December Wrap-Up.

As is usual for December, I didn't manage all of my reads this year. That is in fact not surprising because Christmas month is always SO busy for me! Still, I managed a lot of reads (four of the original seven I chose, plus one extra) and I'm excited to talk about them all!

1. 'Dragon Slayer Number Nine' by Intisar Khanani. This book probably shouldn't count seeing as it was only four or five pages long, but I'm including it anyway because it was a pretty cool short, experimental story written by one of my favourite authors of all time (I can call her that now because I've adored everything she writes so far). I really wanted to get back into the Khanani mood and this piece seemed like the perfect way to do it. In fact, I'd love if she'd expand upon it because the problem with a story with ONLY dialogue is that it becomes exceptionally short. 3/5 Stars.
2. 'Memories Of Ash' by Intisar Khanani. After my little warm-up, I dived straight into the book I've been waiting to read all year. I read the first in this series, 'Sunbolt', quite a while ago and I've been hoping for a sequel much longer in length ever since. I certainly got that! Khanani took everything great from the original novella and expanded upon it in this. The characters are well thought-out (and she has the kick-ass female character thing down to a tee), the world-building absolutely gorgeous and Khanani just writes such strong story-lines. 5/5 Stars.
3. 'Stealing Snow' by Danielle Paige. Sadly, my happy reading bout couldn't last long. I really didn't enjoy this book, which was sad because it could have made the perfect wintry read. Instead, it just disappointed me. The pace was way too fast, revolving an annoying, indecisive main character who jumps from scene to scene without fully being allowed to explore it. Not to mention the fact that she falls for every guy she meets. Ugh. The world didn't comprise of much more than lots of snow, coloured trees and a few penguins and became just a generic Fantasy world rather than having personality. 1.5/5 Stars.
4. 'Heartless' by Marissa Meyer. Marissa Meyer did it again. I was a little unsure going into this despite my love for Fairy Tale retellings because Wonderland is a difficult place to get right. It has to have the perfect balance of madness and sense, otherwise it will either be no fun/unrecognisable or just too ridiculous. Of course Meyer managed it perfectly and created the perfect origin story for the infamously cruel Queen Of Hearts. She also neatly slotted in some great references to other recognisable characters from Carroll's original novels and paid great tribute to him in the process. 5/5 Stars.
5. 'A Girl Called Owl' by Amy Wilson. My last read of the year was okay, and while I was hoping for something overwhelmingly positive, it wasn't a bad story. In fact Wilson had thought up some pretty neat ideas about the cycle of the seasons and how famed figures of folklore could actually be real. The problem was that I felt that Owl, the MC, was far too flighty and her feelings didn't fully match up to her actions. Many sub-plots were introduced but not for any real reason other than a device to keep Owl's story moving and other areas that I would have liked more development on didn't get enough attention. 2.5/5 Stars.

This month I have read zero books for Pretty Deadly Review's Backlist Challenge, bringing my yearly total to fourty four. 

This month I have read three book for Falling For YA's Netgalley & Edelweiss Challenge bringing my yearly total so far to nineteen. This month's reads were:

- 'Stealing Snow' by Danielle Paige

- 'Heartless' by Marissa Meyer

- 'A Girl Called Owl' by Amy Wilson

This month I have gained two points for Novel Heartbeat and Writer Grrl Reads' Prequel & Sequel Challenge, bringing my yearly total so far to sixty two. This month's read was:

- 'Memories Of Ash' by Intisar Khanani (+2)

This month I have read two books for [un]Conventional Reviews' New Releases Challenge, bringing my yearly total so far to seventeen. The books I read were:

- 'Memories Of Ash' by Intisar Khanani

- 'Stealing Snow' by Danielle Paige

Note: I have not included 'Heartless' or 'A Girl Called Owl' as they are not released until 2017.

This month I have read two books for Daily Prophecy's Retelling Challenge, bringing my yearly total to twelve. My reads were:

- 'Stealing Snow' by Danielle Paige

- 'Heartless' by Marissa Meyer

I also started my new Bookish Bingo card, and here is the result.

Alternative Format: Dragon Slayer Number Nine; Intisar Khanani

Sequel: Memories Of Ash; Intisar Khanani

2017 Debut: A Girl Called Owl; Amy Wilson

GR Choice Nominee: Heartless; Marissa Meyer

White Cover: Stealing Snow; Danielle Paige