This is not your regular book review blog.

I know everyone and then some have started book review blogs, and I may actually be no different. But I think my reading history lends me a unique perspective, and I hope you agree.

Why am I doing this?

• I have a passion for reading. [And, like a lot of readers, writing. Though I don’t think I’m terribly good at it.]
• I also have a passion for talking about books. I love discussing them, spreading them, suggesting them, and collecting them. [I could go on, but I’ll stop there.]
• I have read my fair share of books I wish I could get my time back from [I’m looking at you Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman and Swiss Chocolate by James Weil. I know many people enjoy those books. I did not.], and I wish to help people not experience the same thing.
• I love the book community and I’ve already made great friends on Facebook and Instagram. I’ve networked, learned, and decided to contribute further. Here.
• Did I mention I have a passion for reading books? Because I really, really do.

Why do I think my view is unique?

I started reading really, really young. How young? I was reading simple chapter books in kindergarten. My mother was really big on reading, and my parents wanted me to have a head start, so I started school really, really young, and, because of my parents reading to me a lot as a kid, and my Mom’s passion for reading on her own, I launched into reading early. I was kind of left to my own devices, and even given books by my Mom ahead of my age group, so my reading experience is lengthy and varied. I’ve read classics, modern tales, biographies, autobiographies, the works. I’ve found I mainly love fiction, though I will read anything that catches my eye. I mainly read fantasy and young adult, but I love many, many genres. I really couldn’t define myself as being a lover of any genre in particular above the rest, nor can I confine myself to claiming only one genre. There’s too many to love!

How will my blogs be written?

Honestly, I don’t have a super defined format just yet. I’m going to be going with the flow until I find my groove, and then go from there. So far, on Goodreads, I’ve been mainly writing an “inital reaction” sort of word-vomit reaction, followed by a spoiler-free review, followed by a break with a spoiler warning, and then a spoiler-filled review. It looks something like this:

Why am I doing this publicly, rather than keeping it more private?

Well, for lots of reasons. I’ve read strangers’ reviews [though usually not from the same person a lot – I’m actually quite bad with social media on a personal level, when it’s only for myself] and have made some better-educated decisions based off of them. I’ve found I didn’t end up agreeing with many, but I’m happy to say my only bad bad reviews have come from another reader wanting me to share their pain from having read it [I trusted them!] and another who stumbled on the book, used me as a screening method, and saved themselves the pain. From my own decisions, I haven’t met a book I hated. Mainly, I think, from reading reviews from strangers. Hopefully, you stick around and eventually I don’t feel like a stranger anymore. We’ll see! Maybe this will lead to access to books before publication so I can lend my opinion to you guys before publication – maybe not. Either way, I’m hoping to help fellow book-readers out! I’ve also stumbled into the world of book boxes. I currently subscribe to three [I know, lucky me!] – The Bookish Box [my original and introduction to my newest splurge source!], Owlcrate [which came highly recommended, both from a {good spirited} book friend and others in my bookish Facebook communities!], and FairyLoot [my splurging for UK books once they finally got US-based shipping and became affordable!]. They all offer different things, occasionally with a duplicate book, but not always! And I’d love to share some of that with you all! I also hope to inspire anyone to have their own voice in this community, if that’s something you’re considering. This community is so loving – even if I never see anything come from this, I’ll still be contributing to a community I love as best I can, and that’s something!

What topics do I think I’ll write about?

Well, I’ve mainly covered that already, but to clarify – I’m mainly looking to write reviews on books. I may throw in reviews of book boxes, too, or at least unboxings, but that remains up in the air. I do, however, do that on Instagram – while I’m still trying to figure out how to link that here, my handle is @SeaFox.Adventures! Try to find me, if you’re interested in bookstagram accounts!

Who would I love to connect with via my blog?

Again, I’m hoping that’s already clear, but – fellow book-lovers! Or people trying out reading, who are yet undecided on if they love it or not. Hopefully you decide you love it, but it’s definitely not for everyone – and that’s ok!

If I blog successfully throughout the next year, what would I hope to have accomplished?

Well, to be honest, my goal isn’t something I’m going to be able to easily measure – it’s not to hit a certain number of subscribers/followers. It’s to help fellow book-readers and book-lovers out – whether that means they follow/subscribe or not. Hopefully they do, so that I know I’m doing right by them, and I can help cater my content to them better – but I’m not addicted to likes, subscriber/follower numbers, or any of that. They’re a great sign I’m doing well, but I will probably carry on even if I don’t get many – or any!

Will I edit any of my content after posting [if I even can]?

Probably not. I kind of want to see my progress from start to finish, no edits, no filters, no anything. I’ll probably look back on this and cringe a bit [sorry, future-self!], but I can also see how far I’ve come, and I hope that’s how I view this cringe-worthy post once I look back on it from some milestone in the future. Hopefully anyone who follows me from the beginning to the end will also see that, and maybe that will inspire them.

Hopefully I get the hang of the formatting options here soon so I can make my posts look the way I want them to, but this will do for now!

Until next time, Todds and Vixens! Keep reading and always be kind to one another!