Coffee Time Tuesdays: I Abandoned This Popular Book 

Hello, dear readers, and happy Tuesday! I have some controversial updates in today’s column, so buckle up and be ready for my first DNF confession.

I’m an advocate of not finishing books we don’t enjoy (which is what DNf’ing means, in bookish acronyms). But I hardly ever go into detail or indeed admit leaving books unfinished in my reading-related articles. This is usually because I don’t think it’s necessary. I decide a book isn’t working for me, pass it on, and move on to the next.

But I thought my latest DNF might be worth sharing. Because it’s a book that took the bookish world by storm.

Why I stopped reading ‘Cleopatra and Frankenstein’ by Coco Mellors

Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors is not just a popular book I DNFed. It’s a popular book I aggressively eliminated from my reading queue the moment I got to a certain scene.

Here’s the deal: this book sounds exactly like my cup of tea. Contemporary fiction about a couple who are so intensely different and flawed that they end up destroying their lives and relationships with those around them, by being together. We love to see it. Give me damaged characters with a lot to offer. Give me conflict, give me a love story that doesn’t make sense and not just because of external factors.

I listened to a few good hours of this book and everything about it was right up my street at the beginning. The writing is one of the best I’ve seen in contemporary fiction. The characters are complex and very well developed. The plot, while somewhat mundane, manages to grip you in its occasional absurdity.

But after a while, Cleopatra and Frankenstein completely lost me. The cast of characters becomes increasingly large and bizarre after the first few chapters, and the switching perspectives can be difficult to keep up with. There are some severely uncomfortable scenes — which I wouldn’t usually mind, but these are scenes between one-off characters, or characters who have little meaning to the story.

I understand how some of the conversations are meant to create parallel themes that relate to the main plot, but at some point I couldn’t help but feel like the author included some of these purely as intellectual bait. I don’t like it when books try to perform cleverness for the sake of it.

The book is supposed to frustrate you. Nothing any of these characters does is ever justified, logical, or indeed good for anything. And while this is a great literary pursuit — micro-analysing human flaws — I think it’s very easy to overdo it. 

And the cherry on top (or, as we like to say in Romanian, the candy on the death cake), is the scene that made me give up entirely. There is an incredibly upsetting scene around halfway into the book, when Anders, Frank’s friend who Cleo has an affair with, touches himself in a public bathroom while fantasising about abusing Cleo in very disturbing and violent ways, which we get a graphic description for (because of course we do).

That’s when I had to pull the plug and remove the book from my Scribd queue. I simply couldn’t do it. I get why a character like Anders has such fantasies, but the whole setting it happened in (he was having lunch with his son), and his relationship with Cleo, everything around it made me feel sick. 

This may definitely be just a case of me getting triggered. Other readers might go through the scene fine. Actually, a lot of them have done, praising the book for its masterful depiction of everything that’s wrong with people. Ordinary people, like you and me, who make mistakes and can be horrible under specific circumstances.

But all in all, it’s a no from me. Major disappointment. And while I could have maybe gotten over the scene in question, the book had started losing me way before that. So maybe it wasn’t meant to be. I was the Cleopatra to this book’s Frankenstein, if you will.

Other Reading Updates

After DNFing Cleopatra and Frankenstein, I decided to re-read The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. I absolutely loved this book the first time I read it, and I was excited to revisit it two years later, and in a different format. I read it digitally the first time around, while this time I get to enjoy the stunning 10-year anniversary edition.

I’ve been savouring the living soul out of this stunning book, noticing a lot of details I missed the first time, and diving even deeper into the story.

Aside from that, I’m reading Black Butterflies, by Priscilla Morris, one of the shortlisted books for this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction, so keep your eyes peeled for a longer feature where I detail all about the shortlist.

And that’s it for today’s Coffee Time Tuesday. What’s one popular book you had to abandon and why? Let me know in the comments!

Coffee Time Tuesdays: Keeping It Classic

Hello, dear readers, and happy May! How can summer be just around the corner? I’m still holding on tight to spring: the mild chill in the air, the trees in bloom, the soft, lingering smell of linden flowers, the tentative iced coffees and light sweaters.

Today I’ve got a classic Coffee Time Tuesday column for you, where I cover all the good things: what I’m reading, a mini-TBR for May, and a new book release to kick off the last month of spring.

Yesterday I had a book club meeting where we discussed Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness. This is a sci-fi modern classic about a human envoy who travels to another planet to get it to join an intergalactic alliance. 

The foreign planet, Winter, is this strange, frozen realm, whose inhabitants are gender-fluid. These people’s ability to embrace male or female characteristics depending on the situation, but otherwise be pretty much genderless, shapes their society in a very interesting way.

This is what attracted me to Le Guin’s acclaimed novel. I don’t read sci-fi. In fact, I stay as far away from it as humanly possible. So it’s no wonder I was, for the most part, confused while reading this book. But the main themes are explored extremely well, making you re-think just how big of a role gender plays in our society. Here’s an extract from the book that says it all.

“Consider: There is no division of humanity into strong and weak halves, protective/protected, dominant/submissive, owner/chattel, active/passive. In fact the whole tendency to dualism that pervades human thinking may be found to be lessened, or changed, on Winter.” — Ursula K. Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness

May TBR

Although the book club is doing a wonderful job of taking me out of my comfort zone, I’m happy that my next read is A Single Man by Christopher Isherwood, which sounds more like my cup of tea. The book follows a day in the life of an English professor shortly after the Cuban Missile Crisis. And domestic, mundane fiction is definitely well within my taste.

Otherwise, I’m planning to start You’ve Reached Sam, an intriguing and emotional YA novel by Dustin Thao, that everyone seems to love. It follows Julie, whose perfect future plans are shattered by the unexpected death of her boyfriend Sam. 

But when she calls him just to hear his voicemail one final time, she’s shocked to hear that he picks up. This was intriguing enough to convince me. What kind of connection is causing Julie to reach her dead boyfriend, and how will she make use of it? I’ll report back when I get my answers.

And to keep it light and manageable, I’m also hoping to get to Elif Shafak’s The Island of Missing Trees. This is one of the books my partner bought for me on my birthday last year, and I don’t know much about it. All I know is that explores family themes, genealogy, and a fig tree as a subtle protagonist, and that’s all I want to know. I’m curious how the mystery around this book will affect my reading experience.

New Book Release

The Daydreams by Laura Hankin sounds like a deliciously entertaining book to pick up during sunny evenings. It follows four former teen stars whose show, The Daydreams, used to be a big hit in 2004. Now living very different lives, the protagonists decide to listen to the fans and do a reunion, each for their own selfish reasons: revenge, second chances, and forgiveness.

But as secrets come to surface, the characters have to come to terms with the real reasons behind their show’s downfall.

This sounds like an angstier version of Daisy Jones & The Six, with a more modern take on fame, and the nostalgia of the early 2000s. The Daydreams was published today, so you can grab a copy now.

And that’s it for today’s Coffee Time Tuesday! What are you planning to read in May?

Coffee Time Tuesdays: Mermaids, Poetry, and Music

Hello, dear readers, happy Tuesday, and happy April! In what has become my classic chaotic style, I’ve not written this column in the past few weeks. This is because my day job has been kicking my butt, and I’ve also been on holiday for some of that time. I’ve missed our weekly catch-ups.

In mid-March, I spent a week in Paris with my partner. It was pretty, sunny, kind of overwhelming in the best way, but also slightly disappointing. 

When you grow up enamoured with the French language and culture, and you’re also an avid writer and reader who always romanticises their life, there is little in reality that doesn’t disappoint.

As a child, I took private French lessons for most of my school years. I was going to go to a private French school, and move to France for university. I was incredibly passionate about French and so was my tutor, who spent almost every lesson showing me maps, travel guides, journals, and pictures of Paris, and explaining the beauty of the French capital. So when I finally got to see it this year, of course I was a little disappointed. I grew up thinking of Paris as this fantasy land, which of course it isn’t. 

But the weather was nice, the museums were elite, and I achieved my goal of eating my body weight in carbs so I’d call that a success.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, I travelled to Romania to spend Easter with my family. I’m flying back to the UK tomorrow. It’s been a very packed spring so far. Add to that some really exciting and exhausting events I had at work, and you’ve got yourself the perfect recipe for burnout.

This is all a very long-winded way to explain why I haven’t had the mental capacity to write the Coffee Time Tuesdays column. But I’m back today, and I have some updates, plus a book release, as always.

What We’re Reading

I’ve been a little more proactive with my reading since I last wrote to you. My highlight so far this year (yes, you read that right) is a book I finished at the beginning of April, which absolutely broke my heart, blew my mind, and inspired me to make some significant edits to my two novel drafts.

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield is a tiny novel that packs a punch. When Miri’s wife, Leah, returns from an underwater research mission that ended in terror for the three-person crew, she is completely changed. What was supposed to be a standard three-week trip turned into a six-month-long ordeal, in which Leah and her two colleagues were trapped in a submarine deep under the ocean. Now back at home, Leah is acting strange, refusing to communicate, and displaying some strange physical changes.

We follow both Miri and Leah’s perspectives as we watch the mystery, as well as their relationship, unravel. The book is incredibly concentrated, with intense, convoluted emotions and a complex study on love, marriage, friendships, and nature that fascinated me page after page. If the motif of the sea with all its eerie and undiscovered depths intrigues you, this is a book you can’t miss.

In other updates, I’ve been getting into poetry more and more lately. I recently started Ocean Vuong’s debut collection, Night Sky With Exit Wounds, and I’m in love. Here’s a snippet that rocked my world completely:

I remember it. His voice — 

it filled me to the core

like a skeleton. Even my name

knelt down inside me, asking

to be spared. — Ocean Vuong, THRESHOLD

New Book Release

This week’s new book recommendation hot off the press is a weird one for me. Brendan Slocumb’s Symphony of Secrets sounds like nothing I’ve ever read before. It’s mystery, history, racial justice, and music, coming together to create what sounds like a gripping and culturally significant book.

Music professor Bern Hendricks discovers a shocking secret about the most famous American composer of all time — his music may have been stolen from a Black Jazz Age prodigy named Josephine Reed. Determined to uncover the truth that a powerful organization wants to keep hidden, Bern will stop at nothing to right history’s wrongs and give Josephine the recognition she deserves. — The Publisher

Symphony of Secrets just came out last week, and I’m excited to dive in. It sounds like the perfect late spring read — which for me is prime time for books that deliver way more than meets the eye.

And that’s it for today’s Coffee Time Tuesday! Have you moved on to iced coffee yet? And what are you reading with your drink of choice this Tuesday? Let me know in the comments!

‘Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble’ Made Me Crumble With Joy

Did I pick up Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble because I needed something fitting to read on my trip to Paris? Maybe. But I also didn’t want to miss a new Alexis Hall romance.

Set in the same universe as Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake, this sweet queer romance gave me everything I was hoping for:

  • A cute and chaotic main character
  • A flamboyant, no-nonsense love interest 
  • The need to romanticise my life
  • Cravings for cake

Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble follows shy, anxious, talented Paris, as he enters Bake Expectations, a baking show much like Bake Off, where he can finally shine. Paris is the son of a famous couple, but despite his privilege, financial security, and excellent education, he’s incredibly self-deprecating and anxious.

When his flatmate signs him up for Bake Expectations, this is supposed to prove Paris how talented he is in the kitchen, and that he should have more confidence in himself. What the seemingly nice gesture ends up doing, however, is plunge our main character into a pit of anxiety which ends up complicating his life even more.

On the show, Paris meets (or, rather, hits in the face with a fridge door) attractive, confident, sparkly Tariq, a gay Muslim with a colourful personality. I loved Tariq from the first moment he entered the scene.

He’s the kind of grounded, self-aware character I always love to see in queer romance: a well-defined personality who stands out and helps bring the (usually) chaotic protagonist back down to earth.

We follow Paris and Tariq on their slightly messy romance, as they get used to each other, set boundaries, and try to work through their own struggles, while supporting the other to do the same. The baking show also comes with a striking cast of side-characters, in true Alexis Hall style, which help expand Paris’s too-controlled world and act as a training ground for him to face his anxiety.

Paris finds out pretty late in the story that he does, in fact, struggle with generalised anxiety. This is obvious to the reader from the beginning. Being in his head is exhausting, and I felt both represented but also enlightened by how his worried mind works.

I also struggle with anxiety, albeit not to that extent, and found it refreshing that Alexis Hall really committed to depicting the constant buzz in an anxious person’s mind, and how that can mess up their relationships, opportunities, or chances of success.

What I liked was how Tariq was committed to call Paris out when he was out of line (which was often), but still understanding and forgiving as long as Paris was honest about his feelings. The more common approach to mental health in books is complete support from the other characters, which can set some unrealistic expectations. 

In real life, even when someone struggles with their mental health and deserve sympathy, chances are we won’t get it every time. And it’s important to show that poor mental health can’t always be an excuse for hurtful behaviour.

Another interesting element was that Tariq — a practising Muslim — didn’t want to have sex before marriage, a trope I’ve never seen explored in romance before. I felt it was important to depict this religious preference, especially within a same-sex relationship.

Paris’s relationship to his parents was the real heart-breaker of this story. Throughout the book, we see how Paris texts his parents often to update them on what he’s up to: the competition, Tariq, and university. But his parents never text back.

The more texts he sends, the more doubtful you, as the reader, become that his parents really exist at all, which adds an interesting emotional layer to the reading experience. The more Paris reflects on his childhood or shares memories with Tariq, the more things start making sense: his parents, rich, famous and admired as they are, completely neglected him all his life, and at the point of the story, are entirely absent. Paris has to come to terms with this terrible reality.

I loved this book, it has everything that makes Alexis Hall’s romances so good: distinctive characters, laugh-out-loud humour, wide representation, and thought-provoking conversations. If you love queer romance (and cake), definitely pick this up.

Coffee Time Tuesdays: Reading Updates and a Spring Release

Hello, dear readers, and happy spring! I know this is controversial across the world, but where I’m from, spring comes on 1 March and no later. So, I’m officially in renewed spirits.

I love spring, it’s my favourite season. The trees are blooming, everything is greener, mornings are sunny, but still keep a fresh chill, it’s magic, and I can’t wait to indulge in it for the next three months.

In just over a week, I’ll be in Paris to celebrate my partner’s 25th birthday, and I can’t contain myself. The architecture, the landmarks, the bakeries, the beautiful lilt of spoken French all around me on the street. I’m so excited. 

And because excitement and energy have been the keywords for me in the past couple of weeks, I’ve also found fresh enthusiasm for my current reads. I’m still very much taking it slow with my reading, as I’d like 2023 to be all about mindfulness. But, since you last heard from me, I finished two books, so let me get you up to speed.

Recent Reads

February’s book club read, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou was an indulgence. I read this first book in Angelou’s series of memoirs when I was 16 and, I confess, didn’t much get all the underlayers of race and identity explored. I’m glad to have re-read it, now with a much deeper understanding of the social and political context of Angelou’s childhood and teenage years in 1930s and 40s America.

I savoured this book. It’s a difficult, but powerful book. I’ve been acutely aware of my white privilege for years now, but still this memoir made me check in again with myself and think about all the essential things in my life that I’ve always seen as a given. Here’s an abstract that stopped me in my tracks:

“Whitefolks couldn’t be people because their feet were too small, their skin too white and see-throughy, and they didn’t walk on the balls of their feet the way people did — they walked on their heels like horses. People were those who lived on my side of town.” — Maya Angelou, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings

TW: The book includes some graphic depictions of sexual assault, rape, racism, and physical assault.

The second book I finished recently is Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by Amanda Montell. I liked this book, it’s an informative overview of the power of language behind cults and cultish practices. As a massive language nerd, I loved the concept behind it. It analyses the special vocabularies of infamous groups such as Jonestown and Heaven’s Gate, but also dives into day-to-day cultish practices such as marketing and fitness trends.

Although the parts analysing extreme cults were incredibly intriguing, most of the book explores the language behind MLM (multi-level marketing) and fitness and wellness practices, as well as social media trends, making it feel uncomfortably close to home, but in a thought-provoking, rather than anxiety-inducing way. 

My only criticism of the book is how often it would mention something, then go “more on that in part 5” or “more on that later”, which I found very disruptive of my reading flow and interest in the topic. I rated it 3.75 stars and I would recommend it to those interested in the power of language to shape our beliefs and behaviours.

New Book Release

Today’s fresh-off-the-press book release is actually a non-fiction pick. I rarely recommend non-fiction, as I’m an escapism and fiction fan through and through, but Enchantment: Reawakening Wonder in an Exhausted Age by Katherine May sounds like a non-fiction book I’d eagerly pick up.

With spring comes renewal, an appreciation of nature as it does its magic and comes back to life, and a desire for cleansing: of our homes, bodies, souls, and habits. Enchantment teaches us to stop and embrace mindfulness and wonder, prompted by the beauty of nature and everything around us.

Craving a different path, May explores the restorative properties of the natural world and begins to rekindle her sense of wonder. It is a journey that takes her from sacred wells to wild moors, from cradling seas to starfalls. Through deliberate attention and ritual, she finds nourishment and a more hopeful relationship to the world around her. — the publisher

Enchantment comes out this Thursday, 9 March.

And that’s it for today’s column, one about new beginnings. What have you been reading and are you looking forward to spring, if, of course, you’re in the Northern hemisphere? Let me know in the comments!

Coffee Time Tuesdays: Bookish Activities for Valentine’s Day And a New Romance

Hello, dear readers, and happy Valentine’s Day! I hope you’re all in for a corny, sickly-sweet day, whether you’re celebrating with your partner, best friends, or on your own.

I have a Valentine’s special column for you today, because who said readers can’t have fun? If you’re stuck for ideas on how to spend your day in a bookish way, have a nosy at some of the options below. There’s something for couples, something for friends, and a solo suggestion, because today should be about love of all kinds, and especially love for yourself.

If all you want to do today is wrap up warm and read a cheesy romance, though, don’t worry, I got you. Stay tuned until the end to see what cutesy new release I’m recommending this week.

Bookish cook-off for an unforgettable dinner date

One of the dreamiest ways to spend quality time with your significant other is at home, doing something wholesome for each other. And a home-cooked dinner date is just the thing to indulge in if you’re both laid back and not bothered about going out.

Why not make the cooking even better by choosing recipes evoking some famous moments from books? Whether it be devilled eggs inspired by The Secret Life of Bees, fried chicken inspired by The Great Gatsby, or a strawberry tart inspired by Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, why not prepare something extra-special to mark this romantic day?

For some inspiration, check out this blog by Southern Living or this super comprehensive Pinterest board with hundreds of ideas.

Board games for book nerds

If you’re single and today is an excuse to have a bunch of friends over to drink colourful and slightly underwhelming home-made cocktails and play board games on the carpet, you’re welcome.

Board games as a couple can work, but everyone knows they’re the best when a larger group is involved. So here are some suggestions of board games for bookworms.

  • The Literary Witches’ Oracle — get all deep and prophetic with the girlies by diving into the wisdom of famous female authors expertly depicted in this oracle game
  • 221B Baker Street — get those little grey cells moving with this fun mystery game and see which one of your friends gets the most territorial with Sherlock Holmes trivia
  • Story Box — readers should have a wild imagination and this little gem of a game will bring it to surface; maybe the one with the best story gets an extra cocktail?

Jigsaw puzzle and audiobooks

And if you’re your own Valentine today, that’s perfect too. Make sure you give yourself some time to relax and do the things you love, and if that happens to be bookish jigsaws while listening to audiobooks, who am I to judge?

This used to be my favourite insomnia activity back in university and I seriously miss it. The way a jigsaw keeps your eyes and hands engaged while your mind is deeply connected to the audiobook is truly magical. Sometimes we forget to enjoy the slow processes for the sake of efficiency.

My favourite combination would be a World of Jane Austen jigsaw combined with an Alexandria Bellefleur romance, like Count Your Lucky Stars.

Honourable mentions

  • Find a poem to dedicate to your partner and read it out loud to them
  • Build a book nook
  • Organise blind dates with books — buy books for your friends/partner and make them guess what they are based on some clues

Hot New Book Release

Today’s pick is Always the Almost, by Edward Underhill. This sweet queer romance is fresh off the press and sounds like the dreamy, heart-warming story we all need on Valentine’s Day.

A trans pianist makes a New Year’s resolution on a frozen Wisconsin night to win regionals and win back his ex, but a new boy complicates things in Edward Underhill’s heartfelt debut YA rom-dram, Always the Almost. — the publisher

This sounds a lot like Felix Ever After — a sweet, important tale of acceptance, pride, and identity, with some teenage angst and drama wrapped around it. I chose a young adult release because it’s likely to be a super quick read and one that will surely bring on those butterflies.

And that’s it for today’s Coffee Time Tuesdays, Valentine’s edition. What other bookish activities would you add to the mix? And how are you celebrating, if at all? Let me know in the comments!

3 Bookish Content Prompts to Beat Writer’s Block

When your niche is books and reading, content can get quite repetitive. After all, there are only so many book reviews and reading lists you can write before you’re over it.

Coffee Time Reviews is a publication for pour-your-heart-out book reviews and any other kind of books-related content. But lately, I’ve mainly found myself commissioning reviews or recommendations lists. Nothing wrong with that, but I feel like freshening things up a little, not only for me and my own writing, but also for my contributors.

There’s so much we can do with bookish content. And I previously pushed a lot of it through the different series at CTR, like the Author Spotlight series or the Books by Memory series.

This piece is a tribute to those series and a pledge to bring them back. If you love writing about books and your reading experiences, why not try to go against the grain and play around with these three writing prompts? 

Two of these are existing series at Coffee Time Reviews which I’d like to revive and invite new contributors to add to, but one of them is a brand new idea that I’m really excited about, so make sure to read to the end to find out more.

Books by Memory

The Books by Memory series invites you to share your re-reading experiences: what changed, how much did you actually remember, what was new, and did you perceive the book differently?

This content prompt may or may not come from my unhinged tendency to return to books I loved like you return to your warm bed on a cold, dark morning. I’m notorious for reading the same book at least three times when I love it and find comfort in it.

But your reason for revisiting an old favourite (or, why not, a book you were initially lukewarm to) might be different. You might need to re-read a book for a particular purpose. For instance, my next book club read is I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, which I read eight years ago for the first time. It’s not a book I’d normally want to revisit, but I now have a reason and I’m curious how my more mature mind will perceive it.

So, I encourage you to write about your re-reads. Chances are, they won’t feel the same as when you read the book for the first time. Here’s an example by our writer Julie Borden:

View at Medium.com

Behind the Scenes

Are you an author as well as a reader? Are you writing anything creatively? Have you tried self-publishing your books? Are you querying for an agent? Any and all author endeavours can be shared through our Behind the Scenes series, where authors who also happen to be bookworms can give insights into the publishing industry.

This is a content prompt I’m very keen to pursue as a published poet and novel writer, and I hope others will be inspired to do the same. There’s a strong connection between reading and writing and it’s always fascinating for those who don’t necessarily think about the other side of the industry, to see and appreciate the convoluted ways of publishing and what an author has to do to get there.

Here’s an example by Patrick Witz:

View at Medium.com

Bookworm Confessions

Now this is where it’s at as far as bookish content prompts go. Coffee Time Reviews is all about the readers. It’s all about you passionate bookworms and how your reading experiences are shaping who you are.

Enough of how books can make you super productive or a 5am routine machine.

Why do you think I don’t care about rigid writing guidelines when commissioning content for CTR? It’s because I don’t care about anything other than how a book moved you, or changed you, how it made you laugh, cry, die inside or find yourself. All of that is important to me and to other readers looking for recommendations. It has power to move and influence others, to drive conversations.

But Bookworm Confessions takes it to the next level. Because if you write a bookworm confession, that’s where it gets super personal. Your content can be about your guilty pleasures, a rant about an unpopular opinion (I really dislike Classics, for example), or about how a book led to your gay awakening. Anything like that would be wholesome to see at CTR or, on the internet in general.

Enough of how books can make you super productive or a 5am routine machine. Enough of books about money and books about the secret to success. How did a book truly change your life? How did it truly move you? What was your most heart-tearing-ugly-crying-world-shutdown reading experience and why? Why are you a better person because of a book?

Write about it. Write about genuine, emotional things that can make others reflect on how they read and how they can find value in this wonderful hobby that brings us all together.

Here’s an example from Kelsea Daulton and one from me:

View at Medium.com
View at Medium.com

These are the three bookish content prompts I’m challenging you to tackle when you want to write but aren’t that inspired. I look forward to seeing all your submissions.

I’m a writer, poet and editor based in the UK and I cover books and reading, fitness, lifestyle, and personal development. For more of my stories, please consider signing up for a Medium membership through my referral link.

Coffee Time Tuesdays: TV Adaptation Excitement and Book Club News

Hello, dear readers, and happy February! How’s your week going so far? I’m now the proud owner of a somewhat fixed reading routine and I’ve been finding myself picking up books a lot more often throughout the day.

This is a huge development for me, as I’m usually a pretty chaotic reader, doing all-consuming binges followed by reading hardly anything for a while. I’m either so invested in my books that I refuse to do anything else, or I’m so underwhelmed by them that I only read 10–20 pages at a time.

So sitting down with a book for an hour each night, or picking it up for a bit in the morning is an interesting change in my routine, and one I wholeheartedly welcome.

What I’ve Been Reading

In the past two weeks, I finished two books and started one more. Thank You For Listening, by Julia Whelan was my first romance of 2023 and it didn’t disappoint. I listened to it on Scribd, and I’m so glad I did, because Julia is a stunning narrator.

A good narrator is all I need to become invested in an audiobook. If the narration is off, I can’t listen to it. It irks me. Julia Whelan has a smooth, adaptable voice that effortlessly slips into character without awkward mimicry. 

I found her romance unique with just the right amount of tropes. There were complex relationships outside of the main couple, interesting family and friendship dynamics, important conversations around disability and I really enjoyed the fact that it centres two audiobook narrators. As a listener, you hardly ever think about the narrator, and it was intriguing to see what may go on behind the scenes.

The second book I finished was Out by Natsuo Kirino, a Japanese thriller considered a modern classic. I haven’t been so conflicted about a book since I read 1984 by George Orwell. Both books had the same effect in that they made me scream at them in frustration while still appreciating that, critically, they’re good books.

I discussed Out with my book club last night, and it was reassuring to see everyone else shared largely the same opinions: why is the writing so devoid of feeling, why are some of the characters walking stereotypes, why aren’t the relationships explored more, and, for crying out loud, what’s with the problematic ‘falling in love with your rapist’ trope?

This is a thriller centring four working class women with pretty hopeless lives. So some of the problematic tropes technically make sense in the context. As much as we’d like to live in an ideal world, instances where desperate people do immoral things still happen. So I’m on the fence about how to judge the book in this context. But I can appreciate the complexity of the characters, the descriptions of the mundane, and the themes.

My Current Read

After the intense gruesomeness, body horror and just general despair in Out, I felt the need for a guaranteed heart-warming story. So I, predictably, picked up one of my comfort reads: The Charm Offensive, by Alison Cochrun.

This is my third reread of this sweet, wholesome queer love story with a strong mental health hook, and I’m, of course, in over my head. I don’t know how, but I’ve listened to 7 hours of it in just a couple of days, while being at work or at home with my partner.

Find out more about why I love The Charm Offensive so much in my review and podcast episode below.

View at Medium.com

Onto More Exciting News

The Prime Video teaser trailer for Daisy Jones & The Six is here and oh. My God. It looks so good. I’m particularly excited for the music in this show, as Taylor Jenkins Reid has done a great job of evoking those 70s vibes by writing a full album for this fictional band, granted just the lyrics.

But the biggest hit Regret Me has come out and it sounds exactly as it should. So I hope more music from Aurora is in the books for the show, because it might just become my entire personality.

The show comes out on 3 March and I can’t contain myself.

I reviewed Daisy Jones & The Six below:

View at Medium.com

Other Updates

I had the pleasure to chat to Justin Boyette for his brand new podcast and publication, Internet Ink, on my poetry, journey into getting my first book deal, publishing my first English poetry collection, Why My Country Failed Me and Other Bird Songs, being an editor, and more.

Check out our conversation and give Justin a follow to stay in the loop with his great content.

View at Medium.com

And that’s it for today’s column! We’ve changed the hot new release for a hot new adaptation and I have zero regrets. Are you excited for the show? And are there any other adaptations you’re really pumped about? Heartstopper season 2 and Red, White and Royal Blue are some of my most anticipated ones.

Eliza Lita is a freelance writer based in the UK. She covers books and reading, fitness, lifestyle, and personal development. For more of her stories, please consider signing up for a Medium membership through her referral link.

Coffee Time Tuesdays: What We’re Reading, a Book Club Update and New Book Release

Hello, dear readers! How’s your week going? Anything exciting on your TBR? I, for one, am happy to report I finally defeated the January slump and ticked off my first book of 2023.

I’m tremendously happy about that. Every January comes with a lot of reflection, distractions, and almost zero reading appetite for me. And this year is no different. But in the past week, not particularly energised by my other hobbies, and successfully getting into a routine, my reading had everything to gain.

I’ve been finding myself saving slots of time during the day just to relax with a book, and that’s how I got to finish The Maidens, by Alex Michaelides. This is a dark academia murder mystery which was guaranteed to get me out of my slump. For about three days, this book kept me in a chokehold.

And it was worth it. While not a literary masterpiece by any margin, The Maidens was dark, gripping, atmospheric, and delivered a satisfying plot twist at the end. Because of how shocked I was by the plot twist in Michaelides’s other book, The Silent Patient, I was eagerly expecting something similar and he did not disappoint.

The book played with my mind too, which I love in a murder mystery, and it got me completely fooled more than once. I enjoyed the academic motifs and all the references to Greek mythology. Was it a little over the top? Definitely, but not in a cringey way. I rated it 3.75 stars.

If you’d like a more thorough review, this one from Nayanika Saikia perfectly captures it:

View at Medium.com

What I’m Reading and Book Club News

Another book I haven’t been able to put down is Matrix by Lauren Groff. This is a weird but very interesting book I got for my birthday and finally committed to. When I started reading it, I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why I chose it. It’s got almost none of the plot and genre elements I usually enjoy. It’s about a super fierce French crusader princess who gets exiled to an English abbey where she is put in a position of power.

The book is set in the 12th century, way too far in history for anything I’d normally enjoy. But despite the sometimes graphic depictions of life in the 12th century, I’m oddly fascinated by it. The queer and feminist themes probably have a lot to do with that. It’s a nice, short, concentrated gem of a book and I’m savouring it greatly.

And I’m also reading Out by Natsuo Kirino, which is considered a Japanese modern classic. This is my book club read of the month and definitely an out-of-my-comfort zone read. It’s a thriller set in late 1990s Japan, where a group of women working the overnight shift at a lunchbox factory get involved in a domestic murder.

I’m not very far in the book, but the pace seems to have picked up. It’s not a happy book by any stretch, which can make it difficult to digest especially if you’re not in the right headspace. Lots of trigger warnings for domestic and sexual violence, so be wary of that if you’re thinking to read it.

New Book Release

Small World by Laura Zigman is today’s pick. This has been out for a couple of weeks and it sounds like an ideal end of January read.

Written with wry humor and keen sensitivity, Small World is a powerful novel of sisterhood and hope — a reminder that sometimes you have to look back in order to move ahead. — the Publisher

When divorced sisters Joyce and Lydia move in together as they navigate their new lives, the hope that they would bond and become closer than ever quickly frays. A tragic family past, the grief of losing their disabled sister, Eleanor, when she was just ten years old, and frustration from their neighbours puts the sisters’ relationship to test.

I love a novel centring sibling relationships — I find them fascinatingly complicated. I’m curious what will happen to Joyce and Lydia in the end.

And that’s it for today’s Coffee Time Tuesday. What are you reading and can you relate to the January slump? Let me know in the comments!

‘It Starts With Us’: A Sequel to Remember

CW: *This book contains mentions of child abandonment, domestic abuse recounted and homelessness recounted*

Colleen Hoover is back again with yet another fantastic publication from the author of one of the best-selling franchises.

It Starts With Us is a sequel to the beloved It Ends With Us. We continue the journey of Atlas and Lily who have survived against all odds to be reunited again.

When I first read the prequel to this novel, I was in awe of the way in which the lead characters were described. Both of them, still young, had faced endless struggles against abuse.

In the next part, we see how Lily had moved on from her traumatic past with her father and her husband Ryle. Now she navigates her life as a single mother with her daughter, Emerson.

It isn’t until one morning that she bumps into her first love, Atlas and all the emotions are flooded back to her. Now she must decide whether to give love another chance or to stay away due to her past experiences.

This book has been one of the most awaited sequels to ever be written. Even the author wrote it as a gift to her readers.

Colleen Hoover writes, on the first page of the book: “This novel was written as a thank-you for the tremendous support.”

What impresses me the most about the plot of this book is that it isn’t just limited to the main characters. We also get an insight on Atlas’s abusive mother and how she became the kind of parent that she was.

A new character was also introduced in this book, much to the readers’ surprise. Atlas discovers he has a teenage brother Josh from her mother’s old boyfriend. Not only he was treated the same, abusive way that Atlas was, but he also fled from home and took shelter at Atlas’s restaurant.

This book explores the journey from overcoming a cruel past and developing into a better, brighter future. Both Atlas and Lily now have successful careers as they both move in their respective directions whilst keeping close contact.

The way the author has emphasized the significance of healing is very impressive. Atlas never forced Lily to be in a relationship with him but instead took his time with her and let her grow on her own.

This book is definitely worth the hype and is something people should read when they want to feel motivated about either a failed relationship with a partner or a parent.

Another interesting part of the book was the bond between Atlas and his brother. Though Atlas had only just come to know about him, he took him in and cherished him like a real brother. This has been a new thing for me since I don’t usually come across step-sibling relationships that are positive.

The way Lily is also trying to be civil with her abusive ex-husband and let their daughter have joint custody is really something that needs to be highlighted in today’s generation. Parents play an important growth in a child’s upbringing and having both parents be with them can enhance a strong personality trait.

Lily also has tremendous support from Ryle’s sister and her best friend Alyssa. Alyssa, being Ryle’s sister, still chose to side with Lily, since she was the victim.

Lily and Atlas decided to give love another shot and bring back the feelings that were once in full bloom.

This book doesn’t focus on cliche romance but instead focuses on all the little steps one has to take that lead up to that relationship. In all honesty, it has to be one of the best novels I’ve read in 2022.

It Starts With Us is more than a book. It is an experience that one should take at least once in their lifetime.