dearrivarie: September 2020

Hello friends! With September winding down, I wanted to wrap up everything I did for #Goodreadance2020. This challenge was hosted by the wonderful Shealea (Shut Up, Shealea) and it honestly came at such a perfect time because I've been seeing so many posts about how nicely everyone organizes their bookish archives.

g o a l s
☐ Create excel sheets

☐ Make some Goodreads shelves

☐ Clean up my Goodreads TBR and ratings

☐ Set up a 1-10 rating scale

r e s u l t s

- Excel sheets -

books I read in 2020

I know this image is incredibly small, but I'm actually really happy with how the sheet turned out. This is probably the most in-depth I've ever gotten with my trackers before and I took a lot of inspiration from May (Forever and Everly) and Fadwa's (Word Wonders) posts. While mine is nowhere as in-depth as theirs, I think it's a good start.

My categories:

Month + Number of Book/Year

Pretty standard start, I didn't want to keep track of dates read since I already of Goodreads for that so I kept it simple with just numbering.

Book Information: Title, Author

Again, pretty standard information.

General Information: Series, Age, Genre, Star Rating,

Numerical Rating, Edition, Source, Review, Reread Count

Like the title suggests, general information about the book along with whether it's a reread or not (since I want to do more rereading) and where I end up reviewing the book if I do.

Diversity: Yes/No, Main Representation, LGBTQIA+

This is not a complete list of categories for diversity but it's a start. Being more on Book Twitter has definitely made me more passionate about diverse reads so of course it's something I want to track!

Reactions: Writing, Atmosphere, World Building, Plot, Characters, Emotion, Average

This is my personal favorite part of the spreadsheet. There are a lot of instances where I read a book and give a 3-3.5 star rating but ultimately forget how I feel about various aspects of the story. I thought I'd try and set up a 1-10 scale for these specifics which would also help with the reviewing process. Surprisingly, when going back and comparing the averages to my normal 5-star scale, they are actually really well aligned so that was cool to see.

physical books that I own

This was actually the most time-consuming part because I had to go through and document all the little specifics. It was also really helpful to see what books I've had for a long time that I just haven't picked up and won't be in the near future or books that I read and didn't love. I finished the spreadsheet with 154 books which is a lot higher of a number than I anticipated. However, I did end up choosing 20-30 books that I decided to donate. I don't plan on buying any more books for the rest of the year other than my pre-orders so counting those in I'll end 2020 with 129 books.

My categories:

Title, Author, Series Name

(sorry that got cut off)

Publication Year, Pages, Publisher

This definitely took the longest because I tried to fill in all the information.

Age, Genre

Age: Children (C), Middle Grade (MG), YA (Young Adult), NA (New Adult), A (Adult

Genre: fantasy, contemporary, historical fiction, dystopian, literary, retelling, magical realism, fabulism, non-fiction, poetry, short story, graphic novel, class, romance, mystery/thriller, horror

(again not a complete list)

Read, Star Rating, Numerical Rating

This was actually helpful to see how many unread books I owned >_<

Edition, Source, Read Count

Edition - paperback or hardback

Source - where I bought the book

Read Count - whether I have reread the book or not

Shading

If you can tell from the screenshot, there are several titles that are shaded green and blue. The blue indicates some of my all-time favorites. The green indicates a book that I will potentially unhaul in the near future. This includes books I haven't read that I could be losing interest in as well as books I read that didn't blow me away - both of which I've decided to hold onto for the time being.

I did attempt to start a sheet for e-books that I owned but I haven't gone through all of them yet. The set-up is similar to my physical books but I took some of the categories so it isn't as in-depth.

- Goodreads -

I started off with just the standard shelves that Goodreads offered (read, currently-reading, to-read) so I added a couple more. My personal favorite is the slightly-disappointed shelf - I found that there were a lot of books that just left me feeling unsatisfied and for some reason, having a place to keep all those titles made me happy (?)

I also changed my display shelf to feature books that have some of my favorite characters and/or character relationships.

The best part of my Goodreads cleanse was honestly changing the ratings. When I first started blogging, I would agree to pretty much every review request I received, regardless of interest level. As a result, I would feel pressured to give the books a 3+ rating even if they didn't quite fit that criterion.

Now that my rating system is more in place, it was pretty easy to go in and change the ratings to fit the current standard. Looking at all the books I read from 2015-2018, there were a lot of books that I have honestly forgotten about but rated a 3/4 star rating. While it was a bit scary to see my average drop from a 3.68 to a 3.30, it was also so liberating to see my ratings accurately reflect how I felt about these books.

To wrap things up, I loved participating in this challenge! It helped me orient my priorities when it comes to the books that I owned as well as clarify how to organize the books I read. An added plus is how satisfying the spreadsheets look once they were all filled out!

Shealea honestly comes up with the best ideas and if you participated in #Goodreadance2020, I'd love to know what you did and what accomplishment was your favorite?

7:36 PM 4 Comments

Hello friends! I've been wanting to do a seasonal playlist the entire summer but for some reason never got around to it. Now that I've worn long sleeves for a total of five consecutive days, I think it'll be a good time to introduce some of my favorite songs that give me all the autumn-vibes.

taeyeon - four seasons

Something about that opening line gives me chills every time I hear this song. Despite being originally released in the spring, it gives me major nostalgia vibes and Taeyeon's voice just sounds so incredibly smooth and perfect.

red velvet - kingdom come

Legit the smoothest vocals in the world exist in this track. The Perfect Velvet Album is one of my favorites of all time and this track truly showcases how incredibly talented Red Velvet is. This song gives me goosebumps every time I listen to it - like mystery and hope combined together.

kim lip (loona) - twilight

This is the perfect song for when you can't fall asleep in the middle of the night because there are so many thoughts in your mind. It also captures this sense of yearning that makes my heart just stop especially at the bridge (so. good.)

jinsoul (loona) - love letter

I think this song was the one that solidified my love for LOONA as a group. The duet between Jinsoul and Kim Lip, again so incredibly smooth but with more of a beat. Another song that's perfect for all the yearning feelings and restless nights.

hyunsik (btob) - dear love

I think there might be a recurring theme of unrequited love in this playlist...this song is quintessentially Hyunsik and made me miss BTOB so much. He does such a great job in conveying all the emotions into the lyrics and every performance, it honestly makes my heart cry a little.

i*zone - ayayaya

Dare I say that this is my favorite I*ZONE song ever? It's just so incredibly elegant and I've watched their performances on Mnet so many times I've lost count. The little flute/whistle sound in the background of the chorus gets stuck in my head all the time and I find myself humming along nonstop.

I've been listening to these songs on repeat while writing this post and now I just want to curl up with a blanket and stare out the window in contemplation. Don't forget to continue to take care of yourselves with the changing weather and the start of school whether in person or virtual.

If you'd like some more velvet-y songs, I have a playlist on Spotify.

What are some of your favorite autumn-vibe songs?

11:34 AM 5 Comments

"They called me the Bitch Queen, the she-wolf, because I murdered a man and exiled my king the night before they crowned me."

preventing total chaos
Following the events of The Wolf of Oren-Yaro, Talyien must to find a way home and save her son before the entire nation erupts into a giant bloodbath. The uneasy alliances she makes and every step of her journey determines the future of the lands her father shed so much blood to unify. We're united with a cast of characters that, despite their imperfections and my misgivings, have grown on me quite a bit (well except for a certain esteemed prince). This sequel easily has all the elements of epic fantasy that I adore but manages to add a level of intricacy that makes it wholly unique.

love. love is meaningless in our world. we move to the beat of our ancestors, of our clans.

honoring the legacy
Dare I say, the most iconic line of this series is, "they call me the bitch queen?" I swear every time I hear or read that line I just want to fist pump in the air. From the beginning, Talyien has completely redefined what it means to be a strong heroine in adult fantasy. As a mother, she is driven by her love and protection for her son; as a queen, she must grapple with the understanding that her life and decisions are never fully her own. Her struggles, while I cannot relate to personally, resonated with me because of her need to honor the world her father had created. She has to question how his vision was crumbling if it was meant to establish peace and unity among the warlords.

This explores the conversation on honoring the legacies of the past which is something I loved reading about. Traditions are an aspect of modern and fantastical societies that dictate how our lives are organized. The societal norm and class structures are a construct that we see challenged yet the change that is desired is rarely brought about. Through the lens of Talyien and the Oren-yaro, we are able to catch a glimpse into the power that traditions hold - something that is reminiscent of many Asian cultures. The histories of one's culture are often contradicted with the "progressive pathway" of the present, especially in today's age, and the portrayal of the struggle to balance change with the fear of destroying the past hit me so hard.

some are born with the power to turn the tie even before they realize what they are doing. others...aren't. some of us have to fight to make a difference from the moment we are born. we try to crest along calm waters because we are helpless against the tide, and even then, a single wave might be enough to sweep us away.

no such thing as allies
I am a sucker for plot and high-stakes politics and The Ikessar Falcon delivers that and more. Where the first installment includes inevitable danger and constantly shifting loyalties that hold together Jin-Sayeng, the sequel introduces a whole new level of complexities with the political schemes of the warlords. One of the best aspects of this story, in particular, is how the development of the plot is mirrored by the development of the characters. Talyien is forced to determine how much of her father's legacy she is willing to embody and if becoming Yeshin's daughter is worth the risk of losing herself.

Enemies become allies only for allies to become enemies and there seems to be no end to how far the decisions of the dead continue to control the actions of the living.

Thank you so much to Caffeine Book Tours for allowing me to be part of #DethroneTheDragonlord - I received an advanced reader copy from the publisher as part of my participation on this tour.

This isn't the cleanest edit I've made but I wanted to showcase all the amazing stops that will be part of #DethroneTheDragonlord! I'm honestly so excited to see to all the amazing content from all the other creators in the upcoming weeks! Be sure to click the schedule for all the official links!

A B O U T T H E A U T H O R

K.S. Villoso was born in a dank hospital on an afternoon in Albay, Philippines, and things have generally been okay sine then. After spending most of her childhood in a slum area in Taguig (where she dodged death-defying traffic, ate question food, and fell into open-pit sewers more often than one ought to), she and her family immigrated to Vancouver, Canada, where they spent the better part of two decades trying to chase the North American Dream. She is now living amidst the forest and mountains, with her family, children, and dogs in Anmore, BC.

W E B S I T E | T W I T T E R | I N S T A G R A M
G O O D R E A D S | F A C E B O O K

M O O D B O A R D

pictures from pexels and unsplash
mountain / map / stone pillars / fields

P L A Y L I S T

eek I'm definitely not a good photographer and posing is hard (!!!) but I tried to do the "books with outfit" trend for this cover and decided to edit my playlist into the picture because I needed something to draw attention AWAY from myself...

With everything that happens in this sequel, K.S. Villoso builds the foundation for an absolutely epic finale and I cannot wait to watch Talyien grow into her full potential as the Bitch Queen of Oren-yaro and set the world ablaze.

Who is your favorite strong female character?