All articles filed in Books

There is something so delightfully tacky about the book covers for cozy mystery novels. I especially love the book covers that have a beautifully illustrated background but then have other elements from the novel (say, books, a cat, a bicycle) photoshopped in from what I assume are stock photographs. They remind me of the hidden…

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon is one of those books that have been on my TBR list for ages, but I couldn’t remember why. That happens you know – forgetting why I put a book on my wish list? Or that I even put a book on my wish list at all. That started happening…

Look, I have a library to read. On top of that, it’s moving locations from its teeny, tiny 900 sq. ft. building to a sprawling 10,000 sq ft. building (that used to be a grocery store before Walmart moved to town), which means my TBR is about to get longer. That’s why, when nothing happened…

Warning: this post contains spoilers. Dark Companion by Marta Acosta is book #2 in my READ ALL THE LIBRARY BOOKS challenge, and like my initial reaction to Sign Language by Amy Ackley, when I pulled Dark Companion from the shelf, I was once again disappointed. In fact, I hadn’t even openly declared that I was…

Sign Language by Amy Ackley is the first novel I read that is apart of the Read All the Library Books challenge I set for myself a few weeks ago. It was the novel to set the tone for this process, and the moment I plucked it from the library stack…I was disappointed. The book…

If you asked me if I believed in astrology and horoscopes, I’d tell you I was a skeptic. But, I’d also tell you that I kind of embody many of the traits of the Leo– I’m arrogant, I’m stubborn, I’m an idealist, I’m a creative, I’m passionate, and dammit, I demand praise! (Please tell me…

I had a difficult time immersing myself in I Found You by Lisa Jewell, and I’m not entirely sure why. This novel had many characteristic that I appreciate. It was atmospheric. The writing was beautiful. It involved a mystery that I desperately wanted to solve. Yet, I started this book four separate times before finally reading…

In kindergarten, I wanted to be either a tiger or a cowboy-girl. Throughout elementary school and high school, I wanted to be a teacher, a librarian, a writer, a publisher, an actress (despite my crippling fear of public speaking), a website designer, some unnamed profession that would allow me to afford a loft in a…

I like short stories. I really do, although I don’t feature them often on Books & Tea. I have admiration for them because I think short stories require writers to have a certain talent that novel-writing doesn’t. Characterization, scene selection, and word choice become so much more important in a concise piece of writing. Short…