Sundays with Sam is a combination of Sunday Post hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer and Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews.
My Week in Review
To all those who celebrate:
I will be heading over to my sister's for our traditional Polish ham. I am hoping there will be cake, but I don't want to get too excited about things that might not happen.
My new lamp arrived on Wednesday, and it's like constant daytime in my room now. I don't get why newer construction doesn't put in ceiling lights in bedrooms. Floor lamps are not as effective, if you asked me, but I found an Ott Light that gives off many lumens. I have to be carful not to look directly into it, and it's not very glamorous, as these are crafting lamps, but I don't care! I can finally see the light.
I got a new car on Friday. I think I shocked them, when I turned it in with 4,502 miles on it after three years. Look, I just don't drive much, that's why I lease. I forgot how long it takes to get that all done, but at least the person I was working with was a reader. In the end, I got my 4th Subaru Forester. What can I say? Why fix what isn't broke. It's only been three years, but I am really impressed with all the new safety features included. Soon the car will be driving itself.
I am still scrambling to catch up, but I was excited to see my NG ratio get to 91%. It's been stuck at 90% for some time. It was encouraging. I am slowly clearing out my Feedly feed too. Sorry for being slow on the comments. I love my time away from "real life", but there are just not enough hours in the day to catch up.
Skills....
Let's Discuss!
On the Blog:
STACKING THE SHELVES
Edelweiss/NetGalley
I had a so-so reading week. There were hits, but I also set aside two books. Both have low ratings on Goodreads, but I wanted to give them benefit of the doubt. The YA book had starred trade reviews, but I found myself agreeing with the negative points mentioned in the reader reviews. Maybe I didn't read far enough. 🤷 I may pick both up again, but I feel like I wasted so much time already. --sigh--
Let's Discuss!
- Briana confesses that negative reviews might make her read a book
- Mar shares some fee-good books
- Shruti talks about fat rep in kid lit
On the Blog:
- Monday: Blog Tour - Kisses and Croissants by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau
- Tuesday: TTT - I Want to Go to There Volume 3
- Wednesday: CWW - Misfits in Love, I Dare You
- Thursday: #AmReading YA - American Betiya, Five Ways to Fall Out of Love
- Friday: Five Star Friday - March 2021
STACKING THE SHELVES
Edelweiss/NetGalley
- I'm Dreaming of a Wyatt Christmas by Tiffany Schmidt
- Very Sincerely Yours by Kerry Winfrey
- Hot Under His Collar by Andie J. Christopher
- You Can Go Your Own Way by Eric Smith
What I Read Last Week
I had a so-so reading week. There were hits, but I also set aside two books. Both have low ratings on Goodreads, but I wanted to give them benefit of the doubt. The YA book had starred trade reviews, but I found myself agreeing with the negative points mentioned in the reader reviews. Maybe I didn't read far enough. 🤷 I may pick both up again, but I feel like I wasted so much time already. --sigh--
The books I finished were all good, and The Kindred Spirits Supper Club was outstanding. It was just such a smile inducing book. I had a great time reading it, and it left me really happy.
Books
Books
- My Epic Spring Break (Up) by Kristin Rockaway - ★★★★
- The Kindred Spirits Supper Club by Amy E. Reichert - ★★★★★
- I Dare You by Ilsa Madden-Mills - ★★★★
- The Key to You and Me by Jaye Robin Brown - ★★★★
- Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto - ★★★★ 1/2
- Hard Love by Sara Ney - ★★★★
- For Better or Cursed by Kate Williams - ★★★ 1/2
- The Gravity of Us: After the Launch by Phil Stamper - ★★★ 1/2
What I Am Currently Reading
- Counting Down to You by Tashie Bhuiyan
- The Wedding Date Disaster by Avery Flynn (audiobook)
What I Plan to Read
- Fade Into Bright by Jessica Koosed Etting, Alyssa Embree Schwartz
- Sunkissed by Kasie West
- Where the Rhythm Takes You by Sarah Dass
- Moonglass by Jessi Kirby
How was your week?
Let us know in the comments!
Let us know in the comments!
Happy Easter!!! And congrats on the new vehicle. I've heard Subaru Foresters are nice. and Subarus in general.
ReplyDeleteAww... adorable IG's as always!
You Can Go Your Own Way looks fun.
I started getting Subarus after bad luck with two cars I bought new and owned. My Subarus have been very dependable.
DeleteThat's a really high NG rating! I think I'm at 80% for a while now.
ReplyDeleteHopefully April will bring loads of sun. I had my first barbecue last week and went outside with my students two afternoons because the weather was amazing!
Have a great April :)
I accept that my ratio will never be too much higher. I have over 700 approvals, and therefore, it takes a lot to move that 1%, but it's not bad. Glad to hear you have been able to enjoy the outdoors. I love a good cookout.
DeleteIt always seems strange to see rooms without overhead lighting. You're right, floor lamps just aren't as effective. Congrats on the new car! And yeah, I can imagine the low mileage was a shocker to them. LOL Hope you enjoy the new Kasie West. It's been so long since I've read anything by her.
ReplyDeleteI want to bring back the overhead lighting of olden days. We have it in the kitchen and bathrooms, and installed a ceiling light in the living room, but it's not standard anymore.
DeleteI hope that you have a wonderful holiday! Sounds like you have had a busy week and I don't know how you squeeze in all of your reading. I am excited about I'm Dreaming of a Wyatt Christmas and I hope it is one we both love! :)
ReplyDeleteWyatt Christmas looks so adorable. I have been loving the holiday books each season too. Can't wait to get to it.
DeleteCongrats on the new car! I don't drive a lot either. I have 20,000 miles on a 7 year old car. It's paid for and should last me a very long time at this rate :) I really hope that you get that cake that you are hoping for, Sam! I hope that you have a great week!
ReplyDeleteCake is never a guarantee at these events. That's why the kid always makes dessert when she is here.
DeleteOh nice! I just got a new car myself. I had one that sits lower for a few years and I was ready to sit higher up. I'm going to miss not having a car payment, but I am enjoying my new Honda HRV!
ReplyDeleteNice new reads! Those are all new to me ones. I hope you enjoy them all!
Here's my StS
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower :)
I had to google your car. I told you, I keep buying the same car. It reminds me of the Crosstrek. Glad to hear you are enjoying it!
DeleteCongrats on the NG ratio and the new car! I remember the first time I drove a car with a backup camera. It was life-altering. Now I’m spoiled and need a camera in every car. I hope you have a great week!
ReplyDeleteAj @ Read All The Things!
I still forget to look at the camera. It's my old-lady habit to turn my head. This car has front cameras too and will stop if a car gets to close and warn you if you are moving too far right or left. I was really overwhelmed with all the fancy features.
DeleteI think cars already ride themselves now Sam LOL and you made me laugh with your "I finally see the light" :-))))))) Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteFor real. What a difference this lamp is making in my life.
DeleteI hope you had fun at your sister's (and that you had cake!). Congrats on the new car! Wow, 90% !! I don't think I've gotten 80% in a while especially since I've gotten so slow in reading my ebooks (and I'm only buying more).
ReplyDeleteHope you have a great April ahead, Sam!
I am a new release-ho, and Netgalley allows me to read lots of them. Most of my unread ARCs are from when I first started blogging. I over-requested, but I am better with all that now.
DeleteOoh, a new car, how fun! I think we'd definitely look into getting a Subaru the next time we need a new car.
ReplyDeleteI love mine! My sister is actually coming over this week to test drive my car, because after so many years of Hondas, she is considering a Subaru.
Delete"I don't get why newer construction doesn't put in ceiling lights in bedrooms."
ReplyDeleteThey don't? Odd. Though when we bought our apartment, I had wall lights installed, because I don't like to have to go up on stepladders in order to change a bulb.
Good luck on the new car, and happy Easter! I hope there's cake 😉.
Overhead lighting is not required in all rooms, so they don't do it. We rent, though, we had a ceiling fan light installed in the living room, we didn't put lights in every room.
DeleteCongrats on your new vehicle. I loved my Subaru but I decided against getting another as servicing them is expensive. Congrats also on your NG ratio. I don't know when I will reach that milestone.
ReplyDeleteBecause I lease and hardly drive, I almost never have to service my car, but after bad experiences with my first two cars (a Toyota and a Jeep), I have been happy with how dependable my Subarus have been.
DeleteA new car is exciting even if it is the same car. I'm sure there are new features. Congrats!
ReplyDeleteIt's a redesign, and like I said, lots of bells and whistles. I can control stuff from an app now too. It's amazing
DeleteWe had to add our own recessed lighting to our bedroom and living spaces. I don't know why they didn't do that back in the 80s (when our home was built) but they seem to do it on newer builds out here now. Wow, that's hardly any miles at all! We put on so many miles since my daughter moved from 2 miles from our house to East Bay SF (Northern California)! We make the drive at the very least once a month and it's 325 miles each way *sigh*. We're talking about moving up there but so many things need to click into place for that to happen. We will eventually, though.
ReplyDeleteSo excited you loved Kindred Spirits! I'm looking forward to reading it!
This place is less than 15 years old. Not sure who thought to do away with ceiling lights, but I want their head on a platter. I know you are always traveling. I took the train/bus to work and only really do local driving. My kid is over 700 miles away now, and it is not a fun drive. I have no intention of ever doing it again (unless it's to bring her home forever)
DeleteI didn’t know that no ceiling lights in bedrooms was a thing now, I agree that seems weird. I also had an uneven week of reading, my last two books were just ok.
ReplyDeleteWishing you a great reading week
I have no idea when that silly trend happened, but I don't like it. OK books are better than DNFs for me. I like to thin I know my tastes so well, and it pains me to set a book aside.
DeleteCongrats on the new car and getting your NG ratio up! Hope you had a nice Easter. :D
ReplyDeleteThanks! Hope your Easter was great too.
DeleteI really hope you got cake! We were looking at a subaru forrester a few years ago but it was a bit big for me (not that I even drive that much) and opted for the crosstrek.
ReplyDeleteI think the Forester got a little bigger with this redesign. I can understand wanting something a bit smaller in the city. My mom has the Crosstrek. I like the Forester because it's a bit higher off the ground than the Crosstrek. But *high five* my fellow Subaru driver.
DeleteCongrats on the new car! I'm a Subaru girl too, although last time around I leased an Ascent, which has turned out to be a bit too big for me. Love the Foresters though. Yay on your Netgalley ratio too! I got mine up to 91 a couple of weeks ago and I think it lasted a day and then I got approved for a bunch of new reads, lol.
ReplyDeleteThose NG ratios don't last too long except towards the end of the year, when releases slow down.
DeleteWe have ham on Easter too! Although, not polish ham... Just a ham joint slow cooked in a honey and mustard glaze. It's so nice but we only do it at Christmas and Easter.
ReplyDeleteI hope you had a lovely day (was there cake?)
I had to google your car and love it! I can see why you upgraded to a newer version of your previous vehicle.
PS - I don't know whether to laugh or cry at holiday ARCs cropping up already! 😂
I do a lease, so I get a new car every three years. I don't drive much, and leases work for me. I have not done any maintenance on a car in like a decade. I love the holiday books, but when I get them for review, I have to read them rather early, and then there are none to read during the season. I always enjoy them though
DeleteHappy Belated Easter! I hope there was cake.
ReplyDeleteYay for getting a new car with some fancier features.
Dial A for Aunties is one that I'd like to read, so I'm glad to see that you enjoyed it. Sorry it was a so-so reading week in general though.
-Lauren
www.shootingstarsmag.net
Dial A for Aunties was really funny. Silly at times, but I laughed a lot.
DeleteYou got some great books from Netgalley/Edelweiss! I'm going to go check some of those out. I wish I could get my Netgalley rating up, but I'm getting there slowly! I had a Subaru Forester about 4 cars ago. I really liked it, but then I got a Prius that I liked really well too. I would like to get a Forester again, but don't think I want to make the payments. Like you a lease was what I always used to do because I don't drive that much. But I definitely drive more than you! lol. Have a great week!
ReplyDeleteI like the size of the crossover vehicles. I don't like being low to the ground, so the Forester works well for me.
DeleteI loved my Forester. We had several too. It's been nice putting on fewer miles since we moved. Kevin used to have to driver over 100 miles per day for work.
ReplyDeleteHope you had a nice Easter.
Also, I bought a stuffed version of the that bunny eared hedge hog for my friends baby gift basket.
Karen @ For What It's Worth
Wow! My commute would be 40 miles each way if I drove, and that's too far, never mind 50 each way. I am so jealous of that lucky child with the stuff hedgie.
DeleteI hope you had a Happy Easter (and that you got cake)! I put 70 miles a DAY on my car. I'm hoping my next teaching job will be closer to home!
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed you get something closer. Your workday is so much longer when you have a commute to deal with. When I was teaching, it took me under 10 minutes to get to work. I was spoiled.
DeleteYay for getting your Netgalley ratio a little higher wheeee! And yay for getting a new car! Now you have my curious how much I drove this last year. Normally we have sports 5-6 days a week in another town, travel to CA to visit family a few times a year and then regular shopping trips that we just didn't do because of COVID. I drove no where last year lol!
ReplyDeleteJen @ Star-Crossed Book Blog
Oh, my low milage is not really a result of COVID. I don't drive a lot. The dry eye issue has my vision hit or miss (blurry, double vision, and a lot of pain). I only like to drive locally by myself for that reason, and I take mass transit to work (when I go). I am pretty sure most people had low milage due to COVID though.
Delete