Always Me

        Happy Thursday everyone! Welcome back to Books from the Backlog , the weekly linkup I'm taking part of which is hosted by Carole's Random Life in Books .  This is a great way to put a spotlight on books that I've had sitting on my shelf for awhile.  I don't know when I'll get to my weekly featured book, but I hope to some time hopefully soon. This Week's Neglected Book: These Rebel Waves ( Stream Raiders #1) by Sara Raasch Published: August 17, 2018 Genre: YA Fantasy My Copy: Format: Hardback Pages: 474 Where I Acquired It: A library book sale Summary (From Goodreads): Adeluna is a soldier. Five years ago, she helped the magic-rich island of Grace Loray overthrow its oppressor, Argrid, a country ruled by religion. But adjusting to postwar life has not been easy. When an Argridian delegate vanishes during peace talks with Grace Loray’s new Council, Argrid demands brutal justice—but Lu suspects something more dangerous is at work. Devereux is a pir...

  Happy Wednesday everyone!  We're already to the end of July, can you believe it?  Today I'm sharing my my seventh update for my progress for the year long reading challenge called the 2026 Popsugar Reading Challenge .  In July, I completed 3 books for a total of 41 read so far out of 50 total books on my tbr.  Only 9 to go!  You can see my original tbr here .  Keep reading to see my thoughts on the books I read in July for this challenge: 50. A book about Afrofuturism ❋ ❋  ❋ ❋ Parable of the Talents ( Earthseed #2) by Octavia E. Butler  is a book I'd had left on my tbr for far too long.  I'm glad I finally completed this series.  It's quite the thought-provoking follow-up to Parable of the Sower , and depressing at that.  Flabbergasted to see that political slogan pop up.  Just think, there are only 6 years until 2032! My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph . 47. A book told entirely through letters ❋ ❋ I lo...

Happy Wednesday everyone! Today I'm sharing my my seventh update for my July progress for the year long reading challenge called The 52 Book Club's 2026 Reading Challenge .  You can see my original tbr here .  In July, I completed 4 books for a total of 43 read so far out of 52 total books on my tbr.  Only 9 books to go!  Keep reading to see my thoughts on the books I read in July: 27. Two or more authors, one pseudonym ❋ ❋  ❋ ❋ Magic Bleeds ( Kate Daniels #4) by Ilona Andrews   is an urban fantasy series that is on the way to becoming a favorite.  While I didn't quite like where this went as much as I did the previous installment, I still had a lot of fun.  As much as I like Kate and the rest of the cast, the love the unique world of the story just as much or more.  I'm glad I still have seven more installments of this series to explore in the future. My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph . 24. Uneven number of chapters ❋ ...

Happy Wednesday everyone!  Today I'm sharing my sixth update for my June progress for the year long Beat The Backlist 2026 reading challenge, hosted by Austine Decker.  You can see my original tbr here .  In June, I completed 2 books for a total of 17 read so far out of 24 total books on my tbr.  7 to go!  Without further ado, keep reading to see my thoughts on the books I read in July: 19. oh the places you will go: place name in the title ❋ ❋ ❋ I definitely skipped around with  This Realm of England, 1399 to 1688 ( A History of England #2) by Lacey Baldwin Smith  to check out the sections of times and events I found myself more interested in, but overall this textbook is a slog. I probably would have given it 2 stars if it weren't for a previous owner's notes and commentary in the margins. Sometimes that actually held my attention more than the rest of the book. My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph . 23. title starts with "L": book t...

Happy Wednesday everyone!  Today, I'm sharing my July update for Bookforager's Picture Prompt Book Bingo 2026 .  In July, I completed 2 out of 12 read so far of a total of 16 books on my tbr.  Without further ado, keep reading to see my thoughts on the book I read in July for this challenge: 13. A plant being repotted ❋ ❋ ❋ ❋   Garden of the Cursed ( Garden of the Cursed #1) by Katy Rose Pool   is a YA fantasy mystery that really caught my eye - both the cover and the description - and luckily I really enjoyed this one.  I haven't had the best luck with this author in the past, so I feel like I lucked out with this duology opener.  The world building is great is easily my favorite aspect of this.  The setting really brought it all to life for me.  I'll definitely be back for the finale soon. My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph . 7. A human eye ❋ ❋ ❋  Working Stiff ( Dan Shamble, Zombie PI #5) by Kevin J. Anderson ...

Happy Wednesday everyone! I'm sharing my second update for the r/Fantasy 2026 Book Bingo Challenge .  The challenge officially started on April 1st, 2026 and it will run through March 31st, 2027.  I'm hoping to complete the full board of 25 squares for the challenge. In July, I read 4 books for a total of 6 read out of 25 books on my original tbr .  Keep reading to see the books I've read so far for this challenge: 8. Vacation Spot - Story takes place somewhere you’d want to visit (either fictional or non-fictional). This is subjective, as everyone has different tastes. A cozy cottage at the edge of the sea, a mansion in the fantasy Alps, a cruise ship in the stars - anything can count, as long as you think you would enjoy visiting this world. HARD MODE: No hard mode. You deserve a break. ❋ ❋ With Desert Creatures by Kay Chronister , I think I was hoping for something more like a horror take on Fallout than this. The summary sounded great and it certainly had its moments...

Happy Wednesday everyone!  Today I'm sharing my seventh update for my July progress for the year long Read Queerly 2026 which is hosted by Alexx @ Enthralled Bookworm .  In July, I completed 1 book for a total of 14 read so far out of 16 total books on my tbr.  I've only got two left - wow!  You can see my original tbr here .  Keep reading to see my thoughts on the book I read this month: ❋ ❋ ❋ ❋ The Oleander Sword ( The Burning Kingdoms #2) by Tasha Suri was on my tbr for far too long.  I'm glad I finally got back to this series.  This was pretty great from the action, the characters, and the world-building.  It's a little too long, though, and at times it feels like the goal is to set up what's coming up in book three.  On that note, I can't wait to read the next book and I hope I won't put it off for so long. My review is also on Goodreads and The StoryGraph . Are you participating in this challenge?  Have you read any of these boo...