What I Read: February

For most people, not just readers, February isn't the most productive month of the year. The problem with February is that it's just such a short month. You start the month with high hopes and before you know it, you're welcoming in March wondering just where February went. As a reader I always find this month is my least productive reading month but surprisngly I've managed to fly through a ton of books this month.

To start the month I read The Night Country by Melissa Albert. This is the sequel to The Hazel Wood which I read last year. It follows a young girl called Alice who's spent her life running from the omnipresent bad luck that's followed her and her mother Ella for their entire lives. The Night Country picks up where The Hazel Wood leaves off and follows Alice as her and Ella attempt to settle down and have a normal life. Yet when Alice's fellow Stories start being gruesomely murdered and all fingers point at Alice, it's up to her to find out the real culprit without falling down the dark rabbit hole that's threatening to swallow her up. I enjoyed The Night Country more than I did The Hazel Wood but for me it was still missing that little something that made it a rememorable book. It's obvious that Melissa Albert's writing style has matured since she wrote The Hazel Wood but both books had this slightly rushed feeling towards the end. If you liked The Hazel Wood's dark, creepy style then you'll love the darker feel The Night Country has.

Another sequel I read this month was The Vanishing Stair by Maureen Johnson. This is the second book in the Truly Devious Series and by god it was a fantastic book. I found Truly Devious very hard to get into but I literally flew through The Vanishing Stair. Picking up from the end of the first book, this follows Stevie as she returns to Ellington Academy to solve the infamous Ellingham kidnap/murder case as well as the death of her fellow student. I could not put this book down, it was fantastic. Each chapter had a new twist, a new clue, a new revelation that ended on an amazing cliff hanger that's left me anticipating the third and final book in this series. If you haven't already read this series, I recommend you do, you won't regret it.

A book I didn't think I was going to love as I did was The Song Of Achilles by Madeline Miller. I rad Circe by her last year and whilst I enjoyed it, I found it very hard to stay focused on. The Song Of Achilles on the other hand I flew through and thoroughly enjoyed. It tells the tragic tale of Achilles from his upbringing as a young boy through his growth into Greece's greatest solider until he's defeat and death during the Battle Of Troy. And it's all told through from the perspective of his sworn companion and lover Patroclus. This book had me hooked from their upbringing as young boys, learning what their love for each other meant to both of their untimely ends during one of Greece's most infamous battles. If you like yourself a bit of Greek Mythology then Madeline Miller's novels will be right up your street. I'm hoping she releases another soon because her writing style is phenomenal.

Onto book four, yes I said book four. Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake is a book that's been on my radar for a while but I only brought it last month. After finishing The Song Of Achilles, I wanted something a little dark to continue with and this seemed perfect. I was starting to get a little disheartened that only two books I'd read so far this year were five star books but this opening book in the series has restored my faith. This follows a new generation of queens who are born as triplets but kept apart from each other for sixteen years until it's time to coronate a new queen. And decide who is to take that mantle, the triplets must spend a year planning, scheming and honing their powers so they can successfully kill their two sisters. This book is dark and I love it. It had so many twists, so many schemes and a setting that gave me major Golden Compass vibes. I thought maybe I'd find it easy to work out which sister would come out on top but as the book progresses, I found that I couldn't choose and just wanted each sister to at least finish this first book alive.

Then I finished Tales Of The Greek Heroes by Roger Lancelyn Green. I owned this book as a child and loved it but unfortunately lost it so I decided to repurchase and reread it. This is an anthology of sorts that depicts the tales of the might Greek Gods and Heroes of Greek Mythology. It's a little more dramalized than the actual events but it still has the facts that are depicted in every book of Greek Mythology. Sadly I did not enjoy this book as much as I did when I was a kid. I picked it up thinking it would be a quick read over a weekend but it took nearly a week to read because I found it to be very slow and hard to get lost in. I think after reading books such as Circe and The Song Of Achilles, my perspective of what good Greek Mythology retellings has grown and this book fell just short of that. It certainly wasn't as good as I remember it being and for nostalgic reasons, it makes me just that little bit sad.

Book six, I can't believe I'm saying book six but the sixth book I read this month was The Last Of August by Brittany Cavallaro. This is the second installment in the Charlotte Holmes quartet. It picks up exactly after the events of A Study In Charlotte and sees Holmes and Watson travel to Europe, investigating an underground art forgery ring to find Charlotte's missing uncle Leander. It also sees them join forced with August Moriarty; a figure from Holmes past, who's loyalties lie on the fence. I devoured this book like I did the first one but I found this one to be lacking towards the end. It was good, the mystery was good, Holmes and Watson's relationship development was good but the ending lacked something to me. It felt a little rushed and left a couple of unanswered questions in the air but it's set up for book three perfectly and I hope that these unanswered questions I have are answered in the next book.

Book Haul: February

We're only into the halfway through February but I've already managed to accumulate nine books to haul. One is from last year that I brought and completely forgot to mention both on the blog and any kind of social media and the rest come from an order I made after returning a rather pricey jacket back to M&S.

The Familiars- Stacey Hall 
This book I actually found when I was reorganising my books. I originally brought it late last year but completely forgot to haul it or post a picture of it on social media. The Familiars is a historical fiction that follows young noblewoman Fleetwood Shuttleworth as she is once again with child. None of her previous pregnancies bore them a child and after discovering a hidden note, Fleetwood isn't sure she's going to survive this one. That's until she meets Alice Grey who promises to deliever her a healthy baby. That's until Alice is accused of witchcraft. This historical novel follows the true events of King James I and his obssession with hunting down dark magic and the witches who practice it. Following the events of the Pendle Hill Witch Trials, this book promises to have a series of dark twists that are sure to keep readers on the edge of their seat.

The Song Of Achilles- Madeline Miller
Next is a book that I've already read in the time it's taken me to write this post. The Song Of Achilles is Madeline Miller's first novel and follows the story of the ill fated Greek hero Achilles. Told from the perspective of his lover Patroclus, it follows both boys as they grow from young boys who are both learning their place in the world to grown men, one of whom is a hero among men and the other who's counting down the days until the inevitable. If you loved Circe by Madeline Miller then I recommend you pick this up, I don't want to give too much away but this book was one of my favourites that I've read so far this month.

Shadow And Bone- Leigh Bardugo
Last year I recieved my first Leigh Bardugo book and even though I haven't read that one, I've gone and brought another of her books. Shadow and Bone is the first book in the Grishaverse trilogy and follows Alina and Mal who fight in their army to protect their land but when Mal is brutally injured, Alina unleashes a dormant power that she didn't even know she possessed. That catches the attention of the Grisha who whisk her away to be trained under the mysterious Darkling. Yet all is not what it seems and if Alina wants to save her kingdom, she's going to have to not only master her power but confront the dark secrets the Grisha holds. I'm looking forward to reading this book, it has a great premise and is well acclaimed, like Leigh Bardugo herself. Fingers crossed it's a good read.

The Last Life Of Prince Alastor- Alexandra Bracken
Last year I read The Dreadful Tale Of Propser Reading by Alexandra Bracken and this month I've finally gotten around to picking up it's sequel. The Last Life Of Prince Alastor is told from Alastor's perspective as they travel to his home realm to save Proper's sister and face off against Alastor's not so innocent sister. This is an amazing middle grade duology that doesn't get enough credit. I thoroughly enjoyed the first book and can't wait to dive back into the Salem Witch Trial-esque world that Bracken created. If you want something quick yet entertaining to read, I highly recommend you pick this series up.

The Bear And The Nightingale- Katherine Arden 
I picked this next book up because PeruseProject on YouTube raves about it. The first in a trilogy, The Bear And The Nightingale follows a young girl called Vasilisa who's family has always honoured and respected their town's folklore. But when her father remarries and her step mother forbids them from honouring the household spirits, things take a dark turn. It's then up to Vasilisa to tap into a dormant power she's hidden from her family to save them and protect the town whilst also dodging the treachorous schemes of her stepmother. I love the premise of this book, it promises to be atmospheric and dark with just the right amount of creepy. And if Reagan loves it then I'm sure to love it as well as everything she recommends on BookTube has been something I've loved when I've read it.

The Last Of August- Brittany Cavallaro
Another sequel I've finally gotten round to picking up is The Last Of August by Brittany Cavallaro. This is the second book in the Charlotte Holmes quartet and picks up right after the first book ends. It follows Holmes and Watson as they try and enjoy a bleak Winter break with Charlotte's family but when her Uncle Leander goes missing, they soon find themselves thrown into the dark world of art forgery that sees them travel from the underground scenes in Berlin to glittering art houses in Prague. And to August Moriarty. I love this genderbent reimagination of Holmes and Watson. It's wit sharp, keeps you thinking but also manages to deal with very tough, very real situations that gives this Holmes and Watson a little more vunerability than other reincarnations.

The Battle For Perfect- Helena Duggan 
A finale that I picked up is The Battle For Perfect by Helena Duggan. This is the third and final book in the Perfect Trilogy. I don't know much about the synopsis for this particular book because I haven't read the second book in this series and don't want to spoil it by looking it up. I will say that this is another great middle grade series that you can easily marathon in a few days, a week maximum. I read the first book in a day last year and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's definitely one I recommend when people as for new books to read.

Four Dead Queens- Astrid Scholte
A book that's peaked my interest for a while but has been elusive to find in my local Waterstones is Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte. This has an amazing world that follows four smaller kingdoms that are all joined together by their ruling queens. Each queen overseas a quadrant but all hell breaks loose one day when all four queens are killed. It's then up to light fingered thief Keralie and upstanding citizen Varin to work together to not only discover who killed the queens but also to save their own lives. This book is guranteed to be full of twists and turns and it's got the potential to be one that'll keep me reading well until the early hours.

Tales Of The Greek Heroes- Roger Lancelyn Green 
The penultimate book in this haul is one that I actually read as a child but lost it and wanted to read it once again. Tales Of The Greek Heroes is a compliation of the tales of Ancient Greece's greatest God's and Heroes. It starts from the very beginning and takes you through the tales of Zeus, Prometheus, Apollo, Heracles, Jason and Theseus. And having read The Story of Achilles already this month, I'm dying to get dive into a little more Greek mythology.

The Five- Hallie Rubenhold
And the last book I'm hauling this month is actually a non fiction that caught my eye as soon as I saw it in Sainsburys. This prize winning book looks into the untold lives of the victims of Jack The Ripper. Hallie Rubenhold strips away the fact that they were all prostitutes and looks deeper into their lives as individuals until their untimely deaths at the hands of Jack The Ripper. The subject matter was what intially drew me to this book, it's a time in history that I'm thoroughly fascinated by, as gruesome as it is and I'm intrigued to learn more about the victims as seperate individuals than as a collective of women who were killed by history's most infamous serial killer.
 

The Binding- Bridget Collins
Now I know I said The Five was the last book but I may have slipped and brought another whilst out and about this week. I had seen this reguarly in shops when I was shopping but it was only when I read the synopsis that I wanted to actually pick it up and read it. This follows a world where people can place their memories, fears, secrets into books, where they are kept safely underground. The main character; Emmett, is a Binder, someone who's job it is to store peoples stories in the pages of their book. But his world is thrown into turmoil when he discovers a book with his name on it, a book he doesn't remember adding to the collection. This gives me The Starless Sea vibes and I have to admit, I'm excited to read it. Worlds like this where books are more than just a literay escape is something I think is underated and under used in literature. 

What I Read: January

Thank God January Is Over! What a long ass month in terms of life and kick starting 2020 but a quick month for readng. I had an okay reading last year and I wanted to improve on that in 2020 which is why I'm a little disappointed in the amount of books I actually read in January but some of these books were a little long and took me a while to finish.

The first book I read in January was Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman. This is the second installment in the Arc Of A Scythe Trilogy. If you haven't heard about this series, it follows Citra and Rowan who are thrust unexpectedly into the world of Scythes in a world where death, poverty, famine and disease have been vanquished. Picking straight up from where Scythe ended, Thunderhead is again another jam packed book that is filled with tons of twists and turns and an ending that had my mouth hanging open in shock and in desperate need of reading the third and final installment straight away.

And of course with how much I loved Thunderhead and how it ended, I just had to pick up The Toll straight away after finishing Thunderhead. Now I wanted to love this final installment as much as I loved the first two but this final wild ride didn't quite hit the spot. I understand that there was a long game being played throughout the book but at times it felt overly drawn out and hard to keep an interest in. And as for the ending. No I won't accept it. It wasn't what I was expecting and I didn't enjoy it one bit. I had thought there was going to be at least one final showdown with all the politics, twists, backstabbing and shocks but it didn't work that way. You may love the way this series ends but I didn't enjoy it, especially after the way that both books One and Two set it up.

And the last book I read in January was one of my most hyped books for the year and I'm already kicking myself for readng it so fast as I now have a year and a half wait for the next book. A Heart So Fierce And Broken is the second book in the Cursebreakers series. This book continues off where A Curse So Dark And Lonely finished but instead of focusing on Rhen and Harper, this sequel follows Grey and what's happened to him since his face off with Lilith in the first book. I can not put into words how much I loved this book. It was definitely my favourite read of the month. I adored Grey as a character in the first book so getting to extend and learn more about his character as well as introducing several new characters that added to Grey as a character made me love this book more than I thought possible. The twist near the end was one I didn't see coming and the final twist is going to make Book Three one of my most hyped books of next year, I just wish I didn't have to wait so long to get my hands on it.