Sunday Post - 11/15/26

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ The Caffeinated Book Reviewer ~this meme was inspired in part by ~ In My Mailbox~ It's a chance to share News. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

I have enough trouble remember what I did the previous week, so whenever I'm behind on Sunday Posts and need to recap the past two weeks I am at a loss. Monday the 2nd, Big Girl had pitching practice. Husband took her because it was a late practice so she could pitch with a friend of hers. Tuesday the 3rd, our dog had a morning vet appointment. Just a wellness checkup for him. All was well. Wednesday the 4th was a normal day. Thursday teh 5th was a whirlwind. I had an early morning wellness checkup at my doctor. I grabbed some Chickfila on the way home from that. Then I got home with ten minutes to spare before needing to turn around and leave to drop the boys with my mom so she could take Big Boy to his nature class. And I had to take Big Girl to band. Then we went to my parent's house to hang out after. We started back martial arts that night. Friday teh 6th was a normal day. Saturday the 7th I mopped most of the house and did some other house cleaning. I did run by Hobby Lobby. To be honest, I wasn't going for holiday decor. I was going to buy yarn for the border on the blanket I'm crocheting my great niece who is only two weeks old. Of course, I did pick up a few other things while I was there. This past Sunday was church, lunch with my parents, and then a nap. Monday of this week Big Girl had pitching lessons at normal time. Tuesday was a rough day. We haven't had nearly as many of these since school started this year compared to the end of last year, but they aren't fun either way. The Big Kids had martial arts that night. Wednesday we took the day off school for Veteran's Day. Thank you to any and all vertans for your service and sacrifices. Thursday, I dropped the boys with my parents and then took Big Girl to band. We hung out at my parents' house after. Big Kids had martial arts again. Friday was a little rough because it was back to school after a couple of days off. But we managed. I have read a good bit over the last two weeks. Audiobooks have been saving me this year. Yesterday, we had our women's devotion with the ladies from church. Then I had to run by the grocery store to get a few things for fellowship meal today.

THE PAST TWO WEEKS

Monday 11/02: Review of Of Blades and Wings (Flame Cursed Fae, # 1) by Eliza Raine (3.5 Stars)
Wednesday 11/04: Can't Wait for Refusing Lord Blakely by Karen Thornell
Friday 11/06: Homeschool Friday - Breath as Prayer for Kids
Monday 10/26: Review of The Sea Spinner (Reign of Remnants, # 2) by Julie Johnson (4 Stars)
Friday 10/30: Homeschool Friday - Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature

UPCOMING THIS WEEK:

Monday: Review of Avalon Tower (Fey Academy for Spies, #1) by
Tuesday: Top Ten Tuesday?
Wednesday: Can't Wait for Wednesday?
Friday: Homeschool Friday - Ten Boys Who Used Their Talents

NEW BOOKS:

A Bachelor's Lessons in Love (Bachelors of Blackstone's)

By: Sally Britton

Publication: April 30, 2025 by Pink Citrus Books LLC

287 pages

Genre: Adult, Historical Fiction, Regency

Source: Borrowed from Prime Library

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--A reluctant guardian. A determined spinster. A battle of wits that might just end in love.

Former military officer Edward Halstead never imagined his quiet bachelor existence would be upended by the unexpected guardianship of a spirited young lady. When his late comrade’s daughter, Daphne Price, is placed in his care, Edward is faced with a challenge unlike any battlefield he has ever encountered, especially with her fiercely protective aunt, Felicity Price, staying in his home to ensure he doesn’t fail in his duty.

Felicity has dedicated her life to her beloved niece, and she has no intention of leaving Daphne in the hands of a gruff and emotionally distant bachelor. If Edward Halstead believes he can simply house, feed, and marry off her niece without regard for her well-being, he is sorely mistaken. Felicity will remain at Briarwood House as long as necessary to ensure Daphne’s future and to make certain Edward doesn’t ruin it. After all, she doesn't want her niece to end up a spinster...like Felicity.

With Felicity and Edward at odds over Daphne’s upbringing, propriety, and the girl’s future, tension sparks and tempers flare. Yet, beneath the clashes and differences of opinion, an undeniable attraction grows. As Daphne’s entrance into Society looms and Edward’s past resurfaces in unexpected ways, Felicity and Edward must decide if their partnership is merely one of convenience or if love has been the lesson they’ve both been waiting to learn.

Perfect for fans of witty banter, slow-burn romance, and fiercely independent heroines, A Bachelor's Lessons in Love is a Regency romance filled with heart, humor, and unexpected love. Part of the Bachelors of Blackstone's series, the books may be read and enjoyed in any order.

The Kiss of the Season (Fairfax Sisters, # 4)

By: Michelle Kenney

Publication: November 6, 2026 by One More Chapter

320 pages

Genre: Adult, Historical Fiction, Regency

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--‘Worthy of Georgette Heyer…the most wonderfully satisfying five star Regency Romp’ Julie CaplinStern elder brother, and master matchmaker of the Fairfax family, Sir Thomas Fairfax intends to announce the marriage of his youngest sister, Matilda, at The Knightsbridge Christmas Ball.

Determined to defy her brother, Matilda persuades her friend Georgiana to accompany her on a bracing ride over a wintry Dartmoor so she can enlist as a nurse with the army instead. Yet, her plan fails when Georgiana falls and breaks her ankle, developing a fever that concerns them enough to send for her older, widowed sister, Miss Arabella Farrington.

From the moment the enigmatic Arabella arrives, it is clear that she and Thomas share a mysterious history. Faced with the secrets of the past, Thomas finds himself questioning the future he thought he knew…

Each book in the Fairfax Sisters series can be read as a standalone.

The Knight and the Moth (The Stonewater Kingdom, # 1)

By: Rachel Gillig

Publication: May 20, 2025 by Orbit

400 pages

Genre: Adult, Gothic, Romantasy,

Source: Borrowed from Libby

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Sybil Delling has spent nine years dreaming of having no dreams at all. Like the other foundling girls who traded a decade of service for a home in the great cathedral, Sybil is a Diviner. In her dreams she receives visions from six unearthly figures known as Omens. From them, she can predict terrible things before they occur, and lords and common folk alike travel across the kingdom of Traum's windswept moors to learn their futures by her dreams.

Just as she and her sister Diviners near the end of their service, a mysterious knight arrives at the cathedral. Rude, heretical, and devilishly handsome, the knight Rodrick has no respect for Sybil's visions. But when Sybil's fellow Diviners begin to vanish one by one, she has no choice but to seek his help in finding them. For the world outside the cathedral's cloister is wrought with peril. Only the gods have the answers she is seeking, and as much as she'd rather avoid Rodrick's dark eyes and sharp tongue, only a heretic can defeat a god.

That's it for my shelves and recaps of my past and upcoming week. What did you add to your shelves this week? Any bookish news you want to talk about? Let me know!

Homeschool Friday - Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature

Homeschool Friday is a feature here at Somewhere Only We Know that showcases books my family reads during homeschool and provides a mini-review for each.

Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature to Inspire Calm, Curiosity, and Wonder

By: Rachel Williams

Illustrated By: Freya Hartas

Publication: September 1, 2020 by Harry N. Abrams

111 pages

Genre: Children, Picture Book, Non-fiction, Nature, Science

Source: Personal Library

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--All around us, nature is working wonders. Every day, hour by hour, magical transformations happen right in front of you. But its not always easy to see them . . .

Discover 50 nature stories, paused just long enough for you to watch them unfold. Then go outside and see what you find when you take the time to slow down.

"The little things?
The little moments?
They aren't little."
—Jon Kabat-Zinn

I got this book as a part of my homeschool morning time with my kids on the recommendation of several YouTube videos from other homeschooling moms. I feel like it's a good coffee table type book, if anyone does that anymore. I don't. I don't actually even currently own a coffee table.

The artwork in Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature is stunning and really what drew me in. It covers a range of nature topics: insects, mammals, the water cycle, rainbows, birds, amphibians, and more. Each topic covers one opening, so two pages each. The concepts are presented in a very simplistic way. None of the topics goes too far into detail, but they do leave me feeling like my children probably understand each one.

I will say that we teach a young-earth scientific approach, so I was discouraged to find "millions of years" mentioned within the text. That might not matter to you. My kids roll their eyes anytime they hear "millions of years." But I mention it in case this is something that you also take issue with, or if it's something that you appreciate. Now you know.

I can't say that I'm surprised that a science book would include an old earth model, but it always annoys me when I come across it as I try to find resources in the opposite direction. Regardless, Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature is a beautiful, simplistic, informative book that my kids have enjoyed. I'm giving Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature 4 Stars. Have you read Slow Down: 50 Mindful Moments in Nature? What did you think? Let me know!

The Sea Spinner - Review

The Sea Spinner (Reign of Remnants, # 2)

By: Julie Johnson

Publication: April 28, 2026 by Ace

544 pages

Genre: Adult, Fantasy, Fae, Romantasy

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Blazing with reawakened magic, a young woman challenges the tides of fate in this highly anticipated installment of Julie Johnson’s romantasy series.

Everything changed for Rhya Fleetwood in the battle of Fyremas. Her grief is heavy, her rage volatile. Caeldera lies in ruins. Her friends are dead or wounded. And Pendefyre, their newly crowned king, is shutting her out. The Remnant of Fire needs all his focus for his kingdom, his people, and—perhaps more than anything—his insatiable need for revenge.

When a twist of fate leads Rhya to the last place she expected—the Water Court—the novice wind weaver is forced to confront the limitations of her untrained power as well as her increasingly complicated relationships. For enigmatic King Soren of Llŷr is as different from Penn as sparks are from the sea. The more insight he offers into the maegic that binds them together, the more confused Rhya feels—about her future as a Remnant, about her deepest desires, and about her role in the coming war.

Enemies circle close, ready to strike. And if Rhya isn’t careful, she’ll lose more than just her heart.

She’ll lose her life.

I enjoyed The Wind Weaver, but maybe I didn't look at it as closely as I should have. I nailed some of the "twists" that I expected to come, but I felt like The Sea Spinner was deeper and more poetic than I was expecting, given that I didn't pick up on those things when I was reading The Wind Weaver. I highlighted a ton. I honestly felt like I was highlighting something nearly every page. Part of that was trying to see if my predictions would come true.

The Sea Spinner had a lot of water-related language. For example:

-Emotions swirl in the depths of his deep blue eyes as he stares down at me, but I cannot read them with any more success than I can his empty expression.

-Deep currents wash through me, rhythmic as the tides.

-I think one would have to be either very brave or very foolish to plumb the depths of such a man. Surely, you would drown just trying.

Now that I've seen the poetic language in The Sea Spinner, I feel the need to go back and see how much air and fire language was used in The Wind Weaver. I know that when Rhya is in scenes with Pendfyre, I noticed fire-related language as well.

For example:

-It is a charred current of unadulterated energy that scorches a path from his heart to mind.

As with The Wind Weaver, some pieces of this story were so utterly predictable that it was frustrating how the characters could be missing pieces. I mean earthquakes, really?

And of course, I have pieces of the story that I'm dying to "review" and talk about, but those pieces are spoilers.

I also noticed that several side characters check all of the diversity boxes. If you read my reviews enough, you'll know how I feel about this. But I can't say more than that for offending the AI community standards on the various sites that I share my reviews on.

A couple of times I got frustrated with the characters. One is feeling guilty about their inability to control an outcome that resulted in someone else getting hurt, and the other is telling them it was beyond their control. And then the roles reverse. And yet neither can see they're doing the exact same thing. And also, neither calls the other out on it. This annoys me. Surely the author knows. Why not call it out? It's one of those obvious things. Again, I say "earthquakes."

I didn't have any issues with the direction that The Sea Spinner took in regards to plot except the very end. But there were some inconsistencies. Rhya is completely blown away by Soren's lack of pomp, courtiers, staff, etc. But what does she really have to compare it to? Penn's court wasn't his court so much as his "sister's" when she was there before the keep was destroyed. And since then, he hasn't exactly been operating with pomp, staff, or courtiers either. So I didn't feel this was a fair comparison. Or even worth her taking note of. Or at the very least, she could have noted that while she was surprised, it also isn't all that different with her limited knowledge of other courts/kingdoms.

Other favorite quotes:

-There is nothing calming about our bond in this moment. Nothing remotely comforting.

-"I swear, nothing kills my affection quite so fast as someone expressing an overabundance of their own."

-I feel, quite suddenly, that the star by which I have guided my life these past months since I came to Dyved has flickered out, leaving me alone in the darkness.

-"I have always been honest with you. Since the first day we met." "There's a difference between honesty and transparency."

-Reliving my losses will not dull them. Endlessly replaying the past darkness does nothing to ensure a brighter future.

-"I told you once before: you cannot live as Pendefyre does. A life of repression and restraint is not what you were created for. The more you push down your grief instead of processing it, the more you bury your guilt instead of exposing it to the light, the longer it will fester in the shadowy corners of your mind. And the worse the ramifications. Not only for you, but for everyone in your path."

-No poison in the world more lethal than the fear running through your own veins...

-In my experience, the only known cure for fear is to grit one's teeth and carry on in the face of it. Be scared; live regardless.

-"You aren't ready for the things I want to say to you," he says finally. "So, I'll wait. ... Gods know, I've had enough practice at it."

-"You can find fault without condemnation."

-"Passion alone is not enough to sustain a partnership," I whisper. "At least...not the kind I want."

-I do not want to tell him how to win me. ... I do not want to hand him the cipher he needs to crack the secrets coded into the subtext of my soul. I want him to know, in one look across a room, how I am feeling.

I often felt like The Wind Weaver reminded me of other books--although I don't remember landing on a specific book--The Sea Spinner also reminds me of other books. I was reminded of A Court of Thorns and Roses (the series, not just the book).

I briefly mentioned it, but I was so annoyed with the ending of The Sea Spinner. Everything else I could get behind for the most part. But the ending frustrated me. It is what I call "a negative cliffhanger." Characters that I've come to love aren't in a good place. Those types of cliffhangers leave me unexcited about continuing the series. Of course, I will. The Sea Spinner gets 4 Stars. Have you read The Sea Spinner? What did you think? Let me know!

Homeschool Friday - Breath as Prayer for Kids

Homeschool Friday is a feature here at Somewhere Only We Know that showcases books my family reads during homeschool and provides a mini-review for each.

Breath as Prayer for Kids

By: Jennifer Tucker

Publication: November 10, 2026 by Tommy Nelson

32 pages

Genre: Children, Picture Book, Christian

Source: Publisher via NetGalley (Thank you!!)

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Help young children navigate emotions and find peace through prayer with this comforting guide written and illustrated by Jennifer Tucker, bestselling author and artist. When big feelings flare up, breath prayers prompt kids to self-regulate as they take a deep breath and recite simple prayers of love and encouragement.

I read Breath as Prayer by Jennifer Tucker and loved it. So when I saw Breath as Prayer for Kids available, I snatched it up quickly. I was so excited to get this book for my kids. The copyright page does list this book as for kids ages 4 to 8 years old. And I guess overall, I was a little disappointed with Breath as Prayer for Kids. I think the concept is great, but I was disappointed in the execution. The breath prayers that were included in this book weren't Scripture. I mean the ideas come from Scripture, but I expected to see Scripture turned into prayer in as simplistic a way as possible. Even in Breath as Prayer (for adults), "Inhale: The Lord is my shepherd Exhale: I have everything I need" is pretty basic, if you ask me.

My son when he was 2 years old could get himself calm if I told him "Remy, you need to get calm." And he could also quote several Bible verses in their entirety at that age. I think sometimes we dumb things down for kids way too much. And this felt like one of those opportunities that were missed as a means of simplifying for children. But then I had to remind myself that prayer isn't only repeating Scripture back to God. We can pray using our own words, and so it isn't wrong to use non-Scripture as breath prayers for kids. That isn't wrong at all. But not using Scripture does feel like a missed opportunity.

Either way, I love this method of getting calm using breath prayers. Our breathing is such an easy method to use to attack those big emotions. My older son frustrates me because any time I tell him he needs to take a deep breath, he always replies, "I don't want to." He then follows that up with telling me that deep breaths are for babies. And a kids' book about breath prayers isn't going to change his outlook, but it can be helpful for my other kids.

Another comment is on the page about feeling overwhelmed; the page is so visually overwhelming that it feels counterproductive.

Breath as Prayer for Kids still gets 4 Stars. Even though I thought the publisher/author missed an opportunity to use Scripture for the children's book the same as the adult's book, I still love the message and method behind this, and parents can use this book as a guide to tweak the breath prayers in their own ways. Have you or your child read Breath as Prayer for Kids? What did you think? Let me know!

Can't Wait for Refusing Lord Blakely

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and talk about the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released as well. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine. Find out more here.

Refusing Lord Blakely

By: Karen Thornell

Expected Publication: October 16, 2026 by Independently published

190 pages

Genre: Adult, Historical, Christmas

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--He has to marry. She would rather marry anyone but him.

Sebastian Blakely has tried—and failed—to become the viscount his father and grandfather would have been proud of. With both men gone too soon and memories of their faces beginning to fade, he fears he will never measure up. So when offered the chance to acquire the only portrait of the men together, he cannot refuse. Even if it requires agreeing to a ridiculous find a wife by twelfth night.

No amount of wealth can erase Clara Whitmore’s humble beginnings—or convince her that any gentleman might truly care for her. With the marriage mart looming, Clara gladly accepts an invitation to spend Christmas with her sister. It promises to be the perfect escape.

Until Lord Blakely arrives.

Determined, infuriating, and entirely too interested in her, Lord Blakely is the last man Clara would ever deign to marry.

But as their small party forces them together, Clara begins to see that the boy she remembers is not quite the man before her. And as old memories and long-buried truths begin to surface, they find themselves wondering if the past is truly as impossible to overcome as they once believed.

Refusing Lord Blakely is a sweet, no-spice Christmas romance filled with banter, growth, and simmering tension—perfect for lovers of Jane Austen and romances where the last person you expect might be exactly the one you need.

What are you guys waiting on this week? Let me know!