February has been a great month for me. I finally learned how to drive. It has been a slow journey and I went through days of anxiety. However, my driving is getting better . Today I was able to overtake multiple trucks(the very slow ones) on my way to work. This is big deal for me since overtaking has been my biggest issue. My heart still beats so fast when I have to do it but I am getting it with time and practice. Also today for the first time, I was also able to park well and on my first try, woop woop! I hope it wasn’t a fluke though since parking has been my second nightmare.
Secondly, I have made so much progress with my thesis. I completed and submitted the first two chapters. I am currently working on the revisions as I prepare to defend my proposal.
Thirdly, my frustrations with blogging finally ended. All that pressure that I used to feel about blogging is now gone. I now focus on sharing my reviews and giving ‘love’ to those who give it back instead of trying to interact with way too many people yet half of them never even visit my blog. I post whenever I have something to share without feeling the pressure to do it regularly to keep the blog ‘alive’I also stopped worrying about stats. In short, blogging is now fun.
Finally, I now have over 800 followers. I hit 804 yesterday. Last year at a time like this, I had 48 followers so the blog has really grown. Thank you all for the support. It has been an amazing experience!
In matters books, I had mix fortunes. I read some really great books but I also had some not so good reads. I will only mention my favorite ones.
Not yet Reviewed
I Found You by Lisa Jewell
Click on the titles to read my reviews of the following books:
Bad Little Girl by Frances Vick
The Silent Wife by Kerry Fisher
The Fifth Letter by Nicola Moriarty
Blindness by Jose Saramago
Honorable Mention
The Blood of Emmett Till by Timothy B. Tyson- If you don’t know who Emmett Till is or if you would like to get more details about this case then you need to read this book.
March TBR
I am super excited about my March TBR. I have finally gotten to 81% on Netgalley and my ARCs for this month are few so I hope to read some of my own books too. This is progress for me because I have been reading way too many ARCs and neglecting my own books for a couple of months now.
ARCs
Say Nothing by Brad Parks
The Missing Ones by Patricia Gibney
When We Danced at the end of the Pier by Sandy Taylor
Trophy Child by Paula Daly
Own Books
Small Great Things by Jodi Piccoult
The Hairdresser of Harare by Tendai Huchu
The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena
On Black Sisters Street by Chika Unigwe
I hope that you enjoyed your February. Have a wonderful new month.
Happy March.
A Haven for Book Lovers 
Congratulations on the 80% on Netgalley! I need to read two ARCs to reach that, and I have five just waiting for me to read them. 😂
Thanks and you will get there. Your shelf is still manageable unlike mine lol. I still have 20 unread ARCs but luckily the publication dates are spread out so no pressure:-)
I just finished The Missing Ones and it was FANTASTIC! Can’t wait to see what you think!
Oh wow, I can’t wait to read it now. Glad to hear that you enjoyed it. I hope that I will too 🙂
Great TBR – Looking forward to your reviews. Five of these titles are also on my TBR.
It seems like we have the same kind of interest in books:-) Thanks you. Have a wonderful March and happy reading.
looks like you had a good reading month. I’m glad your frustration with blogging has ended. March also looks good. Happy reading!
Thanks Keeana. Happy reading to you too 🙂
Congrats on driving Diana! Now you can visit many places! I have the same pressure with blogging as you, but I’m glad you are focusing on the fun side of it now. Me too. I visit blog/comments when I can but most time I want to read and review because that’s one of the main reason I created the blog. Also, congrats to 81%!! I have yet to climb that ladder.. haha… and congrats on your thesis! that’s tough managing it all!
Thanks Jasmine and I totally agree with you. Reading and reviewing is why I created the blog too. I like the interactions with the community but at times, it can be overwhelming because there are so many wonderful blogs out there. However, I am slowly getting the hang of it and I am glad to hear that you are too.
All the best with your ARCs ratio, you will get there too.
Thank you and have a wonderful new month 🙂
Yes, the interactions is unbelievable, especially how far we are all apart.. half the world away, connected by the love of books 🙂
Congrats!! Both with your blog and driving (I am terrified of it :P) You always have the best thrillers in your blog! I love it! I am interested in trying Bad Little Girl. Also I’ve been wanting to read Small Great Things, since I’ve heard it’s pretty good. I will wait for your review on it first and on The Missing Ones! Have an awesome month! 😀
Thanks Joana:-) As for the thrillers, that is a huge compliment:-) If you are ever in the mood for a good, dark thriller then I definitely recommend Bad Little Girl. I will let you know about The Missing Ones and Small Great Things once I am done.
Have an awesome month too 🙂
You’re quite welcome! I will definitely read it! Already got it, now just need to find some time to start 😛
So many things to congratulate you on, Diana! First, hooray for learning to drive! Also, to go from 48 followers to 800 is UNBELIEVABLE. Astounding! And third, I’m so glad that you are having a good time blogging. 🙂
Thank you Laila. A lot has been going on and I am happy that most of it has been positive:-) I still can’t believe that 800 people are following this blog. It still feels surreal but I am definitely glad that I got to meet awesome people like you in the past year:-)
I’m so very happy for you my dear 🙂 Glad that you have more fun here! I always love seeing what books you’re reading and following your reviews!
Congrats with the driving. I have to say that I actually have been avoiding it because I am deathly afraid of being behind the wheel. I guess I’ll have to find my courage ❤
And congrats on all your progress with your thesis and with your NetGalley arcs (my percentage is deplorable ;P)
Hope you have a wonderful March in books and in your personal life! ❤
Thanks so much dear. Driving is not so hard. I have learned that its just about being confident and alert while you are doing it. I also used to be scared of it. It took me almost 2 months to finally start driving alone. I know that you will be good at it once you decide to give it a try 🙂
All the best with your ARCs. Thanks and have a wonderful March too ❤
Thank you, my dear! I’ll find the confidence once day!
Congratulations on the driving! That is huge. Also, I am really pleased to hear that you are enjoying blogging. I was just commenting something similar on someone else’s post recently, but I think that enjoying our own blogs should be the number one priority. You have such a wonderful blog full of informative reviews, and I personally love reading everything you post!
Thanks Charlotte. I am so happy about making progress with driving alone. As for the blogging, I totally agree with you. We need to enjoy the experience, otherwise there is no point to it.
Thanks for all the wonderful words. I like your posts too ❤
Driving is so scary! At least, I find it nerve-wracking. So, well done on the accomplishments!
You’ve achieved a lot and you should be proud of yourself! Congrats, sis 🙂
Thank you sis ❤ I am over at your blog. You have really inspired me.
CONGRATS are in order! Congrats on learning to drive! I didn’t get my license until I was 22, so thank God my friend chose to go to college with me because she was the driver. She was the one who started me driving. I had severe anxiety about driving, and even after I got my license I was very anxious and nervous about driving, and now I have no problems driving (except traffic and those who do not follow the rules of the road properly). CONGRATS! It is a big thing. I still don’t do good in reverse, but good enough that the tire dealer lets me drive my car in the bay myself (which they don’t let hardly any do).
YAY for finishing your thesis writing. That’s half the battle, right? Good luck with the rest of the process.
Your realizations about blogging pressures are something I still struggle with, and I have had a bad time of getting around to people this school year. (Seriously, I need a job change.) I need to take a page out of your book!
So proud of you! Driving!! That is something I don’t see myself doing haha But yay ❤ And kudos on the blogging pressure, I'll do the same as you 😀
haha I finally started driving to work so the daily driving is really helping me get better 🙂 Never say never lol. Perhaps you may want to learn how to do it someday. Thank you ❤
Congrats on all the achievements! ❤ And driving as well! I'm planning on getting my license finally this year as well; I already sorta know how to drive, I just haven't been doing it for the last nine years or so. xD Your March TBR looks great!
Thanks Yvo and good luck getting your license. For me it was opposite, I got licensed a few years ago but I didn’t have a car so I never got around to practicing until now 🙂
I imagine that can be tricky as well… I’m going to keep my fingers crossed it will all come back to me once I start practising again. 😉
So many successes Diana!! Congrats on driving, that in itself is a huge accomplishment:) I’m so happy you’ve reached a place where you’re having fun blogging…I have to tell you that’s good advice about giving “love” to those who do the same. I’ve been thinking I need to really filter through and focus on commenting and sharing with those who do the same for me. Blogging time is too short and valuable to continue trying to interact with and share reviews of those who don’t do the same
!!! CONGRATS, DIANA! This is a huge deal! Wow– learning to drive, making progress on your thesis, achieving a HUGE milestone for followers— I am in awe. You have done so much recently. I couldn’t be more impressed.
To me, the most important achievement of your last month is knowing that you should blog for you. Blog in a way that makes you happy. You should only have interactions which uplift you. I try to just blog for me, but it’s easy to get caught up in comparing yourself to everyone else. Don’t. Just be you and we will love you for it. 🙂
Congrats on 800 Diana but and even bigger congrats on learning how to drive, I’m still struggling with it and my anxiety just hits its peak when I’m in the car, I know that I’m not going to crash or die but my brain just slips into panic mode 😦 I’m hoping to get my licence this year but we’ll see how it goes.
I’m so bad and interacting sometimes it just gets overwhelming so sorry if I dont swing past your blog as much as I would like to, I’m trying to change that and do more blog hopping this month and catch up on all the posts I’ve missed out on 🙂