I can hardly believe that it is June! 2020 has been the longest, shortest year ever – if that even makes sense, haha! The summer months are always some of my favorites. I love the warm weather, and there’s nothing better than reading outside in the sun with some iced tea! So, as I’m sure you can guess, I am very excited for June’s TBR. All of these are books I definitely want to read this month, although I’d be pretty happy if I was able to squeeze in a few extra. We shall see! 😉
Without further ado, here’s my June TBR!
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Hello everyone! It has been a long time since I’ve talked to you all last. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll know I’ve been keeping up with you all on there, but I haven’t blogged at all since March, and it’s been even longer since I’ve actually blogged consistently.
Like many other people, 2020 has been an extremely difficult and challenging year for me. I am so thankful to have remained physically healthy, but there have been a lot of personal trials and challenges I’ve dealt with this year that has just not given me much energy to blog and, at times, even read. That being said, I feel like I’m finally getting back into a healthy and positive routine. I am also reading more again, so I actually have books to blog about.
So, here I am! I’m finally back blogging! 🎉
To give you a bit of insight as to what you can expect the next few months, my plan is to post a review once or twice a week. I also plan to include another fun post or two each week as well! I’m hoping to stay consistent with this schedule through the summer months, and then in the fall, I’ll reevaluate what my blogging schedule will look like. 🙂
I am super excited to be back though! I have missed writing and talking to you all so much.
Thanks so much for reading! If you have stuck with my blog through the past few months, just know I appreciate you so much!
Title: Where You Lead by Leslea Wahl
Pages: 249
Genres: YA, Christian Fiction, Contemporary
Publisher: Vinspire (Sept. 15th, 2018)
Summary
A vision from God leads to the adventure of a lifetime.
Sixteen-year-old Eve Donahue’s lonely existence changes in an instant when visions of a mysterious stranger haunt her. Certain God is calling her for a mission, she bravely says yes and begins her quest to meet this young man.
Thousands of miles away, Nick Hammond has been dealing with his own unusual experience, an unwavering certainness to convince his father to run for political office.
When these two unlikely teens finally meet, their belief that God has called them to work together sets them on a journey of faith to untangle a web of deception involving international trade agreements, lost confederate gold, and a blossoming romance. As they follow century old clues, they realize God can call us all in big and small ways. We just need to listen and say, “Yes Lord, I will go where You lead.”
*I received a free copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. A huge thanks to the publisher, author, and Just Read Tours!*
I had heard some really good things about Where You Lead, so when I was given the opportunity to review this one, I was so excited! I am happy to say that this book did not disappoint.
Title: Amish Covert Operation by Meghan Carver
Pages: 244
Genres: Romance, Mystery/Suspense, Amish, Christian Fiction
Publisher: Love Inspired Suspense (July 1st, 2019)
Summary
Can an agent in disguise keep her safe?
After Amish widow Katie Schwartz’s search for her reclusive brother results in a shooting and her finding a cryptic message, she must rely on federal agent Adam Troyer to shield her. But, undercover as a Plain man, can Adam save her brother’s life and protect Katie? Trusting the handsome Englisch agent is already dangerous…but falling for him could risk everything Katie holds dear.
Hi everyone! I don’t know about you, but I love Valentine’s Day. I just love all the pinks and reds and just the overall love all around. 💕😍 So, of course, I was so excited to see that the InLoveAThonwas back this year. It’s one of my favorite readathons!
This year, the dates run from today, February 9th, through the 15th. And today, I’m sharing my TBR with you all. So, here we go!
This year, the InLoveAThon is following a choose-your-own adventure type of map, which I love. I love when readathons give you challenge options!
Title: Hiddensee by Gregory Maguire
Pages: 304
Genres: Fantasy, Retelling
Publisher: William Morrow (Oct. 31st, 2017)
Summary
From the author of the beloved #1 New York Times bestseller Wicked, the magical story of a toymaker, a nutcracker, and a legend remade . . .
Gregory Maguire returns with an inventive novel inspired by a timeless holiday legend, intertwining the story of the famous Nutcracker with the life of the mysterious toy maker named Drosselmeier who carves him.
Hiddensee: An island of white sandy beaches, salt marshes, steep cliffs, and pine forests north of Berlin in the Baltic Sea, an island that is an enchanting bohemian retreat and home to a large artists’ colony—a wellspring of inspiration for the Romantic imagination . . .
Having brought his legions of devoted readers to Oz in Wicked and to Wonderland in After Alice, Maguire now takes us to the realms of the Brothers Grimm and E. T. A. Hoffmann—the enchanted Black Forest of Bavaria and the salons of Munich. Hiddensee imagines the backstory of the Nutcracker, revealing how this entrancing creature came to be carved and how he guided an ailing girl named Klara through a dreamy paradise on a Christmas Eve. At the heart of Hoffmann’s mysterious tale hovers Godfather Drosselmeier—the ominous, canny, one-eyed toy maker made immortal by Petipa and Tchaikovsky’s fairy tale ballet—who presents the once and future Nutcracker to Klara, his goddaughter.
But Hiddensee is not just a retelling of a classic story. Maguire discovers in the flowering of German Romanticism ties to Hellenic mystery-cults—a fascination with death and the afterlife—and ponders a profound question: How can a person who is abused by life, shortchanged and challenged, nevertheless access secrets that benefit the disadvantaged and powerless? Ultimately, Hiddensee offers a message of hope. If the compromised Godfather Drosselmeier can bring an enchanted Nutcracker to a young girl in distress on a dark winter evening, perhaps everyone, however lonely or marginalized, has something precious to share.
Hiddensee was such a unique and intriguing retelling. It’s a book that I’ve been meaning to read for a while, but for one reason or another, kept putting it off. Since 2020 is the year I want to get my TBR down, I thought that it would be the perfect book to kick off my reading for the year.
Waiting on Wednesday/Can’t Wait Wednesday is a weekly feature, started by Breaking the Spine and continued by Wishful Endings, that puts the spotlight on upcoming releases!
This week’s pick is:
Happy New Year! Even though January is almost over, I feel like a post about this year’s goals should start with something festive, lol. As the title of this post states, today I’m sharing my hopes and goals for reading and blogging in the year 2020! When it comes to reading and blogging, 2019 was not the best year for me, and I’d really love to improve both of those things this year.
So, here are my goals and plans to help implement those goals this year:
Hello! Today I am introducing a new series on my blog that I’m calling Non-Bookish Notables. For every couple weeks or so, I thought it would be fun to give you all a non-bookish (for the most part) update about my life. This is where I’ll share any fun or exciting update as well as just simple stuff like what I’ve been loving lately when it comes to listening/watching/eating etc.!
So, let’s just jump into it!
Hey everyone! So, I realize this is way late, but I just realized I never shared with you all what I received from my #TBTBSanta this year. My Secret Santa, who it turns out was Liz from Consumed by Books, absolutely spoiled me with such heartfelt gifts!
the calico books 