I’m going to be combing through old book tags from blogs to do these, even if I wasn’t tagged in them at the time, ’cause they’re fun and I have no shame. 😂

 

The A – Z Book Tag

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a | author you’ve read the most books from:

Christopher Pike, without a doubt! I’ve been reading him for 20 years, and it shows by sheer numbers of books read alone. He’s still one of my top favorites ever, and it’d be hard for me to narrow down which of his books I like best. The first I read of his was SPELLBOUND and I’d highly recommend that, or: MONSTER, ROAD TO NOWHERE, REMEMBER ME

b | best sequel ever:

Does Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire count? It’s technically the second in a series, which is sort of a sequel… right? It’s my favorite of the Wayward Children series, and involves two spooky twins and their adventure to horrorland.

c | currently reading:

Impossible James by Danger Slater! It comes out next month and I’m loving it so far.

d | drink of choice while reading:

Anything caffeinated! Coffee is good, but I also love tea & energy drinks.

e | e-reader or physical book:

Physical, please! I appreciate my Kindle & its convenience, but physical books are way better to photograph – which is a selling point for a bookstagrammer/blogger, let me tell you!

f | fictional character you would’ve dated in high school:

I was very, very in love with Ron Weasley. 🤷

g | glad you gave this book a chance:

Second Lives by PD Cacek! I’d seen some friends DNF it, but I went ahead with starting anyway, and was really glad I did. It wasn’t what I expected, but I loved it! I think the people DNFing it expected horror (which is what I expected, too!), but it ended up being sort of scientific-drama almost? I’m not sure how to describe it, but I really liked some of the characters.

h | hidden gem book:

The Murders of Molly Southbourne by Tade Thompson – I read this a couple of years ago on my Kindle, and just recently found out that a sequel is coming out in July. It’s so good! Plus, it’s only a hundred and something pages, so it’s quick to get through. Definitely check it out if you’ve not heard of it!

i | important moment in your reading life:

Finding the #bookstagram community has probably been one of the most important points in my life as a reader. I’d never had a lot of reading friends or family members growing up, so finally having a space to share my book talk & photos, and to see the same from other people that are friendly and encouraging, is a pretty great experience. I’ve had my bookstagram for almost a year now!

j | just finished:

A Penny For Your Thoughts by Robert Ford & Matt Hayward. One of the best parts of bookstagram is the ability for authors and readers to connect and help promote books before their official release. PENNY was a book I received from the super nice writing team in exchange for an honest review, which has been an easy one for me – I loved it!

k | kind of books you won’t read:

I tend to avoid straight up romance books. No shade at all to those who enjoy them – they just aren’t my thing! I actually tend to enjoy books more without romantic subplots, so the idea of an entire book with nothing but romance and a relationship being the main focus just sends me running!

l | longest book you’ve read:

IT by Stephen King, which I just read this past January! At 1,156 pages for the edition I read, it’s the longest thing I’ve read by a pretty wide margin! I finished it in just under two weeks, and loved it a lot.

m | major book hangover because of:

Haha, also IT by Stephen King! I just missed the Losers Club so much, and felt a bit empty after leaving Derry. I’m really excited for the new IT movie coming out later this year! The recent previews have me feeling SPOOKED!

n | number of bookcases you own:

This is tough, I had to actually mentally count them all – and this doesn’t include the random stacks of books around the house in other areas, but whatever! 9 total, including my book cart (which has 3 shelves that I’ve stacked back & foreward, so it totally counts).

o | one book you’ve read multiple times:

I’ve read the first Harry Potter book more times than I can even remember, and in multiple languages! “Mr. and Mrs. Dursley of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much.”

p | preferred place to read:

In bed, but only because comfort is king. I wish I had a big, comfy reading chair to lounge in! Maybe someday…

q | quote that inspires you/gave you all the feels from a book:

“Having to fight for the thing you want doesn’t mean you deserve it any less.” – Scrappy Little Nobody by Anna Kendrick

Anna Kendrick is one of my favorite celebrities, which is the only reason I bothered with this book if I’m being honest. I’m not someone that normally reads books written by actors / actresses unless there’s some huge dramatic scandal going on (yes, I like to be entertained, sue me!) – but Kendrick is awkwardly adorable and her cleverness is, yes, very entertaining! I listened to this as an audiobook, which is narrated by Kendrick herself – and she’s so good.

Another favorite quote from this one: “I think I need to become perfect all at once, so I keep getting overwhelmed and putting it off. I can’t remember the last time that I didn’t have something hanging over my head. There are usually about thirty to eighty things. Is that normal? Don’t tell me. If it’s not, I’m a jerk. If it is, that’s super depressing.” She’s not wrong. 🤷

r | reading regret:

Taking so long to read The Thief of Always by Clive Barker, or really, just Barker in general! I read THE HELLBOUND HEART and THE THIEF OF ALWAYS both so far this year, and I’m in love with his storytelling and voice.  THIEF is up there in my top 5 favorite books ever I think – I could picture everything so vividly!

 

s | series you’ve started and need to finish (all books are out):

The Dark Tower series by Stephen King! I started it with a readalong happening on bookstagram, but unfortunately sort of fell behind recently. It sucks ’cause I was really enjoying it – I finished The Drawing of the Three and loved it, so why haven’t I continued? I guess I just haven’t prioritized it, which needs to change! I really want to finish the series on schedule with the rest of the people reading it, so I’d better catch up. Plus, aren’t these editions beautiful?

t | three of your all time favorite books:

Hmm, I’m gonna try to go with three that I haven’t already mentioned somewhere in this post…

1. I Am Not Your Final Girl by Claire C Holland
2. The Ritual by Adam Nevill
3. Fantasticland by Mike Bockoven

u | unapologetic fangirl for:

Gwendolyn Kiste, forever. She’s an incredibly talented writer, and such a sweet human, with the best smile! I’ll auto-buy everything and anything she writes ’cause I know it’ll be amazing. I have a review of PRETTY MARYS ALL IN A ROW here!

v | very excited for this release:

Wilder Girls by Rory Power! I love the cover, the synopsis, everything. I need it like NOW!

w | worst bookish habits:

I sort of “destroy” my books, by most people’s standards. 🤷 I’m the kind of person that bends page corners, highlights quotes, makes notes next to passages about the symbolism between Character A’s weird quirk and Character B’s childhood trauma, etc, etc. I rarely borrow books from people because of this, and I normally don’t admit to it, hahah.

x | x marks the spot! start at the top left of your bookshelf and pick the 27th book:

I can’t recommend this one enough – it’s SO sad, but so good!

y | your latest book purchase:

Kealan Patrick Burke’s newest, WE LIVE INSIDE YOUR EYES, which I’m also hosting a readalong for right now!

z | zzz-snatcher book—last book that kept you up way too late:

This one gets the same answer as J! I finished A PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS at around 3 AM one day ’cause I refused to sleep without finishing it. So good, and I’ll have a review soon up on the Night Worms blog for it!