What I’ve been up to in March 🌺 The beginning of new things

Hello fellow bookworms 🌺A lot has happened since my last wrapup as everything has been getting more intense recently. Amidst the pandemic, handing in my Bachelor Thesis and moving out of my flat, March has been the busiest month so far with a lot going on and putting stress and pressure on me.  Gladly, the next few months are a lot less busy and I’m grateful that I don’t have university until staring my Master’s in October, as there’s a lot of uncertainty for students returning for the upcoming semester. I’m sending all the good vibes to everyone struggling right now! I hope you’ve all stayed safe and are doing well 🌸💗

A funny cat gif to cheer you up (from Kiki’s Delivery Service 💗)

🔄 = Reread 💌 = Library Books 🌈 = Here and Queerathon

🐯 = #YARC2020 ⭐ = #StartOnYourShelfathon  ⌛ = Digital Arc

Reading-Wise March started off a bit more slowly. Somehow I’d have all the motivation to read at the beginning of the week but then it fizzled out towards the weekend. Nevertheless, I ended up reading 13 Books many of them when I’d turned in my thesis and had lots of time to read due to social distancing. Somehow I read 4 and a half books in one week which is wild, I usually never read that much but somehow I inhaled all the books 😂 I’ve also decided to include a mini-review for each book with a link to my full review (if it’s already up, I’m currently working on catching up on all my unwritten reviews) as I want to share them more often, given that I don’t post as many reviews now as I used to 🌺

When it comes to my reading challenge, March was a bit quieter as I read 5 books that were out of my comfort zone. There was a good mix of genres included this time, I read 1 nonfiction, 1 sci-fi, and 3 historical fiction books – one of them was even an adult book, so I’m happy with my reading. I’ve already read so much more broadly this year, as evident by my genre graph (that is included in the Reading Spreadsheet my Kal @ Voracious Reader that I use this year) 🥰

1. In Order to Live (William Ritter) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐🐯💌 was a very haunting, emotional read. I loved learning more about North Korea and how life there is like for the people. The author had to go through so many hardships and witness terrible things, making her memoir powerful and giving a voice to those who can’t speak up 🌺 Read my Review Here 🌺

2. This Cruel Design (Emily Suvada) ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 💌 was a wild ride for me and managed to sweep me up in the moment. However, once I was actually able to reflect on anything, I found it to be a book filled with too much shock value wists that took away from characters and romance. This might be a good fast-paced story, but for me, it doesn’t hold up as a sequel 🌺 Read my Review Here 🌺

3. White Rose (Emily Suvada) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐ is a historical fiction book based on the life of Sophie Scholl – a young German resistance fighter who died for her efforts – and told entirely in verse. The format was exactly right for the story and had me engrossed. The bravery of Sophie was outstanding and the book definitely had me sobbing by the end  💔 🌺 RTC! 🌺

4. The Gentleman’s Guide to Getting Lucky (Mackenzie Lee) ⭐️ ⭐⭐⭐️.5  🌈 Squeezed in this novella at the end of this month and it was exactly the right decision as it has the perfect amount of angst, fluff, and growth 💗 Set soon after the events of The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue I loved the discussion about setting plans for the future and navigating all the first’s in a relationship. 🌺 RTC! 🌺

5. Bygone Badass Broads (Mackenzie Lee & Petra Eriksson) ⭐️ ⭐️ I loved the concept of showcasing forgotten women who had contributed something great, however, the modern slang made this so cringe-worthy at times. I get that the author was trying to portray these women in a more laid-back way but in my opinion, it didn’t fit in with the topic at all and was jarring. Also, no one says ‘Yas kween’ in real life 🤐 🌺 RTC! 🌺

6. Under Rose-Tainted Skies (Louise Gornall)⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🔁 is a beautiful, unflinching portrayal of agoraphobia, OCD & depression that will break your heart, but also make you see things from Norah’s perspective. I’m so glad that I reread this book again, it’s amazing and so incredibly underrated! 🌺 Read my Review Here 🌺

7. Renegades (Marissa Meyer) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🔁  It was exactly the right decision to reread Renegades as I still adore this book so much! I’m normally not one for superhero stories but this one was so good and definitely convinces with its characters that I love!! 🌺 Read my Review Here 🌺

8. Archenemies (Marissa Meyer) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🔁  In preparation for reading the series finale Supernova I also reread Archenemies that I also love, making me have high hopes for the last book. Archenemies is a fantastic sequel that tugs at all the right heartstrings. 🌺 Read my Review Here 🌺

 

9. Radio Silence (Alice Oseman) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🔁  I got this sudden urge to reread one of my favorite contemporaries, so I did! A perfect comfort read in these stressful times, Radio Silence provides podcast love, amazing friendships, and a good escape. 🌺 Read my Review Here 🌺

10. I Was Born for This (Alice Oseman) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🔁 Unexpectedly I also reread I was Born for This because I love it so much as well! The fandom love and anxiety representation are fantastic and I still love the deep discussions about fandom and finding your own purpose in life! 🌺 Read my Review Here 🌺

11. Bring Me Their Hearts (Sara Wolf) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 💌  I was all here for all the banter and humor, I need more fantasy books that have a lighter, more humorous tone and character voice, as this is what spoke to me during this time. The main character was perfectly snarky, there was an amazing female mentorship and a broody, swoony prince!🌺 RTC! 🌺

12. Before I Fall (Lauren Oliver) ⭐️ 💌 I can’t say that I had high hopes for this book, but I didn’t expect to hate it so much. It was trying to be a self-growth/redemption story but completely missed its mark, as I didn’t believe the supposed change. Plus there was so much problematic content that was never called out. 🌺 RTC! 🌺

13. The Last Magician (Lisa Maxwell) ⭐️ I had high hopes because there are time travel and an interesting magic system, but the longer I read the more I hated this book. The pacing is so slow and the plot feels both dragged and predictable. The romance made me so uncomfortable and there were no healthy character dynamics to be found anywhere.🌺 RTC! 🌺

Average Rating ⭐ 4.0

Favorite Book 💕

🌺 Female Character Love 💗 #1: Dynamics, Character Growth & Unlikable Heroines 🌺 Women’s History Book Tag 🌻 celebrating books by female authors

🌺 Arc Review: The Electric Heir by Victoria Lee ⚡ A book about and for survivors 🌺 OWL 2020 Readathon TBR ✨ Time to become a Wandmaker

🌺 Review: Jackaby 💗 Mystery, the Paranormal and an eccentric Detective 🌺 20 Books to read in 2020 ⭐ feat. some small reading goals

For this section of my wrapup I’m linking up with the Favorite Blog Posts of the Month Meme that has been created by Kristin @ kristinkravesbooks to showcase our favorite blogs of the month!

• Rating My Favorite Fantasy Palaces (Acqua @ acquadimore)
• Recommending Books I Gave 3 Stars // the Queen of 3-star Reads has spoken & Some of My Good Reading Habits // spreading the self-love for a change (Caitlin @ caitlinalthea)
• Kat Made Me Watch/Read It! (Part 1) & Kat Made Me Watch/Read It! (Part 2) (Kat @ lifeandotherdisasters)
• PositiviTea and Books Readathon Announcement // Join us for a weekend of reading and fun & PositiviTea and Books Readathon, spread the sunshine and get involved! (Kate @ readingthroughinfinity + Beth @ BooksNest)
• How To Edit A Novel: An In-Depth Look At My Editing Process (Madeline @ Happy When Writing)
• Women’s History Book Tag (ORIGINAL) & Hopepunk book recommendations & O.W.L.s Magical Readathon 2020 TBR (Margaret @ weirdzeal)
• Review: The Electric Heir (Victoria Lee) & 20 YA books releasing in March, April, May 2020 to add to your TBRs & From the TBR to the shelves: my 4-steps process (Marie @ drizzleandhurricanebooks)
• Reevaluating my 2020 goals (Mel @ cottoncandybookwitch)
• March TBR Flowchart ✨ & All Books I Read in 2019 – Ranked from Best to Worst (Pauliina @ bookaholicdreamer)
• The Perfect Female Character?!?! (Sophie @ meandink)
• I’m an #AuthorMentorMatch mentee?! (and other writing updates) (Sophie @ sophiexli)
• My Bookish & Blogging Resolutions (2020 Edition) (Tiffany @ readbytiffany)
• TAG OR AWARD Happy 6th Blogiversary to Us & We’ve Created a Tag! & Specific Things I Want To Read More Of & Specific Things I Want To Read Less Of & My Favorite Comfort Reads (ft. Great Romances and Excellent Friendship) & Ranking Required Reading (Viktoria & Sabrina @ wordyandwhimsical)

Lots of Changes. March was the month I had to turn in my Bachelor Thesis and do lots of Adulting, so it was set to be intense. With the pandemic however things got bad right before one of my busiest weeks and it brought a lot of stress and uncertainty to me. I’m grateful that me and my family are safe so far though!

• I was done early with my Thesis but all the restrictions went into effect the week I was ready to print it. Gladly the printing service I had selected was great. I was panicked as they’d closed down and only took large orders with an appointment of course, but they were quick to message me back (even on the weekend) and made it possible to print my thesis right on Monday when I wanted.
• I also handed in my thesis. The problem was that the exam office that takes care of these things was shut down as there had been a confirmed case in the building. I couldn’t hand it in personally, which made sense, but there was no good information on how else to hand it in. While my Uni sent off a few messages on the weekend the exam office was completely silent until after I had already handed in my thesis via post. I understand it’s a difficult time but it was also stressful for me not to know if I had done everything right, especially as I needed confirmation that I had turned it in on time. Gladly, I finally got the OK a few days later. So time to celebrate I guess!! 🎉🎉🎉
• I had to leave behind my library. This would have happened with or without anything going on, but it did shut down as a safety measure. Gladly, there are still a few ebooks I had wanted to read, so I’ll do that over the following months. Nevertheless, I miss my library a lot 😭
• I moved out of my flat. I was truly scared that I or someone family/friends that would help me with the moving would get sick and I’d have to scramble to hire a moving company on short notice. Good news: everything worked out and I safely moved all my stuff back home. Until I start my Master’s Degree in October I’ll be back home which is a bit weird as it means less freedom (and back in my little village with no good library) and more people around me again. However, I have a good relationship with my family and I’m happy to be with my support system right now, so I’m enjoying my time back home until I set off to a new city and adventure after this much-needed break.

Extra points to those who know who this character is😉

Things that made me happy 😊 As always I want to share some positive things that happened (this might become a regular section in my wrapups as it’s nice to talk about things I’m grateful for) especially now when a lot of things are stressful and intense 🌸

• Watching Shows with Sandra 💖 I’m so bad at watching shows even when I finally have the time so buddy watching is amazing!! {We watched: Anne with an E (all seasons), The Cat Returns, and Spirited Away} I also watched A Monster Calls, Wonder Woman and Pirates of the Caribbean 5 (back when I could still check out movies from my local library).
• Preparing for the OWL Readathon in April ✨ The Magical Readathon is one of my all-time favorite Readathons as it’s so creative and leaves a lot of room for cool reading prompts and picking out fun careers to follow! I loved setting up my TBR (though I think it might change a bit as Scribd offered a 30 day free trial for everyone, with no credit card info required!) and choosing my career, it definitely made me excited to read all the books next month 💗
• Playing lots of Nintendo and Downloading Animal Crossing Pocket Camp! 🌸Playing video games is what always relaxes me and I’ve been playing a lot more now to unwind and lose myself in another world. I’ve been replaying the old Zelda Games which always makes for a lot of nostalgia. I also downloaded AC Pocket Camp on my phone and I’m obsessed! It’s honestly so soothing and a nice alternative as I don’t have a switch to play the latest game! (I did play the old Animal Crossing on my Nintendo back in the day though and might get it again someday 🥰)

April will definitely be a quieter month 🌸 To be honest, I’m really happy about that was March was packed with work and worry, so April will be more steady and hopefully get me into a new routine living at home in my ‘gap months’ before starting university again. I also plan to read a lot, as the OWL Magical Readathon is here and I have a longer TBR for that especially now that  I have more time to read all the things. I’m excited to be reading from my physical TBR and using Scribd’s free trial to check out some e-books and audiobooks to read 🥰 I’ll allow for some mood reading despite the TBR and hopefully, also watch some shows that I have been hoping to watch for a long time now.

April also means that Camp NaNo is coming again! 📝 I’ve been quiet on my blog about writing since the last update in November (I think?) because I took a hiatus from writing due to my thesis. I had to focus on my academic writing and after a bad bout of stress and insomnia, I knew I had to put creative writing on pause and come back to it when I had the energy and motivation to tackle it head-on. I plan on revising at least 50K of my novel (this amounts to the last 50% of my developmental edits) as Camp sadly doesn’t let you track alternative measurements (like time or pages) until next year😢 That was unfortunate, as for revision words don’t work that well and pages would have worked so much better, However, I’m happy to get back to writing and hopefully find the motivation to keep going. (I new writing update will come halfway through April!)

#OWLsReadathon2020 TBR

Check out my tentative OWLs2020 TBR 💗✨

What were you up to in March? What was your favorite book this month? I hope you’re staying safe 🌺