November Reads

November turned out to be a month for starting and finishing series, and I read some really, really great books. The Six of Crows Duology by Leigh Bardugo may just be the best set of books I’ve read this entire year.

Favorite book of the month: Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo.

The rundown: 

Six of Crows & Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo • 5/5 stars
These books were FANTASTIC. Amazing. Ruthless and relentless. Heart stopping and heartwarming. I wish I could wipe my mind of them and read them all over again. They were two of best books I read this entire year, and are definitely now on my list of all-time favorites. The characters, the plot, the writing, the adventure, the settings, EVERYTHING. I cannot recommend these books highly enough. I’m in love with them. Full Six of Crows review here / Full Crooked Kingdom review here.

The Progeny by Tosca Lee • 1.5/5 stars
This thriller had a lot of promise, and an interesting premise, and it had a great start, but unfortunately this book fell into the trap of ‘telling not showing,’ which doesn’t exactly work for a thriller, and I felt like I was mostly being told the story by the characters instead of seeing it happen…a story I found myself rapidly losing interest in. I mainly skimmed the last few chapters, and it only gets  the extra half star because I did think it had a great beginning.

Pale Highway by Nicholas Conley • 2/5 stars
This simply was not a book for me. I couldn’t suspend my disbelief for the story this fantasy/sci-fi was trying to tell me, and while it did have an interesting premise, I just wasn’t into it. Full review.

Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer & Magnus Chase and the Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan • 5/5 stars
I’m a huge Percy Jackson fan, but I hadn’t planned on reading these books. However, after seeing some posts about them I got intrigued, and I’m SO glad I picked them up because I actually enjoyed them more than the Percy books. They were so much fun and I loved the diverse and lovable cast of characters. The adventures and the plot were great, and as always with Riordan’s books, they made me laugh.

The Raven King by Maggie Stievfater • 4/5 stars
I did love this book, but it pains me that I couldn’t give the final book in the Raven Cycle series five stars like I gave its three predecessors. I had mixed feelings about the ending which mainly stemmed from misunderstanding, but in the end I loved it. The romance killed me dead in the ground. Adam Parrish and Ronan Lynch are the stars of this book (and my heart). Full review.

Plans for December

Honestly, I don’t really have anything lined up. Right now I’m reading a historical fiction called The Princes of Ireland by Edward Rutherford, which tells the history of Ireland through the stories of several families over many generations. I think I needed something that wasn’t fantasy or young adult after all the fabulous books I read this month. It was great, but sometimes I need to change things up! Also, I’ve read other books by Edward Rutherford similar to this one (Paris, New York, Sarum) and I’ve loved them and know I can expect good things from it. I am a sucker for history novels.

I’m also buddy reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix with a friend who asked me to read it along with her. I have no idea how many times I’ve read this book, but it’s her first time, and I love to hear her reactions. I love when a friend reads one of my favorite books for the first time.

Other than these two…I’m really not sure! I want to read Carry On by Rainbow Rowell soon, so it’s likely that may get read. We’ll see what else I’m drawn to this month! And what Christmas will bring 😉

What are you reading this month? If you’re not sure…I rec the Six of Crows books…just saying……… B-)