My Shelf-ish Week #66

 What I’ve Been Writing:

So… I didn’t make my goal of finishing my story by the end of August. #Sadness. Which means, new goal. Starting at the beginning of September, I’ve been committed to not-going-to-bed until I have a thousand words written each day. And it’s been working. Feels like my flow may actually be returning.  Hopefully, anyway. The story is at 137,000 words right now.

What I’ve been Reading: 

I’m still working on the same book I was trying to get through two weeks ago.  Not making much progress. 

What I’ve Been Putting on My Shelves: 

I’ve gotten three awesome books in the past week. Say hello to Storm Caller, The Silversmith, and The Knave and the Moon.  Last week, I picked up the Bookish Box edition to Sea of Charms, and I had to have a copy of Spark of the Everflame, Glow of the Everflame, and Heat of the Everflame.

My Shelf-ish Week #65

 What I've Been Writing:

I'm ashamed to report that I'm not meeting my goal. I only got about 2,000 words written this week. I was hoping to crank out 2k a day. But real life, man... It's been dragging me down like crazy. It was the first full week of school for the kiddos, but actually, that went pretty smoothly. I'm gonna blame the day job for all my stress. There have been so many changes and extra work recently, and it's taken up so much mental space that I feel too brain dead for a creative writing flow afterward. And writing is my happy place. So I'm just feeling worse and worse. It's all made me realize what an amazing and supportive husband I have, though. At least he (aka: my other happy place) is keeping me somewhat together. Needless to say, this week was a low week. I'm getting tired of low weeks. Really ready for things to start looking up again. And oh yes, sorry. I'm supposed to be talking about my story. It's at 129,000 words right now. Sadly, it still feels like there's a lot left to tell. My ideas to tie it up keep morphing and changing and growing longer. So...yeah. There's that too. Here's hoping next week is better.

What I've Been Reading:

I'm working my way through a book that I might not finish reading. I probably should, though. I bet I'm just struggling because other stuff is making me feel cruddy. That's not the poor book's fault.

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves:

I've made a plan to buy fewer books...and then I bought three more books to console myself over that decision. But at least these were super cheap--three brand new paperbacks for less than $8 altogether, y'all. Who could say no to that? Anyway, I might not be getting as many new books in the future... starting in 2027.  Some cool shit still showed up in my mailbox this week, though! This is what I received:

• Strawberry Patch Pancake House (from TikTok)
• Lights Out (FairyLoot)
• Caught Up (FairyLoot)
• Game on (FairyLoot)
• Immortal Rose (Amazon)
• The Poison Daughter (Amazon - Most excited to read!)

And that's been my week. Sorry for all the personal TMI. I just needed to unload some of the ugh from my head.

My Shelf-ish Week #64

 What I've Been Writing:

Still working on Book 2 of the True Heir Duology: Night Giver. My goal to finish it by the end of August is...not going as well as I'd hoped it would. But I'm getting a little writing in. It's at 127,000 words written.

What I've Been Reading:

I've gotten two books read in the past two weeks. My favorite of the two is Daggermouth by H.M. Wolfe. And when she says it's an enemy-to-lovers dystopian romance, it is definitely an enemy-to-lovers dystopian romance.  I was hooked all the way to the end.  And then I finished Verity Guild as well. Both ended on cliffhangers, leaving me needing to know what happens next.

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves: 

I've gotten all kinds of goodies since we last talked. I started out the month with 

• One Shattered Crown, 
• Daggermouth, and 
• Adversary to the Villain. 

Then, a few days later, my Allurial Book Box came in, containing:  

• The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy,
• The Night Prince,
• A Dance with Death,
• A Bargain So Bloody,
• The Dark in Her Veins, and
• Steelborn.

I tried out the AcryliPics 3D Subscription and ended up with

• These Immortal Truths.

And then my shipment from Fairyloot came in with some Boys of Tommen:

• Binding 13,
• Keeping 13,
• Saving 6, and
• Redeeming 6.

And that's what's been up with me these past few weeks in the bookish world.

My Shelf-ish Week #63

 What I've Been Writing:

Literally nothing. I haven't written anything. Not in two full weeks. I think I'm broken. But I've given myself a deadline. The rough draft for Night Giver must be finished by the end of August.  We'll see if I can actually pull that off. (Wish me luck.)

What I've Been Reading:

At least I can still read books! I really enjoyed The Games Gods Play and The Things Gods Break. OMG, Book 2 is so crazy and twisty. Then I read Beach Read...wait for it...on THE BEACH!! Eeek. For our first time visiting a beach on the ocean, my family went to Florida last week, and my hubs is now officially a beach boy. He wants to go back every year (as if we could afford that). When we returned, I read the new YA Thriller by Elle Kennedy's pseudonym: Thornbird.

What I've Been Buying:

I received my July Fairyloot subscription book, which was called The Lure of Wolves and Whispers. It's got some pretty green colors going on.  Then my autographed edition of Prince of Swords came in from Books-A-Million. And I purchased Ruinous Ends.

That's it. That's what's been up with me. This next week, I'm really going to concentrate on WRITING. I swear.

My Shelf-ish Week #62

 What I've Been Writing: 

I got a few new words written for Night Giver. And maybe a cover I can live with! Plus a funky plot twist idea I hadn't been expecting before. It's at 120,000 words right now.

What I've Been Reading: 

I finished Project Hail Mary and loved it. Rocky and Ryland's relationship was chef's kiss!  Now I'm working my way through The Games Gods Play, and I'm really enjoying it !

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves:

Oh boy, do I have a neat line-up of books this week to add to my shelves!  I ordered a signed copy of Wings of Life from Novel Grounds (Yay!). Then got the Blood Type trilogy plus Star Bringer and the publisher's special edition of Rings of Fate to complete my Entangled Red Towers Books collection. After that, I completed my Off Campus special edition collection with The Legacy and The Goal. And I found a sweet copy of Thornbird with sprayed edges online at Bookish Signs and More that I just adore!  And that's been my week. 

Hope you have a great World Emoji Day. I probably won't be back until the 31st!

My Shelf-ish Week - #61

 My Inner Author:

I've done some (still not much) writing on Night Giver these past few weeks since I last checked in with you. It's at 118,000 words long, and I've changed up a couple of plans I had for the rest of the book, so we'll see how that goes.

My Inner Bookworm:

I've finished both Robin on the Oak Throne and Raven at the Ash Door. I was so sure the plot was headed in this one certain direction (That Lorcan has somehow gotten Graves' soul...maybe from the first time he killed him), but it didn't go that way at all. So that kind of bummed me out until the twist ending of Raven, which got me all kinds of intrigued about how that's going to pan out. 

Then, I was going to start reading The Games Gods Play.  But my co-worker turned in a book at the library where I have my day job, and I just casually flipped open to page one because...I have no idea why. And I was instantly in it.  So I guess I'm reading Project Hail Mary instead, which is so far off from my usual reading preference that it's crazy (I mean...there's no romance at all. And it's full of science and math that goes way over my head). But I love how it's written, so I'm hooked! I'm just hoping I can hold out until I finish reading the book before I let myself watch the movie.  We shall see!

My Inner Book Dragon:

Ooh, I have collected quite the pretties into my lair; yes, I have! I've decided that since I only needed five more to go until I had every book published by Entangled Red Tower Books that I was going to make it a mission to collect all of them: hence Nobody's Quest (And I have four more on the way, which will then complete my quest...until the next book publishes in August, and I'm forced to buy that too!).

And then I had quite a few Allurial Book Box books arrive in my mail. So say hello to: 

• The Wolf and the Crown of Blood,
• In the Wake of the Ruined,
• The Mortal Trials,
• Forsaken Prophesy,
• Dominion,
• Eclipse of the Crown, and 
• The Winged Game.

I also have The Night Prince set to come my way from Allurial in August, but I'd already gotten the publisher's version. On the flip side, I already had only the Allurial edition of The Wolf King, so then I had to get the publisher's version of that in order to have matching sets of both editions (I know; that logic only makes sense to another fellow book dragon, but trust me, it's very logical).

And that is what's been up in my shelf-ish world in the last two weeks. Have a great National Piña Colada Day out there, you hear. Hugs!

My Shelf-ish Week #60

What I've Been Writing: 

I think (hope) I'm over the pity party I was throwing myself last week. I had a couple of dozen more sales on Day Robber after it released. But I'm not yet having much luck getting back into writing again. My muse is on vacation, I believe. Every time I opened Night Giver, determined to dig in and just write something, even if it was all crap that would later be scrapped, I'd get interrupted. And when I finally had time to get back in again, the procrastination had set in once more. And it'd take a while of mindless doom scrolling on my phone before I returned to the "okay, let's do this" frame of mind, only to get interrupted when I actually tried to do it, repeating the pattern in a wheel-spinning loop. So I've only gotten a few thousand words written in the last few weeks. But I guess that's better than nothing. The word count is at 114,000 right now.

What I've Been Reading: 

I started a story that I couldn't, for the life of me, get into. So I set that aside when North Country arrived on Tuesday. I'll finish that before the end of the day, so I'm calling it read this week. 

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves:

North Country is also on this week's Stacking my Shelves list. I had it pre-ordered to arrive from the Zon last week. But they were running way behind, so when I received a newsletter email from the author on Saturday, saying there were still signed copies available at a list of certain stores, I canceled my Amazon order and got the signed copy instead. It arrived on Tuesday, and I started it immediately.  Then I got a different edition of Stormside that was for sale on TikTok because I liked its look better than the Target edition I had. My special edition of The Inadequate Heir arrived this week. Signed!  This is probably my favorite book by Danielle Jensen (yes, all because of Keris), and she's, like, my favorite author at the moment, so I'm happy to have that copy. And then I got the new edition of Torn, and ooh! I forgot to mention last week that I received Slaying the Shadow Prince, so I'll give it a little shout-out this week. Welcome to my collection, Shadow Prince. I ordered it back in September of 2025 from Aurora Crate. It was a happy surprise to finally see it hit my shelves.

And that was the ups and downs of my shelf-ish week. Hugs. Hope you have a great National Chocolate Pudding Day. 

My Shelf-ish Week #59

 What I've Been Publishing: 

Day Robber releases today! It's available on my website (LindaKage.com), plus places like Amazon, Apple, BN, Kobo, and Google. After putting a year of work into this one and being super excited to share it, I had a record low of seven pre-orders (well, there were eight, but someone returned theirs before release day). So now, I'm just kind of hanging on and trying not to spiral into a bad place.  I really hope those seven people like it, though. (Thank you, seven people! I love you.)

What I've Been Reading: 

Had lots better luck with books I've been reading than books I've been writing, at least. That's something. I finished Mistakes Were Made and The Wind Weaver.  I really enjoyed them both. Need the next book from both authors asap. 

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves:

Got two new books for my shelves this week. There's the third book in the Oak & Holly cycle: Raven at the Ash Door.  And the last book I needed to finish my Danielle L. Jensen collection: Tarnished Empire. Hoping to get started on reading both of these in the next month or so.

My Shelfish Week #58

 What I've Been Writing:

Hey, I actually did a bit of writing on Night Giver (which used to be called Defectors and Queens) this week. I mean, not much, but I'm slowly getting back into the groove of working on a story again. Maybe there will be more words next week. The manuscript is at 112,000 now. 

What I've Been Reading:

I was a reading fool this week.  I finished Shadow Reaper and ended up really enjoying it.  But then I started The Wolf King and just flew through those pages. Wow. But good golly, Miss Molly. I loved The Night Prince even more. And double wow. I'm a total Blake girl. Not even gonna apologize about it, even though Callum is fine too. Blake is just...asdfjkl...you know. I knew there were two love interest options and it was about shapeshifting wolves, so I was a little worried that my own Day Robber book would have some similarities. And yeah, it does. I totally follow a formula, I guess. But there are way more differences.  And after that, I needed some contemporary romance in my life, so I read the rom-com Story of My Life, and guys... This one was amazing too. I've been overloaded with really great books lately. You could call me book blessed, I guess. Hopefully, my good book reading streak continues.

 

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves:

So I got sucked into the Maxton Hall series on Amazon Prime and finally bought that book trilogy. Hopefully, I'll actually read them someday.  Then, I got the deluxe edition of Skyshade.  This series always has really cool artwork in the pages. And Dhampira was my Allurial Book Box of the month choice. I think it's a why-choose romantasy.  Kind of looking forward to reading that one!

Weekly Check-in #57

 What I Wrote This Week:

No new words written this week, sorry!  I've been trying to make promotional stuff for the release of Day Robber.  But next week, I plan to get back to work on Night Giver (formerly called Defectors and Queens).

What I Read This Week: 

I DID return to reading, though!  I finished Broken Dove, and oh Lordy. The cliffhanger definitely hangs. I really should've held off until the third book got here before starting this because this may be a long, painful wait. But I just need MORE!!!  

Then I started Shadow Reaper. I was really distracted by life stuff (okay, doom scrolling) at first, so it was hard to focus on it for a minute, but I think I'm going to get into it more soon because it definitely has all the elements I love to read.

What I stacked on my Shelves This Week:

I am well on my way to collecting all the Danielle Jensen books there are. This week, I added Scorched Earth to the pile, and I have more on the way. Then I got two new-to-me authors to sample.  Shadow Reaper by Lynette Noni and Kissed by the Gods by Caty Rogan. Excited to read both, even though I did a quick inventory of how many books I have on my physical, already-in-my-house, waiting, To-Be-Read pile. It was around 175. Yikes.

Anyway, that was my shelfish week (You know...I may start naming this series My Shelfish Week instead of Weekly Check-in from here on out!)  Hope you have a great National Donut Day. 

Weekly Check-in #56

What I've Been Writing:

Guess what!  I am done editing Day Robber (Formerly Impostors and Thieves). It's releasing in ebook and paperback on June 20th! Oh, and I have a cover for it too!  Yay. That was a long project to work on. It came in at 550 pages long / 149,323 words.

What I've Been Reading:

Didn't read a new book this week. Was too busy getting my own story set up for release and trying to make promotional stuff for it. But I've been watching The Burroughs with my hubby. I'm actually liking it quite a bit.  I mean, not as much as Off Campus, but I'm hooked. 

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves: 

It was a very slow week for book purchasing too. I got a used copy of Allurial's version of To Cage a Wild Bird. 

Weekly Check-in #55

 What I've Been Writing: 

Impostors and Thieves is changing its title to: DAY ROBBER. (Or changing back to it because I think I had that as an option before). It just looks better on a cover and will match better with Book 2, which will be Night Giver, something that's a hell of a lot better than Defectors and Thieves. I'm almost done (after a full YEAR of working on this story) editing and going through Day Robber, and I think I'll self-publish it in June. So be on the lookout for that. It's at 148,862 words right now.

What I've Been Reading:

I finished Fury Bound and am totally ready for the third book whenever that releases in...July, I think. But I haven't gotten through anything else in the past two weeks. Too buy working on finishing up editing Day Robber. But my next read is Broken Dove.

What I've Been Stacking on My Shelves:

Mostly I've just been collecting new books lately!  There's been so many I don't even want to put the effort into naming them, so I'll just show you a picture!  And that's been the last few weeks for me. 

Weekly Check-in #54

 What I've Been Writing:

I fully intended to set aside the romantasy duology I'd been working on since last June and just get into Book 6 of my Seven series already. Except...every time I tried to work on anything else, my mind kept wandering right back to these two freaking books. They're nuisances, I tell you! Which means, I am currently re-reading Impostors and Thieves--except I'm pretty sure I'm going to change that title...again. After setting it aside for a minute (okay, a month), it's so fun and fresh to read. Someone out there is going to love the banter, humor, romance, and adventure that this book offers them; I know it. I just have to figure out how to get it to you.

What I've Been Reading: 

My friend at the day job was like, "Oh, Linda, you're going to love this book. I'll put it into your office mailbox to read." So I was stuck reading A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins this week. It was not at all the type of book I love to read, but I was able to get through it. And if I can get through something that's non-romance, then I figure it must be pretty good for its genre.

After that, I needed a total romance dive, so I reread/skimmed my way through The Deal, The Mistake, and The Score by Elle Kennedy before the Off-Campus series drops on May 13th (yes, I'm so jumpy excited to watch Garrett Graham in action). Except, I got to this scene in The Score, and was like, "Wait a second. Why does this sound so familiar?" So I opened one of my own books and did a little search to find a scene that's very similar. I was like, "Holy crap, did I get my idea from this?" I one-hundred percent do not remember reading it in The Score, but I do remember being all giggly and proud of myself when I wrote it, thinking, "I'm so original." Ugh. I'd read the scene nearly a decade before, and it must've just been hanging out in my subconscious, waiting to come back out. So now I'm all humbled and beaten down and depressed that I'm not as clever as I thought I was.

After my Elle Kennedy refreshers, I picked up Fury Bound by Sable Sorensen and am working my way through reading her masterpiece. (Yes, I'm loving it so far.)

What I've Been Collecting:

Got six new books this week. 

• Dark Shores and Dark Skies by Danielle Jensen. (Had some Amazon credit I used to get them.)
• Fury Bound by Sable Sorensen (Eek! Excited to finish this.)
• Storm Breaker by Nisha J. Tuli (Because I loved the cover and edges.)
• Seek the Traitor's Son by Veronica Roth (my Book of the Month Club pick from my May box.)
• And then I completed my Bridgerton special-edition set by getting On the Way to the Wedding.

I asked my ten-year-old to give the books a photo shoot. I didn't realize she would go so artsy, so I added the boring spines and edges pictures so you can see their titles and pretty edges in their original state. And that's been my shelfish week. Have a great National Have a Coke Day!

Weekly Check-in #53

 What I've Been Writing:

This week, I wrote nothing, sorry. No new words typed. I'm probably going to pivot and work on something new next week. But I've read two books and bought two books, so at least I have something shelfish to talk about!

What I've Been Reading:

Dire Bound - So last week, I was all like ooh, Tempest Blade was my favorite book of the year. Bla, bla, bla. And then, directly after that, I read Dire Bound, which was...wow. Then, double, triple, and quadruple wow. So now I'm confused. They were both just soooooo good. I'm pretty sure I'm dropping everything and reading Fury Bound as soon as I get my grabby hands on it after it releases next week.

When Life Happened - I actually loved this story, but I could also agree with people's arguments if they didn't like it. I mean, it kind of makes a case for cheaters, which is like bleh to me. But it's still such a good book. And that plot twist...most unexpected thing I think I have ever read in my life. I was sure it was a spoof and not real for the longest time, and I had to keep going back to the page where everything turned on its head to make sure I read it right, but nope...it really happened. I read it right. It was pure, crazy goodness.

What I've Been Putting on my Shelves:

This week, I got The Throne of Broken Gods: Book 2 in the Gods and Monsters Series. And then I got the special edition of It's in His Kiss: Book 7 of the Bridgerton series. I should complete my collection of special editions for the Bridgerton series next week. And yes, I was a fan of these books before the show came out. I was one of those people who had to wait a full year before the next book was released; I'm that old of a fan. Wait. I didn't say old. I'm not old. (Hush!)

Anyway, hope you have a great May. 

 

Weekly Check-in #52

 What I've Been Writing:

Defectors and Queens - Word count is at 110,000 words. And I have the first 36 chapters fleshed out. I feel as if we still have a ways to go to finish, so I'm still writing strong!

What I've Been Reading:

The Tempest Blade - This was my favorite book of the year so far, plus most anticipated book of the year. I loved it all the way through. I just wish I hadn't read it so fast; I should have savored the ride.

City of Iron and Ivy - Got this through my Allurial Book Box subscription, and I thought all the books sold there were supposed to be romantasy; this was not a romantasy. Not sure why it has been promoted as one, but aside from that, it was a good book. Just don't go in thinking any couple's going to come out with a hea/hfn ending (which is basically the only reason I read books, but I can deal), and you'll be fine. 

What I've Stacked on my Shelves:

You're never going to believe this, but I got no new books this week. I know! Something feels missing from my life. I may have to make up for this next week.

And...I just realized I didn't mention last week that I also got my Allurial Book Box Subscription last week. So add three more to last week's total: The Wicked Sea, City of Iron and Ivy, and (yes, another) Blood Bound!

Weekly Check-in #51

 What I've Been Writing:

Defectors and Queens - I've been so busy this week that I didn't think I'd get anything new written at all, but I finally snuck in some time and finished chapter 34. My favorite line I've written today is, "Never question why I love you again." (You may have to be in the thick of the scene to really feel it, though!) Word count: 104,000.

What I've Been Reading:

Guess what? I finally finished the entire Throne of Glass series with Kingdom of Ash! Woot. It was good. Empire of Storms was my favorite book in the series, but it's also nice to be free to read whatever I want now and not be stuck in a big commitment series. (Which is making me wonder if people hate me because I have a 10-book series and am five deep in a 7-book series. Except those are standalones that don't really rely on the other books to keep going if you want to wander off for a while, so maybe that makes them different, I'm not sure.) 

Anyway, I received The Tempest Blade - Book 6 in the Bridge Kingdom series - and I'm plowing my way through that right now. It was my very top, most anticipated read of the year, and it IS living up to my very high expectations. I am loving it and could read 20 books in this series, I think, and still want more. (Which makes me now wonder if it's just how invested a person is in the series that makes them feel tied and dragged down to it, or like they could continue it forever. Hmm...all interesting thoughts.)

What I've Been Stacking on my Shelves:

I got The Tempest Blade this week, since it released on Tuesday.  And then two books with 3D-decorated spines from the ACOTAR series came from the company AcryliPics that I'd ordered back in January.

And that's been my week. Happy Bat Appreciation Day to you. Hope you enjoy it. 

Weekly Check-in #50

What I've Been Writing:

Defectors and Queens - I'm pretty sure I don't love this title. But I'm gonna keep calling it this until something better comes along. I definitely love the story more than the title right now. I'm feeling all the romance in it. Word Count = 100,000. Chapters Completed = 33.

What I've Been Reading:

Hey, hey! I finished my tandem read of Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn. It had been an okay series for me up to this point. I wasn't seeing why it had quite the fandom it did, but there were some good parts. After Empire of Storms, however, I decided wow, it's an amazing series. The end of that book finally just pulled all the other stories together and made me glad I went through that whole journey to get to that point. Brilliant.  

And then Rites of the Starling came in this week, so I had to drop everything and read that.  More brilliance! I knew what was coming, but it still hit hard when I read the last cliffhanger paragraph. Need Book 3 as soon as it comes out, though I'm not sure I'll ever be emotionally ready to endure it. 

Until then, I'm working my way through Kingdom of Ash.

What I've Been Stacking on My Shelves:

I got three new releases this week. It was very bloody!  There's Blood Bound (that came from Book of the Month Club), Bloodsinger, and Rites of the Starling (Green blood, anyone?)

Weekly Check-In #49

 What I’ve Been Writing:

Defectors and Queens - It was a productive writing week for me in Book 2 of the True Heir Duology.  We fought off some new monsters, got a little bloody and muddy, found a lost person, had a fun, steamy shower and—eek—experienced a first kiss. The first 30 chapters are fleshed out, and a total of 93,000 words have been written. 

What I’ve Been Reading:

I’m still working my way through tandem reading Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn. EoS is more exciting for me so I have to push my way through the ToD chapters, and then I have to make myself slow down so I can more fully savor the EoS chapters.  Manon and Dorian scenes are definitely my favorites. 

What I’ve Been Stacking on my Shelves:

Got five newbies added to the collection this week! 

1. Hollow by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti 
2. Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout 
3. When Life Happened (signed) by Jewell E. Ann
4. Terms and Conditionsc by Lauren Asher
5. Starside by Alex Aster

Weekly Check-in #48

 What I Wrote This Week:

Defectors and Queens - I got some words on the page! This is good. Words can be fixed and prettied up. But the absence of words just means no progress. I'm good with this progress. So far, I have completed the first 24 chapters.  And word count is at 80,000. 

What I Read This Week:

I finally finished Assassin's Blade. Hooray! But whew, I never thought I was going to get through this book. It wasn't bad. I just...I don't know why I dragged my way through it.  But we got 'er done.  And then I sped through Queen of Shadows like it was a novella, even though it's easily three times the length of Assassin's Blade.  To say the least, this series is finally gaining my interest. And now, my daughter has asked me to tandem read the next two books in the series together because apparently, they happen at the same time. This is going to be my first attempt to read two intertwined stories at once. I have already marked the chapters so that I know when to switch back and forth between stories, but I foresee it taking me quite a bit of time to finish them because they're both massive.  Pray for me!

What I Bought This Week:

This is the first week in quite a while that I actually read more books than I bought. Shock!  Anyway, I got a signed special edition of The Traitor Queen because I'm a massive Danielle Jensen fan now. And I love it. Hope you enjoy World Theatre Day. See you again next week. 

Weekly Check-in #47

 What I've Been Writing:

Defectors and Queens - You'll never guess what! I actually wrote MORE words than I deleted this week.  I know, shocking. But I think this story is actually moving forward again! And I'm beginning to really enjoy my main man, too. After the flashy, cocky flair of my Book One guy, I was worried my dark, brooding, tortured Book Two boy would just come across as boring. But I gotta admit, his dry sarcasm is selling me. I love him. I love progress. I love this duology. This was a good week. Word Count - 72,000.

What I've Been Reading:

So my first must-read of the year arrived at my house on Wednesday, meaning I was forced--yes, forced--to set aside The Assassin's Blade and plow my way through Love Song by Elle Kennedy. It has all the feels: Laughter, steamy angst, heartbreak, redemption, family drama, ghost stories, everything. I stayed up late reading last night and then woke at 4:30 this morning so I could finish it before I had to get ready for work.  And it was worth it. Love, love, love me a good Elle Kennedy book, and OGM, did y'all see the trailer yesterday for the Off Campus series coming out May 13 on Amazon Prime? That line: "You looking for someone?"  Why, yes. Yes, I am. Eek. I cannot wait for it.  So excited. 

What I've Been Stacking on My Shelves:

Got some goodies to show off this week.  Last May, I ordered the Lunar Chronicles book series by Marissa Meyer from the Bookish Box, and they came in yesterday. (I'm still too afraid to take the plastic off them yet, but I'm sure I will...someday. LOL). Then, of course, Love Song came in. The cover of Mayhem and the Mortal sold me, so I got a copy of that too. And finally, after months of seeing bookstagram posts about Given by Elayna Gallea, I broke down and got that as well. So I would say this week rated the triple-star of greatness in my shelfish world.