spectacular this year. Even though I’ve found multiple pretty nice books so far, most of the books I’ve read received a 3-star rating. Just because they were either not that good, or I just wasn’t vibing with them that much to deserve that prestigious 5-star rating. I’ve only rated 2 books 5 stars so far: A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross and A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole. I’ve totally lost my review mojo and it seems my ability to write them as well, so I haven’t written a review for the latter one yet. As I’m so incredibly behind, I’m not too sure if I ever will do so.

    2. Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far in 2026?

    I’ve read not even a handful of sequels so far this year and I notice I have quite a love-hate relationship with them. Devney Perry’s Rites of the Starling disappointed me greatly, and the same is happening to my current read, A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross. The first book in this duet were my first 5 Stars of the year, but with this one I just don’t feel the urge to pick up. However, I read Julie Johnson’s Torrid Throne and that was a nicely surprising sequel.

    3. New Release You Haven’t Read Yet, But Want To?

    I have to admit that new releases do not have my priority this year, I’d rather clean out the TBR as I have so many unread books on there. But if I really have to pick one, I’d go with Shadow Reaper by Lynette Noni. I confess that it literally took me 5 minutes to come up with this answer, I totally blanked out. That’s how out of the loop I am ha! But this book has been published mid June, so I actually haven’t had time to pick it up yet.

    4. Most Anticipated Release For Second Half of 2026?

    I only know of one and that’s the newest book in the ACOTAR series by Sarah J. Maas. I totally don’t know what else will be published this year LOL. This aforementioned book still doesn’t have a title yet though, isn’t that a bit odd?

    5. Biggest Disappointment?

    Ohhhhh too many to mention. Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy, Rites of the Starling by Devney Perry, The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E. Pearson, Metal Slinger by Rachel Schneider…

    6. Biggest Surprise?

    A Thousand Boy Kisses by Tillie Cole definitely is one. Judging by the title, you would expect a fluffy, yet shallow romance novel. Especially with the knowledge of this being a hype on TikTok, a platform that mostly can’t be trusted when it comes to popular books. They often lack quality. This one however, took a real deep turn and I loved it. It’s heartbreaking and trigger heavy, but all the more reason for me to enjoy it. I never expected this to happen honestly!

    7. Favorite New Author?

    I can’t decide on this yet, I always want to read more books by an author before I declare them a favorite or autobuy.

    8. Newest Fictional Crush?

    I still don’t do fictional crushes in 2026.

    9. Newest Favorite Character?

    I still don’t do this in 2026 either.

    10. Book That Made You Cry?

    Nope, still not a book cryer in 2026.

    11. Book That Made You Happy?

    I don’t like reading happy books, they lack depth and often end up with an average or even low rating.

    12. Favorite Book To Movie Adaptation You Saw This Year?

    Have there been any movie adaptations lately? See, that’s how out of the loop with new stuff and trends I am! Plus, I don’t watch TV, and movies fall in that same category. So you already know my answer. Moreover, the book is ALWAYS better.

    13. Favorite Review You’ve Written This Year?

    I don’t like my reviews that much anymore, that’s why I’m struggling so much lately. I feel like my review ability/mojo dried out, I just don’t know what to say anymore. I also feel like my review format is just not suitable for me, but I also don’t like the other formats I see on other people’s blogs. They don’t feel like they’re working for me either. I’ve tried writing different review formats, but nah. I end up deleting them. As you can see, I’m in limbo pretty deep.

    14. Most Beautiful Book You Bought So Far This Year?

    Same as last year, I only buy digital copies.

    15. What Books Do You Need To Read By The End of The Year?

    I want to knock as many books from my backlist of the TBR as possible. I really should check in on that though.

    This was my first half of 2026. To sum it all up, I’m in limbo. I enjoy reading, but feel lost on the blog and writing book reviews. Especially as I have to write them twice, in both Dutch and English.

    How has your first half of 2026 been going?

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  • Monthly Wrap Up | June 2026

    Monthly Wrap Up | June 2026

    July is already a few days old, but at the start of this month I was on holidays, so I had no opportunity to write and post my monthly wrap up. June however, was a bit of a two0-faced month. It started of pretty cold for the time of year, only to end with scorging heat. We had a heatwave on nearly the entire European continent, so that was agonizing. This influenced my reading quite a bit, but not in the way you would expect. I started pretty slow in the first half of the month, when it was still quite chilly, only to speed up when temperatures started rising. Other people slow down at that point, but not my reading. So, I ended up reading a total of 11 books this past month, more than ever before in 2026. To be fair, I opted for the easier books when summer really showed up, but this doesn’t mean I enjoyed them less. Want to know what books I’ve read? Keep reading to find out.

    My read books

    1. Tower of Dawn by Sarah J. Maas

    One of my 2024 reading plans was to reread the entire “ Throne of Glass’ series by Sarah J. Maas. I already read those books in Dutch, but now I wanted to reread them in English and as audiobook. However, this plan failed miserably as I quit my reread after the fifth book. However, I finally felt the desire to continue my rereading, so I picked up where I left off. Although I truly enjoyed this reading experience, it took me longer than expected to finish this book. Okay, it’s a brick, which makes for a longer audiobook, but it slowed down my reading nonetheless. Despite this, I hope to be able to pick up the final book as well for a reread this year, but that one is even longer. So, we shall see!

    • Set in: A fantasy realm
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Audiobook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 06/02 to 06/08
    • Rating: 5/5

    2. Ik mis je by Gillian King

    One of the reasons that my reading progressed quite slowly in the first half of the month is that I hardly picked up any book. But when I did, I chose books from my backlist. This Dutch romance has been on my TBR for a very long while and the time was finally there to pick it up. I had high expectations, but unfortunately they aren’t fully met. This book isn’t bad at all, but it was less emotional than I thought it would have been. It just lacked some depth for me which made it hard to feel connected to the characters. Truth be told, this author has written more books after this one.

    • Set in: Wassenaar, the Netherlands
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 06/10 to 06/10
    • Rating: 3/5

    3. Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters

    June is pride month and whereas I want to read pride books all year long, I always want to put an extra bright spotlight on those LGBTQIA+ books in June. I have plenty of them on my TBR and this novel is just one of them. However, it hasn’t been on my TBR constantly, as I lost interest at some point. Recently I found the ebook for a fairly discounted and reasonable price, so I had no excuse anymore to put off reading it. I planned to read this book in English, but I opted for the Dutch version instead. I’m glad I did so, because I already struggled with this story in my native language. Not due to the language per se, but due to the structure of this novel. It took me a while to get the hang of this, but whenever I understood how this book was built up, I still struggled too much with the characters and story itself. It addresses trans culture, which is very unfamiliar to me. I believe this book needs the right audience and I’m positive it found its audience within the trans community. I can’t judge on the experiences of these characters as I’m not the right person to do so, so I won’t be doing that. But this is my personal reading experience and although the themes interested me, I struggled too much with this book to understand its true value. It therefore failed to fully captivate me.

    • Set in: USA
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 06/12 to 06/16
    • Rating: 2/5

    4. Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone

    I have to admit that this is a bit of cheating that I’m doing here, because even though I finished this book, I need to reread it soon. Why? I already had the English edition lying around for a while, but I just couldn’t get into it. I didn’t know a Dutch translation was to be published, but this is out in the world now. During my time with this book I fell asleep countless times, because I was really tired and needed my summer leave to start. Furthermore, the story failed to captivate me, probably because I never gotten into it really. So, although I managed to finish this book, it will be reread in a short while.

    • Set in: New York
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 06/10 to 06/20
    • Rating: 3/5

    5. Fifteen Hundred Miles From the Sun by Jonny Garza Villa

    This year I’m doing pretty well clearing out my TBR, and this queer story is part of it. It’s young adult, a genre I don’t read all that often anymore. Still, stories with diversity continue to interest me, even if it’s YA. This book about a Mexican-American boy who experiences his coming out in an awkward way but still gains something beautiful from it, certainly falls into that category. It is absolutely not all rainbows and sunshine, as protagonist Julián has quite a few hurdles to overcome. Nevertheless, the book also radiates something positive, mainly due to the close-knit group of friends surrounding this mean character. Despite the many triggers this book can contain, it is still a story that offers hope for queer youth.

    • Set in: USA
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 06/18 to 06/21
    • Rating: 4/5

    6. Rosie Loves Jack by Mel Darbon

    And we happily continue cleaning up, because this book has been on my TBR for years as well. This is also a diverse young adult book, but not queer. The main character Rosie has Down syndrome and decides to leave home on her own in search of the boy she is in love with after he suddenly disappears from her life. What follows is an adventure through London with people who do not always have her best interests at heart. What is particularly striking is Rosie’s determination and will to do everything independently, but also that people still have a certain image of people with disabilities. For example, that they are dependent and that assistance is always needed. With this story, Darbon shows that not every disability is the same and that no two people with the same disability experience their disability the same way. Moreover, this book is a quick read, perfect for a sweltering summer day.

    • Set in: England
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 06/21 to 06/21
    • Rating: 4/5

    7. Burn For Me by Ilona Andrews

    After several contemporary novels, it was now time for a fantasy again. The beloved author duo Ilona Andrews have many books to their name, but are not yet well known in the Netherlands. It took more than ten years for this first installment in the “Hidden Legacy” series to be translated. And almost another a year before I picked it up. I had high expectations, but I noticed that they were not fully met. It’s an urban fantasy and while I don’t really mind that, I couldn’t really lose myself in it. I noticed that it all went a bit too quickly and that the characters did not develop enough for my taste. I was not really stimulated to continue reading, although the writing style is smooth. The ending neither makes me curious enough to want to pick up the sequel, so I don’t know if I ever will.

    • Set in: Houston, Texas
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 06/21 to 06/24
    • Rating: 3/5

    8. Stilte na de storm by Wendy Brokers

    It has been a while since I read a book by Dutch author Wendy Brokers, but when I saw this one I immediately became curious. It’s on Kobo Plus, so time to give it a listen. This is the first book in the “O’Brien” series, a series about three Irish brothers who have been living in the Netherlands for years. This story again contains intense themes, something that characterizes this author’s books. In any case, this made me want to continue listening, even though it was way too hot for depth at that moment. I didn’t have much else to do either. The end of Robin and Ilona’s story makes me curious about the second book, even though we follow another O’Brien brother. We continue to follow these characters from the sidelines and their story seems anything but finished to me.

    • Set in: Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Kobo Plus
    • Read format: Audiobook
    • Language read in: Dutch
    • Read from: 06/24 to 06/26
    • Rating: 4/5

    9. Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg

    This book has also been on my TBR for forever and is once again a queer YA. I didn’t really know what to expect from this, it had just been too long. Boarding schools are fun in a fantasy world, but it is still high school and I am twice the age of these main characters. Still, I enjoyed reading this contemporary story and that is once again due to the themes that the author addresses. Main character Rafe is completely out and proud, but he notices that people see him as that gay boy and not as who he really is without a label. When he goes to a prestigious boarding school, he decides to pretend to be straight and not tell anyone that he is gay. That goes well for a while, until he meets Ben. This story is not so much about falling in love and coming out, but mainly about what a label does to someone once that label has been attached. Do people still look at the person behind that label? This question is hardly asked in a book and that makes this story unexpectedly refreshing.

    • Set in: USA
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Backlist
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 06/27 to 06/28
    • Rating: 4/5

    10. Honestly Ben by Bill Konigsberg

    This is the sequel to the previous book, but with Ben as our lead. The story picks up where Openly Straight ends, but now we read from Ben’s POV. This is a completely different character than Rafe and this is especially reflected in how the family interacts with each other. Ben has doubts about his identity and is afraid of what will happen if he comes out. Yet finding your identity does not only play a role, this book is mainly about the performance pressure imposed by the environment in which you grew up. Although this is not an original theme, I did enjoy reading the story.

    • Set in: USA
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Other legal source
    • Read format: Ebook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 06/28 to 06/28
    • Rating: 4/5

    11. Falling For Korea by Piper Jean

    The last book I managed to finish this month is an accidental find. I was recommended this book on Audible, had one credit left and decided to give it a try. Books set in Korea are often about KPop, but that is not the case for this novel. It tells the story of American teen Sydney who one day is put on a plane to Seoul by her mother to support her godmother for a while. However, this turns out to be a lie, because Sydney has to go to school in Seoul and there is a lot of secrecy about her return to America. Her mother also suddenly seems to have disappeared from the face of the earth. What’s going on here? Much in this book is quite unbelievable and quite dramatic, but the author was clearly inspired by Korean dramas. And those are quite over the top. Although this book is unbelievable and wonderfully dramatic at times, the themes that Jean discusses provide deeper layers to the story. In any case, it offers a few hours of entertainment.

    • Set in: Seoul
    • Backlist or newly acquired: Newly acquired
    • Read format: Audiobook
    • Language read in: English
    • Read from: 06/28 to 06/30
    • Rating: 3.5/5

    Bookhaul

    1. Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
    2. Focus op mij by Bo Talisa
    3. Ride the Wave by Katherine Reilly
    4. Liefs van je Leen by Hilde Veeren
    5. Voordat we slapen by Siep Hendriks
    6. Grumpy Darling by Alexandra Moody
    7. Vind me aan de andere kant by Marlies Allewijn
    8. The Ocean Paint Me Blue by Zoulfa Katouh
    9. On Wings of Blood by Briar Boleyn
    10. Shadow Reaper by Lynette Noni
    11. Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
    12. The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez
    13. Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone (Dutch edition)
    14. Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez
    15. Falling For Korea by Piper Jean

    Even though June knew a slow stjart, I can be very satisifed with the month in general. I read more books than ever before this year, and the average rating for June was 3.59 stars. This is significantly higher than the previous months as well. Let’s hope I can continue this trend in July!

    How was June for you? Where you able to read many awesome books despite theheat?

  • Top Ten Tuesday: Books With The Word Summer In The Title

    Top Ten Tuesday: Books With The Word Summer In The Title

    Hi and welcome back to another Top Ten Tuesday post! I skipped last week as the topic was not too handy for me as I’m super out of the loop with new releases. One of my reading goals for this year is to declutter and read as many backlist books on my TBR as possible, so focusing on new releases is not on my priority list. Moreover, I was on holiday, so the circumstances to bloghop weren’t ideal. I therefore decided to skip last week and come back this week. However, I’ll take it easy, as I have so much catching up to do on both my blogs! What about 20+ reviews? Yes, still… So as today’s topic is kind of a freebie as we’re allowed to pick any word we fancy, I decided to go with Books with the word “summer” in the title. I just returned from my summer holidays after all. Again, this list doesn’t necessarily contain books I have read or are on my TBR, there could be a random pick in it as well. Without further ado, let’s take a look at my 10 picks for books with the word summer in the title!

    Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

    1. The Summer I turned Pretty by Jenny Han (random pick)
    2. Summer in the City by Alex Aster (random pick)
    3. This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune (read, review)
    4. Just For the Summer by Abby Jimenez (TBR)
    5. It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey (read)
    6. These Summer Storms by Sarah MacClean (TBR)
    7. Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan (random pick)
    8. Till Summer Do Us Part by Meghan Quinn (random pick)
    9. The Second Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares (random pick)
    10. The Summer Guests by Tess Gerritsen (random pick)

    Have you read any of these books? And what book(s) with the word “summer” in the title come to mind for you?

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