my nov 2024 tbr (time to catch up on 2024 goals)

It's cliche to say how quickly the year has gone by, but I'm definitely feeling the time crunch with how much is left. My 2024 goals have evolved throughout the year, but I've definitely made some progress!

While I'm still hoping to get my physical TBR to 0 before the end of year, I'm now much more focused on reading and completing 500 books this year (I can definitely do it, but it might be a squeaker; so I'm putting things on hold that I think will prevent me from getting there). Luckily it's the time of year when publishing slows down, so with fewer new releases to snag my attention, hopefully I can get a good chunk of my backlist done.

The weather's already cooling down here with grey skies and damp leaves on the ground (and the necessary-but-obnoxious, incessant leafblowers to make sure gutters stay clear). I'll be on the hunt for my Trader Joe's unicorn: the everything but the leftovers seasoning 😍BRING BACK THE BOY, TRADER JOE'S! And I'm looking forward to more warm drinks like cocoas and chais.

I also love that Xena gets much more needy about constantly being next to us (I know she's just mooching off my warmth, but it feels like love) and Odin starts to live perpetually on my feet. Tungsten cannot possibly increase his neediness levels as he is at maximum all year long.

But back to the TBR! Technically there are also some books on here that I might be able to get to in Oct-- it really all comes down to timing with library hold availability.

To start things off, there are several series I want to complete!

I was super impressed by The Jasmine Throne when it came out (and totally biased because it has my all-time favourite trope of sentient architecture with personality). I managed to pick up a physical copy of the book and the first sequel on killer sale when on a trip to Portland with my father-in-law, and I can't wait to get back into this world. The magic system and intricate politics + religions in each country really captured me.

Granted, I'm a different reader now in 2024 than when I first picked this up in 2021, so I'm a little nervous it won't hit the same after reading over 1,000 different books. But hopefully it's a banger!

City of Brass is a tricky one for me because I loved the book while I was reading and immediately purchased the sequels... but then I got to the end and was less enamored. Everything started to feel a little more YA and employ the miscommunication trope (my beloathed) so it put a sour taste in my mouth and left me less-than-enthusiastic about continuing.

But I hear the next two books are better, and I really ended up loving her first novel in the Amina series, so I'm looking forward to completing the trilogy. My memories will be a little fuzzy after several years, but I shan't be re-reading the first novel or else I fear I'll lose all will to go on.

Oh, NK Jemisin. I was such a naive little bean thinking that because I'd only given her 5 stars, I would absolutely love her whole back catalog. So I foolishly purchased them all. Lo and behold, I found that I didn't vibe with her debut series (not a huge shocker, a lot of writers need time to develop their craft), and that made me wary of continuing on.

This is only a duology, so it should be a snap to complete. I've already read the first chapter or two ages ago (possibly when sampling the book before buying it?) and I'm intrigued by the weird dreams and abilities I remember being exhibited. Hopefully this one works for me!

The UK and US covers are both so good, I had to showcase both of them for this series. I love that this series was written out of spite by Mike Brooks (mohawk guy, featured to the right) because he was mad about Brexit and wanted to write a story about two peoples with very different traditions/history/culture, who also had a history of conflict and killing between them, who can learn to be grown-ups and put aside their differences and peacefully co-exist.

I read the first two books and absolutely loved them (especially this one scene that for inexplicable reasons makes me laugh every time I think of it), but I think I was entering my audiobook era by the time book 3 came out (and there was no accompanying audiobook! the horror!) so I haven't read it yet.

Since it's been so long, I'm excited to re-read the first two books and hope the finale will end the series in a great way!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

I'm so excited for this one. Not only is the cover gorgeous, not only does it have an adorable undead fox on the cover, not only does the synopsis sound dope, but they approved my ARC request super quickly!

I basically found this book and rocketed it up my 2025-most-anticipated list on the same day.

Tam hasn’t eaten anyone in years.  She is now Mama’s soft-spoken, vegan daughter — everything dangerous about her is cut out, repressed. Medicated. But when Tam’s estranged Aunt Tigress is found murdered and skinned, Tam inherits an undead fox in a shoebox and an ensemble of old enemies. 

Excuse me?! That sounds so fun! Granted it's a debut, and I don't have enough associations with DAW as a publisher to know how much I expect from them or not, so I'm trying to temper my excitement. But hopefully this slaps!

Either way, it comes out in March and I'll be sure to get you my thoughts before then.

Generally I don't like to buy books before I know I liked them (through my library or ARCs), but for self-pub books that my library doesn't stock, I tend to be a little more lenient, especially if my income at the time can afford it.

I heard great things about both of these indie, pirate books but I'm not gonna lie that these thickums are intimidating as hell.

Luckily I got 107 pgs into Sea of Ruin during the Romance Readathon in September, and I was surprisingly really enjoying it, so I hope it keeps up. It's also a lovely, soft-touch cover so holding it is delightful.

These are respectively 546 pgs and 465 pgs. Wild.

I👏hate👏Michael👏Kramer👏

I've always found the Brandon Sanderson Cosmere audiobooks to kinda suck, but I couldn't quite put my finger on why. When I started Yumi in September it became abundantly clear: Michael Kramer sucks ass. The book is told in alternating POVs between Yumi and the Painter with Kramer and his wife narrating the respective chapters. I don't think Kate Reading is a particularly talented narrator, but she is leagues above Kramer.

I couldn't understand why the writing seemed to be alright, and the story elements were fine, but I was having such a different experience reading between the two chapters. Until I realized it was Kramer's fault. Which is honestly a devastating discovery for me? Because Kramer narrates the majority of Cosmere books. And Brandon Sanderson does not know the meaning of 'succinct.' So I'm basically forced to read all of his books eyeballs-only if I want any chance of enjoying them. From now until forever. Crushing.

(Lately I haven't really been enjoying his books much, so I wonder if I'm just a different reader now and might've outgrown his style of storytelling. But I guess November will put it to the test when I read both of these without audio.)

If there's one genre in my TBR that's grown out of control, it's non-fiction. Three books won't make much of a dent, but it's a start. And at least the first two are both on my physical TBR anyway.

I started Churchill's Secret War ages ago from the library and man, that baby is dense. Both in space on the page and also subject matter. I only got through the prologue and maybe some of chapter one before I realized that 1. I was too sad to read large chunks of it at a time, and 2. there was no way I'd be able to finish the whole book before sending it back to the library. And there's always a waitlist for this bad boy. But since it's important material and I liked what I'd read so far, I proceeded to buy it. ...and then never read it again. 😅

So it's finally time to rip the band-aid off and finish this book, get through my NK Jemisin back catalog, and also maybe some tales of corporate shenanigans for funsies.

And to end on a light-hearted, silly note: my silly sequel romance reads featuring muscular, shirtless men on the cover. They both just came out on Oct 22 and Oct 24, respectively.

I read the earlier installments for both of these during the Romance Readathon (just the Gargoyle's Captive for the Katee Robert series, since I'm skipping the others that don't have tropes that interest me) and was surprised by how much I liked them?

It's exceedingly rare these days for me to find Romances that feel like they're written by adults, for adults, and featuring adult protagonists who don't just think and act like silly teenagers. Maybe it's because of the abundance of KU and self-publishing in this space, maybe it's a lack of critical readers who demand a higher standard of writing and editing, but whatever series of factors it is: I find it so hard to guarantee that's what I'm picking up when I reach for a Romance book!

So I was happily surprised by the installments I read in both of these series and am delighted to be continuing on!

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Of course I'll be reading much closer to 50 books in November if I want to hit my 500 goal, so this is just scratching the surface.

What books are you most anticipating in November? Any new releases or backlog you're excited to get to? What sort of fall traditions do you celebrate?