Following For My TBR List

Have you ever been on a Facebook book group and seen someone post their "follow dot" to keep abreast of the post should a new juicy book get posted in the comments? If you are like me, you probably wanted to snatch those follow dots for yourself, but were too afraid of copyright infringement. Well, I made my own. And, I made some to share as well.

If you are on the computer, I'm sure you know to "right click" and "save."

If you are on your phone, screenshot it and then use a photo cropping app like "Photo Editor PRO" to crop the extra stuff out of the screens hot. To get "Photo Editor PRO" you have to type in "Aviary Photo Editor" it's the only way I can find it. RIP Aviary Photo Editor. 

Now for the good stuff:

Why I Don't Like Ibotta And What I Use Instead

I don't know if I legally have to say this, but I'm going to give you a heads up anyway. I have a referral code tucked in here. The other companies either did not have referral options, or (in the case of receiptjar) they only allow "official influencers" with 1,000 Followers or more to post on their social media campaigns and blogs for profit. Since I'm a small hobby blog at this time, I can't share that referral code with you. 

I wanted to love ibotta. Especially back in the days when you could stack with a coupon… problem is, I'm a simple person. I don't clip all the coupons and hunt down all the sales. I go to one cheap grocery store fore most things. That store is Aldi. And I love Aldi, but Aldi is not one of the stores covered in ibotta. Not only that, when I do head out to Walmart or Schnucks I almost always reach for store brand items. So ibotta doesn't generate much, if anything for me.

What do I use instead? Well, for one I use Fetch, you still get extra for listed items (which are all name brand) but you get a standard 25 points for just about every receipt you scan. I even scanned a McDonald's receipt. 

Another good one is Coinout. You can scan almost any receipt. Nothing that is obviously not a real receipt. It let's to link to a few online accounts too. I'm having difficulties with Amazon ereceipts, but as a paper receipt scanning app it is great. You get about 4 cents per receipt. 

It's not exactly a receipt scanning app, but it is a purchase recording app, and I love it… so I'll include it, National Consumer Panel or NCP for short. With NCP you scan the barcodes of your purchases. I never scan my groceries  because that's too much trouble, but that would certainly work and probably set me to cash out much earlier and it's a quick to cash out app as it is. I even can "scan" self serve soft drinks from the gas station.

My all time favorite receipt scanning app is receipt jar. It has a sliding scale of how many point you get based on how much you spend. Pretty much any receipt is accepted as long as the name of the store is clearly printed on the receipt. The app has a flash on the camera to give a clear view of the receipt, it steadies the camera if you have shaky hands, and it lets you take multiple pictures for longer receipts. The icing on this cake, however, is that you can even scan dispensary receipts. 

All these apps of course cash out for Amazon gift cards (my favorite). All, but Fetch also offer PayPal payouts. As a bookworm, I'll take the gift cards, but maybe you have bills to pay. I'm not here to tell you how to cash out. Just recommending some great receipt apps.

It should also be noted that I have an Android. I Googled the others and they are all iphone apps too, with Coinout only being available on iphone 14.0 or later, and iPad of the same "generation" what do you call it for ios products anyway?

If ibotta works for you, then I'm happy for you, maybe you can add these apps to your repertoire. If you are like me, and ibotta just doesn't work for you, try these options. Make sure to hook them up to an email you actually check for those gift cards.

April 2023 TBR List

I have been on a dark and twisted romance kick. My TBR list reflects that as well. I think. In other bookish news: I deleted my Goodreads account and made a new one. The books in my old TBR list were laughable and way too many to just delete them all. So I made a new account. Lost all my books read, but it's more important about the bookish connections I make on thereanyway. I have been really organizing my books on there, so go check it out if you are interested in some books. I also started a Booktok, I'm new. I have one follower. And my final bit of bookish news is that I'm going to read other stuff along with smut for awhile because I'm going to be reading through the Rory Gilmore Book Challenge List. You can find it on Pinterest and print it out for free, or you can head to Etsy and look up a "pretty" one, or you can go to Amazon and buy a booklet with the list printed out. Being ever frugal, I chose to print it out for free on Pinterest. 

Hooked by Emily McIntire 

So, the synopsis makes it sound like it's a story where Captain Hook gets the girl. After all, the character's names are James and Wendy. However, I have it on good authority that it isn't exactly that. The person did not give anymore information for fear of spoilers, and it wasn't enough to detour me. I want to know for myself!

Tempt by Melanie Harlow 

At the time that I got this book, the author was giving it away free for a limited time. I snatched it up because it's an ex's dad kind of romance, which I really like, and find kind of funny as well. I hope I get to reading this one soon.

The Fireman And His Nanny by Roya Kingsley

This book is not on Kindle at all. I got it through Book Funnel for free from the author for signing up for their newsletter. I'll do it for a freebie. I keep Unroll on my phone in case the subscriptions get overwhelming. 

Money Making Mom by Crystal Paine

I have have this book on my Kindle for years. I read their book Money Saving Mom, which has some delightful insights on saving money. This book is all about making extra money from home. That is what I need to learn. Just a little bit. Enough to help out.

How To Learn A Language In 90 Days by Adam Muller

Another book I've had on my Kindle for awhile. I'm currently trying to learn Irish Gaelic. I'm using Duolingo, Mango Languages, and YouTube. I'm also listening to Gaelic songs and reading books with Gaelic snippets in them. Hopefully this book will push me closer to my goals.

The Castle by Sky Warren 

I had thought I read this book, till I hit download to check the back of the book for follow information.  That's when I realized I had read the first two, but not this one. Then I realized there are more! I have some catching up to do!

Dandelion Jane by A.R. Stanley 

I am a terrible friend. I bought this book because my friend wrote it. We spent hours together while she wrote it. (I worked on a project that got copied over by a third party) I have read snippets of the book and they are good. But, she told me it's not a HEA book and I just never read it. I was telling my Mom about it the other day and she was excited "Oh you have to read it!" She exclaimed. I guess that settles that. I'll be reading the book soon, then.

Highest Bidder by Sara Cate 

I have read all of The Salacious Players Club except Mercy, and that's because I'm neither a Beau fan, nor a Domme fan really. So, I left that one alone. But, I'm excited to read this one, I've heard good things.

Beautiful Carnage by Heather Ashley 

Oh the struggles of getting through this book! This is the book my husband chose for me to read to him. But, he is a little freaked out by the story line. I think. He says it's too hot to handle. Is that code? In the meantime, he doesn't want me to go ahead and finish it without him, because he is interested, he just needs to be ready.

These Sinful Delights by Elizabeth Bardot

Supposedly there is an Irish character in this book that uses Irish words and phrases. I learned on YouTube that the military language training program requires trainees to listen to music in the language they are learning, watch movies, and read books. I'm not ready for a whole book, this is what I'm ready for.

Priest by Sierra Simone

I've heard so many good things about this book that I just had to buy it. Warning, if you are religious, I'm pretty sure this book isn't for you. This is Supposedly a book about a priest breaking his vows in all manner of smutty ways. If that offends you. Find something else. Anything else.

Grumpy Billionaire Boss Daddy by Blakely Rose

This is another Free Book Funnel book for subscribing to their newsletter. Just don't do what I did and accidentally download it three times. I haven't found a way to delete extras.

Highland Fling by Meghan Quinn 

After getting a wee bit obsessed with Outlander, I decided to put my own spin on falling down the rabbit hole. I'm learning Irish Gaelic because I'm Irish (by blood, not by birth), I'm knitting again, and I'm reading books with modern Scottish and Irish MMC's in them. 

Den Of Vipers by K.A. Knight

Normally I'm not a huge fan of RH romance, I don't have a problem with the why choose concept... it's hard for me to keep up with positions or to picture them. However, the people in one of my Facebook book groups highly recommend this book to me, so I added it to my TBR.

Reading Habits Book Tag

I'm bored, let's do a book tag. Today I'm going to chat about reading habits, although I'm pretty sure some of the discussions have already been brought up in other book tags. As always. I found this book tag on Pinterest. I don't know who the original poster was. If it was you please let me know so I can link you.

Bookmarks or random piece of paper?

Okay, I'm guilty of using random pieces of paper, but I absolutely love beautiful bookmarks. When I took up knitting again I started knitting up some bookmarks to use. I also plan on printing some "color your own" bookmarks too. Mostly I read on my Kindle, though.

Stop reading randomly or stop after reading chapter/certain number of pages

It depends. I at least wait until the paragraph is over if I'm stopping on my own. If someone (ahem, Hubby) interrupts me, I ask if I cam wait until the end of the chapter. I don't really measure out pages because I'm on the Kindle.

Certain place at home for reading?

Honestly? I read in bed. When we remodel the living room I will be spending more time reading in there. I have long hair and it gets tangled up when I read in bed. I don't know about you, but my scalp is tender!

Eat or drink while reading?

I'll drink while reading, but eating is too distracting. What do I drink while reading? Coffee, herbal tea, water, mimosas (better than wine, really), or a diet mountain dew.

Music or TV while reading?

What kind of question is this? Who on earth can pay attention to the TV while reading? I do sometimes put on music to drowned out my gaming stepson, from the other room. It's a bit distracting to be in the middle of a spicy scene and then hear "you @$$%^^^&$#&&!" Noted: as much as I don't mind cussing on my blog, there are some things I won't say. Also noted: this is temporary, he broke his leg and will soon be back to work and I can read in silence. 

One book at a time or several?

I used to say one book at a time. Or if I read two it was one fiction and one non-fiction. Now, I will sometimes have two fiction going at once. Right now I have my regular book, the book I'm reading to Hubby, and an audiobook all going at once. I haven't even picked out my non-fiction book yet.

Reading at home or everywhere?

I used to take my ereader with me everywhere. Then, again, I had a messenger bag as a purse that could fit my Kindle in it. I don't have such a bag now, though. I've been searching rummage sales, Thrift stores, and Facebook marketplace for the perfect such bag for me. I really don't want to spend $40.00 for the one on Amazon (as much as I love it).

Reading out loud or silently?

Definitely silently. I'm reading a book aloud to Hubby and it's going so slowly! Partly because he is slightly horrified at the type of books I read, but mostly because you read slower aloud than in your head.

Do you ever read ahead or skip pages?

No. Okay, I used to, but that's kind of hard to do with an ereader! I've tried the bookmark feature, and it doesn't seem to do much of anything that I can tell. Someone tell me if you know, please.

Breaking the spine or keeping it like new?

Oh for the love of Thor! Do not crack the spine of your books! At least not the hard covers. I don't really care about paperbacks because they are meant to withstand a bit of abuse, but hard covers are works of art! If there is one good bookish habit my Dad instilled in me, it was to never crack the spine of a book.

Do you write in your books?

Not if it's not a textbook. I'm pretty sure I'm done with college, so, no.