Happy Sunday, mis internet amigxs!

February 28th is the last day to post your #MeltIceBookStack on Instagram! I encourage you to do the same to help raise funds for Minneapolis. Your stack can help raise necessary funds for mutual aid to assist those in immediate need.

I have a few book club and Discord announcements before we get to this week's releases...

BIEN LEIDOS BOOK CLUB

All the winners of the Now I Surrender giveaway have been contacted via their Bindery email. As a reminder, since the book doesn't release until March 3rd, we won't be opening up discussion on Discord until the 4th. Our chat will be spoiler-free throughout the month, as per usual, so feel free to jump in as soon as you receive your copy. Also, we WILL be chatting with Alvaro again! I'm currently talking to his team to confirm availability and will more than likely poll in Discord, if you want to have a say in those dates.

March 1st also begins our nonfiction sidequest, Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here by Johnathan Blitzer. We'll be reading through the end of April, so feel free to join us whenever you want in the next couple of months. There is a possiblity we'll be chatting with Johnathan. I'm in talks with his team to see if schedules align.

I'll be posting polls this week in Discord for spoilery book club discussions of Sparks Fly and Racial Innocence.

April and May fiction book club selections have been finalized. Watch this space for some exciting giveaways and announcements coming up very soon!

COMING UP THIS WEEK ON DISCORD

Every Monday, we host productivity/reading sprints on Discord at 8:00 PM EST.

Discord has voted and the 4th Wednesday of every month will be Sticker/Journal night. Name for this monthly event is pending, but for the time being it's Chaos: A Love Story. If you're into journaling, pens, stickers, this is a fun night on Discord where you can share your newest stickers, journal spreads, pens, etc...

*THIS WEEK'S LATINE'S RELEASES*

We've got a massive selection of Latine books releasing this week, so let's get to them!

HISTORICAL FICTION

The Other Moctezuma Girls by Sofia Robleda: In 16th Century Mexico, a fearless young woman strives to uncover the secrets her mother kept as the last aztec empress in a sweeping historical epic.

TRANSLATED FICTION

Technology and Barbarism: or how billionaires will save us from the end of the world by Michel Nieva: Argentine wunderkind, Nieva, is back with a collection of essays about the crossroads of technology, science and art and all they inspire for better or worse.

The Invisible Years by Rodrigo Hasbun and translated by Lily Meyer (Audiobook) Bolivian writer, Hasbun, is back with is 9th work, about 2 friends reunited decades after a night that changed them and their friend group forever.

I Give You My Silence by Mario Vargas Llosa and Translated by Adrian Nathan West: new translation of Peru's Nobel Prize-winnning author.

NONFICTION

Tumbleweed Underworld: A Saga of Morphine and Mayhem in the Arizona Territory by Eduardo Obregón Pagán: history of the US's first opiod epidemic at the turn of the 20th century that exposes a dark underground of the "Old West."

CHILDREN’S

La Golondrina by Sonia De Los Santos and Illustrated by Teresa Martínez |

ROMANCE

The Hope Once Lost by Ambar Cordova, releasing on February 25th, this Kindle-exclusive romance is a small town emotional romance where a widowed single mom and a guilt-ridden retired hockey player, find friendship and love after life has thrown curve balls at them. 11/10 would purchse just for the library ladder on the cover.

xoxo,

Carmen

Good morning, Bien Leidos!

I wanted to announce the winner of our April book club poll as well as let you know some changes to upcoming book club selections--it'll just be a change in reading order versus changing books, though so keep reading!

So the winner of our April fantasy pick was Asiri and the Amaru by Natalia Hernandez! As I was putting together the post, I saw Isabel Allende's Instagram post that La Casa De Los Espiritu Spanish language television adaptation would be releasing on April 29th on Prime. For our Bien Leidos 2 year anniversary, I'd been planning to select a classic of Latine literature to read in May. In fact, I was going to be putting up a poll today, but this announcement made the answer clear to me (as did a 4 hour poll I put up on Discord--YOU REALLY NEED TO JOIN IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY), so what I did was switch up the order of our book club reads for April and May. I'll be posting the announcements in a bit on social media, but I wanted to deliver the announcements exclusively to you first.

I also wanted to remind you that we're still reading Sparks Fly this month so it's not too late to join! I'll be putting up a poll today to schedule our spoilery chat early in March.

Also, our March pick is Now I Surrender by Alvaro Enrigue. It releases March 3rd, so we'll get started with our chat a little bit later in the month since this is a new release. And in case you haven't entered, I have a MASSIVE 15 BOOK GIVEAWAY FOR NOW I SURRENDER up that ends tomorrow!

I am very much looking forward to reading all these books with you! Thank you for being a part of this amazing community!

xoxo,

Carmen

Happy Tuesday, mis internet amigxs!

Before I get to today's releases, I wanted to update you on a few things.

I posted my #MeltIceBookStack this week and I encourage you to do the same to help raise funds for Minneapolis. While the news has been lauding ICE pulling back, news on the ground is dire. Your stack can help raise necessary funds for mutual aid to assist those in need.

Thank you all so much for your support with the announcement last week that I was accepted into the News Creator Corps Trusted Creators Spring Fellowship! Classes begin next week. I can't wait to share more with you.

DEADLINE TO VOTE FOR APRIL BOOK CLUB SELECTION IS TONIGHT!

As a reminder, you have until TONIGHT to get your vote in for our April book club selection. Our genre is FANTASY for April. You can vote on Bindery and on Discord. So far, the results are slightly different on both platforms, so if you feel strongly about a particular choice, then get your votes in on both platforms before the deadline!

ESPERANZA HOPE SNYDER AUTHOR CHAT REPLAY IS LIVE

For those that missed the author chat last week with Esperanza Hope Snyder, here the link to the unlisted YouTube recording of our chat in case you want to check it out.

GIVEAWAY FOR MARCH BOOK CLUB SELECTION: NOW I SURRENDER BY ALVARO ENRIGUE

NOW I SURRENDER GIVEAWAY! I have 10 physical copies and 4 audiobooks of April Bien Leidos book club pick, Now I Surrender by Alvaro Enrigue, up for grabs for ALL BINDERY SUBSCRIBERS. (Lectores and Libritos members, you have an additional chance to win 1 audiobook and 5 copies in this post where the pool of entrants is significantly smaller). This giveaway is US only.

TO ENTER: Just like this post and let me know in the comments whether you prefer a physical or audiobook copy. I'll pick a winner on Thursday, February 19th.

Quick note on a February 10th release I forgot to mention: Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas released on paperback last week!

And, finally, on to this week's releases...

ROMANCE

The Ex-Perimento by Marla J. Morillo (Audiobook)

NONFICTION

Citizenship: Notes on An American Myth by Daisy Hernandez (Audiobook)

Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself by David Archuleta (Audiobook)

xo,

Carmen

Happy Sunday, mis internet amigxs!

I hope you're all having a great Galentine's/Valentine's weekend, if you celebrate. There are a number of updates and announcements plus an EXCLUSIVE GIVEAWAY for Libritos and Lectores members before we get to Tuesday's books.

I posted my #MeltIceBookStack this week and I encourage you to do the same to help raise funds for Minneapolis. While the news has been lauding ICE pulling back, news on the ground is dire. Your stack can help raise necessary funds for mutual aid to assist those in need.

Thank you all so much for your support with the announcement this week that I was accepted into the News Creator Corps Trusted Creators Spring Fellowship! Classes begin next week. I can't wait to share more with you.

As a reminder, you have until Tuesday to get your vote in for our April book club selection. You can vote on Bindery and on Discord. So far, the picks are slightly different on both platforms, so if you feel strongly about a particular choice, then get your votes in before the deadline!

Earlier this week, book club chatted with Esperanza Hope Snyder, and here is your exclusive early access link to watch the replay on YouTube.

NOW I SURRENDER GIVEAWAY! I have 5 physical copies and 1 audiobook of April Bien Leidos book club pick, Now I Surrender by Alvaro Enrigue, up for grabs exclusively for Lectores and Libritos members. I'll have 10 additional copies of the physical book and 4 audiobooks for free subscribers in Tuesday's regular newsletter that you can also enter, but the pool of entrants is significantly smaller in this post. Giveaway is, unfortunately, US only. Just like this post and let me know in the comments whether you prefer a physical or audiobook copy. I'll pick a winner on Thursday, February 19th.

Quick note on a February 10th release I forgot to mention that Celestial Monsters by Aiden Thomas released on paperback last week!

And, finally, on to this week's releases...

ROMANCE

The Ex-Perimento by Marla J. Morillo (Audiobook) Venezuelan rom-com SET IN VENEZUELA about a girl who has her whole life mapped out for her and her boyfriend only to have him dump her after he graduates and then loses her job in the most public and humiliating way possible. She is temporarily hired onto a competition TV show and meets her favorite singer who volunteers to help her win back her ex...let's just say things don't do as planned.

NONFICTION

Citizenship: Notes on An American Myth by Daisy Hernandez (Audiobook) Daisy tackles citizenship through research, history, cultural criticism and memoir.

Devout: Losing My Faith to Find Myself by David Archuleta (Audiobook) American Idol alum tells his coming out story--from Mormon teen to living his authentic life on American Idol as an international pop star.

xo,

Carmen

Good morning, mis internet amigxs,

Over on Discord, we decided our April and May genre for book club would be Fantasy for April and a Latine Classic for May.

I'm posting a bit about each of the April possibilities below so that you can vote on the selection. I'll also be posting a poll on Discord. Feel free to vote on one of both polls. The poll will be open until February 17th, both here and on Discord.

Pedro The Vast by Simon Lopez Trujillo and translated by Robin Myers: Chilean literary science fiction with a fungal twist set in a dystopian . Short and headspinning--for fans of Jeff Vandermeer.

Asiri and the Amaru by Natalia Hernandez is a Latin American cozy romantasy inspired by Peruvian mythology and set in a reimagined Inca empire. There are cute animals! mythical creatures! magical secrets! low stakes! slow burn romance! This is the first book in an unfinished series.

A Cruel Thirst by Angela Montoya is a young adult dual POV romance fantasy about a cinnamon roll newly turned vampire boy and a badass vampire huntress set in an alternative historical Mexico with fantastic banter.

I'll be following up with a May possibilities poll later this week.

xo,

Carmen

Good morning, mis internet amigxs!

I'm bringing you some personal good news today: I've been accepted as a fellow of the News Creator Corps in their second Trusted Creators Fellow class! There are 20 fellows this Spring and I'm so honored to be one of the 20 picked for this program.

The course will be focused on fact-checking, sourcing and interviewing. I'm so thrilled and excited for all I will learn and to meet my fellow cohort. Classes begin February 25th. I'll be vlogging and bringing you along to share my experiences!

You can check out the full class in the picture below.

Can't wait to share more soon. Until then, thank you so much for your support!

xoxo,

Carmen