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Vickie D - Bookstagram 📖

@mrsds.library

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Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿Library Assistant📚Dog mum🐶
Reading anything gory, creepy, fantastical or just plain bizarre!
📕: King Sorrow
🎧: No One Gets Out Tonight

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Time for an annual reintroduction ☺️

Hi everyone, I'm Vickie! I'm 34 and a library assistant in Wales, UK, where I live with my husband and two gorgeous doggies!

I have been an avid reader for as long as I can remember but I'm forever losing track of what I've read, so my main purpose for this account was keeping track so I don't pick up a book at the library that I have already read on my kindle or vice versa 🙈

I'm not format specific, I read ebooks, audio books and physical books, but since I started working in libraries 3 years ago it's definitely been mainly library books. I'm a sucker for a good cover and a glowing customer review, plus it's FREE!

I also suffer from MS which has been life changing since I got my diagnosis in 2020, but also brought me from a job I was deeply unhappy in, into a job that I hope to be in for the rest of my career.

When I'm not reading or listening to audiobooks while walking my doglets, I am a Nintendo Switch 2 girl, absolutely Pokémon obsessed, a huge fan of horror films (and books 😂), love a true crime documentary or podcast, ska punk and pop punk music is my jam, though my music taste ranges from Children of Bodom to Taylor Swift, and I'm always looking out for my favourite comedians going out on tour!

So yeah, there's a little about me, a few pictures of my doggies cause they're adorable, and also I am always ready to meet my new book besties so feel free to say hello! 💖

#bookstagram #meetthebookstagrammer #thefacebehindthepage #booksta #introduction by @mrsds.library

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20

9 months ago

Dog sitting means three dogs in our house this week, which means double the dog walking. As a result I've polished off another audiobook. My first V.E. Schwab book and it won't be my last!

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil follows three women, growing up in three different times, following the same path which ultimately ends up in their lives ending. And then starting again with an unquenchable thirst. Starting with Sabine, a desperately miserable wife, who fell for a mysterious widow. Several hundred years later, Charlotte was proposed to, and fled to the glamorous Viscountess, Sabine. Later still, Alice, fuelled by booze and bravado, hooks up with the inscrutable Lottie after a college party and wakes up alone, confused and with something much worse than a hangover...

I REALLY enjoyed this one. I love a vampire tale, especially one that's so heavily female lead. So much so that all our main characters preferred the company of other women, both in and out of the bedroom! I loved that despite the centuries that their lives spanned, there was a direct line between each character, and a complete story for all of them that was relevant from start to finish.

I really enjoyed the little adventure through time as we followed first Sabine, and then Charlotte to the modern day where Alice is navigating University life. I enjoyed following each character both before and after their transformations and learning how all of their stories are linked together.

#bookstagram #audiobook #fantasybook #buryourbonesinthemidnightsoil #veschwab by @mrsds.library

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7

2 days ago

Finished this one up on Friday, as it was for my book group on Saturday. Got pretty mixed reviews from our discussion but I absolutely loved it!

Allan Karlsson wakes up on the day of his one hundredth birthday, to find the nursing home that he lives in is throwing him a party, the mayor is even coming. Allan Karlsson also has no intention of attending said party. Instead he climbs out of the window and - you guessed it - disappears! Finding his way to the bus station, he has a rude encounter with a young man who was carrying a large suitcase. As a result the suitcase ends up on the bus, without it's owner, in the possession of our centenarian protagonist! This starts a month long adventure that I would think was beyond the realms of a man of Allan's advanced age, where he manages to evade both the police and a group of gangsters, while embarking on an endless search for a nice drink of vodka...

Alongside the unlikely adventures of this very old man, we also learn of his equally unlikely life up until this point. Lead by a love of blowing things up, and vodka, Allan Karlsson had inexplicably found himself present and involved in many major wars, meeting with huge historical figures, both good and bad. Think Forrest Gump meets The Thursday Murder Club gone rogue and that's basically The Hundred Year Old Man Who Jumped Out Of The Window And Disappeared!

This was so different to what I would usually pick up but as I mentioned before I really loved it! Considering the amount of wars, and the small body count that Allan amassed throughout, this was such a light-hearted and fun read! I will say some of the historical parts did feel a little slow and rambly, but that could well have been a choice based on the age of the protagonist! It was really interesting to see these historical events through Allan's eyes, as he wasn't politically or financially motivated, just an observer who happened to have a passion for explosives. Some of his actions were questionable, he was sort of a mercenary who would prefer to be paid in vodka!

Also there's an elephant named Sonya and she is a queen! 🐘

#bookstagram #bookgroupbook #librarybook #jonasjonasson #satiricalbooks by @mrsds.library

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2

5 days ago

Well I had to take on a spooky arc or two for October didn't I? 😂 Looking forward to reading this one. Love a good killer 🔪

Thanks so much @tamsinstjames ! 😍

#arcreader #arcreviewer #spookyseasonreads #lastentry #bookstagram by @mrsds.library

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8

7 days ago

Also finished this one up a few days ago and almost completely forgot about it again. I don't know what's going on with my brain at the moment. Thank goodness I have a week off work now!

DC Abby Fox is finally returning to work after a year off, and her newly promoted boss, Mac, welcomes her back by sending her to Hollowpines, the local psychiatric hospital, to interview one of the patients about a dream he had. Feeling like she's being fobbed off, Abby reluctantly seeks out, Joe, who was asleep in his locked room all night, with CCTV evidence, but somehow also seemed to have committed a murder in the small hours of the morning, knowing details he couldn't possibly know. As the hours, and days go by, more bodies show up, more impossible dreams occur, and somehow, the police's best lead is an inpatient, who just wants to play piano again. Could he be outsmarting everyone and committing these impossible crimes? Is someone feeding him information? Or is this just some kind of bizarre coincidence?

I have feelings about this book. I love Sam Holland, I was obsessed with the Major Crimes series, but this one just felt like a rehash of that and I ended up quite disappointed with the outcome. I really enjoyed it until about halfway through where I started to suspect where it was going, and hoping it was going to take a different direction but alas. It was just too predictable for me. Maybe for someone who hasn't read Holland's other books it would be more enjoyable!

Though, now I've got that off my chest, I will say that as with Holland's previous books, the writing is absolutely fabulous, the tension is superb, and it really kept me engrossed and the pages turning, even if I went from desperately trying to solve the case to desperately hoping I was completely wrong! 😂

#bookstagram #librarybooks #thrillerbooks #thekillerinroomfive #samholland by @mrsds.library

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2

8 days ago

Got a bit behind with my October reviews, but I'm slowly catching up. Of Flame and Fury was a great random audiobook find!

Kel has been raising her phoenix, Suvita, from a hatchling. In recent years she has joined the Crimson Howlers, in order to join the profitable (and extremely dangerous) sport of phoenix racing. When a particularly dangerous stunt causes Suvita to lose the lead in their latest race, her rider takes matters into her own hands, a mistake she won't live to regret.

In need of a new rider, her team joins forces with the man behind the dangerous stunt, Warren Coupers, a union Kel is more than reluctant about. However, when mysterious billionaire, Christo, takes an interest in the team, and offers them, and Suvita, a life changing opportunity and enough money to pay off her debts, Kel and the Howlers unknowingly embark on their most perilous adventure yet!

This was a great little YA romantasy, action packed with increasingly dramatic and death defying races, enemies to lovers, animal rights activists, and one corrupt and self centred rich guy! I was absolutely engrossed in this one and really rooting for Kel and Suvita to get back to the farm in one piece. The races were increasingly dramatic, and since their rider died in the first one, well, you'll have to read it to find out how they could possibly get more intense than that!

As I mentioned, this was YA so while there is a romance storyline developing, it doesn't go further than a few steamy kisses, so if you're looking for spice, this isn't the book to find it. But if you want toe-curling tension from a team who can't seem to catch a break, with a hint of LGBTQIA+ representation thrown in, then this one is definitely a fabulous option, just be prepared for lots of fire and angry phoenixes!

#bookstagram #audiobook #romantasy #offlamesandfury #mikaylabridge by @mrsds.library

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6

9 days ago

📚 September Wrap Up 📚

What an incredible reading month this was! Sixteen books! Mainly thanks to the horror indie-tron which I'll get onto in a couple of slides! 😅

Five audiobooks this month, they're almost always a random spur of the moment pick when the previous one finishes so can be a bit hit and miss!

My 5⭐ Audiobooks:

📘 Bunny - Mona Awad
At prestigious Warren University, Samantha struggles to fit in with the cliquey girls in her class who all call each other bunny. That is until they decide to include her, and she discovers just how bizarre their little unit actually is...
📘 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
When Arthur wakes up on the day his house is due to be demolished, he doesn't suspect that that is going to be the least of his concerns...

#bookstagram #bookwrapup #septemberwrapup #audiobooks #borrowbox

This was my book group book this month! Unfortunately it wasn't my favourite, nor anyone else's in the group! But we still had a great discussion about it anyway!

#bookgroup #readinggroup #librarybook #thrillerbook

And here we are at the horror indie-tron, which was the bulk of my reading this month! These were all ebooks, generously provided by the authors and distributed randomly, and I was so very lucky with my selections!

All of these books I rated five stars, because they were all fab in their own ways, but I've decided my ultimate top three for the month:

📘 Snake Bight - Richard King II
A super fun read about a cult hold up in a town in the Everglades named Snake Bight, who's leader has been running some interesting experiments...
📘 Academia - James Oliver
Follows the St Bernards Slasher, as they enact their twisted revenge in increasingly creative ways.
📘 Happy Slappy - Dan Shrader
Happy Slappy is available for hire, but when he shows up at the secluded lake house that Randy and his old college friends have reunited at, it becomes clear very quickly that he isn't the clown THEY hired.

Other titles here (because the picture isn't super clear):
📕Please Wake Up - Nicholas Beardsley
📕Lovebug - Tara Hanson
📕The Pigman - Oscar Brady

#indietron #horrorbooks #slasherbooks #extremehorror #splatterpunk

A by @mrsds.library

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8

15 days ago

Well, that was quick! 😅 Book number ten, and my final book for the horror indie-tron is finished! And what a fantastic book to finish on!!

This time I was given Happy Slappy by @danshraderhorror

Happy Slappy is a clown who's in the business of killing. When a group of college friends reunite to remember their friend Lydia, who recently passed, Randy thinks it would be a fun idea to hire a clown. Little does he know, the clown that arrives is not the one he's booked, and Happy Slappy has a vendetta.

This was a brutal, fast paced extreme slasher book and I could not put it down! I literally read it in one sitting! This is definitely not for you if you have any kind of fear of clowns, as Happy Slappy definitely invites his friends to join in the fun. The actual victims were pretty terrible humans though so I was actually kinda on the clowns’ side! Also having the image of the clown shown in the book really helped me create a mental image, and somehow I managed to assign a really creepy voice to him and I have no idea where it came from! 😂

I'm definitely now super intrigued to read the rest of the books in this ‘Full Nasty’ universe!

I've had so much fun this month and read so many fabulous books, thanks so much for letting me join in @stephs_creepy_reads @chantellegerxo and @littleghoulie and all the fabulous authors for letting me join in the fun!

#indietron #extremehorrornovella #killerclown #slasherbooks #happyslappy by @mrsds.library

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4

16 days ago

Horror Indie-tron book nine! Hoping to round off the month with one more after this one to make it a nice round 10!

This time I was given IDGAF by Dennis Tree.

Forced into online school from the age of six by his working parents, Solomon has struggled to make any friends. Now age twelve he has exactly zero friends, and is constantly mocked and bullied both in his online classes, and in his home by his abusive father. It seems that the only thing keeping him going is his younger sister, six year old Raina. Solomon has been plagued by nightmares involving a shadowy figure who seems obsessed with his teeth, but nightmares are just scary dreams and they aren't real… right?

Ohhh this one was a difficult one for me. I really enjoyed the actual story, even though dentistry, especially in a horror setting, really puts me on edge! I really felt for Solomon, having been a bullied, lonely child myself at around his age, and I was really rooting for him to get a happy ending. Which he did get… along with two other endings!

I did really enjoy the multiple endings, they gave an element of the ‘choose your own adventure’ goosebumps books I loved as a kid. I, of course, am the type of person that read all three and chose the third, and worst possible ending for the characters. Well for Solomon. Who I claim to be rooting for 🤦🏻‍♀️

The thing that really knocked my rating down for this one was the lexicon, used particularly by Raina. I'm not sure if I'm just really old and out of touch, but is that really what six year olds talk like these days? I have two nephews who are 4 and 5 and they certainly don't! I loved the character of Raina, she was a little firecracker, but every time she opened her mouth with these weird canned sayings, some of which I have heard in the real world, but usually in a different context to the way they were used in this. Also, the book was bizarrely censored with swearwords using @ $ and ^ symbols to create a ‘censored’ version of words (though it was still clear what words they were) - just use the actual letters please!

#indietron #horrorbooks #horror #comingofage #teeth by @mrsds.library

16

4

17 days ago

Ohh Aldi, you did not disappoint with your spooky season collection - all under £3! Three mysteriously fell into my shopping trolley on my way around... But I did want to get all six titles that they had to be honest 🎃

#aldi #spookybooks #bargainbooks #bookshopping #bookstagram by @mrsds.library

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8

17 days ago

✨ ARC Review ✨

Sundered Sun by Ann Glimmer
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thanks so much to @ann.glimmer for allowing me the opportunity to be on her ARC team! I absolutely loved this one!

Sundered Sun is book one in the Sun & Moon Saga, and my goodness is it a strong start. Moon wielding Lora meets a mysterious stranger who possesses the powers of both sun and moon when he literally falls out of the sky, and quickly finds herself entangled in a cross-Queendom adventure on a mission to save everyone, being perused all the while by a band of sky pirates. These pirates, joined by exiled Prince of the Sun Kingdom, Zai, want the Dual Weilder for themselves, to claim a hefty reward from the Sun Kingdom.

This is very much an enemies to lovers tale, literally sun Vs moon, fire Vs water, and the amount of attempts Zai makes on Lora's life while also being weirdly obsessed with her, and her with him, tells me everything I need to know and I'm here for it!

This was a low spice slow burn type of romance, lots of racing pulses and heated glances, and it did make me want to scream at times but it also just made me keep turning the pages because I couldn't get enough!

The story was told in a dual POV from both Lora and Zai, who spent a lot of the book on entirely different journeys, albeit one chasing the other, and this really gave the support characters a chance to shine, as well as help to expand the world a little bit further.

Don't get me wrong, this is not a fluffy cosy little romance though, there's monsters, duels to the death, fire and a whole lot of killing! It really was, for me, the perfect mix of dramatic tension and sexual tension!

I'm left feeling a little lost after the ending, it was such a change in pace and everything seemed to happen at once, and my emotions couldn't handle it! I need the second one NOW so I can hear the rest of the story!

#bookstagram #arcreviewer #arcreview #annglimmer #sunderedsun by @mrsds.library

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13

18 days ago

Another audiobook squeezed in before the month ends, and I have to admit I was sucked in by the hype around this one!

Natalie Heller Mills is a traditional Christian woman, living on a working ranch with her farmer husband and soon to be six children. She is also an influencer, sharing her life with over a million followers. Things are going so well for her, until they aren't. One day she wakes up with different children, in an unfamiliar version of her house, and Natalie needs to know how to get back to the reality she knows.

This was a bizarre book for me. It spent a long time not really going anywhere fast and I struggled to engage with, well, anyone really. I'm not sure if it's just that it was set in a world so far from my own little bubble, as I'm sure there are very real people out there like Natalie, but I just don't think this one was for me.

Saying that however, I did get through the whole book and did find myself intrigued to know what happened to the Natalie at the start of the book that led her to be the Natalie that we heard from through most of the book. I do enjoy an unreliable narrator, so that was fun. It was quite clear that Natalie was the unreliable narrator but it was interesting to watch and learn how deep her delusions and complete denial of her situation ran.

This was definitely a solid book, however I just didn't quite gel with it personally, think I need to work on not getting swept up in the hype, but it's so hard when my life revolves around books! 😂🤦🏻‍♀️

#bookatagram #audiobook #viralbook #yesteryear #caroclaireburke by @mrsds.library

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4

19 days ago