Behind the Blog: Meet the Blogger Series- Chelsea from @suspensethrill

Ever wonder about the person behind the blog?  I mentioned back in January (here) that I would be starting a Meet the Blogger series.  This series will feature some of my favourite bloggers as we go behind the scenes and have them answer the questions!

Next up is Chelsea from The Suspense is Thrilling Me!

Chelsea has become on my “blogging spirit guides”.  She is always there when I need to ask her a quick question, a pep talk or to vent.  She is a stellar human being and an amazing blogger- if Chelsea tells me to read a book?  I need it. Immediately.

Why did you decide to join the world of book blogging? 

Great question! I’ve always been a huge reader; once I found the Goodreads community I decided to try my hand at writing a few reviews of the books I was reading. These were nothing long or fancy, usually just a small paragraph featuring what I liked (or didn’t like) about the book. Eventually, I found myself looking forward to writing reviews as “me time”. The reviews became longer and as my following grew there, I had a handful of authors offer to support me with interviews and giveaways if I would take the leap and start a blog. Every one of them held up their end of the bargain and I can’t thank them enough for encouraging me and supporting me in a long time dream. If it weren’t for Mary Kubica, James Renner, Emily Carptenter, Robert Bryndza, and Angie Marsons, my blog wouldn’t even exist. 

What have been your favourite and least favourite parts of being a book blogger?

Oo this is hard. While advance copies of books are wonderful, I think my absolute favorite part of blogging is two-fold: 1) I absolutely love it when I’m able to support an indie or lesser known author who is a diamond in the rough. Spreading the word on a fantastic “best kept secret” type of book is the best feeling ever! 2) Nothing compares to the feeling of connecting a reader with a book that was written with them in mind. My heart skips a beat every time someone comes back to me saying “I just finished _____ book and I loved it!”. 

The least favorite part of blogging, as I’m sure many others agree, is simply not having enough time to review and promote every book that comes your way. There have been so many books I’ve had to pass over (some I’ve kicked myself over as they became overnight sensations) that sound SO good. If I had enough time, I’d literally spend all my waking moments reading and chatting about books. 

 

What have been your 3 favourite books to review since you started book blogging?

Oh jeez. This is hard! While I’ve enjoyed numerous books, I think some of my favorites were Ink and Bone by Lisa Unger, The Kept Woman by Karin Slaughter, and The Weight of Lies by Emily Carpenter (this was a recent one). There were other books I enjoyed just as much while reading, but these three stuck out as I got caught up in writing the reviews which is rather unusual for me. 

Have you always been a reader? If not, what got you into reading?

I have been reading since inside the womb. Seriously, my mom read to me while I was in there. Honestly, though I can’t really remember a time I didn’t enjoy reading. I’m an only child, so even when I was young I would go to my room on the weekends and read an entire book without coming out. Reading has always been a soothing experience for me, no matter what subject matter I’m consuming, so I’ve always tried to make it a priority in my daily schedule. I feel I should also mention that my aunt is a librarian and always encouraged my reading habits; its wonderful because now we can share all our books with each other. 🙂

Now the impossible question…what are some of your favourite books?

Here are a handful of my all time favorite books in no particular order:

1) And Then There Were None- Agatha Christie

2) The Count of Monte Cristo- Alexandre Dumas

3) Night Film- Marisha Pessl

4) The Doctor’s Wife- Elizabeth Brundage

5) Hold Tight- Harlan Coben

6) Fragile- Lisa Unger

7) Beyond Reach (Grant County #6)- Karin Slaughter

Thanks for much Chelsea for taking part and giving us a sneak peak to the woman “behind the blog”!

Be sure to follow Chelsea on her Social Media!

Twitter: @suspensethrill

IG: suspensethrill