I love listening to podcasts. Podcasts are my thing. I've been listening to various different podcasts since about 2009 and I've been hooked ever since. I used to listen to music in my free time or in my commute to work, but since I've discovered podcasts, I've slowly phased music out until I hardly listen to it at all. Since podcasts are something that I love to talk about, here are some of my current favorites.

1. Potterless Podcast: A Grown Man Reads Harry Potter for the First Time

Mike Schubert had never read the Harry Potter series as a kid and even only saw the first couple of movies. In this podcast, he starts reading the books and jokingly makes fun of all the plot holes. Each episode has a guest host that is usually a Harry Potter fanatic. I've really been enjoying this podcast so I've decided to use it as a way to re-read the series. Currently I'm reading and listening my way through the third book, only continuing to read after I've completed the appropriate chapter.

2. Down the Hill: The Delphi Murders

One of my favorite type of podcasts are true crime podcasts, specifically cold case murder podcasts. The Delphi murders are not necessarily a cold case as it's still an open investigation, but it is just as fascinating. Basically, it's about two teenage girls who were murdered and found on the outskirts of their small town.

3. After Buzz TV's Married at First Sight

One of my favorite guilty pleasure TV shows is Married at First Sight. I love this experiment where strangers marry each other and try to decide if they could make a marriage work. After watching the show, I like to listen to commentary and I love hearing other people's perspectives on these relationships. I also do this with The Bachelor, when it's on, where I listen to an after show podcast. It's very satisfying to know that other people also like to watch these people's train wreck lives!

These are just a few of the podcasts that I'm currently enjoying in my headphones. And I'm always on the hunt for new ones and open to recommendations! So if you know of any that you think I might like, I would love to know in the comments!

2018 Reading and Blogging Goals

2018 is here and when the new year arrives, I always love to set new goals and challenges for myself in my reading life. After evaluating my reading from 2017, I found that I read a lot of just mediocre books and nothing really blew me away; nothing challenged my world view or really made me think. And just in general, not one single book that I read stood out to me. So here I present my Goodreads Reading Challenge for 2018:

As you can see I've only challenge myself to read 25 books this year. There are many reasons why I've set my goal at only 25 books but the main reason is because I didn't meet my goal last year of 50 books. In September, I found out that I'm pregnant which really effected my reading life and I've only finished 2 books since then! I've been reading a lot more lately and I want to get back to a semi consistent reading life. But I am going to have a baby in May and I know that I'm not going to have a ton of time to read for the first few months. I also think that challenging myself to reading only 25 books this year will allow me to focus on quality books instead of the quantity of books that I read. I also have a bunch of books that are 800-1000 pages long and I don't want to feel guilty spending so much time on them. 

The second and final reading challenge that I'm participating in 2018 is the Beat the Backlist Challenge hosted by Novelknight. I feel like this one can really go hand in hand with my Goodreads Challenge because I know I have a lot of quality books on my shelves and I really want to read what I already have. I'm only setting my goal at 10 books which I hope I can achieve and then just see where it goes from there!

As far as blogging, I would like to post a least a couple times a month. I want to keep you guys in the loop, let you know what I'm reading and what's going on in my life and I know almost everyone loves cute, squishy baby pictures! I love blogging and reading and since I've been pregnant and I haven't had that aspect of my life, I have felt like something is missing because it's so important to me. So, even though I'm pregnant, I'm getting back to what I really love! 

Here's to an awesome 2018!!!

Let's Discuss: Reading Rituals

Hey readers! Welcome to Let's Discuss where I like to talk about book related topic! This week we're talking about reading rituals and what makes an environment conducive to reading.

I always like to know about people's different rituals and traditions. Do you have a certain reading chair, do you like to munch while you read, do you usually have some kind of beverage in hand while you read? I like to know little quirks like this about people.

Now that I'm so busy all the time, I literally get my reading in when I can. I read on my lunch break, I read a little before bed and if I get off work early and I'm not doing homework or working on this blog, then I'll get some more reading in. Before I started this program, I used to be able to sit down for long periods of time and read like half or at least most of a book in one sitting. When I used to have more time to read I would usually sit in my reading chair, get myself a cold beverage and sometimes I would like to snack on M&Ms or like a cheesy popcorn. Here's what my spot looks like:

I really love my reading chair and I wished I had more time to use it. But I'm not really like a ritual type person and I can read almost anywhere at anytime. 

Do you have any reading rituals that you like to practice? Do you have a favorite reading spot? Let me know in the comments! 

Let's Discuss: Series or Stand-Alone Novels

Welcome to Let's Discuss, my weekly discussion post about bookish topics that I'm always thinking about.

This week I really wanted to talk about series vs. stand-alone novels and which ones you prefer to read. I always feel like I'm really torn between the two. One the one hand, I love a good novel that just wraps me up completely but also has a nice perfecting ending; on the other hand I love diving deep into good multi-book fantasy series! I think when I really start to waver towards one side is when every book I pick up turns into a series, especially in YA.

A few years ago, when I was really heavily into blogging (on a different blog) and reading pretty much only YA, I just became overwhelmed with how many series I had started and only got a few books into because everything was a series. I was in the middle of so many series but found myself forgetting about what had happened in the other books which is partly why I was so behind.

I could go a lot more into this, but I eventually just stopped reading YA for a little bit and only read adult fiction. I find with adult fiction that it's so much easier to pick up a really good book and that's it; there's not a series attached to it. I still do read series but now I really have to love the first book to continue with the series. If I'm mostly likely going to forget what happened in the first book, then I'm going to pass on the series, but at least I gave it a try. So I have to say that I definitely prefer stand-alone novels but I'm not opposed to getting into a good series!

What about you? Do you prefer series or stand-alones? Let me know in the comments!

Let's Discuss: Books that Made me Cry

Hey readers! Welcome to Let's Discuss; a weekly post discussing book related topic. This week's topic is one of my favorites: books that made me cry.

I love books that make me cry. In my opinion, if a book is powerful or moving enough to make me cry then it leaves a long lasting impression on me; one that I am not quick to forget. There are many books that have made me shed a tear here and there but there are only a few that make me cry the ugly cry.

In no particular order, here are the most memorable books that made me cry:

The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy by Jenny Han: I am a sucker for moms dying of cancer. It gets me every time! I don't really know why because my mom is alive and well but I always sob like a baby! It's probably because I'm so close to my mom and I know I will be devastated they day comes that I have to say goodbye.

Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom: Tuesdays with Morrie is the only
Mitch Albom book that I've read and I literally cried through every page of it. I honestly can't remember anything that happened in this book but I remember it being touching and again: it's a person dying that the main character cares for and to me that is always moving. Maybe someday I'll pick up another one of this books.


The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger: The Time Traveler's Wife is one of my all time favorite books that I read way back when I was in college. The love story between Henry and Clare is so deep and pure and beautiful. When the end happened it literally tore me to pieces! This book definitely deserves a re-read soon.

Me Before You by Jojo Moyes: I believe I read Me Before You about three
years ago because someone in my book club picked it for the monthly read. I didn't cry when I read this book; I WEPT. I sobbed and I hiccuped and I cried rivers. It was embarrassing. That letter at the end just shattered me.

The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder: Here we go again with cancer. Except in The Probability of Miracles, the main character, a teenage girl has cancer and her mom is trying to do everything she can to find a cure for her. It's just so, so sad and it kind of reminds me of The Fault in Our Stars but to me it felt more authentic and heartfelt.






And just for fun, here are some books on my TBR that I'm pretty sure are going to be cry fests.

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi: From what I've heard everyone that has read this book has cried!

The Summer of Chasing Mermaids by Sarah Ockler: I have not read an Ockler book that has not made me cry!

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara: I haven't read this yet for two reasons. The first is that it's gigantic and I own the hardcover. Number two is that I know if I get into it I'm really going to cry.

Do you have some memorable books that have made you cry? Let me know in the comments!

Let's Discuss: The Case for Non-Fiction

Hey readers! Welcome to Let's Discuss; a weekly post discussing bookish related topics. This week I'm talking about non-fiction and why I love to read it.

Like I said before, I love to read non-fiction. And when I say non-fiction, I don't mean celebrity memoirs. Not that there's anything wrong with a celebrity memoir, I currently have one on my TBR just waiting to be read. But for me, when it comes to a non-fiction book, I want to learn something or I want to read a harrowing story from someone's life or I want to be blown away by something that happened in history that I would never known about unless I read this book.

Here are some of the non-fiction books that I've read previous and have really loved:

• Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick- I read this book in 2016 and it was one of my favorite books of the year! It literally changed my world view and ever since I've been completely fascinated with North Korea. While reading Nothing to Envy, I felt like I was reading something that happened over one hundred years ago because it was so atrocious and inhumane but it happened when I was in the eighth grade. I highly recommend reading it!

• The Sound of Gravel by Ruth Wariner- Another book that created a new reading obsession: the FLDS cult of Mormons. I absolutely could not believe the way Ruth was raised and the squalor that she lived in. And Ruth's grandparents encouraged her mother to become one of the many wives of Ruth's father in the first place! It just seriously boggles my mind that some people are so easily brainwashed. The most heartbreaking were the things that happened to two of Ruth's sisters who were born mentally deficient. If you want to know what happens, read it! 

• Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic by David Quammen- Let me start by saying that this book is not for everyone. There is a lot of medical jargon going on and a whole slew of diseases that I've never heard of, but I learned so much! If there is anything you wanted to know about infections diseases and where they come from this book is for you! Spoiler alert: Almost everything comes from monkeys. 

Here are some non-fiction books currently on my TBR that I'm hoping to read by the end of this year:

• Dead Mountain: The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident by Donnie Eichar
• In the Country we Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero
• Rabid: A Cultural History of the World's Most Diabolical Virus by Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy

Do you read non-fiction as well? What are some of your favorite non-fiction books? Let me know in the comments! 

Let's Discuss: Book Buying Habits

Welcome to my weekly discussion post called Let's Discuss! This week I'm talking about our book buying habits!

Ever since I became a blogger (which actually was a while ago because I used to run another blog) my book buying habits and shot through the roof. I used to be the type of person that would read a book and then I would go out and buy another book. Which is how I was for most of my life. My parents would take me to the bookstore when I wanted a book, which I would read and put on my shelf or let my friend borrow it.

Then I discovered the book blogging community around 2012 and my whole world changed. Before I took the deep dive into the dark side of buying books, I start requesting a ton of them from the library. I would come home stacks and stacks of book but then I had to return them. So then I started buying them and it was crazy.

Now that I'm married I'm more mindful of how many books I buy and how often I buy them. I definitely use the library a lot more again. The library allows me to discover books that I love, read them and then purchase them when I get the chance. I'm a Barnes & Noble member so I always buy a book when I get a coupon. And every once in a while I'll make a large Book Outlet order. I also always keep my eye on Book Riot's Deals of the Day and when something catches my eye, I purchase it for my Kindle.

There are times when I slip up and I know I get a little crazy with buying books. At those times, I cross my fingers and hope and pray real hard that my husband doesn't notice the charge on the credit card. But he knows how much I love books and that I will get to those books eventually.

What are some of your book buying habits? Did you book buying habits change when you became a blogger? Let me know in the comments!

Let's Discuss: Seasonal Reading

Hey readers! Welcome to my weekly discussion post called Let's Discuss! This week I'm talking about seasonal reading and how the seasons of the year and the weather affect your reading habits.

It's right smack dab in the middle of summer and I love reading summer books! Especially YA contemporary books make me feel like summer is here. The lighthearted summer romances, the shenanigans, the road trips and the adventures are all really fun to read during the summer. And I don't really like summer all that much, especially now that I live in Vegas. Summer has me like:

I love fall and I really love Halloween reads. Halloween isn't my favorite holiday but it's definitely my favorite time to do some "theme reading." When the weather starts to get cooler, the days shorter and the nights longer, then my reading tends to get darker. I tend to gravitate more towards thrillers, serial killer books and horror novels. 

As the weather turns to winter, I really like to read dark fantasy novels. I'm already planning on caching up on the Throne of Glass series this winter as well as finishing the Farseer Trilogy. I don't know what it is about the cold weather that always makes me want to pick up a chunky fantasy novel! 

Springtime usually has me all mixed up. I read a mix bag of books: contemporary, fantasy, thrillers and horror. In all honesty, I just like to read all kinds of genres. Over the years, especially as a blogger, I've noticed how my reading habits have changed throughout the seasons. I think it's pretty cool to track it or to at least be aware of how they change so that I can plan my reading accordingly. 

Are you a seasonal reader as well? How does your reading change based on the seasons? Let me know in the comments! 

Let's Discuss: Reading Multiple Books at Once

Welcome to my weekly discussion post called Let's Discuss where I discuss a hot topic from around the book blogosphere. This week I wanted to talk about read multiple books at one time.

Which I am absolutely terrible at! There have been times that I would be reading a physical book, reading a book on my Kindle and listening to an audio book all at one time. But I have found that it takes me forever to finish just those three books. It mostly becomes a battle between my Kindle and the physical book. It is much easier for me to immerse myself in once story at a time that I read with my eyes and one story that I listen to.

I wish I had the ability to read more than one book at a time because sometime when I'm reading a real chunker, it's really a pain to carry around. But from much trial and error I know that I can only read one book at a time. Are you able to read multiple books at one time? Let me know in the comments!

Let's Discuss: Negative Reviews

As a blogger, I have found that writing or giving negative reviews can be a hot-button topic. Everyone loves to write glowing reviews and fan-girl over the books we love. And when it comes to the YA a community, a lot of books and/or series have very dedicated followers. But what if you didn't love that book? What if, actually, you though it was really boring or just plain bad? What do you do?

I have no problem writing a negative review. I'm always very honest on my blog and I will never pretend to love a book that I don't. If a book interests me enough to finish it, I will most likely post a review, whether positive or negative. I like to read other blogger's negative posts as well because I really want to know what I'm getting myself into before picking up a book.

Goodreads is a great example of where you can find great reviews and negative reviews of the same book. I like to see both sides of it. I want to know why people love the book and why some people didn't connect with it. And I will always let you know if I didn't connect with a book.

As a blogger, do you post negative review? Do you like to read negative reviews? Let me know in the comments!

Let's Discuss: DNFing Books

Reading is one of the true joys in my life. I can spend hours lost in a book without any thought of the world around me. But let's be honest about the books out there; they're not all created equal. I enjoy most books that I read because again, being honest, I'm pretty easily entertained! But there are a pretty good amount of bad books out there and I have no problem with not finishing them. In other words, I DNF books and I am so much happier that I do. 

When I DNF a book, I usually have very specific rules. Not a lot but for me to officially DNF a book and never pick it up again or possibly get rid of it, it has to meet these specifications: 

1. Read a least 100 pages of the book
2. Don't connect with or am very irritated by the characters
3. Don't feel like I'm invested in the story
4. Don't really care what happens at the end

I don't think book blogger and readers in general should feel bad about DNFing books. There's nothing wrong with it. My philosophy is that not all books are going to connect with all readers. You have to find what works for you and quickly move away from what doesn't. 

Since it's July and half of 2017 is now gone, I though I would share the books that I've already DNFed this year.

A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet: I really wanted to love A Promise of Fire. And I almost read the whole book. I really love the banter between the main character and the guy who was obviously her love interest. I just could not get over her immaturity and the cheesiness of this book.

Moral Disorder and Other Stories by Margaret Atwood: Sometimes Atwood's writing style just doesn't mesh well with my reading style. I found most of these short stories to be bland and the whole book itself just could not hold my interest.

Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell: Another collection of short stories. I actually really loved how weirdly fantastic the first two stories in this collection were but third one was literally a 180 difference and I didn't understand how they could be part of the same collection.

There you have it, the three books that I've DNF this year so far. I'm actually shocked it's only three because I feel like it should have been more. What are you thoughts on DNFing books? Let me know in the comments!