My Monday tradition, including a look back and a look ahead — what I read last week, what new books came my way, and what books are keeping me busy right now. Plus a smattering of other stuff too.

Life.

A really busy workweek and lots of rain meant that my reading and audiobook time were both limited in different ways. Sometimes being a grown-up is hard! At least I had downtime over the weekend to curl up with a cozy blanket, my slippers, and a good book!

Blog updates:

I finally did a much needed (and much delayed) clean-up of my Book Blog Meme Directory page. I went through all the memes listed, tested all the links, and deleted all the listings that either had a dead link or linked to a site that had discontinued its memes. So, if you happen to take a look, you’ll see there are a lot fewer listed, but the ones there should be live and ongoing.

If you happen to notice anything outdated or know of a great meme that I’m missing, please let me know!

What did I read during the last week?

Pop culture & TV:

I finally got through Squid Game… so weird and creepy, so hard to look away from! My kiddo and I watched Dune over the weekend, and I thought it was pretty fabulous! We watched it streaming on HBO Max, and while I love the comfort of my couch, I do think this is a movie that needs to be viewed on the big screen. Which means I’ll probably see it again, once I convince myself to venture out…

Seeing the movie also reminds me that I’ve been intending to re-read the book for a year now, and still haven’t gotten to it. It’s been decades (yes, really) since I originally read Dune, and while some elements are unforgettable, a lot of the details became fuzzy for me over the years. Maybe I’ll bookmark this one as a winter vacation read!

Fresh Catch:

Thanks to some Amazon deals this week, I ended up splurging on a handful of new books:

What will I be reading during the coming week?

Currently in my hands:

All the Feels by Olivia Dade: The follow-up to Spoiler Alert, which I really loved. Off to a good start!

Now playing via audiobook:

Well Matched by Jen DeLuca: I’ve been waiting for this one! Even though I’ve had the e-ARC for a while now, I wanted to wait for the audiobook, since that’s how I experienced the first two books in this fun series. I’m so glad it’s here!

Ongoing reads:

• Outlander Book Club is doing a speed-re-read of Written in My Own Heart’s Blood, #8 in the Outlander series. We’re reading and discussing 5 chapters per week. This week: Chapters 126- 130. Only a few weeks left!

• Doctor Zhivago is our group classic read, two chapters per week. Plugging away… this is definitely a challenging book.

• It’s October, and that means it’s time for A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny! The book is organized into chapters corresponding to each day of the month, and I’ve been really diligent about reading them on their correct days… which means this is the final week! Last time I tried this book, I stopped at about 70%, mostly because I got busy and it felt overwhelming to keep up. This time, I’m seeing it through, and really enjoying it.

So many books, so little time…