I’ve seen a bunch of variations on this idea, but I like this one the most. Plus I love Destiny at Howling Libraries, who created this prompt, check her out, she is amazing. I love reading her posts every week, so I finally decided to join in. I have a ridiculously long TBR and will probably concentrate more on the highs.
Rules:
- Link back to the original post at Howling Libraries
- Sort your Goodreads TBR shelf by date added, ascending
- Find 5-10 (or more, if you feel ambitious!) titles to purge from your TBR (the “lows”)
- ALTERNATIVE OPTION: Find 5+ titles that are at the BOTTOM of your TBR—books you want to read someday, just not right now! (Thank you for this idea, Ari!)
- Post those 5 books in the list, with a brief explanation
- Next, sort your Goodreads TBR shelf by date added, descending
- List the last 5 (or more!) books you added to your TBR, with a synopsis or your brief summary of why you added it (the “highs”)
The Lows
Medicus by Ruth Downie
This historical fiction book just looks dull to me.
Bound to the Fallen by Stevie J. Cole
Kissing on the cover typically makes me think erotica. Also, this book is the second in a series and I haven’t read the first so it doesn’t belong on my TBR.
Feral Curse by Cynthia Leitich Smith
This sounds like something I would read, but it’s the second in a series where I haven’t read the first.
The Mortal One by Shannon Bell
A shirtless man on the cover. WHY DID I EVER ADD THESE BOOKS?
Hitchhikers by Kate Spofford
Although this is a freebie and I’m a sucker for free things, with only 6 reviews it is SUPER unlikely that I will ever actually read this.
The Highs
I’ve decided to do the highs in a different format. These are the books I’m excited to have added to my TBR, so I want to share the blurbs with you rather than just a link.
1)
The Grace Year by Kim Liggett
No one speaks of the grace year. It’s forbidden.
Girls are told they have the power to lure grown men from their beds, drive women mad with jealousy. They believe their very skin emits a powerful aphrodisiac, the potent essence of youth, of a girl on the edge of womanhood. That’s why they’re banished for their sixteenth year, to release their magic into the wild so they can return purified and ready for marriage. But not all of them will make it home alive.
Sixteen-year-old Tierney James dreams of a better life—a society that doesn’t pit friend against friend or woman against woman, but as her own grace year draws near, she quickly realizes that it’s not just the brutal elements they must fear. It’s not even the poachers in the woods, men who are waiting for their chance to grab one of the girls in order to make their fortune on the black market. Their greatest threat may very well be each other.
This sounds incredible. I was drawn to the cover when I saw it on Netgalley, but after reading the blurb I decided that this was a must have.
2)
No Country for Old Gnomes by Kevin Hearne and Delilah S Dawson
Go big or go gnome. The New York Times bestselling authors of Kill the Farm Boy return to the world of Pell, the irreverent fantasy universe that recalls Monty Python and Terry Pratchett.
The Skyr is a rich, verdant land claimed by both halflings and gnomes. For centuries, the halflings have worked to undermine gnomish power structures and seize total control–through legal means, certainly, but more insidiously through their extensive organized crime network. Now, threatened with being pushed out entirely, the gnomes are desperate and ready to fight back. Gustave the Goat King faces his first test as a leader: Can he bring peace to a fraught region or will a civil war consume the entire kingdom?
I recently finished Kill the Farm Boy and LOVED it. I have yet to post my review, but be on the look out for it! I can’t wait to read the sequel!
3)
The Boy Who Steals Houses by C.G. Drews
Can two broken boys find their perfect home?
Sam is only fifteen but he and his autistic older brother, Avery, have been abandoned by every relative he’s ever known. Now Sam’s trying to build a new life for them. He survives by breaking into empty houses when their owners are away, until one day he’s caught out when a family returns home. To his amazement this large, chaotic family takes him under their wing – each teenager assuming Sam is a friend of another sibling. Sam finds himself inextricably caught up in their life, and falling for the beautiful Moxie.
But Sam has a secret, and his past is about to catch up with him.
So this is written by a book blogger that I love to follow, Paper Fury. (She also has an amazing bookstagram.) This is her second novel, and while I haven’t read her first, I love the way she writes on the blog so I will probably love reading this.
4)
Storm and Fury by Jennifer L Armentrout
From the #1 New York Times, USA TODAY and internationally bestselling author of the fantastical Dark Elements and the Lux series comes a new novel set in a world of gargoyle protectors, rising demons and one girl with an explosive secret.
Eighteen-year-old Trinity Marrow may be going blind, but she can see and communicate with ghosts and spirits. Her unique gift is part of a secret so dangerous that she’s been in hiding for years in an isolated compound fiercely guarded by Wardens—gargoyle shape-shifters who protect humankind from demons. If the demons discover the truth about Trinity, they’ll devour her, flesh and bone, to enhance their own powers.
When Wardens from another clan arrive with disturbing reports that something out there is killing both demons and Wardens, Trinity’s safe world implodes. Not the least because one of the outsiders is the most annoying and fascinating person she’s ever met. Zayne has secrets of his own that will upend her world yet again—but working together becomes imperative once demons breach the compound and Trinity’s secret comes to light. To save her family and maybe the world, she’ll have to put her trust in Zayne. But all bets are off as a supernatural war is unleashed…
The beginning of yet another YA series from Jennifer L Armentrout. Of course I’m on the bandwagon! The most recent book I’ve read by her is The Darkest Star and I really enjoyed it. Check out my review of The Darkest Star here.
5)
The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad
Fatima lives in the city of Noor, a thriving stop along the Silk Road. There the music of myriad languages fills the air, and people of all faiths weave their lives together. However, the city bears scars of its recent past, when the chaotic tribe of Shayateen djinn slaughtered its entire population — except for Fatima and two other humans. Now ruled by a new maharajah, Noor is protected from the Shayateen by the Ifrit, djinn of order and reason, and by their commander, Zulfikar.
But when one of the most potent of the Ifrit dies, Fatima is changed in ways she cannot fathom, ways that scare even those who love her. Oud in hand, Fatima is drawn into the intrigues of the maharajah and his sister, the affairs of Zulfikar and the djinn, and the dangers of a magical battlefield.
Nafiza Azad weaves an immersive tale of magic and the importance of names; fiercely independent women; and, perhaps most importantly, the work for harmony within a city of a thousand cultures and cadences.
A historical fantasy set in the middle-east with a gorgeous cover? I want a copy. Too bad it doesn’t come out until May.
Let’s Chat!
Have you read any of these books? Do certain covers turn you away from books? Are you picky about adding titles to your TBR or do you add everything like me? Did you also do a TBR purging recently? Link it below! Comment below and we can talk about our never ending to be read piles.
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