To be “fixing to” means that you’re planning to do something. For Southerners, “fixing to” isn’t just an interesting turn of phrase—it’s a whole state of mind. Others might say they’re about to eat, but Southerners say they’re fixin’ to eat.

Whether you’re new to Southern cookery, or just looking for new inspiration, this bounty of homestyle recipes from breakfast to dessert (and every meal in between) is sure to make your mouth water. Between courses, “Libation Lessons” will show you how to pair Southern food with your favorite beer, wine, and spirits.

Add a little bit of love—the secret ingredient that makes good food great—and you’ll be Fixin’ to Eat! (Goodreads)

The recipes featured in this book are pretty easy and I liked how quickly it flowed from one recipe to another. However, to me at least, this was more of a Southern-inspired cookbook than an actual book of southern recipes. I was born and raised in the south, so I am aware that different regions have different takes on things but I had never heard of pretty much any of the variations in this book (except for the biscuits). The versions in this cookbook are interesting though, and I think I may try some of them when I am feeling adventurous.

*I was provided a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

Rating: 3/5
Buy: Amazon

This is one of the most bizarre and at the same time, hilarious things I have watched (or read tbh) this year. Ghost Stories is just your average anime featuring a group of kids who keep running into ghosts. What makes it...different is the 100% improvised English Dub. It seems that the voice actors were given basic descriptions (maybe??) of each characters personalities so they would have something to work with and then they were allowed to be as ridiculous as they wanted to be. The end result reminds me of the commentary from Mystery Science Theatre 3000 and the bad lip reading vids on Youtube. They constantly call out the stereotypical anime moments and frequently mention how certain ghosts are total ripoffs of big Japanese movies. The humor is often dark and offensive but somehow manages to fit perfectly with what is going on. I was using this as just something to have on in the background and it kept distracting me from what I was trying to do. After watching about half of the series, I found myself very confused but entertained and I still have no clue what was actually going on. I also find myself curious as to the contents of the original script and if it did a better job of explaining the actual story.

Rating: 5/10
Watch: Crackle, Crunchyroll

To summon an Angel of Hell…

Ruxandra Dracula, a 250-year-old vampire, wants nothing to do with the fallen angel that created her. But when fellow vampire Kade tells her a group of magicians in Moscow is going to summon that angel, Ruxandra knows she must try to stop them.

In Moscow, Ruxandra finds herself caught in a web of political and supernatural intrigue. Empress Anna of Russia wants the vampires to be her spies. Her secret police have magic that is nearly impossible to defeat. A cadre of Russian nobles wants them to kill the Empress.

And the Alchemist, the beautiful, whip-smart leader of the magicians, wants Ruxandra as more than just an experimental subject.

As the magicians prepare to summon the fallen angel, Ruxandra must choose: will she kill them to keep the angel from coming, or face the angel and find out her purpose on the earth? (Goodreads)

I went into book three of this series with very low expectations because of how disappointing book two was. I wish I could say things got better, but that would be a lie. Mother of Chaos is an absolute borefest full of cliches frequently found in this genre that I grew tired of a long time ago. At this point, the only good thing about the Princess Dracula books are the covers. How such a horribly written series was able to have such beautiful covers is an absolute mystery. I will not be continuing this series.

Rating: 1/5
Buy: Amazon