D-O-double G

 The Doggfather by Snoop Dogg

The content was super interesting, but my issues were with the styling of the book. It was not chronological; sometimes it would be and then Snoop would jump around, then come back to the main topic before jumping around again. Plus, while it was written in 1st person he would occasionally switch to 3rd person and stop saying "I" and instead refer to himself as "Snoop" which was weird. I liked learning about his life growing up, how he got involved with the gang, that while the gang might be big there are small sub-gangs, and how he came to be in the rap game. I knew that he was on trial for murder, but until reading this book had no idea about the details of the case, so that was interesting. Also, this book published in 1999, which means it only chronicles his life up to the innocent verdict. It would be interesting to read another book about what has happened since then.

1st and Only Attempt at Manga

 Vampire Knight vol. 1 by Matsuri Hino 

Not my jam. I read this to complete one of my tasks on my reading challenges. I followed the directions and read it in the correct order, but did not like it. It was in black and white and the characters were not distinct enough, not because they were ethnic but because they were wearing similar outfits, were occasionally wet so their hair was similar, and nobody had any defining features. Also, it was repetitive, as in it literally said the same thing over and over. I will not be adding manga to my regular reading rotation.

12 Years Later

 Someday my Prince by Christina Dodd

This takes place 12 years after the previous book. Dominic is working as a mercenary. The only member of his crew that is left is Brat, and her daughter Ruby. He takes one last job to set them up for life. This job requires him to pose as a suitor to the princess of a small country that neighbors his home country. But, while posing as her suitor he convinces both her and her father agree that he would be a good choice to be her new bodyguard. While he is there, he is supposed to figure out what makes this small country so wealthy. But, turns out the guy that hired him has a spy on the inside as well. So, when he and the princess get close and she just tells him; they have a trade deal with his brother. He deflowers her and then leaves to tell his boss, but he see the princess's maid leaving. So, she sold him out first. The princess gets put in prison. Dom shows up. But, she already had a plan and was able to get herself out. Brat breaks out Dom. She and her father take back their kingdom. Before Dom showed back up, he begged his brother for help and his army showed up to help. Dom tells the king he wants to marry his daughter. They don't get married, but they do reconcile at the end of the book. I do not like secret keeping as a trope, so this was not great. It was slow and not as good as some of her other books.

Poor Ending

 Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams

Queenie was incredibly hard to like as a main character because you were watching her self destruct and there was nothing you could do about it. I just wanted to shake her and tell her to stop. But, at the same time she was hard to not like because she was so relatable. Now, I have never had to deal with the micro-aggressions or blatant racism that she faced, but I have spiraled because of a boy so I get it, to an extent. I HATED Cassandra. She was a bully and a taker. I liked it better for Queenie when they weren't speaking because she struggled enough with her doubts, she didn't need the extra negativity in her life. Her other two friends were great; they vocalized their worries for her, acknowledged the situation, and helped her. When she finally started therapy they were supportive. I liked that her grandfather was her biggest supporter about starting therapy; and that his support changed the minds of everyone else in her family. It was good to see Queenie grow, learn to use the therapy skills in life, and share them with her mother, which in turn helped her rebuild her relationship with her mother. I did not like her boss; but came around to her in the end with how she handled the letter from Ted and apologizing about the whole situation. I wanted more of a happy ending. This just ended; it felt unfinished. Queenie's story was not done with the end of this book, but it did not seem like there was a set up for a second book either. I would have liked it more if the ending felt more complete. Part of me wanted her to get back together with Tom. Yes, she had the big revelation where she deleted his number, but even that felt incomplete. I was glad she was able to go on the date, realize she didn't like him, and leave without sleeping with him. I wish she wouldn't have gone back to his place, but that wouldn't have been as impactful for her. I'm just not satisfied. Queenie had all of this growth, but her story doesn't feel complete.

Finally Done with this Series

 Fae: Crowned by Eva Blackwing 

The writing was a little better, and by a little I mean barely. The story was not. The characters are still one dimensional and inconsistent. The lore is still underdeveloped. We knew that More was going to save the day because despite the fact that she has zero training and even less knowledge she is the best ever. *eye roll* Also, it was obvious that nobody on team More was going to get killed so there was no real concern for or about the characters. It was incredibly predictable. I had more fun complaining about the story to my bestie than I did actually reading it. I will not be reading anymore from this author.

Two of my LEAST Favorite Tropes

 The Earl Takes a Fancy by Lorraine Heath 

Again with the age gaps. This is one of my least favorite tropes (it alternates being in the bottom spot with pregnancy, and secret keeping/miscommunication). And there was no reason for this age gap to exist. Fancy is 19 and making her debut with the help of her siblings, who despite being part of the nobility through their marriages are still not accepted by the ton. He is 8 years her senior and a widower. It's not as bad of an age gap as some, but he's 27 and she's 19 and it's gross. Plus, she is written to act much older and be much wiser than 19, so there truly was no need for her to be that young. She knows that her one purpose in life is to land a titled gentleman, regardless of how she feels about him because that is what her family has worked so hard for. Mick caves and agrees to give her the bookshop that she wants and one of her customers is handsome, kind, and she is smitten. They start spending time together. Then they start spending time together. He is renting a room in one of Mick's apartment buildings, hiding from the ton. It has been a year since his wife died from an illness and she wrote a letter that was published saying how the ladies should go to him and help him find love again. He was being bombarded with callers so he ran away. When he meets Fancy he does not tell her who he really is, instead just going by his last name  Matthew Summersby (name not title). She falls for him. Hard. Then, she ends up getting tricked by a man into being seen alone in the library, with him kissing her. She did not want to be kissed. She told him no. He kissed her anyway. And people were outside on the balcony and saw so now they have to get married. He thinks the worst of her because that is how his first wife became his wife; he doesn't even listen to her side just believes the gossip and stops talking to her. She shows up at a trial that she knows he will be at because he is the witness and that is when she discovers who he really is. She also goes to the family meeting where the compromiser is going to ask her brother for her hand and she tells him no. Then, even though she knows she will be treated poorly, she wants to leave society on her own terms, so she goes to one last ball. Well, it turns out, it's being hosted by Matthew's sister, but she didn't know that. He also uses that ball to make his return to society. And he is there when she shows up. After she is introduced, he makes a big scene on the stairs and asks her to marry him, she agrees. Also, one of her wedding presents is the deed to her bookshop; he and Mick worked it out so that they can find a way around the women can't own property thing. I liked this story without the age gap; it was unnecessary. Yes, it also had the secret keeping so two of my least favorite tropes, but he wasn't keeping the secret to be malicious, he was doing it for his own peace so it wasn't as bad. I am looking forward to the final book in this series, mostly so I can be done with this series and this author.

Witches and Fae

 The High Mountain Court by A.K. Mulford

I do not like age gaps, but for the most part it was not terrible. Remy being the missing fae princess was not that big of a surprise. However, her having two living siblings was a surprise. And then, her getting her brother back to just have him die was devastating. Her younger sister being so aloof was so sad. Her relationship with Heather and Frenin was so sweet, but Heather sacrificing herself to save Remy was heartbreaking. I liked the friendship that developed between Remy and Hale's warriors. And that the prince of the North being an ally was surprising. Hale was great. I got over the age gap pretty quickly because he didn't treat her like she was only 19, and she acted older, mostly because of the trauma. Her taking her place as the Queen of the Mountain Court was a good ending and it set things up nicely for a sequel.This had action, adventure, revenge, romance, and magic. If it weren't for the age gap it would have been a 5* read. However, I cannot wait to read the next one!

Self Help

 Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis 

This was very real and I appreciated this. However, I was not expecting this to have such a heavy religious focus. I did not know anything about Rachel Hollis before reading this book, I just thought the title was cute. I like that she narrated her own audiobook. I like that she supported therapy and it's benefits so much. This was very consumable and it was nice to hear an influencer be so open about her struggles, which were very universal to many women. I enjoyed it, but will probably not be reading more books from her because of the religious themes.

Recommened by my SiL

 Bride by Ali Hazelwood 

While this is only my 2nd Ali Hazelwood book, I really enjoy her work. Lots of this book was predictable, but I still really liked it. I knew that Lowe and Misery were mates, but her trying to get information out of him because she was told that his mate was involved in the switch when they were married, but that was just a lie. It was really cute. However, I was surprised that her father was not only behind the attempted poisoning, but was also the one who kidnapped her best friend.  All of it was so cute and it set things up nicely for a second book.

Just as Bad as Book 1

 Fae: Beginning by Eva Blackwing 

The writing did not improve any in this book and the story was worse because it is pretty obvious that she did not do any planning before writing since the lore was still not well developed. There were too many inconsistencies with the characters; the men are all still very one dimensional, and More is still acting like two different people, swinging wildly from 'all powerful' to 'I'm just a baby' and back. We added in the Camelot lore, except now Arthur is another one of her mates. And human John is apparently not actually human, but is from one of the other realms. And the fae realm, possibly others, are being poisoned, but only the people who are working against More and her boy toys. Also 80s reference earth boyfriend gets kidnapped at the end because apparently dragons can also shapeshift or take on the guise of other beings in their human forms. Like I said, the lore is not well developed. I am listening to this series because I cannot believe how bad it is, and I'm having fun sending my bestie voice messages about it. But, I will be glad when it's done and I will be avoiding this author in the future.

History!

 How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective 

edited by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

Interviews are not my jam. Historical documents and primary sources are. So this was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I really enjoyed the introduction with it's background information and the actual Combahee River Collective Statement, but I did not enjoy the interviews; they were too meandering. Three of the four interviews were women from the CRC, and the final was one of the founders of BLM. My favorite interview was Beverly Smith (the second interview) because she was not only the most accessible, but she stayed on topic the best, and her approach to the interview resonated more than the others. Despite the fact that interviews are not my favorite way to consume information, this was interesting and I am glad that I read it.