Last night, we got home and I noticed three packages sitting inside that my dad had brought in for me.

I knew exactly what they were.

I’d preordered them months ago and been waiting very patiently for them to finally show up.

So naturally, I asked my husband if he wanted to open them with me.

He did not share my enthusiasm.

Whatever. His loss.

I opened the first package and pulled out my new copy of Alex Aster’s Barbie Dreamscape.

He looked at it.

“Another book? Really?”

Yes. Another book. Moving on.

Then I opened the second package.

Same book. Different edition.

His eyes got a little wider.

“Wait…you got TWO of the same book?”

At this point, I knew exactly what was about to happen.

Because there was still one package left. I opened the third.

Another copy of Barbie Dreamscape.

Different edition.

Same book.

I genuinely thought my husband’s head was going to explode.

“WHY DO YOU NEED THREE COPIES OF THE SAME BOOK?!”

Listen.

I don’t need three copies.

That’s not the point.

You’ll never understand.

Apparently There Are Bookworms…and Book Dragons

A few years ago, I saw soemthing online about the difference between a bookworm and a book dragon.

Bookworms read books.

Book dragons hoard them.

Special editions. Pretty covers. Sprayed edges. Multiple editions of the same book because obviously they’re different if they look different.

And I remember thinking…

Oh.

Well, shit.

Because I love reading. I genuinely do.

But I also love books.

There’s a difference.

And judging by my bookshelf–and the three copies of Barbie Dreamscape currently sitting in my house–I think we’ve established which category I fall into.

Please ignore everything happening on top of the bookshelf. Or don’t. This is Mise in Progress, after all.

So, What Do I Actually Read?

Pretty much anything that gives me an excuse to disappear into another world for a while.

Fantasy, romance, sci-fi, young adult, romantasy…and whatever else happens to fall somewhere in or between those categories.

I love magic and fantasy worlds. I love romance. Give me dragons, fae, kingdoms, ridiculous worldbuilding, morally questionable characters, dystopian societies, enemies who probably shouldn’t be attracted to each other but obviously are…

I’m listening.

I’m also absolutely guilty of buying a book because it’s pretty.

Do I know anything about it?

No.

Are the edges sprayed?

Say less.

And sometimes the collecting gets a little out of hand.

But listen, there are worse things I could spend my money on.

Drugs. Alcohol. Gambling.

I buy books.

Sometimes three copies of the same one, apparently.

We all have our vices.

Hence the bookshelf.

Hence the three Barbies.

We’ve covered this.

Meanwhile, I’m Back in Terrasen…

Right now, I’m rereading the Throne of Glass series for the first time in at least 4 years.

And I forgot how much I missed it.

There’s something different about going back to a series you loved after enough time has passed that you remember the big things, but you’ve forgotten so many of the little ones.

You know these characters.

You know where they’re going.

You know what’s coming.

And somehow you’re still sitting there like maybe it’ll be different this time.

It won’t.

I’m going to hurt my own feelings all over again.

And no, I did not start with The Assassin’s Blade this time.

I did that the first time because I was a noob and that’s how they were ordered on the bookstore shelf.

I’ve learned things.

This time, we’re doing it properly.

Or at least what I now consider properly, because if there’s one thing book people love almost as much as books, it’s arguing about the correct order to read them in.

And I’m sure I’ll have plenty more to say about this reread before I’m done.

So I Guess We’re Talking About Books Now

When I started thinking about creating Mise in Progress, I knew I didn’t want it to become one specific thing.

Yes, I bake.

Yes, I love food.

But that’s not all I do, and it’s definitely not all I want to write about.

Reading is one of those things I can disappear into when I get the chance. Sometimes I want to spend hours in the kitchen making something ridiculously complicated.

Sometimes I want absolutely nobody to talk to me because I’m 400 pages deep and things are happening.

Both are valid.

So there will be books around here too.

There will be current reads.

There will probably be unsolicited opinions.

There will be books I loved, books I hated, and books I kept reading entirely because I’d committed too much of my life to stop.

There will definitely be purchases I cannot justify.

And apparently, there will occasionally be three copies of the exact same book.

Although, for the record:

Different cover.

Different edges.

Different editions.

Different books.

I don’t make the rules.

–Mise