A Hope Divided Read-along ❤️

Love ❤️ the structure of read-alongs! 👏🏽 Took a second but get it now! 👏🏽 I think what I’ll do to participate is listen at 2x speed then only share comments within the daily chapters! Thanks for club organizers for doing the chapter guide! 👏🏽 Excited to delve in! Started late…. But I’ll catch up Tuesday 😉

Rereading A Hope Divided. Catching details upon my reread 👏🏽

Tuesday: Prologue – 8

Groundwork is well laid 👏🏽 Fascinated in the story more than my first read! 😂 Like rereading with the read-along! The playback speed higher but weirdly more focused 🤔 

Found myself trying to find what chapter I’m on.. Got lost in the story… A lot has already happened! 🤗

Wednesday: Chapters 9 – 14

The daily chapter summaries provided by my club moderators are SO awesome! Typically, I try to do 1) daily chapters 2) daily summaries 3) read thread so I can gauge our group discussion…

Thursday: Chapters 15 – 21

Not too much happened but major romantic developments in Chapter 19. Ewan and Marlie continue on their journey to Tenesee…

Might have found a new hack through these posts! 🙌🏽 I can C&P from Discord to messages then message myself 😂 In messages, I can ‘speak’ so its read to me 👏🏽

Friday: Chapters 22 – Epilogue

Thread until 840 am since I C$P…. Then I read the chapters, then I’ll read the daily summaries and the thread!

Ewan being protective over Marlie 😍 Women unsafe during war…

Caretaking less prominent in story 🤕 Both Ewan and the Union force… I enjoyed that part during my initial read…

Marlie’s aversion to Ewan’s touch… The romance was heating up too… Feel like this cold 🥶 period might be too late in the story… I understand Marlie’s reason… But I also understand Ewan… 🤷🏽‍♀️

Ewan’s injured declaration of love ❤️ Glad it happened yet knew it was coming when Ewan got injured…

Ends more on a happy for now (HFN) 😍👏🏽 I’m satisfied!

A Hope Divided by Alyssa Cole Book Review 📖

#2 in The Loyal League 

Read: April 2021

Star Rating (of 5): ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Trigger warnings: Enslavement, Enprisonment

Prevalent Tropes: Caregiving/Sick Bed

3-word Summary: Runaway finds mate ♥️

The set-up: Marlie is a healer and meets Ewen ♥️ They experience an inter-racial relationship during the civil war…

Thoughts 💭:

– Being black during the civil war…

– Being a woman 👩 during war…

– Joining secret organizations…

Movie/show rec: 🤷🏽‍♀️

A Hope Divided Reading Blog (Initial read)

Reading this for my book club as part of Spring Of Spies! 👏🏽 The club moderators planned for and selected books around spies in HR. This is my 2nd book of the season! My 1st read was Between The Devil And The Duke (please see my book review and reading blog!) Since I just read through audiobooks… werent able to find the 1st 2 books 📚… There are 7 titles for spring! 👏🏽 I was able to get audiobooks for 3/7 books 📚! 👏🏽

Looked up the synopsis, its a civil war romance. So I can expect inter-racial conflict…

Check-ins/updates:

Still lost in Chapter 3… Book gifts 🎁😍

Chapter 6

Story picked up after the prisonbreak 😄 Feel like the plot is slowly coming together 😂 My attention would wander a bit… Still unsure how this relates to being a spy… 

Indigo by Beverly Jenkins… Except she was a conductor for the underground railroad… But they have a sick bed/caretaking component, which I love ❤️ Still early on but it’s piqued my interest 😂

Chapter 17

Still no action whatsoever, this story got instinct the last couple of chapters… before that it was a little boring because nothing was really happening… 🤷🏽‍♀️ The paternity reveal made the play a lot more interesting 🤔 I still see a similarity with indigo but it only goes so far at the fact that both he and Galen were injured… this is like that, vastly different story lines though….

Chapter 22

I don’t know if it’s because I’m a nurse, but healthcare in the storyline piques my interest every time! That explains my love for the sick bed/caretaking trope commonly found in romance books 📚 Also interesting 🤔 how Marley-Ewen grew cold after intimacy…Oftentimes, nursing/caretaking helps women find a place they can help in when in war 👏🏽 I appreciate how the role helps women find a place 😄

End of book

Didn’t really get an HEA vibe… more like a HFN… Loced Ewen>Marley.. always felt one of her feet were out the door… Felt the end wrapped up too quickly…

Life Update 4/25/21

Mood: Returning to normal slowly… 👏🏽

Currently Reading: and loving Theiress Gets A Duke by Harper St. George

Walk it out: Still waiting for authorization… until then 1 block at a time….

Events I’m excited for: Not a big deal… but excited to go over to my partner’s house 👏🏽 Nothing out of my norm… but I just am!

Funny story 😂: Since I started to blog, I compose posts in my head 😂 My partner calls it cokposting 😂

Something inspirational: This week grateful a friend took me up on my offer and has enlisted my help!

👩‍⚕️ checklist!

Recently, I had the idea 💡 to make a checklist of things I need to adress with my dr(s). Feel it’s especially important since I haven’t seen any of my doctors in over a year…

I use Google keeps, which is a free application 😁 I’ve been using it to compile my TBRs. I love how you can share it! It makes your checklist electronic! No paper so no trash!

I put down “talking points”! Hopefully 🤞🏽 it’ll help me better remember what I want to address 🤔

This is how I want my treatment to go! Organized, prepared, and thorough! I know practitioners are busy ! I’m aware seeing multiple clients a day can be discombobulating, so let’s all help the process along!

Love ❤️ Google Keeps! I have multiple checklists going right now!

The Heiress Gets A Duke Book Review

The Heiress Gets A Duke by Harper St. George

#1 in The Gilded Age Heirress

Read: April 2021

Star Rating (of 5): ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Trigger warnings:

Prevalent Tropes: Marriage of convenience, Billionaire

The set-up: Evan, the Duke of Rothchild, must marry a Crenshaw heiress to save his impoverished Dukedoom…

3-word Summary: Duke ♥️ Heirress

Thoughts 💭:

  • Evan does back-breaking work to support his family…
  • August is an empowered woman 👩👏🏽
  • Enemies to lovers recipe 😋😂

Movie/show rec: 🤷🏽‍♀️

The Heiress Gets A Duke Reading Blog

Read it for my book club 🙌🏽 Its the April pick! 👏🏽

The general story line, brought to you by Amezon 😉 is Evan, the Duke of Rothchild, is to mary Violet Crenshaw. Not if August Crenshaw has anything to say about it… 😏

This is my 1st Giled Age American HR 👏🏽

Check-ins/Updates:

Story in my head at Chapter 2 😂 I must admit I’m intrigued… 🤔 More interesting just thinking about where this might go 😂

Chapter 6

Evan meets the Crenshaw sisters 👏🏽 More interested in August 😂

Enjoy the set-up! See the potential for angst and taboo 😂 Liked we got it early 😂 Now we have the rest of the book 😏 Honestly, just want to keep reading 😂 I want to know what will happen 👏🏽

August’s protectiveness feminds me of Kate from The Viscount Who Loved Me… If my comparison is correct, I know how this will go! 👏🏽😋

Chapter 17

August goes to Evan’s estate, understanding him more… It’s like he’s talking to her… Kind of like he sees her as his equal… 🤔

Enjoy the direction the story is going… Familiar in some ways yet different too… 🤔 

Feel giddy 😂 I think instances such as this shows why I enjoy enemies to. lovers romance 👏🏽 The banter 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 The determination to dislike them 😂

Violet walking in on them verifies their attraction 😂👏🏽 It was only time until someone sees!

End of Book

The book ended faster than anticipated… Felt there was an attempt at a 3rd act conflict but, no one can deny how much Evan loves August ♥️ So I laughed it was happening 😂 Instead of being mad 😡 Interesting 🤔 how the Crenshaw parents fell off the plot… I felt their presence throughout the story… Then they were gone 😂

Really loved Evan’s character! 👏🏽 The level of love for August 👏🏽 August was a likeable empowered heroine 🦸‍♀️👏🏽

From Blood And Ash Read-along Reading Blog

I read the series beginning February 2021, and really excited for this! Rereading a book fortifies my understanding 👏🏽 This read-along will be bundled with book reviews!

This is my 2nd readalong! Please see My 1st Readalong! too! 🙏🏾 This is structured similarly!

This is my 1st reread of From Blood And Ash! 👏🏽

Chapters 1-7

Feel asleep in chapter 6… 😂 Woke up chapter 25…

Chapters 8-17

Laid the ground work very well.. Fell asleep while reading… so fell asleep chapter 14…

Chapters 18-26

Lots of stuff goes down! All events were as I remembered it…

Chapters 27-33

Satisfied 😂 Enjoyed sharing that intimate moment with Poppy and Hok! Poppy deals with a lot of grief, I’m glad to see her experiencing the good with the bad… No way near equivalent but it’s something 😂

Chapters 34-End

This is my favorite book of the series thus far! 👏🏽 But was still one I can stay away from….

A lot happened… Moved fast and was interesting once you’re in it… Just takes some effort to pick up… Still rate it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!

Note: Chapters divided by event organizers

From Blood And Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout Book Review

#1 in From Blood And Ash

Read: 4/5/21 – 4/10/21

Star Rating (of 5): ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Trigger warnings: Death of a loved one, Physical abuse

Prevalent Tropes: Bodyguard, Hidden identity

3-word Summary: Bodyguard turned prince 😂

The set-up: Poppy is the maiden. One day Hok comes to join her gaurd…

Thoughts 💭: 

  • Identity made for you
  • Restrictions of an identity
  • Fake/hidden identities 😨

Movie/show rec: The Bodyguard 

  • Rec based on trope!

Vaccine 💉 Update

I feel like no one is safe YET 😱 Especially with variants abound, it’s best to return to the beginning of the pandemic 😷

As of JULY 22, 2021

Received my first shot of Moderna. Experienced 2 days of site soreness. Will receive my 2nd Moderna shot 4/13.

I will be receiving the vaccine 💉 with my parents and aunt. They are all who I received the 1st shot with.

The morning of was… stressful 😂 Thought 💭 I lost my confirmation… 😂 But found it! 👏🏽 😥

After the vaccine, I’m going to recover at my partner’s house with him and his family 😄 I’m very grateful to them 🤗 I still plan to call and check on my parents often… Still unsure how they’ll take the vaccine… 🤷🏽‍♀️

The vaccination seemed more lack the 2nd time…

To combat the site pain to be expected… followed these recommendations:

1. Drink lots of water 💧

2. Keep moving my arm. Arm rotations have helped me A LOT! 👏🏽

3. Take Vitamin D and C.

Consulted with my medical team 😂 (feiends and family in the healthcare field…) They said this list is what I should do…

I feel more and more people are getting vaccinated, let’s all experience a good process 🤞🏽

Fortunately I’m just feeling site soreness 🤞🏽Here’s to hoping it stays there way!

Common variants right now:

Delta – 1st appeared December 2020

Viruses normally mutate 😮 May need a booster eventually

More contagious 😷, may affect vaccinated as much

Affects kids 👨‍👩‍👦‍👦

Vaccinated individuals may still get COVID but may be as severe.

Becomming the dominant strain, at an alarming rate (accelerate the pandemic)

Still a lot to learn!

The main s:s of lost of taste and cough may not be pressent!

Cold-like S/S still present (fever, headache, sore throat, runny nose).

Prevalant in India and Britain. Already increasing in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgi, Mississippi, Missouri, and West Virginia.

Tried to include HOW it affects the body, common signs & symptoms (S/S), and where it is (from where it came from).

https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/5-things-to-know-delta-variant-covid

Alpha

Gamma

#listenwithprecious