March was a slightly more chaotic reading month for me relative to last month. I read a similar amount of books. But I just had a harder time finding the discipline to sit and read what I “should” read, like an ARC and a buddy read. Instead I wanted to go completely off course and do all the mood reading. But March is over, so let’s see how I did in this monthly book blog wrap-up.
Book Reviews
I posted five reviews in March. From earliest to latest they are:
- To Snap A Silver Stem by Sarah A. Parker
- These Violent Nights by Rebecca Crunden
- The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
- The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore
- Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh
I also participated in some book memes, which you can find in my March 2023 archive.
Blog Statistics
Every month I share some statistics from Google Analytics because I think it helps put expectations into perspective for other micro-bloggers like me who are out there.
My top five posts for unique (not total) page views in March are:
- Book Review: To Snap A Silver Stem by Sarah A. Parker: 47 views
- March 2023 TBR List: 46 views
- Trope-ical Readathon March 2023: 46 views
- Second Blogiversary Questions and Answers: 43 views
- Negative Book Reviews Are Necessary: 38 views
- ARC Review: Bookworm by Robin Yeatman: 36 views
Referrals from Google Search were also higher than usual. My reviews of BOOKWORM and TO SNAP A SILVER STEM might be driving some of that. The third book in the Crystal Bloom series by Sara A. Parker was released yesterday. So I guess readers were looking for a refresher. I mean, it jolted to the top. It wasn’t even in my Top 5 during any of the draft iterations of this post until yesterday’s edit.
At the time of writing this post, I have 137 followers, which is up 7 from February. A heartfelt thank you to my new (and old) followers!
#BeatTheBacklog
I read two books that fall under #BeatTheBacklog. I read one book that I added to my TBR list prior to 2023: SUMMER OF THE CICADAS by Chelsea Catherine. It’s a novella set in West Virginia that involves a cicada plight and reckoning with grief. Review to come! I also read (listened) to THE PRINCESS DIARIST by Carrie Fisher, which has been on my TBR for a very long time.
NetGalley
I submitted two reviews to NetGalley. One was for THE DANCE TREE by Kiran Millwood Hargrave and the other was for SOME DESPERATE GLORY by Emily Tesh. My feedback ratio is still around 80%, surprisingly, despite receiving some e-galley approvals.
Other Bookish Items
I finished 10 books this month, including:
- THE DANCE TREE by Kiran Millwood Hargrave (ARC)
- GILDED CAGE by Dani Wyatt (novella)
- SUMMER OF THE CICADAS by Chelsea Catherine (novella)
- LAWN BOY by Jonathan Evison
- SOME DESPERATE GLORY by Emily Tesh (ARC)
- HEART OF GLASS by Brittany Holland (novella)
- THE SUBTLE KNIFE by Philip Pullman (audiobook)
- THE PRINCESS DIARIST by Carrie Fisher (audiobook)
- PESTILENCE by Laura Thalassa
- A COURT OF WINGS AND RUIN by Sarah J. Maas
I participated in Trope-ical Readathon in March, which was my third time. I got a lot more reading done for this challenge than in the past, which I attribute to audiobook reading.
I rounded up another On My Radar list of posts I enjoyed around the book blogosphere.
My special edition order of the Crescent City series from Illumicrate arrived and they are so pretty!
Non-Bookish Items
I took a few days off with work to travel for a short visit to Florida. My father-in-law has a house in Florida that’s in one of the hardest hit areas from Hurricane Ian, which hit late September 2022. So this was our first time seeing everything, including the ongoing reconstruction. It was definitely humbling to see the endless piles of debris waiting to be picked up. The plus was that the weather was fantastic and the rough surf left us with the best shelling I’ve ever seen there.
Keeping up with my non-book-related goals was a mixed bag this month. I wasn’t as consistent with workout out 4 days per week. Part of this was because I took a short vacation. The other part is I just didn’t feel like it, which is ok, but I can’t make it a habit. We did paint another room in our house (dining room), so that’s definitely a win!
Lastly, it looks like most of the perennials we planted last summer made it through the winter! This is great because plants aren’t cheap. My seed potatoes arrived in the mail yesterday, so over the next week or two I’ll plant those. Surprisingly some potatoes we left in dirt over the winter sprouted already and have some greenery.
How was your March?
Looks like you had a very good month! I bought a copy of The Princess Diarist when it came out but haven’t read it yet. But I imagine audio is probably the best way to read it.
Audio is definitely the way to go! I LOVED listening to Carrie’s dry, wry humor inflection as she told her story. Plus her daughter narrates part of it when there’s a flashback to some of Carrie’s actual diary entries from the late 1970s.
It sounds like overall, March was a good month for you. I’m glad to hear it! I’m tempted to “force” myself to mood read one month this year. I literally can’t STAND not using a set TBR each month and usually have it created a whole month in advance. But the idea of just picking at random sounds like it’d be kinda fun haha. I hope your April rocks!
It was, surprisingly, despite feeling like I wasn’t reading “enough.” Turns out I guess I was! Keeping to a set TBR each month is tough for me, unless it’s all ARCs. I think it’s because I don’t like being told what to do, including if it’s from myself haha. Glad it works for you, though!
I toss a little straw over the bulb areas in the fall when I winterize the garden, easy to clean up in the spring and keeps the ground covered under the snow!
That’s a good idea! I’ve seen that mentioned in gardening videos I watch on YouTube, but havet yet to try it.
It looks like you’ve had a really successful month. Hope the potatoes do well. They always taste so much better when you’ve grown your own
Thanks! I hope they do well, too! Gardening is such a rewarding activity.
Looks like month was busy, but good! Mine was busy as well. My wrap Up will be up later.
It was! Hopefully your busy was a good busy!
This looks like a great reading month! I hear you on the mood reading. It’s been all over the place for me. I think the crazy weather has an impact on my mood reading. So exciting when perennials start popping up!! I hope you have a wonderful April! <3
It was surprisingly a great reading month despite feeling like it was chaotic. My reading choices are all over the place right now, so I feel you. I hope you have a great time reading in April!
That looks like a great reading month! I read quite a bit in March too – mostly fiction, which I think went by faster because I enjoyed them all.
Hope your April turns out to be even better than March!
It was! I honestly don’t know how I remember any of my reads anymore since they’re all over the place. Do you have a favorite book from your March reads?