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Tuesday, August 14, 2018

Favorite Book Blogs and Bookish Websites


This is a weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week, they post a new Top Ten list that one of their bloggers will answer. Everyone is welcome to join!

The topic for today's list is:


Favourite Book Blogs and Bookish Websites


While making this list, it has occurred to me that a good chunk of my favourite book blogs from my early blogging days (2010-2013) are no longer in existence 😢  I, too, took a hiatus for about 1.5 years in the early days of my divorce from about October 2014 to August 2015 because of stress and lack of time and something just had to give. I've been back it for the past two years because it's something that I'm doing for me to give me accountability with doing something for myself which is making time for reading! I don't blog hop like I used to, and I don't host blog tours anymore. Again, it comes down to how I want to make use of my time. I don't need to tell you how much time a blogger invests in scheduling content!! So, I have chosen to focus more on my reading which is why I started my blog in the first place.



Here are some of my favourite bookish blogs:



Kimberly @ Caffeinated Reviewer: She has similar tastes in books, and I often put the books that she rates highly on my Wishlist because I know that I will likely enjoy them. I also participate in her Sunday Post meme every Sunday.


Kathryn @ Book Date: She reads a wide variety of genres and, again, I often make note of the ones that she rates highly. I also participate in her It's Monday! What Are You Reading? meme every Monday.



Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl: I often see books on her blog that I don't see anywhere else from the book tours that she hosts. I also participate in her Top Ten Tuesday meme most Tuesdays.



Rachel @ Parajunkee: Back in the day, Rachel used to host vampire and shifter reading challenges. I miss that!!! She features mainly paranormal books, and I also hired her for my blog design.



Tressa @ Wishful Endings: She reads a lot of YA, so I am always adding books that I read about on her blog to my TBR. I also participate in her Can't-Wait Wednesday meme each week.

Lupdilup (aka Loupe) @ Hot Listens: I'm an audiobook fanatic, and her blog features audiobooks. She also is co-host of the annual Audiobook Challenge.



I feel like I need to give a nod to some bloggers that aren't around any longer:


Carmel @ Rabid Reads: I just found out while researching for this post that her blog said farewell in April :(  She is a fellow Canadian blogger, and she was so helpful when it came to any technical issues when it came to blogging. She is partially responsible for getting me to read more shifters! I loved her weekly Fresh Meat posts and will miss her blog.


Book Chick City: To the best of my recollection, there were a number of bloggers who contributed here. The content was primarily Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romances, and Horror. Back when I first started blogging, I didn't even know that PNR was a thing and this opened up a whole new world for me! I never considered myself a "romance" reader but I did love PNR. Also, this blog hosted numerous reading challenges (Zombies, Mystery & Suspense, Horror & Urban Fantasy, 100+ Books In A Year) and of course I had to join them all :)

Brianna @ The Book Vixen: I believe Brianna still posts her reviews on Goodreads and is active on Twitter, although her blog is not active. I also miss her numerous reading challenges (Outdo Yourself, Romantic Suspense, Men In Uniform, Contemporary Romance, Read Your Freebies).

Amy @ My Overstuffed Bookshelf: This blog is actually still active, but the posts are irregular and sporadic. I also miss the days that she used to host reading challenges.


Favourite Bookish Websites:

Book Outlet: This is the #1 place where I buy books. They are discounted, and I often buy books by the (BIG) box. If you haven't shopped here, you don't know what you are missing! I often buy their Scratch & Dent copies, which have minor flaws such as a torn dust jacket or a cut in the cover.


The Book Depository: I used to participate in a lot of blog hops and host tons of giveaways. This is my favourite site for ordering books as gifts, because they generally ship worldwide with FREE shipping unlike Amazon or Chapters-Indigo which both have a minimum to qualify for free shipping.

Audible: This is my main source for reading. My method of reading is mostly via audiobook. I have been very happy with Audible and love their Daily Deals, although I have to admit that I recently found out about Scribd whose monthly cost is cheaper than Audible and it's unlimited so I'm tempted to switch!

Goodreads: This is the ultimate bookish site to track your reading and Wishlists. There is a plethora of bookish groups that you can join.

Michelle @ Seasons of Reading: If you are a fan of read-a-thons, look no further! Michelle hosts A Winter's Respite (January), Spring into Horror (April), Sci-Fi Summer (June), High Summer (July), Christmas in July, FrightFall (October), and Christmas Spirit (November-January). I love Michelle's read-a-thons because they are low pressure and focus just on the reading. I hate read-a-thons that require you to keep track of your pages read or minutes listened (who has time for that? LOL!).

A Novel Challenge: If you are a challenge addict like me, you will be in challenge heaven here! For a while there, the blog was not being updated regularly which caused a new site to be created on Facebook (see below). However, the site owner is back and I guess we shall see if she is still around once the 2019 challenges start coming up.

Sleep Less Read More: This is a Public Group on Facebook, so I'm not a member. I do not like Public Groups because the posts are then available to everyone. If I was a Closed Group, then I'd probably join. I know that lots of people like Facebook, so I am including it in my list. If you want to know about reading challenges or read-a-thon or read-alongs, you can find out about them here.



So, what are your favourite book blogs and bookish websites? Please let me know in the comments, or leave me a link to your blog post if you are also participating in the meme!

6 comments:

  1. That Artsy Reader Girl is a good choice. I wish I'd thought to include her in my list, too!

    Here is our Top Ten Tuesday.

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  2. This post is perfect, although it makes me a bit sad seeing familiar blogs from the past that are no longer around :(
    Cora | http://www.teapartyprincess.co.uk/

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  3. Audible, Goodreads, & Seasons of Reading made my list this week too!

    Here's a link to my TTT post this week: http://captivatedreader.blogspot.com/2018/08/top-ten-tuesday-favorite-book.html

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  4. Thanks for mentioning my sites, Darlene! I had 8 people ask to join Sleep Less, Read More (so far). I changed the privacy to closed, if you want to join. Not sure why I made it public. Are you able to get on Facebook now? The Seasons of Reading Facebook group is closed and I just changed Gather Together and Read to closed as well. Hope to see you.

    Thanks again for the mentions.

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  5. It’s sad when blogs vanish. Most of the bloggers I followed back in 2013 are gone. I’ve visited a lot of the blogs/sites on your list. Book Outlet is dangerous. I could easily spend all of my money there.

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  6. Thanks for the shout out! I too had to take a hiatus due to divorce and change of jobs. I actually still post some reviews on Goodreads to keep up with my personal reading logs and incoming review books. I am hoping to be ready to reappear on my blog daily after the holidays!

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