Amanda Reads: Issue 30

Your reading recs & tarot reading for the week of 1/30/2023

Happy Monday, my friends! The newsletter is turning 30, flirty, and thriving on January 30th, which feels pretty auspicious if I do say so myself.

Last week was my first full week as a stay-at-home dog mom—er, writer. I got a lot of writing done, applied for a couple of freelance gigs, and of course had a few panicked moments of wondering how this whole thing is going to work. You know, normal stuff.

One of the great things about cutting out the commute and having more freedom in my work schedule is that I’ve gotten a lot of reading in, both in print and online. Time for the recommendations and tarot reading of the week!

Book Rec of the Week

This week, I’m recommending a book and a series. Most recently, I read and loved Well Traveled by Jen DeLuca. This is the fourth book in her Well Met series, which all center around a small town Renaissance Festival. I adore these books, and Well Traveled is definitely one of my favorite installments, with its focus on the “on the road” aspect of being a Ren Fest performer. I highly recommend the entire series, though they can definitely be read as standalones if one synopsis interests you more than the others.

Tarot Reading of the Week

Card of the Week: Knight of Swords

Deck Used: Journey Tarot

The Knight of Swords is all about taking firm steps forward. Look how determined she looks, holding the sword aloft in spite of the storm. This card invites you to embrace your bravest self and move confidently in the direction of your goals. What actions, small or large, can you take this week to come into alignment with your best self?

Words from the Web

I love a good personal essay, particularly ones that explore relationships of all kinds. Sally Prag’s phenomenal look at how even “unfinished” love stories can impact us is my recommended reading this week.

As for me, I played around with humor a bit this week and penned some general slice of life musings.

First off, I had to mention the big news that Panic! at the Disco broke up, and on a day that was already pretty weird for me, if I’m honest. I also decided it would be a good idea to watch an entire season of Only Murders in the Building while home alone, and it went about as well as you might expect.

I also finally got around to writing about fake witchy accounts on Instagram, something that’s been bothering me for a while.

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Thanks for reading! As always, I’d be happy to hear from you if you check out the recs of the week or if the tarot reading resonates. Stay tuned for our next Monthly Overview, coming this Wednesday!