November Wrap-Up.

Okay, at first I was a bit disappointed in my reading progress this month, but actually two of the books that I read were pretty long and so after much deliberation, I'm pretty pleased! I managed 5 of the 7 I chose and I enjoyed most of them. November has been a blast!

1. 'The Historian'; Elizabeth Kostova. This book arrested me in a way that no other has for a while. Not only was it incredibly detailed, well-crafted and gorgeously written but it ended up creeping me out quite a bit more than I imagined it would. The amount of research that must have gone into this is breath-taking. However, what made it so great also hindered it's appeal in a number of ways. It's size makes it an intimidating book to read and for good reason. This book does a heck of a lot of info-dumping and takes a while to get to the parts where the plot actually progresses. 3.5/5 Stars.
2. 'Bitter Greens'; Kate Forsyth. Another big book (though not quite so scary) that I really enjoyed. There were three main plot-lines and I enjoyed each of them, as they all brought something new to the table in terms of plot and characterisation. Forsyth is obviously big on world-building too and I was impressed by her vast knowledge and historical accuracy. That intertwined with fantastical elements made this a fresh take on the well-known Fairy Tale 'Rapunzel'. In all the jumping around characters and time periods, minor character names did get a little confusing but I was deeply impressed with Forsyth's novel. 4.5/5 Stars.
3. 'The Butterfly & The Violin'; Kristy Cambron. While reading this book, I felt like I was reading from two completely different authors, not just a past and present back-and-forth. One tale was a haunting, emotional historical piece on the life of an Austrian Violinist sent to Auschwitz and forced to endure unbearable cruelty. The other tale was a rather tacky, loosely connected insta-love in modern day America following two people trying to track down a painting of the aforementioned Violinist in a way which made little sense and became almost unbelievable. I believe that Cambron had really good intentions with the message of this story, but in the end it drowned any chance of a real plot out. 1.5/5 Stars.
4. 'A Thousand Nights'; E.K. Johnston. This was my favourite read of the month and I still get excited when thinking about this book. Johnston's writing blew me away because it felt like a Fairy Tale in it's style. The imagery in particular really let Johnston's talent shine through. What I enjoyed most about this novel though was it's clever, subtle message about where power truly lies and I appreciated the diverse nature of the characters in this book. 5/5 Stars.
5. 'The Sin Eater's Daughter'; Melinda Salisbury. I was extremely excited to read this book and came out of it feeling a little disappointed. I honestly felt like Salisbury got the plot progression spot on, the story was well-written and she had put a fair amount of thought and effort into the world-building. Unfortunately Twylla (the main character) really didn't strike me as a great heroine, and the ending coupled with some inconsistencies along the way really frustrated me. Perhaps it could have done with a little more development in order to earn a higher rating. 2.5/5 Stars.

This month I have read three physical books:

- The Historian

- Bitter Greens

- The Sin Eater's Daughter

This month I have read two Netgalley/Edelweiss reads:

- The Butterfly & The Violin

- A Thousand Nights

Here are my Bookish Bingo & Story Sprites cards!

Horror: The Other Lamb; Kate Young. REVIEW.

Reread: The Historian; Elizabeth Kostova. REVIEW.

LGBTQIA: More Than This; Patrick Ness. REVIEW.

Sparkly Cover: Horns; Joe Hill. REVIEW.

Mental Illness: Mary Hades; Sarah Dalton. REVIEW.

Religious Minority MC: A Thousand Nights; E.K. Johnston. REVIEW.

Over 400 Pages: Bitter Greens; Kate Forsyth. REVIEW.

Science Fiction: Spinning Starlight; R.C. Lewis. REVIEW.

Water On The Cover: The Sin Eater's Daughter; Melinda Salisbury. REVIEW.

New To You Author: Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children; Ransom Riggs. REVIEW.

On Your Shelf For Over A Year: Life After Life; Kate Atkinson. REVIEW.

Set In Another Country: Etta & Otto & Russell & James; Emma Hooper. REVIEW.

Animal On The Cover: Station Eleven; Emily St. John Mandel. REVIEW.

Mystery: Vengeance Road; Erin Bowman. REVIEW.

Black Cover: Witch Hunter; Virginia Boecker. REVIEW.

Historical Fiction: The Butterfly & The Violin; Kristy Cambron. REVIEW.

A Character Death: More Than This; Patrick Ness.

Male MC: Horns; Joe Hill.

POC MC: A Thousand Nights; E.K. Johnston.

Witches Or Wizards: Bitter Greens; Kate Forsyth.

Photograph On The Cover: Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children; Ransom Riggs.

A Book With A Mountain: The Historian; Elizabeth Kostova.

A Halloween Read: Mary Hades; Sarah Dalton.

Set In The Southern USA: Vengeance Road; Erin Bowman.

Character Centred Novel: The Sin Eater's Daughter; Melinda Salisbury.

Supernatural Race In Modern Times: The Other Lamb; Katie Young.

A Character Who Is a Musician: The Butterfly & The Violin; Kristy Cambron.

October Wrap-Up.

I am actually so pleased with this month's reading progress! There were a couple of moments that I thought I wasn't going to be overly productive this month with my reading, but in a couple of instances I managed to find time to sit down and actually read for a few hours, not just on the Tube to and from work. I managed 6 of my 7 chosen reads for the month and I couldn't be more pleased!

1. 'More Than This'; Patrick Ness. Despite the mild panic attack the first few chapters gave me, I loved this book! Patrick Ness writes amazingly well, merging multiple genres seamlessly and making it look so easy! He maintained a sense of suspense consistently and I audibly reacted at the end of every chapter! I really felt emotionally connected to the characters too, particularly Seth's very sad story. At times the conversation got a little too philosophical and I'm not a fan of the rather ambiguous ending but the pros far outweighed the cons. 4.5/5 Stars.
2. 'Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children'; Ransom Riggs. This felt like a novel of two parts to me and it made rating it rather tricky. The first part was my favourite. I loved the atmosphere, hearing about his Grandfather's stories and pairing them with the photographs. The atmosphere that Riggs built was creepy, particularly when the setting changed to a remote Island near Wales. But in the last third of the book I felt like I was reading a different book! The characters started making decisions that I genuinely felt they shouldn't have done so easily. I gave it a high rating in the end because half of the book impressed me and I want to find out what happens. 3.5/5 Stars.
3. 'The Other Lamb'; Katie Young. There were a lot of things I really enjoyed about this book. The writing for one really got to me because it just flowed so well. It was very poetic too, and hooked me with both beautiful and brutal images. There is a lot of violence and detailed sex in this book, so if you're sensitive to that sot of material I'd stay away. Young had obviously done an absolute ton of research in order to aid writing the Mythology for this book, and it was very intricately pieced together as a result. On the other hand, the characterisation didn't wash at times. Despite being the 'main character', Zach's personality felt very lacklustre and he was pushed off to the side a lot. The plot began to unravel towards the end leaving me with more questions than answers. It's a shame because it had such promise! 3/5 Stars.
4. 'Horns'; Joe Hill. I started reading this book a while back and never got more than a few chapters in because I didn't really understand it. I'm glad I waited until now to revisit it! The plot concept was a really good one, and like nothing I had ever read before. Hill's writing style was absolutely captivating and filled with a lot of symbolism and iconography for me to unpick for deeper meanings (which I loved). The characters were not very relateable however, and I felt like Hill didn't fully know what sort of book he wanted to write so slapped a bit of everything in. 3.5/5 Stars.
5. 'Vengeance Road'; Erin Bowman. I was originally a little frustrated at my own idiocy for getting hold of a copy of this book. My request for a copy on Netgalley was accepted but then I didn't download it in time before it was archived so I ended up buying a Hardcover copy anyway. This turned out to be the best purchase I've made in ages! I LOVED this book! Thanks to growing up on Clint Eastwood films with my Dad, everything about a YA Western screamed awesome! And it certainly was: a kick-ass heroine, swoon-worth romance, gorgeous world-building and a mesmerising plot. What more could you want? 5/5 Stars.
6. 'Mary Hades'; Sarah Dalton. I just about got round to this one for Halloween and it was a very good choice for the time of year. It seems I've read a lot of books where the writing has impressed me this month, and this is one of them. At times it felt a little juvenile and basic, but there's no denying that I was hooked on the story from beginning to end. I also loved the romantic sub-plot for this one, Seth was a wonderful, mysteriously brooding love interest. My favourite kind! Unfortunately the main character was a little too trusting and naive for my liking and the ending was anticlimactic and disappointing. I really want to see if Dalton fixes some of these problems in the next book because this series has a lot of promise! 3/5 Stars.

This month I have read four physical books:

- More Than This

- Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children

- Horns

- Vengeance Road

This month I have read two Netgalley/Edelweiss Reads:

- The Other Lamb

- Vengeance Road

Here's my updated Bookish Bingo and Story Sprites cards!

Horror: The Other Lamb; Kate Young.

LGBTQIA: More Than This; Patrick Ness.

Sparkly Cover: Horns; Joe Hill.

Mental Illness: Mary Hades; Sarah Dalton.

Science Fiction: Spinning Starlight; R.C. Lewis.

New To You Author: Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children; Ransom Riggs.

On Your Shelf For Over A Year: Life After Life; Kate Atkinson.

Set In Another Country: Etta & Otto & Russell & James; Emma Hooper.

Animal On The Cover: Station Eleven; Emily St. John Mandel.

Mystery: Vengeance Road; Erin Bowman.

Black Cover: Witch Hunter; Virginia Boecker.

A Character Death: More Than This; Patrick Ness.

Male MC: Horns; Joe Hill.

Photograph On The Cover: Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children; Ransom Riggs.

A Halloween Read: Mary Hades; Sarah Dalton.

Set In The Southern USA: Vengeance Road; Erin Bowman.

Supernatural Race In Modern Times: The Other Lamb; Katie Young.

September Wrap-Up.

Honestly? I'm a bit disappointed in my reading month. In the end I did manage 5 out of 7 of my reads which doesn't sound so bad upon reflection (especially as one or two of them were quite long) but I still feel like I could have done better. Still, I've had some great reads that I've thoroughly enjoyed!

1. 'Spinning Starlight'; R.C. Lewis. My first read of the month and I was certainly excited about it because it was a Fairy Tale retelling (my favourite genre)! Despite knowing very little about Hans Christian Andersen's original, I was not disappointed in the slightest! The heroine was likeable, the world-building glorious and the plot extremely well thought out. It had quite a sizeable cast and it would have been nice to have connected a bit more with some of the lesser characters. Still, a great read and I hope to read 'Stitching Snow' at some point soon. 4/5 Stars.
2. 'Life After Life'; Kate Atkinson. Yet another great read that continued what looked to be a promising month. I'd had this book on my shelf for a long time and wanted to read it for quite a while. Finally I got round to it and it was fantastic! I adored the plot concept, it felt so different to things I had read before. Atkinson's writing style was beautiful and captivating and hooked me from start to finish. The only thing that really stopped me from giving it full marks was the vague ending that didn't answer all of my questions. 4.5/5 Stars.
3. 'Etta & Otto & Russell & James'; Emma Hooper. I liked this book but didn't love it. The plot concept was pretty good and it had a bizarre element that made it a really interesting read. I really liked the Magical Realism element in it too, and considering it's not my favourite genre, that's pretty impressive. Once again the ending disappointed me, even more so than 'Life After Life'. It was just far too ambiguous and confusing. 2.5/5 Stars.
4. 'Witch Hunter'; Virginia Boecker. After a couple of deep reads, I felt like relaxing with something slightly less strenuous. I had pretty mixed thoughts on this one, but liked it enough to want to keep going. I was disappointed in the main character for not being nearly as badass as the blurb painted her, though her kind-heartedness won me over a little. The world-building was good but not as detailed as I wanted. The plot was the best part of the book by far and so in the end I liked it more, though the start didn't grab me as much a I'd have liked. 2.5/5 Stars.
5. 'Station Eleven'; Emily Mandel. My latest read and quite possibly my favourite so far this year! Seriously, what a wonderful way to end the month! The plot was mesmerising, the characters fascinating to read about and the world-building absolutely divine. If you haven't already read this Adult Dystopian that I can see becoming a future classic, then I really recommend that you do! I'm so impressed by this book that I am totally desperate to read more of this lady's work. 5/5 Stars.

This month I have read two physical books:

- Life After Life

- Station Eleven

This month I have read three Netgalley/Edelweiss reads:

- Spinning Starlight

- Etta & Otto & Russell & James

- Witch Hunter

Yikes, is it three quarters of the way through the year already? Well here's a little update on the rest of my challenges!

I managed to gain another 8 points for the Prequel/Sequel Challenge, bringing my total to 40 points:

- 'The Winner's Crime' +2 (July)

- 'Valiant' +2 (July)

- 'Moon Over Soho' +2 (August)

- 'Insurgent' +2 (August)

I read two more entries for the Book To Movie Challenge, bringing my total to eight:

- The Hobbit

- Insurgent

And now it's time to start my brand new Bookish Bingo card, while finishing my Story Sprites challenge!

Science Fiction: Spinning Starlight; R.C. Lewis.

On Your Shelf For Over A Year: Life After Life; Kate Atkinson.

Set In Another Country: Etta & Otto & Russell & James; Emma Hooper.

Animal On The Cover: Station Eleven; Emily St. John Mandel.

Black Cover: Witch Hunter; Virginia Boecker.

Primary  Coloured Cover: Moon Over Soho; Ben Aaronovitch. REVIEW.

Fairies As A Theme: Valiant; Holly Black. REVIEW.

Forbidden Romance: The Winner's Crime; Marie Rutkoski. REVIEW.

Setting - An Alien Planet: Spinning Starlight; R.C. Lewis. REVIEW.

Female Fronted Fantasy: A Whole New World; Liz Braswell. REVIEW.

Love Triangle: Etta & Otto & Russell & James; Emma Hooper. REVIEW.

Cover With Silver Lettering: The Hobbit; J.R.R. Tolkien. REVIEW.

Novel By An Indie Author: Sunbolt; Intisar Khanani. REVIEW.

Book With Angels Or Demons: Angelfall; Susan Ee. REVIEW.

A Novel Over 400 Pages: Life After Life; Kate Atkinson. REVIEW.

Fairytale Retelling: Neverland; Shari Arnold. REVIEW.

Adult Sci-Fi Book: Flex; Ferrett Steinmetz. REVIEW.

Book with a Virus/Outbreak: Station Eleven; Emily St. John Mandel. REVIEW.

First Book In A Series: Hunter; Mercedes Lackey. REVIEW.

A Book Into A Current Movie (2015+): Insurgent; Veronica Roth. REVIEW.

August Wrap-Up.

What a month it has been for reading! I'm actually so proud of myself too, because I managed 6 of my 7 chosen reads this month. Hooray! There''s been quite a mix ranging from very bad to very good, and I'm excited to summarise them and see how I'm getting on with my challenges too.

1. 'Moon Over Soho'; Ben Aaronovitch. This was the second in the 'Peter Grant' series, the first of which I read a while back. I'm making a concerted effort to get through series that I keep leaving for a while. This book I liked better than the previous in terms of story-line, villain and style. However I'm not so happy about the characters as I feel like I'm not really connecting with them. Hopefully this improves with the series progression. 4/5 Stars.
2. 'Angelfall'; Susan Ee. I have had this book on my shelf for such a long time and I finally read it. I loved it too, I'm so glad that I finally got through it! The word-building was pretty cool, Penryn was a great heroine and I loved the romance build-up I've got so far. Sure, Penryn's Mother was annoying as heck, but I'm hoping that her weird behaviour is there for a reason and not just an annoyance. 4/5 Stars.
3. 'Flex'; Ferrett Steinmetz. This book was a bit of a weird one for me because I didn't hate it. I just found it confusing and didn't really like the characters all that much. The concept of it was really cool though, and I would be intrigued to see what happens next despite the fact that I didn't really connect with it a whole lot. 2.5/5 Stars.
4. 'Insurgent'; Veronica Roth. I went into this one feeling a bit wary (despite the fact that I loved Book 1) and I will admit that is because of reviews I've had on the series progression from other people. Despite that, I was open-minded and liked this second instalment. I didn't adore it like I had 'Divergent' as you could really tell this was a filler book. Tris is as awesome as I remember her though and the plot was decent enough. Four had better drop the attitude in 'Allegiant' though. 4/5 Stars.
5. 'Hunter'; Mercedes Lackey. I'm so upset by how disappointing this read was. It had a beautiful cover and a nice concept (though not wholly original) and honestly sounded like the kind of thing I would enjoy. The main character was far too irritating for me to like however, and Lackey's constant info-dumping and inability to write like a teenager meant that a potentially life-threatening situation really began to feel more like a high-school drama.  1/5 Stars.
6. 'A Whole New World'; Liz Braswell. I'm afraid what should have been a really nice re-telling of Aladdin didn't live up to my expectations either. The plot itself was okay and the pacing really worked well. It flowed nicely and never became boring to read. However, the first quarter is literally the first quarter of the Disney film written down, and then the rest of the book didn't bring anything new to the table. One-dimensional characters and a weird sadistic tone mixed with slapstick humour meant a mediocre rating. 1.5/5 Stars.

This month I have read three physical books:

- Moon Over Soho

- Angelfall

- Insurgent

This month I have read three Netgalley/Edelweiss reads:

- Flex

- Hunter

- A Whole New World

This was the last month for my Bookish Bingo Challenge and in the end I managed three whole lines! For me: that's pretty good! There were some really fun categories too so this was a great challenge. I've also managed to acquire one Sprite for my Story Sprites Challenge this month too!

Cover Has Been Changed: Tithe; Holly Black. REVIEW.

PoC Writer: Sunbolt; Intisar Khanani. REVIEW.

Title Is More Than Three Words: The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikry; Gabrielle Zevin. REVIEW.

Magic: The Hobbit; J.R.R. Tolkien. REVIEW.

Fire In Title Or On Cover: Flex; Ferrett Steinmetz. REVIEW.
Multi POV: How To Fly With Broken Wings; Jane Elson. REVIEW.

Face On Cover: The Winner's Crime; Marie Rutkoski. REVIEW.

Purple Cover: Insurgent; Veronica Roth. REVIEW.

Tearjerker: Neverland; Shari Arnold. REVIEW.
Travel: A Natural History Of Dragons; Marie Brennan. REVIEW.

June, July, August Release: Angelfall; Susan Ee. REVIEW.

Freebie: A Whole New World; Liz Braswell. REVIEW.
2015 Debut: Skin; Ilka Tampke. REVIEW.

Young Adult: Hunter; Mercedes Lackey. REVIEW.
Short Story: The Sleeper & The Spindle; Neil Gaiman. REVIEW.
Finish A Series: Mockingjay; Suzanne Collins. REVIEW.

Blue Cover: Moon Over Soho; Ben Aaronovitch. REVIEW.

Primary  Coloured Cover: Moon Over Soho; Ben Aaronovitch.

Fairies As A Theme: Valiant; Holly Black.

Forbidden Romance: The Winner's Crime; Marie Rutkoski.

Female Fronted Fantasy: A Whole New World; Liz Braswell.

Cover With Silver Lettering: The Hobbit; J.R.R. Tolkien.

Novel By An Indie Author: Sunbolt; Intisar Khanani.

Book With Angels Or Demons: Angelfall; Susan Ee.

Fairytale Retelling: Neverland; Shari Arnold.

Adult Sci-Fi Book: Flex; Ferrett Steinmetz.

First Book In A Series: Hunter; Mercedes Lackey.
A Book Into A Current Movie (2015+): Insurgent; Veronica Roth.

July Wrap-Up.

This month's reading once again has been pretty good! I got through a ton of books that I have wanted to read for a while, including a couple that I've waited far too long to get round to! In the end, I managed 5 of the 7 reads I set myself at the start of the month!

1. 'The Hobbit'; J.R.R. Tolkien. This is the first book that I have read by this world renowned author, and in the end I thought it was pretty okay! However, it did not live up to the masses of hype that surrounded it and so I came out feeling a little disappointed. The characters were interesting, and the world-building certainly world class but it just felt a little too short and the tone was not nearly mature enough for my taste. I hope I enjoy the Lord Of The Rings series better!
2. 'Sunbolt'; Intisar Khanani. This book completely blew me away simply because while I expected I would enjoy it, I didn't have huge expectations. It more than surpassed my idea of a great book, despite it's very short length, and I can only see this developing into a fantastic series. The characters were phenomenally written and the glimpse of the world of Karolene that I got to see really impressed me. I can't wait to read more when the sequel is released!
3. 'The Winner's Crime'; Marie Rutkoski. Some of you may remember that I enjoyed but didn't adore the first book in this series. The pacing felt off and I felt like it wasn't explored to it's fullest. This second instalment was considerably better in my opinion! I actually felt masses of sparks between Arin & Kestrel (before, I really didn't feel an awful lot between them). This time, Rutkoski managed to exploit every little moment rather than leaving them feeling unfinished. Despite this, the plot-line at times felt like a series of misunderstandings and secrets that wore thin pretty fast.
4. 'Valiant'; Holly Black. I feel like this was a month for surprises, and one certainly came in the form of this book. I've read a lot of Holly Black's work in the past (including 'Tithe', the first in the series) and despite adoring her imagination, I have always found her writing style a little too fast paced for me to keep up with a lot of the time. Not so with 'Valiant'. Everything about this book spoke to me: it's originality, complex characters, creative plot situations, and the romance was sizzling too!
5. 'Neverland'; Shari Arnold. This was my favourite read of the month! Everyone knows I'm a huge fan of Fairy Tales, and Peter Pan is absolutely no exception! I've always been fascinated by the mysterious young boy who never grows up, and the world he lives in: Neverland. This book takes a more emotional yet just as magical twist on the concept. I cried a lot while reading it, yet also found myself laughing too. The characters were imaginative (I loved Arnold's vibrant take on Peter Pan himself and her aloof incarnation of Captain Hook).

This month I have read two physical books:

- 'The Hobbit'

- 'Valiant'

This month I have read three Netgalley/Edelweiss reads:

- 'Sunbolt'

- 'The Winner's Crime'

- 'Neverland'

And now it's time for a quick update on the Bookish Bingo & Story Sprites challenges I signed up for at the beginning of the month!

Cover Has Been Changed: Tithe; Holly Black.

PoC Writer: Sunbolt; Intisar Khanani.

Title Is More Than Three Words: The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikry; Gabrielle Zevin.

Magic: The Hobbit; J.R.R. Tolkien.
Multi POV: How To Fly With Broken Wings; Jane Elson.

Face On Cover: The Winner's Crime; Marie Rutkoski.

Tearjerker: Neverland; Shari Arnold.
Travel: A Natural History Of Dragons; Marie Brennan.
2015 Debut: Skin; Ilka Tampke.
Short Story: The Sleeper & The Spindle; Neil Gaiman.
Finish A Series: Mockingjay; Suzanne Collins.

Fairies As A Theme: Valiant; Holly Black.

Forbidden Romance: The Winner's Crime; Marie Rutkoski.

Cover With Silver Lettering: The Hobbit; J.R.R. Tolkien.

Novel By An Indie Author: Sunbolt; Intisar Khanani.

Fairytale Retelling: Neverland; Shari Arnold.

June Wrap-Up.

I can't believe that we are already halfway through the year, it's gone so quickly! Luckily, to celebrate, I've had myself a fantastic reading month. I've read so many good books! These are always my favourite kinds of months, as they make me feel so productive! I'm quite pleased too, as right at the last minute I managed to pull off a few good reads in a short space of time. This meant I read 6 of my 7 planned reads this month!

1. 'Skin'; Ilka Tampke. I was actually invited to read this one by Hodder & Stoughton via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I was also invited to the Publishing Party for it, so I'm really glad that I enjoyed it! Historical Fiction is a genre I really love, and I didn't realise that Celtic Britain would prove to be an area of History that I would fall in love with. There was a huge amount of fantastic world-building in this one, as well as a likeable heroine and an intriguing plot. 4/5 Stars.
2. 'The Sleeper & The Spindle'; Neil Gaiman. I couldn't believe how quickly I got through this one, it was a mere 70 pages long and comprised of a fair few illustrations. Needless to say, the artwork was gorgeous and I can forgive it's short length because Fairy Tales are seldom long. The tale itself was slightly macabre and chilling at times, with huge doses of female empowerment to keep me happy! 4/5 Stars.
3. 'Mockingjay'; Suzanne Collins. Finally! I've waited far too many months to read the final instalment of this series, but I got to it at last. Despite a pretty slow start which involved a lot of reflection and bitterness on Katniss' part, the second half of the book was too good to ignore. It was action-packed, horrifying at times, and completely broke my heart. In the end, it was enough to push my rating up. 4/5 Stars.
4. 'A Natural History Of Dragons'; Marie Brennan. I finished this book on the Sunday just gone, and have to say that I knew it would get a high rating from the beginning. I adored the heroine, Isabella (she is in fact the strongest female lead I have read about this year) because of her passion, ferocity and wonderful sense of humour. Her relationship with Jacob was a joy to read, and learning all about Dragons somehow gave this book an extra edge above other fantasies. 5/5 Stars.
5. 'The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikry'; Gabrielle Zevin. This was definitely my favourite read this month, if not of the year so far. It felt very original, contained a colourful cast of wonderful characters and had a fascinating plot that contained many expletive-inducing twists, had me doubled over laughing, and made me cry too many tears to count. You have to read it to understand what I'm talking about! 5/5 Stars.
6. 'How To Fly With Broken Wings'; Jane Elson. This was a rather disappointing end to a very productive reading month, especially as the blurb had looked so promising and the cover so beautiful. In the end, there wasn't a whole lot of character development or plot pacing, and the writing style was a big turn-off. It did have a lovely message with a few heart-warming moments though. 1/5 Stars.

This month I have read two physical reads:

- 'Mockingjay'

- 'A Natural History Of Dragons'

This month I have read three Netgalley/Edelweiss reads:

- 'Skin'

- 'The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikry'
- 'How To Fly With Broken Wings'

I am now halfway through the year too, so I probably ought to update you on the rest of my challenges! Here goes!

I managed to gain another 14 points for the Prequel/Sequel challenge, bringing my total to 32 points:

- 'A Storm Of Swords: Blood & Gold' +2 (April)
- 'Mockingjay' +12 (June)






I read three more entries for the Book To Movie Challenge, bringing my total to six:

- 'A Storm Of Swords: Blood & Gold' (April)
- 'Child 44' (April)
- 'Mockingjay' (June)





And here is my updated Bookish Bingo card!

Murder Mystery: Child 44; Tom Rob Smith. REVIEW.

Forgotten Fridays Pick: Going Bovine; Libba Bray. REVIEW.

Aussie Author: The Rosie Project; Graeme Simsion. REVIEW.

Yellow Cover: The Storied Life Of A.J. Fikry; Gabrielle Zevin. REVIEW.

April, May, June Release: Fractured Dream; K.M. Randall. REVIEW.

Rain Or Storm In Title: A Storm Of Swords: Blood & Gold; George R.R. Martin. REVIEW.

Parental Relationships: The Winner's Curse; Marie Rutkoski. REVIEW.

Bullying: How To Fly With Broken Wings; Jane Elson. REVIEW.

Freebie: Midnight Crossroad; Charlaine Harris. REVIEW.

Thieves, Assassins, Pirates: Moonlands; Steven Savile. REVIEW.

Parallel Universes: Between The Lives; Jessica Shirvington. REVIEW.

#WeNeedDiverseBooks: Good Kings, Bad Kings; Susan Nussbaum. REVIEW.

Illustrated Cover: The Sleeper & The Spindle; Neil Gaiman. REVIEW.

Part Of A Trilogy: Mockingjay; Suzanne Collins. REVIEW.

Nonfiction Or Memoir: A Natural History Of Dragons; Marie Brennan. REVIEW.

Historical: Skin; Ilka Tampke. REVIEW.