Archives for December 2018

In October I read NOS4A2 by Joe Hill in hopes it would kick off a spooky reading month for me! I had such high hopes for this book because so many bookstagrammers that I follow love this book. I know people who reread this every year because they love it so much! Based on that I was ready to get to reading it. A few chapters in I was starting to enjoy it. There was potential for some horror with this book which I love in October. As I got deeper in the book, however, I realized it was mostly just really really weird. Probably the strangest book I’ve read (up there is Dead Path though) and I was just not into it. 

I hate ditching a book once I start it and I was still going on the fact that so many people like it. So I continued reading but I found I was forcing myself to pick it up so I could finish and continue on with my large to be read pile. This book has so many different things happening that I found myself eyerolling as another oddity was brought into the picture. It has teleportation, fortune-telling scrabble pieces, a magical Rolls Royce, and a Christmas type theme that certainly ruins the magic of Christmas. The main character goes through hell constantly and I found myself thinking that if this was real she’d be dead a hundred times by now. I appreciate that the lead is a very strong female but I mean… come on. Although I suppose her survival is the most realistic thing in the whole book.

Certain parts of this books are gripping which I flew through, only to get to another part that made me want to throw the book across the room. This sounds like a super harsh review (and it is) but this is the second lowest rated book (by me) that I’ve ever read. I love fantasy type books and if this was written in that kind of world it would have been more enjoyable but trying to tie all the crazy into what is supposed to be the real world just doesn’t make sense for me! Despite this entire review I’m honestly not trying to deter people from reading it because so many other people loved it. Its just not for me. I think it set a really bad tone for October reading for me and I’m pretty sure it’s why I completed so few books that month. If you do read it, I think it would be a good read for December because of it’s christmasy theme. But fair warning it may cause you to be a little down on the holiday!

 I realized I skipped posting my October wrap up so I combined it with November. October was not a great reading month for me which was so disappointing because I was all set to read a huge stack of horror novels! Needless to say, my plans did not pan out. November was more successful with eight books read and I still have the momentum going into December. To reach my 2018 reading goal of 75 books I need to read 13 books this month. With all of the Hallmark Christmas movies going down I don’t know if it will happen but I’m going to try! Quite a few of the books I read were on audiobook so they aren’t pictured!

October:

NOS4A2 by Joe Hill

Ugh! So many people like this and I did not. Its so biazarre. I mean kudos to Joe Hill for being so freakin creative but wow I don’t want to be in his dreams! This is such an odd book. I forced myself to pick it up every time I read it which I think is a main reason why October was such a bad reading month for me! I know plenty of people who would recommend this book but I am not one of them! Thinking of doing a full review on this one (this book is also not pictured because I can’t find it… I think subconsciously I “lost” it so I never have to look at it again… too harsh?!)!

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

This book is depressing. I had this on my TBR list for a while and was so excited to read it. I listened to in on audible but I don’t think it would have been less of a downer if I’d read it. There is not a part of this book that is uplifting. Even the ending, which I’m assuming was mean to be happy, was certainly not. Pair this with reading NOS4A2 and it’s no wonder I hated reading in October! I think this book can be skipped if it’s on your TBR list.

Girl Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis

AH FINALLY! A fantastic book read in October! I listened to this one as well and I’m so glad I did. The audiobook is read by the author which I love because she obviously knows the book better than anyone. Rachel is so open and honest about her life and I had so many “it’s not just me” moments! I have recommended this book (in audio version) to all of the close women in my life. I have used the term life changing many times when describing it to my family and friends. This book needs to be read by women, especially young women, experiencing all of life’s pressures. I can’t say enough good things about this book! And it got me back into enjoying reading after the first two October duds.

November:

Pet Sematary by Stephen King

I was really looking forward to reading this book. I’ve heard from so many people that it is their favorite King novel. Unfortunately, it wasn’t mine. I didn’t dislike it but I struggled through parts of it. It has a few parts that I just don’t quite get. I sort of thought there would be more dead animals coming to life ha! It’s funny to me that King says this is his most disturbing book, to the point where he left this locked up in a drawer for quite some time! I thought IT was much more disturbing but that’s just my opinion! Stephen King is still my favorite and I’m not turned off to his writing in the least but this won’t be listed as one of my favorites of his novels.

Crazy Rich Asians  by Kevin Kwan

This book was pretty funny. This was an audiobook for me and it was certainly an easy book to listen to. I’m anxious to read the sequels because the end of this one is left pretty open. I think I need the sequels to answer some questions for me. This wasn’t my favorite book of November but it’s an easy read which I appreciate after some of the tougher options I had in October.

Sunburn by Laura Lippman

My friend gave me this book after she read it. I read this while I was in Paris on vacation and I sped through it. Which should tell you something seeing that I wasn’t given too much opportunity to read! Anytime we were back at the hotel I was picking this book up to pass the time. I hadn’t heard of this book before my friend recommended it so I’m glad she did! There are so many twists and turns it’s easy to stay interested! The end makes you want to throw the book across the room but you can’t because you just can’t stop reading it!

Every Breath by Nicholas Sparks

I used to read Nicholas Sparks religiously! He is truly the king of romantic novels and this book did not disappoint. I took a break from reading his books for other authors but I’m glad I came back to this novel. It’s similar to his other novels in many ways: love story, location etc, but it did have differences that I appreciate. The forward and epilogue are written as Sparks’ in the novel which I love and it’s clear he invested a lot of time and energy in researching all that went into this book. He was an expert on the topics he wrote about and you can tell he put a lot of love into this book.

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

I had to put this one down halfway through because it was a little too close to home for me. The novel is so well written that it can be painful to read if you’ve been through a similar situation as these characters. I absolutely loved this book but I knew I would have to come back to the book when I was in the right mindset. I can’t help but think the author must have been touched by suicide in some capacity because she writes this book so beautifully and with a great deal of understanding. I’d definitely recommend this book but I don’t think some people will be as touched by the content as others.

You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott

This has been on my TBR for a long time. I love when I read a book and it’s so unlike anything else I’ve ever read.  The storyline is unique and captivating. The author does a great job and making you guess but blindsides you in the end! I loved this book.

The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver

My mom gave me this book knowing I would love it. It’s such a sweet book you can’t help but love it. I actually started this book a few years ago but can’t remember why I didn’t finish it. I’m so glad I did this time because the ending gives you all the warm fuzzy feels. It’s definitely a moving and emotional book and I definitely recommend it!