Farewell, September

September has come and gone and I'm kinda sad, tbh.

But look!  I'm doing a wrap-up, and it's on time.  I'm winning at life.

While August wasn't the best month ever, September showed up and turned that around.  I had a pretty great month, all things considered.  I read and watched some awesome stuff, celebrated my 21st birthday, and God showed me a lot of things that I'm pretty sure have changed my life.  So.  That's exciting.

- reading -

I only finished 5 books this month, which is a far cry from last month's 11.  But that's okay, because they were all great.

I started out the month by re-reading Prince Caspian and having an absolutely magical time.

I've always been a self-proclaimed Narniac, but it's been years since I read this book.  But when I got my Pixie Dust box, I watched the movie again with my siblings and was caught up in ALL the nostalgia, so I dove into the story again.  And gosh, it was great.  My review is all ramble-y and fangirl-y, but you can read it here if you'd like. (Also Caspian is my sweet baby angel boy and I love him a lot)

The September pick for the book club that I host was As Old As Time and wowww.  I didn't expect to love it as much as I did.

Beauty and the Beast mixed with a murder mystery mixed with a social commentary that I didn't hate = a winner in my book.  The characterization was perfect, it filled in plot holes without changing the story, and the castle life scenes were so PURE and SOFT and I'm really happy.

- writing -

I'm loving this story so much, y'all.  I've finished the first draft of chapter 3, so here's where the adventure really begins, yay!

Here's a nice little Clyde aesthetic because he's my best boy and I love him.

- watching -

This month brought with it some amazing movies and shows, some recommended by friends and some I found while scrolling Netflix.  aka the best time waster next to YouTube.

I have to gush for a minute about Mystery 101, my newest favorite Hallmark Movies & Mysteries series.  Amy and Travis are the //softest// and I adore them.

((you'll find me sobbing in the corner over this gif))  The mysteries are awesome, the characters are great, and it quickly worked its way up to my top spot of HMM series.  Clearly I just really love a good murder mystery.  No one is surprised.

Early in the month, my friend Jenni (go check her out, she's pretty awesome) and I had a bit of a movie night and watched her favorite movie, Much Ado About Nothing.  And it was ICONIC.

The sheer number of times I thought "I LOVE this trope" is reason enough to recommend this movie.  It's classic comedy, quick witted and snappy, with a sweet love story to boot.  Definitely going to be watching this one again.

While on a random Netflix browse, I came across The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and as I feel like it's a cultural icon, I decided to check it out.  And yes, I sobbed through the last half hour and I'm not ashamed.

This movie is really stinking sweet, okay?  The diversity between the girls, their friendship (it's so PURE), the family relationships and the struggles they all go through, I just.  I'm emotional, okay?  (There's some content, but really only in Bridget's parts, lol.)

And finally mom introduced us this month to Remington Steele, which is sometimes frustrating but overall completely charming.  I'm always a sucker for con-man stories, and this one has murder mysteries on top of it.  (It's not squeaky clean, jsyk, but it is a barrel of fun)

Yes, that is baby-faced Pierce Brosnan. And yes, his hair is fabulously fluffy.

- listening -

Here's my September playlist, it's a complete mixed bag of music, but I kind of love it. xD

- doing -

A lot of Disney and a lot of TV watching, haha!  My sister had a surgery this month that's taken her awhile to recover from (she's okay, but she's been couch-ridden for two weeks) and thus, I've been watching a lot of TV with her. xD  Which has been pretty chill and nice, tbh. 

- blogging -

Two whole posts this month wooooo

- the seven questions book tag -
- 13 reasons why blog tour + freedom review -

But hey, I really like those two posts, so. Who's really winning?

((it's not me, I'm not winning))

I do want to blog more, I do!  And I hope to this month.  I have a few ideas for some blog post series that hopefully I will actually get to writing.  xD

But no matter what happens, I'm glad this blog exists.  Because even though I never seem to actually post on it more then twice a month, I really love this little piece of the internet.  And I can't give enough thanks to y'all who stick with me through everything. <3

(and hey, look, Psych gifs are back in action. all's right with the world xD)

- Abby



Freedom Book Review - 13 Reasons Why Blog Tour

September is National Suicide Prevention Month.  I thank God every day that I haven't been personally touched by the tragedy of suicide, but every day, thousands and thousands of people are hurt by it.  It's an epidemic, and it's heartbreaking.

So, Faith Potts used the gift that God gave her, wrote a book, and shared her message.  Then she teamed up with her friend Kaitlyn Krispense, and together, they built a blog tour.  Then, I signed up to review Faith's book and take part in the blog tour, and here we are today.  This is something special, y'all.

 

 So here we go, on to the review!


Freedom



Author: Faith Potts
Genre: Contemporary [romance? I guess?]
Content: Several attempts at suicide
Main Characters: James Green, Alex Lorance

Synopsis:
Having just returned to American soil from the desert sands of the Middle East, James Greene is done with his life. 'Double amputee' doesn't seem like a strong enough phrase to label the physical and emotional pain he bears. Add the lack of love and communication with his family members, the demons that haunt him day and night, and he can find nothing worth living for. Ending it all is the only way out. 

Alexandria Lorance is a not-so-ordinary physical therapist, content with aiding in her patients' recoveries. Her work gives her fulfillment, but alone in the silence, she still endures the hidden scars of a past, unhealthy relationship. Reminding herself that true healing is found in Christ alone, she seeks to show kindness and love to everyone she meets.


When these two broken ones' paths intersect, the spark of friendship is ignited, bringing hope and joy to both. Can they step out of the darkness of suffering and into the freedom of grace?


A Marine, broken by war. A therapist, scarred by words. A chance meeting in a parking lot bonded them together. But can love grow in these two hurting hearts? Or are they truly too broken to ever find lasting happiness?

Add on Goodreads ~ Purchase on Amazon

What I Thought:

^ me, dead after the excellence of this book while my family drags me through the rest of my life

This is my third book of Faith's, and she is QUICKLY becoming one of my favorite contemporary authors.  Having read Dandelion Dust last month, I had a feeling that this one was going to make me cry.  And I was right.

This story was so //beautiful//.  Each character's struggles and successes felt real and true and I was an emotional mess the whole time I was reading it.  James and Alex are the cutest and purest ship and I adore them so much.  (their banter! I love them!) The side characters had just enough development to make me care about them deeply without overtaking the story.  The conflict was engaging and I read the whole thing in basically a day because I couldn't put it down. 

I made my way through the story with tears in my eyes because of the darkness that James faced and the sheer beauty of God's light breaking through that darkness.  This book just reaffirmed to me how good God is.  I know these particular characters aren't real, but that doesn't mean that the story is untrue.  We serve such a great God who reaches into the hardest places and lifts us out.  He's never going to leave us, and that means everything.

So yes, I highly recommend this book.  If you like stories with ALL the feels, cute ships, and banter, you're going to love this book.

Overall Rating: 5 ice cream cones out of 5

About the Author:
Saved by God's grace, Faith Potts is a teenage writer and homeschool graduate, living with her family and beloved yellow labs in the North Carolina mountains. When she’s not weaving stories, consuming large amounts of coffee, reading stacks of books, or studying American Sign Language, she can be found laughing harder than is healthy, daydreaming, and—of course—blowing dandelions.

Connect with Faith: Her blog ~ Goodreads ~ Facebook ~ Instagram

This tour is, of course, happening in tandem with the release of Kaitlyn Krispense's novel, Beloved!



Life without love is hopeless.

Foster teen Cara Richards is unloved. With nothing left and nowhere to go, she is determined to find peace, no matter the cost. But despite her intentions, she’s tossed into another foster family and this time, there’s no going back to who she used to be. To make matters worse, one of her five new foster brothers is a Jesus freak, and she refuses to believe that God actually cares.

Her world is thrown upside down in a way she never expects. Though she prides herself on a resilient heart, her mind is lost adrift among a sea of questions: Is death really the answer? Does God care about someone as unworthy as me? Can everyone truly be loved, no matter what?

Add on Goodreads ~ Purchase on Amazon

There's also a GIVEAWAY going on for signed paperbacks of both Freedom and Beloved, and you can enter it right here!

And to close out this post, I thought I would share my own 13 reasons - 13 reasons why this world is worth living in. 

• Puppies
• Dancing to the music in the grocery store aisle
• Sunsets
• Cake (honorable mention to cheesecake)
• Mountains
• The moments when your heart is so full of happiness that you start crying
• Mashed potatoes
• Have you seen a picture of a baby panda lately?
• God's creation in general
• Pumpkin crème pie (I apologize if you're hungry now)
• Books
• A good solid hug from someone you really love
• Jesus paid my debts, what have I to fear?

I just want you all to know that I am always here to listen, for whatever you need.  Me and Jesus.  With wide-open arms.  I'm praying for you. <3

~ Abby

The Seven Questions Book Tag

It's time again for tags-we-weren't-tagged-for-and-are-doing-anyway, y'all!

I've been wanting to do another tag, and what should pop up on my subscription feed but this one on Olivia's blog.  So here we are.  I stole it.  I'm such a criminal.

I'm pretty excited about this one so let's dig on in.

1. What is your favorite genre to read?

Historically speaking, it's been fantasy, but nowadays, I'll pick up pretty much anything except horror, as long as its relatively clean and holds my attention. 

2. What was the best book you read for the first time last year?

Ooh, I like this question!  I read a lot of fantastic books last year, but the Blades of Acktar books really stuck out to me.

((listen, whoever is making blades of acktar memes... keep up the good work))

3. Do you remember when you first began to read? What drew you to it?

I started reading when I was around 4, so no, I don't really remember.  My parents (Dad, in particular) were huge readers, so I grew up surrounded by stories.  Mom says I used to just read whatever I could get my hands on.  It's about when I was 10 or 11 that I remember choosing what I wanted to read for myself.  I think what drew me was that the 26 letters I was learning to put in different orders could paint such a different picture in my head.  It fascinated me.  It's still what draws me, in a way.

4. How do you arrange your books?  By color? By title? By author? By series? By something else altogether?

I have an TBR "shelf" (meaning, all my unread books are stacked on my dresser) which is organized by color, and my actual bookshelf with all the books I've read and loved and decided to keep, which is organized by author last name and then series order.

5. New books or used books?

Yes! All the books! I will never deny that I love the smell and feel of a new book, but I will also never deny that I love the price of a used book.  So I'm not picky, I love them all.

6. What tends to send you into a reading slump?

When I read such a stunningly beautiful book that all I want to do is read that book again and again until I'm sick of it which is impossible because I love it so much.

No but seriously it's only ever new-favorite books that send me into reading slumps.  Because they're so good! How is anything supposed to compare?

7. What tends to pull you out of a reading slump?

Time.  Watching movies that remind me of my old-favorite books and then feeling like reading again.  After a little while, I'll miss reading too much to not go back to it immediately.

And there we have it friends! Seven questions about books and my answers to them. Shout-out to Olivia for providing tags ripe for stealing. (seriously though, go follow her, she's awesome and her blog is so gorgeous)

The questions, should you choose to steal this tag from me:

1. What is your favorite genre to read?
2. What was the best book you read for the first time last year?
3. Do you remember when you first began to read?  What drew you to it?
4. How do you arrange your books?  By color?  By title?  By author?  By series?  By something else altogether?
5. New books or used books?
6. What tends to send you into a reading slump?
7. What tends to pull you out of a reading slump?

 Pick a question and answer it in the comments! I want to know ALL your bookish answers! *heart eyes*

~ Abby