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It’s hard to believe my last post was back in April.

When I stopped posting, I genuinely didn’t think I’d be away for this long. I kept telling myself I’d get back to it next week, but then next week became the week after, and before I knew it months had passed.

Firstly, I just want to say I’m sorry for disappearing without saying anything, but the truth is, there isn’t one big reason for it. It’s been a combination of things.
Life has been busy, work has been hectic, and I’ve been dealing with ongoing health issues that just don’t seem to want to give me a break. On top of that, I’ve just been tired. Really tired. Add in a dose of stress, and something had to give.

Unfortunately, that something ended up being reading.

I didn’t fall out of love with books though, I just fell out of the habit of picking one up. The longer I went without reading, the harder it became to get back into it. Reading almost started feeling like a chore. Then came the guilt of not writing reviews, not posting on the blog, not replying to messages… and that just made me put it off even more.

One of the biggest sources of that guilt has been my inbox.
I’ve had emails from authors, publishers, readers, fellow bloggers and friends, and I’m incredibly grateful that so many people have taken the time to get in touch. I know I’ve done a terrible job of replying, and for that I’m genuinely sorry.

I don’t want anyone to think I’ve purposefully been ignoring them. It’s just every time I opened my inbox, I’d tell myself I’d reply later when I had a bit more energy or felt more on top of things. Before I knew it, there were more emails, and replying felt more and more overwhelming.

I will get back to everyone. It might not be tomorrow or even next week, but I will work my way through them. Thank you for being so patient with me.

I also owe a big apology to the authors and publishers waiting on reviews from me. I know some of these are well overdue, and I completely understand how frustrating that must be. I fully intend to honour the commitments I’ve already made and get those reviews written.

That said, I need to be realistic.

For the rest of 2026, I won’t be taking on any new review requests or accepting any new ARCs that I haven’t already agreed to. I need to catch up with what I’ve already committed to before I even think about adding anything else to the pile.

To my BookCrossing family, I owe you an apology too. I have a Book Box that’s been sat here for a couple of months, and, embarrassingly, I hadn’t even realised I still had it. I’m so sorry for holding everyone up. I’ll get it back to the original poster as soon as I can so it can continue its journey.

This isn’t me saying goodbye to blogging.
If anything, writing this post feels like drawing a line under the last few months and starting again.

I’m not going to promise I’ll suddenly be posting every week, because I don’t want to put that pressure on myself. I just want to enjoy reading again. If I finish a great book and want to tell you about it, I will. If I fancy sharing a day out, a book haul, or something bookish that makes me smile, I’ll do that too.

Thank you to everyone who’s stuck around while I’ve been AWOL.
Thank you for the messages, the emails, the check-ins and, most of all, your patience.

Here’s hoping the next time you hear from me, it’ll be about a great book rather than an apology 🖤