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Half-Year Book Tag | 2026

Published on by Zezee8 Comments

Sure, I did the Mid-Year Book Freak-Out Tag, but I have to do the Half-Year Book Tag too! It was created by BexnBookx.

FAVORITE STANDALONE BOOK HAULED AND READ SO FAR

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The Middle Passage: White Ships, Black Cargo by Tom Feelings (illus.)

I mentioned this picture book so often in my mid-year tag that I intended to avoid bringing it up here, but I couldn’t help it since almost everything else I read was part of a series. This picture book is one of three things I read that were not. It’s a wordless picture book about the Transatlantic Slave Trade. It’s a great read that I highly recommend.

FAVORITE SERIES THAT I STARTED OR CONTINUED TO READ

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The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

I mostly continued or completed series, which is great. Of the few I started, this was one I was eager to get into since I love The Witcher TV show on Netflix, which is based on these books.

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Monstress by Marjorie Liu, illus. by Sana Takeda

I have several favorites I’m continuing, but this fantasy comic-book series came to mind first because I really want to hop back into the series soon.

FAVORITE BOOKISH ITEMS PURCHASED OR RECEIVED THIS YEAR

I’ve only bought a few books and no bookish items.

FAVORITE DEBUT AUTHOR

I haven’t read anything by a debut author yet.

FAVORITE UNDERHYPED BOOK THAT I READ THIS YEAR

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Mirror Sight by Kristen Britain

To avoid choosing Middle Passage again, let’s chat about Mirror Sight, my second-fav read of the year so far. It’s the fifth novel in the Green Rider fantasy series about a young woman who joins the magical messenger service to her king. I enjoyed the change in setting in this one and how things play out.

FAVORITE BOOK READ THIS YEAR THAT I WAS LATE TO THE PARTY ON

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Radium Girls by Kate Moore

This had a lot of buzz years ago when it was published, so I’m super late to it. But it was so worth the read. It’s about the experiences of women who had radium poisoning due to the materials they worked with at their job, and the difficulty they had holding the company responsible for it. It was such an engrossing, though upsetting, read.

POTENTIAL FAVORITE I HAVEN’T GOTTEN AROUND TO READING YET

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Daemons of the Shadow Realm, Vol. 1 by Hiromu Arakawa (illus.)

I’m pretty sure I’ll love this and then get stuck on the anime.

FAVORITE REREAD

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Monstress, Vols. 1-3 by Marjorie Liu, illus. by Sana Takeda

This is odd for me, but I haven’t reread that many things so far this year. Actually, I’ve only reread five comics, which is weird because I’m a huge rereader. The best rereads though were the first three volumes of Monstress, a dark fantasy comic-book series about a young woman with a monster inside her. If you haven’t yet tried this series, then I highly recommend it to you.

FAVORITE COVER ON A BOOK RELEASED THIS YEAR

I don’t have anything for this. I haven’t been paying much attention to new releases.

THAT’S IT FOR THIS HALF-YEAR CHECK IN.

“Very Good, Jeeves!” by P.G. Wodehouse

Published on by Zezee12 Comments
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I’ve seen a few bloggers on here chat about Wodehouse’s Jeeves books, so I decided to finally try the one I own. Plus the cover practically begged me to pick it up couple months ago when I was cleaning the shelves.

GENRE

Humor

SERIES

Jeeves, book 4

PUBBED

1930

WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

Very Good, Jeeves! is a collection of 11 short stories centered on the wealthy aristocrat Bertram Wooster and his butler (or gentleman’s gentleman), Jeeves, whom he relies on to get him out of sticky, silly situations. (Goodreads)

WHAT DO I THINK?

I didn’t expect to like this as much as I did or to be able to work through it so easily. Whenever I pick up a book labeled “classic,” I expect to struggle with the language. But I didn’t here. Actually, I even laughed at some of the situations Bert gets himself in. I ended up liking the dude. Everyone in the stories thinks he’s stupid. I just think he thinks way outside the box, in a totally different direction, and is irresponsible, yes, and not always aware in certain social situations. And needs to tell people “no” more often.

Continue reading ““Very Good, Jeeves!” by P.G. Wodehouse” →
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Summer of Horror Check-In: What’s Your Favorite Type of Horror?

Published on by Zezee22 Comments
Do you read horror stories? If so, what type is your favorite?

I decided to ask those questions today because I’ve figured out my favorite type of horror to read. I don’t often read horror because my active imagination gets a little too happy with those stories, making them linger in my mind for much longer than I want them to. Sometimes it’s the same with movies and TV shows, but I can manage those a bit better (by covering my eyes, lol).

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But I’m facing my fear of horror books over the next three months by participating in Tammy’s Summer of Horror, where we read horror books throughout the summer. And I’m really enjoying my first choice — Parasite by Darcy Coates. It’s more of an intense, edge-of-your-seat read than a deeply scary and frightening story, which works best for me. My intent with Summer of Horror is to work up to a really scary one (like ghosts or demonic possession — Ooh! Those will scare the bejesus out of me! I won’t sleep for days).

Continue reading “Summer of Horror Check-In: What’s Your Favorite Type of Horror?” →

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Mid-Year Book Freak-Out Tag: 2026

Published on by Zezee22 Comments

Tag time! And it’s the middle of the year, so that means I should do the Mid-Year Book Freak-Out Tag. It was created by Chami and Ely Jayne.

So far, I’ve managed to read 28 of the 50 books goal I set for myself this year. I may even hit 30 by the end of July since I’m speeding through the book I’m currently reading for Summer of Horror (so hooked!). If you’re interested in seeing the best books I’ve read so far, click here.

BEST BOOK I’VE READ SO FAR

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The Middle Passage: White Ships, Black Cargo by Tom Feelings (illus.)

It’s a wordless picture book about what enslaved people endured during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. It may have no words, but it’s such a good read and I highly recommend it.

Continue reading “Mid-Year Book Freak-Out Tag: 2026” →

Best Books So Far | 2026

Published on by Zezee13 Comments

It’s that time of year when people do their midyear check-ins and chat about the best books they’ve read so far. So I’m joining the bandwagon and chatting about my best books so far. I have eight.

The titles are linked to my reviews.

NEW BESTIES

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The Middle Passage: White Ships, Black Cargo by Tom Feelings (illus.)
★★★★★
Favorite

Leading the list is this wordless children’s picture book depicting the experiences of enslaved people as they sailed the Middle Passage to the Americas, where they were destined to be sold. Sure it’s a picture book and thus short, but it packs a punch and is one of the most impactful books I’ve read so far this year. The illustrations are impressive.

Continue reading “Best Books So Far | 2026” →

“Hidden Guests: Migrating Cells and How the New Science of Microchimerism Is Redefining Human Identity” by Lise Barnéoud, transl. from the French by Bronwyn Haslam

Published on by Zezee6 Comments
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So there I was in the library one day, browsing for a change. Usually I’d pop in with an idea of what I want to get if I hadn’t already placed it on hold. I hardly browse any more, even in book shops, since recommendations are constantly given all over social media. But this time, I went in with an open mind, and the title of this novella-sized nonfiction book called to me. “Hidden Guests”? What do you mean. But it was “microchimerism” that got me. My myth-loving soul couldn’t pass the mention of “chimera” in a science book. And I was pleasantly surprised by it.

GENRE

Nonfiction — Science

SERIES

n/a

PUBBED

2025

WHAT IS IT ABOUT?

Hidden Guest is a short book that explores microchimerism — “the presence of foreign cells inside our own bodies.” Though short, at only 148 pages (excluding the back matter), it contains interviews with scientists studying this phenomenon and stories of people affected by it as well as how microchimerism is presented and talked about by certain groups. (Goodreads)

WHAT DO I THINK?

This is the first I’ve ever felt so intimidated to chat about a book. What’s causing such feelings? Well, I don’t want to get any facts wrong, and this is so far outside my wheelhouse that I feel as if I will. I could just do this without sharing any of the book’s facts, but where’s the fun in that? Some of them were what heightened my interest in it.

Continue reading ““Hidden Guests: Migrating Cells and How the New Science of Microchimerism Is Redefining Human Identity” by Lise Barnéoud, transl. from the French by Bronwyn Haslam” →
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Fantasy With Friends: Favorite Magic Systems

Published on by Zezee14 Comments

Fantasy With Friends is a discussion series about the fantasy genre that’s hosted by Pages Unbound.

This week’s topic:

What are some of your favorite magical systems in fantasy? Do you like magic to be explained in detail or to be a bit vague? Do you think magic should have a “cost” or not?

I discussed this topic years ago for a Wyrd and Wonder post and listed several magic systems for it. But I think my top ones are:

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ELEMENTAL MAGIC

This appeals to me because it allows the user to manipulate their environment. The media featuring this that immediately comes to mind is Avatar: The Last Airbender, in which societies are organized by the element that people are most connected to.

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WANDS

I think this appeals to me simply because I like witches and the Harry Potter books are among my favorites. But I also think it’s pretty cool to have an item tuned specifically to you that heightens or helps bring forth an innate power.

Continue reading “Fantasy With Friends: Favorite Magic Systems” →

Let’s Rewind: June 2026

Published on by Zezee16 Comments

ImageIt’s time for a monthly wrap-up.

Let’s Rewind is my version of a monthly wrap-up but instead of talking about only life updates and books (first two sections), I include other stuff, like:

  • articles
  • interesting blog posts
  • bookish things
  • podcasts
  • TV shows and movies

These posts tend to be long, so just hop around to whatever catches your attention. You might stumble upon something that interests you.

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Compared to May, nothing happened in June. I did nothing noteworthy, except maybe cleaning my closet, which was quite the exercise. I felt as if I’d completed an intense workout session when I was done — and realized that I have entirely too many clothes and shoes and bags that I no longer use! So July will be spent donating things and hopefully lightening up my space by removing all that I no longer use. This includes books, as I’m also working on recataloging them and identifying ones I know I will never read.

Other than that, I’ve been coloring. As I mentioned in last month’s wrap-up, I’ve turned to coloring as a new hobby to help me relax and unwind after work. It’s been working out great, and I’ve been happy with the few pages I’ve managed to color so far. The activity is also meant to give me a break from screens, but sometimes I follow along with folks coloring on YouTube so that I can try out different techniques and tricks. I’m so happy I decided to do this.

Continue reading “Let’s Rewind: June 2026” →

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2026 Reading Wrap-Up: Second Quarter

Published on by Zezee15 Comments

Compared to last quarter, I haven’t completed as many things. But while last quarter included several shorter works, like comics and picture books, this one has mostly novels. And since I read slower these days (due to less reading time, sigh), I complete fewer books. However, my hope is to work through a bunch in the summer months. For now, let’s check my stats for the spring months.

BOOKS | AUDIO | COMICS | PICTURE BOOKS

Continue reading “2026 Reading Wrap-Up: Second Quarter” →

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Fantasy With Friends: Reading Order

Published on by Zezee15 Comments

Fantasy With Friends is a discussion series about the fantasy genre that’s hosted by Pages Unbound.

This week’s topic:

When reading a favorite fantasy series, which reading order would you recommend? For instance, when reading Narnia, do you think people should go by publication order or by chronological order? Or, if you like to recommend Tolkien, do you think readers should start with LotR or The Hobbit? Feel free to discuss any favorite fantasy series you have!

I’m one of those readers who often sticks with a series’ publication order, unless I come across advice that convinces me otherwise. I like seeing how the world, the characters, and the author’s writing and storytelling develop, and the best way to do so is to read in publication order. So it bothers me sometimes when I somehow manage to go against that, which I think is what has happened with my reading Diana Wynne Jones’s Chrestomanci series — middle-grade fantasy about a powerful enchanter who has several lives.

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I have no idea in what order I’m reading that series. I’m working through the stories via the three bound editions published by Greenwillow Books. The stories in those editions don’t seem listed in publication order or even by the author’s recommended reading order. Regardless, I’m enjoying the stories since the reading order does not affect my understanding or enjoyment of the stories. They seem like standalone stories connected by having certain recurring characters and being set in the same or similar world.

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Another series that I’ve gone against my nature on is the Discworld series, a satirical fantasy series set on a flat world that focuses on various characters. When I learned of it, I was a bit intimidated because it was hard to tell where exactly to start, since it’s a 41-book series broken up into about six subseries that focus on different characters. I really struggled with myself, but eventually I got going with the Witches subseries, since I love reading about witches, and am glad I did so. I love the Witches books and would advise others to start there too, although you could start just about anywhere.

Continue reading “Fantasy With Friends: Reading Order” →