WWWednesday #23

Hey Readers, welcome back to the WWWednesday section! I’m pretty happy with how my TBR is going so far and even though I’m currently reading a huge and long book, I’m devouring it like no others. So, without further ado, let’s start!

What are you currently reading?

At the moment, I’m continuing my 2024 Reading Challenge and I’m already halfway through The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson. This is the second book of the series and I’m loving it so much! I just can’t put it down, I have to know everything that is going to happen to the main characters. It’s full of conspiracies and politics and I’m so excited for that! I’ll let you know more about it in a future article.
I’ve also started reading “Dimentica il mio nome” (Forget my Name) by Zerocalcare, a famous Italian cartoonist. I’ve had the chance to read just a couple of pages but I’m already loving it, he’s always excellent at his job.

What did you recently finish reading?

The latest book I’ve read was our book club pick for this month, Talking at Night by Claire Daverley. I have to say that I really enjoyed it and I didn’t expect to like it this much. The story was really compelling and the relationship between the two main characters was always interesting to read. I had a great time and I’m so happy for that!

What do you think you’ll read next?

As usual, here we are in the hardest section of the three. What I’m sure I’ll read next is The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson for sure. Since I’m very invested in this story I think I won’t wait any longer and read the final novel of the trilogy straight away. And what about then? As I said in a previous article I’ll definitely make room for Beach Read by Emily Henry, and since it’s almost summertime I think it could be a great idea. And for the following reading you’ll have to wait for the next WWW.

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to the questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #22

Hey Readers, welcome back to the first WWWednesday of 2024! I’m so happy with how my TBR is going, I’ve read a lot of books since the beginning of January and this month I’m also trying to read multiple books (by different genres) simultaneously, just to experiment a little bit. I don’t know why, but I feel more attracted to books this year! So, without further ado, let’s start!

What are you currently reading?

As I already said, I’m currently reading three books. The first book I started reading in March is an essay called “Per una rivoluzione degli affetti” (For a Revolution of Affections) by Brigitte Vasallo. It’s an interesting book in which the author deconstructs the idea of monogamy that is deeply rooted (and taught) in our society and I’m finding it really interesting. It’s giving so much food for thought.
The second book I started listening to yesterday is the audiobook version of The House of Hidden Meanings by RuPaul. If you know me, you are already aware of my huge love for the Drag Race franchise and I have always admired RuPaul’s hard work in this sector. Since I found this morning the audiobook on Storytel I couldn’t miss the chance to know more about his past.
Finally, I also decided to start reading Good Girl, Bad Blood by Holly Jackson. After loving the first book of this series, and since another admin of our group has recently read it, I felt the need and the curiosity to give it a chance and see what happens in this new installment. I can’t wait to see what the author has in store this time.

What did you recently finish reading?

The latest book I’ve read was our book club pick for this month, An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson. Saying that it was a letdown for me is an understatement. I think a couple of factors played a crucial role in my opinion: firstly, the previous book by this author, A Dowry of Blood, was my favourite book of 2022, so I was probably expecting something as good ad that; secondly, and connected to the previous point, I probably had high expectations before diving into this novel. I don’t want to spoil anything, but if you want to know more about our opinion, you will find a full review on this blog near the end of the month. All I can say is that, unfortunately, it didn’t turn out very well for me and that I didn’t like this story. It’s such a shame.

What do you think you’ll read next?

Okay, well, I still don’t know what I’m going to read next because, as you can see from my current readings, it’s a chaotic period for me. I don’t know if I’ll have enough space and time to fit another book by the end of the month. One thing I’m sure is that I’ll definitely go on with my reading challenge in April and I will finally start reading The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson. If by the end of March I’ll be done with my current readings, I think I’ll start reading Sanderson with a little advance. But we will see.

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to the questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #21

Hey Readers, welcome back to what will probably be the last article of 2023 about this topic. I think it’s finally time for me to decide which books I’m going to read from now till the end of the year and I already know that I’m not going to follow my TBR, but I’ll try my best (puts a clown nose and a wig on). Let’s start!

What are you currently reading?

At the moment, I’m reading our book club pick for the month of November, which is Beartown by Fredrik Backman. I honestly didn’t think I would like this novel as much as I’m doing now. The story is really captivating and I’m fully captured by what’s going on and since I’m currently at the 80% of it, I can’t wait to know how everything will work out in the end. At first, I was feeling a bit afraid about the large cast of characters, but the author handled it pretty well, he took his time to make the reader comfortable and I deeply appreciated it. The only thing I’m not the biggest fan of is the writing style. Fluent yet too detailed and full of things that could have been easily left out.

What did you recently finish reading?

The latest books I’ve read were a novel and a collection of comics. The first one is The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater, of which you can find my full opinion in this article. The other one, instead, is a collection of comics created in celebration of the 100th year anniversary of Disney. They are all different kinds of comics about the possible futures of the towns in which Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck live. There were some good and some okay stories, but in the end I liked reading all of them, it felt really nostalgic.

What do you think you’ll read next?

Well, that’s an interesting question. I’d really like to plan my reading schedule and follow it but I already know I would fail. In these months I’m finding reading a bit difficult, my mind wanders around all the time and I have a few hobbies that are keeping my mind busy, but I would appreciate if I can manage to read at least 3 other books by the end of the year. I’m going to read the final two installments in The Raven Cycle series for sure, one is scheduled for these last days of November and I will probably read the other in the first half of December. But then I’m left out with one more book. So, the question is: what should I pick? I have a couple of choices in mind, like We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, that I heard great things about. I would also like to read The Simulacra by Philip K. Dick, but I’m not sure which of these I should choose. What do you think?

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to the questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #20

Hey Readers! Welcome back to my monthly update about the books I’ve read and the ones I’d like to read next. It’s been a while since my last article of this kind, so I thought it would be a great idea to see how my reading schedule is going on. Let’s take a look!

What are you currently reading?

At the moment, I’m halfway through a sci-fi novel called “La Cattedrale di Sabbia” (The Sand Cathedral) by the Italian author Leonardo Patrignani. I just love this author, I’ve read almost all of his works, and his first book, Multiversum, is one of my all-time favourite novels. It’s thanks to Patrignani if I started to be interested and obsessed with the multiverse theory. He has a great mind when it comes to sci-fi fiction. Even this new book is starting to grow on me, after reading the plot I was very curious to know more about it and I’m happy to say that I’m liking it. This book is all about how memories can be manipulated and distorted by our mind and others in a high-tech future.

What did you recently finish reading?

Recently I’ve finished reading a couple of things. The first one of them is the first book in The Raven Cycle series by Maggie Stiefvater, of which you can read a full review following this link. Another novel that I had the chance to read was Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata. Unfortunately, I have to say that I didn’t appreciate this story completely. I get what the author was trying to tell the reader, but it ended up to be just a flat book. I liked the premise but the plot wasn’t really going anywhere.
Finally, the last thing I read recently was the final volume of Neon Genesis Evangelion by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto. I have never seen the anime, so everything was new to me and I’m glad to say that this manga is really really beautiful. The story feels a bit complicated at times, but it wasn’t a problem for me, because every time I picked up a volume, I ended up devouring it. It’s just so interesting and captivating.

What do you think you’ll read next?

Well, if I have to be honest, I still don’t know. One thing I’m sure of is that as soon as I’m done with La Cattedrale di Sabbia, I’ll read the second installment of The Raven Cycle, The Dream Thieves. And after that? I’m not sure whether to pick something up randomly from my TBR jar or just wait and see what my mind is going to decide. I just hope it is going to be an interesting reading. But, if you have any suggestions or recommendations that you would like to share, leave them in a comment, I’d be very glad!

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to these questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #19

Hey Readers! Welcome back to my monthly update about the books I’ve read and the ones I’d like to read next. I’m really happy about how my Summer is going at the moment, finally I had the chance to read some more books than usual and I hope I will get to many more before Autumn! Let’s see how my TBR is going.

What are you currently reading?

I’m currently reading Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston and I’m really enjoying it! I just love this story and the romance, they are so well done. I’m madly in love with both Alex and Henry and I can’t believe I’ve waited so much to finally approach this book. I must admit that the movie adaptation did help me pick this novel up and I’m so glad for it. I’m almost done with my reading, I’m about 80% done with it and I think I’ll finish reading it today. I can’t wait to see how everything will wrap up, I’m not ready.

What did you recently finish reading?

The latest books I’ve read were an Italian novel and a graphic novel.
The first one is Poverina by Chiara Galeazzi, an autobiographical book about the author’s experience in hospital after she gets a stroke. The author talks about her experience in a funny and light way and I was giggling all the time about how she told what was happening daily. It is indeed a light read, but it surely makes you think a lot, too, and the author is very good in balancing these two aspects in her novel.
The graphic novel I read was the third volume of Heartstopper. It’s almost meaningless telling you that I’ve read this book because of the second series that recently came out, but that’s the main reason. I will be repetitive, but this series (both the books and the TV adaptation) is SO good and lovely, it’s just the perfect example of a comfort series and after watching it I couldn’t miss the chance to re-read the third volume. I just can’t get enough of these characters.

What do you think you’ll read next?

Okay, so, hear me out. Last month I said I would have started Kingdom of Ash right after Tower of Dawn. I tried my best but my chaotic mind made me change idea a couple of times and as you can see by the first two questions my TBR changed a lot *insert clown emoji*. So, now I’m here with a full plan for the rest of the month of August: since Kingdom of Ash is pretty long, I’ve decided to divide it into chunks of chapters to read each day from today until the end of the month. This will help me a lot and I won’t get overwhelmed by its hugeness.
Also, when I have some spare time, before the end of August, I’d like to start reading the first volumes of the famous manga and anime Evangelion. My boyfriend is a fan of both of them and convinced me to try reading the manga, so I think I’ll give it a chance and see if it’s my cup of tea or not.

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to these questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #18

Hey Readers! Welcome back to my monthly update about the books I’ve read and the ones I’d like to read next. Summer is always a great time for my reading plans, so I hope to get to as many books as possible. Let’s take a look.

What are you currently reading?

Right now, I’m almost near the 25% of Tower of Dawn by Sarah J. Maas. I’m happy to say that I’m enjoying it and that I’m so eager to know more about what’s going on in Antica. The author has created some interesting plots and subplots full of suspense and she has my full attention. It was also very lovely to meet Yrene again and finally see more about her past and her current life at Torre Cesme. I so hope that she and Aelin will be able to meet again in the following and final book. I just wish to see them reunited!

What did you recently finish reading?

Recently, I finished reading two books and re-reading a graphic novel. The first one is The Membranes by Chi Ta-Wei. I just loved it so much, it is probably one of my favourite books of 2023 and I’m so grateful that I picked it up. Even though it was a very short novel, the author was able to make me feel all kinds of emotions. I was so interested all the time, it was very entertaining to see Momo’s life and her past, especially her relationship with her mother. Not to mention when we arrive at the major plot twist of the entire novel. I was completely blown away, I guessed a couple of things but I didn’t expect it to be this massive and heart-breaking. The entire book was simply perfect.
The second novel I read was our book club pick for this month, Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater. I will post an article with a full review at the end of the month, but right now I can tell you that it was really cute and I really enjoyed it. I had so much fun following the main characters and their stories.
The other book was Nimona by ND Stevenson. This was a re-read because I loved the movie adaptation and I couldn’t miss the chance to re-read one of my favourite graphic novels. The movie was so beautiful and lovely and even if it doesn’t follow the main story of the book, it’s still so well done that I strongly suggest it to you, if you haven’t watched it yet. You won’t regret it!

What do you think you’ll read next?

My reading plans are difficult to organise as usual. I think that as soon as I finish reading Tower of Dawn I will immediately dive into the last novel of the Throne of Glass series, Kingdom of Ash. The main reason is that it’s a very long book and I’m afraid it will take me the entire month to read it. I’m also already thinking of a solution that will help me read it faster. After that I think I’ll need something cute and fluffy to relax. I still haven’t decided which book, but I’ll let you know what my choice was in the next WWW.

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to these questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #17

Hey Readers! It’s time to talk about the books I’ve read, the ones I’m reading and which novel I’m going to read next. Let’s see how my TBR is going and what the future holds for me.

What are you currently reading?

At the moment, I’m going on with my 2023 challenge and I’m reading Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas. I’m so glad and happy that this challenge is going well and that I’m already through six books out of eight of the series. After Queen of Shadows I have so high expectations, so I hope this story won’t disappoint me. So far, I read 25% of the book and I’m appreciating it, it’s already full of action and mysteries and I’m very curious to see what Maas has plotted this time. Things are moving pretty fast and I can already feel that I’m reaching the final point of collision. The war is just around the corner and I can’t wait to see what will happen next. I really hope that all the plotlines will eventually merge in a single one by the end of the book, there are some characters whose meeting I’m waiting for.
At the same time, I’m also reading A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I’m sad to say that due to many things going on with my work and my life, I didn’t really have much time to keep on reading this novel, but as soon as I finish Empire of Storms, I will fully dedicate to this book.

What did you recently finish reading?

As I already said, I recently finished reading Queen of Shadows and if you want to know more about my opinion, here’s the link to my full review. Apart from that, I also finished reading A Scanner Darkly by Philip K. Dick. This was a strange book for me, I had some difficulties getting in at times, but I also kind of enjoyed it and always felt on the edge of my seat because I was very curious to know how things were going to turn out. I think the plot twists where quite predictable but it didn’t really bother me in the end. What was really powerful and helped me appreciate even more this book was the author’s note at the end of the story. It was really strong and powerful and it made me appreciate this book even more than I did. Dick is really good in his job and with this story I was finally able to know more about his perspective and his life and I really loved this thing. I will definitely read some other works by him.

What do you think you’ll read next?

As usual, here’s the most fun part of the entire article. If I have to be honest, I don’t really know which novel I’ll read next. I, for sure, will go on with A Little Life, and next month I’ll read Tower of Dawn by Sarah J. Maas, but between these books, I’m not quite sure what I will read. I was really hoping for Gideon the Ninth since I was finally able to get a physical copy of the book, but I’m not feeling in the mood for it. I guess I’ll figure it out later and you will have to wait for my next WWW to find out what really happened.

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to these questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #17

Hey Readers! I know, it’s been a while since my last WWW and in the meantime I had the chance to read a couple of books, but don’t worry, I’m back with a new article about the novels I’m reading and the ones I would like to get to. So, let’s talk about them!

What are you currently reading?

At the moment, I decided to finally try to read A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara. I’m still a bit scared by its hugeness but I’m so glad that her writing style is so fluent. I read almost 60 pages in one sitting and it feels a bit strange because these last weeks I had some difficulties reading. I so hope that this novel will help me with my reading slump.
By the way, apart from the writing style, I can totally say that this book is very intriguing and I’m so curious to discover more about the main characters’ stories and their past. Since it’s very famous on TikTok and Instagram I already know what to expect in terms of tears, but I’m ready to get devoured by this book.

What did you recently finish reading?

The latest books I read were a graphic novel and an essay, both by Italian authors. The first one was Macerie Prime by Zerocalcare, a famous Italian author of graphic novels and comics. This was my first approach to him and I can honestly say that I was very glad I had the chance to read something by him. The story was just the first of two parts and I can’t wait to find the right moment to read the second one. It was so deep yet so funny, Zerocalcare is so great at doing his job because he is able to capture the reality and its multifaceted surface but at the same time he is able to make you smile and lighten the tone. As soon as I can I think I will try to read all his past books.
The essay instead was a collection of articles about the LGBTQIA+ community called Questioni di un certo genere. I really appreciated it because it helped me to open my eyes on subjects and topics I knew few of or that I wasn’t aware at all. I was really interested in it also because it was full of so much information and useful graphics that helped me understand even more.

What do you think you’ll read next?

I think I’ll probably celebrate the fact that this time I know what I’m going to read and I have the entire month planned. First, while I’m reading A Little Life I’m going to read also our book club pick for this month, which is A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon by Sarah Hawley. I don’t know why but I feel like I’m in the right mood for this book and I cannot wait to start reading it this weekend. After that I’ll definitely get to Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas and continue my challenge. After the ending of the last book, I’m very curious to see where the author will lead us in this new installment. I hope so much it will be packed with action and mysteries like the previous ones.

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to these questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #16

Hey Readers! Welcome back to another WWWednesday. We are halfway through March so I think it’s a good moment to take a look at my TBR and see how things are going and what books I’d like to read next. Let’s start!

What are you currently reading?

At the moment I’m reading two books. I usually don’t do this kind of thing because I get easily confused, but after I’ll tell you which novels I’m reading you’ll understand my choice. So, right now I’m reading The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas and an Italian novel called “La vita di chi resta” (The Life of Those Who Remains) by Matteo B. Bianchi.
The first one is a prequel book in the Throne of Glass series, it’s a collection of novellas that gives the reader a better look at Celaena’s past and her adventures. Since there are 5 of them, I decided to read one novella each time I finish reading a book or whenever I feel like I’m in the mood. I’m currently halfway through it, I read 3 of them.
The other book is “La vita di chi resta”, an interesting novel that deeply captured my attention since it came out. In this book the author talks about the aftereffect and the impact the suicide of his former boyfriend has on him. He decided to write this book for the ones who remain behind on Earth and have to deal with everything that happens after this event.

What did you recently finish reading?

The latest book I read was The Things We Do to Our Friends by Heather Darwent. Unfortunately, this novel didn’t meet my taste. The story doesn’t seem to have a real direction and the characters were not so interesting and I didn’t feel very involved in what was happening. In my opinion, there was a cool idea behind this story and it could have worked better if it was managed differently. I’m sorry to say so because I was hoping to like this book more than I did.

What do you think you’ll read next?

Well, well, well, here we are with my favourite part. So, here’s the thing, what I already planned is to finish reading The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas and I’m also thinking that I will probably take advantage of the Easter holidays to start reading Heir of Fire, but this is still a work-in-progress idea. On the other hand, I’m feeling chaotic this month, every time I see a book I decide that I want to read it ASAP. My choices (so far) are: another Italian book called Cieli in fiamme (Skies on Fire) by Mattia Insolia, Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman, It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover, Dark Matter by Blake Crouch. I’m so sure that by the end of March I will end up without having read a single one of these books, I could bet on it (Troy Bolton already did), but I’d like to think that I will manage to read at least one of them.
I think you will have to wait until my next WWW to find out what really happened.

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to these questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!

WWWednesday #15

Hey Readers! Welcome back to another WWWednesday. I just love to check out my current readings and also to see what I’m going to read in the next few days. I think you can already predict which books I’m reading or I’m going to read, but if you are curious I suggest you continue reading. Let’s take a better look.

What are you currently reading?

Are you really asking what I’m currently reading? The answer is so simple and straightforward that I could even avoid telling you. Finally, I’ve just started reading the final book in The Last Hours series by Cassandra Clare. I have to tell you, I’m both excited and afraid of this novel because I don’t know what to expect from it. I just hope it won’t disappoint me since I have a lot of hype for this book. I’ll cross my fingers very tightly.

What did you recently finish reading?

The latest books I’ve read are a graphic novel and a book. The first one is The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen which I just loved. It was such an amazing and interesting story and I adored how the author developed it with the use of tales. I also cried at the end, did you have any doubt about that?
The other book was the first one in the Blackwater series by Michael McDowell. I was a little disappointed by it because it was sold as a horror book, but in the end, there were so few elements of horror that I couldn’t even appreciate them or the story itself. I was expecting something different and more engaging and for this reason, I think I won’t continue with the following installments.

What do you think you’ll read next?

My future plans are undefined. I still need to figure out how much time Chain of Thorns will take from me, but after I finish that book I think I will chill out with a comfy read such as a graphic novel. I think I’ll go for Coming Back by Jessi Zabarsky which was gifted to me by a friend of mine for Christmas. And in the end, I will close the month with Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas. I’m just so eager to see what’s coming next and I’m so ready to finally dive into it!

So, this was my WWWednesday, hope you enjoyed it! If you would like to let me know your answers to these questions, please leave them in a comment down below. Thanks for reading!