Nightstand Books: April {2017}

Just a quick post today! 🙂

Being the first Wednesday of the month, it’s Nightstand Books day! (A meme to share our currently-reading stack every month, created by Jenelle Schmidt and DJ Edwardson.)

Here’s what’s on my nightstand for this month.

• King’s Blood by Jill Williamson — This one is taking me far longer than I anticipated! (Review books shouldn’t take this long to read. *cough* In my defense, it’s enormous and I’ve been busy? 😛 But I’m steadily working through.) It’s still dark, like the first book, and very long, but I’m enjoying it somewhat for all that.
• Second Son by Jenelle Schmidt — Yep, finally reading this one! I’m really excited. I’m reading a chapter a day on the side of my busyness, so I’m hoping in that way to get it read this month even though I don’t have a lot of time. Really enjoying it so far. 🙂
• Viper by Jamie Foley — This is a prequel to the Sentinel trilogy, and I haven’t started it yet, but as this is a novella, I’m hoping to zip through it in a day here pretty soon. Looks like it’s going to be different than what I usually read, but that can be fun too.
• Hexwood by Diana Wynne Jones — I haven’t started this yet, but I know it’s dangerous to do so until I have a good long time available to read it in, so I’m holding off for now. XD But I can’t wait to devour this DWJ book I haven’t read! New DWJ books are always exciting. 🙂

I’m also still working through a couple of beta-reading books and hoping to finish them at long last! I’ve been making steady progress on my backlog of betas this year, so that’s exciting too. 🙂

Also not pictured above (because ebook), like Jenelle mentioned in her post, Beggar’s Magic by H.L. Burke is the Fellowship of Fantasy Bookclub book for April. I haven’t started it yet but I hope to soon. 🙂 (Maybe that chapter-a-day trick I’m using on Second Son will help?)

As usual, I have no idea if I’ll  make it through all of these this April, but they’re what I’ve started or am focusing on at the moment!

What’s on your “nightstand” that you’re reading this month? 🙂

Thanks for reading!

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer

Advertisement

#MarchMagics/Nightstand Books {March 2017}

Time for a look at the books on my nightstand this month and at what I’m up to for #MarchMagics!

(Nightstand Books is a monthly meme created by DJ Edwardson and Jenelle Schmidt.

March Magics [formerly DWJ March] is a celebration of the works of Diana Wynne Jones and Terry Pratchett, hosted by Kristen @ We Be Reading.)

Non-March-Magics-Nightstand

I’m currently working through Mansfield Park by Jane Austen, and King’s Blood by Jill Williamson — both of which are not for the faint of heart! (Or at least not for the faint-of-arm since they are large.)

Mansfield Park is… interesting. It’s the last Austen I haven’t read and in a sense I’m enjoying it (especially comparing it to Cinderella a little) — though in another sense I’m spending a lot of time absolutely loathing Mrs. Norris and the Crawford siblings and… most everyone else besides Fanny and Edmund. XD

King’s Blood is quite enjoyable so far — I missed Trevn and Wilek so much and didn’t realize it until I started reading! I don’t have much to say on it yet because I’m still reading, but I’ll have a full review of it up on my other blog when I finish. So far an excellent book and I can’t wait to finish!

Not pictured are a couple of beta-reads of books for friends, which I need to make some time for… Reading critically with an eye for editing and feedback takes a lot more effort than regular reading! But I’m looking forward to these. 🙂

IF I can (not sure if it will happen) I would love to be able to have time to read Dragonfriend by Marc Secchia which is this month’s bookclub read for the Fellowship of Fantasy… I enjoyed last month’s read (The Firethorn Crown) and this one looks fun, I just don’t know if it will take priority and if I’ll find the time… SO MUCH TO READ. (It’s an e-book, and I tend to have so many other things to do on my computer — beta-reading, writing, internet — that e-books don’t get read very often unless they’re for review. But we shall see!)

March Magics Nightstand

I actually read most of these last week already! I had a cold so I curled up with some DWJ books and a Terry Pratchett while I recovered, in honor of March Magics, and it was delightful. 🙂 (I should have been beta-reading at the time… but that requires editorial thinking and my brain was not up to that kind of level at the time while I was sick.)

Library acquisitions, I read Aunt Maria and Wild Robert by Diana Wynne Jones, both for the first time! Greatly enjoyed those — it’s always SO MUCH FUN getting to read DWJ books I’ve never read before! 🙂

I also read my second-ever Terry Pratchett book, Mort, for the first of the Pratchett read-alongs for March Magics. I enjoyed it muchly! (It was a timely library-sale conquest… which included a whole batch of Discworld books!)

Perhaps I shall do a mini-reviews post for these soon?

I re-read The Pinhoe Egg (final Chrestomanci book), also for the March Magics readalong (rather early because I couldn’t help it!), thereby finishing my re-reading-aloud of the Chrestomanci books. CHRESTOMANCI’S THE BEST! ❤

I also finished reading Howl’s Moving Castle for the 5th time and still found things I’d never noticed before. HOWL IS THE BEST! ❤ (I know I just said that about Chrestomanci. Hush. Both are true in their own ways. ^_^)

I’m still hoping to re-read Year of the Griffin (for the readalong on the DWJ Goodreads group) and if I can make time, I’d also love to read at least Reaper Man and possibly Soul Music for the March Magics continuing Pratchett readalongs, but we shall see!

I always plan for more books than I have time to read, unfortunately, and I’m very busy this month… However, I’ve already had some great March Magics fun so I’m happy with that even if I don’t get to any more. 🙂

So there you have my ambitious load of March books!

What’s on your nightstand this month, fellow readers? Have you read/want to read any of these? And have you added a Diana Wynne Jones book to your to-read-soon stack or list? (Hint: you totally should! ;)) Tell me your bookish adventures of late!

Thanks for reading!

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer

Fantasy Month Plans/Nightstand Books

Behold my hoped-for nightstand reads for February is Fantasy Month! (Rolling two different Jenelle-Schmidt-themed things into one since she and DJ Edwardson came up with Nightstand Books? XD)

These are the (visible) fantasy books I hope to try to read this month… mostly fantasy. 😉 Not pictured are a few beta-reads I must read (exciting! But not very photographable! XD). And I’m reading a Jane Austen (Mansfield Park, being the last one I haven’t read) because reasons.

• King’s Blood — I’m reading this one for review and JUST LOOK AT ITS GORGEOUSNESS. AND ENORMITY. I may be at this one for awhile. XD It’s big enough that I’m trying not to be too ambitious for my other reading this month. o.o
• The Firethorn Crown — The Fellowship of Fantasy is reading this one this month as a book club read and it’s the perfect excuse for me to finally read the gorgeous copy I won last year and didn’t get around to reading. (#fail) But it’s a retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses so I’m excited. 😀
• Howl’s Moving Castle — Speaking of book clubs, the Goodreads Diana Wynne Jones Fans group is reading HMC this month for a Valentine-ish read, and I need no excuse to reread one of my top two favorite books. ❤
• Mixed Magics — I’m re-reading (aloud) my way through the Chrestomanci series, and this one’s next. Going to be fun. 🙂 This series is even MORE amazing on reread!

Posting Plans for February

Sometimes I’m entirely planned out and have aaall my posts either ready or at least planned.

And then there are the other times.

This is one of those other times. 😉

But hey, let’s roll with it! I have no concrete plans for the month, but I hope to share a few fantasy book reviews throughout the month (if I can actually get around to writing them… >.>) and I may do a fantasy-ish tag thingamy. I don’t know! But hopefully some fun, regardless. 🙂

Fantasy Etc. Scavenger Hunt (Jill Williamson)

Also! There’s a fun (and mostly fantasy) scavenger hunt later this month that Jill Williamson and some other authors are holding to celebrate the release of King’s Blood — so you simply must mark your calendars for February 17-19 because it looks like so much fun.

There’s also a super-cool giveaway for a signed copy of King’s Blood on the post about the hunt (this giveaway runs till the 7th I think?) so go enter! 😀

AND THE MAP. Jill made this GORGEOUS map for the scavenger hunt, visiting the worlds of the various books/worlds of the authors on the stops AND IT’S SUCH A BRILLIANT MAP AND I LOVE IT. (I mean, look how the USA and Europe are on there… and the space stations to the sci-fi books appear to be in Florida and Russia(?) like in real life, and Leira (from Orphan’s Song and Songkeeper) is by a desert, and just… it’s brilliant okay and I love it and can’t wait, so I had to mention it. XD

So! There’s a peek at some of my plans for this month! Do you have any?

Thanks for reading!

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer

Cover Love: Some 2016 Releases

From time to time, either here or on my other blog, I’ve mentioned books I’m excited about that are coming out this year, but some I’ve discovered recenter so I haven’t listed them, and some didn’t have covers yet at the time I mentioned them. (Or at least I don’t think so.)

So here are half-a-dozen books coming out later this year that I’m looking forward to! Because I feel like it! ^_^ (Simply as an excuse to share their gorgeous covers, you understand. ;)) All titles link to Goodreads so that you can add these beauties to your own TBR if you you so desire and haven’t yet…

Without further ado, covers! (And lots of equations-of-awesome, shrieking, and of course parenthesis because why wouldn’t I.)

A Branch of Silver, A Branch of Gold – Anne Elisabeth Stengl
May 16, 2016

Because a Twelve Dancing Princesses ish tale + Anne Elisabeth Stengl + that cover = I NEED THIS.

---

The Crown’s Game – Evelyn Skye
May 17, 2016

Russian-esque fantasy + a magician duel + that gorgeous golden crown/castle thing cover = yes please and thank you.

(Also Cait says read it. So that makes this another yes.)

---

The Invisible Library – Genevieve Cogman
June 14, 2016

BLUE + GOLD + KEY + MAGICAL LIBRARY = THIS COVER IS AMAZING.

(I had thought this one came out like a couple years ago? But apparently (?) it had only released like… in the UK or somewheres and not here yet. So.)

---

Ghostly Echoes (Jackaby, #3) – William Ritter
August 23, 2016

Jackaby and his scarf on that cover ( ❤ ❤ ❤ ) + all the awesome dialog/bickering + magical mysteries = give it to meee! (HIM AND HIS SCARF THOUGH ON THAT COVERRRR!)

(I hear tell on Twitter* that in this one we will learn Jackaby’s age!)

*Read the whole conversation on Twitter; it is gold. (Just don’t trust Jackaby… he seems very indecisive about his own age…)

---

Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows, #2) – Leigh Bardugo
September 27, 2016

That cliffhanger + Kaz + heists = I need to know what happens! (Is that the sound of my heart shattering?)

(Yes I did in fact use a gif from one heisty thing for another heisty thing. I will not apologize. Such awesomeness needs to stick together.)

---

King’s Blood (Kinsman Chronicles, #2) – Jill Williamson
December 6, 2016

AAAHH THIS COVER!!!! (Sorry, no neat and tidy equation on this one; I’m much too incoherent about its amazingness to do that.) I know I haven’t read the first one yet but I need this one already anyway. BUT BUT COVER. (I have a thing for blue and silver and gold, apparently.) I about died of shrieking the first time I saw it a few days ago. THE COVER-LOVE IS REAL, PEOPLE.

What do you think? Do you have any cover-love for these? Looking forward to any? What other awesome (or gorgeous-looking) books are coming out this year that you’re excited about? Share all in the comments! 🙂

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer