5 Signs You’re A Book Blogger

Here are some signs you’re a full-fledged book blogger:

1. You haven’t read that book someone gave you three years ago.
2. Your to-be-read (TBR) list alone could sink a cruise ship.
3. Reading slumps are your worst enemy.
4. You can write a book review with your eyes closed.
5. Your bank account is empty, but your bookshelves are full.

Pick One: Fiction Tropes

Below I pit two fiction tropes against each other and pick the one I prefer.

Overly protective brother overly protective father?

Brother. I love this trope so much.

Haters to lovers or lovers to haters?

Even though I’m not the biggest romance reader, I enjoy a good haters to lovers storyline. Certainly more than love at first sight, gets married next month.

Haters to lovers or enemies to friends?

Enemies to friends. I’m here for platonic relationships.

Love triangle or love square?

I don’t love either, but I’ll go with a square. The more the merrier, I guess.

Rags to riches or riches to rags?

The former. I want characters to succeed.

A hero or an anti-hero?

Anti-hero. Not everyone can be brave and courageous or save the world, am I right?

Vampires or werewolves?

Thanks to Christopher Pike, vampire books gave me life as a teenager.

Funny friend or smart sidekick?

Give me both any day, but I often relate to a smart sidekick more. I’m just not funny.

Real dating or fake dating?

The latter all the way. It’s fun reading about people who have to pretend they’re in love.

I’d love to know which fiction tropes you would pick.

My Reading And Reviewing Journey In 2018

In 2018, I wanted to branch out and broaden my reading horizons. I also wanted to publish more book reviews on this blog.

As of now, I’ve read 42 books. I somehow managed to review most of them as well.

I read and review because I love stories. If I care about the characters, then I probably care about the story as well.

I’m excited. I can’t wait to see what 2019 has in store for me. I already have several books shouting at me on my bookshelf.

I’m so beyond grateful. I can’t thank you all enough for reading this blog, especially my book reviews.

In 2019, I hope to read even more and broaden my horizons further. I’ll continue to write reviews and blog about books.

Would You Rather: Bookish Edition

Would you rather only read the first book or the last book in a series? The first. I don’t want to be completely lost

Would you rather never go to a bookstore or a library ever again? Bookstores. I love libraries too much. I can always buy books online.

Would you rather live in a fictional world or have fictional characters live in your world? I want to live in a fictional world. That’d be fun.

Would you rather buy every book or borrow every book? I love buying books. My bank account doesn’t however.

Would you rather read out loud or listen to someone read to you? Read out loud. I don’t do it often enough.

Would you rather always bring a book with you or never be able to? Always bring a book. Ebooks make this much easier.

Would you rather throw a book into a fire or into water? Water. I don’t have what it takes to burn a book.

Would you rather eat dinner with your favourite author or favourite character? I’ll pick the brain of an author any day.

Would you rather spoil a book for someone else or have someone spoil a book for you? I can’t stand spoilers. So I’m going to spoil a book or ten for someone else. Sorry not sorry.

Would you rather have to recommend books you hate or be recommended books you hate? Be recommended books I hate. What an awful life either way.

Would you rather only read at home or on the go? I’m such a homebody. I do a lot of reading at home. I’ll survive doing other things on the go.

Confessions Of A Book Reviewer

• I don’t always remember to write a review after finishing the book. My memory isn’t what it used to be.
• I copy the same template for all my reviews. My reviews would be a mess if I didn’t structure them.
• I forget some details. Sometimes I’ve even looked up the protagonist’s first name.
• I don’t take notes while I read. Maybe I should.
• I love reviewing physical books. More often than not, they’re fiction. But hopefully one day, I’ll get around to reading more nonfiction.
• I finish every book. I feel like it isn’t fair to the author or potential readers if I only read and review half the novel.
• I use the same phrases in my reviews. There are only so many ways to say I recommend a book.
• I don’t write in books. I can’t do it. At most, I’ll write on a sticky note to mark a specific passage or page.

A Reader’s Thoughts In A Bookstore

I read this. I need to read that. I own this one already.

What a great deal. Wow, how expensive.

I don’t need to buy more books, but I want them all.

That’s cute. Oh my god, it’s so pretty.

My wallet is going to hate me. I better not spend over my credit limit.

What a beautiful cover. Yes, please.

I remember reading that forever ago.

Oh, boxed sets are the best.

It smells amazing in here. I need to buy a perfume that smells like old books.

I could sit here all day and read. But I should go home and read the book I started.

It’s getting late. It’s dark out already? I’ve been here for how long. Two hours? I don’t have anywhere else to go though.

You know what would be perfect right now? A coffee. Tea doesn’t sound too bad either. I’m thirsty. Come to think of it, I’m hungry too. Maybe I should get something to eat, so I don’t starve to death.

I wonder how many books I can carry before I break both arms. How much is too much?

No one can ever have too many books. I’m running out of space on my shelves. I’ll make room.

I really ought to sell some of my books. I could use the money to buy new ones.

I should borrow from the library. Will I have enough money for food if I spend most of my pay check on books? Why do humans have to eat anyway? Stories are nourishing.

What should I buy? That looks interesting. Let me take a picture of all of these, so I can check them out later. Am I really a reader if I walk out of a bookstore empty-handed?

It’d be cool to work in a bookstore. I wonder what that’s like. I wonder if they’re hiring. I could tell them how much I love reading on my resume.

Underrated Talents Reader Possess

• Forgetting everything they just read but remembering something they read ten months ago.
• Lying to themselves when they say “one more chapter”.
• Navigating their way around bookstores and libraries.
• Spotting red herrings a mile away.
• Reading multiple books at once.
• Recommending great reads on demand.
• Organizing their shelves by colour, genre, and height.
• Picking up a book but not putting it down.
• Keeping snacks on hand.
• Owning novels they haven’t read.

Why I Love Books But Hate Showing People My Bookshelves

I love books. I love reading. But I don’t know why I don’t like showing people my shelves.

Maybe I’m just weird.

A lot of my relatives don’t read. You can’t pick family, right? At least, my best friends read.

I’m all for being surrounded by books. It brings me so much joy to look at my shelves. But I don’t love the prospect of someone else staring at it.

My younger cousin walked into my room one time and proceeded to count how many books I owned. I was curious and mortified at the same time.

Since then, I’ve added many more to my ever-growing collection. It’s grown so much bigger than I expected. So now I’m way too lazy to count all the books I possess.

I’m not embarrassed by my shelves. If anything, I’m quite proud.

My one issue is that I only have one bookcase.

At the rate I’m buying books, I’ll need an entire room to store them all one day. Hopefully, by the time I run out of space, I’ll have the means to move out into my dream house. A girl can dream.

I think you can tell a lot about a person by looking at their bookshelves. I wonder what my collection would say about me.

I love books, but I don’t love showing people the shelves in my room. I’m not the biggest fan of sharing my babies either.

I’m strange. But that’s okay.