I did a few things in the last year I wasn’t expecting.

I got books from NetGalley to review, I published a novella, and I put myself out there for something that I can’t talk about.

All of this scared me, but especially that last one. It’s something I wanted to do the last few years and finally did it. My wife said I should, and that’s all I needed.

The NetGalley reviews came about because I like doing reviews. I like to read, always have. I’d rather sit with a book for hours than do anything else. This has not always made married life serene. My wife reads, but for me it’s always been a way to escape my life.

My childhood had issues, as does everyone’s. I always dove into books when I had them.

I did not use a discerning view while selecting my books from NetGalley. I should have selected my reads more carefully. I did not and by doing this I had to return more books to NetGalley than I like.

I reviewed some great books this year. Some of which have yet to be released. One of them, This Wretched Valley, gave me a book hangover for a few weeks. I preordered it so I could read it again, and so my wife could read it. It’s a fabulous book that I hope everyone will be talking about. There are other books that I did not like. You can search through my reviews and find them. I’m not the kind of person to mention them here.

For the novella, which has gained more readers overseas than stateside, I wanted to publish it but felt it needed work. I spent most of the year getting it ready for that. I selected the publishing date in June. I hoped for more readers as it’s a personal book. Dealing with mental issues is always one of those things that I tend to write about. It’s a thing for me.

I feel this is enough for today. I’ll post something later.