Hi everyone! So the past week has been A LOT for women (and trans men and non-binary people because these issues affect them too), if you’re not familiar with what’s been going on in the UK at the moment, this week a police officer was arrested on suspicion of the murder of a woman called Sarah Everard, who was kidnapped and killed whilst walking home in London. The whole thing has launched a wave of discussion about male violence against women and sexual harassment which has been long overdue and yet of course there’s still so many cisgender men who refuse to believe there’s no problem.
I’m just so angry, I’m angry that male violence towards women is still something that happens, I’m angry for all the women killed by male violence whose deaths don’t get as much media attention because they aren’t white. I’m angry that many men don’t recognise that they’re part of the problem. I’m angry that progress on this has been SO SO SLOW and that the onus is still on women, trans men and non-binary people to protect ourselves rather than dealing with the societal problems that allow cisgender men to attack us in the first place. I hope that this is the start of real action to make the world a safer place for those of us who aren’t cisgender men, and that we are able to make real change because it has been far, far too long coming. For any of my followers/readers who are also in the UK, if you haven’t filled out the Government survey about Violence Against Women And Girls, then please do, it’s super important and could affect future policy on the issue: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/violence-against-women-and-girls-vawg-call-for-evidence
Anyway, with the long rant over, it’s Tuesday, and as always I have another Top Ten Tuesday for you all, courtesy of Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl. This week is our annual Spring TBR topic, and I have to admit, I’ve not done great on my Winter TBR, I only read 5 books out of 14 because I’ve been in a slump basically since November. I’m hoping that this slump will cease over the Spring because I have so many books I’m excited to read:
- The Unbound-Victoria Schwab
My current read, I was meant to be reading Where Dreams Descend for my March TBR read, but given the slump, I decided to switch to this one as it’s shorter and by a favourite author which usually helps me break my reading slumps. It’s been almost four years since I read The Archived though, so I will admit, I did have to read a recap before starting this one.
2. Lore-Alexandra Bracken
My current audiobook, I’ve actually been reading this one since the beginning of February, but as I only listen to audiobooks when I go for my hourly run once a week, I’ve been making my way through it rather slowly. It’s okay, but not a new favourite.
3. Scarlet-AC Gaughen
My April #RockMyTBR book, I didn’t have massive luck with my last gender swapped Robin Hood retelling, but I’m hoping this female Will Scarlet retelling will work better for me!
4. Phoenix Flame-Sara Holland
My current Netgalley read which I’ve just started. I thought Havenfall was only okay, but I was intrigued enough that I wanted to check out the sequel which I’m hoping will up the ante from the first book.
5. Mina and The Undead-Amy McCaw
I’m not usually a horror fan, but Amy is a friend of mine, she was my secret sister in one round of the #otspsecretsister project and I so enjoyed having her as a pen-pal for six months, so I wanted to support her debut novel! I have an e-arc from Netgalley and I’m looking forward to reading it soon.
6. Ariadne-Jennifer Saint
I’m really excited about this one, I love Greek mythology and have always felt like Ariadne gets a bad rap in the Theseus and The Minotaur myth so I’m really excited to see what Jennifer Saint does with her story here, especially after really enjoying Circe by Madeline Miller, another Greek mythology book that looks at a maligned woman from Greek mythology in a different way. I have an e-arc for this one from Netgalley as well.
7. Sky Breaker-Addie Thorley
I really enjoyed Night Spinner when I read it last year, so I’m excited to see how Enebish’s story ends in the final book in this duology, which I also have an e-arc for from Netgalley (the Netgalley gods have been very kind to me recently!).
8. Olive, Mabel and Me-Andrew Cotter
My next planned audiobook read, I, like many others have really enjoyed Andrew’s videos of his two labradors Olive & Mabel and I think this book will be a really fun read. I especially waited for the book to be available on Audible because I thought listening to Andrew read it would be the best way to experience it.
9. Beloved-Toni Morrison
This was on my Winter TBR as well and I just haven’t got round to it yet, I really need to soon though, as it’s not mine, I was lent it by a friend so I do have to give it back at some point!
10. Where Dreams Descend-Janella Angeles
This was meant to be my March #RockMyTBR book, but because of my reading slump, I wasn’t really in the mood for a long descriptive book at the moment, so I swapped it for The Unbound and will come back to it in May. I really didn’t want my reading slump to affect my enjoyment of this book as it sounds like one I will really like if I’m in the right mood to read it.
11. City of Spells-Alexandra Christo
The sequel to Into The Crooked Place is finally here! I really enjoyed Into The Crooked Place when I read it about two years ago now, and I’m excited to see how this duology wraps up.
12. Good Girl, Bad Blood-Holly Jackson
I really enjoyed A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder last year, and I’ve been excited to read the sequel ever since, so I’m hoping I get a chance to get round to it this Spring.
So that’s my Spring TBR, it’s probably a little ambitious given my reading slump, but I’m hoping I’ll be able to get through at least a few of these in the next few months. What’s on your Spring TBR? Have you read any of these (of the ones that are already out?) What did you think? Let me know in the comments!
I’ll be back with another Top Ten Tuesday next week, which is meant to be Funny Book Titles, however I don’t really know many of those, so I’m flipping the theme slightly and sharing Funniest Percy Jackson Chapter Titles (as Rick Riordan is the king of funny chapter titles).
bookloversblog 
You have every reason to be angry!! So many of us are. I’m not in the UK but it’s been a long time coming. How do people not understand how women always have to live in fear of men? Walking to our car at night and making sure we have keys between our fingers or run. Making sure to lock our door right away and always checking the back seat. This is just one thing.. it’s been crazy to see so many people say “not all men.” Sigh. Okay.. end rant.
I am about 100 pages from finishing Lore and I feel the same.. it’s okay but not a new favorite. I was a bit confused in the beginning and it took me a minute to figure it all out. lol
Thank you! Literally no woman I know has been surprised by anything that has been said in the past week, but there have been so many men online completely oblivious to the problem or doubling down and being like “well I’m not one of THOSE men”. It’s just so infuriating. It definitely has been a long time coming, and I’m glad that the conversation has been started now at least.
I definitely get what you mean, it took me a while to figure out what was going on too!
Yes, agreed! It’s really frustrating because I don’t think men will ever understand. Not being one of “THOSE” doesn’t mean crap! We are talking about how we grow up and how we are taught to defend ourselves and how we have to be afraid of men.. it’s just so sad. I am very glad the conversation is open but I hope it’s not just a minute and gone. ya know?
I definitely agree!
Your rant is justified. Was just hearing last night about a girl who was stabbed in her school by a male student and died. What is wrong with these lunatics? Women are not objects. They have the right to make decisions and leave men. So agree with all you said.
Grea list of books – will have to check them out. Happy spring reading!
Ugh that’s horrible! Patriarchy has led men to feel like they are entitled to women’s bodies and there definitely needs to be big societal change in order to resolve these problems. Thank you, I hope you find something you like!
I absolutely relate to your rage. (And on a lighter note, I’m also looking forward to reading Lore!)
Thank you, solidarity in rage! I hope you enjoy Lore 🙂
I hope you will enjoy all of these! Where Dreams Descend is really good!
My list!
Thank you! I’m glad to hear that 🙂
I think you’re the only other person (aside from me) who is intrigued by Lore. I hope it’s everything we expect it to be. I hope you get out of your slump soon (they’re the worst), and I hope you get the chance to read all of these! Here’s my post: https://www.nbiblioholic.com/2021/03/ten-books-i-want-to-read-by-end-of-may.html
It’s been okay, I’ve not loved it as much as I thought. Thank you, I hope so too!
I got really wrapped up in BELOVED. I did consult some lit helpers for furthering my understanding though.
I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it!
You have a bunch of books that I really want to read listed! I hope you enjoy them!
Thank you!
Change definitely needs to happen and it’s so frustrating when it doesn’t happen! I don’t know what the answer is.
Lore caught my eye a while back. I hope you enjoy these!
Yes, it is so frustrating! Me either, though thankfully, at least our politicians do seem to be taking it seriously and wanting to take action. Misogyny was just made a hate crime in the UK, which is a good step forward, though obviously much more needs to be done.
Thank you! I hope you enjoy Lore 🙂
I tried to get into Good Girl’s Guide to Murder last year but it never quite connected with me. I hope you enjoy it.
Ah that’s a shame! It’s the second book on this list, I already read the first one last year and I did enjoy it.
I completely relate to your rant – it’s horrible what is still happening to women and something needs to happen!
Ariadne is a book I’m also really excited about!
Yes, definitely! Misogyny was made a hate crime in the UK this week, which is great, but at the same time, IT WASN’T ALREADY? The past week was definitely a reminder of how much further we still have to go for equality. Yes, it sounds so great!
As a fan of Phantom of the Opera, I really enjoyed Where Dreams Descend. Hope you enjoy all these reads!
So many great possibilities here! I had difficulty completing my winter TBR, too. I think I read 6/10. But I was distracted by the new and shiny and arc commitments. So many books so little time. Happy reading!
Thanks! I’m glad I’m not the only one. Ha ha isn’t that always the way?
The last week has really got to me too.
Mina and the Undead looks fun and I love the good girl’s guide to murder books.
Been staying off twitter and stuff this week because it’s making me so angry and sad – but it’s at least something that people are so angry and talking about it, bringing more attention to the problem. The Ariadne book sounds good, I always wanted to know more about that character!
I definitely get that, Twitter has been a LOT this past week. It is good that people are talking about it more now though. Yes, it sounds really great, I hope we both enjoy it.
Ariadne sounds good to me. I was always kinda intrigued by her role in the Theseus story so I’d like to read that- I like that we’re getting more mythology based books, like this and Lore and whatnot.
Yes, it sounds so cool. I mean she basically helps Theseus escape from the Labyrinth and then he abandoned her on their way home! Me too, I love mythology, so I’m excited that all of these mythology stories are coming out now.
Everybody deserves to feel safe and no-one has the right to tell us that we are wrong when we don’t feel safe.
I know book slumps suck, but it’s good that you aren’t stressing yourself about it and are regulating your reading accordingly. Reading is fun, and forcing yourself into reading just for reading really sucks. Great list btw 🙂
I totally agree! Thank you, book slumps are the absolute worst and I’m hoping this one ends soon!
I do not live in the UK, so did not know what was going on. I think everyone the world over should be angry about violence against women, and every other group that is treated disrepectfuly and not taken seriously. Enough is enough.
Thanks for the heads up on Olive, Mabel and Me, I didn’t realize it was out on audio yet. Enjoy all your upcoming books.
Yes enough is enough and I’m hoping that this will be the start of long lasting meaningful change. No worries, I think it just came out on Audible at the beginning of the year. Thank you, you too!
I’m not in the UK either but this has been heavily reported on here in Australia, where we also have a big problem with male violence towards women. There’s been protests here too this week.
I’ve been meaning to read Beloved for a very long time.
It’s a problem everywhere, and it’s just so exhausting. I’m glad to hear that it’s started conversations and protests in Australia too, that’s great. I hope we both enjoy Beloved!
I still need to read Sara Holland’s Evermore!
I’m not sure what the solution is against criminals. Guess that’s why I’m not in public policy.
Me too actually, I never did get around to it! Honestly me neither, I guess all we can do is try and keep pushing our politicians for changes in the law.
I don’t think I’ve heard of any of these besides A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder, which is still on my TBR, and Lore, which I’m looking forward to reading whenever our library orders it. I hope you’re able to get out of your reading slump soon! Hopefully the change in season will be a help. I hope you’re able to get through several, if not all of these books!
I hope you enjoy both of them when you get to them. Me too, it’s been so long since I last had a bad reading slump, I was secretly hoping it wouldn’t happen again! Hopefully, I do think it will, the lighter, longer days tend to be conducive to more reading. Thank you 🙂
Great list! I still need to read A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, and I’d be interested in your thoughts on Ariadne.
Thanks! Definitely recommend A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder, it’s a great read. Ah well keep your eyes out, should have a review of it up around May/June.
“Beloved” is my favourite book by Toni Morrison. I hope you’ll love it just as much as myself.
Thanks for visiting my TTT earlier.
I’m glad to hear that! I hope so too 🙂
It has definitely been a heavy week here in the UK, and I share your anger. It’s so upsetting that these things are still happening. Thank you for sharing the survey.
On a lighter note, this post reminded me that I’m excited to read Ariadne! I’d forgotten to include it on my TTT. I hope you enjoy all of these books.
No problem, it’s a really important survey and I wanted to do my bit to spread the word. It was definitely a tough week, but I’m glad that a conversation has been started at least, and I really hope that real change comes from this. Ah yes, Ariadne looks so good doesn’t it? There are always books that slip through when we do these lists, so many books, it’s hard to keep track! Thank you 🙂
I hope you will enjoy your picks. Some authors are familiar to me while most of your list is unfamiliar. Thank you for bringing them to my attention. Happy reading!
Thank you! I’m glad to have helped you find some new authors, I always love it when someone tells me that my lists have helped them find new books to read!
I’ve been hearing great things about Lore! Hope you enjoy them all.
Thank you!
Reading slumps are the worst. I hope at least one of these turns out to be a slump buster for you.
They really are! I hope so too, The Unbound is going well for me so far, so fingers crossed this is the beginning of the end!
I read the Scarlet books a few years ago and enjoyed them 😊
I’m glad to hear that!
Yes, Ariadne is on my radar too! And I had never heard of the Secret Sister Project before :-O Seriously, all of these books look amazing. Thanks also for including your thoughts on each book, it explains their charm so well.
It sounds so good and the cover is so pretty. Yes, it’s run on Twitter, though I think the organisers have stopped doing it now. Ah thanks, I’m glad you liked it, I do try to make these lists more engaging so it’s not just a list of book names!
I’m really excited for Ariadne too!
Yes, it sounds so good!
I really hope you get out of your slump soon. This is a great Spring TBR! I’m hoping to read Where Dreams Descend this month, but I am also currently in a reading slump…so I haven’t been reading very much this month.
I hope so too, I haven’t had a slump this bad in a WHILE. Ah that sucks, I hope you also get out of your slump soon!
I love the Unbound! I think The Archived books are my favorite of Schwab’s. And I need to read Lore soon as well. I’m hoping by the end of the month but we’ll see how the rest of my reads go.
Great list! 🙂
My favourite Schwab books are definitely still ADSOM and ACOL, but I enjoyed The Archived and The Unbound has been good so far. I hope you enjoy Lore when you read it. Thank you 🙂
I added Mina and the Undead to my TBR halfway through reading your post! Horror is one of my favourite genres, especially when it involves vampires so I’m really looking forward to it 🙂
I hope you enjoy it!
I completely forgot that Good Girl, Bad Blood-Holly Jackson was coming out this month! I listened to the first book, it was a lot of fun. Good luck with your list and happy reading!
Thank you! It’s been out for almost a year in the UK, I was just late to getting to the first book, so I haven’t read the second yet.