iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by abgushte

Tim Banks: VibeRel Advocate @elchefe.me · 10/09/2026

For my birthday last week, i got engaged to @abgushte.bsky.social 🥰🥰🥰

A handwritten birthday card in flowing black ink on cream paper reads: “Happy Birthday, my love. You are the flame of my heart and the center of my universe. Let's get married,” followed by a small hand-drawn heart.

A close-up of a hand resting on the open birthday card, its fingers curled to display a ring on the ring finger. The band is crafted from deep blue lapis lazuli inlaid in polished titanium, catching the light against the handwritten proposal text partially visible beneath.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

I did not realize this was originally a Draco/Hermione fanfic (the 2nd time I have been tricked!!), but it was still a 10/10 masterclass in silly banter enemies-to-lovers. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½. #booksky 🌶️📚💙

The covers of the Dearly Beloathed duology “The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy” and “The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy” by Brigitte Knightley

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 09/08/2026

I did not like the premise being based on the Mozart siblings as children for various reasons. Once I realized that the story is like a Studio Ghibli movie and it’s not that deep I enjoyed the book a lot more. I think this would have been more impactful as a short story. ⭐️⭐️⭐️¼. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of Marie Lu's The Kingdom of Back

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

Lighthearted survey of common folklore traditions with a focus on the UK. Author goes beyond collecting silly, contradictory bits of folklore by introducing a direct line between folklore traditions and social media culture/trends: both are a means of social control. ⭐️⭐️⭐️¾. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of Household Lore by Liza Frank

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

Overall positive with some mixed feelings. Not enough room to share all the pros/cons but loved the world building, badass characters, and epic religious prophecy with a satisfying ending. Did not like a couple of major characters/their arcs. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 🪐📚💙

All 3 books of Rebecca Roanhorse’s Between Earth and Sky Trilogy laid out on the floor: Black Sun, Fevered Star, and Mirrored Heavens. Text overlays indicate positive overall with some mixed feelings. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.

**Left box (positives):**
- super interesting and original world building
- epic religious prophecy kinda like Dune ngl
- very diverse indigenous characters most of whom are badasses
- overall the ending was not disappointing

**Right box (criticisms):**
- sometimes the actions/motivations felt over explained and therefore forced
- Naranpa was a lil whiny b and then she became kinda cool but also weirdly useless
- weird Iktan fan service
- why does Okoa exist except to be thrown in the trash
- at many times felt like watching a very slow train wreck but then would go back on the rails

A text overlay also thanks Instagram user @whitandprose for recommending the trilogy

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

I enjoyed the prose a lot, but if I have to read about hands balled into fists one more time I’m gonna throw the book across the room. Difficult to see/place the world—expecting more apparent Ethiopianess in the details. Plot predictable and relationships/stakes didn’t make sense. ⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of Tigest Girma’s debut novel “Immortal Dark”

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

Like binge watching a juicy Netflix documentary. The only reason I didn’t finish in 1 sitting was because I had to recover some sleep debt (woke up at 2am that morning to catch a flight). ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½. #booksky #lisajewell 📚💙

The cover of Lisa Jewell’s novel “None of This Is True”

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

DCC is a critique of capitalism/corporate greed + being a cog in a system that you benefit from but only at the expense of others. The 1st book sets the theme of being powerless to change that brutal system unless you build your power by using the tools of your enemy & becoming the thing you hate.

The cover of Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 06/06/2026

Whimsical and fun, and very meandering and disorganized in that Sachar way. The biggest issue is that all the characters are pretty flat and one-dimensional like cartoon characters, so it’s hard to be invested in the story. ⭐️⭐️⭐️¼ #booksky 📚💙

The cover of The Magician of Tiger Castle by Louis Sachar

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

What a fucking weird quirky dark little book. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½. #booktok 📚💙

The cover of The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins

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Reposted by abgushte

Tim Banks: VibeRel Advocate @elchefe.me · 20/05/2026

I love being able to share the mat with @abgushte.bsky.social as she is on her jiujitsu journey. I do my best not to stick my nose in unless she asks me, and when she does, it’s a treat to share a part of me that I love with a woman a love so deeply.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

An agonizing little treat! A fun mixture of wuxia and gong’an genres that kept me turning the page, but an excruciating experience of impatiently wanting everything to resolve quickly and neatly while being made to watch everything unfold chaotically. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of The Fox Wife, a novel by Yangze Choo

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 26/04/2026

I couldn’t participate in independent bookstore day today because I had to buy a new car and it left me with like $-50 in my bank account lol. But it’s my first new car and an EV at that! Thank you @elchefe.me for negotiating great terms for me!! ❤️❤️

A photo of a silly tall woman in shorts and a white tank open mouthed grinning next to her new black Hyundai IONIQ 5 in a parking lot. Her hands are placed on the hood and roof, declaring “this is all mine!”

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

This is one of my all time favorite authors because I can’t help but fall into their stories. Isekai is not a favorite trope of mine, but it’s very tongue-in-cheek, and the world building and characters never disappoint. I am only sad that it will take so long to get book two. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 🪐💙📚

The cover of This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

I’m a little over halfway through This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me and all plans are cancelled tonight. I will be finishing this book before I go to bed even if it kills me (lol), which it will because I will die from excitement for book two. I’M DEVASTATED I MISSED THE BOOK SIGNING IN AUSTIN.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

Gothic horror, but make it cozy. Very excited to read more from Harrow! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️¾. #bluesky 📚💙

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 29/03/2026

I admire and appreciate the thought experiment of this book (especially given the time period and point in Le Guin’s career) but am left frustrated at so many amazing but abandoned opportunities to examine the themes deeper. I did, however, love the author’s introduction! ⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 🪐💙📚

The cover of Ursula K. Le Guin’s “The Left Hand of Darkness”

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 22/03/2026

Poor editing to the point of distraction and having to go back and reread sections. I really dislike the ongoing deus ex machina device, and of course it ends on a bombshell cliffhanger—but I’m still giving it 3.75 stars because I mostly enjoyed myself. ⭐️⭐️⭐️¾. #booksky 📚💙

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

I really liked the concept of women (specifically: lesbians) using vampirism as a means to freedom from becoming a husband’s possession but falling victim to the rot of immortality and becoming just as toxic as the patriarchy they were trying to escape. But the book was a slog tbh. ⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of VE Schwab’s “Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil”

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

He was right about everything: integration has failed. I wish he had lived to see the Black Panthers and have a chance to examine his own misogyny. In spite of that, he owned his flaws and demonstrated an open mindedness which hold up his legacy rather than tarnish it. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of The Autobiography of Malcolm X as Told to Alex Haley.

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Reposted by abgushte

Tim Banks: VibeRel Advocate @elchefe.me · 22/02/2026

Saturdays are for snuggles with the boys 📷: @abgushte.bsky.social

Two grapplers engage in a floor-level philosophical debate, with one making a very convincing argument using their arms. The bearded scholar in the leopard-print rashguard with hair piled magnificently atop their head like a curly crown appears to have won the discussion, as their sparring partner can no longer form counterarguments. In the background, a third philosopher contemplates their life choices in the fetal position. The mats are dark, the stakes are high, and someone is definitely tapping soon

A Brazilian jiu-jitsu training session on dark foam mats. In the foreground, a muscular nonbinary person with a gray beard and curly hair pulled up into a bun is wearing a black and leopard-print rashguard. They are kneeling over a second person who is on their stomach, pinned face-down to the mat with their back taken — a dominant BJJ control position in which the person on top wraps around their opponent from behind. The person on the bottom is wearing a black rashguard. Natural light streams in through large windows in the background, where a second pair of practitioners can be seen on the mat, one curled low over the other. The overall atmosphere is that of an active grappling class.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

Haunting, beautiful, transformative. The story takes place 1 year after all the white people in America suddenly walk into the nearest body of water and drown themselves. Many folks feel the ending is flat and abrupt, but I thought it was quite poetic. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. 📚💙 #booksky

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 13/02/2026

BUT THE PART WHERE HE PULLS HER UP TO HIM BY HER FRONT CORSET STRINGS 🫠🫠🫠 #wutheringheights

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

When BIPOC give white latecomers the side-eye and gatekeep resistance movements, the historical events outlined in this book are a big reason why. White people who complain about not feeling welcomed to the party need to read this book immediately. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 07/02/2026

Added some of these to my TBR and picked up Sky Full of Elephants at the store today 📚💙

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Reposted by abgushte

Pearlmania500 @pearlmania500.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

Oh she’s BROKE broke

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

700 pages of “my god The Big Dragon Boss is coming and he will destroy us all” and 100 pages of actual The Big Dragon Boss Battle plus aftermath. I don’t like that ratio but I loved the journey, the lore, and the characters (except the designated asshole). ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½. #booksky 🪐📚💙

The cover of The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

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Reposted by abgushte

Mikki Kendall @karnythia.blacksky.app · 22/01/2026

I understand the impulse to distance yourself from American history. I do. But the atrocities are the actual normal for many communities. And until we confront them as part of a baseline societal flaw and address why they keep happening, they will not stop. They will just continue to shift targets

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

A sweet, slow burn romance with pretty standard high stakes political intrigue marked with heartwarming community and relationships. There is an agonizing twist at the end, but I’m optimistic that the story will remain strong as a trilogy rather than a longer standalone. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½. #booksky 🪐📚💙

The cover of The Serpent and the Wolf by Rebecca Robinson.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

Gusting winds of 29mph in the Bahamas but still making a little reading nook to treat myself ❤️ Once I finish this one I’ll try Priory of the Orange Tree which I DNF’d last year because it was depressing, but now I’m in vacation mode so that means absorbing myself in it again will be just great???

On a background of a cloudy Bahamas resort grounds through a slightly open patio door, an identified figure sits with their feet propped on a hotel chair and covered in a white down comforter. A book is open in their hand, and on a nearby table lies a bookmark and a to-go cup of coffee.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 18/01/2026

*Dreamy sigh* All the tropes I love woven into an exciting plot that never tires. I have heard the second book is a hot mess rushed by the publisher, but I’m gonna try to plow through it anyway! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

The original cover of Quicksilver by Callie Hart showing a brooding male with dark wavy hair covered in tattoos and a silver liquid falling from his left eye.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

Part 2 takes up over half the book and is a very necessary story-within-a-story(-within-a-story) that goes on forever. The fishing parts didn’t fit smoothly but still accomplish a decent open & close to the story. I just really hated the hokiness… ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ still because it was pretty epic. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of “The Fisherman: A Novel” by Josh Langan.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

A solid YA mythical fantasy adventure with a heartwarming family and a cozy enemies-to-lovers + marriage contract romance. A wholesome read for sure. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of A Forgery of Fate by Elizabeth Lim.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 03/01/2026

Even as a satisfying revenge fantasy, the story made me explicably angry and outraged, especially as it’s rooted in historical facts. And yet I still came away feeling connected to Abitha, Samson, and Mother Earth. Also: another paperback destroyed by my greasy hands 🤣 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️¾. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of Slewfoot: A Tale of Bewitchery by (Gerald) Brom. The illustration by the author is a painting of a woman with long red hair in a flower crown sitting astride a broom with the legs of a goat peaking out under her loose, torn chemise. She has holding the skull of a goat in her lap that is wearing a matching flower crown. An image of a full orange moon takes up the entire background with the witch centered in the foreground.

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Reposted by abgushte

👻ZH00000GE LIANG 臥龍 / 伏龍 👻 @shuchancellor.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

The youth don't even know how to use an abacus anymore, we used to be a proper dynasty 😪

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

I hit my 2025 reading goal of 50 books 🎉 here are some of my favorites. Obviously it was a good year to discover Naomi Novik. I joined two book clubs this year and stretched myself outside my comfort zone on my own as well, and I’m hoping next year’s list will be more diverse. #booksky 📚💙

A collage of 12 books:
A Deadly Education
Uprooted
The Bear and the Nightingale
Thorn Hedge
A Power Unbound
The Black Tides of Heaven
A Monsoon Rising
Buffalo Hunter Hunter
Buried Deep
Legendborn
Death of the Author
Deep End

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 29/12/2025

I was expecting to not like this book as well as the others, but the only note I have is that there’s a LOT of plot in this book packed into 2 weeks that I would have liked to see deepened into 2 books, but perhaps not at the expense of extending the series into 4 books. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 🪐📚💙

Naomi Novik’s novel “The Golden Enclaves”, 3rd in the Scholomance trilogy

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 25/12/2025

Knocking off a quarter point for the HIGH STAKES cliff hanger ending, otherwise *chef’s kiss* One more book until I meet my 2025 reading goal 🎉 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️¾. #booksky 🪐📚💙

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Reposted by abgushte

Tim Banks: VibeRel Advocate @elchefe.me · 14/12/2025

I don’t care if you woke libs cancel me for it but it’s pronounced HarKONnen not HARKonnen.

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

Now that’s what I call dark academia! No notes. The only negative thing I’ll say is that the paperback is now absolutely riddled with my greasy fingerprints 😂 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 🪐📚💙

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 11/12/2025

I really wanted to love this book, so maybe my expectations were too high. I loved the world, but hated the characters and how much the mystery hinged on miscommunication/withholding information for not a very good reason imo. I don’t think I’ll be continuing the series. ⭐️⭐️⭐️¾. #booksky 🪐📚💙

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 10/12/2025

Incredible world building in such a small package. Also an okay whodunnit. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of “Every Heart a Doorway” a novella by Seanan McGuire

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 08/12/2025

I really do be loving me some Naomi Novik. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

You’re telling me that your lifetime bff snitches on you to save herself & throw you in jail for 8 years then immediately recruits you to do crime together when you get out AND YOU DON’T EVEN HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT THE BETRAYAL UNTIL PG 271??? ⭐️⭐️. All the queer characters were neat. #booksky 🪐📚💙

The cover of the novel “Hammajang Luck” by Makana Yamamoto

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 24/11/2025

Loved every page, couldn’t put it down. Novik is definitely sailing to the top of my list of favorite authors. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 📚💙

The cover of the book “Uprooted” by Naomi Novik

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 17/11/2025

KNOTSSSSSSSS. I haven’t run into an Ali Hazelwood book yet that didn’t feel like the first sip of a blue raspberry slurpee when you’re thirsty af on hot day… ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. #booksky 🌶️📚💙

The cover of Ali Hazelwood’s novel “Mate”

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 16/11/2025

Didn’t really pick up until about the last 3rd, but it was a hoot the whole way through. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½. #boosky 🌶️📚💙

The cover of “Accomplice to the Villain” by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

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abgushte @abgushte.bsky.social · 03/11/2025

I loved the premise, but this book made me remember why I hate contemporary Japanese literature: the minimalism. There is so little detail/description and sooooooo much talking. Instead of world building we get sequences of events that lead up to various philosophical one-liners. ⭐️⭐️½. #booksky 📚💙

A picture of a book titled “Water Moon: a novel” by Samantha Sotto Yambao.

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