December Wrap-Up.

2018 is over! I'm totally flabbergasted! But I did manage a good four books in December, though I diverted from my original reading list a little when I received my Christmas presents.

1. 'Starfighter [Ch. 2]' by Hamlet Machine. Even though I was a little dubious about Chapter 1, I was intrigued enough to continue with this series, and I did like Chapter 2 a little better. There was still a bit of dubcon but I am a little more invested in Cain & Abel now. Also, the art is stunning.   3.5/5 Stars.
2. 'Feminists Don't Wear Pink (& Other Lies)' cur. by Scarlett Curtis. I absolutely adored this collection, and it's a real top read of mine! I'm trying to read more non-fiction as of late, and Feminism is a real hot topic for me.  The contributions from such a variety of women were varied and really interesting, and I liked them all a lot! 5/5 Stars.
3. 'Useless Magic' by Florence Welch. I received this for Christmas and was very pleased with it. I'm a big fan of Florence & The Machine and I love Florence Welch so much. The design of this book is lovely: I liked reading the lyrics so beautifully presented and the poetry section at the end too. 4/5 Stars.
4. 'Stars Above' by Marissa Meyer. This was an AMAZING read and the perfect one to end with this year. I've missed the world of 'The Lunar Chronicles' so much, and this collection of short stories made a great addition to the world and the character arcs. I particularly liked the last story! 5/5 Stars.

This month I read two books for the Beat The Backlist Challenge, making my yearly total thirty seven.

- Starfighter [Ch. 2]

- Stars Above

This month I read one books for the Finishing The Series Challenge, making my yearly total two.

- Stars Above

I read two book for the New Release Challenge, making my yearly total seventeen.

- Feminists Don't Wear Pink (& Other Lies)

- Useless Magic

I read zero books for the Netgalley & Edelweiss Challenge, making my yearly total twenty three.

Here is the result for Pretty Deadly Blog's Bookish Bingo card.

November Wrap-Up.

I'm very fortunate that I managed to finish up one more read before November ended, as it means that it wasn't a total disaster of a month. Honestly, I've really been struggling for reading time as of late, and I managed only four reads.

1. 'A Study In Charlotte' by Brittany Cavallaro. I started this off feeling that some of the aspects were a little bit off. The beginning chapters felt like a mass info-dump and were too rushed, and the concept of each family having all of it's members with the same personality over each generation was a bit peculiar. But I really got into it as the book went on - the mystery was cool, Charlotte especially was a great character, and by the end of it I realised I was hooked. 4/5 Stars.
2. 'The Saga Of Gunnlaug Serpent-Tongue' by Unknown. This served as more of a lesson on Icelandic history and Viking culture more than anything. I realised after reading that I knew so little on the subject other than big, bloodthirsty battles, Norse gods and funeral practices. But while I liked the educational value, the plot of the story was revealed at the very beginning of the book in a prophecy and I didn't find that aspect of it all that entertaining. 2.5/5 Stars.
3. 'Foxes Unearthed' by Lucy Jones. Anyone who knows me will probably be able to tell you I'm a huge fan of foxes. And I really wanted to learn more about them, so this book really appealed to me! I found that I did indeed learn a lot too: their folklore and stories, natural history and reputation all cropped up in this book. But parts of it were very skippable despite Jones's writing, as there was a fair bit of repetition. 3.5/5 Stars.
4. 'The Corset' by Laura Purcell. This book was so good and it's 100% in the running for my favourite read of the year. I loved it! It had a well-crafted story, felt researched and detailed, contained three-dimensional and well-crafted characters, and had me completely hooked throughout. The ending was a little short after all the build-up but I can forgive that as I still came out of this book blown away. 5/5 Stars.

This month I read three books for the Beat The Backlist Challenge, making my yearly total so far thirty five.

- A Study In Charlotte

- The Saga Of Gunnlaug Serpent-Tongue

- Foxes Unearthed

This month I read zero books for the Finishing The Series Challenge, making my yearly total so far one.

I read one book for the New Release Challenge, making my yearly total so far fifteen.

- The Corset

I read one book for the Netgalley & Edelweiss Challenge, making my yearly total so far twenty three.

- The Corset

Here is the result for Pretty Deadly Blog's Bookish Bingo card.

Made Into A Movie: Lolita; Vladimir Nabokov
Middle Grade: The Dreadful Tale Of Prosper Redding; Alexandra Bracken
One Word Title: Folk; Zoe Gilbert
Fire In Title Or Cover: As Kingfishers Catch Fire; Gerard Manley Hopkins
Mystery: A Study In Charlotte; Britanny Cavallaro
Set In A School: Solitaire; Alice Oseman
Black Cover: The Hatch; Joe Fletcher
Space Or Stars: Starfighter [Ch. 1]; Hamlet Machine
Fall Release: A Sudden Light; Garth Stein
Freebie: --
Dual POV: Steve & Mark; Tab Kimpton
Scares You: The Twisted Tree; Rachel Burge
Legend Or Myth: The Saga Of Gunnlaug Serpent-Tongue; Unknown
Pretty Spine: Foxes Unearthed; Lucy Jones
Killers: The Corset; Laura Purcell
Less Than 300 Pages: Teahouse [Ch.1]; Emirain
Features Animals: Into The Jungle; Katherine Rundell
LGBT+: Heartstopper [Vol. 1]; Alice Oseman

October Wrap-Up.

October went really well! I managed to read six books, and most of them were the spooky October reads I'd been hoping for!

1. 'Starfighter [Ch.1]' by Hamlet Machine. Hmm. I really wanted to find a new M/m comic to get on board with, and I loved the sci-fi setting for this one but I'm really not a fan of dubious consent. I'm hoping to see more of a development later in Cain's character, but right now he's a jerk. 3/5 Stars.
2. 'Heartstopper [Vol.1]' by Alice Oseman. I have been waiting to read this. As soon as I found out that it existed I jumped onto reading 'Solitaire' so that I could meet the characters, Nick & Charlie, before reading them here. This is a great LGBT+ comic, I loved the romance and the English Grammar School setting! 5/5 Stars.
3. 'As Kingfishers Catch Fire' by Gerard Manley Hopkins. I was really in the mood to read some poetry, and Autumn makes me especially appreciative of nature. I liked the journal excerpts here a lot as far as descriptions of the wilderness go, but wasn't a fan of the preachy poetry or it's slightly bizarre rhythm. 2.5/5 Stars.
4. 'A Sudden Light' by Garth Stein. This ghost story really took me by surprise, I enjoyed it immensely! I can't believe it took me so long to read! I particularly loved the mystery and supernatural elements, as well as the interesting characters. I just wish the pacing had been a bit quicker. 4.5/5 Stars.
5. 'The Twisted Tree' by Rachel Burge. This was certainly an enjoyable, thrilling story with great references to Norse culture, mythology and life. I liked the constant twists too, but found the MC a bit too self-deprecating and didn't really feel the romance. Also, there's a bit too much left unresolved at the end. 3.5/5 Stars.
6. 'The Hatch' by Joe Fletcher. Another book of poems, this time a little more on the bizarre side of things. I liked the dark tone, sense of humour and visuals this collection conjured up. However, I did find that I didn't really feel anything while reading, nor did I find any of it all that memorable, and that was a big problem for me. 2.5/5 Stars.

This month I read three books for the Beat The Backlist Challenge, making my yearly total so far thirty two.

- Starfighter [Ch.1]

- As Kingfishers Catch Fire

- A Sudden Light

This month I read zero books for the Finishing The Series Challenge, making my yearly total so far one.

I read three books for the New Release Challenge, making my yearly total so far fourteen.

- Heartstopper [Vol. 1]

- The Twisted Tree

- The Hatch

I read three book for the Netgalley & Edelweiss Challenge, making my yearly total so far twenty two.

- A Sudden Light

- The Twisted Tree

- The Hatch

Here is the result for Pretty Deadly Blog's Bookish Bingo card.

Made Into A Movie: Lolita; Vladimir Nabokov
Middle Grade: The Dreadful Tale Of Prosper Redding; Alexandra Bracken
One Word Title: Folk; Zoe Gilbert
Fire In Title Or Cover: As Kingfishers Catch Fire; Gerard Manley Hopkins
Set In A School: Solitaire; Alice Oseman
Black Cover: The Hatch; Joe Fletcher
Space Or Stars: Starfighter [Ch. 1]; Hamlet Machine
Fall Release: A Sudden Light; Garth Stein
Freebie: --
Dual POV: Steve & Mark; Tab Kimpton
Scares You: The Twisted Tree; Rachel Burge
Less Than 300 Pages: Teahouse [Ch.1]; Emirain
Features Animals: Into The Jungle; Katherine Rundell
LGBT+: Heartstopper [Vol. 1]; Alice Oseman

September Wrap-Up.

Absolutely blown away by the amount of reading I managed this month! So much more than usual, that's for sure! Granted, there were a few web-comics that didn't take me quite as much time, but I'm very pleased with my seven managed reads!

1. 'Into The Jungle' by Katherine Rundell. This was a very sweet collection of origin stories for some of my favourite The Jungle Books characters! I particularly enjoyed Baloo's, and I think they each had a great lesson to teach, as well as providing an interesting imagining of how the characters could have become the ones we know and love. I'd highly recommend this for fans of the original books, or even the Disney adaptation! 4/5 Stars.
2. 'Steve & Mark' by Tab Kimpton. Things about this comic didn't quite work for me: the rushed and slightly lacklustre artwork, and the fact that I don't feel a burning need to finish the other stories being the major pain points. But this was definitely a very sweet, sincere story about coming of age, finding out about your sexuality, and coming to terms with it. I liked the inclusion of characters who will be getting their own stories too. 2.5/5 Stars.
3. 'Lolita' by Vladimir Nabokov. I went into this feeling more than a bit anxious. The topic is so taboo and horrifying to me that I worried I would hate every moment of the story. Especially as I'd seen it described as romantic by so many people. But a few chapters in, I realised I would enjoy this book because we are not supposed to find the child raping, kidnapping MC at all charming or likeable as he imagines himself to be. In fact, he's one of the best unreliable narrators I've read in a long time. 4.5/5 Stars.
4. 'The Dreadful Tale Of Prosper Redding' by Alexandra Bracken. It had been a while since I had read an MG book, but Autumn felt the right time of year for a book filled with family curses, demons and witches. I liked the story and some of the character input - Alastor in particular. I wish the characters were a bit more three-dimensional though. 3/5 Stars.
5. 'Teahouse [Ch.1]' by Emirain. I had real mixed feelings about the start of this series. On the one hand, I'm pretty intrigued by both it's popularity, the relationships that are developing and the plot. On the other hand, I really hate that everyone is so obsessed with sex in the book and so little plot is given as a result. I'll keep going with it to see if it there's any real story there. 3/5 Stars.
6. 'Folk' by Zoe Gilbert. I really enjoyed this short story collection a lot - it was atmospheric, beautifully written and had the perfect mix of the supernatural and the real. A couple of the stories didn't engage me like the others, but there was truly some exceptional stuff here and it covered a lot of dark themes too. 4/5 Stars.
7. 'Solitaire' by Alice Oseman. I have wanted to read this book for some time and took the opportunity to do so because I'm now absolutely desperate to read 'Heartstopper', a story focussing on two of the characters in this book. While I liked this book, especially the familiar Kent Grammar School setting, I didn't really like the MC all that much and would have preferred a book with a more interesting start and less bizarre climax. 3.5/5 Stars.

This month I read five books for the Beat The Backlist Challenge, making my yearly total so far twenty nine.

- Steve & Mark

- Lolita

- The Dreadful Tale Of Prosper Redding

- Teahouse [Ch. 1]

- Solitaire

This month I read zero books for the Finishing The Series Challenge, making my yearly total so far one.

I read two books for the New Release Challenge, making my yearly total so far eleven.

- Into The Jungle

- Folk

I read three book for the Netgalley & Edelweiss Challenge, making my yearly total so far nineteen.

- Into The Jungle

- The Dreadful Tale Of Prosper Redding

- Folk

Here is the result for Pretty Deadly Blog's Bookish Bingo card.

Made Into A Movie: Lolita; Vladimir Nabokov

Middle Grade: The Dreadful Tale Of Prosper Redding; Alexandra Bracken

One Word Title: Folk; Zoe Gilbert

Set In A School: Solitaire; Alice Oseman

Freebie: --

Dual POV: Steve & Mark; Tab Kimpton

Less Than 300 Pages: Teahouse [Ch.1]; Emirain

Features Animals: Into The Jungle; Katherine Rundell

August Wrap-Up.

I am so much prouder of my reading achievements this month, even though I didn't plan to read a lot of what I managed to! I managed six whole reads this month, which is a lot better than usual considering the slump I've been in and out of this year!

1. 'The Bone Knife' by Intisar Khanani. I adored this short story and can't believe it went unread on my Kindle for so long! Khanani is a great author, with a wonderful way of making a small tale feel like an epic. Great characters, world-building and plot, and I'm thrilled that her next series will focus more on Rae! 4.5/5 Stars.
2. 'The Crown & The Arrow' by Renée Ahdieh. Another short story, this time set in the world of Renée Ahdieh's 'The Wrath & The Dawn'. It's the wedding scene, told from Khalid's POV, and so we learn very little other than what made Khalid decide to visit his newest bride. But, we did get to see a few character cameos from his POV and it reminded me why I liked book one so much. 3/5 Stars.
3. 'Dragon's Debt' by H.L. Burke. I received this book ages ago alongside book one, and never got round to reading it. I actually really enjoyed 'Dragon's Curse' though, despite my dislike for the covers, and thought that this second in the series brought a lot to the table. It feels a little youthful for YA but the character's are memorable despite a four year reading gap and there's a good plot involved. 3.5/5 Stars.
4. 'Doing It!' by Hannah Witton. What a great non-fiction choice, the first in a long time. Sex and relationships are such a big part of life (or certainly can be) and yet education on the topic is severely lacking. Especially when there's so much to talk about! I applaud Witton for being one of the few people to really hit the nail on the head when it comes to a book on the subject. 4.5/5 Stars.
5. 'Wires & Nerve' by Marissa Meyer. It's been a little while since reading anything from Marissa Meyer, and I received this addition to her The Lunar Chronicles series as a gift. I liked the graphic novel style, getting to see my favourite characters again, and the new plot a lot. I wish I'd seen more of the personalities I'd loved from the novels though, and hopefully book two won't contain quite so much unnecessary set-up. 3.5/5 Stars.
6. 'Final Draft' by Riley Redgate. I adore Redgate's work and this third contribution to her literary career was pretty good. Great characters, diversity, a well-crafted plot, and as usual many themes were covered. I just wish I'd connected with it in the same way that I did her previous two novels! 4/5 Stars.

This month I read five books for the Beat The Backlist Challenge, making my yearly total so far twenty four.

- The Bone Knife

- The Crown & The Arrow

- Dragon's Debt

- Doing It!

- Wires & Nerve

This month I read zero books for the Finishing The Series Challenge, making my yearly total so far one.

I read one book for the New Release Challenge, making my yearly total so far nine.

- Final Draft

I read one book for the Netgalley & Edelweiss Challenge, making my yearly total so far sixteen.

- Final Draft

Here is the result for Pretty Deadly Blog's Bookish Bingo card.

LGBT+: Long Exposure; Kam Heyward
Sequel: The Dragon's Curse; H.L. Burke
Asian Author: The Moth & The Flame; Renée Ahdieh
June, July, August Release: Final Draft; Riley Redgate
Magic: The Bone Knife; Intisar Khanani
Blue Cover: Doing It!; Hannah Witton
A Book You've Been Putting Off: Warrior Witch; Danielle L. Jensen
Illustrations: The Good Guys; Rob Kemp & Paul Blow
Yellow Cover: Floored; Various
Freebie: --
Over 5 Years Old: Mrs Rosie & The Priest; Giovanni Buccaccio
Adventure: Wonder Woman: Warbringer; Leigh Bardugo
Someone Else Picks For You: Out Of The Blue; Sophie Cameron
Red Cover: The Penelopiad; Margaret Atwood
Sci-Fi: Wires & Nerve; Marissa Meyer