An Introduction…

I always find introductions slightly awkward and a little bit forced however I suppose it is the only (and best) way to start… I should begin by explaining why I have started this blog and what I am hoping to create for myself and for you too.

I have been reviewing books on Instagram for almost half a year after discovering the community through the passion for books that has followed me from childhood. I adore reading and I love to read other people’s thoughts on books that I love (and don’t love). In fact, the first thing that I do when I finish a book is look at other peoples reviews and thoughts. Over time this has grown into me loving to share my thoughts on the books I read, from longstanding books on my TBR to newly discovered ARC’s, I just love writing and talking about the book’s and character’s that provide comfort to me in what I am sure we can agree (2 years into a global pandemic) can be a very strange world.

So, why a blog? I have been considering blogging for a while now just to give me a little more flexibility than the character limited world of Instagram. I wanted to create a place where I could discuss not only one book at a time but look at genres, tropes and everything in between. I want to create a place where I can explore my most loved and hated character’s in more depth and share my innermost thoughts and figured a blog was the best place to do this (you can be sure to expect lots of ramblings but hopefully lots of laughs).

To give you a better idea of the person and reader behind the blog I thought I would answer some questions so that you can get to know me.

Tell us a little about yourself

My name is Evie and I am a 24 bibliophile from England trying to navigate life one book at a time. I love anything that gets me thinking creatively (I am also a bit of a maths/science geek too) and hope that comes across in my reviews and blog posts. I love music and am a devoted Christian which is a massive part of my life (however I won’t discuss that here).

What is my favourite genre to read?

My favourite genre is probably contemporary fiction just because I feel that as one genre it inhabits the widest range of books. I also read a lot of psychological thrillers, romance and historical fiction books. I would love to challenge myself to step outside my ‘go to’ genres more in 2022.

What is the best book I have read recently?

This is a difficult question and I certainly can’t give you just one (I know, very cliché) so I will instead give you my top 5 of 2021 (in no particular order):

• Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
• Verity by Colleen Hoover
• A Good Girls Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
• The Bookseller of Dachau by Shari J Ryan

Do you have any reading goals at the moment?

In terms of numbers I am really hoping to read 130 books in 2022 but that aside I am hoping to stay consistent on my Instagram as well as here. I want to be more mindful generally and swap out some of my aimless social media scrolling for reading as well as pushing myself to read more books that are out of my usual picks (any fantasy recommendations for beginners will be appreciated).

If you had to pick one book to recommend to any person regardless of their age/gender/preferences, what would it be?

I think I would have to go for The Book Thief- that book moved me beyond comprehension and despite reading it years ago it is a book I think about regularly. It made me fall in love with reading as an artform.

And now, (sigh) I can breathe- that’s my awkward first post completed and I hope it gives you some indication of where I hope this blog is going, who I am as a person and my vision for 2022.

I would love to hear your best books of 2021!