New-To-Me Authors That I'd Like to Continue Reading!

This week's Tell Me Something Tuesday prompt is: Debut authors/ New to me authors. What books have you read lately by new authors that you want to read more from? I've decided to continue a similar post I've done and feature some authors that I read for the first time so far in 2018 that I want to read more from. Keep in mind, I'm only including authors that already have other work out that I actively want to read, so any  new debut authors that I've read this year and loved (which there have been a lot!) won't be included--I'll be making new posts for those at a later date.

J.V. Jones
What I read: A Cavern of Black Ice (review)

Amazon | Book Depository

What I would like to read next: A Fortress of Grey Ice & The Baker's Boy

Amazon | Book Depository
Amazon | Book Depository


Jonathan French

What I read: The Grey Bastards (review coming soon)

Amazon | Book Depository

What I would like to read next: The Exiled Heir

Amazon | Book Depository

I was so impressed by The Grey Bastards that now I would really like to check out more of French's writing, even if it is pretty different.

Robert V.S. Redick

What I read: Master Assassins (review)

Amazon | Book Depository

What I would like to read next: The Red Wolf Conspiracy

Amazon | Book Depository
    

Claire Legrand
What I read: Furyborn (review)

Amazon | Book Depository

What I would like to read next: The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls

Amazon | Book Depository
    

Robert Dinsdale
What I read: The Toymakers (review)

Amazon | Book Depository

What I would like to read next: Gingerbread & Little Exiles

Amazon | Book Depository
Amazon | Book Depository
        

Colleen Oakes

What I read: Queen of Hearts

Amazon | Book Depository

What I would like to read next: Blood of Wonderland & Wendy Darling

Amazon | Book Depository
Amazon | Book Depository

      


Have you read any books by these authors? What authors have you recently discover that you'd like to read more of? Let me know!

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Tuesday Double Feature: Tell Me Something Tuesday & First Chapter Tuesday

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's topic: Are you more inclined/ less inclined to read books that are compared to other popular books or authors?

 To be honest, I'm not entirely sure if this sort of description affects me too much one way or the other. Unless a book's description is just extremely annoying or rubs me the wrong way, then I'm pretty likely to just ignore the comparisons and read the book anyway. Comparisons might occasionally make me interested in a title, but they don't generally turn me off from a book (usually because a majority of the time the comparison is off).

I definitely get annoyed by certain book/author comparisons, namely Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Star Wars, etc. comparisons. Not everything is 'like Harry Potter for adults' or 'Game of Thrones meets [insert random book/movie here]'. How about we just don't do that? If an author was specifically inspired by a certain book or author that has a big franchise, then I'm totally fine with something akin to 'inspired by [whatever book] here,' but I don't think they should actively compare the book for no real reason. I know it's all about marketing and the average buyer is more likely to pick up a book that markets itself as similar to Harry Potter, but I wish we could stop doing that because if all the books that claimed to be like Harry Potter or Game of Thrones actually were, we'd have very little variety.

The most recent example of a time when book/movie comparisons ended up both intriguing me and thenn disappointing me was with Jay Kristoff's latest release, LIFEL1K3. One of LIFEL1K3's main advertising sell is: "It's Romeo & Juliet meets Mad Max meets X-men with a little bit of Bladerunner cheering from the sidelines." Now, I don't hate this. I think it's fun and it did make me pretty intrigued by this book, but it also sort of gave me too  many expectations. It almost spoiled the book in a sense by giving away so much about what it's like and what it's perhaps trying to be. It also really frustrated me because of how disappointed I was in the book because it felt so unoriginal (I'll expand on this in my review for LIFEL1K3, which should be up Thursday). This particular instance of comparing has both pros and cons and although I think it successfully piqued the interest of a lot of readers, it personally left me wanting and slightly annoyed. I will say that I prefer it to the generic Harry Potter type ones, but I still felt a bit disappointed by it.

Minor digression aside, my answer is that these comparisons do not influence me to read or not to read a book, but they will possible affect how I view the book and my enjoyment of it. If I'm expecting one thing going into a book and then I never find that specific thing, then I'm going to be confused and frustrated. What are your thoughts on this subject?

First Chapter Tuesday is hosted every Tuesday by Vicki @ I'd Rather Be at the Beach. This is meme in which bloggers share the first chapter of a book that they are currently reading or thinking about reading soon. Join the fun by making your own post and linking up over at Vicki's blog, or simply check it out to find more new books to read!

The Red Wolf Conspiracy by Robert V.S. Redick

"Chapter 1: Tarboy

1 Vaqrin (first day of summer (941)
Midnight
It began, as every disaster in his life began, with a calm. The harbor and the village slept. The wind that had roared all night lay quelled by the headland; the bosun grew too sleepy to shout. But fort feet up the ratines, Pazel Pathkendle had never been more awake."

I read Robert V.S. Redick's neweest release Master Assassins earlier this year and completely loved it, so now I'm hoping to get started on some of his other works that I've yet to read. 

Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository

Unbury Carol by Josh Malerman

"Chapter One: At the Funeral of John Bowie

Harrows, situated at the northernmost point of the Trail, savored its distance from the meat of the rabid road. It was easily the most affluent town in both counties; the homes of Harrows were larger, often constructed of stately stone, some with as many as ten bedrooms. The garden yards were as wide as the fabled Trail itself, some roofs as high as the willows. Even better: Harrows enjoyed more sunlight than the other towns, as the shadows cast by the arching of those willows concluded where the wheat fields began, just south of the border. Sunny and secluded, remote and rich, Harrows was a very desirable place to live. 

But that didn’t preclude its citizens from dying. 

John Bowie found this out the bad way."

I loved Malerman's Bird Box and I thought the premise of this book was really intriguing, so I was excited to jump into this one. 

Pre-Order: Amazon | Book Depository

What do you think? Would you keep reading these books? (And feel free to join in and make your own post!) 

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*Excerpts are taken from the novel itself; I do not claim to own any part of the excerpt.

Tell Me Something Tuesday: The Pressure to Read in Different Genres

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

Do you feel pressured to read more in genres that other bloggers are reading?

I think I can safely say that I do not feel pressured to read more in genres that other bloggers read. However, this answer as some caveats.

I don't feel pressure to read other genres, but I am often encouraged or motivated to read other genres. For instance, I don't generally reach for contemporary YA. I have nothing against it, it's just not my thing. But as you may know, contemporary YA is one of the most popular genres (or so it seems) around the blogging community. Generally, I don't feel pressured by bloggers to read in this genre, but every once in a while a contemporary YA book will pop up that I would have never been exposed to if I didn't read about them on various blogs. Books such as The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas and The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis are both contemporary YA books that I really, really enjoyed. But I do think that it is important to note that I didn't choose these because of pressure, but rather because I was encouraged to and they stuck out at me.

I don't think pressuring others to read in more genres is okay, but I do think encouraging people to read in more genres is okay - it's great to diversify your reading! There's nothing  better than expanding one's reading choices, and sometimes we wouldn't push ourselves outside of our comfort zone if we didn't have others encouraging us. But if you know you don't like a genre, then I don't think you should feel like you need to read it just because other bloggers are. I don't really like romance or, as I mentioned, contemporary YA, and I'm not going to force myself to do so. And you know, sometimes we just want to read in one favorite genre for a while, and that's okay. Sometimes I read nothing but fantasy or historical fiction, and that's fine also.

I know that my reading tastes don't always line up perfectly with others int he blogging community, but that's okay! Everyone has different tastes, and I think things might get a little bit boring if we always read the same books. Don't let people pressure you to read something you don't want to read. But do experiment and find what you love!

So now I pose the same question to you: Do you ever feel pressured to read certain genres that other bloggers are reading?

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Tell Me Something Tuesday: Do You Give One-Star Reviews?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

Do you give one-star reviews?

Personally, I absolutely give one-star reviews. I don't give one-stars often, but I have no problem giving out a one-star review if I disliked a book that much.

Looking at my Goodreads account, I've given about ten one-star reviews, but that's probably not an accurate reflection. (And one of those one-star reviews is an extremely well-loved book, so it just goes to show you that people's opinions vary greatly).

I don't give a lot of one-stars, however, for a couple reasons. One of these reasons is that I have to really, really dislike a book to give it one star, and if I really dislike a book, I'm probably not going to finish it and it will end up as a DNF. There are a few exceptions to this, and that's usually when I either have to read the book for an assignment and dislike it or because it's one of those that I just feel obliged to finish. This is also the case if I am reading a review copy that I promised to read and review, although I'm not entirely sure if that has actually happened. I'll also sometimes finish a book and give it one-star if it's because I want to specifically share my opinions regarding a certain book - for instance, it might be beneficial to share a one-star for books that promote unhealthy relationships or things of that nature so that others can be warned and aware That's not necessarily to get them to not read the book, but moreso to just be aware of what's going on with the book.

Suffice to say, I will absolutely give a one-star if the situation requires it, but one-stars are often rare because I'm more likely to simply DNF the book.

So now I pose the same question to you: Do you give one-star reviews?

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Tell Me Something Tuesday: Were You Hesitant to Give Low Ratings When You First Started Blogging?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

My answer: I definitely was! To be honest, I still am in some ways. I always want to give books the benefit of the doubt, but sometimes I can't help but dislike them. When I first started blogging, I made a promise to myself that I would always be completely honest in my reviews, no matter how much I may have disliked -- or even hated -- a book.

I don't like giving low ratings. I know that authors work incredibly hard to create their books, and I also realize the impact of knowing that my review may or may not sway someone from reading their book. Because of that, and because I don't think it's right, I don't ever trash an author or their book. I'm not afraid to say what I really disliked about a book, but I will always try to do it respectfully. I also like to point that hey, just because I hated something in a book, it doesn't mean that everyone will.

The most difficult times I've had with low reviews is when it is for a book that an author specifically reached out to me with for review. I don't want to negate their hard work, but I am also tied to my own honest values and I'm not going to shelter my words or feelings. One thing that I have learned is that if my review is three-stars or lower I will not post a link on Twitter or tag the author or publisher. It's not exactly fun to receive a notification to a review that hates your book, and I've heard many authors on Twitter voice their desire not to be tagged in negative reviews, and I want to respect that.

Despite the fact that I do still hesitate a little, I will say that I have become less hesitant over time. I've spoken with authors about this before and they often tell me that although it might hurt a little to have a poor review, a review is still a review and it is (usually) appreciated all the same. Other bloggers have also helped me to feel more confident as I see other low ratings and reactions to my own low ratings. I feel much more comfortable and confident overall.

So yes, I was still hesitant, and sometimes I still am, but I know that honesty is incredibly important in reviews and I don't want to lie about how I feel about a book.

So now I pose the same question to you: Do you hesitate to give low ratings? Have your feelings ever changed?

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Tell Me Something Tuesday: Is It Easier to Read and Review Books That You Picked Up Yourself?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

This is a great question that really made me stop and think. In general, for me the reviews that are easiest to write are those I have the strongest feelings about -- whether good or bad. If a book was mediocre, than I don't usually have as much to say, and it's often more difficult to craft something that conveys my thoughts.

For those reasons, sometimes I think it is easier to read and review books that I choose because I usually have some sort of desire to read that specific book. A majority of the time I do end up liking a book and therefore a review flows from me much easier. At the same time, books that are presented to me as a review request or that show up at my door have also proved to be great books for reviews as well, so I'd say that, overall, the ease of writing a review really just depends on the book itself. Sometimes it's actually harder for me to write a review for a book I've been highly anticipating or really love because it's too intimidating and I don't know how to accurately capture my thoughts.

I will confess, however, that reviews are often not the easiest thing for me to write. I have the hardest time putting my thoughts into words, especially when it's about something as large as a book and I'm trying to avoid spoilers. I try to capture the main aspects of how the book is written and what its strong and/or low points are, and that's easiest to do when I have some idea of what I'm expecting from a book. But then, just to contradict myself, I also try not to have too many expectations about a book before diving in also.

So now I pose the same question to you: Are books easier to review if you chose to pick up? Or do you prefer reviewing books that you have less attachment to?

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Tell Me Something Tuesday: How Do You Handle DNF Books?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

(note: for anyone who does not know, DNF = 'did not finish')

We've all (probably) been there: you've just started a book and it's not grabbing you yet, so you tell yourself to just hold on, maybe it'll get better -- but it doesn't. Then comes the question: push yourself and finish it or just give it up? Some people have no qualms with putting down a book, and some people hate doing that so much that they just push through. There is no right or wrong way, so I think DNFs are always an interesting discussion!

Personally, I will DNF a book if I am just not feeling it. I definitely try to push myself and give any book as much benefit of the doubt as possible, but sometimes it just doesn't happen. Or it even happens that sometimes a book might not actually be something I don't like, but it just doesn't fit my current mood, so I have to put it down and promise to come back to it later.

Where DNFs gets really tricky is when it comes to advanced review copies/galleys. If you have agreed to read and review a book, does that change how you feel about not finishing it? Do you feel obligated to finish a book? For me, I always try to finish any book that I have explicitly said I will read and review. Fortunately, I've not had many issues where I haven't wanted to finish a book I've agreed to review, and that's probably partly because I try really hard to screen the books that are offered for me to review.

Another area that lends itself to intense consternation regarding DNFs  is whether or not to review them in general. I usually like to leave a review for DNF books in order to explain why I didn't like it or what went wrong. This way others can still see your thoughts and also whether or not this is an issue that might bother them or if it's something that they, in contrast, love to see in a book. However, I also don't think it's vital to leave a review, because if I didn't want to spend time reading the book, I might not want to spend time leaving a review. It really just depends on the situations and reasons why I DNF a book.

But in the end, I think it's important to realize that we can't necessarily love every book we pick up, and that's okay! There are far too many fantastic books to read out there to waste time reading something you don't enjoy.

So now I pose the same question to you: What do you concerning DNF books? Do you have any problems with not finishing a book? Do you review them or feel obligated to finish ARCs? Let me know below!

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Tell Me Something Tuesday: Do You Comment Altruistically Or With Specific Intent?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

First off, I'd like to say that I promise I'm not just saying this to sound 'good' when I say that, in general, I do altruistically. Let me explain. (This might be long, you are forewarned.)

Way back before I was a part of the booklr community, I didn't comment. On anything. Ever. I was either too shy, felt that I had nothing good to say, or just didn't really want to bring attention to myself. I figured any comment I posted would be met with snide remarks, argumentative comments, or would just be completely lost and therefore irrelevant. I'm a quiet person and I don't generally voice my thoughts that often. (I know that my sound odd coming from someone who runs a blog based on sharing my views... but trust me, I still struggle with it!) And this goes further than the internet: I don't even like to ask questions in class - in fact, I avoid it if at all possible. I've always thrived on being an observer.

But then one day I joined the booklr community. I started a blog, started meeting some people. And I also realized that this community thrives from comments. That without comments, many discussions wouldn't exist! That pretty much every book blogger I've come across genuinely appreciates each and every comment that they receive. So I took a deep breath and I started commenting.

I started posting small agreements with reviews on great books or expressed my own interest in something. And suddenly, somehow, I started getting more comments in return. It was so exciting! And that's when I realized that in order to generate my own comments and discussions, I had to give my own thoughts and opinions, but that isn't where I decided to focus my attention, because realizing that connection then made it truly click for me how important commenting is. So now I try to comment as much as possible, whenever I can. Sometimes that means more than ten comments a day, and sometimes that means only three comments a week. I love reading and reacting to posts, and I don't even care if people return the favor on my blog at this point. (And... get ready for this... I've started commenting with disagreements or comments that don't completely agree with something a blogger said, and guess what? It's been fine! It sparks more discussion and I get to meet even more people.)

Basically, what I'm trying to say is that commenting is fun, meaningful, and incredibly important. It lets you connect and talk to new people in the community, and it's worth every minute you spend crafting a response, and although I love finding comments given in return, I don't expect them. It's hard to keep up with commenting - I fall weeks behind in responding to some of the ones posted on mine, so I hardly expect others to take the time to add a comment to my own blog.

So now I pose the same question to you: Do you comment on other blog posts because you genuinely just enjoy commenting and supporting bloggers, or do you hope for some comments in return? (There's no harm in either!)

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Tell Me Something Tuesday: Do Book Trailers Influence Your Reading Choices?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

Okay guys, so I'm going to be completely honest here: I don't care about book trailers much at all. I'm not sure if that's an unpopular opinion or not, but I do feel bad saying it. I've seen so many people get so amazingly amped up after watching some book trailers and I so desperately wish that could be me, but frankly, they just hold very little appeal to me.  I rarely end up watching book trailers, even if it is for a book I'm really excited for. 

A few reasons for this are likely because I don't necessarily like having preconceived notions or 'feelings'/'vibes' about certain books before reading them, and book trailers really seem to do just that. Another reason is simply because there isn't much content within the trailer that excites me; with movies, you can see clips and hear tidbits to get you excited, but books just don't translate well to trailer in my personal opinion. I'd much rather read the synopsis of a book online or on the book itself. 

However, I do appreciate the time, effort, and heart that goes into every trailer. I may not watch many, but when I do watch them I am always impressed by the level of creativity and skill that goes into putting them together. 

So to definitively answer this question: nope, book trailers don't convince me.

So now I pose the same question to you: Do book trailers convince you to read books? I'd love to hear your opinions, and if you love book trailers I would really love to hear why!

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Tell Me Something Tuesday: Do You Cheat and Read Ahead While Reading a Book?

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly discussion post hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings where a wide range of topics from books to blogging are discussed. Weigh in and join the conversation by adding your thoughts in the comments. If you want to do your own post, grab the question and answer it on your blog.

This week's discussion question is:

Personally, I don't think I have ever done this! I absolutely hate being spoiled by a book, and that is what generally prevents me from reading ahead. Also, if I'm that desperate to know what's going to happen, then I'm generally really loving or engaged with the book and I will subconsciously try to draw the book out longer because I don't want it to end. It's a problem.

The only exception to the above is if it's a book that I really dislike or no longer want to read, but that I still want to know what's going to happen. That's when I'll allow myself to just sort of skip forward

Now, have I ever accidentally spoiled myself? Definitely. We've all had those times when it's a really intense moment and we flip the page and our eyes somehow drift right to the opposite page and somehow something is inadvertently spoiled... yeah, that's always frustrating.

So now I pose the same question to you: do you ever cheat and read ahead while reading a book? If so, why? Do you have a strict rule to never look ahead? Do you ever have exceptions? Let me know in the comments!

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