NetGalley Buddy Readers discussion

How did you do this month? How many reviews did you manage? What do your stats look like?

I had a busy NG month! Overall, a good month. My end of month stats:

Beginning of Month:
Books on Shelf: 12
Netgalley Ratio: 95%

End of Month:
Read: 7
Added: 6
Books on Shelf: 11
Ratio: 95%

Reviews:
The Therapist review
Forest of Vanishing Stars review
Malibu Rising review
Seven Perfect Things review
Tell Me review
Dark Roads review

I read 12 this month! All graphic novels and audiobooks. lol. I still have to write reviews for 4 of them. These are only links to the books, not to my reviews.

44. They Fell from the Sky Pub date 8/31/21. Finished 7/3/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
45. Savage: The Wild Pub date 5/18/21. Finished 7/5/21 ⭐⭐⭐
46. The Girl Least Likely (audio) Pub date 6/29/21. Finished 7/7/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
47. Brindille Pub date 6/8/21. Read 7/15/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
48. We Live Pub date 5/18/21. Read 7/15/21 ⭐⭐⭐
49. The Secret Garden: A Graphic Novel Pub date 6/15/21. Read 7/17/21 ⭐⭐⭐
50. A Difficult Thing: The Importance of Admitting Mistakes Pub date 9/28/21. Read 7/17/21 ⭐⭐
51. The Guilt Trip (audio) Pub date 8/3/21. Finished 7/22/21 ⭐⭐⭐
52. Auntie Poldi and the Lost Madonna: A Novel (audio) Pub date 5/18/21. Finished 7/25/21 ⭐⭐
53. One Night Only (audio) Pub date 7/30/21. Finished 7/27/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
54. Stowaway (audio) Pub date 8/3/21. Finished 7/29/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
55. The Lost Girl (audio) Pub date 6/29/21. Finished 7/30/21 ⭐⭐

The numbers are from my total NetGalley reads this year. My goal was 50! Woohoo! Hopefully I can make it another 25. We'll see how ARC August goes!

Ratio and books still on shelves...I broke 1000 approvals...so I'll just leave it at that...

Way to go, Elyse!!

End of August update -

Beginning of Month:
Books on Shelf: 11
Netgalley Ratio: 95%

End of Month:
Read: 2
Added: 6
Books on Shelf: 15
Ratio: 94%

Reviews:
We Are the Brennans review
The Noise review

I'm going to try to keep better stats for next month but I read 1 book off my Netgalley shelf in August, my typical pace at the moment, and I think I added 2 books. I'm ending my month with these stats (so I can check back later):

Books on Shelf: 7
Ratio: 82%

The NG book I read in August was:

The Silence of Scheherazade, 4.5 stars rounded to 5
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

August was not so good for me. The rest of the audiobooks I have are all synthesized narration so I can't listen to them consecutively or I get the stories confused. Hoping to start back up on one that pubs in a couple of weeks. Overall, I did read 11 ARCs, but only 3 being from NetGalley.

AUGUST
56. Give Me a K-I-L-L (audio) Pub date 6/29/21. Read 8/3/21 ⭐⭐
57. Ashfall Legacy (audio) Pub date 8/17/21. Finished 8/6/21 ⭐⭐⭐
58. Cloud Cuckoo Land Pub date 9/28/21. Finished 8/21/21 ⭐⭐⭐

Tasha wrote: "I'm going to try to keep better stats for next month but I read 1 book off my Netgalley shelf in August, my typical pace at the moment, and I think I added 2 books. I'm ending my month with these s..."

SofS sounds really good Tasha and nice review. Bummer, it’s no longer available on NG. I tend to read most anything Turkey-related.

Overall, it was beautifully done. I hope you get a chance to read it sometime.

I won't finish anything else before the end of the month. I am trying to wrap up a couple of library books. Made some progress this month though.

Beginning of Month:
Books on Shelf: 15
Netgalley Ratio: 94%

End of Month:
Read: 5
Added: 4
Books on Shelf: 13
Ratio: 95%

Reviews:
Over the Falls review
Orphan Witch review
Last House on Needless Street review
Under the Whispering Door review
Santa Suit review

Tasha wrote: "Overall, it was beautifully done. I hope you get a chance to read it sometime."

Thanks! I’ve added it to my TBR list - will keep an eye out for it.

Kristie wrote: "I won't finish anything else before the end of the month. I am trying to wrap up a couple of library books. Made some progress this month though.

Beginning of Month:
Books on Shelf: 15
Netgalley ..."

You’re doing great Kristie!

Thanks, Lilisa! I've been trying to keep up with the pub dates.

That is a sizable bunch of books. Nice!

I read 2:

The Last House on Needless Street, 5 stars
The New Home, 4 stars

I gained 2:

Violeta
The Resting Place

I have a total of 7 books on my NG shelf, but one I probably won't end up reading. Rating is 82%.

I just noticed your ratings are nice and high, Kristie!

Thanks, Tasha. Yes, my ratio tends to stay high because I'm not a very fast reader, so I don't usually have more than 10-15 books on my shelf. When I have more than that I start to fall behind and it's not easy to get caught up again.

You had some good reads this month!

Got it. I don't tend to ask for many either bc I want to be able to keep my reading up too.

I did, they were both good, perfect for this time of year as well.

SEPTEMBER
59. The Orphan Witch Pub date 9/28/21. Finished 9/4/21 ⭐⭐⭐
60. Rock Paper Scissors Pub date 9/7/21. Read 9/5/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
61. When Sparks Fly Pub date 9/21/21. Finished 9/6/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
62. Witch Please (audio) Pub date 9/7/21. Finished 9/7/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
63. Under the Whispering Door Pub date 9/21/21. Finished 9/20/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
64. The Santa Suit: A Novel Pub date 9/28/21. Finished 9/26/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
65. Before We Disappear (audio) Pub date 9/28/21. Finished 9/28/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
66. Harlem Shuffle Pub date 9/14/21. Finished 9/30/21 ⭐⭐

Nice, Elyse! I'm pretty glad I didn't get Harlem Shuffle now... yikes.

That's a lot of NG books! I'm impressed.

Kristie wrote: "Nice, Elyse! I'm pretty glad I didn't get Harlem Shuffle now... yikes."

It was just so boring. And I have heard the Underground Railroad and Nickel Boys are much better so I still plan on giving Whitehead a chance but Harlem Shuffle was just not for me.

Elyse wrote: "SEPTEMBER
59. The Orphan Witch Pub date 9/28/21. Finished 9/4/21 ⭐⭐⭐
60. Rock Paper Scissors Pub date 9/7/21. Read 9/5/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
61. When Sparks Fly P..."

Nice going Elyse!

No change in my percentage this month. :)

October

Beginning of Month:
Books on Shelf: 13
Netgalley Ratio: 95%

End of Month:
Read: 2

Added: 2

Books on Shelf: 13
Ratio: 95%

Reviews:
Best in Snow review
These Silent Woods review

Read this month:











I have just been approved for a couple of books today so am currently sitting at 85% however I have reviewed every book I have read on Netgalley so just need to get through the remaining ones to get up to 100% by the end of the year.

New Year, clean shelf!

Nice, Kevin! I would love to get to 100% just once. lol But, I tend to request faster than I can read.

OCTOBER
67. The Woolly Hat Knitting Club (audio) Pub date 10/1/21. Finished 10/3/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
68. Eros/Psyche Pub date 10/12/21. Read 10/17/21 ⭐⭐
69. The Orphan King Pub date 9/7/21. Read 10/18/21 ⭐⭐
70. JP Roth's Ancient Dreams Pub date 11/9/21. Read 10/18/21 ⭐
71. If It Makes You Happy (audio) Pub date 10/26/21. Finished 10/22/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
72. Frankie and Amelia (audio) Pub date 10/26/21. Finished 10/26/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
73. Under the Sun, Moon, and Stars Pub date 9/17/21. Read 10/29/21 ⭐⭐
74. The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors: The Extraordinary World War II Story of the U.S. Navy's Finest Hour Pub date 10/20/21. Read 10/29/21 ⭐⭐
75. Queen's Favorite Witch #1 Pub date 11/16/21. Read 10/30/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
76. Olive Pub date 7/15/20. Read 10/31/21 ⭐⭐⭐
77. Elle(s), Vol. 1: The New Girl Pub date 3/24/21. Read 10/31/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

You got through quite a few this month too, Elise! A couple of stinkers in there, huh?

Kristie wrote: "You got through quite a few this month too, Elise! A couple of stinkers in there, huh?"

Yes, quite a few graphic novels that were garbage.

NOVEMBER
78. Dreams Lie Beneath (audio) Pub date 11/2/21. Finished 11/3/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
79. Murder Book: A Graphic Memoir of a True Crime Obsession Pub date 11/9/21. Read 11/3/21 ⭐⭐⭐
80. Flowers for the Sea (audio) Pub date 10/19/21. Read 11/4/21 ⭐⭐⭐
81. Forget Me Not Pub date 3/24/21. Read 11/4/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
82. The Second Marriage (audio) Pub date 11/3/21. Finished 11/8/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
83. Comfort Me With Apples (audio) Pub date 11/9/21. Read 11/8/21 ⭐⭐⭐
84. Four-Fisted Tales: Animals in Combat Pub date 8/18/21. Read 11/8/21 ⭐⭐⭐
85. Out of My Mind Pub date 3/9/10. Finished 11/9/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
86. Noor (audio) Pub date 11/9/21. Finished 11/12/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
87. Stealing Home Pub date 10/5/21. Read 11/15/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
88. The Perishing (audio) Pub date 11/9/21. Finished 11/16/21 ⭐⭐⭐
89. A Face for Picasso: Coming of Age with Crouzon Syndrome (audio) Pub date 11/4/21. Finished 11/17/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
90. All the Feels Pub date 11/16/21. Finished 11/17/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
91. Why She Left (audio) Pub date 12/13/21. Finished 11/19/21 ⭐⭐
92. The Maid Pub date 1/4/22. Finished 11/20/21 ⭐⭐⭐

I still have to write reviews for all of these. Eep! My mission before December!

Way to go, Elyse!

I'm not quite ready to give up and post my November update just yet!

I have read 15 Netgalley books this month. I may possibly make it 16 by the end of the day but I don't think so.

Currently have 9 TBR however they all publish next year so no rush for them but I am trying to clear them all for New Year as I would like a clear shelf for January 1st 2022.

Current ratio: 87% however I have reviewed all books I have read so when I get through my remaining 9 I will be at 100% (hopefully by the end of the year)

You all are so prolific with your NG reads - that’s a lot of books! Good luck with all the reviews🤞!

I have a rule where I review a book immediately after reading it. I never move onto the next one without reviewing the one I have just read.

I am new to NG this year so am reading the majority of my books from NG at the moment to build up my profile. I am thankfully at the point now where I am getting approved for 99% of books which I requested.

I have also received two books I have 'wished' for and received one widget. Would love to be auto-approved for some publishers but hopefully that will just come in time.

I am so impressed, Kevin!

I didn't add any new books this month but I read two:

The Maid - 3 stars
The Island of Missing Trees - 4 stars

I'm at 83% ratio

I'd love to up that ratio and will try to get a couple more read in December.

I'm at 95% feedback

The Spanish Daughter/Lorena Hughes 3☆

A History of Wild Places/Shea Ernshaw 3☆

Larimer Street/Timothy Browne 3☆

A Little Bird/Wendy James 3☆

Okay reads this month, but not 'oh! you need to read this too!!, kind of reads.

And like Kevin, I review as soon as I'm done reading. It stresses me out to have any kind of backlog, lol.

Me too, on another forum people have books on their NG shelf from 2016, that gives me 'The Fear'

Kevin wrote: "Me too, on another forum people have books on their NG shelf from 2016, that gives me 'The Fear'"

Oohh, cold shivers down the spine!! I'm not OCD but I am not a procrastinator either.

That is crazy though, who can even remember that far back to write a fair review?! I review as soon as I finish a book as well.

I would love to clear off my shelf some day, but it never seems to happen. I currently have two books on my shelf that are really old, but I haven't read them yet. I'd like to at some point, but they always get pushed aside for other reads. At this point, the review would be embarrassing it's so late. I also review as soon as I finish reading.

I'll be back to update my month later. I'm still reading some NetGalleys today. I probably won't finish any in time to add for this month, but I'm always hopeful.

I'm y'all's worst nightmare! 🤣 I've been approved for 1077 books since 2013 and have read 281, reviewed 266. I try to do a monthly review roundup if I haven't done reviews. Liiiike this month. lol

lol!

lol, Elyse! I always wonder how some people get so many approvals without writing reviews. I've had many declines and I keep my feedback ratio over 90%.

On a different note - I received a widget today for a book that I was already approved for! I'm excited though because it was my first audio widget. :)

I finished Idol by Louise O'Neill last night so 16 NG books for the month of November

I also usually write my reviews immediately after reading/listening to NG books. The only exception was a book I got and read in 2018. I have no idea why but I never did write a review - probably because I gave it 2 stars and I think I was traveling at the time. It kept staring at me from my shelf that I finally browsed through the book again so I could write a few sentences. It was amazing how good I felt getting it off my shelf - little wins!🤣 Elyse - total lol!

I'm sure that did feel good, Lilisa, lol.

I didn't do a lot of reading this month.

Start:
Books on Shelf: 13
Ratio: 95%

End:
Read & Reviewed: 2
- Gilded review
- Why She Left review

Added: 3
☊

Books on Shelf: 14
Ratio: 94%

I am, however, in the middle of 3 of my ARCs, so December should be better!

There is no way I'll be finishing any more NetGalleys this month. I'm trying to quickly wrap up everything for the new year. So, I'm just going to update now.

Beginning of Month:
Books on Shelf: 14
Netgalley Ratio: 94%

End of Month:
Read & Reviewed: 3
Wish You Were Here review
The Maid review
Darkness Falls review

Added: 1


Books on Shelf: 12
Ratio: 95%

I'm at 72% in Dark Horse and want to plow right through it, but I got the audio so I can listen with my hubby. I am not so patiently waiting for us to take a long drive somewhere.

DECEMBER
93. The Cheat Sheet (audio) Pub date 12/14/21. Finished 12/10/21 ⭐⭐⭐
94. World Class Pub date 2/2/22. Finished 12/14/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
95. Reckless Girls Pub date 1/4/22. Finished 12/19/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
96. Incubators: A Graphic History Pub date 1/1/22. Read 12/27/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
97. Better Angels: A Kate Warne Adventure Pub date 11/2/21. Read 12/28/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
98. The Hawthorne School (audio) Pub date 12/7/21. Finished 12/29/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
99. The Last House on the Street Pub date 1/11/22. Finished 12/31/21 ⭐⭐⭐
100. Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants (audio) Pub date 12/7/21. Finished 12/31/21 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

All caught up on reviews!

Way to go, Elyse! Sorry I was such crap at buddy reads this month. December was busier than expected. Is that 100 NG reviews for the year for you? That's excellent!