Down the TBR Hole (23 of 24+)

You get 11 instead of 10 this week, because this is the end of the (initial) list! There’s no way I’m going to do a post for one book (especially because that book is a thumbs up, where’s the fun in that?). Next time, we’ll take a quick look at this project so far.

But for now, how many books are we going to cut from my Want to Read list?

This meme was created by Lia @ Lost in a Story—but Jenna at Bookmark Your Thoughts is the one that exposed me to this, and as my Goodreads “Want To Read” shelf is scarily long, I had to do this.

The Rules are simple:

Go to your Goodreads to-read shelf
Order on ascending date added.
Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books.
Read the synopses of the books.
Decide: keep it or should it go?
Keep track of where you left off so you can pick up there next week! (or whenever)

What distinguishes this series from the Mt. TBR section of my Month-end Retrospectives? Those are books I actually own while Goodreads contains my aspirational TBR (many of which will be Library reads). The Naming of the two is a bit confusing, but…what’re you going to do?

(Click on the cover for an official site or something with more info about the book)

	A Beginner’s Guide to Free Fall by Andy Abramowitz Blurb: A family drama about roller coaster engineer in career and family trouble, and his sister, an advice columnist whose life is as just as messy. My Thoughts: I really dug Abramowitz’s earlier novel, Thank You, Goodnight and am curious about what he’s got going on. Also, I bought this forever ago, so it has to stay. Verdict:
	Why Liberalism Works: How True Liberal Values Produce a Freer More Equal Prosperous World for All by Deirdre N. McCloskey Blurb: “With her trademark wit and deep understanding” McCloskey argues “for a return to true liberal values, this engaging and accessible book develops, defends, and demonstrates how embracing the ideas first espoused by eighteenth-century philosophers like Locke, Smith, Voltaire, and Wollstonecraft is good for everyone.” My Thoughts: If this is any good, this is exactly the political book I want to read right now. But…I just can’t. I just cannot bring myself to care, put the effort into this, or for endure the despair that’d settle in after I finish this and look at the world around me. Verdict:
	Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha Blurb: “A powerful and taut novel about racial tensions in LA, following two families—one Korean-American, one African-American—grappling with the effects of a decades-old crime. In the wake of the police shooting of a black teenager, Los Angeles is as tense as it’s been since the unrest of the early 1990s. Protests and vigils are being staged all over the city. It’s in this dangerous tinderbox that two families must finally confront their pasts.” My Thoughts: I had a friend *rave* about this a couple of weeks ago. That’s enough to keep it. I still would’ve because of the various reviews I saw around publication. Verdict:
	The Ten Commandments of Progressive Christianity by Michael J. Kruger Blurb: “A cautionary examination of ten dangerously appealing half-truths.” My Thoughts: I read this in May ’20 and wrote about it here Verdict:
	The Bard’s Blade by Brian D. Anderson Blurb: “Mariyah enjoys a simple life in Vylari, a land magically sealed off from the outside world, where fear and hatred are all but unknown. There she’s a renowned wine maker and her betrothed, Lem, is a musician of rare talent. Their destiny has never been in question…Then a stranger crosses the wards into Vylari for the first time in centuries, bringing a dark prophecy that forces Lem and Mariyah down separate paths. How far will they have to go to stop a rising darkness and save their home? And how much of themselves will they have to give up along the way?” My Thoughts: I’ve heard/read nothing but good things about this, and until I started this sentence had intended on keeping it. But…I rarely make time for fantasy any more, and I know I’m not going to get around to this. Verdict:
	The Rome of Fall by Chad Alan Gibbs Blurb: A 90s rock star comes home to be with his dying mother and teaches at his old high school in a retelling of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. My Thoughts: Proof that I actually read things from this list and I don’t just archive them here…I read this last August and wrote about it here Verdict:
	A Blight of Blackwings by Kevin Hearne Blurb: The sequel to A Plague of Giants, about an invasion that devastates a continent, kicks off huge cultural/religious changes, and (it seems) inspires a movement to fight back. My Thoughts: Yeah, I just got done saying I don’t make time for Fantasy the way I want to. But I thought volume 1 in this series rocked. I just need to force myself to start this and I know I’ll love it. Also, I have the hardcover within arm’s reach, I pretty much have to. Another also: Kevin Hearne. Verdict:
	Critical Point by S.L. Huang Blurb: The third Cas Russell novel. Nuff said. My Thoughts: This was one of the victims of the busy-ness around my move last year, I’m getting to it shortly. Verdict:
	Something That May Shock and Discredit You by Daniel M. Lavery Blurb: “a hilarious and stirring collection of essays and cultural observations spanning pop culture—from the endearingly popular to the staggeringly obscure…From a thoughtful analysis of the beauty of William Shatner to a sinister reimagining of HGTV’s House Hunters, and featuring figures as varied as Anne of Green Gables, Columbo, Nora Ephron, Apollo, and the cast of Mean Girls…a hilarious and emotionally exhilarating compendium that combines personal history with cultural history to make you see yourself and those around you entirely anew.” My Thoughts: Texts from Jane Eyre was a fun read, but the synopsis of this one isn’t clicking with me. Verdict:
	Broken by Don Winslow Blurb: “In six intense short novels connected by the themes of crime, corruption, vengeance, justice, loss, betrayal, guilt and redemption…a world of high-level thieves and low-life crooks, obsessed cops struggling with life on and off the job, private detectives, dope dealers, bounty hunters and fugitives, the lost souls driving without headlights through the dark night on the American criminal highway.” My Thoughts: I’m only waiting to finish The Border before I start this. Verdict:
	In Plain Sight by Dan Willis Blurb: “In 1933 New York, there are two kinds of magic, the all powerful sorcerers who use their abilities to acquire wealth and fame, and the runewrights who scratch out what meager spells they can to make a living. Decidedly in the latter category, Alex Lockerby uses his magic to aid him in his work as a private detective, consulting for the police on cases with mystical ties….” There’s more to the description, but who needs more? My Thoughts: This has been on my list since Bookstooge posted about it last March. It’ll be soon. Verdict: