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Dark Shelf of Wonders

Books, Music, and Games That Revel in the Fantastical

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  • Blog Memes
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  • About Dark Shelf of Wonders & Rating Scheme
  • Reading Challenges
  • Review Policy
Reading Wrap-Up & Monthly Reset: April 2026

Reading Wrap-Up & Monthly Reset: April 2026

Posted by By Veronica May 7, 2026
Hey Bookworm friends! At the start of May I was busy with the beginning of Read Indie SFF Month and making my anticipated releases post for May. Now that's done,…
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It’s Monday, Let’s Catch Up │#17

It’s Monday, Let’s Catch Up │#17

Posted by By Veronica May 4, 2026
Hey bookworm friends. I just got back from a long walk with Cheeto because it's sunny and warm today! This weekend was really nice; went to our usual board game…
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New This Month: 18 Books To Get Excited For This May 💐

New This Month: 18 Books To Get Excited For This May 💐

Posted by By Veronica May 2, 2026
Hey bookworm friends. I hope you're having a great start to May! This month is going to be super busy for me but I can't wait, there's a lot of…
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Book Blogger Community Links: Mar & Apr 2026

Book Blogger Community Links: Mar & Apr 2026

Posted by By Veronica April 30, 2026
Hey bookworm friends! It's the end of April, which means that two entire months have gone by since my last Community Links post! It's time to share some of what…
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My Possibility Pile for Read Indie SFF Month

My Possibility Pile for Read Indie SFF Month

Posted by By Veronica April 30, 2026
Hey bookworm friends! Some of you may have seen that in May, Leslie and I will be hosting a month-long reading challenge for lovers of Indie Sci-Fi & Fantasy called…
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Author Interview: Jendia Gammon on The Vale of Seven Dragons

Author Interview: Jendia Gammon on The Vale of Seven Dragons

Posted by By Veronica April 23, 2026
Hey bookworm friends. Today I'm bringing you something so exciting and completely new for my blog: an interview! I had the absolute pleasure of reading The Vale of Seven Dragons…
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BBNYA Finalist 2025 Review: SOUL FRAUD

BBNYA Finalist 2025 Review: SOUL FRAUD

Posted by By Veronica April 17, 2026
Hey bookworm friends. This is my last review for BBNYA 2025 finalists tour! Today I'll be sharing my thoughts on a book that I had a very mixed experience with.…
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Reading Wrap-Up & Monthly Reset: March 2026

Reading Wrap-Up & Monthly Reset: March 2026

Posted by By Veronica April 10, 2026
Hey Bookworm friends! I'm writing from the library because I enjoy the change of pace of writing at the library instead of on my couch where my laptop and my…
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Top 10 Anti-Buzzwords That Make Me Avoid A Book

Top 10 Anti-Buzzwords That Make Me Avoid A Book

Posted by By Veronica April 7, 2026
Hey bookworm friends. I'm going a bit rogue with the topic today because I loved last week's TTTopic so much that I decided to do it in two parts. I…
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The Magical Readathon: My Spring Equinox TBR (2026)

The Magical Readathon: My Spring Equinox TBR (2026)

Posted by By Veronica April 1, 2026
Hey bookworm friends. It's April 1st and you know what that means: It's time for the Spring Equinox semester at Orilium Acadamy! That's right, the Magical Readathon is back and…
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Posted inReading Wrap-Up
Reading Wrap-Up & Monthly Reset: April 2026
Posted by By Veronica May 7, 2026
Posted inBlog Memes
It’s Monday, Let’s Catch Up │#17
Posted by By Veronica May 4, 2026
Posted inBookish Lists
New This Month: 18 Books To Get Excited For This May 💐
Posted by By Veronica May 2, 2026
Posted inCommunity Links
Book Blogger Community Links: Mar & Apr 2026
Posted by By Veronica April 30, 2026
  • About Dark Shelf of Wonders & Rating Scheme
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  • Read Indie SFF Month
  • Review Policy
Featured Book Reviewer Professional Reader 80%

dark.shelf.of.wonders

Devoted to Fantasy 🖤 Always aiming to diversify my reading.
Support Indie Authors🌻.
📚 Book Blogger, Board Game Lover & Dog Cuddler.
💐May 2026 Anticipated Releases💐 This month's list 💐May 2026 Anticipated Releases💐 This month's list is a bit smaller than usual and my biggest category is science fiction! I hope you dance to the spring stardew song as you peruse May's offerings. Any book that has already been released will be marked with 🎉. 🐲 Fantasy: -The Hanging Bones, Elle Tesch (May 12) -The Lustrous Dark, Loretta Chefchaouni (May 19) -Mortedant's Peril, R. J. Barker (May 19) -The Palace Beneath The Sea, Lauren Wiesebron (May 21) 🛸 Science Fiction: -Lovestruck Maggot, Jarrett Brandon Early (May 1🎉) -Love Galaxy, Sierra Branham (May 5) -Cousins From A Distant Sun, Tamar Myers (May 5) -The Republic of Memory, Mahmud El Sayed (May 5) -And Side by Side They Wander, Molly Tanzer (May 19) 💕 Romance: -Strange Familiars, Keshe Chow (May 7) -Deathbringer, Sonia Tagliareni (May 12) -Behind Five Willows, June Hur (May 26) 😱 Horror: -Spider,Spider, L. C. Winter (May 5) -The Temptation of Charlotte North, Camilla Bruce (May 19) -Bone of My Bone, Johanna van Veen (May 26) 🏺 Mystery & Mythology: -The Library After Dark, Ande Pliego (May 5) -The Lost Book of Lancelot, John Glynn (May 12) -Andromeda, E. S. McLeod (May 14) ❓Are any of these on your list too? Or which books are you looking forward to the most in May? #AnticipatedReleases #Books #Bookstagram #NewReleases #Reading
Tidy the Library: Week Thirteen aka The Last Round Tidy the Library: Week Thirteen aka The Last Round - RESULTS Thank you to every single person who joined in on the game throughout thirteen weeks, you're all the best and I had such fun 🖤 . . 1957: How The Grinch Stole Christmas (Dr. Seuss) . . 1963: Where The Wild Things Are (Maurice Sendak) . . 1964: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Roald Dahl) . . 1969: The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Eric Carle) The answer is C: Between Wild Things and Charlie! Congrats for guessing correctly, you get a Golden Ticket: @dan.devours.words @shona_reads_in_devon Bad luck, but at least you won't get tortured with difficult questions anymore 😜: @gianna.of.vengerberg @alitescape @irinasreading @goodbooksgreatgoats @jonesandthebooks #TidyTheLibrary #Bookstagram #BookishGame #charlieandthechocolatefactory #PlayWithMe
Buddy Read Book Review 🖤 We Have Always Lived in Buddy Read Book Review 🖤 We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Marie Shirley Jackson 🖤 Genre: Classics / Horror 🖤 Format Read: Physical ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/4 This was my first Shirley Jackson read and I didn’t really know what to expect. I was honestly surprised by how much I was immediately invested in the Blackwood family’s drama. The more I think about it, the more I’m impressed by how much happens in such a short book. Especially because a massively tragic event already happened in that family’s past off-page before we even open a page, so at first I worried the plot would pale in comparison. I clearly didn’t need to worry because I was hooked from page one wondering what the heck was going on at every turn. I don’t normally gel well with open ended endings but something about the way Shirley Jackson wrote it here worked for me! Don’t get me wrong, I would have still loved more concrete explanations but given the loosely supernatural feeling of the story, it made sense that we’d be left with more questions. I loved the sisterhood between Merricat and Constance; it was a strange mix of loving, enabling, and codependent. I really enjoyed this quietly creepy book. It was fascinating to try to dissect it and theorize with my buddy readers. I have my pet theory or maybe it’s more like wishful thinking. As a buddy read group we’ve been struggling to find a book we all absolutely love recently. One of my friends asked why I liked this one and the best answer I can give is that it felt like when you can’t look away from a wreck. I don’t know if it says anything about me but it made me think and I can’t be mad about that 😂! ❓How do you feel about "staring at a wreck" books? Or, have you read this one, and if so what did you think? #BookReview #WeHaveAlwaysLivedintheCastle #ShirleyJackson #Bookstagram #Horror
Buddy Read of the Wicked Lovely Series 🖤Darkest Buddy Read of the Wicked Lovely Series 🖤Darkest Mercy by Melissa Marr 🖤Genre: YA Fantasy 🖤Format Read: Immersive Reading ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Recently, @bewitchingbooksravenousreads and I finished our buddy read of the original series from the 2000s that we both grew up with! I loved revisiting this formative series and discussing it; how cool is it that two people from different sides of the world both found their love of fairy stories through this series?! I had so much fun spending time with characters that I loved as a teen and gaining new relationships with them. As an adult, I ended up hating a character I don't recall disliking when I was a teen (ahem, Keenan), and absolutely adoring another one who I barely considered the first time I read it (Donia deserves the world). I don't reread books often but allowing myself to reread more old favorites lately has been such a gift! Given that Darkest Mercy is book #5, I can't say much without spoiling. Regardless, this is more of an appreciation post for this series, for re-reads in general, and for my friend, Charlotte 🥰. Ever since the end of this series there have been some new spin offs and additions to this universe so we'll be visiting those soon but first, the short stories! ❓Did anyone else read these? Or, what's a formative book/series you'd love to reread? #wickedlovely #melissamarr #fae #bookstagram
💫 Introducing READ INDIE SFF MONTH 💫 @booksarethe 💫 Introducing READ INDIE SFF MONTH 💫 @booksarethenewblack11 wanted a month to devote to reading Indie books only and we hereby extend the invitation to any other SFF loving Indie readers to join in on the fun! 🖤What is it? The goal of this reading challenge is to appreciate indie stories and support indie authors according to your own ability. Fill out the entire bingo board, fill one line, or pick and choose whichever prompts speak to you; there is no one right way to participate! There will also be a StoryGraph Challenge to help us share recommendations for the prompts. In fact, for those that crave an interactive element in their reading challenges, two interconnected prompts rely on this feature. 🖤When will it be taking place? May 1st - May 31st, 2026 The Prompts: The board is made up of 12 Reading Prompts and 4 of what we’ll call action prompts, which are actionable ways to help indie authors aside from reading. Actionable Prompts: 1. Post A Review - On any social platform or blog. 2. Give a Rec on The StoryGraph Challenge - Go into the SG challenge to prompt 12 and give a rec there to create a pool of recs available for reading prompt 12. 3. Request Book at Your Local Library - If you’ve read an indie book you loved ask your library to buy it! You can do it through Libby or a lot of libraries have official channels to accept requests. 4. Post an Indie Bookish List - If you use socials, post a list of Indie Books. It can be your favs or ones you want to read, it can be themed in any way. Be creative and spread indie book love! The reading prompts are mostly self explanatory except for "Try A New To You Author From A Rec" which is the 12th prompt in the StoryGraph Challenge. This reading prompt goes hand in hand with the "leave a recommendation" and now you take a rec and read it! Or if you have a rec from a friend that counts too. Lastly, we’ve included an optional Bonus: Buy An Indie Book to Automatically Complete Any One Prompt. If you choose to post for Read Indie SFF Month Please also tag us and use #ReadIndieSFFMonth2026 so we can amplify your post To learn more visit mine or Leslie's blog for more information (🔗 in bios)
🐙Happy Pub day to The Octopus by Guojing🐙 Thank y 🐙Happy Pub day to The Octopus by Guojing🐙 Thank you to Two Lions & @mbc_books for this gorgeous #gifted wordless picture book!! The Octopus tells the story of a little girl who goes to the beach with her mother. There, she finds a tiny octopus entangled in a plastic six-pack ring. She befriends and rescues him and what follows is their magical adventure underwater. The young girl comes back from the ocean, understanding that she can play a part in taking care of the ocean in her own way. What a heartwarming story told entirely in vivid illustrations. I have read another book by Guojing and she is truly a master of wordless storytelling! Just in time for Earth Day, this beautiful book with its enduring message can be enjoyed by people of any age. Children and adults alike will be charmed by the illustrations and the themes of environmental stewardship and friendship. 🐚 Happy Earth Day and just like the little girl in The Octopus, I hope you're inspired by the beauty of our natural world ❓What's your favourite marine animal? #EarthDay #WordlessPictureBook #PictureBook #TheOctopus
🌟BBNYA 2025 Finalist Tour🌟 I have mixed emotions 🌟BBNYA 2025 Finalist Tour🌟 I have mixed emotions for Soul Fraud, I rated it 3⭐. I'm sharing my honest thoughts in hopes of helping this book find its readers. 😈Page Count: 364 📜Genre: Fantasy, Contemporary 😈Age Category: Adult 📜Pub Date: June 30, 2022 I love a good ‘deal with the devil’ story but the detail of the forged signature sounded different and fun! I appreciate how something extremely strange happens to Matt (the MC) but he immediately takes charge to see what he can do to solve his problem. It was a fast paced action-adventure story and I was on the edge of my seat but I think that overall it was too fast for my preferences. It’s basically action scene after fight scene and it would have benefited from some down-time. There are lots of factions and characters and they get introduced too quickly to have time to really appreciate how all the politics affect each other. The plot was entertaining and I liked the ‘fish out of water’ feeling of Matt discovering the supernatural world. Matt is a sympathetic character and I was invested in his troubles but as the story continued, he started to grate on my nerves a bit with his wise guy comments. I realized the humour wasn’t for me. For example, during a moment of intense drama he wonders out of nowhere if he'll ever see boobs again which fully pulled me out of the story. He also continuously forced himself into dangerous situations even though he's not prepared but then constantly complains that he's not skilled enough or that he's putting his life in danger…like buddy, you can't have it both ways! Overall I'm torn about the characters in general, because I liked Dan the demon but we don’t see him much given that he sets the whole adventure into motion. I thought the interactions between Matt and Dan were the most fun, I was expecting more of that. It started strong and the plot grabbed my attention with some twists in the second half. But I didn't love it all the way through. I do have several questions that are keeping me intrigued, but at the same time I don't know if I want to continue the series. Ultimately the story is readable and propulsive if you’re looking for a quick adventure!
Tidy The Library: Week Twelve - RESULTS Well, I Tidy The Library: Week Twelve - RESULTS Well, I messed up and put the cards a bit out of order in my stories this week but it's okay because it ended up not affecting anything! . . 1866: Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoevsky) . . 1867: War and Peace (Leo Tolstoy) . . 1886: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson . . 1897: Dracula by Bram Stoker The Answer is D: After Them All!! I haven't read the first two books but I have read the second two on this timeline. I read Dracula so many years ago and I remember liking it but I'd love a reread at some point! Congrats for guessing right 🧛🏽‍♀️: @saras.reading @jonesandthebooks @gianna.of.vengerberg @freckles.and.books Thanks so much for playing & better luck next time 🖤 @libraryllamas @shae_reads_too_much @bamamele.reads @booksarethenewblack11 @a.selkie.reads @books.are.42 @alitescape @irinasreading #Dracula #TidyTheLibrary #BookishGame #Bookstagram #PlayWithMe
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