Down the TBR Hole #25

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Hello Hello! How are you?

August is going by so fast already and I still have so many books to read from my TBR, but I feel like I’m not doing too poorly so far, and have read some really good books as well! I missed yesterday’s posting time as I was feeling lazy, so my purge is happening on a Saturday, but it’s still the same old TBR purge post!

You know the drill if you haven’t ever read any of my Down the TBR Hole posts before but you want to find out why I started and what rules to follow to do your own TBR list purge on your Goodreads, head over to the first edition of this post to find out more!

I had a quite successful purge of the TBR list last week and I’m really hoping I can keep it up and keep the removes rolling. I haven’t figured out what number of books I would like to get down to, but I am hoping under the 1000 mark, that sounds sort of doable, as long as I have a decade or two to read aha!

Today I’m starting this post off with 3,882 books on my Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf (I’ve apparently removed two books this week, go figure). As per usual, I will be working through the next 20 books on the list and starting at #267. Wish me luck!

GOODREADS “WANT TO READ” SHELF

Amazon Lily by Theresa Weir

This week is apparently starting well as I’m again on the “I didn’t know I had added this book to my list” bandwagon. I am not a romance fan and only read romances every so often, I’m pretty sure this might have been one of the books my family have given me, but I can’t find it in my piles and I really don’t fancy reading it, so this is an easy start to the purge!

REMOVE

Only The Rain by Randall Silvis

I’ve never heard of this book either, so it must have been added in one of my blind clicking sprees to the add button aha! I don’t read many thrillers and if I do they have to be a certain type of thriller, which this one is not. I’m not a fan of thrillers with family themes and money stealing so I think that this is another easy choice.

REMOVE

The Affair by Sheryl Browne

Again, we have another thriller with a boring-sounding plot (it sounds boring to me, not bashing the book in any way, or anyone who likes the sound of it of course!). I’m just a very particular reader when it comes to thrillers and this one really doesn’t catch my fancy, so again, this is an easy choice to make.

REMOVE

Never Greener by Ruth Jones

I seem to have added quite a few books that I would usually not read, my reading tastes have changed A LOT since I first started adding books to Goodreads. I think that this book sounds a bit like One Day (the movie) and Where Rainbows End (Love, Rosie) by Cecelia Ahern, and while I adored both, this one doesn’t really do it for me.

REMOVE

The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu

I don’t really remember anything about this book, and I’m not sure I’ve ever heard it talked about, but the title seems really similar to me. I do sometimes read YA contemporaries if they sound interesting to me, but I’m not a fan of books focusing on teenagers at school, and especially not with bad rumours, it reminds me a bit too much of 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher, and although I did really enjoy that book, I don’t feel like reading anything similar, so again, easy remove.

REMOVE

Of Fire and Stars (#1) by Audrey Coulthurst

Phew, finally a YA fantasy series aha! Ohhh, now this sounds like something I would love! So far, I don’t think I’ve read a fantasy series with a f/f relationship, and this one has one, so it totally won me over. I love fantasy series with forbidden magic and the joining of forces, it sounds like my cup of tea and I hope it will be good!

KEEP

The Traitor’s Story by Kevin Wignall

I’m also a bit picky with my mysteries and will basically only read murder mysteries and such, so this is not my cup of tea. Again, it has some family elements and it just does not appeal to me, it sounds fairly boring to be honest and I’m not going to struggle through it, there are too many great books in the world for that!

REMOVE

The Lie Tree by Frances Hardinge

I think that this is one of the books that I’ve heard about for a few years and it’s always been at the back of my mind. It’s a YA fantasy with historical fiction elements, and that would usually be enough for me to say YES (all bookshops need a historical fiction fantasy section just for me, just saying), but, I have to say the blurb fairly let me down, so I am going to take this off the list for now and see if I feel like reading it in the future!

REMOVE

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

This is another book that I’ve had on my list for years and have heard about, but it’s all a bit vague really, I have no idea what this book is about, other than having cultural Asian elements I believe. Its historical fiction and I do usually love all historical fiction, and even though this one doesn’t really sound like my thing, it’s been recommended to me so many times that I just have to read it to know what all the hype is about, so we shall have to see!

KEEP

Paperweight by Meg Haston

I added this book to my list after having seen it in a video by Hailey in Bookland over on YouTube and I don’t even know what this book is about (*goes to hide*). I am really not interested in reading a book about someone with an eating disorder who plans to end her life, it just gets a bit too uncomfortable for me, so I’m going to take this one off the list.

REMOVE

A ​Court of Silver Flames (#4) by Sarah J. Maas

If you know me, you know I am a massive fan of Sarah J. Maas’s A Court of Thorns and Roses series and have loved them since I read them a few years ago – a reread is actually going to soon be happening! So when I heard that there was going to be a fourth book about Nesta and Cassian, I had to add it to my list. I would prefer another book with Feyre and Rhysand as the main characters as I’m not the biggest fan of Nesta, but I need to know so much about her, and obviously about Cassian, so I’m very excited about this book and I don’t even need to read the blurb to know that it will be in my book cart the minute it’s released! (No cover as of yet).

KEEP

Ash Princess (#1) by Laura Sebastian

Whouhou! Another YA fantasy series, I love doing this purge series on my blog as I am reminded of all the amazing books I have on my TBR, and fantasy series is my go-to happy reading choice, so this is already a yes from me. This book sounds so good and I know all fantasy can potentially sound the same on some level, but this sounds really new to me and I can’t wait to read it for myself. I also recently got a candle inspired by this series in my latest Fairyloot box and it smells so amazing!

KEEP

Most of All You by Mia Sheridan

This wasn’t a book I was aware of having on my list, and as such, I didn’t know what it was about, but having read the blurb, it’s not one for me as I’m picky when it comes to romance reads, and it just doesn’t appeal, so I am going to remove it.

REMOVE

Gentleman Sinner by Jodi Ellen Malpas

I really don’t know what goes through my brain when I go on an “add book to list” spree on Goodreads, I haven’t done one since I reigned myself in at the start of this post series, but I used to do them all the time in case I missed a good looking book and honestly, it’s the bane of my existence and I frustrate myself so much! I have not seen this book before and seeing “romance” as the genre already makes me want to remove it, having read the blurb now, this just does not appeal to me. Another easy choice!

REMOVE

Black Iris by Elliot Wake

Shall I say it again? Or have you guessed already? it’s another one of those books that I’ve neither heard of, seen or been recommended, so I have no idea what it’s about. But seeing the genre as new adult contemporary and reading the blurb, again, it’s a case of not being a book for me and not being my cup of tea, so I’m going to remove it.

REMOVE

Dark Shores (#1) by Danielle L. Jensen

Yay, finally a book I have heard of before! A YA fantasy series and the blurb starting with “high seas adventure, blackmail, and meddling gods” is enough to win me over and make me want to buy it straight away! I love adventure books with pirates and don’t read enough of them, so that also wins me over completely and the blurb just sounds so interesting, so I am definitely going to have to give this one a go.

KEEP

The Paperboy by Pete Dexter

I added this book to my list because I studied a few of its chapters in my English literature course in university and it really appealed to me strangely. The start of this synopsis actually sounded like the kind of mystery that I enjoy but the rest just falls flat for me, unfortunately. It came highly recommended by my teacher, but it’s not my cup of tea so I will get rid of it.

REMOVE

99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne

I’ve had this on my list ever since it was released and the amount of hype this book got and is still getting to some extent really intrigued me. This is definitely the light, fun kind of contemporary romance I like to read and I’m glad I found one that sounds like my kind of thing; I’m going to try to get to this one soon.

KEEP

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon

I always hide a little bit when I see a horror book on my Goodreads “Want to Read” shelf as it used to be the genre I NEVER read, but since having read a few lately, I’m not feeling as scared and willing to branch out a bit. This book actually sounds like a really good spooky mystery and I am going to try to give it a go and not get too scared!

KEEP

The River at Night by Erica Ferencik

This sounds a bit like a film or another book I’ve heard of, and it is a thriller, so that already has a minus point from me. It just doesn’t sound like what I would want to read, I’m not interested in white water rafting and racing against death, so I’m not going to keep this, ending this week off on yet again, another remove.

REMOVE

This was another very successful week and I’m happy to say that I was able to remove a total of 13 books out of the 20 I looked through. I’m hoping that this lucky streak will keep rolling and that I won’t jinx myself as I’m doing a good job of removing unwanted books and getting the TBR list down to a more manageable number.

The Goodreads “Want to Read” list is now down to a total of 3,868 books, and I will be starting next week at #273. I’m loving these posts and I hope that you are all enjoying them as well. Wish me luck for next week, 13 seems to be my lucky remove number, let’s see if I can keep it going.

That’s all for now, I hope you enjoyed this post, see you soon, stay safe,

Ellie xx