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Whether your reading slump has been the past month or the past three years, there is always a way to get yourself back into reading if you want to. When you were in middle school maybe you could go to the library, pick up a 150 page paperback and read it in one sitting. Maybe when you started high school you had to read more academically and didn’t have as much time to read for fun. But maybe you still read late into the night with the lamp on. But then when you got into college or started working a full time job you ~really~ didn’t have time to read anymore. And maybe you didn’t want to read Percy Jackson because you were getting too old for it anyways but you didn’t want to read Danielle Steele or Eat Pray Love it up because you weren’t -that- old. And maybe now you’re 25, suffering burnt out gifted kid syndrome, and watching Friends re-runs and haven’t picked up a book for fun in years. I’ve been there, you’ve been there, and maybe we’re all still there but not talking about it. If we all love reading and used to be able to easily escape into a fantasy world with upside down rules, why is it so hard to just pick up a book and enjoy it? Maybe there’s a mental block telling us it’s something that we only -used- to be good at like solving matrices or writing a five paragraph analysis or getting up at 5:30 to curl your hair, get on the bus by 6:45 and start class at 8:15 with no breakfast. Or maybe we’re stuck in a limbo between young adult (which we are just adults that happen to be young but not the YA you read in the sixth grade kind of YA) and modern adult contemporary where every main character just got left by her husband. We’re in this stage of life and everything is new and strange and grand and how could a book capture the immense complicated emotions of new adulthood. Maybe a book could do just that, and maybe it doesn’t even need to. Or maybe all of this only applies to me and my personal stop and go journey with reading and growing up. The underlying feeling that we can all relate to is that sometimes we feel like reading for fun and sometimes we don’t and that’s okay. There is no cure-all for a reading slump. There’s no way to automatically pull yourself out of it and start reading five books a month. But there are things that can make reading seem less like an impossible task and more like something you look forward to doing when you have a break. There are truly no books you ~have~ to read, you don’t have to read “Crime and Punishment” before you’re 30 to prove yourself to some imaginary judge. No book is for everybody and no person is for every book. If you read books that make you feel good and think outside of your everyday bubble that is all you need. You can always try new genres and authors and expand your scope. You don’t have to read all the classics or read 50 books a year to call yourself a reader. Just read what you enjoy and think about it. With that being said, the first thing I do when I've been in a reading slump for a little bit longer than awhile is to pick a book that I already know I love. There’s a book I read over and over again in the eighth grade and I still absolutely love it. When I open the first page I’m not just transported into the imaginary world but this feeling washes over me of staying up too late before a school day. I am glowing with excitement and the feeling has never changed in the 15+ years since I read it the first time. I will never get tired of the plot twists that aren’t twisted anymore, or the cliffhangers over a shallow pool. If you can find that book for you, you will always have something to read. I think it’s just important to rekindle that feeling that reading is fun and remind yourself there are pieces of paper with words written on them that can make you laugh out loud, and yell, and cry and sometimes all at the same time. Something positive that came out of quarantine was that a lot of people had time to go back to the middle school special interests. It brought a resurgence of millennial classics (did anyone else pick up Twilight for the first time in ten years?) Maybe you don’t have a lot of down time and when you do, you absolutely do not want to do a thing like reading. Maybe the solution to this is listening to an audiobook, and maybe it’s not. I found it to be an acquired taste. I thought the readers’ accents were distracting and the pace was too slow and then too fast and it was too difficult to just focus on what they were saying. But when you let it all go and the pieces line up, listening to an audiobook can be like having a friend with you while you commute to work, walk the dog, or go for a jog. Listening to an audiobook can remove the barrier of having to solely focus on one activity at a time. If you have a long drive to work, listening to a book can make that time go by like a breeze. Also audiobooks can be very accessible through your local library. Through my library I can use the Libby and Hoopla apps and it is so easy to find the books I want and listen to them in the allotted time. There’s a tip to learning anything new that you should immerse yourself. Like when learning Spanish, speaking to other beginners in a classroom can only take you so far. So maybe the same is true for getting out of a reading slump and trying something new. Something that could help you and also be really fun is go out to a bookstore or the library and just see what sticks out to you. When you immerse yourself in books and a place you don’t usually go to you could find out something new to you. You might see a cover or title that looks interesting to you, or maybe there’s a recommendation board that sounds good. You never know what could be out there until you go out there yourself! Try it and if it doesn’t work no one is going to force you to do it ever again. The last thing I can say about getting out of a reading slump is just go for it. If you’ve seen a lot of people talking about one book but you have no idea what it's about, why not just dive in with no expectations? The worst that can happen is you learned a little bit more about books you don’t like. The best that can happen is you found a book that you absolutely love and even better, it's the first in a series so now you have so many new books to read. Maybe that author has another series that’s really good and you read that. And now you’re going down a rabbit hole of books you never expected to like and things aren’t as bad as you thought it would be.

In August I read eight books and listened to eight audiobooks. This is what I thought about these books and they are loosely listed in order of least to most favorite! We All Fall Down by Rose Szabo Rating: 2 / 5 Stars Synopsis: In River City, where magic used to thrive and is now fading, the witches who once ruled the city along with their powerful King have become all but obsolete. The city's crumbling government is now controlled primarily by the new university and teaching hospital, which has grown to take over half of the city. Moving between the decaying Old City and the ruthless New, four young queer people struggle with the daily hazards of life--work, school, dodging ruthless cops and unscrupulous scientists--not realizing that they have been selected to play in an age-old drama that revives the flow of magic through their world. When a mysterious death rocks their fragile peace, the four are brought into each other's orbits as they uncover a deeper magical conspiracy. Devastating, gorgeous, and utterly unique, We All Fall Down examines the complex network of pain created by power differentials, even between people who love each other--and how it is possible to be queer and turn out just fine. If They Come For Us by Fatimah Asghar Rating: 3 / 5 Stars Synopsis: an aunt teaches me how to tell an edible flower from a poisonous one. just in case, I hear her say, just in case. From a co-creator of the Emmy-nominated web series Brown Girls comes an imaginative, soulful debut poetry that collection captures the experiences of being a young Pakistani Muslim woman in contemporary America. Orphaned as a child, Fatimah Asghar grapples with coming of age and navigating questions of sexuality and race without the guidance of a mother or father. These poems at once bear anguish, joy, vulnerability, and compassion, while also exploring the many facets of violence: how it persists within us, how it is inherited across generations, and how it manifests itself in our relationships. In experimental forms and language both lyrical and raw, Asghar seamlessly braids together marginalized people's histories with her own understanding of identity, place, and belonging. The Immeasurable Depth of You by Maria Ingrande Mora Rating: 3.9 / 5 Stars Synopsis: How do you face your fears when everything is terrifying? Fifteen-year-old Brynn can't stop thinking about death. Her intrusive thoughts and severe anxiety leave her feeling helpless--and hopeless. So after her mom interprets one of Brynn's blog posts as a suicide note, she takes extreme measures, confiscating Brynn's phone, blocking her Internet access, and banishing her to stay with her father who lives "off the grid" on a houseboat in the Florida mangroves. Isolated from her online friends--her only friends--Brynn resigns herself to a summer of mind-numbing boredom and loneliness... until Skylar appears. Skylar is everything Brynn isn't--sultry, athletic, and confident. Yet Brynn feels at home around this fearless girl who pushes her to try new things and makes her belly flutter with nerves that have nothing to do with anxiety. When Brynn discovers that Skylar is trapped in the bayou and can't tell her why, she resolves to free her new crush from the dark waters, even if it means confronting all of her worst fears. Through Brynn's funny, awkward, and sincere narration, The Immeasurable Depth of You explores the ways mental illness can impact a life by centering a character who is learning (sometimes messily) to accept all parts of herself. If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin Rating: 4 / 5 Stars Synopsis: Told through the eyes of Tish, a nineteen-year-old girl, in love with Fonny, a young sculptor who is the father of her child, Baldwin's story mixes the sweet and the sad. Tish and Fonny have pledged to get married, but Fonny is falsely accused of a terrible crime and imprisoned. Their families set out to clear his name, and as they face an uncertain future, the young lovers experience a kaleidoscope of emotions--affection, despair, and hope. In a love story that evokes the blues, where passion and sadness are inevitably intertwined, Baldwin has created two characters so alive and profoundly realized that they are unforgettably ingrained in the American psyche. Pageboy by Elliot Page Rating: 4 / 5 Stars Synopsis: "Can I kiss you?" It was two months before the world premiere of Juno, and Elliot Page was in his first ever queer bar. The hot summer air hung heavy around him as he looked at her. And then it happened. In front of everyone. A previously unfathomable experience. Here he was on the precipice of discovering himself as a queer person, as a trans person. Getting closer to his desires, his dreams, himself, without the repression he'd carried for so long. But for Elliot, two steps forward had always come with one step back. With Juno's massive success, Elliot became one of the world's most beloved actors. His dreams were coming true, but the pressure to perform suffocated him. He was forced to play the part of the glossy young starlet, a role that made his skin crawl, on and off set. The career that had been an escape out of his reality and into a world of imagination was suddenly a nightmare. As he navigated criticism and abuse from some of the most powerful people in Hollywood, a past that snapped at his heels, and a society dead set on forcing him into a binary, Elliot often stayed silent, unsure of what to do. Until enough was enough. Radiant Sin by Katee Robert Rating: 4 / 5 Stars Synopsis: As a disgraced member of a fallen house, Cassandra Gataki has seen firsthand what comes from trusting the venomous Thirteen. But when the maddeningly gorgeous and kind Apollo asks her to go undercover as his plus-one at a week-long party hosted by a dangerous new power player...Cassandra reluctantly agrees to have his back. On one condition: when it's all over, and Apollo has the ammunition he needs to protect Olympus, she and her sister will be allowed to leave. For good. Apollo may be the city's official spymaster, but it's his ability to inspire others that keeps him at the top. Despite what the rest of Olympus says, there's no one he trusts more than Cassandra. Yet even as their fake relationship takes a wicked turn for the scaldingly hot, a very real danger surfaces... threatening not only Cassandra and Apollo, but the very heart of Olympus itself. Twisted Love by Ana Huang Rating: 4 / 5 Stars Synopsis: He has a heart of ice...but for her, he'd burn the world A diverse new adult steamy romance from Tiktok sensation and USA Today bestselling author Ana Huang. Alex Volkov is a devil blessed with the face of an angel and cursed with a past he can't escape. Driven by a tragedy that has haunted him for most of his life, his ruthless pursuits for success and vengeance leave little room for matters of the heart. But when he's forced to look after his best friend's sister, he starts to feel something in his chest: A crack. A melt. A fire that could end his world as he knew it. *** Ava Chen is a free spirit trapped by nightmares of a childhood she can't remember. But despite her broken past, she's never stopped seeing the beauty in the world...including the heart beneath the icy exterior of a man she shouldn't want. Her brother's best friend. Her neighbor. Her savior and her downfall. Theirs is a love that was never supposed to happen-but when it does, it unleashes secrets that could destroy them both...and everything they hold dear. Broken Bonds by J. Bree Rating: 4 / 5 Stars Synopsis: After the death of my mother and her Bonded, I was relieved to find my own Bonds. I was sure everything would be okay if I had them. It wasn't. The fate of our people is in my hands and I know we're better off if I'm alone. After five years on the run, I'm caught and dragged back to face the men I ran away from. I thought I was doing the right thing. Now, I'm not so sure. North, Nox, Gryphon, Atlas, and Gabe may never forgive me but one thing is for sure. I won't ever forgive myself. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins Rating: 4 /5 Stars Synopsis: It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute. The odds are against him. He's been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined -- every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute... and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes. Solitaire by Alice Oseman Rating: 4 / 5 Stars Synopsis: The amazing novel that introduced Nick and Charlie from HEARTSTOPPER -- and the unforgettable Tori Spring. Tori Spring isn't sure how to be happy again. Then she meets Michael Holden, and they try to unmask the mysterious Solitaire (and survive high school) in Alice Oseman's stunning, unflinchinghonest debut novel, which first introduced her fan-favorite Heartstopper characters Nick and Charlie. Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross Rating: 4.1 / 5 Stars Synopsis: When two young rival journalists find love through a magical connection, they must face the depths of hell, in a war among gods, to seal their fate forever. After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again. But eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow just wants to hold her family together. Her mother is suffering from addiction and her brother is missing from the front lines. Her best bet is to win the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette. To combat her worries, Iris writes letters to her brother and slips them beneath her wardrobe door, where they vanish--into the hands of Roman Kitt, her cold and handsome rival at the paper. When he anonymously writes Iris back, the two of them forge a connection that will follow Iris all the way to the front lines of battle: for her brother, the fate of mankind, and love. Long Shot by Kennedy Ryan Rating: 4.1 / 5 Stars Synopsis: Iris DuPree meets August West in a sports bar during her last semester of college. It's the conversation of a lifetime and sends sparks flying in every direction. The connection is undeniable...but the timing is all wrong. August is poised for the NBA draft, and Iris belongs to another man--basketball's "golden boy" and August's long-time rival. The two go their separate ways, but they often recall that electric night and what could have been. While August has embarked on his all-star life, studded with wealth and fame, Iris's perfect public relationship has become a nightmare behind closed doors. A tarnished dream of fool's gold. When August re-enters her life, the world seems briefly bright again, but Iris's darkest nights are not over yet. To survive, she must build her own strength and trust that her bond with August can endure after all this time. Even when her fraudulent prince has vowed never to let her go. Maeve Fly by CJ Leede Rating: 4.2 / 5 Stars Synopsis: By day, Maeve Fly works at the happiest place in the world as every child's favorite ice princess. By the neon night glow of the Sunset Strip, Maeve haunts the dive bars with a drink in one hand and a book in the other, imitating her misanthropic literary heroes. But when Gideon Green - her best friend's brother - moves to town, he awakens something dangerous within her, and the world she knows suddenly shifts beneath her feet. Untethered, Maeve ditches her discontented act and tries on a new persona. A bolder, bloodier one, inspired by the pages of American Psycho. Step aside Patrick Bateman, it's Maeve's turn with the knife. The Dragon Republic by R. F. Kuang Rating: 4.5 / 5 Stars Synopsis: The war is over. The war has just begun. Three times throughout its history, Nikan has fought for its survival in the bloody Poppy Wars. Though the third battle has just ended, shaman and warrior Rin cannot forget the atrocity she committed to save her people. Now she is on the run from her guilt, the opium addiction that holds her like a vice, and the murderous commands of the fiery Phoenix--the vengeful god who has blessed Rin with her fearsome power. Though she does not want to live, she refuses to die until she avenges the traitorous Empress who betrayed Rin's homeland to its enemies. Her only hope is to join forces with the powerful Dragon Warlord, who plots to conquer Nikan, unseat the Empress, and create a new republic. But neither the Empress nor the Dragon Warlord are what they seem. The more Rin witnesses, the more she fears her love for Nikan will force her to use the Phoenix's deadly power once more. Because there is nothing Rin won't sacrifice to save her country . . . and exact her vengeance. Heartless by Marissa Meyer Rating: 4.5 / 5 Stars Synopsis: Long before she was the terror of Wonderland--the infamous Queen of Hearts--she was just a girl who wanted to fall in love. Catherine may be one of the most desired girls in Wonderland, and a favorite of the unmarried King of Hearts, but her interests lie elsewhere. A talented baker, all she wants is to open a shop with her best friend. But according to her mother, such a goal is unthinkable for the young woman who could be the next queen. Then Cath meets Jest, the handsome and mysterious court joker. For the first time, she feels the pull of true attraction. At the risk of offending the king and infuriating her parents, she and Jest enter into an intense, secret courtship. Cath is determined to define her own destiny and fall in love on her terms. But in a land thriving with magic, madness, and monsters, fate has other plans. Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia Rating: 5 / 5 Stars Synopsis: The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather's house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own. Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars, until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather's room. She opens it--and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help in recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea's demise, but success could make her dreams come true. In the company of the strangely alluring god and armed with her wits, Casiopea begins an adventure that will take her on a cross-country odyssey from the jungles of Yucatán to the bright lights of Mexico City--and deep into the darkness of the Mayan underworld.

Spicy Romance Book Club meets on the Second Tuesday of the month. Check out our events page for more information! Neon Gods by Katee Robert He was supposed to be a myth. But from the moment I crossed the River Styx and fell under his dark spell...he was, quite simply, mine. *A scorchingly hot modern retelling of Hades and Persephone that's as sinful as it is sweet.* Society darling Persephone Dimitriou plans to flee the ultra-modern city of Olympus and start over far from the backstabbing politics of the Thirteen Houses. But all that's ripped away when her mother ambushes her with an engagement to Zeus, the dangerous power behind their glittering city's dark facade. With no options left, Persephone flees to the forbidden undercity and makes a devil's bargain with a man she once believed a myth...a man who awakens her to a world she never knew existed. Hades has spent his life in the shadows, and he has no intention of stepping into the light. But when he finds that Persephone can offer a little slice of the revenge he's spent years craving, it's all the excuse he needs to help her--for a price. Yet every breathless night spent tangled together has given Hades a taste for Persephone, and he'll go to war with Olympus itself to keep her close...