November 2013 Wrap-Up

 

This is my very late November 2013 Wrap-Up. This month was rather different from normal reading month. I read seven books and two plays. I don’t usually read plays, but the two I read this month were surprisingly good.

The books I read in November:

 

Once a Witch by Carolyn MacCullough: YA/Fantasy. Tamsin Greene comes from a long line of witches, and she was supposed to be one of the most Talented among them. But Tamsin’s magic never showed up.  I did not like this book. 2/5 stars. There will not be a review for this one.

Onyx by Jennifer L. Armentrout: YA/Paranormal. Book 2 in the Lux–Series. I really enjoyed this one. 4/5 stars. Review to come.

Tímaþjófurinn (The Thief of Time) by Steinunn Sigurðardóttir: Fiction. I read this one for Uni. I didn’t like the writing style or the plot. 1/5 stars. There will not be a review for this book.

Frigid by J. Lynn (Jennifer L. Armentrout): YA/Contemporary Romance. For twenty-one-year-old Sydney, being in love with Kyler isn’t anything new. They’d been best friends ever since he pushed her down on the playground and she made him eat a mud pie.But when they’re stranded together at a posh ski resort due to a massive Nor’easter, there’s nothing stopping their red-hot feelings for each other from coming to the surface. Can their friendship survive the attraction? I really liked this book. 4.5/5 stars. Review to come.

Uncle Vanya by Anton Checkov: Play/Classic. I read this play for Uni. I quite liked it. 4/5 stars. There will not be a review for this one.

Opal by Jennifer L. Armentrout: YA/Paranormal. Book 3 in the Lux–Series. This one was good. 4/5 stars. Review to come.

Galdra–Loftur by Jóhann Sigurjónsson: Play. This play is based on a Icelandic folk tale about a boy who experiments with magic. I also read this play for Uni. It was really good and I would like to see this on stage. 4/5 stars. There will not be a review for this one.

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell: Fiction/Romance. “Hi, I’m the guy who reads your e-mail, and also, I love you . . . ” When Lincoln comes across Beth’s and Jennifer’s messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can’t help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories. By the time Lincoln realizes he’s falling for Beth, it’s way too late to introduce himself. This book was amazing. 5/5 stars. Review to come.

The Carrier of the Mark by Leigh Fallon: YA/Fantasy. When Megan Rosenberg moves to Ireland, everything in her life seems to fall into place. After growing up in America, she’s surprised to find herself feeling at home in her new school. She connects with a group of friends, and she is instantly drawn to darkly handsome Adam DeRÍs. This one was good. 4/5 stars. Review to come.

 

October 2013 Wrap-Up

 

October was a great reading month. I read eleven books and one short story. However, October hasn’t been as good of a month for my blog. I decided that I would rather read instead of writing reviews after long days of Uni work. The reviews will be up eventually and posts will be irregular until the second week of December – Christmas Break 🙂

 

The books I read:

 

 

 

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo:  YA/Dystopian. The Shadow Fold, a swathe of impenetrable darkness, crawling with monsters that feast on human flesh, is slowly destroying the once-great nation of Ravka. Alina, a pale, lonely orphan, discovers a unique power that thrusts her into the lavish world of the kingdom’s magical elite – the Grisha. A really, really good book. 4.5/5 stars. Review to come. (The Grisha #1)

 

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews: YA/Contemporary. Greg Gaines is the last master of high school espionage, able to disappear at will into any social environment. He has only one friend, Earl, and together they make movies. Rachel has leukemia. When Rachel stops treatment, Greg and Earl decide the thing to do is to make a film for her, which turns into the Worst Film Ever Made and becomes a turning point in each of their lives. Funny and sweet book. 4/5 stars. Review to come.

 

Head and Shoulders by F. Scott Fitzgerald: Classic/Short Story. Horace Tarbox is a child prodigy who falls in love with an opera actress and later becomes a gymnast to support her lifestyle. It was good. 3/5 stars. There will not be a review for this one.

 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling: YA/Children’s/Fantasy. It’s Harry Potter – Everybody should know by now. It was amazing as always. 5/5 stars. Review of the series will be up soon. (Harry Potter #7)

 

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black: YA/Paranormal. Tana lives in a world where walled cities called Coldtowns exist. In them, quarantined monsters and humans mingle in a decadently bloody mix of predator and prey. The only problem is, once you pass through Coldtown’s gates, you can never leave. A really good book. 4/5 stars. Review to come.

 

The Program by Suzanne Young: YA/Dystopian. In Sloane’s world, true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program. A very good book, original story. 4/5 stars. Review to come. (The Program #1)

 

The Diviners by Libba Bray: YA/Fantasy/Mystery. Evie O’Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City—and she is pos-i-tute-ly ecstatic. As Evie jumps headlong into a dance with a murderer, other stories unfold in the city that never sleeps. One of the best books that I read this month. 5/5 stars. Review to come. (The Diviners #1)

 

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan: YA/Fantasy. Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school… again. And that’s the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy’s Greek mythology textbook and into his life. It was OK. 3.5/5 stars. There will not be a review of this book. (Percy Jackson #1)

 

Obsidian by Jennifer L. Armentrout: YA/Paranormal. When we moved to West Virginia right before my senior year, I’d pretty much resigned myself to thick accents, dodgy internet access, and a whole lot of boring…. until I spotted my hot neighbor, Daemon, the hot Alien. I really liked it. 4/5 stars. Review to come. (Lux #1)

 

Book of Shadows, The Coven, Blood Witch all by Cate Tiernan: YA/Fantasy. When Morgan meets Cal everything changes. She is thrown into Wicca head first and discovers things about her self and her family. I read the first bind-up of the first three books. All get 4/5 stars. Review will be of the whole series when I’ve read it all. (Sweep #1, #2, #3)

 

September 2013 Wrap-Up

 

I have decided to make a monthly wrap up. As you probably know a monthly wrap up is when I tell you about all the books I read that month.

 

I’m going to start with the month of September. In September I read total of eight books, which is pretty good for my first month of University and tons of assignments.

 

Update October 12th: I found one book that I forgot to save at Goodreads. So, I read in total of nine books.

 

The books I read are:

 

Think of a Number by John Verdon: A mystery/crime novel. Arriving in the mail over a period of weeks are taunting letters that end with a simple declaration, “Think of any number…picture it…now see how well I know your secrets.” A rather good book. 4/5 stars. Review to come.

 

Paper Towns by John Green: YA/Contemporary. After a night of adventures Margo disappears and leaves Q clues. He soon learns that there are clues—and they’re for him. Urged down a disconnected path, the closer he gets, the less Q sees of the girl he thought he knew. Really good book! Recommend it to everyone. 5/5 stars! Review to come.

 

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: YA/Contemporary. During the end of summer party Melinda calls the cops. Isolated and depressed she starts high school. During the course of the book you get to know why she called the cops. Very good book. 4/5 stars. Review to come.

 

Joyland by Stephen King: Crime/Thriller. Devin Jones comes to work as a carny and confronts the legacy of a vicious murder, the fate of a dying child, and the ways both will change his life forever. It was OK, it was not what I expected for a Stephen King book. 3.5/5 stars. Review to come.

 

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi: YA/Paranormal. Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days. If she does someone dies. Getting out of imprisonment Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior. Very good book. 4.5/5 stars. Review to come.

 

Svar við bréfi Helgu (Reply to a Letter from Helga) by Bergsveinn Birgisson: Fiction/Romance. A sweet novel about an old farmer who is writing letters to the only girl he has ever loved. Really good book. 4.5/5 stars. Review to come.

 

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare: YA/Paranormal. Clary’s world gets turned up side down when she gets thrown into the world of Shadowhunters. I’m not sure what to think of this book. I tried to read it couple years back and hated it. After seeing the movie I read it completely. 3.5-4/5 stars. Review to come.

 

Harry Potter and the Half-Blod Prince by J. K. Rowling: YA/Fantasy. Everybody knows what Harry Potter is about. It was amazing as always. 5/5 stars. There might be a complete series review sometime later this year.

 

Catherine by April Lindner: YA/Contemporary/Retelling.  A forbidden romance. A modern mystery. Wuthering Heights as you’ve never seen it before. Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery. I loved this book. I read Wuthering Heights when I was twelve or thirteen, so this book was like a conclusion or an ending for me, because I didn’t really understand the original story when I read it. 5/5 stars. Review to come.

 

 

I’m really happy how this month turned out and I think that October will be even better reading month.