reading plans

May Reading Plans: Medieval-A-Thon!!!

~ megs14malloy

Hello, book friends! Welcome to May and day 4,354 of social distancing…

Oh wait. I guess it hasn’t been quite that long, but some days it feels like it!

I know it has been a long time since I have posted anything but reviews. Fortunately, or unfortunately, however you want to look at it, I have spent every spare moment reading.

I’ve pretty much given up on writing wrap-ups. The last one I wrote was a seriously belated January wrap-up. I have planned on writing February and March, but now I would have to do April too!

I don’t know, what do you guys think? One option is do a Q1 Favorites & Least Favorites post, then do an April wrap-up and go from there. Any advice from anyone who can actually handle time management, let me know!

Anywho, May!!! I am so darn excited about May because Holly Knece, @hollyheartsbooks, is bringing back my favorite readathon of last year: Medieval-A-Thon. For a full description of Medieval-A-Thon, please click HERE and if it sounds fun (WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY IS) join us!!!

I am going to try to meet all of the prompts. I think I can do it. Although I am not setting a TBR, I will make my selections as I go, I will be sure to update you at the end of the month! That’s a promise!

What are you reading this month? Are you participating in any readathons or readalongs? I want to know! Leave a comment down below or contact me through any of my social media links.

That’s all for now! Cheers & Happy Reading~

February Reading Plans

~ megs14malloy

Hello, my lovely book friends! Long time, no post!

Where have I been? What have I been up to?

Long story short, I went on a mini-vacation with my best friend, down to Tennessee and read nothing that entire time. Then upon arriving home, I came down with the cold of the century and have basically been out of commission for a week.

Luckily, today I have only blown my nose 400 times versus 4,156,220. That’s an improvement.

I feel like life is returning to my body and soul, hence the post! I actually have the energy to form coherent thoughts and sit at my laptop to type.

So, let’s talk February reading plans. I have not done my January wrap-up yet, as it is a big one, and I don’t have that much energy yet. I figured this post would be a good place to start.

February is Women in Horror month and there is a month-long readathon hosted by the Ladies of Horror Fiction — look them up on Instagram and they also have a GoodReads Book Group — which I am participating in.

There are five challenges involved, but the overall goal is to read Women Horror Authors. There aren’t enough of them, so it is nice to shine a light on their work.

The group book for the month is, The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring. I have wanted to get to this one for a while now and am stoked to finally be picking it up. Hoping to start that one tomorrow.

Other than that, I have a lot of backlist titles that will fit the challenge prompts so will be happy to check some of those off my endless TBR. These include two of my current reads, Blood Countess by Lana Popovic and The Dark Beneath the Ice by Amelinda Berube. 

In addition to this, I also hope to read one ‘new to me’ Stephen King, which I planned to do in January but didn’t get too, as well as read, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark as a Instagram readalong.

That’s it for solid plans. Other than that, I will be continuing to make my way through my 2020-ARCs and mood read. 

What are your February reading plans? Are you participating in any readathons or readalongs? I want to know. Leave a comment down below or contact me through any of my social media links!

Until next time, Cheers & Happy Reading!

((Phew, I’m exhausted))

2020 Reading Goals

~ megs14malloy

Now that 2020 is in full swing, it’s time to let y’all know my reading goals for the year.

My biggest take away from 2019 was that I am putting to much pressure on myself to read certain things at certain times and was causing unneeded stress in my life.

I’m not sure when or why I started taking what I was reading so seriously but moving forward, I am going to get back to reading for me.

All joking aside, at my heart, I am mood reader. One of my favorite feelings in the world is after I finish one book, picking out a new book to start. With some many things to choose from, the possibilities seem endless, like the world is my oyster, and I love that feeling.

I have decided to forgo my monthly TBR challenges for this year (I was failing at them terribly by the end of 2019, anyway) and also give up on my monthly theme reading.

Someday, maybe I will go back to this type of format, but for now, it just wasn’t working for me.

I also am going to try to slow down on the number of review copies I request and accept. I feel like all I read lately are ARCs. While they are all books I am excited for, I still have a ton of books that I purchase that I am also excited for that I never get around too because, well….ARCs!!!

I always, always appreciate the opportunity to read a book early and will continue to follow through with the obligations that I have made to publishers and hope to continue working with many of them going forward. I’m looking at you St. Martin’s Press, Disney Book Group and Berkley Books, to name a few!

This isn’t the end of ARCs for me, just a scaling back, let’s say.

I also want to continue to scale back on the number of books that I am purchasing. Last year, I allowed myself to pre-order 2 books per month and that worked pretty well. I am also down to one book subscription box per month, Book of the Month, with an occasional Book Outlet haul thrown in for good measure.

Lastly, I want to continue to strive to write full reviews for every, single book I read. Currently, I am going back through all the books I read in 2019 and trying to get full reviews up for the ones I missed. So, you may see an uptick in book reviews over the next week or so.

What are some of your reading goals for 2020? Were you successful with your 2019 goals? I want to know. Leave a comment here or contact me through any of my social media links.

Until next post, Cheers & Happy Reading~

December Reading Plans

~ megs14malloy

The last month of the year is upon us! My theme for the month is…

DIVERSE BOOKS!!!

That’s right! It’s time for Diverse December. My goal, as in previous months, is to complete 10-books that can comfortably fit within this category. I am classifying any book as diverse if the main character of characters has an identity or lifestyle different than my own.

This can be race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health or disability representation, anything like that. Obviously, the books I could read to fit into this category are plentiful, therefore, I am confident I can meet my 10-book diversity goal!

I’m so happy with how my reading year has gone so far. Just today I completed my 171st book of the year!!! I cannot even believe that. Just a few years ago I was happy when I read 70-something. We’re in all new territory now!

What are your reading goals for the end of the year? I want to know! Leave a comment here or contact me through any of my social media links. Until next time, Cheers & Happy Reading!

November Reading Plans

~ megs14malloy

Hello, my beautifully bookish friends!

Let’s chat about November reading plans. As many of you may know, beginning in August I started a themed reading month plan for a full year. Basically, I have a set theme per month and I try to read ten books within that month that match the theme.

Thus far, I have been successful two out of the three months. This month’s theme is: NEW RELEASES!!!!

I am classifying ‘new releases’ as anything published from January 1, 2019 forward. This will include books that haven’t yet released. I have a ton of books to choose from that will fit this theme so I am fully anticipating another successful month.

I am participating in one readathon this month, the Buzzword Readathon, but I will post more info on that, including my TBR, closer to the start date.

What are you planning to read this month? Do you have a theme or are you participating in any readathons or readalongs? I want to know. Drop a comment down below or contact me through any of my social media links!

Until we meet again, cheers & happy reading!

September Reading Plans

~ megs14malloy ~ 2 Comments

Coming out of a very successful ‘ARC August’-themed reading month, I have decided to select a different theme for each month for the next year of reading!

My goal for each month is to read 10 books that fit within that theme. I generally read between 12 and 18 books a month, so that seems to be an attainable goal. The reason I am giving myself some wiggle room is because I will always have ARCs, readalongs, readathons, etc., that won’t quite fit in with the assigned theme. 

My theme for this month is:

SCI-FI SEPTEMBER!!!!

Guys, I am so pumped for this. Sci-Fi is arguably my favorite genre and I haven’t been reading enough of it lately. I buy a ton of Sci-Fi books but then never seem to get around to them.

Within this I will be including a whole host of Sci-Fi subgenres, such as: apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic, anything involving alien life, time travel, multi-dimension or multi-universe, steampunk, techno-thriller, military, biohazard or anything related to pandemics, zombie, climate fiction, space colonization, space opera and dystopian. 

I think I can definitely meet my goal of 10-books within this wide range of fascinating Sci-Fi subgenres. I have my eye on quite a few on my shelves that have been sitting around for WAY TOO LONG!

I have already started and am currently reading 3 Sci-Fi books: 

  • The Perfect Wife (ARC) by J.P. Delaney. This is an Adult Techno-Thriller with a sentient robot being created essentially to replace a man’s missing wife. I am really enjoying it and actually only have 10% left so may be finishing it tonight!
  • Contagion by Erin Bowman is a YA Sci-Fi Thriller. I am listening to the audiobook for this one and also really enjoying it. It is quite intense. This follows a crew of people sent on a search and rescue mission into deep space when a mining crew puts out an S.O.S. What they find upon their arrival is nothing like what they would have imagined. Let’s just say, this one is quite aptly titled!
  • Hyperion by Dan Simmons is a Hugo-Award winning, complex Adult Sci-Fi novel, written in 1989, that is structured much like Chaucer’s, Canterbury Tales. I am participating in a month-long readalong of this book with some book buddies over on Bookstagram. I just started it this morning and thus far, am confused, but I am sure I will ultimately enjoy the experience.

So, that’s it for now. I just wanted to write this quick update and let y’all know what I was up to. If you have any Sci-Fi recommendations, please feel free to leave them in the comments below or contact me through any of my social media links!

Until next time,

Cheers & Happy Reading!