February ’24 Wrap-Up: Finding Balance, Good Films, and The Bear

Posted on by Lauren

Hello, everyone! How has your February been?

The days have been such a blur lately. I think February has been mostly a month of tempering/moderating for me. The new year typically doesn’t mean too much to me but, for whatever reason, this year filled me with such a huge burst of energy and and inspiration. Which sounds great but because of that, I took on so much–too much–and it took a little bit of being burnt out for me to pause, reflect, and reevaluate. My reading consistency has taken a little bit of a hit because of that but I think it’s finally evening out (which I’m very happy about).

Books

I spent a fair amount of time detailing my thoughts on this one elsewhere (spoiler-free!) so I’ll try to keep it brief here! I had such high expectations for Greywaren (Dreamer Trilogy, #3) but even if I had kept them a little more in check, I don’t think I personally could’ve made it through this book without a little disappointment. While I adore Maggie Stiefvater’s writing style and characters, I think this book confirmed for me that I don’t love the way she ends the series of hers I’ve read (this one particularly, because it felt like she was tired of the world/characters and sort of just gave up by abandoning due character arcs, losing the feeling of staple characters, throwing in plot twists for the sake of plot twists, etc.). This one was unfortunately not for me but that may not be the case for everyone!

I think I’m going to post a review of this novella next week but for the time being I’ll say that I absolutely understand the hype around this book: the prose is lovely, it follows a sapphic enemies-to-lovers romance, the sci-fi setting is completely unto itself. There are a lot of excellent elements in this but I personally liked it more than I loved it. Like I said, I plan on talking a bit more about this one later so I’ll leave it at that for now!

I listened to this fairy tale-esque novella on audiobook (without a physical counterpart to follow along with which is a first in quite a while for me), and it was a nice few hours spent! I’ve not read too many fairy tale retellings in my time but this is a step in that direction — a direction I’ve been wanting to go for a while. It turns some tropes on their heads, giving Sleeping Beauty a little twist. I enjoyed Toadling and Halim individually and together, and the story itself was interesting enough. I don’t know if it’s just because it’s so short but it did feel a teensy bit lacking of something to take it from good to great. Whatever the case, I think it’s a nice little story. I’d be interested to check out some of the author’s work because I’ve heard it held in even higher regard.

Currently Reading

I’m a little ashamed to say I’ve been “currently reading” two of the four books here for at least a month now (The Secret History has been waiting for me to pick it back up since…*cough cough* October *cough* (and I really, really want to, too, I’ve just been saving it)). I’ll probably finish Mercury first and then hopefully Rouge and Remarkably Bright Creatures soon thereafter!

Up Next

I think a very big part of my feeling a little slumpy/burnt out is that I have so, so many books that I’m really looking forward to reading, and it’s bumming me out that I’m making myself finish the books I’m in the middle of first (despite being just as excited about those). As I continue reassessing my priorities, I can’t say when exactly I’ll get to all of these but they’re some of the ones I’m most excited about!

Lights DNFs / Saving for Later

I’d almost put The Secret History here just because I’ve been procrastinating it so much but I’m really going to try to prioritize it in March — so nothing on this front for February!

Books Completed: 3
Average Rating: ~3.00 stars.
Most Read Genre: Fantasy
Top Intended Audience: Adult

Films

This was a really good month by way of movies for me! I didn’t watch very many but I enjoyed the ones I did a lot. (And, yes, I did the bad thing by watching The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes before reading it, I’m sorry!)

  • Heathers (1988), dir. Michael Lehmann [available on Tubi]
  • The Nice Guys (2016), dir. Shane Black [available on Netflix US]
  • The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023), dir. Francis Lawrence [available to rent/buy online but I watched on DVD]
  • The Holdovers (2023), dir. Alexander Payne [available on Peacock but I watched on DVD]

Films Watched: 4
Average Rating: 3.88 stars.
Most Watched Genre: Comedy

TV

I finally started The Bear, and I’ve been really loving it! I finished 02×06 the other night and needed a teensy break (so, so good but also so, so much to digest) but am really looking forward to the rest of the season. Otherwise, I finished the first season of Buffy and have been mostly keeping up with season 6 of Love is Blind (it’s a guilty pleasure, what can I say?). The rest have been one-off episodes here and there!

  • Supernatural (2005-2020) [Netflix US]
  • The X-Files (1993-2018) [I watched on DVD but I believe it’s on Hulu]
  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) [I watched on DVD but I believe it’s on Hulu]
  • It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2005-) [Hulu]
  • Love is Blind (2020-) [Netflix]
  • The Bear (2022-) [Hulu]

While I still haven’t gotten in as much reading as I would’ve liked, I’ve been spending a fair bit of time getting things in order so I have the time and energy to do so moving forward — so I count that as a win. And even if I’ve not read too many books, I’ve quite enjoyed the movies and shows I’ve watched throughout the month, so I’ll consider myself satisfied.

How was your reading in February? Any new favorites? Least favorites? What movies and/or shows have you been watching? I’d love to hear your thoughts below!

[DISCLAIMER: Photos in this post may be paired with Amazon affiliate links, meaning I’d earn a small commission from qualifying purchases. Thank you for your support!]

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Published by Lauren

Hi! I’m Lauren (she/her, 22), and I like to read and write; I’m still trying to figure out the rest.

3 thoughts on “February ’24 Wrap-Up: Finding Balance, Good Films, and The Bear”

    1. I love that! I’m only watching Buffy for the first time now also, and I’m really enjoying it thus far. I’m excited to see what the rest of the show holds. 🙂 Happy March!

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