Books Set Outside The USA

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For mysterious reasons, I don't want to think about the USA right now. Here are 10 brilliant books that are set elsewhere.

The Sunday Post #397

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The Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. It’s hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date.

What Would Make Me Enjoy A Romance Book?

In honor of Valentine's Day, I'm going to make a confession: I'm romance curious. Usually, I avoid romance novels like the plague STDs, but I can't help being curious about them. Romance is the highest selling book genre. I know lots of readers who only read romance. I want to know what inspires that kind of dedication.

Romance is a difficult genre for me because I'm dead inside. A book probably isn't going to hook me by provoking emotion. So, what would make me enjoy a romance? Let's figure that out together.

I Read 200+ "Best Books Of 2025" Lists

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It took over a month, but I have searched the Internet and read, watched, or listened to over 200 "Best Books Of 2025" lists. Why would I waste my time doing this? Because I'm insufferably nosy and want to know what everybody is reading. I also have a bad case of FOMO. What if there's an awesome book in the world that everybody knows about except me? I can't let that happen!

While I was perusing the lists, I jotted down the titles of books that sounded intriguing. That's what I'm going to show you today.

Which book did I see most often on the lists? My Friends by Fredrik Backman was popular. Sunrise On The Reaping by Suzanne Collins was definitely the darling of 2025. I saw it so many times! I also saw a lot of funny books. I'm highlighting a few of them in this post because we all need more humor in our lives.

Here's what I'll (hopefully) be reading in 2026.

The Sunday Post #396

This post contains affiliate links. I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.

the Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. It’s hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date.

2025 Reading Statistics

Welcome to my 2025 reading stats post! This is where I represent all the books I read in 2025 with pie (charts). Friends, last year kicked my ass. I only read 52 books, but that's okay because several of them were awesome. Here are the best books I read in 2025. You should read them in 2026.

Okay, let's make graphs. The color palette for my graphs is inspired by Pantone. I don't know if normal people pay attention to the Pantone color of the year, but 2026's color is Cloud Dancer, which is . . . white. Actually, it's off-white. Gray white? Beige white? It's boring white. It's giving "sad beige baby" vibes. I tried really hard to pair Cloud Dancer with colors that make it look less depressing.

Enough yapping. Here are my reading charts, inspired by off-white.

The Sunday Post #395

This post contains affiliate links. I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.

The Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. It’s hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date.

Subjects I Want To Learn About In 2026

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I enjoy making New Year's resolutions, but I usually fail at them, and then I'm sad. I'm trying something new this year. Instead of resolutions, I'm choosing eleven subjects I want to learn about. If I learn one thing about each subject, then I have succeeded at my goal. I can learn one thing, right? RIGHT? I won't fail at this. (Please tell me I won't fail at this. It seems easy, but I fail at easy stuff all the time.)

Some of my subjects are lifelong interests. Others are things I'm currently curious about.

If you have book/TV/whatever recommendations, I want to hear them. I refuse to fail!

Best 2026 Book Releases (January - June)

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Welcome to 2026, bookworms! Here are some weird and wonderful books that are coming out in the next six months.

Note: Publishing is notorious for changing the release date of books. Don't come for me if the dates in this post are wrong. I'm trying my best! I promise!

The Sunday Post #394

This post contains affiliate links. I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.

The Sunday Post is a chance to recap the past week, talk about next week, tell you what I’m reading, and share news. It’s hosted by The Caffeinated Book Reviewer, Readerbuzz, and Book Date.

Best Books Of 2025

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Welcome to my favorite blog post of the year! These are the best books I read in 2025.

I seriously debated how many books I should put on the list. I only read 52 books this year. That's not a lot for me. I guess I can't complain. I crammed a lot of life (and a shocking amount of failure) into 2025. I think 2026 is going to be the same. Reading is on the back burner. I miss being able to rot in bed and read for hours. Now I fall asleep if I stand still.

Putting 10/52 books on a "Best" list seems too generous for a cold-hearted witch like me. But, it's been a difficult year. Let's be generous. These books are excellent. I recommend all of them.

Here are my favorite books of 2025. I arranged them countdown style for unnecessary drama.

Drumroll please . . .