#bbooks'21

[lieutenantfloyd]

When Duty Calls (series masterlist)

pairing: Cyclone x Commander!reader (fem)

Word count: 4.0k [ongoing]

Summary: After your deployment is cut short, you are sent home to San Diego with instructions to report to North Island the following day to begin a secret mission. As you and your new squad prep for the mission, you’re thrown right back into a world you fled from years ago. A world in which you're faced with old friends, new foes, and the man you so desperately love but can never quite have.

Genre/tropes: Dual POV, Slow burn, friends to lovers, hurt/comfort, forced proximity

Series warnings: Language, age difference, superior/subordinate relationship. Dual POV, Slow burn, friends to lovers, hurt/comfort, a bit of forced proximity. [updating]

Read on AO3 // Main Masterlist

Authors note:  New chapters will be posted as soon and as consistently as possible, hopefully at least once every week to two weeks. My life is more than a little chaotic right now so please be patient with me. I do have a running taglist (below the cut) so please let me know if you'd like to be added!

Chapters:

[ Homecoming ]- Your first day back in San Diego brings you inner turmoil, prolonged typing bubbles, and a haphazard personal plan of action. [1.9k]

[ New Beginnings ] -You arrive at The Hard Deck, a place that was once like a second home to you [1.6k]

[ forced priorities ] - Beau reckons with the weight of his orders and his untold feelings.

[ coming soon! ]

Taglist: @luckyladycreator2, @katesmadness, @natasharomanoffisbaebby, @nobody7102, @idiomaticpunk, @thebeckyjolene, @paintballkid711, @simpledyiing, @barbiewritesstuff, @bbooks-and-teas, @starshipfantasy, @saramaple, @marchingicenotes7, @bayisdying, @princessofglitterland, @katesmadness, @shakira-sasha, @xoxabs88xox, @nyx2021, @qardasngan, @fanboyluvr, @mrsjaderogers, @bellamy1998, @alexxavicry, @madamemelancholysstuff, @autumnleaves1991-reads, @dozcan123, @nani-kenobi, @noxytopy, @accio-boys, @the-winter-marvel33, @justameresimp, @abaker74, @starlightmoon2020, @comfortzonequeen, @flrboyd, @heyitskay-21, @kmc1989, @comfortzonequeen (let me know if you’d like to be added!)

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 14)  A Conspiracy in Belgravia by  Sherry Thomas

pages: allegedly 319 but I used an audiobook of 10 hours 28 mins

Started:  October 18, 2021

Finished:  October 27, 2021

Thoughts:

Here were the words I typed to my Goodreads upon finishing:  

 OMG NOW THAT IS HOW YOU DO A TWIST. My exact words after hearing the last sentence of this book was a loud: "WHAT?" followed by pounding of my hands on my thighs laughing good naturedly. I will say I am a little confused as to the revelation of what actually happened with the mystery and I will be looking to the internet to fill me in seeing as I don't wish to re-listen to specific sections of the audiobook

I really, really liked this novel a lot. I didn’t give it a full 5 stars on Goodreads only because I was confused as to the revelation of what actually happened in the resolution of the mystery but that could be due to listening to it not reading it on paper.

Also, these books (this and the 1st novel) have made me curious to (re)try madelines. I knew I had to have tried them in the past probably but couldn’t recall. They are essentially a tiny cake in the shape of a shell. Moist, spongy. I bought at Starbucks when I saw they were available there (to my surprise)! Well, now I have a Costco purchase to have them (individually wrapped) more often! Don’t underestimate the power of your books, authors haha you can influence people more than you realize! hehe

Here are some more words I typed in the middle of the novel: (slight spoilers to what the mysteries are and who is at that time involved so read at your discretion)

I wanna know where the half-brother is. I wanna know what shit he's into. I wanna know how this'll affect Lord Ingram's relationship with the wife. And I pray to God the [sketchy] meet-cute that Livia has had with the unnamed fellow works out for her. But I feel he's up to no good. What if he's the half-brother!? :O probably not tho but maybe :(

[thelallibhai]

Bbook your Holi Festival stay in the Courtyard Studio at Rosie's Retreat @airbnb or message Rosie by Whatsapp 00918290947633 ☎️ We are Airbnb Superhosts 21 times in a row 🥳🥳🥳 #udaipur #ig_udaipur #indiatravelandtourism #couplestravel #india #holi #holifestivaludaipur #holifestival #coloursofindia #courtyardapartment #airbnb #airbnbsuperhosts #romanticstays #boutiquestaysindia #bestairbnbs #romanticdestinations #couplesretreat #lovetravel #travelindia #indiatravelgram #lovetravelindia (at Rosie's Retreat. Udaipur.) https://www.instagram.com/p/CLyRedaJMaq/?igshid=qdc9e4egl6ez

[twitterfaves]

From Twitter: at least he's where *he* wants to be pic.twitter.com/GrW7dqLPdh— Ellen Murray is writing a bbook 🖊️ (@ellenfromnowon) November 21, 2020

http://twitter.com/ellenfromnowon

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 20)  The Beekeeper's Apprentice, or On the Segregation of the Queen (Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes #1) by Laurie R. King, Jenny Sterlin (Narrator)

pages: allegedly about 368 pages but I listened to an audiobook of 804 minutes

Started: November 29, 2021

Finished: December 21, 2021

Thoughts: Ok lemme paste a few comments that were made along my journey through this book... But before that lemme start with saying this was recommended to me by my best friend so I had already a high opinion of it to start (probably led to my slight disappointment in this novel but oh well) and additionally my love for the Lady Sherlock series by Sherry Thomas overshadowed this novel a bit. I was also shocked (and exhausted) to learn that there are like 20 books in this series! 20!!!! Dear lord I don't know that I have the strength to complete a series of 20 but we shall see as the years pass lol

My 2 biggest problems were (as outlined a bit below) the narration pace of the audiobook and the choppy narrative of this book so it was harder to get through than others...

Ok for some commentary made (on Goodreads) along the way:

The final act of this was good but the rest a bit choppy for my liking. I shall perhaps indulge in more Mary Russell stories in the new year.

It's a good book but plods along slowly at times and in retrospect feels like a few different chunks of different manuscripts/story put together. I suppose this was the intention considering it is in some ways a memoir but sometimes things are described with detail while others are breezed over in order not to overwhelm the reader with a play-by-play and at times feels detached and /or makes me feel suddenly detached from the story. But once the seriousness gets going then the novel really gets its ground.

22.0% "804 mins total, probably coz the person reads a bit slow at times. I wish I could go 1.5 speed at some points but oh well. Also the author intro was such unedited background noise audio I worried the entire thing was going to be that. I still sorta hear a bit of foley problems with the professional stuff but it could be the cars around me lol. Anyway I think I like Mary Russell & can't wait for more case adventures!

spoiler to above comment: it was NOT cars around me. haha oh dear

40.0% Again narrative is hard coz of pace of audio reader but it's picking up a bit plot-wise with the discovery of [REDACTED]

67.0% "Wait she's still only 19 why did I think she was 21 or 22 did she mention that or something and now has backtracked? -_- sheesh

This is again my problem with audiobooks. Details that I do not physically read can sometimes be missed and if one wants to go back to figure out where the last mention was, well, good luck -_-

66.0% Finally I'm into this novel with the intrigue of being followed and almost murdered a number of times! Haha

52.0% Not bad. Bomb threat. Is Moriarty brought up because yes we've got a connection to him or just coz? :D I hope the former.

Read a semi-spoiler comment below where I reveal my ideas (at the time of reading 75% of the novel) about the big baddie of this narrative:

75.0% At long last some movement in the story. I have a theory about this woman being Irene Adler herself or Moriarty's daughter. (Or daughter of the 2 adversaries lol. No that is a joke.) It's Irene or Moriarty's daughter as my prediction. I was getting it confused with another book I'm reading as it being "Miss Moriarty, I presume." but that doesn't mean I'm wrong about my prediction lol

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 15) The Romance of Certain Old Clothes by  Henry James

pages: 15

Started:  October 27, 2021

Finished:  October 27, 2021

Thoughts:

Gosh what a better told story and better narrative altogether than James' Turn of the Screw! Mike Flanagan sure did a great job in giving us a version of this in The Haunting of Bly Manor! I enjoyed the subtle changes that Flanagan gave us as well even though on its own unadapted this short story is very good

It may be short but it gives us enough “meat” to last as though it were a longer story. What I mean is that we all know the feelings of melancholy or elation. So when we’re told for example someone cried all night after her sister got engaged to the man she fancied, we understand well enough that this sort of feeling was strong and powerful and will not go away even if the character visibly appears cheery later on in the story (which is what happens). And the opposite: being with the man of your dreams and having that happiness (but also possessiveness). Interesting enough the younger sister marries first unlike the opposite in the Netflix series. But, the idea that people’s desires and wishes and feelings can be so powerful that they will: do things that are not...entirely wholesome and that someone from the grave can reappear; their will so strong to be... not avenged persay but set things right as they want them... powerful. 

Really enjoyed this story!

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 11)  A Study in Scarlet Women (Lady Sherlock #1) by Sherry Thomas

pages: 323 -allegedly since I did an audiobook

Started: Sept 24, 2021

Finished: Oct 16, 2021

Thoughts:

I liked this. At first it was a bit like ok where’s this going? Are there canon Holmes characters re-imagined here?

Once things got going and I understood the main players I really enjoyed this. I didn’t guess the answer to the mystery at all and I’m grateful for that. SLIGHT SPOILER NEXT SKIP TO NEXT PARAGRAPH TO AVOID: Kinda sucks in one way that the revelation of what happened was a letter from someone involved revealing all but there was enough outside of that to still intrigue in the direction of the result and they woulda figured it out without the letter I’m guessing or at least most of it but the letter helped it along.

Obviously the mention of a canon Holmes name towards the end of this got me excited even though I assumed eventually the author might include something in this series!

Looking forward to listening to more of these -I think I’ll do audiobooks if I can for this series since I started with that ^_^

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 8) The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White

pages: 292

Started: March 20, 2021

Finished: May 1, 2021

Thoughts: This book at first was hard to get into because Elizabeth's character annoyed me. She seemed very stubborn, selfish, manipulative almost to the point of being a sociopath and one-track minded. And Victor Frankenstein himself pheeewph y'all straight up psychopathic tendencies from the age of 5 so I was like uncomfortable reading this book thinking how much damage these two could do together and apart and how damaged they themselves were.

HOWEVER once things started to go the route of the novel things picked up for me and I'd say the last third of this book is where the story really shone. Here's all the commentary that I left on Goodreads so you can see some of my thought journey in this book haha:

Decided to read this since my chest looks a bit like the back of this book 😅

Interesting start. Mysteries already"

Elizabeth's character is much unlike what she's presented in other adaptations and while this is great for this narrative I also don't think I like her LOL"

"Wow Victor sounds unpleasant and Elizabeth sounds mean and manipulative a good pair I guess"

Sounds to me like Victor Frankenstein is one of those psychotic children that grow up to be serial killers because they're just interested to see what the inside of a body looks like meanwhile Elizabeth is a sociopathic enabler because she does not want to lose the selfish hold & safety she has with those in her life so she condones anything so long as she can control & manipulate the situation to Victor's advantage"

"Victor had gone mad." I'm afraid my dear girl he was mad since childhood but hey don't let me psychoanalyze"

All right I'm starting to kind of get into this book finally"

Finally a clue of The Creature"

Finally we're rolling along with the story I know"

I really don't understand how Elizabeth thinks she's going to end the life of The Creature- she seems so confident in herself... I suppose it is her sense of independence and feeling like she can do anything if it is for her beloved Victor but like guuuurl stabbing one skinny greasy dude with a hat pin doesn't make you a fearsome warrior woman henceforth -_-"

Foolish girl"

Ok that's a twist"

I read up to here a couple days ago just forgot to update"

I wish the the author had put her author's note at the beginning because then I wouldn't have felt so annoyed and bored by the beginning of this book I would have understood the direction she was heading in the first place ^_^"

Overall I did enjoy this book and I`d like to praise a couple of things separate from the novel's story: this was released in time of the 200th anniversary of the original novel: that's SUPER cool and great planning on the part of everyone. (This was yrs ago tho lol). Secondly a huge shout out to the cover designers for their design of what looks like ripping satin/silk that is being stitched AND the raised wording on the silky-like finish of the cover making this a tactile experience as though you're touching the actual fabric and thick threading!

Then each chapter is titled with something from 'Paradise Lost' -a lovely nod to other things that I associate with this story because of Danny Boyle's Frankenstein play which featured 'The Creature' reading Paradise Lost... I forgot whether he does in the original novel. I think he does...? Anyway well done. Each quote well chosen too!

Also the needle in the fabric is also continued as a header to the chapters; nice touch though a bit disconcerting when I see it in black and white and think something's on my book XD did that more than once oops ehehehe

Anyway overall I'm quite satisfied with this novel even if it took me ages to get into it

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 2)  As Old As Time by Liz Braswell

pages:  484

Started:  January 10, 2021

Finished:  January 17, 2021

Thoughts:

I struggled between giving 3 and 4 stars and ended on 4. Truthfully, this was a well-written book in the sense of language and use of description. It was, at times, very vivid. That is what gave me the feeling to give this book that extra star. The author is really wonderful with language and while sometimes misguided not entirely terrible at a plot. Even the way the book alternated between past and present and shifting narratives off one character or set of characters to describe what was going on with others was pretty effective and for my judgement, smooth.

Here's the thing you need to know about me before I get into a more detailed review (without revealing specific spoilers): I'm an author and storyteller myself whose learning style is that of written language and as a child was an avid reader; I love books and stories! Secondly and more importantly: Beauty & the Beast 1991 is my favourite movie of all time. I'm SUPER protective over it and often get defensive of it and my personal headcanons that I have based upon what the film has given us.

One thing in particular I'm quite vocal about is when people claim The Enchantress cursed the castle when the Prince was 11 years old and how ridiculous that is because they base it upon 2 facts from the film: they claim they've been in the castle for 10 years and the beginning says 'his twenty-first year' to imply The Beast/Prince turning 21. I've always used evidence of other things in the castle (no aging on Chip, for example) to argue against the idea of a kid being turned into a beast. So to find out that this book employed that idea I was a little downtrodden -but, gave it a chance based upon the descriptive and curious lead-up to that moment in the timeline of events. And I will say, the author actually addressed some of the arguments I have against that kid-Beast theory with some new canon of her own which made this plot-point I previously shook my head at more bearable.

Without going into specifics (like above) I will say that as a whole, the book was enjoyable despite some other plot points that were a bit wild, far fetched and/or ridiculous. I think what saved this book is that we started out with a /similar/ story to the film but strayed from it quickly enough that I was able to then go along on this adventure without judging how the author filled in their own storyline between the well-known moments of the film. We still had that but it wasn't as though she were trying to force and shove her story into the entire framework of the existing story I know and love. So to me, this book felt like a Beauty and the Beast story adaptation that just so happened to feature a few specific characters from the 1991 film; an AU if you will (which yes I /know/ is the point of the book, haha).

This is both a positive and a detriment to the book. Some well-loved moments from the movie were eliminated entirely, and I'm not just talking about my personal favourite moments either. And, some were reworked into new things: some of which worked out well while others left me staring dead-eyed into an invisible camera like I was on a prank show. A few times I posted to social media to point out specific reworkings of dialogue and lines from the film that fell so flat I couldn't keep my mouth shut about it! haha

But once the story got going on its own legs it was a bit of an action-thriller. Which, frankly, surprised me. I liked it but at the same time I'm not sure how to feel about it. What is the age-group for this book because some of the moments here were a bit dark and mature and not in a Grimm Brothers way but in a... there's torture, blood, pain, this is hope-sucking sort of way... Ah I guess Grimm Brothers were pretty dark yes but they stated things plainly (to my recollection) like: 'their eyes were plucked out', 'she danced to death', etc. The stories never specifically described the torture and the feelings of that. Maybe I'm being too harsh or exaggerating all of this a little. I dunno.

Also, the characters of this story sometimes really seemed to act in line with the canon of the '91 film in scenarios that weren't from the film while at other times reading their actions and words I was like "ummmm". I had to remind myself that this story and these characters probably /should/ be different based on the new experiences they have that weren't in the movie. Yet, for some reason I still can't see Belle's character being one to cuss. Even if it's just saying: "Damn."

While the ending had a certain charm to it, I was still left disappointed as it doesn't end like a fairytale should end. Then again, this /isn't/ a fairytale but a /twisted/ tale ;)

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 6) The World of Critical Role by Liz Marsham

pages: 265

Started: February 9, 2021

Finished: February 9, 2021, I read about 35% consecutively and then scanned other chapters/pages and read through the Character Profiles of a few and left the rest so as not to give spoilers for some parts of campaigns 1 and 2... :/ also read some about battling etc

Thoughts: I didn't exactly finish this entire book but I'm fine with that; I just wanted to get more info about a couple of things and was absolutely delighted to learn more about the cast themselves. I had only recently begun watching the 'live' episodes of Campaign 2 when I read this. Here's my Goodreads commentary from the day: I couldn't help myself after my friend described how much fun she was having reading this book and then finished it so I went ahead and rented it from the library today as a digital copy and just wanted to scroll through it instead I've basically read most of of chapter 2 and most of chapter 1 all in one go and am now going to scroll through the rest

I'll probably someday return to this book after I watch more CR and can appreciate it anew!

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 4) Ogre Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

pages: 337

Started: Jan. 21, '21

Finished: Jan. 29, '21

Thoughts: [will be some minor spoilers down in the 2nd paragraph] First off Gail Carson Levine is one of my all time favs! Ella Enchanted and The Two Princesses of Bamarre are 2 of my all-time favourite books so when I heard that she had 2 more books semi-recently released set separately in the worlds of both these novels I was on that ASAP haha and I put down Trigger Warnings to start this one the day it got to my house! This one is set in the world of Ella (no surprise there I hope judging by the names of the books haha) and follows a young girl who is almost immediately cursed by the silly fairy Luicinda (who also curses Ella btw) all because Evie doesn't accept the proposal of her best friend 'Wormy'. So it's a Beauty and the Beast adaptation which again I was just ecstatic about! 

So there was a lot of pressure on this book (which I tried to take off and just read the book as a stand-alone and just pretend I wasn’t going into this all pumped lol)! Sadly though it disappointed me. First off the ending felt rushed; like the pacing suddenly had to quicken so that we’d stay under a certain amount of pages or something; like the novel had been written mostly and then they were like ‘submit what you have and the ending too please’ so she just had to quickly dissolve the ending into a tight space of physical time and pages XD For me, the part where Evie was with the ogres trying to learn how to zEEn (how they magic their victims into relaxing so they can eat them) it just felt slow-paced. Maybe because ogres think very simply and so Evie also felt simple minded the more she was away from people. So I was waiting for something better to happen. I did enjoy when she finally carried on and was making friends with ‘The Master’ who we find out has a cool family history! (I’d love a novel or novella with this guy!) And I will say I liked how there were 3 possible men (and it hinted at one woman for some reason) who might be able to break Evie’s curse by proposing to her so that she’d accept! But (without spoiling it with a direct name), the person who ends up to save her felt like we got poor lead up towards.

I did like how this book again has a maturity to it that GCL’s other novels have even though they’re supposed to be juvenile there’s still a bit of darkness and maturity to the storyline. And I liked how we expanded on the lore from Ella and also got a lot of connections and little nods to the other story too! Made me want to reread Ella Enchanted all over again! I will say if you know your first book, this book will have less mystery for you on the fate of some of the characters since (slight spoiler?) this book takes place before we meet Ella of Frell <3

And dangit but there are unanswered questions in this novel that I don’t know that I’ll ever get answers for!

Overall I enjoyed the book and may reread it again down the road but I gave it only a 3/5 on Goodreads because of the pacing, the lack of lead up/rush of the ending and for it not feeling as ‘magical’ a story as Ella and Two Princesses. Both other novels were young women going on journeys to solve a large personal problem and facing adversity as this one was but despite there being some magic and magical creatures in this book there was very little actual fantasy feel since the ogres were really the only featured species in this book that are part of the fantasy of this world and all they do most is eat and fight XD

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 3)  The Beatrice Letters (A Series of Unfortunate Events) by Lemony Snicket  

pages:  72

Started:  January 18, 2021

Finished:  January 18, 2021

Thoughts:

Now that I've read all of the letters, I'm so excited to go through this now and decipher the anagrams and clues ♡♡♡

Please note I’ve read the first 3 books in the series (probably back in like 2004 or something) and I’ve seen the Netflix series only which is why this intrigued me to purchase (on a great sale) and read through

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 5) The Duke & I (Bridgerton Book 1) by Julia Quinn

pages: approx 406 ( I didn't read the second epilogue in its entirety because it contains some spoilers for what I considered the rest of the novels since it takes place when Daphne is in her forties) but I read the 4 pages the author spoke "behind the book"

Started: Jan, 31, 2021

Finished: Feb 17, 2021

Thoughts: To be honest the show itself has more nuances and I would have to read the rest of the book series to understand whether they took some of the material for the side characters advancing their own plots from the other books or whether they made it up but both the book and the show are good in my opinion. And if I may be so bold I think the diversity of the cast and also diverse characters not just skin colour but body types, interests and other things definitely made for a more interesting story without feeling forced in there as some other shows or films have done. I liked this book and easily rated it a 5 because I had little to gripe about with it but if I'm honest the show was more interesting and the courtship (fake to real) was a much better told story. Like the novel itself was good but some of the subtle moments in the show (Simon doing up her cuff, the hands touch as they look at art, the dance under the lights from I believe the 1st episode, the scene in front of the queen (ok not so subtle lol), the 'burn for you' scene (much better played out in the show), posing for their portrait, the final waltz at their party...) There were more moments from the show to pick out as romantic.

Anyway I can’t wait to see more of the show and thus read more of the books. I think the book in this case was a great stepping off point to guide the show but the show for sure gives a better picture painted of the story and also has more ‘meat’ and better dictates the sense of urgency of these characters to: marry, to follow societal rules and not be caught alone, the consequences of any gossip that might incur, the sort of ‘show’ that courtship was in this time and the feelings of more than just Simon, Daphne, Mrs. Briderton (Violet) and Anthony regarding this courtship etc.

But the points that were in the book that remained in the series were well done in my opinion which I think is why it was easy to enjoy both narratives because they’re basically the same thing with a bit of a ‘retelling’ aspect when it comes to the show ^_^

I must also talk about this controversial bit before I go but it’s not for everyone... Under a read-more. Slight spoilers and also: Trigger warning: Rape.

Going into this novel I had seen the tv series. Then I saw on Goodreads someone had said 'why would you ruin this with a rape scene? Hope Netflix does better' and someone replied 'they didn't.' So I'm going into this book like wait what? And I had to examine my morals a bit because I didn't feel as strongly as these readers and didn't immediately consider Daphne's actions as 'rape' against Simon but I also had not read the book.

*** In doing some research and reflection I understand that Daphne’s action of making sure Simon came inside her is an unwanted sexual act and therefore still under the definition of rape***

 I can assume which scene they were talking about (from the show) but had yet to experience the novel's version of events. I will say that the novel's scene is worse in my opinion. That there was alcohol involved and that both characters questioned later on whether it had been 'taking advantage' in that moment made me feel like yeah that was uncomfortable and kinda like rape. I do see how people perceive the show's version of events where both parties were willing participants (no alcohol involved) and then when Simon realizes he can't pull out in time because of Daphne's position then it is taking advantage and people classify it as rape. I understand where they're coming from on that. And I by no means want anyone forced on man and woman alike. But I will say that when I saw the scene in the show for the first time I saw it as a woman who had been purposefully left in the dark for a lot of things in her life and then been lied to by Simon and left ignorant to things by her mother now this young woman taking some power for herself. She absolutely did it in the wrong way though but I don't fault the entire book or the entire tv series for one moment of a wrong decision. Like mentioned earlier though I’ve since done some research and I mean no harm or disrespect by putting forward my thoughts previous to this research.

[trulyhopelessromantic]

2021 Reading Challenge

I have read 22 of 40 books for the 2021 Reading Challenge! http://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/26983716

I feel so excited and proud of myself!

I set the goal of 40 books because I wanted to consume books like fire for 2021. And then I had my health thing and didn't read for a couple months. But then the fire picked up again especially with the discovery that I enjoyed a good audiobook whilst doing work that required my hands and/or eyes to be free!

I'd say the biggest influence to my reading of 2021 was The Lady Sherlock series by Sherry Thomas. I saw one title some time ago on BookOutlet and saved it in my TO BUY LATER. But then one day I was like: I want to read this and they aren't all available to buy through BookOutlet. I should use the library I guess. So I did and grabbed the audiobook for the 1st one. I LOVED Kate Reading's narration. So much so that trying 2 other audiobooks in the middle of consuming the L.S. series felt less exciting/engaging because they weren't matching Kate Reading's narration style and pace lol (also both other novels were, as I reflected, also not engaging plot-wise like the series I grew to love so much was to me).

The one I think I'm most proud of for getting through is Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin. It was an interesting novel but extremely long and filled with so much prose for the sake of prose sometimes. The movie, though flawed, was to me a better storyline even if their storyline was rushed. However the narrator (Oliver something) did a great job with the audiobook so I wasn't bored or disengaged from that point of view. He kept me glued where other narrators may not have. I have wanted to read Winter's Tale for many years since I saw the film version and so that book was a big accomplishment for me.

I do have a number of small books/short stories on here. I normally would feel like this is "cheating" to get my numbers higher but considering the length of Shadow of Night as well as Winter's Tale -the 2 longest I think I had on this list- I feel like it really evens out.

I'm going to try for 40 books as a goal again this year of 2022. I think it's reasonable and I think now with momentum and habits from 2021 I can get there!

Check out my list of books accomplished for 2021 under the cut and what I had to say about each book via tumblr is linked below that ^_^

Shadow of Night (All Souls Trilogy, #2)

Miss Moriarty, I Presume?

The Beekeeper's Apprentice, or On the Segregation of the Queen (Mary Russell, #1)

Murder on Cold Street (Lady Sherlock, #5)

Neverwhere: BBC Dramatisation

The Art of Theft (Lady Sherlock, #4)

The Hollow of Fear (Lady Sherlock, #3)

The Romance of Certain Old Clothes

A Conspiracy in Belgravia

The Turn of the Screw

The Lost Kingdom of Bamarre

A Study in Scarlet Women (Lady Sherlock, #1)

Winter's Tale

How the Marquis Got His Coat Back

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein

Bewitching the Earl

Bridgerton: The Duke and I

The World of Critical Role

Ogre Enchanted (Ella Enchanted, #0.5)

The Beatrice Letters

As Old as Time

Sleeping Beauty and the Beast

[trulyhopelessromantic]

Books I’ll plow through 2021

Winter’s Tale ✅

Vow So __ & Broken

maybe the 3rd one also

Eve of Man

Midnight Sun

Shadows of Night (DoW sequel) ✅

Twisted Tale ✅

B&B epilogue

[trulyhopelessromantic]

BRITT'S BOOKS '21

Book 22)  Miss Moriarty, I Presume? (Lady Sherlock #6)

by Sherry Thomas (Goodreads Author), read by Kate Reading

pages: 781 minutes total in audiobook which I used. Paperback, 357 pages

Started: December 22, 2021

Finished: Technically the first hour of January 2, 2022 which I thought to still be late hours of Jan 1, 2022 lol but going to count it as a 2021 read since most of it was consumed that year lol

Thoughts:

FINALLY some sinister Moriarty shit lol excuse my language. I liked that there was one mystery then immediately another. Here is my comment when I figured out what the plotline was going to be (I didn’t read any synopsis in advance):

Wow Mori has lost track of his daughter and possibly wants help? What fuckery is this? Or is he playing Char? She's gonna play him obviously to us... Anyway name of the book makes sense now lol

This turned out to be one of the canon Sherlock stories that I enjoy and I was thoroughly enthralled to the end once I understood that. Really liked this novel. And then the final twists- YES TWISTS- I was just so excited!!! I can’t wait for another book to be released!!!

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Here are some non-spoiler comments I made during my read:

Scandalous start haha loved the format of all the letters though <3

Shameless flirting on Ash and Charlotte's parts both. XD I'm glad that the author has stuck to sticking to only describing playful lead up to anything. Much unlike another series I adored that suddenly decided after pretty much the same amount of books to get a bit smutty -_- Anyway I'm thrilled to figure out the workings of the "Baxter" case here!

I like the cast of characters we've met at this place by the sea. I can't wait to learn more!

Here is one of my later comments that has some spoilers (I won’t tell you whether my prediction was right though...):

I am thoroughly excited to see what the hell happens here. I don't know whether they saw actually Miss Baxter they probably did but what the f*** is going on with Moriarty behind the scenes and also I'm loving the relationship between Ash and Charlotte I'm just nervous about the shit that could go down because they are happy and authors crush that like a grape hahaha