| LET’S TALK | HOW TO FIND BALANCE BETWEEN BLOGGING AND THE OTHER PARTS OF YOUR LIFE

Hello lovelies !! It has been a long time since I posted a discussion post ! Today I’m gonna talk about how difficult it is to have a balanced life. And by that I mean balanced between your blogging life, work and your social life.

Let’s be honest, blogging is like having a second job. It takes time. Writing reviews, finding ideas for original posts, making memes and challenges, it’s time consuming. And let’s not forget the most important part of the book blogging  : the reading time !

For the last 3 years, I wrote posts mainly the evenings, with my TV on. And I had a LOT of time left for reading. That is, until I moved into my own flat, with all the duties that came with it. Less reading time, more chores. But I managed to find a good blogging pace nonetheless. I wrote my reviews during my lunchbreaks.

But for the last 3 months, I’ve struggling to keep a good blogging schedule. My social life is taking more time (and I’m really happy about it), and I also started practicing crossfit. And it also takes a lot of time. To be honest, I felt a lot of pressure because my blogging situation. Seeing how spare my posts became, how my stats dropped, really it stressed me out. And I realized something. It shouldn’t. Blogging isn’t my job, it’s my hobby. It shouldn’t stress me. So, I’m trying a new approach. I try to write posts and schedule them whenever I can. But if I can’t find time to write a post, it’s okay. Because I’m happy with how my life is right now.

What about you ? How do you manage to balance everything ?

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| LET’S TALK | REREADING BOOKS

Hello lovelies ! it’s time for a discussion post. Today I want to talk about rereading books. It can be considered an aberration to reread a book when your TBR pile is as huge as mine is but I like to reread some of my books.

Why, you may ask ? Well, for many reasons.

First, I like to reread books that I loved. I don’t know why, but it feels like home, you know ? That feeling that you’re going back into a beloved world, with some of your favorite characters… Yeah I definitively find it appealing !

I also reread when I need a fresh reminder of the story. When I pick a sequel, sometimes the story is a little blurry in my mind. Rereading the previous books is then a necessity !

Have you ever suffered from a reading slump ? It’s every reader’s worst enemy ! Well, my way of fighting it is to pick one of my favorite books and reread it. Aaaand that’s how we go back to the first reason I mentionned earlier !  Reading a story I adore is somehow curing me from my slump !

That’s it ! Do you reread books ? If so, why ?

|LET’S TALK | UNHAULING BOOKS

Hello lovelies ! I’m here with a new discussion post ! It has been a while since I posted one of these !
Today I want to talk about unhauling books.

For a looong time, this idea never crossed my mind. My bookshelves have always been big enough to shelter both books I loved/enjoyed and books I didn’t really appreciate or DNF’d.
Having a bookshelves full of books was the more important than having a shelf with only books I could reread.

I still have some room left on my huge bookshelves, so for now it’s not a room issue. Moreover, I’m planning on adding wall shelves on my bedroom, for my French mass paperbacks.
But I realized something : I have some books, even some that I did enjoy when I read them, that will never reread. Which means, they’re wasting some shelf space, and they could make someone else happy.
So I started thinking about unhauling some of said books. Don’t worry, it only concerns very few books. And I stil haven’t made up my mind completely. Because let’s be honest, I’m very proud of how my bookshelf looks, with all these books I bought throughout these past years.

So, even though I’m not decided yet, I started considering it. Which is a good start, right ?!

What about you ? Do you unhaul books you know you won’t reread ?

 

| LET’S TALK | BOOK RATING

Hello lovelies ! It has been such a long time since I posted a discussion post ! It was than time to change that !
Today I want to talk about how difficult it is to rate a book. As book bloggers, or more generally reviewer, we often make it.

As far as I’m concerned, it’s almost an automatism. I don’t think a lot while rating a book. You might ask why. Most of the time, my rating is either a 4 or a 5. It’s not because I’m always reading amazing books.

So, obviously, I take the plot, the characters, their developments and the writing style into consideration. It’s the basics ! But the way I felt while reading the book can change my rate by half a star. Sometimes, the book is simple, with a used and reused plot, and cliché characters. But if I had a great time reading it, wanting to stay home to finish it, well it will raise my rating. My final rating depends on my feels !
I know for other bloggers, their rating is way more serious than mine.

Anyway, I find it very tricky to be honest. It’s difficult to decide what makes a book a 3 stars instead of a 4 stars, you know ? Knowing people are reading reviews before buying a book, that your review can influence them… I don’t know,it feels important to rate a book with care !

So, how do you rate the books you’re reading ? I wanna know how you’re doing it !

| LET’S TALK | CHANGES OF MAIN CHARACTER(S) IN A SERIES

Hello lovelies ! It has been a long time since I made a discussion post. Today I wanna talk about the change of main character in a series.

I am currently reading Dark Triumph by Robin Lafevers. It’s the second book in His Fair Assassin. The first book, Grave Mercy was taking place around Ismae. The book follows her on a very important mission regarding Gavriel Duval. But the second book follows Sybella, another girl trained at the convent. She crossed path with Ismae in the previous book, though. It’s the first time I read a fantasy series with a change of main character !

I am used to this change of MC in contemporary/romance series. Usually I don’t mind it, in the contemporary or romance books. It allows the writer to publish a whole series, to stay in a world they have built. Because let’s be honest, a whole romance series around the same MC, it’s pretty rare. I only have the After series in mind. Or maybe it happens when there are a lot of MC, such as in The Islanders series.

But to be honest, I find it rather disturbing in a fantasy series. I get it, His Fair Assassin is not a trilogy but rather companion novels. But I feel like we don’t get to really get attached to the characters. It’s easier when it’s a contemporary series because it’s easier to identify yourself to said character or to a situation. Moreover, we always know a lot about their feelings haha !
So I really prefer it the old fashioned way : a fantasy series with the same MC posse !

What about you, what’s your opinion on the matter ?

 

| LET’S TALK | PAPERBACKS, HARDBACKS & E BOOKS

Hello everyone ! It has been a long time since I posted a discussion post, I know ! And here I come back, with a way too seen topic. I know, I know. But lately I’ve been thinking a lot about the pros and cons of the different forms of a book.

Let’s start with the ones I own the most : the paperbacks. I love them because they’re pretty, not too heavy and they’re cheaper than their big brothers. But they get damaged pretty easily… And that’s an issue.

The hardbacks now. I really love my hardbacks. They are so gorgeous on my shelves ! They’re a bit pricey but they’re worth it ! It’s just that they’re really heavy so it can’t be difficult to read them, you know ? You’ve got to find a suitable position so your arms are not hurting from holding it.

Now for the e books. I own a kindle but I’m not a huge fan of e books. The reason is simple : I’m a book hoarder and I can’t put my e books on my shelves and that’s SO frustrating ! But  have to admit that it can be practical : when traveling you don’t have to suffer from a back pain because you’re bringing too many books ! (or, other case, you don’t have to bring an extra suitcase JUST for your books !). And they’re way cheaper ! Let’s be honest, I bought some e books I wasn’t sure I would like. And, most of the time, when I love an e book, I always end up buying a physical copy of it !

In the end, I find all these different kind of books convenient in their own ways ! What about you, are you more hardbacks, paperbacks or e books ?

| LET’S TALK | NETGALLEY

Hello lovelies ! It has been a while since I last posted a discussion post, right ? Today I want to talk about Netgalley.

Netgalley is a website where book reviewers can read books before their official releases. They are usually called ARCs (for Advanced Reader Copies) or galleys.

Until a few weeks ago, I haven’t been interested in this website. Why ? Because you have a time limit to read these books. And I really don’t enjoy reading with a deadline. It’s feeling pressure over something that has always been a pleasure.

I think blogging is already enough pressure in itself haha ! I know you know what I mean !

Moreover, I am contacted via my blog or my bookstagram account so no need for another way, right ?

But lately, I’m changing my mind. I mean, I still don’t like feeling pressured while reading. But I now think that Netgalley can be really useful. It’s useful to us, bloggers, but also to publishing houses. It’s easier for them to contact book reviewers.

And it puts in light books that I wouldn’t have heard otherwise so that a plus !
But now that I have an account, I am struggling with it haha ! It’s not that easy to use !

That’s it ! What are your thoughts ? Do you use Netgalley ? Do you like it ? Any advice ?

| LET’S TALK | BLOGLOVIN

Hello lovelies ! It has been a while since my last discussion post ! Today I want to talk about the use of Bloglovin’ !

What is bloglovin’ ? It’s a platform where you can follow blogs. So far, it’s the same thing as the wordpress reader. But it’s better ! Why ? Because you can follow blogs from all the platforms. Which I found handy because I follow blogs from different platforms and  it was more convenient than the reader.
And it also gives more visibility to your blog.

I signed up a few months ago and tried to use it as best as I could ! But after a few weeks I gave up, I think. I wasn’t really using it to read posts from said blogs. And I was kind of annoyed by seeing the same posts on my reader on wordpress and on bloglovin…

But lately I’ve decided to give it another try. Maybe I wasn’t using it properly, who knows ?

Are you using it ? Do you have any tips ?

 

Here is mine : Bloglovin’

| LET’S TALK | BOOKISH PET PEEVES

Hello everyone ! How was your week end ? Mine was and still is pretty hectic ! But I’m lucky because I’m not working until wednesday haha !

Today I want to talk about my bookish pet peeves, and also learn about yours ! I am almost “maniac” when it comes to my book. I want them to stay as pristine as possible ! And let’s face it, it’s almost an impossible mission !

Here are the things that annoy me the most

Broken spines

After all the troubles you went through to avoid it, it’s finally here. The ugly broken spine.
I freaking HATE it. But sometimes it’s not possible to avoid it, even though you take great care of not opening the book too much !
Seriously, it makes me want to buy another copy of said book haha ! But my bank account wouldn’t agree !

When the plastic peels off

Okay I know I’m not the only with this problem ! I don’t know if that’s because I have sweaty hands or if it’s for another reason but on some books, the plastic on the cover starts to peel off …And that’s ugly and I hate it !

On the book featured on the photo, I tried to “repair” it thanks to the hair straightener technique. It works most of the time (even thoug you can sometimes still see what I would call aftermaths, but they are discreet.)

 

Sun burns

Well at least that’s how I call it. I have a big row of books right under my window.
And I just recently noticed that the top of the pages were yellowish… Thanks sun, really.
It’s not pretty at all but it’s not as visible as a book spine when displayed on my shelf ! I’m trying to protect my books, but I won’t put a fabric or something else on top of it, right ?!

 

A mismatched series

Yep. I’m sure it also annoys you, right ?
Now I’m really cautious when I’m ordering a book. I look very carefully to the publisher, and if I have to wait a whole year to get the right paperback version of a book, then I will. Yeah I’m looking at you Queen Of Shadows and The Raven King !

 

 

And that’s it ! I hope you enjoyed this post !
What about you ? What are your bookish pet peeves ?

 

| LET’S TALK | WHY I DON’T ALWAYS READ THE BOOK’S BLURB

Hello everyone ! How was your week end ? Mine has been pretty busy ! Anyway !

Today I want to talk about the blurb. Or summary. Or synopsis. I don’t really know how to call it. I often buy books without having read the whole blurb. Why, you might ask. Well, I found them full of spoilers, most of the time. Not major ones, of course. But about some events or issues we aren’t supposed to know about when starting the book. Things that happen a few chapters later. And it really bothers me !
So, usually I read the first sentences of the blurb, and that’s all. It’s enough to know what the book is about, and avoid any spoiler.

I also prefer when readers talk about the book (via booktube or bookblogs) because I find that they’re doing better summaries than the blurb itself.

In my opinion, it’s the best way to learn things about a book you didn’t know about ! They go straight to the point, and avoid spoilers ! (of course, I don’t stay for the whole review haha)

How do you do ? Do you read the synopsis, or avoid it ?