Review - How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Came by Sarah Strohmeyer

How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True by Sarah Strohmeyer

Series: Standalone

Published by Balzer + Bray on April 23 2013

Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult

Pages: 320

Rating: 3/5 stars

When cousins Zoe and Jess land summer internships at the Fairyland Kingdom theme park, they are sure they've hit the jackpot. With perks like hot Abercrombie-like Prince Charmings and a chance to win the coveted $25,000 Dream & Do grant, what more could a girl want? 

Once Zoe arrives, however, she's assigned to serve "The Queen"-Fairyland's boss from hell. From spoon-feeding her evil lapdog caviar, to fetching midnight sleeping tonics, Zoe fears she might not have what it takes to survive the summer, much less win the money. 

Soon backstabbing interns, a runaway Cinderella, and cutthroat competition make Zoe's job more like a nightmare than a fairy tale. What will happen when Zoe is forced to choose between serving The Queen and saving the prince of her dreams?

This is a difficult review to write simply because a lot of time has passed since I read this book and it honestly hasn’t left a very strong impression on me. I remember most of the events of the book, but it didn’t elicit a single strong emotion from start to finish. I wasn’t expecting How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True to be an earth-shattering, life-changing book, but I did expect a little bit more gravity and impact than what I received.

How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True follows cousins Zoe and Jess as they spend the summer between eleventh and twelfth grade (AKA junior and senior year if you’re American) interning at a fairy-tale theme park in New Jersey. The relationship between Zoe and Jess was rather refreshing in that they have been best friends practically since birth and they are absolutely, entirely supportive of each other in every way. These girls have a friendship to be envied. The only problem is that they are both itching to receive the $25,000 cash prize given to two exemplary interns at the end of each summer: one girl and one boy. Zoe needs the money to pay off medical bills, while Jess needs it due to her parents financial crisis and its effect on her dream of attending NYU. The solution to this problem is kind of cheesy and all too convenient, but it fits the book. This book is very much about fairy-tale endings and happily ever afters, and while that may bother the more cynical readers (re: me), it isn’t entirely a bad thing. It can be nice to see everything turn out okay in the end every now and then.

The romance in How Zoe Made Her Dreams (Mostly) Come True is pretty predictable, but cute. It’s misdirected by a crush on a not-so-nice guy and Zoe spends a large portion of the book completely blind to Noah’s charms. The scene at the lake/pond (I have the worst memory!) was adorable. So sweet.

The part of the book I struggled the most with was Zoe’s job. She was basically an assistant, even though that’s clearly not what she signed up for, and she did her job almost entirely without complaint despite the fact that the Queen, who I think is supposed to be like the park manager, was legitimately insane. I wouldn’t have made it two days in that job, especially given that it was completely unexpected. It bothered me that the Queen never seemed to be doing any real work. She had serious entitlement issues and I found myself spending most of the book longing to punch her in the ovaries. It just didn’t add up that this park could be run by one inept crazy woman and a bunch of teenagers (plus some security guards who didn’t really seem to care about their jobs at all). It was very unbelievable that a park could have any semblance of efficiency with such a flawed employee framework. It annoyed me and honestly affected my enjoyment of the book. I don’t like when things don’t make sense.

Honestly, I probably won’t read any more of Sarah Strohmeyer’s books. This one was the only one that really interested me, and it was a fluffy heap of cotton candy of a book, which I’ll repeat, isn’t always a bad thing. It just didn’t work for me. I think that has a lot to do with target audience – I kind of felt like Strohmeyer was dumbing her book down in a way. Maybe not even intentionally, but it still gave me a sense that there was something missing.

Stacking the Shelves {1}

It's been a very long time since my last weekly wrap-up post, so I decided to try something a little different and see what all the fuss is about Stacking the Shelves (hosted by Tynga's Reviews). I like reading these posts on other people's blogs, and I've bought/received/borrowed a TON of books in the past couple of weeks.

BOUGHT:

Rebel Angels - Libba Bray
The Sweet Far Thing - Libba Bray
The Raven Boys - Maggie Stiefvater
Everything Leads to You - Nina LaCour
Seraphina - Rachel Hartman
The False Princess - Eilis O'Neal
The Diviners - Libba Bray
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making - Catherynne M. Valente
Days of Blood & Starlight - Laini Taylor
Daughter of Smoke & Bone - Laini Taylor 

WON:

Dangerous Girls - Abigail Haas (thank you Charnell!)
Dangerous Boys - Abigail Haas (thank you Charnell!)

BORROWED:

Love in the Time of Global Warming - Francesca Lia Block

Her Dark Curiosity - Megan Shepherd (read)

Perfect Escape - Jennifer Brown

Reality Boy - AS King

Noggin - John Corey Whaley

Rebel Belle - Rachel Hawkins

Ruins - Dan Wells

Escape Theory - Margaux Froley

The Dream Thieves - Maggie Stiefvater

Something Strange and Deadly - Susan Dennard

Lips Touch: Three Times - Laini Taylor

Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas

Crown of Midnight - Sarah J. Maas

READ THIS WEEK:

It's been a slow reading week because I've been thrust back into the worlds of school and work simultaneously. I'm taking five upper level classes this semester so I'm completely inundated with required readings, not to mention the upcoming onslaught of assignments. I haven't had a ton of reading time, but I'm trying to get in as much as I can.

CURRENTLY READING:

Review - Jackaby by William Ritter

Jackaby by William Ritter

Series: Standalone

Published by Algonquin Young Readers on September 16 2014

Genres: paranormal, historical fiction, young adult

Pages: 304

Rating: 3 stars

Newly arrived in New Fiddleham, New England, 1892, and in need of a job, Abigail Rook meets R. F. Jackaby, an investigator of the unexplained with a keen eye for the extraordinary--including the ability to see supernatural beings. Abigail has a gift for noticing ordinary but important details, which makes her perfect for the position of Jackaby’s assistant. On her first day, Abigail finds herself in the midst of a thrilling case: A serial killer is on the loose. The police are convinced it’s an ordinary villain, but Jackaby is certain it’s a nonhuman creature, whose existence the police--with the exception of a handsome young detective named Charlie Cane--deny. 

Doctor Who meets Sherlock in William Ritter’s debut novel, which features a detective of the paranormal as seen through the eyes of his adventurous and intelligent assistant in a tale brimming with cheeky humor and a dose of the macabre. 

As you probably know, Jackaby has been described as a cross between Sherlock and Doctor Who. Unlike most people, I was somewhat wary of this comparison. Don’t get me wrong, I like Doctor Who and I’ve seen the first two seasons of BBC’s Sherlock (though Elementary is superior in every possible way). The problem that these two shows share is that they are both led by the same misogynistic pig of a showrunner: Steven Moffat. This guy is an absolute tool. He’s responsible for running Doctor Who right into the ground, and he’s a self-congratulating, arrogant, pompous jerk-off. Clearly this is something I feel strongly about.

So! Coming back to Jackaby – I was interested to see how Ritter would put his own spin on the commonalities between Sherlock and Doctor Who and whether he would manage to allay some of the more offensive aspects of the two shows he is clearly pulling inspiration from. And yes I know that both Sherlock (the original stories and the franchise) and Doctor Who existed long before Moffat came around, but upon reading this book it is obvious that BBC Sherlock and Moffat’s era of DW are Ritter’s primary inspirations.

Thankfully, Jackaby is a pretty woman-friendly novel. It didn’t strike me as particularly offensive in any way, which I am grateful for. However, I did find it lacking in a few other ways. Though the main character, Abigail, has her interesting points, I felt that she lacked in depth. She is very trusting of the people around her – she is a young woman all alone on an unfamiliar continent in the late Victorian period and she struck me as incredibly naïve and accepting. Rather than doing any planning, Abigail whirled from event to event without any real agency. The only times she showed any backbone were when she ineffectually threw books at the villain and when she argued with Jackaby at the end of the book. For the most part, she just went with whatever was going on around her without much question. I found her almost instant acceptance and trust in Jackaby very unrealistic. I find it hard to believe that a woman in her position would be so unguarded.

I also found Jackaby trying as a character. He was incredibly inconsistent. It was as though Ritter was attempting to combine Sherlock Holmes and the Doctor into the same character, but it failed completely. His eccentric nature was irritating rather than endearing, and he constantly bounded between the positivity of the Doctor and the misanthropy of Sherlock. It was exhausted and simply didn’t make sense.

The three other principle characters – Charlie Cane, Jenny, and Detective Marlowe – are very hollow. We know very little about any of them beyond their surface characteristics. The semi-romance between Charlie and Abigail is very stilted and hard to support. I have no idea what exactly Abigail liked about Charlie, and vice versa.

Finally, the supernatural elements lacked finesse. The mystery was incredibly obvious (I figured out who the villain was the first time he was introduced) and the mythology just wasn’t that interesting. I did like how magical creatures were everywhere, but I wish there was an explanation for why Jackaby happened to be able to see what no one else could. It struck me as all too convenient that only one person in the entire world had the ability to witness the paranormal creatures of the world.

Though I enjoyed reading this book and didn’t find it grossly appalling, I find that a closer examination is poking holes all over the text and exposing more and more things that just didn’t add up for me. I wouldn’t tell anyone not to read this, but I don’t think I’d purchase it either. It just wasn’t as good as it could have been, and I found it rather disappointing as a whole.

Bookish Spotlight - Space!

Today's post was inspired by the fact that I recently read and was subsequently disappointed with These Broken Stars, which I wanted so badly to like. I mean, it's set in SPACE. How can that possibly go wrong? Unfortunately, it really did in this case, which led me to this post. Today I'm going to shine a virtual spotlight on a few other space books that are worth reading!

Salvage by Alexandra Duncan

I will be the first person to admit that the beginning of this book is quite the slog. It was not fun to read, but once it gets going it REALLY gets going. 

The first few chapters are dedicated to acquainting the reader with the society on the Parastrata, the spaceship on which main character Ava was born and raised. It is really confusing and the way that the characters speak is frustrating to say the least. Their dialect is strange and takes some getting used to. 
It gets really awesome when Ava returns to Earth and experiences some serious culture shock. This book isn't as action packed as most space books as it's more of a character driven story, but it's well worth reading. It's one of my favourite space reads.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Okay, so we don't actually get to experience much of space until Cress, but you have to read Cinder (and Scarlet) to get there! I mean, you could pick up Cress first if you really want to, but it might not make that much sense. 

A large chunk of Cress takes place on a remote satellite where Cress is kept prisoner. Some bits also occur on various spaceships, and on the moon. Yeah, moon colonies. It's fantastic. This one is a little more fantasy and a little less hard sci-fi, but I'm hella okay with that. Heavy science fiction makes my head hurt sometimes.

Aaaand there are a few other YA books set in space, like Across the Universe, Avalon, Inside Out, and Starglass, but I have yet to read any of those!

Have you read either of these books? What about the ones I haven't checked out? Would you recommend any of them in particular? What are your favourite space books?

TTT - Underrated Fantasy Authors

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. 

Each week a new topic is given and weeks topic is:

Top Ten Underrated Fantasy Authors

Jacqueline Carey

One of my favourite authors of all time. Carey's books are pretty heavy and aren't for everyone (there's some material that may be off-putting for some people) but Kushiel's Dart is one of the best books I've ever read. She's been on my auto-buy list for many years now and I can't see her leaving it any time soon.

Juliet Marillier

The Sevenwaters series is absolutely beautiful. If you haven't read Daughter of the Forest, go pick it up right now. Go! I can wait! I may just need to re-purchase some of these because I can't find my copies anywhere.

Alison Croggon

So I never actually finished Croggon's first series, The Books of Pellinor. I own and have read the first two, but it was years and years ago and I will need to re-read them before I can read the last two books. I want to, I just haven't gotten around to it. Yet.

Susan Ee

Ee's first book, Angelfall, has garnered a lot of praise in the blogging community and it's well deserved. I recently read the second book in the series, World After, and it was just as engaging and exciting at Angelfall. Well worth the wait.

Rachel Hartman

I am absolutely in love with Seraphina, Hartman's debut novel. I'm make grabby hands at my screen every time I see the cover for Shadow Scale because I NEED IT NOOOOWWWW.

Kristen Britain

Another series I never finished, but that was really great. I read the first two books in Britain's Green Rider trilogy in high school, but by the time I got the third book out of the library I had completely forgotten the events of the first two! Time for a re-read?

Melina Marchetta

I'm pretty sure everyone in the blogging world knows how much of a genius Marchetta is by this point, but I find that she usually gets much more praise for her contemporary books than for her fantasy trilogy. And that's sad because the Lumatere Chronicles is AH-MAH-ZING. I read a lot of fantasy, and this trilogy is by far one of the best out there.

Malinda Lo

Lesbian Cinderella retelling? Don't mind if I do. I'll admit that I haven't read Ash yet, but I've read Huntress and it was great, and I can vouch for her sci-fi duology as well.

Eilis O'Neal

Have you not read The False Princess yet? Go read it. It's good. Really good.

Patricia C. Wrede

I'm pretty sure Patricia C. Wrede is quite well known, but I only just discovered that she wrote not only the Enchanted Forest Chronicles but Sorcery & Cecilia! How did I not know that??

Are you familiar with any of these authors? Have you read any of their books? What did you think of them? Have I convinced you to read anything from my list?

Review - These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner

Series: Starbound #1

Published by Disney Hyperion on December 10 2013

Genres: Science Fiction, Young Adult, Space

Pages: 374

Rating: 2/5 stars

It's a night like any other on board the Icarus. Then, catastrophe strikes: the massive luxury spaceliner is yanked out of hyperspace and plummets into the nearest planet. Lilac LaRoux and Tarver Merendsen survive. And they seem to be alone.  

Lilac is the daughter of the richest man in the universe. Tarver comes from nothing, a young war hero who learned long ago that girls like Lilac are more trouble than they’re worth. But with only each other to rely on, Lilac and Tarver must work together, making a tortuous journey across the eerie, deserted terrain to seek help.  

Then, against all odds, Lilac and Tarver find a strange blessing in the tragedy that has thrown them into each other’s arms. Without the hope of a future together in their own world, they begin to wonder—would they be better off staying here forever? 

Everything changes when they uncover the truth behind the chilling whispers that haunt their every step. Lilac and Tarver may find a way off this planet. But they won’t be the same people who landed on it.

These Broken Stars tells the story of privileged teenager Lilac LaRoux and lower-class soldier Tarver Merendsen, who are essentially shipwrecked on an isolated planet with no means of communication and no other survivors. It isn’t the most exciting premise and doesn’t offer a particularly insightful look into class politics, but I’ll admit that I really didn’t expect it to.

When Tarver meets Lilac, he is drawn to her because he glimpses her in a moment when she is not acting like the society dame she is expected to be. They have a short and unmemorable conversation before parting ways, and when they meet again Lilac is with her friends and realizes that she needs to more of less “put Tarver in his place”. Not because she wants to, of course, but because she’s protecting him. Duh.

What I wanted to do to Lilac

I was put off by both of the main characters from the very beginning of the story. Tarver is judgemental and obtuse while Lilac has been completely brainwashed by her status. She lies and manipulates people and then tries to excuse it because she’s protecting them. It’s ridiculous. The only useful skill Lilac has is an extensive knowledge of electrical circuitry, which saves her and Tarver from burning up with their spaceship, the Icarus (because it’s SUCH a great idea to name your spaceship after a figure of Greek mythology who succumbs to his own hubris).

Things improved in the characterisation department after the crash, but I still found myself agitated by the characters. Lilac in particular really grows throughout their journey, but there is a major event at the end of the book that absolutely ruined everything good this book had going for it. I just couldn’t take it seriously anymore and I honestly felt kind of betrayed. I stopped caring about what happened altogether. I found Tarver kind of irritating if only because he read as completely unrealistic. He never really had any flaws and I’m not down with that.

I was also unimpressed by the resolution to the “mystery” behind the spectral voices and visions plaguing Lilac and Tarver after the crash. I think that’s just a matter of personal preference, but I just didn’t like it. The world-building was also lackluster in that it was more or less non-existent. I know literally nothing about the society Kaufman and Spooner apparently created. I also thought the password for the locked door that they couldn’t figure out for days and days was ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS. It was pretty damn obvious.

 

The writing was pretty solid – I thought there were some beautiful passages and I didn’t find anything glaringly awful. However, I will say that I wish there was more of a masculine edge to Tarver’s narrative. His voice was very similar to Lilac’s as far as language goes.

I highly doubt I’ll be picking up the next book in this series, but who knows. I’m nothing if not a glutton for punishment. At least it wasn’t as bad as Taken!

Discussion: Netgalley is Killing Me

I have recently discovered that I have the awful habit of requesting books that I think I'll find interesting, only to find that they are completely not what I was hoping for. At all. Like, they're really bad. I try to expand my interests and try out new things, and it doesn't always work out well for me. I recently picked up a book that I THOUGHT was about the intersection of sex and the body positivity movement. And then I realised that it was a big old pile of body shaming dreck. NO THANK YOU.

And I don't know what to do. Can I just DNF it? Haven't I agreed to read this book and give it a fair shot? Don't I have to finish it and write a review saying all of the things I hated about it? I don't want to do that, but I need to give feedback, right? Otherwise my review ratio will go right down the toilet (not that it's not already pretty close to that).

I also recently got a book through Netgalley that was described as a lesbian fantasy novel. The blurb sounded awesome. It wasn't like anything I'd seen before. And then I started reading it and it was just weirdly written erotica. I don't do erotica. What do I do??? Maybe I just need to do some closer reading of descriptions before hitting that request button.

My face when I started reading Out of This World

What are your thoughts? What do you do when you request a book that is absolutely not what you thought it would be and you just can't bring yourself to read it? Do you push through and produce a crappy review or do you just pretend it doesn't exist like I do?

TTT - Characters That Would Be Sitting At My Lunch Table

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. 

Each week a new topic is given and weeks topic is:

Top Ten Characters That Would Be Sitting At My Lunch Table

Roux (Also Known As)

Roux is exactly the kind of extrovert that I look for in new friends. We would get along splendidly. She is sensitive enough that we'd be able to have some serious heart to hearts when necessary, but she's also undeniably fun to be around.

Thorne (Cress)

Thorne just seems like a fun guy to hang out with. You'd never know what kind of mischief and mayhem you'd end up getting into.

Blue & Gansey & Ronan & Noah (The Raven Boys)

Basically everybody but Adam because fuck Adam. I don't like Adam. This lot seems like quite the riot. Rather dramatic, but who wouldn't want to join in the search for Glendower?

Amber (Adaptation)

I mostly just want Amber to be my alien girlfriend.

Karou & Zuzana (Daughter of Smoke & Bone)

I recently re-read the beginning of Daughter of Smoke & Bone and was reacquainted with Karou & Zuz's banter pre-war. It's awesome. I want to be a part of that, please!

                       Rose (Vampire Academy)
It might get kind of confusing because we're both called Rose, but she'd be a pretty awesome friend. She definitely wouldn't be the sort to share her lunch, though...

Georgia & Shaun & Buffy (Feed)

These three are ever-entertaining. I mean, their introduction involves motorcycle trick and poking zombies with sticks. What more is there to say? Even without a zombie apocalypse, there's no way these three would ever be boring.

Cameron (The Miseducation of Cameron Post)

Cameron is more of an introvert than anyone else on my list, but I think that we'd get along very well. We have very similar personalities.

Jeane (Adorkable)
Another blogger? What? Yes, Jeane is kind of a dick sometimes, but I still think she'd be cool to hang out with. She's very quirky and eccentric and I appreciate that.













Franny (The Worst Girlfriend in the World)
Franny is basically a cooler version of who I was in high school, so clearly we'd get on like a house on fire. Plus she'd make me cute clothes. Yes please!









Do you think you'd get along well with any of these characters? Who would/did show up on your list?

Review - The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Catherynne M. Valente

The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There by Catherynne M. Valente

Series: Fairyland #2

Published by Feiwel & Friends on Oct 2 2012

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade

Pages: 258

Rating: 5/5 stars

September has longed to return to Fairyland after her first adventure there. And when she finally does, she learns that its inhabitants have been losing their shadows—and their magic—to the world of Fairyland Below. This underworld has a new ruler: Halloween, the Hollow Queen, who is September’s shadow. And Halloween does not want to give Fairyland’s shadows back. 

Fans of Valente’s bestselling, first Fairyland book will revel in the lush setting, characters, and language of September’s journey, all brought to life by fine artist Ana Juan. Readers will also welcome back good friends Ell, the Wyverary, and the boy Saturday. But in Fairyland Below, even the best of friends aren’t always what they seem. . . 

I never for a second doubted that I would love The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland…. There wasn’t a thing not to love. After the phenomenal first book in the series, I was thoroughly hooked. In fact, I even managed to read the second book within a year of reading the first, which is quite a feat for me!

The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There takes place a year after September returns to her home in Omaha, Nebraska. She itches to return to Fairyland, and searches for the Green Wind and opportunities to go back anywhere she can. She finally returns to Fairyland on her thirteenth birthday whilst attempting to read French books in a corn field. September arrives in Fairyland hoping to find adventure and excitement, though she doesn’t anticipate how needed she is. She is quickly thrust into the current upheaval faced by the residents of Fairyland – they are losing their shadows, and with their shadows their magic. September discovers that her own shadow, which she bargained away during her first visit to Fairyland, is the force behind the mass shadow exodus and takes it upon herself to stop Halloween (as September’s shadow has dubbed herself).

Like the first book in the series, this novel was incredibly creative. I envy Valente her ginormous imagination, but I’m so grateful to be able to read about all of these fantastical characters and events even if I am incapable of creating anything quite so magical myself. I was particularly enamoured with the tea and coffee family (whose names I unfortunately cannot remember!) and Aubergine the Night Dodo, who was absolutely lovely, though I’ll admit that every single character in this series is utterly unforgettable.

I was also impressed with the integration of September’s personal growth. She’s truly growing up, and you can see her maturing right before your eyes. Where she was a heartless child in The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland… she has begun to develop a heart and a conscious. She is no longer a child and it is evident in the choices she makes as well as the way that she is dealt with in the narration. There is a more melancholy streak in this book that in the first, and I think that is due to the fact that September is indeed becoming a teenager and is able to see the darkness through all of the beauty and brilliance of Fairyland. The inclusion of her father at the end of the book ripped my heart right out of my chest.

The sporatic illustrations throughout the book were beautiful and imaginative. I loved the way that the illustrator played with proportions and didn’t necessarily create images that directly translated exactly what was written. It really added to the reading experience.

My one source of confusion or annoyance in The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland… was that September’s shadow had her own name and her own identity, yet all of the other shadows went by their person’s name. For instance, Saturday’s shadow was called Saturday. I understood why this made sense for narrative purposes, as it illustrated the fact that they were two sides of the same person, but I thought it rather odd that Halloween was the one exception. Other than that, I was completely enraptured by this book and would recommend it to anyone regardless of age or gender or anything else. It’s the kind of book that makes me really appreciate what middle grade books have to offer and why they are so important. 

The Girl is Back

As you may have noticed, I took an impromptu break from blogging last week. I was feeling burnt out and was falling incredibly behind on my reviews and I had no motivation or inspiration for any other posts. I tried to write a post on how and why I truly suck at social media and I couldn't get past the first sentence. I took that as a sign that I needed to spend a little bit of time relaxing and not worrying all the time about a blog that no one even reads. 

I'm coming back to blogging this week feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. It's going to be a busy few months, but I think I can push through and juggle everything. It'll be difficult and my blog might occasionally take the back burner because school and work come first, but I really do love blogging. I love sharing my thoughts and feelings and making lists and trying to befriend other bloggers. It's like being part of a really cool club and I'm In no hurry to leave this time around. 

I've also just downloaded the blogger app on my iPhone, so I think that will be something of a godsend. It's so nice to be able to write posts (like this one) on my phone. Then I can go home and polish it up later on my computer. It's the sense of immediacy that I really like - I don't have to be at my computer to start writing a post.

ANYWAY I should be back to my regular posting schedule (Reviews Monday & Friday, Top Ten Tuesday, and random posts on Wednesday and/or Thursday). I'm also considering throwing in something on Sundays - maybe I'll join in on Stacking the Shelves? What do you think? What would you recommend I add to my post roster? I'm always open to suggestions!