Summerween 2026 👻🏖️

 

Between July 3rd-9th, I participated in Summerween, hosted by Gabby from @gabbyreads.  I was happy to get to these four books during those days and enjoyed most of them very much. Also, during the week I completed all of Gabby's prompts. My favorite from the books was The Face in the Frost by John Bellairs. 

Books Read:  

1. Under Lock & Skeleton Key (Secret Staircase Mystery Book 1) by Gigi Pandian: 👻👻👻👻

        - I highly enjoyed this cozy mystery and will be continuing on with the rest of the series. One of my favorite parts of this story was the whole idea of Secret Staircase Construction. It was so interesting to hear about the locked rooms they created. Also, the family elements of this story were wonderful. I love how Gigi Pandian used classic mystery stories throughout this and especially here use of Edgar Allen Poe. 

2. The Face in the Frost by John Bellairs: 👻👻👻👻👻

        - Such a strange little book, that I loved. It has a mix of humor, creepy scenes, and a lot of fantasy fun. It is my favorite of John Bellairs books I have read so far.   

3. The Last Delivery by Evan Dahm: 👻

        - I was really looking forward to this book because I have heard it described as a world similar to Wonderland with quirky characters like that. Sadly this was not at all what I thought it was going to be. It was unsettling and quite disturbing with no real plot to it. The only reason I even finished it was because of how short it was. I did not enjoy this in the slightest. 

4. In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts by Gwendolyn Kiste: 👻👻👻👻

        - In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts is a queer continuation of The Great Gatsby, following Daisy Buchanan's daughter Pamelia (Mel) over 30 years after the events of the original novel. Daisy is found dead in Gatsby's mansion, though Mel knows Daisy has been spiraling out of control for years. At Gatsby's estate, she find's her mother's ghost and tries to figure out how to free her from the house.

The novella has stunning writing which drew me in from the very first page and kept me hooked in like the house and it's "visitors." Gatsby is one of my favorite novels and I loved seeing where Gwendolyn took this "sequel" of the story. There are many different eerie and creepy scenes which were so good.

Along with Mel, we get some new characters and then many of the characters from the classic including Jordan Baker and Nick Carraway. Nick is my favorite character from the original novel and the author does an incredible job with his characterization in this. The haunted house became a character itself and I loved reading about it's hunger. I think it's interesting how grief and guilt are looked at in this novella.

Overall this was a very entertaining read, I highly enjoyed reading as a big fan of The Great Gatsby.

*Thank you to Edelweiss, Creature Publishing, and Gwendolyn Kiste for my ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.* 

Gabby's Prompts: 

1. Read a book in the dark or at night  ✔️

        - Under Lock & Skeleton Key (Secret Staircase Mystery Book 1) by Gigi Pandian

        - In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts by Gwendolyn Kiste

2. Read a thriller or horror book ✔️

        - The Face in the Frost by John Bellairs- Fantasy with a bit of creepy scenes

        - The Last Delivery by Evan Dahm

        - In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts by Gwendolyn Kiste 

3. Read a new to you author- someone you have never read from before ✔️

        - Under Lock & Skeleton Key (Secret Staircase Mystery Book 1) by Gigi Pandian

        - The Last Delivery by Evan Dahm

        - In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts by Gwendolyn Kiste 

4. Read a book with Pink on the cover ✔️

        - In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts by Gwendolyn Kiste 

5. Read a book with less than 250 pages ✔️

        - The Face in the Frost by John Bellairs

        - The Last Delivery by Evan Dahm

        - In These Gilded, Ghostly Hearts by Gwendolyn Kiste 

Book Titles That Include the Word: Midnight

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Book Titles That Include the Word: Midnight

For this week's Top Ten Tuesday, we were supposed to pick any word we wanted to and then find ten books with that word in the title. There were a few words I was thinking between and midnight was the one I had the most books to choose from. Here are ten books with Midnight in the title which I have enjoyed over the years. They are in no particular order. 

1. The Midnight Carnival by Kenny Gould

- A cozy fantasy story I read last year and highly enjoyed. It is about a man named Max who finds a million dollars in a secret space under the bathtub in his house. He uses the money to buy an old abandoned carnival he used to enjoy in his youth. Most of the plot follows him and a ragtag group who work together to rebuild the carnival and get it running again. This is full of found family, whimsical world-building, and so much heart. 

 

2. At Midnight edited by Dahlia Adler

- I highly enjoy the short story collections Dahlia Adler has curated and edited over the years. This one is all retellings of fairy tales written by popular young adult writers. Some of the tales retold here are: "The Little Mermaid," "Hansel and Gretel," "Cinderella," “Rumplestiltskin,” “The Nutcracker,” “The Robber Bridegroom,” etc. There is also an original story by Melissa Albert.

My favorites from the collection are:  

 ~ "In the Forests of the Night" by Gita Trelease- inspired by "Fitcher's Bird" which is a tale I had never heard of before. This is probably my favorite from the collection.

~ "Fire and Rhinestone" by Stacey Lee- inspired by "The Little Match Girl"

~ "Just a Little Bite" by Roselle Lim- a contemporary twist on "Hansel and Gretel" which also had me thinking of Sweeney Todd

~ "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" by Hafash Faizel- such a wonderful twist on "Little Red Riding Hood"

3. Midnight in Everwood by M.A. Kuzniar

- I like to recommend this story whenever I have the chance because of how much I enjoyed it. The story is an adult retelling of "The Nutcracker" by E.T.A. Hoffmann, though you don't have to know the story to get something out of this novel. My favorite part of this book was the portal fantasy aspects. It reminded me a bit of the Wood between Worlds in The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis.

4. Midnight Strikes by Zeba Shahnaz

- A time loop book which is based on the fairy tale "Cinderella." the main character Anaïs keeps on having to relieve the day of the royal ball over and over again, and is the only one who remembers everything that is happening. It was interesting to see how she used her knowledge of the day and how Zeba Shahnaz took such a well-known tale.  

5. I Shall Wear Midnight (Discworld #38) by Terry Pratchett 

- This is the 38th book in the Discworld series and the fourth book in the Tiffany Aching subseries. It follows Tiffany as she continues to grow as a young witch. I won't say much more than that since this is so far into the subseries. 

- If anyone would be interested in knowing my thoughts on the reading order for the Discworld series or the series as a whole, I recommend my post: A Comprehensive Guide for Reading the Discworld 🦧. It is one of my favorite posts I have ever worked on. 

6. The Midnight Library (The Midnight World, #1) by Matt Haig

- I loved The Midnight Library when I read it back in 2022 and am looking forward to reading the sequel sometime this year. The concept of the book was what drew me first into this story many years ago. Who hasn't wondered what their life would be like if they chose a different path during it? I love the idea of the library. 

7. The Stratford Zoo Midnight Revue Presents: Macbeth (The Stratford Zoo Midnight Revue #1) by Ian Lendler

- The first book in a cute series of graphic novels which has animals performing some of Shakespeare's plays at the zoo. They are funny takes on the plays and are great starting points to introduce these famous works to children. I know I enjoyed my time with this one about four years ago when I read it. There is also a Romeo & Juliet one. I didn't enjoy it as much, but R&J is one of my least favorites of his plays. 

 

8. The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo

- One of my favorite short story collections. I adored this when I read it about nine years ago. It is full of atmospheric writing and stunning illustrations. I love how unique this book is with the illustrations on each page building up to a full two-page spread for each of the six stories. They are inspired by folklore, fairy tales, and myths. Out of all the books on this list, this is the one I probably recommend the most besides I Shall Wear Midnight by Terry Pratchett. I need to reread it soon, it's been too long. 

9. The Midnight Club by Christopher Pike

- I grew up reading Christopher Pike's books. My grandmother had a few of them at her house that terrified me as a preteen and I read a few more of them in high school. The Midnight Club was one I had not heard of until one of my friends recommended it to me in college. I'm glad she did because it is my favorite of his books. It's been over ten years since I read it and I still remember it fondly. Another one I'd love to pick up again someday. 

10. Hilda: The Wilderness Stories: Hilda and the Troll /Hilda and the Midnight Giant by Luke Pearson

- I first learned about Hilda's world through the Netflix tv series. The little girl I used to watch was obsessed with the show and asked me to watch it with her one day. I don't remember what episode we started with, but I was hooked into the show within a couple minutes of watching it. I happened to see that the show was based on graphic novels by Luke Pearson and I knew I would have to check them out sometime. This book contains the first two volumes of Hilda's story. I love this type of fantasy story and having Hilda as the main character. She is a young adventurer that enjoys learning about the world around her and spending time in the wilderness. Another one great for all ages.

2nd Quarterly 2026 Reading Goals Update and Stats

📚 April- June 2026 Reading Goals Update 📖

 Here are my goals and reading stats for April, May, and June. This second quarter has been an interesting one for reading. I'm looking forward to seeing what I will pick up in the final half of the year! Happy Reading to you all. 

🟪 Read 100 Books- 88/100

🟦 Reread at least one book every month- 6/12

        🐇 April: Reread 1 ✔️

                 📖 The Last Hero (Discworld #27) by Terry Pratchett

 

         🌷 May: Reread 1 ✔️

                 📚 Punderworld Volume 1 by Linda Šejić

        🌻 June: Reread 1 ✔️

                 📖Inferno (Divine Comedy #1) by Dante

🟩 Read at least one 2026 release every month- 5/12

        🐇 April: 5 Books ✔️

                📚 The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst- ARC

                        (release date: March 31st)

                📖 Nell O'Dell Hates Quests (The Golden Crossroads #1) by Emily B. Martin- ARC

                        (release date: April 7th)

                📚  Galahad and the Grail (Merlin's Isle, #1) by Malcolm Guite- ARC

                        (release date: March 23rd) 

                📖  A Life in Letters: Notes and Prompts for a Return to Pen and Paper by Ronda Beaman- ARC

                        (release date: May 5th)

                📚 An Accident of Dragons (Tales of Summer, #1) by Cheri Radke- ARC  

                        (release date: April 28th)

        🌷 May: 3 Books ✔️

                 

                📖 The Missing Magic of Sparrow Xia: An Illustrated Novel by Leia Ham- ARC 

                        (release date: May 5th)

                📚 Alice's Guide to Wonderland by Eric Geron- ARC 

                        (release date: May 19th)

                📖 Lily Tripp: Diary of an Accidental Time Traveler (Lily Tripp Diaries, 1) by Amelia Tait- ARC 

                        (release date: March 12th) 

        🌻 June: 4 Books ✔️

                📖  Daggerbound (Swordheart, #2) - ARC 

                        (release date: August 25th) 

                📚 Moderating Love (Queer Ways to Fall in Love #1) by Jax Calder 

                        (release date: March 4th) 

                📖 Wolf's Belly by John August and illustrated by Simón Estrada - ARC 

                        (release date: July 7th)

                📚 Books, Iced Coffee & a Side of Dragons by Amanda Lovelace and illustrated by Raquel Travé- ARC

                        (release date: August 25th)

🟨 Read at least 5 tomes- 1/5

                📖 Didn't read any in this quarter 

🟧 Review every book I read- 88/88

🟥 Read 5 classics- 3/5

                📖 Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

                📖 The Book of Questions by Pablo Neruda

                📖 Inferno by Dante 

🟧 Complete Birdjay's 2026 Reading Challenge- 12/12 ✔️ &  40/40 ✔️ 

 

1. A book that has been adapted into another medium.

   📚 Earwig the Witch by Diana Wynne Jones- Adapted into a movie

2. A book with a pretty cover.  

   📖 We Are All So Good at Smiling by Amber McBride

3. A book where the main character is a parent.

   📚 Fantastic Four Vol. 6: One World Under Doom by Ryan North

4. A book featuring a main character that's older than 20. 

   📖 Paladin's Grace (The Saint of Steel #1) by T. Kingfisher

5. A book that has zombies.

   📚 I Hate Fairyland Vol. 9: Back on My Bull Ship by Skottie Young

6. A book with a mentor character.

   📖 Jupiter Nettle and the Seven Schools of Magic by Sangu Mandanna

7. A book that has a vampire or a werewolf.

   📚 A Curse For True Love (Once Upon a Broken Heart #3) by Stephanie Garber

8. A translated book.

   📖 Brume, Volume 2: The Forest of Lost Souls by Jérôme Pélissier

9. A book recommended by a friend.

   📚 The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo 

10. A book that takes place earlier than 1900.

   📖 Spear by Nicola Griffith- takes place in 6th century Britain 

11. A book that features time travel.

   📚 Fantastic Four Vol. 1: Save Everyone by Ryan North 

12. A book nominated for a Hugo.

   📖 The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow

 
13. A classic book.

   📚 Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

14. A book that takes place in a Non-Western setting.

   📖 Luka and the Fire of Life (Khalifa Brothers #2) by Salman Rushdie- takes place in a fictional version of India 

15. A cozy book.

   📚 A Potion, a Powder, a Little Bit of Magic: Or, Like Lightning in an Umbrella Storm by Phillip C. Stead 

16. A book that does not take place on Earth.

   📖 Nobody's Baby (Dorothy Gentleman #2) by Olivia Waite

17. A book with talking animals.

   📚 Thimble: A New Fairytale by Hannah Birss

18. A book written by a woman.

   📖 The East Wind (The Four Winds #4) by Alexandria Warwick

19. A book that has been reviewed on F&L.

   📚 Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett 

20. A book that retells a fairy tale, myth, or legend.

   📖 The Grimm Conclusion (A Tale Dark and Grimm #3) by Adam Gidwiz

21. A book that's the first entry in a series.

   📚 Galahad and the Grail (Merlin's Isle, #1) by Malcom Guite

22. A book with more than 3 POV characters. 

   📖 Fantastic Four, Vol 5: Aliens, Ghosts, and Alternate Earths by Ryan North

23. A book with the found family trope.

   📚 The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst 

24. A debut author.

   📖 This Wretched Beauty by Elle Grenier 

25. A book written by an author of color. 

   📚 The Great Disillusionment of Nick and Jay by Ryan Douglass

26. A book that's been on your TBR for longer than a year. 

   📖 S. by Doug Dorst and J. J. Abrams

27. A book with a non-human main character.

   📚 The Girl & the Galdurian (Lightfall, #1) by Tim Probert- Cad is a creature called a Galdurian. 

28. A book with over 500 pages.

   📖 Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan- 597 pages

29. A book that was self or indie published.

   📚 The Little Library by Kim Fielding

30. A standalone book.

   📖 Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

31. A book about other books/reading. 

   📚 The City of Dreaming Books (Zamonien #4) by Walter Moers

32. A book with under 250 pages.

   📖 This Winter (Heartstopper 4.5) by Alice Oseman - 102 pages

33. A book that was published in 2026.

   📚 One World Under Doom by Ryan North

34. A book where the main character is a woman. 

   📖 The Ballad of Never After (Once Upon a Broken Heart #2) by Stephanie Garber

35. A new-to-you author.

   📚 James by Percival Everett 

36. A book that you've read before. 

   📖 Once Upon a Broken Heart (Once Upon a Broken Heart #1) by Stephanie Garber

37. A book with a talking animal.

   📚 Minor Mage by T. Kingfisher 

38. A nonfiction book.

   📖 The Book of Delights: Essays by Ross Gay 

39. A book set in a small town.

   📚 His Birthday Wish (His Ever After #2) by Elle Waters

40. A book written by an LGBTQ+ author.

   📖 the witch doesn't drown in this one by Amanda Lovelace 

🟨 Finish 3 Series- 5/3 ✔️

             📚 I didn't finish any series this quarter. 

🟩 Read 13 retellings- 14/13 ✔️

              📖 Galahad and the Grail (Merlin's Isle, #1) by Malcolm Guite- Retelling of the legend of King Arthur, his knights, and the search for the Holy Grail

              📚 Wonderland by Tommy Kovac- Continuation after the events of the 1951 Disney movie Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

 

              📖 The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason- Retelling of The Trojan War, the fall of Troy, and The Odyssey through little vignettes 

              📚  Punderworld Volume 1 by Linda Šejić- Retelling the myth of Hades and Persephone 

              📖 Punderworld Volume 2 by Linda Šejić- Retelling the myth of Hades and Persephone 

              📚  Wolf's Belly by John August and illustrated by Simón Estrada- Retelling of "Little Red Riding Hood" along with characters appearing from other fairy tales and literary works. 

 

🟦 Read 25 fantasy books- 43/25 ✔️

              📖 The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst

              📚 Nell O'Dell Hates Quests (The Golden Crosswoards #1) by Emily Martin

              📖 Wonderland by Tommy Kovac

              📚 An Accident of Dragons (Tales of Summer #1) by Cheri Radke

              📖 The Last Hero (Discworld #27) by Terry Pratchett

             📚 The Lost Books of the Odyssey by Zachary Mason

              📖 The Missing Magic of Sparrow Xia by Leia Ham

              📚 Punderworld Volume 1 by Linda Šejić

              📖 Punderworld Volume 2 by Linda Šejić

              📚 Nine Goblins by T. Kingfisher

              📖 Daggerbound (Swordheart #2) by T. Kingfisher

              📚 Spells and Sensibility (Regency Magicians #1) by K.L. Noone and K.S. Murphy 

              📖 Wolf's Belly by John August and illustrated by Simón Estrada

              📚  Books, Iced Coffee & a Side of Dragons by Amanda Lovelace and illustrated by Raquel Travé   

 

🟪 Read 25 graphic novels- 20/25

              📖 Wonderland by Tommy Kovac

 

              📚 Punderworld Volume 1 by Linda Šejić

             📖 Punderworld Volume 2 by Linda Šejić

              📚 Wolf's Belly by John August and illustrated by Simón Estrada

             📖 Books, Iced Coffee & a Side of Dragons by Amanda Lovelace and illustrated by Raquel Travé   

🟦 Read 26 books in 2026 from my list- 6/26

1. Newt's Emerald by Garth Nix
2. Paladin's Grace by T. Kingfisher 
3. Something Rotten by Jasper Fforde 
4. The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers, #1) by Becky Chamber
5. Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett
6. The Village Library Demon-Hunting Society by C.M. Waggoner
7. S. by J.J. Abrams & Doug Dorst
8. Rhythm of War (The Stormlight Archive #4) by Brandon Sanderson 
9. I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith 
10. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan
11. The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
12. North of Night by Emily Rath
13. Mermaid Moon by Susann Cokal
14. The Pyrates by George MacDonald Fraser
15. The Stranger in the Lifeboat by Mitch Albom
16. The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow 
17. Anne of Avonlea by L. M. Montgomery 
18. Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
19. The Herbwitch Princess by Ireen Chau
20. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
21. On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness by Andrew Peterson
22. Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan
23. The Ballad of Never After (Once Upon a Broken Heart #2 by Stephanie Garber
24. Wind & Truth (The Stormlight Archive #5) by Brandon Sanderson 
25. The City of Dreaming Books (Zamonien #3) by Walter Moers 
26. Little Men by Louisa May Alcott        

🟩 Read 10 poetry collections- 5/10

              📚 I Needed a Viking by Alfa

             📖 The Book of Questions by Pablo Neruda

🟨 Buzzword Reading Challenge- Title & Covers

        🐇 April- ✔️

              Titles- Ordinal Numbers: first, second, third, etc. 

              📖 The Last Hero (Discworld #27) by Terry Pratchett

 

               Covers- (Wearable) Accessories 

              📚 Galahad and the Grail (Merlin's Isle #1) by Malcom Guite 

 

        🌷 May- ✔️

              Titles- ''Make," "Making," or "Maker"

              📖 Finding Chika: A Little Girl, an Earthquake, and the Making of a Family by Mitch Albom

 

               Covers- Border/Frame

 

              📚 The Missing Magic of Sparrow Xia by Leia Haim 

        🌻 June-  ✔️

              Words- One-Word Title

              📖 Inferno (Divine Comedy #1) by Dante Alighieri

  

               Covers- Wings 

               📚 Daggerbound (Swordheart #2) by T. Kingfisher  

 

🟧 Read at least 2 C. S. Lewis Books- 0/2

🟥 Read 5 Marvel Comics- 4/5

      📖 I didn't read any Marvel Comics during this quarter

📚 April- June 2026 Reading Stats 📖

🟢 Amount of books read in April-June: 

        🐇 April- 12 books 

 

        🌷 May- 9 books 

        🌻 June- 10 books

 

🟡 Favorite Books

🟠 Least Favorite Books

🔴 Page Counts

        Total of Pages read in April-June:

            🎧 Just on Audio: 1  

            📜 1-100: 4

            📖 101-200: 9

            📔 201-300: 6

            📚 301-400: 10

            📕 401-500: 1

            📗 501-600: 0

            📘 601-700: 0

            📙 701-800: 0

            📒 801-900: 0

            📓 901-1000+: 0

        Per Month:

            🐇 April: 3297 pages

            🌷 May: 1985 pages

            🌻 June: 2020 pages           

🟣 Star Ratings for April-June

        ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️- 12

        ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️- 13

        ⭐️⭐️⭐️- 2

        ⭐️⭐️- 4

        ⭐️- 0