Tag Archives: new year

Free Printable Reading Log and Planner for 2023

New Season, New Turning of the Wheel of Time

It’s Spring, which in many religions and societies is also the new year. We’re a bit late for the New Year in January (or the Lunar New Year, for that matter), but it’s never too late for new resolutions.

We’re familiar with those goals. You could mightwant to get in good shape, spend more time with family, or go on a trip.

Whatever you do, it’s important to follow through on objectives and keep the momentum rolling.

Our resolution is trying to get more organized, And what better way to do that than with a reading/log planner? How about a free one?

Free 8-Page Reading Journal: Easy to Download and Print

We’ve made a free 8-page printable reading planner/ log. This may help you get organized–at least where reading is concerned. The first page is a cover, and the second is a 2023 calendar, so you need only to print them once. Then print worksheet pages 3 to 8 as many times as you need to have an entire journal you can use all year long.

The printables feature spaces for setting goals, logging your daily reading progress, and tracking books you’ve read.

What’s more, our reading planner and log are entirely free to download and print. In order to get it, all you have to do is click the download button to access the PDF. You can print the sheets as many times as you need, making it perfect for those who want to monitor their progress.

Whether you’re a voracious reader or trying to read more, our reading planner and the log is the perfect tool to help you achieve your reading goals. It’s easy to use, customizable to your preferences, and, best of all, completely free!

Click on the link below to download a free 8-page PDF reading planner kit. Print as many sheets as needed.

FREE 8-Page Reading Planner Kit

2023-reading-planner-2 Download

Happy Reading in 2023

This free printable planner lets you create your specialized reading journal. Use them for your reading lists and notes, and take notes on your progress.

So why not give it a try? Download our reading planner/reading log, and start tracking your reading progress to make 2023 a year full of new and exciting reading adventures.

We’ll be offering more printables and freebies in 2023. Happy reading!

Covers of the Week #88: The Moon and Lunar New Year

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Theme: Moon On Covers (In Honor of the Lunar New Year)

This week’s covers feature moons glowing in the night, in honor of the Lunar New Year.

The Lunar New Year, known also as the Spring Festival and Chinese New Year, begins today Sunday, January 22, 2023. It is a traditional holiday celebrated by many East and Southeast Asian nations and cultures that marks the beginning of a new lunar calendar.

The name Spring Festival is due to the lunar calendar’s association with the Spring planting season. Farmers gave thanks for the harvest of the past year and to looked forward to the new agricultural season. The festival would involve cleaning homes, offerings to ancestors and gods, making new clothes and other preparations for the new year.

Today in Mongolia, China, Korea, Vietnam, and other East and Southeast Asian countries, citizens celebrate Lunar New Year. In nations such as the United States and Canada, people also observe the holiday.

The holiday is a time for families to come together and reflect upon the end of the old year and to wish for good luck and prosperity in the year to come. Festivities typically include exchanging gifts, parades, cultural performances including lion and dragon dances, and traditional foods.

The celebrations last for 15 days, and the most important day is New Year’s Eve.

The Lunar New Year and Phases of the Moon

The Lunar New Year is determined by the lunar calendar, which is based on the moon’s cycles. Specifically, it is based on the first new moon of the lunar calendar year. For that reason, the lunar calendar is different from the solar calendar, which is based on the cycles of the sun and is used in most Western countries.

The lunar calendar is divided into 12 months, each with 29 or 30 days. So to keep the lunar calendar in sync with the solar calendar, an extra month is added every 2 or 3 years. This means that the Lunar New Year can fall anywhere between late January and mid-February of the solar calendar.

The date of the New Lunar Year varies depending on the moon’s phases, but typically falls between January 21st and February 20th.

**January 22**
Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 1%

On this Lunar New Year, the Luna will be in its first phase after the new moon. The moon is close to the sun in the sky and should be mostly dark, except for the right edge.

The Phase of the Moon, January 22

Phase: Waxing Crescent; Illumination: 1%; Moon Age: 0.74 days
Moon Distance: 363,541.36 km Sun Distance: 147,238,179.62 km

The Lunar New Year is time to start anew, both symbolically and literally.

The Covers

For this edition of Covers of the Week for Monday, January 23, 2023, to Sunday, January 29 we’re showing off some of our favorite romance covers with moons in the night sky in honor of the Lunar New Year.

The Covers from Left to Right, (Clockwise)

Comanche Moon, Catherine Anderson, Harper Collins, 1991, Robert A. Maguire cover art
Beloved Honor, Mallory Burgess, Zebra, 1995, Franco cover art
Midnight Moon, Mildred Riley, Pinnacle, 1995, cover artist TBD
Waiting for the Moon, Kristin Hannah, Fawcett, 1995, James Griffin cover art

Your Opinion

What do you think of this week’s theme? Do any of the covers stand out to you as a favorite? Have a recommendation for a future Covers of the Week theme? Let us know, and we’ll try it out.

As always, please drop a comment, and let’s talk romance.

Sweet Savage Flame’s Best of 2022

Sweet Savage Flame Looks Back at 2022

The old year is over, and a new year has begun. We’re excited about the fun stuff we have coming up for this blog! Sweet Savage Flame and lovers of retro-romance books have lots to look forward to in 2023.

In the meantime, let’s look back at our highest-ranking articles and our five star reads from 2022.

Our Top 5 Articles

Cover Artists

21 Old-School Cover Artists Every Romance Reader Should Know

This articles lists some of the best romance cover artists of all time. It is limited to historical romance illustrators who primarily worked in the last third of the 20th century, however. These 21 entries provide a starting point for the novice learner.

Cover Models

Male Romance Cover Model: Rob Ashton

In the 1990s and the 2000s, Rob Ashton was, for a while, the new King of romance cover models after Fabio officially retired from modeling for romance covers. Our article covering his life and career was one of the more popular posts of 2022.

Rob Ashton was a stunning figure of a man at six feet tall and 200 lbs. with long black hair and hazel-green eyes. He was of Cherokee Indian, English, and Irish descent, a beautiful combination. Sadly, Ashton’s career and life ended too soon.

We’ll be highlighting the careers of more cover models in 2023.

Romance Novel Movies

Romance Novels on Screen: Barbara Cartland

We wrote a few articles in 2022 about retro romance books that were adapted to the screen in the 20th century. Of the three published, the Barbara Cartland posting resonated most.

Five of Cartland’s books were adapted for television films. Most are available to watch on YouTube.

The Flame Is Love
A Hazard of Hearts
The Lady and the Highwayman
A Ghost in Monte Carlo
Duel of Hearts

Covers

Series on the History of Stepback Covers in Romance

Our seven-part-series on the history of stepback covers in the romance genre was quite well-received, especially the history of the stepback.

Rare Books

Most Expensive and/ or Hard to Find Out-of-Print Romances

In another post that was a big hit, Sweet Savage Flame covered some of the hardest-to-find and most expensive romance novels. Demand for these rare books is always in flux, affecting asking prices, so a new article about the used-paperback market is on the horizon.

Judy Cuevas – Dance $150 – $300
Beverly Jenkins – Indigo (Original 1996 Avon edition) $200 – ??? GOOD LUCK!
Beverly Jenkins – Night Song (Original 1994 Avon edition ) $150 – ??? GOOD LUCK!
Lisa Kleypas – Where Passion Leads $250 – $500
Lisa Kleypas – Forever My Love $100- $250
Christine Monson – Stormfire $100 – $250 & GOOD LUCK!
Francine Rivers – Hearts Divided $150 – $200
Francine Rivers – This Golden Valley $90 – $200
Francine Rivers – Sarina $100 – $200
Nora Roberts – Promise Me Tomorrow $90 – $150
Day Taylor – The Black Swan $100 – $150
Rosalind Welles – Entwined Destinies $150 – $300

Our 5 Star Romance Reviews of 2022

Sweet Savage Flame posted over 100 book reviews in 2022.

As we read old-school and vintage romances, some of these are bound to be re-reads. But many of thsee old romances we enjoyed for the first time in 2022.

Let’s take a look at these fantastic love stories written 25 to 45 years ago that we reviewed and rated as 5-star reads last year.

5-Star Contemporary/Category Romance

Unfortunately, this year we were so busy with multiple projects that we didn’t get a chance to read as many contemporary romances as we had planned.

Therefore, only three books were rated as 5-star reads, and they are all category romances we’ve read before. In 2023,we’ll get to more retro contemporary romances.

devil in silver room — ***Devil in a Silver Room***, Violet Winspear, Harlequin, 1973, Don Sinclair cover art

5-Star Historical Romances

ride the free wind — **Ride the Free Wind,** Rosanne Bittner, Zebra, Robert Sabin cover art

As for historical romances, fortunately we read plenty of those in 2022. We don’t DNF, so there were several clunkers. Mostly we had a pleasant year of nostalgic reads. There were a dozen 5-star reviews from our staff–which is considerable, since we’re nitpicky!

5-Star Classic Review

The Sheik by Edith M. Hull

One standout from 2022 is having read the 1919 classic The Sheik by Edith Maude Hull. We reviewed this seminal romance in April and cannot give it enough praise. Yes, the modern -day reader may label it “problematic” or “toxic,” but we got a kick out of it. It’s a great romance in our eyes.

The Sheik is the grandmother of the bodice ripper. If not for the closed-door bedroom scenes, this book would have fit right in with the romances penned in the 1970s.

In 1921, the silent film adaptation of the novel starring Agnes Ayres came out. The Sheik catapulted Rudolph Valentino’s career into movie stardom.

Your Opinion

We’re looking forward to looking back in time in 2023. Expect plenty more reviews for old-school romance novel, plus articles and best-of-lists.

How do you think we did in 2022? What would you like to see in 2023?

As always, please drop a comment and let’s talk romance.

Covers of the Week #85: Fireworks for 2023

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Theme: Fireworks for New Year’s

What better way to celebrate the New Year than with fireworks–on romance covers, that is! 2022 is over and it’s a New Year with 2023. It’s a time to look back and forward. To reflect upon the past and look to future. We’re thankful for our readers and are happy to note that some exciting events in store for 2023!

The Covers

To celebrate the the arrival of 2023 our first edition of Covers of the Week for the new year starting Monday January 2, 2023 to Sunday January 9 highlights firework explosions. Sweet Savage Flame wishes you all the best in 2023!

The Covers from Left to Right, Top to Bottom

Paper Moon, Patricia Rice, Topaz, 1986, Gregg Gulbronson cover art
Passion’s Portrait, Suzanne Carey, Silhouette, 1983, cover artist unknown
Nightfire, Valerie Vayle, 1985, Sharon Spiak, cover art
Surrender the Stars, Cynthia Wright, Ballantine, 1985, John Ennis cover art

Your Opinion

What do you think of these romances featuring fireworks? Have you read any of them? Which of our picks do you like the best, if any?

Do you have suggestions or requests for future Covers of the Week themes you’d like to see on Sweet Savage Flame? Let us know, and we’ll do our best to create a gallery of stunning art!

Please drop a comment, and let’s talk romance. Happy New Year to you all!

Free Printable Reading Planner For 2022

New Year, New Resolutions

It’s a new year, and with that comes new resolutions. Are you trying to lose weight? Exercise more? Be more productive?

We’re familiar with those goals. You could also want to get more organized, follow through on objectives, and keep the momentum rolling.

Get 3 Pages to Download for Free

We’ve made a free 3-page printable reading planner and log that can help you get out–at least where reading is concerned. Print each page 12 times for a full year’s worth of journaling.

The reading planner and log feature spaces for setting reading goals, logging your daily reading progress, and tracking books you’ve read.

What’s more, our reading planner and log are completely free to download and print. Simply head to our website and click the download button to access the PDF. You can print it off as many times as you need, making it perfect for those who want to monitor their progress.

Click on the link below to download a free 3-page PDF reading planner kit.

Print as many sheets as needed.

FREE 3 Page Reading Planner Kit

Romance Reading Planner 2022 Download

Happy Reading in 2022

With this free printable planner, you can create your own specialized reading journal. Use them for your reading lists and notes, and take notes on your progress.

So why not give it a try? Download our reading planner and log today, and start tracking your reading progress to make 2022 a year full of new and exciting reading adventures.

We’ll be offering more printables and freebies in 2022. Happy reading!