Life lately
December is a bittersweet month and I can't believe we're only days away from a brand new year and decade. These last few weeks have been packed with holiday dinners, shopping for presents (and for me), my staycation and then Christmas Eve and Day. And I've loved every moment of it! But it's also been this mix of happy, sad and weird too. It really did work out that I got to be home this past week to just let go of my worries and lean into the fun moments or the even sad ones when I needed to without the stress of work looming. Pretty much any time someone has asked me how this holiday is going, my response has been: "I really like not working." 😂 Here's hoping I'll feel refreshed come Jan 2!
This month's ...
On the blog
Bookish
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Personal
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Read but not reviewed
- A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman - 5 stars
My first Fredrik Backman novel and it was an absolute winner. I laughed and cried. Curmudgeons with hearts of gold never fail to warm my heart and I loved the way Backman shared Ove's story with us. - Queen of Ruin (Grace and Fury, #2) by Tracy Banghart - 4 stars
This is such an underrated YA fantasy duology! I really wish it would get more attention because it's so good. It picks up right where Grace and Fury left off and continues to be solid tale about sisterhood, feminism and fighting for what you believe in. - The Last Wish (The Witcher, #0.5) by Andrzej Sapkowski - 3 stars
I read this in preparation for the Netflix Witcher series and I'm glad I did! It's a collection of short stories that all feature Geralt of Rivier as the protagonist. I didn't love all the stories but there were definitely standouts and most of the ones I enjoyed the most made it onto the show! - Leia: Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray - 3.5 stars
I've always been a Star Wars fan but between The Rise of the Skywalker, The Mandolorian and me rewatching all the old and new movies on Disney+, I've been really into this world lately. So why not take it a step further and read a Star Wars book too? I was definitely inspired by Kristin who I feel has read and watched everything! She loved this canon novel and I enjoyed it a lot too. - Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi - 2 stars
I really don't think Choi's novels are for me. I read Permanent Record first and didn't like it. But friends told me Emergency Contact is better because they all loved it. Sadly, I didn't like either! I'm just not a fan of her writing style or even how she writes her characters and their arcs. I doubt I'll try anything else by her. - Vita Nostra by Marina & Sergey Dyachenko - 2 stars
This book was really weird. So weird that I didn't know how to rate it at first or even fully understood what I had just read. But at the same time, it did hit a point when I couldn't put it down because it was so crazy. I kept going because I really wanted to get to that moment where it all came together. Not necessarily make perfect sense, but just when all the pieces finally click. But that moment never came (for me at least).
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How's your month been?
I really enjoyed A Man Called Ove too, I really want to read more by Fredrik Backman!
ReplyDeleteAnika | chaptersofmay.com
Same re: Ove. I love curmudgeons! I'm so glad you enjoyed the Leia novel!! And oh my gosh! I had no idea you finished and disliked Emergency Contact! How did that not come up last night?!
ReplyDeleteI'm really and truly happy that you loved A Man Called Ove! It's such a great novel, and I really think that Backman is an excellent writer. I hope you intend to read more of his work in 2020 too!
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