The Summer Sweatalong Book Tag!

4th Aug 2026

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Dini of @DiniPandaReads did this tag and I thought it looked fun, so here it is! The tag was created by The Bookworm Dreamer.
I’ll be trying to use my 2026 reads for this, but I’ll note when I can’t.

What season do I like best and why isn’t it summer?

I don’t hate summer, but it is definitely not my favourite season. I am always torn between Autumn and Spring for that. I don’t do so well in the heat, and these days it is extra hot. In the UK too we have wet heat because the humidity is so high. Where I am, in Cornwall, one morning during a recent heatwave it was 28 Celsius and 91% humidity at 9am. Absolutely NO thank you. I do enjoy summer for the lovely evenings and the general buzz of the season, but I’d take 2 lots of Autumn instead of summer any year.

Don’t Stop! — A book you couldn’t stop reading:

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow.

I’m still annoyed that I didn’t pick this book up 5 or 6 years ago when I got it, because goodness me it’s brilliant. I did NOT want to stop reading it, the plot, the writing, the characters… all of them had me hooked.

You’re a Cheetah — A book you read in just ONE DAY:

The Annual Migration of Clouds by Premee Mohamed.

This is a novella so it’s pretty short (is that cheating here?), and I read it on a Sunday afternoon. I enjoyed it a lot, and do want to pick up the next two, though sadly my library doesn’t have them at the moment.

Couldn’t Let Go — A book you could* re-read straight away:

Mad Sisters of Esi by Tashan Mehta.

I’ve slightly changed the question here because I haven’t actually reread a book immediately this year, though I was thiiiis close with Mad Sisters… I am going to reread it this year, probably next month. This is now one of my favourite books of all time, I think about it daily.

Calm It Down — A book that got your heart racing:

There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm.

This book was tense. Sometimes I had no idea what was happening but I was anxious anyway. Other times I knew exactly what was going on and I was freaked out. This sounds negative, but it’s not, I was turning pages frantically haha, needing to know what was next!

Second Best — A sequel you read faster than the first:

Sea of Charms by Sarah Beth Durst.

This is actually a book 3, but I did read it faster than book 2! (I can’t remember how quickly I read book 1.) I really enjoyed this one and read it in 2 sittings over 2 days. Sarah Beth Durst hasn’t failed me yet with the cosy-vibes-with-actual-action books!

Books on Fire! — A series you read straight through:

I actually don’t have an answer for this unless I go back to 2024. I am so bad at reading series, but I have also been mostly reading standalones recently. The series I do read tend to be ones still being published, so I can’t read them straight through!
For this answer I will say, my 2024 series was Red Rising, and the two series I read instalments from immediately (and therefore as ‘straight through’ as I can) are Green Rider, and Nora Breen Investigates.

Midnight Madness — A book that kept you up late:

The Killer Question by Janice Hallett.

Not a lot comes between me and my bedtime (am I old? Hah!) but I did stay up a bit later to finish the latest Janice Hallett. Her books are SO addictive!

First 5 star read:

Ancient by Luke Barley.

I don’t actually star rate, but this book would get 5 stars. It was my second read of the year and I loved it. Ancient woodlands are my favourite habitat, and I just loved the way the author wrote about them.