Happy new year! One week into the new year and I've been super busy! I wanted to jump on and show what I'll be reading this month. One book to add is The Poet X, which I should receive from the library this week along with Confessions.

I'm taking the month to spend more time writing by including my GoScribbler box and started a 7 day writing challenge. I've got quite a bit lined up this month so feel free to catch up here: http://bit.ly/2SBL0bX

A fantastic collection of magical realism and science fiction. Some stories we're downright bizzare but Sachdeva's language kept me interested the entire time. It absolutely disrupted the flow of books I read this year and I'm thankful for that. It's good to try something different every now and then. If you're looking for a break from the norm or excellent short stories, this is it.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Ever get so angry you could stab someone with a glass shard and repeatedly bash her head in? Me neither. Working for a fashion magazine is driving Anya St. Clair to murder. Fat shaming and racism are only two battles she fights along with snobby, backstabbing gossipers. This dark satire throws its shots at the fashion industry but falls flat with empathy for our main character. However, it's still a solid read.

🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

bit.ly/2Pd2Uiy

It's only been a week since our last meeting and since it's began I've been submitting reviews but I want to switch it up. The women who participate are such gifted writer's it inspired me to get back to writing fiction and I want to present a fiction piece next month. I just need a good piece out of the blurbs I've been jotting down all month to be good enough to expand upon before the 17th. 🥺 #nanowrimo #nano18

Eleven captivating stories take place in the heart of our nation's capital and revolve around the black women and girls that reside there. Acker beautifully addresses our struggles for acceptance and the lessons taught from each expression of it. She challenges the stereotypes with intimate looks into each girl and woman's life, offering a narrative that would likely go overlooked.

🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

bit.ly/2Bu5rkG

With the intimacy and vulnerability of a best friend, Robinson encourages us to laugh at her mishaps while reflecting on our own. The collection of essays is humor and honestly blended in harmony. From the love-hate relationship with feminism, money management, interracial dating and phone calls with Oprah and meeting Bono twice, there's a story for everyone to love along with her welcoming storytelling.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

600+ words in an hour has been my biggest accomplishment since #nanowrimo started. I may try to write again before bed, but I do want to elaborate on yesterday's piece even after this month. I may use it as the piece for the December writer's meetup.

Even this update is a day late. Last week was trash writing wise. I did find the time to finish my book, so there is one success. I also found a blog that has excellent writing prompts for pairings, so I did get to put my characters in a situation I had never considered and I enjoyed it!

Turned out to be a lazy weekend but I did start on the 1st like I had intended to. I have tomorrow off, so I plan to spend an equal amount of time reading and writing. I at least have the beginning to my first short story and progress is what matters.💪 #nanowrimo #nano2018

I'm already a third through the first book, but this month I've focused on feminist reads and the black experience. The first is a collection of essays and the second is a collection of short stories, both different from my usual reads.

bit.ly/2yJdvMM

Coles delivers a resonating debut that deserves as much recognition as the popular social justice centered YA releases of the year. Though slow leading to the story's turning point, it is a timely, heartwrenching glimpse into brotherhood, grief and racism but also a reminder that even in the darkest moments following a loved one's death, we as survivors must continue that legacy and still forge our own.

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

In Stage's debut, Suzette fights for her life and marriage that her mute daughter threatens to take away. While it is a quick read, some of her daughter's dark dealings are unrealistic for a child to plan and execute and her husband's willingness to fall for the simplest manipulations can be frustrating. However the book's creep factor makes it perfect for the month.

⭐⭐⭐/5

Happy spooky season! 👻

This month I'm excited because both books are debuts and have a dark, diabolical theme fitting for the month.

Baby Teeth follows a mother and her mute first-born whose increasingly disturbing behavior threatens her marriage and her very life.

Akhtar puts a creepy twist on her previous career penning #Fashion Victim, where an editor's obsession with a rival turns deadly when a promotion is at stake.

Don't tresspass these pages unless you're looking for a darkly humorous, fast-paced read about teens cussing their way through an island full of contracted killers. Filled with decapitations, exploding body parts and other grusome ways to go, this is perfect for the spooky season ahead. A sequel is slated for summer 2019 release.

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Heng's debut is a premonition of what's to become of our current obssession with living long lives. Life, death, love and sacrifice are examined in a futuristic setting, reminding us that human emotion last longer than the body ever will.

⭐⭐⭐/5