I love to get lost in a good book, you as well if you’re reading this.  🙂  Yet the reality is that I bought far too many books in 2021 that have no chance of being read before the ending of this year.  And that not only upsets me but gets me a wee bit mad at myself as well.  I read for pleasure, I review here on Happily Ever After Romance because I love sharing those books and thoughts with other readers – and if another review helps an author, well, I’m all for that.  Still.  Purchased books do help authors and publishing houses, but unread books don’t do a damned thing for anyone, right?

So, I honestly have to come up with another way of getting the books I’ve purchased read in a more timely fashion.  Personally, I don’t care what year a really good book was published, but authors and publishing houses do. *shrugs*  Add to the overload problem is my addiction to series or duets.  *sigh*  Yeah, that adds to the books that need to be read closer to the publication date.  So what’s a book-loving female to do?

I could buy fewer books.  Okay, okay you can stop laughing now.  I know that’s not going to happen.  I could limit the series that I get started on to a more “reasonable” number each year — but where’s the reading fun in that?!

I think I might stop the “big book hauls” in 2022.  It’s knowing that these unread titles are on the Kindle that is driving me batty over all of this.  If I know what’s available or releasing each month (still have my TBR pages only as a list of what to buy not book hauls) then I could simply buy the next book as I finish reading the one before.  But, again… where is the fun in that?  Grabbing those monthly book hauls is a big part of why I even have this blog – to share that anticipation and the fun of having multiple books just waiting for me, ya know?

See… here’s an example of my reading dilemma.  Last weekend I picked up an older starter to a series book from earlier this year.  I’d felt no great need to get to it right away, and thought it would be a pleasant way to pass an afternoon.  Well!  I ended up loving that story and that world so much that I binge-read all the books in that series (so far) over the weekend.  If I hadn’t originally “book haul” bought those books earlier this year, then I never would have discovered the amazing stories within and I would have missed out on a reading experience that I now cherish because of that chance I took on this series months ago.  So.  I’m really left with the original question on how to read more timely — and I don’t think there is an answer that fits every reader.

I am noticing that, at least with Harlequin releases, there are some “Lines” that although I’ve bought the books I’m just not reading quickly.  They sit around waiting for me for weeks, months at a time.  So perhaps those “Lines” aren’t ones that are keeping my attention right now and I need to move on from them (temporarily at least).  It’s not as if there aren’t enough Harlequin “Lines” to keep me busy each month, right?!

The truth is that I’ve no clue how to read any faster, keep only current titles being reviewed, or really want to stop my fun, anticipated “book hauls” each month (from Harlequin and others).  There are only so many hours in a day for reading, I do have other life commitments beyond the pages of a really good book like most people do.

I think, honestly, I just have to convince myself to “Chill” about this obsession with getting books read within the month they were published — because, honestly for me, that’s never going to happen.  Book tour reads, NetGalley ARCs, author ARCs… those will always come first, they have to or I lose credibility as a romance book reviewer (remember, this isn’t my only blog).  So, I need to relax, get back to simply enjoying the books and sharing those opinions with you all, and maybe “Chill-lax” a bit more about timing.

If anyone has some great words of wisdom I’d love to hear them in the comments.  🙂

For now, excuse me ‘cos I have got a book calling my name.  *waves*