Truthwitch by Susan Dennard - Book Review

Title: Truthwitch (The Witchlands #1)

Author: Susan Dennard

Release Date: 5th January 2016 (14th January in UK)

Source: Arc won from twitter. Bought finished copies.

Synopsis: On a continent ruled by three empires, some are born with a “witchery”, a magical skill that sets them apart from others.

In the Witchlands, there are almost as many types of magic as there are ways to get in trouble—as two desperate young women know all too well.
Safiya is a Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lie. It’s a powerful magic that many would kill to have on their side, especially amongst the nobility to which Safi was born. So Safi must keep her gift hidden, lest she be used as a pawn in the struggle between empires.
Iseult, a Threadwitch, can see the invisible ties that bind and entangle the lives around her—but she cannot see the bonds that touch her own heart. Her unlikely friendship with Safi has taken her from life as an outcast into one of reckless adventure, where she is a cool, wary balance to Safi’s hotheaded impulsiveness.
Safi and Iseult just want to be free to live their own lives, but war is coming to the Witchlands. With the help of the cunning Prince Merik (a Windwitch and ship’s captain) and the hindrance of a Bloodwitch bent on revenge, the friends must fight emperors, princes, and mercenaries alike, who will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch. (Taken from Goodreads)

Review

It has taken me some time to feel equal to the task of writing a coherent review of this book which I read for the first time around the end of July 2015 (yes JULY). I finished my third, possibly fourth – I have honestly lost count – reading of my beauteous US arc *pets fondly* around the start of December and it’s taken me until now to actually complete this review. Truthwitch is now out in the world (still officially a few days away for the UK although I do have my finished copy already) which is such a joyous thing to me after being so utterly invested in the journey of this book since last spring. Holy void wells we’re finally at the end of the road. O_O

First I’d like y’all to do something for me, to set the scene if you will. Cue up in another window this video and then read this excerpt of Chapter 1 of Truthwitch. Now hit play on that song and read the chapter, come back when you’re done. Ok? Great.

*jazzy interlude musak*

You done? DO YOU WANT TO READ TRUTHWITCH YET?! OF COURSE YOU DO! Because that’s basically how that first chapter left me feeling. We’re thrown head-long into the action from the first line and by the end of this opening chapter you’re already breathless with excitement for what’s to come. It’s so magically visual that with the song playing in the background you can practically see it playing like a movie in your mind.

If you want there is also a sneak peek at Chapter 2 over on the Witchlands site that you can read once you’re finished here, which I *highly* recommend you do- there’s loads of other cool stuff over there as well like character quizzes and the most awesome author interview.

*ahem*

Annnnd back to the review. I don’t want to go into too much detail of all the things I love about the story as it’s not fair to veer into Spoiler Town so soon after release. BUT what I will talk about is one of the BEST aspects of the ENTIRE BOOK. Which is the dynamic duo known as Safiya fon Hasstrel and Iseult det Midenzi. Threadsisters for life, literal soul twins, these girls are the most BAD-ASS of best friends. This book slays thanks to the epicness of Safi & Iz’s relationship. Right from the beginning you can see just how much they mean to each other and the lengths they will go to in order to keep each other safe. Like, murder is not out of the question if your Threadsister is in danger. *cracks knuckles*

Besides our two main gals there is a whole host of fascinating characters including two certain gentlemen whose POV we get to read from as well as the girls’ and let me tell you – you are almost definitely going to have a fav by the end so share nicely with the other folk. There’s plenty of Merik and Aeduan to go around :P. Although I would like to call dibs on Aeduan please. At least on Thursdays. If you want more info that that awful tease then you should check out this video (link) where Sooz herself talks about the boys of Truthwitch.

Another aspect of Truthwitch which is SPECTACULAR is the world-building. Just how fantastically vast the world is, you can see from the map in the front of the book (also on the Witchlands website – click everything it’s glorious), and as you read you’re surrounded by the sights, sounds and smells of strange new lands and cities. Diverse cultures and people populate the Witchlands and over the four books in this series (oh yeah there’s gonna be four books people) I hope we continue to explore all the fabulous places on the Truthwitch map.

The other deliciously complex aspect of the world-building in Truthwitch is the vast array of Witcheries that people can possess and how the different elements which fuel magic are used across the Witchlands. The way Susan has woven the magic into the myth and fabric of the world is stunning and I cannot wait to see how everything progresses throughout the series.

It is a difficult thing for me to truly explain why I love Truthwitch so much. A lot of it is tied up in how long I have been following this book’s journey into the world and how much I admire and respect Susan for what an incredible world she has created. Reading this book multiple times has made me appreciate the extreme level of passion and care that has gone into its crafting and just knowing how much Safi & Iseult’s friendship is inspired by Sooz’s friendship with Sarah J. Maas honestly makes me emotional in many odd ways.

If you've ever read a post of mine or follow my twitter then you may know that my best friend on this whole damn planet is Jess of Jess Hearts Books – she’s just posted her review of Truthwitch because of course we’d get them done on the same day – even before either of us read Truthwitch we both related ENORMOUSLY to Sooz & Sarah’s amazing friendship from following them on social media. So when we entered Safi & Iseult's world we instantly fell in love with their relationship and the idea of Threadsisters – friends so close that the very fibres of their being are inextricably entwined – to the extent that now we use that word to describe our own friendship.

Truthwitch has become one of those books so dear to my heart that I spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about near enough everyday. I've read it at least three times and it's highly likely that I'll read it another three times at least before Windwitch comes out. 

I know this review is awfully long and more than bit fangirly but believe me Truthwitch is more than worth every bit of praise I could lavish upon it. I strongly suggest you go out and get yourself a copy as soon as possible so you can lose yourself in the Witchlands like I have. I promise you won't be sorry you did.

Rating : Four & a half stars out of Five!

Ray x

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Book Haul - Overexcited Vlog edition

Since I haven't done any kind of In My Mailbox post in a literal AGE, all my book acquisitions have only been shown over on my Youtube channel - there's quite a lot over there although I am a very lazy booktuber who has never learnt to edit videos properly so they are mostly very long and waffley. This particular haul is a combination of books gifted by Jess, one was won in a competition and the rest were bought by me in various places.



Books Featured in Vlog
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir (Borrowed from Jess)
Night Owls by Jean Bennett (ARC gifted by Jess)
Simon vs. the Homosapien agenda - Becky Albertali (Copy gifted by Jess)
This Raging Light by Estelle Laure (ARC gifted by Jess)
Suicide Notes from Beautiful Girls by Lynn Weingarten (ARC gifted by Jess)
The Dead House by Dawn Gurtagich (Won from Jess's blog)
Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas - YAAS <3 p="">Nimona by Noelle Stevenson (Bought from the Strand in NYC)
The Wrath & the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh (Bought from the Strand)
Heart of Betrayal by Mary E. Pearson (Bought from the Strand)
Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman (Bought from Barnes & Noble in NYC) MY REVIEW
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken (Bought from Books-a-Million in Florida)
Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson (Bought from BaM in FL)
The Archived by Victoria Schwab (Bought from BaM in FL)
The Unbound by Victoria Schwab (Bought from BaM in FL)
The Inventor's Secret by Andrea Cremer (Bought from BaM in FL)
Salt & Storm by Kendall Kulper (Bought from BaM in FL)
Strange & Ever After by Susan Dennard - YAS Empress Sooz! <3 p="">The Martian by Andy Weir (Bought from the airport)

Also shown
The fabulous tote bag bought from the Strand
Hermione Granger & Ariel Funko Pops
Ravenclaw notebooks.

So if you actually watched that whole vlog, thank you! It got far longer than I planned but there is much enthusiasm - particularly about Queen of Shadows that bit lasted nearly 3 minutes XD.

I know that things have been a bit quiet on here since I got back from holiday, I do have some stuff that I am working on, albeit slowly so in the meantime, entertain yourself with some of my recent posts if you like.

Until next time,
Ray x

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Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman - Book Review

Now this is quite possibly the fastest I've ever turned round a book review and I'm not even exaggerating. I finished this at 1am and not 12 hours later I've finished writing my review. But seriously y'all this *never* happens to me.

Title: Vengeance Road
Author: Erin Bowman
Release Date: 1st September 2015 (US)
Source: Bought
Synopsis: "Revenge is worth its weight in gold.

When her father is murdered for a journal revealing the location of a hidden gold mine, eighteen-year-old Kate Thompson disguises herself as a boy and takes to the gritty plains looking for answers—and justice. What she finds are untrustworthy strangers, endless dust and heat, and a surprising band of allies, among them a young Apache girl and a pair of stubborn brothers who refuse to quit riding in her shadow. But as Kate gets closer to the secrets about her family, a startling truth becomes clear: some men will stop at nothing to get their hands on gold, and Kate’s quest for revenge may prove fatal." (From Goodreads)

My Review

I heard about this book via Susan Dennard and also when Erin had a spot in Sooz’s Misfits & Daydreamers newsletter talking about morally ambiguous characters. A YA western novel is something I have never seen before and the idea of characters with grey morals and suspicious intentions was so interesting to me. Since I was coming to the US not long after it was released I made sure to put Vengeance Road on the list of books I needed to buy.

First of all, how gorgeous is this book cover? It’s so perfect for the story and wonderfully eye-catching. The hardcover also has deckled page edges which I *adore*. If you weren’t already looking for it, the cover would definitely make you stop and take a look at the blurb.

One of the things that I loved most about Vengeance Road was our main character Kate. Her determination, her stubbornness, her scorching fury and most of all her voice. Ye gods this book had a voice that you’ll be hearing for DAYS after you finish. It’s written in first person present, in a dialect that quite literally twangs off the page from the very start. Never have I had such a strong urge to read a book aloud with the best accent I could muster to replicate the version of Kate I had in my head telling me her story.

Kate’s world is so harsh and brutal, people are fuelled by hate and fear with no qualms about killing innocents in order to get what they want. So when Kate’s father is horrifically murdered out of the blue there’s no one she can turn to for help. Her first instinct is to disguise herself as a boy, grab her Colt pistol and her Winchester rifle and start hunting down the bastards who killed her Pa. She’s prepared to do whatever it takes to get revenge and sure as hell ain’t gonna let anyone stop her.

I loved just how blisteringly angry Kate was for much of the book. Her rage drove her to do some pretty questionable things I’ll grant you, but under all that roiling darkness is the glimmer of person who still has a line, a limit to what they will or won’t do. Kate is so fascinating in that respect and I reckon we need more heroines like her in YA fiction.

The historical aspect of the story is rooted in the Goldrush fever of the late 19^th century where prospectors risked everything on the hope of finding a vein of gold to make them rich. But as you see throughout Vengeance Road, Gold makes monsters out of men. There’s also the unflinching portrayal of the relations between the white prospectors and the Apache natives who lived in the region at that time. You wince at reading how other characters react to Liluye, the Apache girl who Kate rescues. She is just one person but people treat her as if she were responsible for the actions of all of her people. Sadly that kind of prejudice endures and festers through history until its corruption taints even the present day.

It’s a harsh gritty world that Erin has brought to life and a scorching adventure that somehow feels longer than its 300 pages, with sudden twists that have you scrambling to stay in the saddle. Kate is a gripping heroine and I could very easily read three more books of her exploits in that gloriously distinctive voice of hers. Can you tell I’m a fan of it yet?

So if you’re in the mood for a gun-toting gal, hell-bent on revenge charging through the blazing Arizona landscape with murder on her mind, then I think you need to meet Kate Thompson in Vengeance Road.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars 

Well what do you think? Interested in Vengeance Road? Have you read it already? I'd love to know what you thought about it. :D

A little side-note that made me chuckle - this book takes place in 1877 and at one point a character is mentioned as having traveled west from Philadelphia. I couldn't help imagining that she left because of all that trouble with the dead walking around not long before :P (Folk who've read Something Strange & Deadly ought to get what I'm on about).

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this review if you're not still reeling from the fact that I've posted two reviews in one week after at least two YEARS with none.

Until next time.

Ray x

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Reasons to get EXCITED AS HELL for Truthwitch

This is a post that I’m trying very hard not to do in ALLCAPS because oh-my-sweet-baeduan-of-the-void do I want to spend weeks gushing about this book. But this isn’t a review, oh no, *that* will be coming in the future nearer to Truthwitch’s release date of January 5^th 2016 (WRITE THAT DATE DOWN NOW). This post is simply a list of all the reasons I feel should get you hyped as fuck for Truthwitch.

Empress Sooz 

Reason #1 – Empress Sooz

If you don’t know who Susan Dennard is then please allow me to introduce you to the wondrous author of Truthwitch and Empress of the Witchlanders (her intensely loyal clan of fans) and all-around LOVELY PERSON. She is seriously one of the coolest authors I know and is so fantastic and generous with her readers. Sooz is also the author of the Something Strange & Deadly trilogy – a fabulous supernatural adventure set in 1870’s Philadelphia (as well as Paris & Egypt in the sequels) with a cracking heroine Eleanor who is having to deal with attacks from the walking dead while trying to figure out why her brother has not come home.  By a cruel twist of fate this series is only available in the US so getting hold of it in the UK does require some sorcery and a small blood ritual. Maybe once Truthwitch has come out over here somebody will listen to my howling demands to publish Something Strange & Deadly for the UK market. Because if you loved the Infernal Devices trilogy you are probably gonna want to read this series as well.

Reason #2 – This book is fan-freaking-tastic

Just read this.

“On a continent ruled by three empires, some are born with a “witchery,” a magical skill that sets them apart from others.In the Witchlands, there are almost as many types of magic as there are ways to get in trouble—as two desperate young women know all too well.
Safiya is a Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lie. It’s a powerful magic that many would kill to have on their side, especially amongst the nobility to which Safi was born. So Safi must keep her gift hidden, lest she be used as a pawn in the struggle between empires.
Iseult, a Threadwitch, can see the invisible ties that bind and entangle the lives around her—but she cannot see the bonds that touch her own heart. Her unlikely friendship with Safi has taken her from life as an outcast into one of of reckless adventure, where she is a cool, wary balance to Safi’s hotheaded impulsiveness.
Safi and Iseult just want to be free to live their own lives, but war is coming to the Witchlands. With the help of the cunning Prince Merik (a Windwitch and ship’s captain) and the hindrance of a Bloodwitch bent on revenge, the friends must fight emperors, princes, and mercenaries alike, who will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch.” (Synopsis borrowed from Sooz’s Website)

You might be wondering how I am able to make such a claim when the book isn’t out until January. Well here’s the thing; I’ve read it, twice in fact and I can very safely say that it is one of my top five reads of this entire year. It is possible to get a sneaky look at the first chapter or two if you subscribe to Susan’s newsletter Misfits & Daydreamers (which is a thing you should really do if you want to keep up with her bookish news and get some kick-ass writing advice as well) and believe me just reading the first chapter will leave you so desperate for the rest of the book that you might consider selling your soul.

Reason #3 – Truthwitch Street Team

If the book wasn’t awesome enough then the fact that we have a six clan street team cheerleading the whole way up to publication would tip it over the edge. Organised and commanded by Sooz and the amazing Nicola (who tweets as The Wicked Powers, Truthwitch and like 3 other accounts XD, she also blogs from Queen of the Bookshelves), the street team is made up of six clans; Water, Earth, Air, Fire, Aether and Void (the elements from which all the different witcheries come) and basically the clans are sharing their passion for Truthwitch across social media. There are opportunities each month for 6 more people to join the Street Team and be privy to all the secret clan gossip *wistful sigh because #clanless *. But even for folk not on the street team there are awesome competitions and twitter chats that you can participate in :D.

Reason #4 – LOOK AT THESE COVERS (not even Final versions!)

Photo borrowed from Jess's Instagram - her UK arc & my US one

Much of my brain yesterday was taken over with extreme emotions over the UK ARC versions of Truthwitch which were revealed as part of #TruthwitchTuesday – like seriously it’s not even the final UK cover and I was just about fucking crying over it. The US edition is equally gorgeous with its badass depiction of Safi and the swirling water around her. But look at how shiny the foil is on the UK arc!! Needless to say I will be getting both versions of the finished book and if by some miracle I’m lucky enough to get hold of a UK arc then I’ll have to full set ^_^ Not that I’m a magpie or anything. *hoards all the shinies*  

I think I’ll leave my list at four main reasons otherwise I’ll be off onto an enormously spoilerific word-vomit about everything that I love about Truthwitch. You can look forward to that post maybe in the New Year or a bit before.

SO ARE YOU EXCITED FOR TRUTHWITCH YET?!? ARE YOU?!

BECAUSE I SURE AM!! *goes for a lie down in a dark room*

Ray x

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Monster by C.J. Skuse - Book Review

Good Morning folks! (It's probably not morning in the UK but bear with I'm in Florida ok?). Today I am MASSIVELY excited to say that I have a BOOK REVIEW for y'all! This is probably the first review I've done on here since Seraphina in 2012 so yea... it's kinda a big deal for me anyway. I've been sitting on this review since APRIL because the book as you may already know from the post title is only now coming out this week! So at last I can share some of my feels with you.

Title: Monster
Author: C.J. Skuse
Release Date: 24th September 2015
Source: ARC borrowed from JessHeartsBooks who had received it for review from MIRAInk
Synopsis: At sixteen Nash thought that the fight to become Head Girl of prestigious boarding school Bathory would be the biggest battle she’d face. Until her brother’s disappearance leads to Nash being trapped at the school over Christmas with Bathory’s assorted misfits. As a blizzard rages outside, strange things are afoot in the school’s hallways, and legends of the mysterious Beast of Bathory – a big cat rumoured to room the moors outside the school – run wild. Yet when the girls’ Matron goes missing it’s clear that something altogether darker is to blame – and that they’ll have to stick together if they hope to survive. (Taken from Goodreads)

My Review

 Advisory – This review contains a good dollop of swearing. The book itself also contains a fair amount of swearing and violence so if that’s not your thing then consider yourself warned.

I was able to read this months ahead of it's release date thanks to my dear Twinnie Jess but it's kinda been killing me that I couldn't really talk about Monster until now - spoilers dontcha know? Frankly this is one of those books where it’s best for sheer enjoyment of the story if you don’t know much beyond the fact that there are a group of girls who are the last students to leave the Bathory School for Girls before Christmas when a massive snowstorm rolls in and then well... shit gets fucked up from there.

One of the many things I love about CJ’s books is that every single one is completely different from the last. Some authors keep to a similar genre for all of their work but with CJ it’s a delightful lottery every time I get my grubby mitts on a new book. Her debut Pretty Bad Things (my review) was a riotous candy crime-spree through Vegas; Rockaholic was full of hilarious hijinks following an accidental rockstar kidnapping; Dead Romantic was a macabre FrankenRomance whereas Monster is an adrenaline-drenched thriller with a good dose of Baskervillian terror to keep you up at night.

Our main girl Nash has quite a lot on her plate at the start of the book; she’s working her raspberry socks off trying to impress the headmistress enough to win the Head Girl badge, trying to juggle all the pre-Christmas insanity on top of her newest worries for her big brother Seb who’s gone missing in Colombia. Oh yeah and then there’s that troubling incident where she might have seen the legendary Beast of Bathory. Not that she believes in it. ‘Course not because that would be fucking ludicrous.

I read this waaay back at the start of April (For reasons that people who have seen my review of Pretty Bad Things will understand) and I devoured the whole thing in one sitting. I love a good boarding school story and when you mix the isolation brought on by the blizzard, the group of girls from different cliques with their own secrets causing mischief, plus the menace of a wild beast roaming the snow, you have the perfect recipe for knuckle-biting tension and no sleep.

Even in the midst of heightening drama and the increasing terror that something awful will happen to someone you’re very much attached to, CJ still managed to stop me in my tracks with a line that cut to the core of why I read her books around April 7^th and that really encapsulates a lot of the book. That being the idea that the monsters you can’t fight are the worst monsters of all.

Suffice it to say, I was utterly clueless about how this book would end and HOO BOY was I left mind-blown and suitably awed. This is without a doubt C.J.’s best book so far and one that I plan to get my greedy hands on and re-read nearer to Halloween for all the creep-tastic chills and spine-tingling shudders.

You want a hair-raising boarding school thriller to keep you flipping pages well into the night? Go wrangle yourself a copy of Monster. Trust me, you’ll be sorry that you didn’t. 

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

Whew! Thank god I've finally got all that off my chest! In all seriousness I can't overstate my appreciation for C.J.'s books in all their blunt, snarky, awesomeness. Even 4 years after my grandad's death I'm still finding comfort and distraction in her words. It might be a little weird to associate a reading experience with such a devastating event but as J.K Rowling wrote "words are our greatest source of magic" and it just so happened that C.J.'s were the words that helped me deal with a very difficult time. I am so grateful for her books for that reason.

A slight side-note that made me even happier about reading Monster - in the arc version (will have to see with the finished book) on the inside of the FRONT cover is a quote from ME! My review of Pretty Bad Things is quoted!! It is as In the Library of LadyViolet but it's me all the same! The same quote was in the back of Dead Romantic as well so now that's two books that I've been quoted in! Considering how I've never been a really "big" blogger it is something I find really exciting.

Anyway before the day runs away from me I shall be off.

What did you think to the review?

Ray x

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In non-bookish news...

About this time last year I set up a second blog called Ray May Write which was intended to be more of a writing/studying blog as I was about to start two Open University modules in French and Creative Writing. The new blog was supposed to be where I could chronicle my progress and share snippets of stuff I did for my writing module as well talk about my own novel project.

As you might imagine that was a spectacular failure and I burnt myself out over there pretty much before the modules even started. There are a few posts from this year but the most recent is from June when I had a wee bit of an anxiety attack. That is a bit of a downer I’ll tell you now.

That blog might get a bit of a revival though soon as I’m about to start a new module which is also kinda relevant to this blog. It’s a Children’s Literature module and the 1^st Harry Potter book is literally on my reading list ^_^. While I am excited I am also nervous about the fact that I’ve not “studied” literature since my English Lit GCSE way back in 2007 (fuck I am oooold). This is a Level 3 module, like we’re talking 3^rd-year-of-uni-this-is-going-to-count-towards-your-degree-classification level module. Yikes.

Luckily despite all the stress I had doing my two Level 2 modules at the same time (Anyone who follows my Twitter & IG might remember how fun April was) I did actually pass both modules with what I think is a 2:1 which is insane because I fucking HATED every second of my French module and procrastinated the shit out of every assignment. I am the luckiest bitch, how does anyone stand me?

While my Uni modules were going on last year I had very little brain power to devote to working on my novel which I spent basically the first half of 2014 slaving over. I technically had fuck-loads of time that I could have used but I’m an awful human being with no concept of time management. However folk will probably have noticed the resurgence in #amwriting and #amediting posts on my Twitter and IG since June.

I’ve thrown myself back into my novel doing a combination of revising/redrafting/finishing the draft while I’m relatively free (I have been working an odd schedule during the week at my mother’s office). When I stopped working on the project last November I had over 80K of words written and the ending was done save for one chapter. The main problem was the pesky middle where nothing really existed past Chapter 13 until somewhere around Chapter 21 or 22 (my chapter numbers are going to be a mess before long). I had vague ideas about some of the things that need to happen in the gap before I got sidetracked by my uni assignments but nothing got planned out.

Now in my summer “break” I’ve been working to fill this hole although I’m only now getting to the edge of it. I’ve been reworking all the chapters leading up to the gap since several needed redrafting completely while at least one needed writing for the first time – I am a fucking idiot for writing this first draft so out of order. So it’s taken me a long time to get to this point which is ridiculous since I was more productive when I was writing only in the evenings after a day at my mentally exhausting full-time job!

Since last year I have read a metric shit-ton about writing process and craft (Mostly from SusanDennard’s Ah-mazing website which has the best writing resources EVAH, plus she is the loveliest person who writes awesome books to boot – more on that in the near future). Adding all that onto doing a whole module on creative writing where I had to write to deadlines and be objective while editing my own writing I feel like I’m a much stronger writer than I was this time last year.

I can look back at my work from early 2014 (with much cussing and wincing) and see where the issues are and come up with solutions to fix them rather than just despair at the general shit-ness of everything. Even as I’m working through this current draft (which I want to call Draft 1.5 cos it’s not really a 2^nd Draft yet) I’m mentally earmarking bits that I’ll need to revisit on the next round of revisions when I go hardcore and print out the whole damn thing and attack it with highlighters and index cards.

I held off from doing that until I’d got a complete manuscript with no missing chapters and scenes from the main plotlines so I can read it through from start to finish (there are two subplot POVs which I’ve yet to draft because I’m not quite sure how & where they’ll slot in amongst the other chapters). But once I’m done with this round of redrafting I am super excited to go to my nearest staples or whatever and come home with practically an entire ream of paper that will be my book.

So that’s currently where I’m at with non-reading bookish things. Steadily plugging away on the 2^nd act of my book so it meets up with 1 & 3 while everything else gets a serious sprucing-up. Then once the start of October comes I’ll be diving into OU studies again with the hope that I can actually keep on top of the workload and not look like an idiot at my first tutorial on the 10^th XD.

Bookish updates will hopefully be on the way here once I get home and I’m able to do things like film a book haul (it’ll be a big’un), actually post my reading list for the year so far and do several author event write-ups which I’ve been to this year. There are a couple of reviews that I am hoping to post before then for some September Releases that I have a lot of feelings about. Anyone who talks to me on twitter will likely know what at least two of those books are :P Especially those people who were DMing me to share their own feels XD.

Stay tuned my lovelies!
Ray 

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Queen of the Crappy Bloggers

This is going to come as no surprise to anyone who might have followed this blog for a long time.

I am awful at keeping up with blogging.

To anyone who stumbles across this blog randomly or if they click through from either my Twitter or my Youtube channel, I must seem like such a disappointment when they see that the last fucking post I did was in JANUARY.

I am on twitter constantly talking about books and writing. Like you have to cleave me from my phone to stop me checking my feed multiple times a minute. I flail over books I've read, and this year I have read a *lot* of books, not quite at 2010-Rachel level but I've probably almost hit my Goodreads challenge target (another thing I have not updated in months).

Yet you never see anything resembling a review from me. And that's so crap. I have such in-depth discussions about books with my friends on Twitter that it seems insane that I don't formulate these thoughts into posts that other people can find and read months after the fact.

So I'm gonna give this blogging malarkey another go. I have a lot of bookish stuff to talk about from the year so far plus several fantastic books that I have read recently which have literally taken over my brain for weeks.

I'm armed with a list of ideas so let's see how this ship fares. She's a bit rickety but she might still sail.

Bear with me folks
Ray

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