libbi | Entries tagged with *year: 2021

» I've never had something to share before, but I've written the last 8 out of 9 days and I'm proud of my new habit.

Darcy froze, hand hovered over the brew button on her machine. He asked Jarvis about her?

"I'm sorry," she said, regaining her composure. "I was under the impression that the members of the firm barely knew of my existence. Save for Thor, of course."

"Thor mentioned you once, while talking about Jane, and when I found myself needing someone, I remembered."

"Needing someone? Mr. Rogers," she said playfully. "Exactly what kind of job are you offering me here?"

"Don't be naughty, Miss Lewis," he said. "Nothing like that, I assure you."

Darn. It was worth a thought though.

Current Mood: annoyed

Read

» The Downstairs Girl - Stacey Lee. I gave this five stars. The sass of Jo Kuan made me laugh out loud, whether she was talking as Jo or her pseudonym, "Miss Sweetie." Some of the plot points were a tad predictable, but they didn't play out exactly how I predicted, so I enjoyed them. A great young adult novel that can be appreciated by many.

» One of Us Is Lying and One of Us Is Next - Karen M. McManus. I think I picked these up from the library after watching a random booktuber video talk about them. In both novels, students at Bayview High School are blackmailed. In the first, a student dies during detention, leaving behind evidence and possible motives that the other four students were involved in his death, together or separately. The second starts with a new set of characters, save for a younger sister of a protagonist from the first book. Like other reviews, I felt the characters were better fleshed out in the first than in the second. There was a revelation at the end of the second that could have been impactful, but it fell kind of flat for me. I have another book on hold from this author, The Cousins, and I do love a twisted family drama, so I'm letting myself look forward to it.

Currently Reading

» Midnight Riot - Ben Aaronovitch. I've heard about this series a few times, but recently

luthien recommended the audiobook, so I gave it a try. It's definitely an interesting premise-a London cop is assigned to, essentially, the "magical enforcement" department and falls into the magical world head-on. He becomes the apprentice of the only other officer in the unit, Thomas Nightengale (which is such a cool name). The author apparently worked on Doctor Who, and I don't know to explain it, but writing style definitely gives that vibe. The main character, Peter, is a little crass for my tastes, but I'm otherwise enjoying the story. Had I started this in print, I may have DNF-ed it, but the narrator, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, makes it very readable.

What's Next?

» I have multiple books checked out from the library and Kindle Unlimited as well as piles, both digital and physical, of books I want to read. I took the very drastic step of deleting my entire TBR shelf on Goodreads, which was quite relieving, actually. I notice I haven't read a proper non-fiction title yet this year, so I think I'm going to find one of those in my "piles" to start before next week.

Current Mood: frustrated

DNF
» The Art of Taking It Easy - Brian King. I was liking this, but the author's insistence that he doesn't stress out as much as other people, combined with an anecdote about him driving to school with a stranger who had fallen asleep in his car (and then wondering why his classmates reacted the way they did) drove me mad. I looked him up-he appears to be a white man. I can't imagine ever driving around with a stranger in my car, and it would be foolish to do so. He implies that what he did was the right thing to avoid the stress of being late for class. The guy just lives in another world.

» Black Sunshine - Karina Halle. As predicted, this was too dark for me.

Read
» Delicates - Brenna Thummler. This graphic novel is the sequel to Sheets. The story deals with death and grief and ghosts and being a preteen. I think the characters are in middle school. I liked this a little more than Sheets, but that may be because the sequel had already set up the world. I recommend this series.

» Anxious People - Fredrik Backman. The reviews I've seen about this appear to be polarized, but I loved it. It's about a hostage situation in a small town in Sweden, but really, the hostage situation isn't the point, but the people involved. I love Backman's characters; they're unique, yet realistic. Through the course of the novel, it's revealed how the characters are connected outside of the hostage situation. Some of the connections are a little far-fetched, but given the setting of a small town, it's not improbable.

» Genuine Fraud - E. Lockhart. The author credits inspiration for this book to The Talented Mr. Ripley. There's a fine line between inspiration, and writing the same story. It's not exactly the same, but it's so close that it's questionable. I appreciated the technique of how the story was told though. It started with the present, and then went a couple weeks back, and then another few weeks, and so on and so on, until the reader knows the full story. The reader knows what happened, but not how or why. So while I appreciated the technique, the story wasn't that original.

Currently Reading
» The Downstairs Girl - Stacey Lee. This is the May book selection for the Modern Mrs. Darcy book club. I am currently enjoying it in audiobook form. Jo Kuan is a Chinese girl living in the South, just after the end of the Civil War. She's a lady's maid, but moonlights as an advice columnist for a newspaper anonymously. She lives under the newspaper agency, so she is privy to some interesting conversations. This is why I like being a part of a book club. I would not have picked this book up otherwise, but I'm enjoying it very much.

Current Mood: giddy

» First off, self, why on earth did you making a goal to read 25 books this month? How on earth did you think you were going to manage that? I find that I'm having trouble allocating space in my day to read-that is, I used to read at night in bed, usually past when DH sleeps. But I want to get up earlier, which means actually sleeping. I could get into bed earlier and read, but that's difficult as DH likes to watch videos or play games to unwind, and unless I specifically ask him, he doesn't wear headphones. (His desk is in our room, and that won't change until we kick the roommate out.) And the problem isn't him; it's me. I'm wondering if I should try and carve out an hour earlier in the afternoon, before he gets home, and before I need to make dinner, to read quietly by myself, instead of using that time to play video games or do other things involving a screen. Perhaps, after this post (and after cleaning), I'll have a cup of tea and do just that.

Read
» The Girl Who Lived Twice - David Lagercrantz. I finally finished this audiobook, and I could blame it on the fact that I let the loan expire and had to wait for it to be available again (which is ridiculous, it's digital!), but I honestly didn't find the plot that compelling. I think the story with Lisbeth and her sister wasn't strong enough. I can see what the author was trying to do, but the execution fell flat.

Currently Reading
» The Art of Taking It Easy by Brian King. This is the "Big Read" for Overdrive in April. It's a book about coping with stress. I've liked what I read so far, especially the point about examing a stressor in the moment, "Is it threatening me?", and if it isn't, letting the stress go. Or something like that. As someone anxious all the damn time, it's a good starting point.

» Anxious People - Fredrik Backman. I didn't plan that transition, lol. I've had this book on hold at the library since... November? I read Beartown and really enjoyed it (although I'm somewhat confused as to how there is a sequel), so I thought I'd try this one. Both novels have the similar theme of focusing on a full cast of characters; in Beartown, it was the townspeople. In this one, it's everybody involved in the bank robbery/hostage situation in a small town somewhere in Sweden. He's almost tongue-in-cheek at times, but I enjoy it. Looking forward to finishing it.

» Black Sunshine - Karina Halle. This is self-described as a dark vampire romance, and yeah, so far, it really is. It's an interesting concept. Witches and vampires are mortal enemies, and the heroine finds out that her parents are actually witch hunters who stole her away from a pair of vampires they killed, making her a vampire. But she didn't know because they don't transition to full vampires until they're twenty-one. I might not finish it, though, in an "it's not you, it's me" kind of way. Not sure I'm in the mood for dark.

What's Next
» I was surprised to see that Mariana Zapata released a new book, All Rhodes Lead Here, at the beginning of this month. (I thought I was on a newsletter...) I'm cautiously optimistic? The average review score on Goodreads is higher than her last two releases, which I was DNF on one for a personally hated secret baby trope (that wasn't indicated in the summary at all!) and kind of meh for the other. There are a few other books (alright, more than a few!) on my TBR that I'm considering, but I haven't made any decisions yet.

» Alas, time to turn the sand timer over and start riding the house of dust. ♥

Current Mood: lazy

» I've been absent for a while but wanted to check-in, so I'll start with a book post.

The Survivors by Jane Harper: This was a book I pre-ordered immediately after learning of its existence. I've loved Harper's previous books (The Dry is my favorite!) and expected a good read. And... I'm not saying it wasn't a good read. It was. I liked the story, and Harper is really good at immersing the reader into the atmosphere and setting. But something was missing. And the ending was too abrupt for me. I gave it 4 stars on Goodreads, but it's probably more like a 3.5 star read for me.

The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes: This was a thoroughly enjoyable read, perhaps more of a "popcorn" read (like a movie you turn on because it's playing on a particular channel, even though you've already seen it before). Some reviewers say it's similar to Knives Out, and in a way, it is, in that a wealthy man dies and leaves his estate to a person outside the family. Add in some handsome brothers, and you've got yourself a YA novel! Does anyone remember Quizilla? I guess these days the equivalent would be Wattpad. This book reminded me of the stories I would read on Quizilla long ago, but in a good way. I'm looking forward to the sequel in September.

The Woman in Cabin 10 & One by One by Ruth Ware: This author's books seem to be hit or miss for me. Both of these were good, but I can't say I loved them. They scratch the mystery/thriller itch, though.

The Millenium series, books 4, 5, & 6 by David Lagercrantz: These books were written after the trilogy's original author, Stieg Larsson, died. I listened to the original three and decided to listen to the last three books instead of reading them. I love the narrator, Simon Vance, and at this point, I'd probably listen to him read a tech manual. The fourth one was pretty good, but I don't know what the hell happened in the fifth. I could not get what the point was, save for maybe setting up for the sixth in the last hour or so. I'm still listening to the sixth, but the story has been much stronger in this last novel. I am sad to see the series end.

Happy Wednesday! ♥

Current Mood: okay

» No Snowflake related entry as I don't feel creative enough to think of something that fits. Perhaps Friday! I still want to go back and read all the entries for prior challenges. I may just do that in February.

Read:

I've only finished one book so far and it was an advent devotional, The Advent of Christ: Scripture Reflections to Prepare for Christmas by Edward Sri. I liked it well enough for what it's supposed to be.

Currently Reading:

You Learn by Living by Eleanor Roosevelt. This is technically a re-read for me. I didn't rate it too highly in 2018 (three stars), but I'm really enjoying reading it now. The subtitle is Eleven Keys for a More Fulfilling Life, so I guess you could define it as a self-help book mixed with a memoir. I'm not usually a highlighter or someone jots down quotes, but I do want to go back and find some particular spots that I found myself nodding along with.

The Answer Is... by Alex Trebek. I'm listening to this book, which is mostly narrated by Ken Jennings. I'm not a fan of the format, which are short vignette-like chapters all with the titles "What Is__?". However, it does make it easier to put the book down, so to say, and pick it back up again without feeling lost. For a man so recognizable, I knew next to nothing about him, and I'm enjoying learning who he was when he wasn't the host of a TV show.

The Late Bloomers' Club by Louise Miller. I'm reading this along with the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club. It's a light and fluffy read, about a woman who inherits the estate of the local celebrated baker in their small town. It's full of small-town meddling and food. I have no strong opinion about it just yet.

HRH by Elizabeth Holmes. I'm reading this digitally, but I wish I could have a hardback copy because from what I've seen, this would be a gorgeous coffee table book. I'd say I'm neutral on the subject of the monarchy in general, but I have admired it from afar. I did get up early to watch both of the weddings and enjoyed myself immensely. I've heard some reviewers say that the book is written in a "chatty" tone, so I'll see if I agree with that or not. So far, I've only "flipped" through it to look at the photos.

Current Mood: indifferent

Snowflake Challenge promotional banner featuring a cup of frothy coffee or hot chocolate on a plate with a piece of greenery and a cozy comforter with a sprig of baby’s breath. Text: Snowflake Challenge: 1-31 January.

» Catching up on snowflake! It's been an interesting few days, huh?

( Challenge #4: Goals )

( Challenge #5: Canon Promo )

( Challenge #6: Fan Recs )

» Well that was a lot! As Tigger would say, TTFN, ta-ta for now! ♥

Current Mood: crappy

Snowflake Challenge promotional banner featuring a wrapped giftbox with a snowflake on the gift tag. Text: Snowflake Challenge January 1-31

I'm super excited that I may actually be able to participate and finish the

snowflake_challenge this year!

My name is Elizabeth, but you can call me libbi. I'm in my late 20s, live in Delaware, married to my favorite man, and have three cats, one of whom was a pandemic foster! We also share a home with our older-nephew and his dog. I currently work as a tax preparer.

I've been involved in fandom since my early teens, back in the LJ days. I've had multiple different accounts on different sites, but these days you can find me here,

libbi, or

libbi. I go where the fandom tides take me, and I don't have a "main" fandom per se. The following is a list of fandoms I have written in and/or read fanfiction of, and still consider myself a fan of, with some common pairings I like if applicable:

Avatar: The Last Airbender Katara/Zuko, Criminal Minds, Dune, Enola Holmes (2020), Forever (2014), Harry Potter Draco/Hermione, Kingsman, Life with Derek Casey/Derek, MCU Darcy/Steve, The Mentalist Patrick/Theresa, Person of Interest, Narnia, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Tangled (2010), The Vampire Diaries/The Originals* Damon/Elena, The Witcher (Video game & TV).

*I have yet to finish both of these series and I'm not sure if I will.

I enjoy video games and have made a goal this year to reach 75% game completion or higher in my Steam library. I play Flight Rising from time to time as well. My profile is here. Feel free to reach out in either space!

This year, I've challenged myself to read 50 books on Goodreads. I'm looking forward to Jane Harper's new release, The Survivors in February. This year, I'd like to read the Lord of the Rings for the first time. Wish me luck!

That's about all I can think to say about me. Looking forward to meeting you and participating in the rest of the month. ♥

Current Mood: relaxed

Dreams become decisions when you cultivate them

→ sunday snippet

→ it is books-day, my dudes

→ books on a spring day

→ talking about books is better than cleaning

→ books so far this year

→ wednesday reading

→ snow for days

→ Hello all!