Bookshelf Roundup 01/06/23: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Bookshelf Roundup is a feature I do every weekend which fills the role of several blog memes, like Stacking the Shelves where I talk about the new books I’ve added to my library or received for review, as well as It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? where I summarize what I’ve finished reading in the last week and what I’m planning to read soon. Mostly it also serves as a recap post, so sometimes I’ll throw in stuff like reading challenge progress reports, book lists, and other random bookish thoughts or announcements.
Received for Review
Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett (Del Rey): Early 2024 finished copies are coming in, and I received the gorgeous hardcover of the second book of the Emily Wilde series, which I recently finished. I hope to get a review up in the coming days.
The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler (Tordotcom): Very soon I’ll also be starting this novella about mammoths being brought by from extinction and the strange challenges about keeping a resurrected species alive. Releases in the first couple weeks of January are pretty light, but the arrival of this finished copy is a reminder that my TBR will be packed again before long.
Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne (Bramble): Who can resist a title like that? This one sounds super cozy, and the new Tor SFF romance imprint Bramble is releasing it later this spring.
Unbound by Christy Healy (Blackstone Publishing): A Celtic inspired, gender-flipped retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Why a I always such a sucker for these things?
The Glass Box by J. Michael Straczynski (Blackstone Publishing): I remember reading JMS’s comics a lot as a kid, but he’s also been a filmmaker and television writer and done lots of other stuff. When I saw his name attached to his novel, a project that only came to my attention recently, I just had to check it out.
Reviews
This week was about rounding up some of my final reviews for 2023 reads. Even though I’ve got a couple more I still have to write, pretty soon the 2024 book reviews will begin in earnest.
- 4 of 5 stars to The Pale House Devil by Richard Kadrey
- 3.5 of 5 stars to Black River Orchard by Chuck Wendig
Recent Reads
This week was a weird one. While everyone went back to school or work, it felt like my time off had just begun. I think I worked more during the Christmas break! And yet it seemed like there was always something going on, and I constantly fell behind on things I was supposed to do. Maybe it was the post-holiday blues because motivation was low too, so I was only able to finish one review book, The Heiress (but it was really good). On the bright side, I also got to read Gwendy’s Button Box which was a “just because” mood read, and I did make a resolution to do more of that this year.
Have you heard of or read any of the books featured this week? What caught your eye? Any new discoveries? I hope you found something interesting for a future read!
The BiblioSanctum 
I’m really wondering about The Tusks of Extinction and whether I’d like it! Given it’s a novella, maybe I should just try it (I have auto-approval on Netgalley from Tor). Hmmm!
Hope you enjoy the new books, and maybe get a bit more time for reading this week!
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Snow, that’s what is happening here. Lots and lots of snow. Winter decided to finally show up and it is doing it with a vengeance. A foot of snow in one storm. Nobody needs that kind of weather. I want the weather we were having in December, 40 and sunny, you know?
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I want that Celtic inspired retelling
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Ooh nice new reads! I still need to get caught up with Rachel’s other mysteries! I know it’s not necessary to read them in order, but I can’t seem to break away from doing that! Lol!
Hope you enjoy all of your new reads!
Here’s my StS
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower 🙂
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My review of The Heiress is going up tomorrow, and I loved it too!
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Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea and Unbound both sound like my kind of books! Nice haul!
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I am so excited to read your thoughts about Emily Wilde!
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My house is complete chaos after the hurricane that is the holidays. I decided I wasn’t leaving my property over the weekend in an attempt to catch things up. It’s kind of working but I’ve been back to reading as well so I’m not mad about it. 🙂
Enjoy your down time however you see fit!
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I’m very curious about The Glass Box. I was a huge fan of Babylon 5 when it was on TV and purchased the entire run on DVDs. It’s time for a rewatch. And I hear you on the low motivation lately, me too. But I’m working to get back into the swing of things and start checking off some accomplishments, even if minor, instead of just sitting around doing nothing or randomly watching videos. 🙂
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Looking forward to your thoughts about The Glass Box! I know I’m just a tiny bit biased 😀 toward the author, so I’d love to hear from other “voices”!
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I also just got an ARC of Can’t Spell Treason, looking forward to a cozy read!
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Happy to see you enjoyed the Heiress – I definitely want to pick up a copy of that one soon.
Lynn 😀
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