Tag: Stacking the Shelves

Stacking the Shelves

Posted November 21, 2015 by Nicky in General / 14 Comments

Hello, everyone! This week, I have a relatively small haul — I think it might be the first time in a while I’ve really shown any restraint! I’m now trying not to buy any books until Christmas, so it’ll hopefully just be library books from here on out… I have just one new-to-me owned book this week, and that came via Illumicrate (which I need to review).

Cover of Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin

I’ve heard a lot about this one, so I’m excited for it!

Library

Cover of The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie Cover of Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie Cover of Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie

Cover of Arrows of the Queen by Mercedes Lackey Cover of Arrow's Flight by Mercedes Lackey Cover of Arrow's Fall by Mercedes Lackey

Cover of Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater Cover of Wolfhound Century by Peter Higgins

The Abercrombie books are rereads; I’ve never read Mercedes Lackey and spotted the omnibus of those at the library and thought, eh, why not?; Cait @ Paper Fury demanded I read some Maggie Stiefvater; and finally, I had access to Wolfhound Century on Netgalley… many moons ago. It’s time I actually reviewed it.

How’s everyone been? Interesting hauls? Tell!

Incidentally, I recently passed my 1,000th post and my 1,000th follower, and this is my 100th STS post. Definitely time to celebrate! But, does anyone know of a giveaway widget that works with WordPress-hosted blogs? Rafflecopter does not, as I recall.

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted November 14, 2015 by Nicky in General / 18 Comments

I’ve been pretty stressed out this week keeping up with work stuff, but fortunately I had a library trip last weekend! This was a library I’ve only just joined, where I found they let me have 20 books at once! So naturally, that’s what I did — though many of the books I borrowed are ones I technically own but can’t access right now. These are the new ones!

Fiction

Cover of Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs Cover of Bone Crossed by Patricia Briggs Cover of Silver Borne by Patricia Briggs

Cover of River Marked by Patricia Briggs Cover of Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs Cover of I Am J by Cris Beam

Cover of Blood and Feathers by Lou Morgan Cover of Wolves by Simon Ings Cover of Wolfsbane Winter by Jane Fletcher

Yep, so glad they have the Patricia Briggs books so I can catch up a bit! The others are mostly stuff I’ve been interested in for a while.

Non-fiction

Cover of Grave Secrets of Dinosaurs Cover of The Disappearing Spoon by Sam Kean

I liked Sam Kean’s book about neurology, so I’m planning to read The Disappearing Spoon and The Violinist’s Thumb, the latter whenever my reservation comes in. And the other book? Well, dinosaurs!

Hope everyone’s well, getting good books, and that any followers in France are safe and secure after the attacks of Friday night.

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted November 7, 2015 by Nicky in General / 25 Comments

Well! This week has certainly been a busy week for me. I spent the first part of the week in London with my partner, laying waste to Forbidden Planet, Waterstones Piccadilly and Foyles… not to mention the British Museum’s bookshop. (There were some museums, too, yes!) Then I spent the latter half of the week (re)acquainting myself with the libraries local to my parents, since I’m going to be staying here almost all the time I’m not with my partner in Belgium.

Fiction purchased

Cover of Spin State by Chris Moriarty Cover of The Silver Metal Lover by Tanith Lee Cover of Blindsight by Peter Watts

Cover of Conservation of Shadows by Yoon Ha Lee Cover of On Basilisk Station by David Weber Cover of The Honor of the Queen by David Weber

Cover of Radiance by Catherynne M. Valente Cover of Our Lady of the Ice by Cassandra Rose Clarke Cover of Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs

Cover of Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs Cover of Newt's Emerald by Garth Nix Cover of A Legend of the Future by Agustin de Rojas

I’m looking forward to quite a few of these. And thanks to Forbidden Planet, my copy of Newt’s Emerald is signed.

Non-fiction purchased

Cover of Britain BC by Francis Pryor Cover of Britain AD by Francis Pryor Cover of Britain After Rome

Cover of A History of Ancient Egypt by John Romer Cover of The Undivided Past by David Cannadine

A fairly random selection, all from the British Museum’s bookshop. I love getting my hands on new non-fiction.

Library

Cover of Railhead by Philip Reeve Cover of The Accident Season by Moira Fowley-Doyle Cover of the Book of the Damned by Tanith Lee

Cover of the Book of the Beast by Tanith Lee Cover of The Book of the Dead by Tanith Lee Cover of Book of the Mad by Tanith Lee

Cover of Catastrophes and Other Lesser Calamities by Tony Hallam Cover of Freaks of Nature by Mark Blumberg Cover of The New Wild by Fred Pearce

Another interesting mix, of course! I have no idea when I think I’m going to get round to all this, but it’s fun anyway.

How’s everyone else doing?

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted October 31, 2015 by Nicky in General / 15 Comments

Totally unsurprisingly, this week has involved me grabbing as much Phryne Fisher as I can… I even started watching the TV series, via Netflix. Gah, love it so much.

Library books

Cover of Blood and Circuses by Kerry Greenwood Cover of Ruddy Gore by Kerry Greenwood Cover of Urn Burial by Kerry Greenwood

Cover of Raisins and Almonds by Kerry Greenwood Cover of Death Before Wicket by Kerry Greenwood

Cover of Away With the Fairies by Kerry Greenwood Cover of The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart

And I actually got some Amazon vouchers, but I’m probably going to save them for some more Phryne book. Just one book purchased, and that was a Kindle Daily Deal.

Cover of Omens by Kelley Armstrong

So really, I’ve been quite good this week! What’s everyone else been getting?

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted October 24, 2015 by Nicky in General / 13 Comments

Hello, everyone! Thanks for the good wishes last week — my grandmother’s operation went okay, and she seems quite well, all things considered. Hope you’ve all had good weeks too!

Bought

Cover of Murder Past Due by Miranda James Bitch Planet vol 1

Cover of Miss Phryne Fisher Investigates by Kerry Greenwood Cover of Flying Too High by Kerry Greenwood Cover of Murder on the Ballarat Train by Kerry Greenwood

Cover of Magic Rises by Ilona Andrews Cover of Magic Breaks by Ilona Andrews

Suddenly, I’m mad about Phryne Fisher. Even considering watching the series, if it’s on the UK Netflix! I’ve read a bunch of these already.

Library

Cover of Death at Victoria Dock by Kerry Greenwood Cover of Green Mill Murder by Kerry Greenwood

Yes. Uh. As I said.

Comics

Shield #1

I’ve been looking forward to this one since I first heard about it!

What’s everyone else been getting?

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted October 17, 2015 by Nicky in General / 16 Comments

This has been an unexpectedly busy week again, since friends have been super nice to me (particularly Lynn and Robert), and Mum ended up with some Amazon vouchers from surveys! Which is really nice, because it is a stressful time. This week my grandmother’s going to have her operation for cancer, so I would really, really appreciate good thoughts sent her way.

Anyway, back to the books!

Won

Cover of Dragon Scales by Sasha L Miller

I liked The Errant Prince a lot, so yay for this! Looking forward to reading it. Thank you, Sasha L. Miller!

Dead tree books

Cover of Magic Slays by Ilona Andrews Cover of Dark Metropolis by Jaclyn Dolamore

I was instructed to get something light and escapist and easy, and Magic Slays will be exactly that for me. And research, since paranormal romance is a genre I ghostwrite in… Dark Metropolis apparently has a bunch of LGBTQ characters, including an ace character.

Ebooks

Cover of Archivist Wasp by Nicole Kornher-Stace Cover of Hollow World by Michael Sulivan Cover of Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor

Cover of An Ancient Peace by Tanya Huff Cover of Salsa Nocturna by Daniel José Older Cover of Posted to Death by Dean James

Cover of This Is Your Brain on Music by Daniel Levitin Cover of Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely

A rather random mix, really! A few of these I’ve been meaning to read for a while.

Library

Cover of The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer Cover of Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo Cover of Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo

Cover of The Stories of Eva Luna by Isabel Allende Cover of My Brother Michael by Mary Stewart Cover of The Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

Cover of Control Point by Myke Cole Cover of Midnight Never Come, by Marie Brennan India Black and the Shadows of Anarchy

Another mixed bag, really! My Brother Michael and The Grand Sophy are rereads grabbed for the readathon this weekend (post coming soon).

What’s everyone else been getting?

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted October 10, 2015 by Nicky in General / 14 Comments

Oops. This week has been one of wild indulgence. Granted, some of these were preordered — it’s been a heck of a week for books I wanted coming out! There’s one or two more I don’t even have, like Empire Ascendant by Kameron Hurley. Yeesh.

(Well, some of these I didn’t preorder, just picked up as soon as I could, with new money coming into my account for the start of the month. It hit me rather harder than I expected!)

Bought

Cover of Last Song Before Night by Ilana C. Myer Cover of Every Secret Thing by Susanna Kearsley Cover of Updraft by Fran Wilde

Cover of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs Cover of Ancillary Mercy by Ann Leckie Cover of Fool's Run by Patricia A. McKillip

Cover of Carry On by Rainbow Rowell Cover of Lady of Mallow by Dorothy Eden Cover of The Parthenon by Mary Beard

Cover of India Black by Carol K. Carr Cover of The Last Witness by K.J. Parker Cover of Home by Francis Pryor

Cover of Court of Fives by Kate Elliott Cover of Zeroes by Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan Cover of All For Love by Jane Aiken Hodge

Cover of White Water by Pamela Oldfield Cover of Mythmaker by Marianne de Pierres

Uh. Yes. Quite the haul, I know. And I actually won Mythmaker, but putting it there stops there being one book hanging out on its own.

(Yes, I quite literally have OCD, I know this.)

Library

Cover of India Black and the Widow of Windsor Cover of Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

How I wish these numbers were the other way round and I had gone nuts at the library instead! Ah well. I have lots of reservations due in next week…

How’s everyone else been doing? I’m feeling pretty worn out and run down at the moment; there’s family stuff going on, and sometimes I think I might just need a good hug. Books make it a bit more bearable, though — coming out of the library with an armful of new pocket universes to hide in is a heady feeling.

Don’t forget to link me to your hauls! Direct links are helpful and save me having to track you down to return the comments.

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted October 3, 2015 by Nicky in General / 20 Comments

Last Saturday I was at a convention, and there was a dealer’s room and a swap table, sooo… yeah, unsurprisingly, I have some new additions!

Bought

Cover of London Falling by Paul Cornell Cover of Shanghai Sparrow by Gaie Sebold Cover of The Pendragon Protocol by Philip Purser-Hallard

I’ve been meaning to read the first two for ages, and the latter involves Arthurian references, so I couldn’t resist.

Swap table/freebies

Cover of Smiler's Fair by Rebecca Levene Cover of King's Dragon by Kate Elliott Cover of Black Magic Woman by Justin Gustainis

Cover of Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi Cover of The Straight-Razor Cure by Daniel Polansky Cover of The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley

Sadly, I didn’t really have anything to contribute to the swap table, since I didn’t know it was there in advance, so I am paying it forward by using Bookcrossing to send some books on a new journey.

ARCs

Cover of Armada by Ernest Cline Cover of An Apprentice to Elves by Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear

I’m surprised I was allowed access to Armada, since it’s definitely out and has plenty of buzz, but I’m not arguing! And I need to read the first two books in Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear’s series first, but I’m excited to do so!

Library

Cover of Airs Above the Ground by Mary Stewart Cover of The Moonspinners by Mary Stewart Cover of Rose Cottage by Mary Stewart

Cover of Thornyhold by Mary Stewart Cover of Unseemly Science by Rod Duncan Cover of Luna: New Moon by Ian McDonald

Mostly a grab bag of my favourite comfort reads. My grandmother’s not very well, so I feel like I deserve it!

How’s everyone else doing?

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted September 26, 2015 by Nicky in General / 20 Comments

This week I was a little bit naughty and did some requesting on Netgalley, after doing a bit of a tidy-up of copies I can’t review because I didn’t download them in time, can’t find a library copy, etc, etc. But I’m still on 69% reviews-to-approvals, so I think I’m doing okay!

Received to review!

Cover of The Prophecy Con by Patrick Weekes Cover of The Paladin Caper by Patrick Weekes Cover of Tower of Thorns by Juliet Marillier

Cover of Badge, Book and Candle by Max Gladstone  Cover of The Grace of Kings by Ken Liu Cover of Made to Kill by Adam Christopher

I really need to read Dreamer’s Pool so I can read Tower of Thorns, and The Palace Job so I can read The Prophecy Con and The Paladin Caper. Oh, self, you do make work!

(Like I mind.)

Bought/gifted

Cover of Old Man's War by John Scalzi Cover of The Ghost Brigades by John Scalzi Cover of The Last Colony by John Scalzi

Cover of Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi Cover of The Human Division by John Scalzi Cover of The End of All Things by John Scalzi

Cover of Unwrapped Sky by Rjurik Davidson Cover of Dragon Coast by Greg van Eekhout Cover of Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Cover of Talking Hands by Margalit Fox Cover of The Fox Tower by Yoon Ha Lee

Many many many thanks to Lois and Amy, who have belatedly celebrated my birthday by showering me with bookishness. (Some of the Scalzi is from Lois, and Talking Hands is from Amy.)

Aaand the final issue of Captain Marvel and the Carol Corps…

Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps #4

By the time this goes live, I’ll be on the way to BristolCon with Robert from Bastian’s Books. So if you’re going, you might catch a glimpse of that rare sight — a wild Nikki. Bring a pokéball.

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Stacking the Shelves

Posted September 19, 2015 by Nicky in General / 33 Comments

It’s been a bit of a weird and wonderful week for me, as far as acquisitions go — which surprises nobody, really. My trip last weekend to a consciousness workshop in London was really interested, and prompted pretty much all the non-fiction I’ve picked up, and then I had a three hour monster exam on Wednesday on maths and science, and my mother provided a nice chunk of Amazon voucher to reward me, so… yeah. Books!

I don’t know if I mentioned I also got a new Kindle recently — a Kindle Voyage, which has been christened Glyph, and which I should write a review of soon.

Non-fiction

Cover of The Edge of Uncertainty by Michael Brooks Cover of 13 Things That Don't Make Sense by Michael Brooks Cover of The Technological Singularity by Murray Shanahan

Cover of The Tell-Tale Brain by V.S. Ramachandran Cover of Self Comes to Mind by Antonio Damasio Cover of A Portrait of the Brain by Adam Zeman

Cover of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks

I know, I know, it’s a little unbelievable I haven’t read more of Sacks’ work already. Working on it!

On a side note, since this week covered my weird reading habits, here’s a weird blogging habit: I prefer multiples of three for covers in a row. Two is acceptable. That Oliver Sacks cover on its own is a travesty that, if I’d noticed before, I’d have fixed by getting out another library book on neurology.

Fiction (bought)

Cover of The Golem and the Djinni by Helene Wecker Cover of The Boy Who Lost Fairyland by Catherynne M. Valente Cover of Chapelwood by Cherie Priest

Cover of The Heart of Valour by Tanya Huff Cover of Valour's Trial by Tanya Huff Cover of The Truth of Valour by Tanya Huff

Cover of Farlander by Col Buchanan Cover of Sunset Mantle by Alter S. Reiss

Sunset Mantle was blurbed by Jo Walton, so I’m very much looking forward to it. I noticed the Tanya Huff books were only £2.50 ish each on Kindle, so I grabbed ’em to complete my collection. Goodness knows when I’ll get round to all this reading…

Fiction (library)

Cover of The Gate to Women's Country by Sherri S. Tepper Cover of London Falling by Paul Cornell Cover of Hard to Be A God by Boris and Arkady Strugatsky

I have a challenge/resolution to read more of the SF Masterworks, and I’ve been meaning to try London Falling for a while, so they were my somewhat random choices at the library.

And that’s it! It’s been a busy ol’ week. How’s everyone else been doing? What have you been reading, acquiring, reviewing and squealing over? Do tell.

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