February 01, 2023

Offbeat Offline: January 2023 (Back for Good?)


Welcome to Offbeat Offline, where I bring you up-to-date with what went on in my life during the month just gone, give you a sneak peek of my next shenanigans, and share my favourite posts of late!

What happened last month to yours truly? Some health drama leftovers for the hubs, then a change of pace (it seems like we're finally on the right track) - and a medical miscellanea for me. This wrap-up will also feature ARC approvals, book mail, hair issues (again) and utter tiredness...


📚 A GOOD BATCH. I read 2 novellas and 1 novel in January, including an ARC from NG, plus I finished rereading another novel I started at the end of last month...(The Valley and the Flood by Rebecca Mahoney - see my review plan below).
I read What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher (adult, sci-fi, mystery, horror - novella), a gift from the lovely Carrie. It has a peculiar horror aspect. Mini review on Goodreads.
  • BTW, I haven't read it yet, but I also received a copy of Smoke and Key by Kelsey Sutton (YA, afterlife) from Carrie above - it was part of her Christmas book package, except The Book Depository forwarded it separately, and I got it a bit later.


I read Tricks for Free by Seanan McGuire (adult, urban fantasy), Book 7 in the InCryptid series. Very entertaining! Mini review on Goodreads.
Lastly, I read an ARC of And Put Away Childish Things by Adrian Tchaikovsky (adult, portal fantasy - novella). Review to come closer to pub date, but I really liked it!


Speaking of approvals, I hit 13 ARC rejections in four months (did publishers become stricter in the last year or so?), and then, all of a sudden I was granted 3 review copies in under a week! The aforementioned And Put Away Childish Things, plus two books I haven't started yet - This Is the Way the World Ends by Jen Wilde (YA, thriller) and The Wonder State by Sara Flannery Murphy (adult, supernatural? portal fantasy?)...which is funny, because my requests for the last two had been previously rejected on Edelweiss...


Here is my review plan for the month:





Reviews aside, I'll participate in the first and the last Tell Me Something Tuesday installment of the month, on the 7th (question: Would you read a book by your favourite author if it was in a genre you don't normally enjoy?) and on the 28th (question: Which books are you looking forward to reading this spring?). It's been ages since I did a TMST post, what with all my hiatuses...the most recent one was on September 27th...😲


🩹 ON THE MENDS. The month got off to a rocky start for my husband - his hemoglobin level had gone to hell, so he was admitted to the E.R. for a transfusion...then he was given a fresh round of antibiotics for his still infected ulcer. After his latest appointment at the "difficult wounds" practice though, things have started to improve. It's going to be a long way to recovery, but at least we're on the right track now (then again...🤫...for good luck LOL).


😫 OLD BONES & CO. I, on the other hand, am not a happy bunny. My left wrist still hurts after one month and a half - the X-rays didn't detect anything abnormal, so the doctor suggested an ultrasound, except at the moment there isn't any appointment available with the NHS where I live. At least I can report that the floaters in my left eye have receded (maybe they were a temporary effect of my getting both the Covid and the flu vaccine together, since they appeared the day after?) (Nope...they're back...and as annoying as ever ðŸ˜«). I did book a visit with an ophthalmologist, who could only see a mild case of cataract and an old, small, already healed hole in the retina (which is scary though, since I hadn't even noticed something was wrong!). 


😤 A LIST OF GRIEVANCES. Here are the other highlights (so to speak) of January...

  • I got a new perm touch-up on my bangs (just the ones right on my forehead), and it didn't come out like it should have...again. Despite the new hd's best efforts, I have half-wavy, half semi-straight locks...again. I mean...you would probably think they're fine, but that's not MY hair. I used to have gorgeous curls - real curls - that lasted until I cut them...I don't know what this thing is supposed to be now. *cries*
  • I have a veritable ice cushion on my fridge's back wall - the damned thing hasn't worked properly for a while now, and I'm finally buying a new one. It comes tomorrow and it's COSTY, y'all. Not because it's fancy...quite the contrary...because I wanted a model like my old one, which is a rare find right now...then again, it's not like the up-to-date ones are cheap. *cries some more*
  • I can’t seem to get a copy of This Ain’t Witchcraft (Book 8 in the InCryptid series) from my usual booksellers (the Italian sites where I buy my foreign books)...it's "not available" at the moment...which means I have a hole in my collection. And since I only buy cash-on-delivery and those are the only sites where I can do it, who knows when - or if - I'll be able to locate a copy. Unless I win a giveaway and the generous sponsor orders it for me from The Book Depository...*guess what? more crying involved...*
  • I'm tired...and achy...what's new? *insert yet further crying here*
  • It's cold! After an unseasonably warm early winter, the temps have finally taken a nosedive since mid-January. Well, OK, this isn't something to cry over at least LOL. (Except the energy prices have gone through the roof...*I guess more crying is in order*).


PUBLISHING NEWS/TIPS

THINK-PIECES, DISCUSSIONS, ORIGINAL FICTION
REVIEWS/RECOMMENDATIONS

OTHER
  • None this month.

That's it for now. My next post will be up on February 7th, and it will be a new installment in the Tell Me Something Tuesday series, as I told you above. After which I hope to be able to start posting (and commenting) regularly again...

So, what were your highs/lows in the past month?

28 comments:

  1. Glad your husband is on the mend, and hope your health issues turn a corner as well! The Valley and the Flood has a really cool cover, I'd be curious to read that review!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! As for that book, I had to postpone writing a full review for it, since my health issues turned a corner...in the guise of a retinal laser...😵

      Delete
  2. I've never requested for books so I have no idea how it works but I'm starting to think, they are as picky as most people.

    I think it's hard on people when something's wrong with their body. I hope things work out for you and your husband.

    At least you got to read some books. That is always comforting.

    I can't say there's any highs or lows in my January but at least, nothing too bad has occurred.

    Have a lovely day

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you - my husband is slowly getting better, while I...just had to get treated with a retinal laser...more info in my next post.

      If nothing too bad has occurred, you should celebrate. I mean, I've learned to be contented with the absence of bad things...it's rare enough these days.

      Delete
  3. That's a lot. I hope your husband continues to heal and the docs are able to clear that ulcer up soon. It's been cold here too. The rain puddles from 2 nights ago turned to blocks of ice over night last night. So I had to be careful not to slip this morning when I took the dog out.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. Ugh, I hope the ice has melted at this point. We've gone back to warm temps in the meantime...what a crazy winter.

      Delete
  4. Smoke and Key! I remember reading an ARC of it when it first came out and enjoying it a lot; I think you might enjoy it, especially if you like atmospheric books with a good dose of romance and some mystery (hopefully you do enjoy it, and you know where to find me if you want to talk about the book).

    I'm happy to hear things are on the mend for your husband even though it started out rocky! Here's to hoping things continue to improve (or at least stay steady.)

    ANYWAYS GOOD MORNING ROBERTA!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I must go and look for your old review...Eh, romance not so much, but my friend assured me that the afterlife aspect will be up my alley...And I'll be happy to chat about it (if you still remind enough about it 😉).

      Thank you and GOOD AFTERNOON (I made a time zone conversion LOL).

      Delete
  5. I'm glad to hear things are getting a little better for your husband. I'm experiencing my first real winter since moving, and I do not like it. Ha ha. I hope your February is a good one!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! LOL, your literal corner of the woods will probably take some time to get used to...

      My February started awfully (with an emergency retinal laser)...I can only hope it's all downhill from now...

      Delete
  6. Some good news up there (the hubs). Progress is progress. McGuire is writing machine. The sheer amount of books you feature is impressive. I hope the new fridge works out and that February is a good month (better month?) for you

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha! That's only a part of McGuire's production. There's so much of it I haven't read yet.

      As a matter of fact, February has barely started and it's already brought me to my knees again (I had to get treated for a hole in my retina yesterday)...let's hope it did the worst it could do and will let me breathe from now on...jeez.

      Delete
  7. I hope your husband feels better soon. And I'm glad that you're back, I missed reading your posts. 💙
    -Quinley

    ReplyDelete
  8. we've had really warm weather here. But this weekend, it's "finally" dropping, with tomorrow's low at -10F (and even lower with the wind chill" and Saturday's high about 10F. BRRR.

    Glad your husband is on the mend - keeping my figures crossed. I hope you find some answers, too. Sending hugs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I mean, WHAT???!!!??? 🥶

      Thank you! Alas, I finally did get my answers in the form of a fresh hole in my retina and consequent laser treatment 😱.So those hugs are coming in handy...🧡

      Delete
  9. ugh. I'm afraid my comments were eaten. Boo.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Actually, your comments were awaiting moderation, but I didn't get any email notification for them...same as every single comment Mary writes on my blog. I can only see them when I enter my dashboard. That's odd...

      Delete
  10. That's why I had to get a new fridge too! Ours stemmed from our ice machine. It's a defect with the model - we had the same one in FL and I almost cried to see they had the same one in the house we bought. I was always having to chip ice out. lol

    RUTABEGA

    That is all. lol

    Karen @For What It's Worth

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh my, how fun. At least my fridge was 20 years old...it used to work perfectly in the old days. It's weird that your new house had exactly the same, defective fridge model...

      OK, it's official: we have to find a new code word because this one doesn't work. I mean, this time I ended up getting retinal laser...😵‍💫

      Delete
  11. I thought Jen Wilde sounded so familiar so I looked her up, she wrote Queens of Geek. That's right! Love the cover of Smoke and Key. It'll be fun to see your mini reviews of The Incryptids, too. I've only read the first.

    FRidges are not cheap, oh my gosh. Had to replace ours not long ago and yikes. I love the new one though.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unfortunately, I ended up not finishing Wilde's book...😖

      I hope to convince you to read the rest of the InCryptid series. There are only 11 books so far...😂

      Delete
    2. Oh no! Although to be honest, I likd Queens of Geek but didn't LOVE it.

      Only 11? :) You know, Grant is one of those authors who has several series that on paper I should like.

      Delete
    3. Hehe, it could be worse...her October Daye series has 16 books already 😂.

      Delete
  12. Ok, I will wait until your next update to comment about your husband so as to not jinx anything. I'm sorry everything else is such a mess though. Hopefully you'll at least be able to get that book at some point <3

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Ok, I will wait until your next update to comment about your husband so as to not jinx anything."
      Wise move...every time anyone wishes me anything, things go even more downhill...😂 😭

      Thank you! As for the book, someone offered to get it for me! I'm not dropping names because I'm not sure she would want me to...

      Delete
    2. Right? Two people, actually. Bookish friends are amazing 💚.

      Delete

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