November Wrap-Up & December TBR 2016

I’m really excited that it’s finally December! To me, November feels like a weird limbo month where I’m just waiting for it to be over so it can be Christmas. December is one of my favourite months of the year because it means Christmas, holidays and mince pies.

During November I managed to read 5 books which I’m really pleased with. I went through a bit of a reading slump during the first half of the month as a result of rewatching my favourite TV show, pre-concert hype and post concert depression. But I did pretty well once I got over that.

I’ll get onto the books I read this month! All the books I read were on my TBR for this month, and even though I didn’t get to all the books I wanted to, I’m glad I read quite a few.

 

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What I Read in November:

Heartless by Marissa Meyer

Catherine may be one of the most desired girls in Wonderland but her interests lie elsewhere. A talented baker, all she wants is to open a shop with her best friend.  But at a royal ball where Cath is expected to receive the king’s marriage proposal, she meets Jest, the handsome and mysterious court joker. For the first time, she feels the pull of true attraction. At the risk of offending the King and infuriating her parents, she and Jest enter into a secret courtship. Cath is determined to define her own destiny and fall in love on her terms. But in a land thriving with magic, madness, and monsters, fate has other plans.

I’m sure you’ve guys have seen this book around a lot this month. I was lucky enough to recieve an ARC copy of this book and I’m so glad I did because I absolutely loved it! Marissa Meyer’s one of my favourite authors and I love anything Alice in Wonderland inspired so I kinda new I was going to love this before even starting.

5/5 stars
Review (coming soon)

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A Quiet Kind of Thunder by Sara Barnard

Steffi has been a selective mute for most of her life – she’s been silent for so long that she feels completely invisible. But Rhys, the new boy at school, sees her. He’s deaf, and her knowledge of basic sign language means that she’s assigned to look after him. To Rhys, it doesn’t matter that Steffi doesn’t talk, and as they find ways to communicate, Steffi finds that she does have a voice, and that she’s falling in love with the one person who makes her feel brave enough to use it.

This another ARC I recieved and loved. It was wonderfully written and I don’t think I’ve ever related to a character like I related to Steffi. This book portrayed social anxiety in a very realistic way which I really appreciated. It also features an adorable romance that I enjoyed.

4.5/5 stars
Review (coming soon)

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Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard

This is the second book in the Red Queen Trilogy. I really liked the first book in this series but I didn’t enjoy this one as much. It didn’t catch my interest and lacked originality. I found Mare, the main protagonist, annoying and unlikable and one of most interesting characters didn’t even appear much in this book. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to the final book because this one was left on a great cliffhanger.

3.5/5 stars
Review

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Snow Like Ashes by Sara Raasch

16 years ago the kingdom of Winter was conquered and its citizens enslaved, leaving them without magic or a monarch. Now the Winterians’ only hope for freedom is the 8 survivors who managed to escape, and who have been trying to rebuild the kingdom. Orphaned as an infant during the Winter’s defeat, Meria has lived her whole life as a refugee. Training to be a warrior – and desperately in love with her best friend and future king, Mather – she would do anything to help Winter rise to power again. So when scouts discover the location of the ancient locket that can restore Winter’s magic, Meira decides to go after it herself.

I actually really enjoyed this book! I wasn’t expecting much but I ended up flying through it. I don’t think it had the most unique plot and it was filled with tropes. But, it was well written and had a lovely setting with well-developed characters.

4/5 stars
Review (coming soon)

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Death Note Volume 6 by Tsugumi Ohba

You guys must be tired of seeing this manga pop up every month. I’m taking my time getting through this series mostly because I’ve been struggling to find the next volumes at the library. Reading this keeps reminding me that I need to check out some more manga but I haven’t got around to it… Anyway I enjoyed this volume a lot more than the previous one as the plot and characters are getting interesting again. And I’m looking forward to reading the next volume, eventually.

4/5 stars
Review

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Blog Posts from November:

Lists:

• T5W: Most Misleading Synopses
• T5W: Characters You Used to Like But Don’t Anymore
• Reasons I’ll DNF a Book
• T5W: Books I Want to Re-Read
• T5W: Favourite Villains

Reviews:

• Bad Girls Don’t Die by Katie Alender
• Fallen by Lauren Kate
• Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard
• Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

Tags:

• The Playlist Shuffle Tag
• 3 Days, 3 Quoutes (Day 1, 2, 3)
• The Creatures of the Night Tag
• The Entertainer Blogger Award

Wrap-Up/TBRs:

• November TBR 2016

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November’s Adventures in Instagram:

I’m attempting to use my bookstagram more frequently, although saying that I only posted like 6 things this month. My main struggle with Instagram is that I don’t own many books, as I get most of my books from the library. This makes it difficult to take photos as I don’t always have the book I want and the plastic on library books doesn’t look too great. Anyway, I’m making do with what I’ve got even if my feed’s still a mess. I’m still trying to get my head around this whole Instagram thing, but I’m trying.

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What I Plan to Read in December:

My TBR this month consists of all the books I’ve got left to read from last month. The first being Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian which I was reading but had to put on hold for a few days to read Cress by Marissa Meyer. I just started reading this yesterday and need to finish it by Saturday so I can return it to the library. Then, I want to read The Rose Society by Marie Lu which I’m really looking forward to. If I have time I’d like to get to some of my ebooks, my priority being The Next Together by Lauren James which I don’t even know much about. I just love the cover. And I’ve also finally decided after seeing Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them that I’m going to re-read Harry Potter, if I have time. So that will probably be towards the end of the month.

 

 

 

 

 

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How was your reading this month?
What do you plan on reading in December?