I’m with you. I’ve become much more willing to abandon books (even series with tons of promise - maybe *especially* series with tons of promise) since being burned by that fourth book in a row… 😂 Life’s too short!

Last Call, by Tim Powers (deep breath in preparation for describing this cover…) The bottom half of the cover shows the faces of a fanned hand of cards, as if by holding the book you are holding a hand of poker. A jack of clubs and queen of hearts seem normal enough, but the other three visible cards are tarot cards. The one on the far right, most visible, shows an angry-looking sun with a human face glowering down at what might be a building. The card in the middle shows a proud-looking man holding a staff. The most obscure card, on the far left, might show a bearded man. The author’s name is across the bottom of the cards in blue font. Above the cards, a wild desert landscape with snow-covered mountains in the background. A stone tower rears up at center, an eyeball carved into its front and crenelations across its rounded top. The sky behind it is the black of outer space. To the left, the planet Saturn hovers in the black. To the right, Jupiter. Above the tower, filling the entire top of the cover, is the bottom of a looming moon, craters visible in its surface. A bolt of lightning appears to be shooting out of the moon and striking the top of the tower. The title overlays part of the moon and all of the tower in large, irregularly sized red letters Whew.

What if tarot cards represented real, arcane forces that also have human avatars who are using poker as a means to do deadly battle to achieve ultimate power...? A literal Las Vegas fantasy that both compelled and frustrated me. Will leave you both scared of and desperate to have a cold beer.
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I have read series where I persevered through several 2⭐️ reads because the first books in the series were so good, and I kept hoping they’d get better again. (Sad fact: 3-4 stinkers in a row means the series is probably doomed.) But I’d have to have several 4/5⭐️ reads first to merit that effort. 🤷‍♀️

A view across the ocean-filled Santorini caldera from the lip of a cliff that is covered with purple, yellow, and pink flowers. The sun reflects brightly off the water, the sky is blue, and the island of Thirasia appears as a thick, dark line at the horizon.

The crowds are gone. Feels like my first deep breath in two weeks.

Also just arrived in Santorini! The flowers on the cliff outside our hotel are goooorgeous and - after being in crowd-choked Paris for a week - the lack of crowds is everything I needed. If you wave at passersby wearing bright blue sun hats, one of them might be me. 😊

An artifact behind a glass display panel depicts a large bronze penis with its own penis and a penis for a trial. Also it has the back legs of a lion and wings. Dangling from various penises and legs are five bronze bells. The Roman devices, called a tintinabulum, functioned as a wind chime and was meant to deter evil and bring good luck to the household. To repeat: flying penis lion.

Greetings from the best artifact in the British Museum!
#tintinabulum #bestwindchimeever #flyingpenislion #idareyouevilspirits

The Husbands, by Holly Gramszio The book cover has a beige background. An illustrated ladder climbs from near the bottom up into a black rectangular hole. The letters of the title, in large block print with the letters alternating in red, teal, purple, and pink, appear to be falling down the ladder. The author’s name is above the attic hole in smaller, black print.

This book was a lot of fun. I found myself wanting to tell other people about it as I was reading, the premise was so quirky and original. Certain parts of it legitimately stressed me out, though, and the ending, while literarily satisfying, left me feeling terribly anxious.
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Okay, okay. Spare the organizers THIS time. And keep posting raccoon updates because I am loving them. :) Thank you for all these little nuggets of joy you put into the world.

Eat the organizers!!

Last time this happened to me, they sent an email the week after suggesting it was OUR (the vendors’) faults the market had gone so poorly. Would you like to guess whether I ever attended any of their events again?

You deserve better! I’m sorry you’ve had 2 stinkers in a row.

Now, whenever I see videos of animals doing cool things in the wild, I have to wonder if it's real or ai. Are those real wildebeests or is it all fake gnus?

Yep. I think the market will be there for you when you’re ready!!

Do you ever sell prints? This guy speaks to me on a deep level…

This is also how I use Pendergast novels. :) See also: Dresden, Gamache, Veronica Speedwell…

The Plot, by Jean Hanff Korelitz The book cover shows a white-covered book against a blue background. The title, on the book-within-a-book, fills the cover in large font. Through the letters, as if through windows, you can see a rectangle of sky framed by dirt and grass, as if you are looking up from the bottom of a fresh-dug grave (a detail I *just* noticed when trying to write this description, and absolutely love). The author’s name appears below the book-within-a-book.

I kept thinking I knew how the plot would go, and it kept not meeting my expectations, which I love. I also love reading about writers, and this novel tackles some of the dark sides of that profession. Twisty and (while those twists were not always surprises), at least once actually shocking.
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A week in, and my brain is making no concessions on the question of the time change. 😣

That’s what revising is for.

Thank you for humoring (and correctly understanding) my silly but sincere question. I’m a lover of natural wonders, but completely new to critters of the deep. Your images are captivating.

Does that fish have a nose??

Sure, I’ll Join Your Cult: a memoir of mental illness and the quest to belong anywhere, by Maria Bamford The book cover has a deep yellow background. A woman wearing an old-fashioned white dress stands center, staring at you with a slightly crazed expression. A small bunch of white flowers has been tucked into her long, blonde hair. The title is in black font across the woman’s torso. The author’s name is in white font above her head.

I picked this up expecting a memoir about someone’s non-traditional religious history, but this book wasn't that at all. What it WAS was fun enough (an irreverent voyage through our narrator's fights with addiction, self-image, and tricky life choices) but I wasn't quite the right audience.
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That cygnet is so mad!! 😂 Beautiful work.

Black River Orchard, by @chuckwendig.bsky.social The book cover shows a dark, smoky sky above a dark body of water. The title is in large white letters over the sky, the author’s name is in a slightly smaller red font over the water. Where the water and sky meet, a skeletal black tree sprouts from a barely visible bit of land, its leafless branches twining in between the letters of the title. A single bright-red apple hangs from one branch.

"Unhinged" per other reviewers, well written, fast-paced, great characters. I don’t love apples, but this would not have saved me in this book because I will always try the thing everyone else loves to find out what the big deal is. This was my first Wendig. I see why some people are so devoted. 💙📚💙

It’s just doing its best. ☺️

A stack of books with a wooden chest sitting on top. The chest has green eyes and big teeth. The books include: A Dirty Job, by Christopher Moore The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova Reincarnation Blues, by Michael Poore Still Life, by Louise Penny Magpie Murders, by Anthony Horowitz The Last Graduate, by Naomi Novik The Calculating Stars, by Mary Robinette Kowal Starless Sea by Erin Morganstern and somehow missing from the picture: The Little Stranger, by Sarah Waters

Birthday Loot courtesy of the library book sale! I’ve already read most of these, but adding them to my collection makes me happy. The chest mimic was a gift from my crush.

This is actually pretty solid representation of my reading interests. Recommendations based on this pile very welcome! 💙📚💙

Biggest smile this feed has given me today. Thank you. :)

Dragonfruit, by Makiia Lucier The book cover shows a young woman looking over her shoulder at the viewer. She is wearing fantasy attire inspired by Polynesian tradition, including a headdress made of leaves and flowers and large shell earrings. Details of her green dress are lost behind her long, flowing black hair in which a couple small canoes and sailboats appear to be struggling against the waves. A line with a fishing hook at the end spirals through her hair and appears almost ready to spear the title, which is written in silver font at the bottom. She holds her hands in front of her, the scales of what might be a dragon egg barely visible between them. A tattoo of something serpentine and slightly spikey runs up her neck onto the side of her face, though it, too, is mostly obscured by her hair. A bat peers out around her shoulder, just over the title. The author’s name is in smaller print at the top. An inset quote reads, “Every wish demands a price…” This is a lush, gorgeous cover. The artist is Tran Nguyen. @mynameistran.bsky.social

This is the kind of story I wish I had written. Dragons! Adventure! Romance! Forgiveness! A little more murdering than I'm comfortable with! Strong marks for lush scenery, deliciously awful curses, and character growth. Points lost for lack of moral qualms about killing baby dragons. 💙📚💙

This makes me realize, though, that while I’m good at recognizing AI slop on topics know, I need to hone some skills of discernment for unfamiliar topic. Not knowing you personally, I was ready to believe it all. The signs are there, in retrospect. I hate this reality. I’m sorry it snared you.

It puts you in a group with Malala and NdGT! You are SO much cooler than I realized! (Sincerely, I suspect you ARE way cooler than I suspected, even if only half the stuff in that article is true.)

Arrrgh, it’s an Audible original, and Audible won’t let libraries have their books because Audible is evil.

Dungeon Crawler Carl, by Matt Dinniman The book cover is illustrated in a style I like to call “serious cartoon” (think video games rather than Scooby Doo). A man wearing a leather jacket, boxers with red hearts, and nothing more runs toward the viewer, a Persian cat running along side. They are being chased by a tank with spiked wheels driven by a pointy-eared green goblin. The yellow-fonted title tilts backward as if scrolling up your screen.

The premise of this book is ridiculous & addictive. Inside jokes for RPGers abound but I doubt non-gamers will feel left out. The duo of pantsless Carl & snarky Princess Donut The Show Cat is irresistible. Crass, fast-paced, laugh-out-loud funny. A nice palate-cleanser between more serious reads.💙📚💙

I came to the comments just to hand out gold stars for “gloating potato.” I think you nailed it. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️