Hello everybody! Today, I’m back with the penultimate installment in the spelling months with books series, for my birth month November. Onto the post!
Hello everybody! Today, its time for me to talk about some November/December releases I’m definitely excited about picking up, even though most of these are now already out and I’m ridiculously late with this. Onto the post!
Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be sharing my list of the books coming out in November/December that I’m really looking forward to reading, which I’m combining because I was only able to find one for the whole month of December that I’m interested in. Onto the post!
Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be recommending some books with spooky vibes, in honour of it being October and therefore almost Halloween. I’ll try not to just repeat books that I’ve used for similar lists, but no doubt some of my faves will still pop up!
Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be chatting about some of the books on my autumn TBR as part of Top Ten Tuesday. Onto the post!
Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be doing my 2020 version of Jenn’s autumn tag. Onto the post!
Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be talking about the September releases I’m looking forward to reading, of which there are quite a few! Onto the post!
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Dragon Mountain– I am SO EXCITED for this book! It’s about a group of children bonding with dragons whilst at summer camp in China, and I have such high hopes for it. I watched an amazing interview with the authors the other day that’s made me even more excited as well!
Tamarind and the Star of Ishta– Jasbinder Bilan’s first book was so good, and it made me cry loads, so I think I’ll probably enjoy this one too. It’s about a girl called Tamarind who isn’t very familiar with her Indian heritage due to her mum dying when she was very young, as she visits her ancestral home and learns more about that part of her family and herself.
The Midnight Howl– I quite enjoyed the first book in this trilogy, so I’m definitely hoping to get to the second installment soon! I have to admit my memory of the Midnight Hour is pretty fuzzy as I read a proof back in late 2018 so it’s been almost 2 years, but hopefully it’ll come back to me once I get going with this! It’s about a girl called Emily with a connection to the world of the Midnight Hour, which is basically Victorian London with magic.
My Life as a Cat– Carlie Sorosiak’s MG debut I, Cosmo was my favourite book of 2019 so I’m really excited to see what this one is like! It’s about an alien who is sent to earth to live as a cat, and I’m sure it’ll be gorgeous and heartwarming and funny, and if it doesn’t make me cry at some point I’ll be astounded. I wept solidly through Cosmo just because of the sheer loveliness of it.
Beginners’ Luck– I absolutely love Simon James Green and I absolutely love MG, so I suspect I will love his first MG book, which is about a boy named Riley who believes he’s cursed with bad luck. It also has the seal of approval from my darling Ross, whose opinion I trust massively, so I honestly can’t wait to get stuck into this soon!
The Otherwhere Emporium– I’m a massive fan of this trilogy, and I can’t wait to read this one. I didn’t actually know there was going to be another one after Elsewhere Emporium till a couple of months ago so it was a very pleasant surprise! I don’t think Daniel is going to be in this one which I’m sad about, but I’m very excited nonetheless and I’m sure it’ll still be incredible. Ross Mackenzie’s writing is just beyond amazing.
Into the Spotlight– I’ll be honest, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the only other Carrie Hope Fletcher I’ve read so I may well wait to read this till the paperback is out, but it’s a kind of Ballet Shoes retelling which is why I’m interested.
Tilly and the Map of Stories- I really loved the first Pages and Co book, so while the second didn’t blow me away quite as much I’m definitely still planning to pick up this one to see how things end for Tilly! The concept of bookwandering is just incredible, and I can’t wait to see which worlds and characters Tilly and Oscar visit in this one.
I Kissed Alice– this is a US release so it might take me a while to get round to buying a copy, but I think this female/female romance sounds SO amazing. It’s about two girls who are competing against each other by day, and unknowingly falling in love online at the same time.
The Thursday Murder Club– I’m generally pretty wary of celebrity authors, but I’m a massive fan of Pointless and this (which is by Richard Osman, a co-presenter of Pointless) sounds right up my street anyway, so I kind of have to. It’s about a group of senior citizens who enjoy solving cold cases together, as they get to investigate their very own murder that’s just happened.
Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be sharing my very belated reviews of all the books I read in October (apart from one I read for a blog tour), which were all pretty fantastic, even though I didn’t get through as many as I’d have liked. Onto the post!
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The Conspiracy of Magic by Harriet Whitehorn (received from the publisher in exchange for my honest review)
In this thrilling sequel that was somehow even better than the Company’s of Eight, which I enjoyed immensely last year, we follow Cass as she is tasked with protecting the Queen of Minaris as she tours part of their world, and how things go very wrong due to a sinister plot that threatens not just them, but everyone in the Longest World. Cass is amazing, and I love how capable and clever she is, but also the fact that there are moments where she doesn’t quite know how to handle things yet always keeps going until she does. My other favourites in this book was Dacha, who was a new addition and just the absolute sweetest, and Arden, who was very different to what I had been expecting. I also love the world building in these because it’s such an interesting concept and I really like that this showed a completely different side of it to the Company of Eight; given she is with the queen for a lot of it there are some scenes in quite luxury places but we also see more of the darker side in different ways and it’s so well balanced and all so well described that it just forms a really brilliantly written world. The plot itself is pretty impossible to describe without giving anything away, so all I’ll say is that it was incredibly exciting and I thought the twists and shocks in various places were great. I’m very hopeful after the ending that this isnt the last I see of Cass! 4.5/5
Sealed with a Kiss by Rachael Lucas
After really enjoying Wildflower Bay the month before, I was desperate to read more Rachael Lucas, and I enjoyed this one even more. It takes place in Auchenmor, the same place, and is about the love story of Kate- who has just taken on a Girl Friday position on the island after being dumped by her dull as dishwater ex-boyfriend- and Roddy, the island`s Laird. I loved both Kate and Roddy hugely, and the way they complemented each other absolutely perfectly. I also enjoyed getting to see Finn`s backstory, because I already adored him and this just made me like his cheeky, charming ways even more than I did to start off with, and I thought Fiona was an incredibly well written antagonist. She`s Roddy`s ex-girlfriend who tries to sabotage his and Kate`s budding relationship, and I despised her so much I actually had to put the book down for a few minutes to calm down a couple of times. This is so engaging and lovely and full of funny moments, and it was a total joy to read. 5/5
The Somerset Tsunami by Emma Carroll
In her tenth novel, Emma Carroll tells the story of a girl named Fortune, who is sent away to work dressed as a boy amidst the terror of the witch trials, and the adventure that ensues after a tsunami hits and people believe that witchcraft is to blame. I loved Fortune a lot, and the secondary characters were also amazing- I was particularly fond of Susanna, but also really liked Ellis and Jem, and thought Dr Blood was a phenomenal villain (and WHAT a name!). I`ll be honest, I wasn`t quite sure how the plot of this would unfold, but I needn`t have worried because it was a perfectly paced and utterly engaging adventure- it`s a really hard book to talk about without spoilers but I just loved every second of reading it, and Emma`s writing style is still one of my favourites of all time. At this point, there just aren`t sufficiently gushy superlatives to do Emma Carroll justice to be honest; she really is one of the most talented authors writing in middle grade right now, and I can`t see myself ever not picking up a new release by her as soon as I possibly can! 5/5
The Pearl in the Ice by Cathryn Constable (received from the publisher in exchange for my honest review)
This is the story of a girl named Marina, who is deeply frustrated with her life due to the fact fact her father restricts it greatly on account of her being a girl, and what happens when instead of going off to boarding school she stows away on his ship and becomes involved in a rather thrilling adventure. Marina is absolutely amazing, first of all. She is so determined and I loved her outlook on life and the way that she is brave enough to tell the men around her that actually, she’s every bit as good as them and she’ll prove it too. I also had a soft spot for Jones, her closest ally on the ship, and Miss Smith is such a fascinating, multilayered character. The plot was really interesting too, particularly since I could never quite tell which direction things were going to go in at most points! This is definitely my favourite from Cathryn Constable so far, and I look forward to seeing what she does next 4.5/5
Tilly and the Lost Fairytales by Anna James
In the second instalment of the Pages and Co series, we see bookwanderers Tilly and Oskar travel to Paris amidst dangerous changes to the running of the Underlibrary, and their adventures in fairytales once they`re there. I still love the idea of this world a lot and I really liked Anna James` take on the fairy tale characters (particularly Rapunzel and Red Riding Hood!), but I didn`t find the bookwandering journeys quite so magical this time, for some reason, and I wasn`t quite as gripped by the pacing. I did really like the events of the climax and ending though, as there were some great reveals and I think they could lead to the third book being fantastic, as the overall series arc is really interesting. Overall, I sadly just didn`t enjoy this quite as much as the first book in the series, but I definitely plan to pick up the third in the trilogy once it`s out next year. 4/5
Shadows of Winterspell by Amy Wilson (received from the publisher in exchange for my honest review)
In her fourth book, Amy Wilson tells the story of Stella, who lives with her grandmother in a cottage on the outskirts of the magical forest, who has just decided to enrol in the local school. But of course, this is an Amy Wilson book so there is magic but also dark forces at play, and Stella becomes swept up in discovering who she really is and what she’s capable of when she begins to meet other magical people who live within the forest. Stella is a lovely character who I really enjoyed reading about, her new friends Yan and Zara are really loyal to her and interesting characters in their own right and Stella’s gran’s familiar Peg was the absolute star of the show for me, I loved him! Amy Wilson’s writing style is so distinctively gorgeous and I loved it as much as ever here, and I thought the magic system and the history of this place was intricate and so well explained and exemplified- I felt like I knew it inside out by the end, but still wanted to know even more. I absolutely can’t wait to dive into another of Amy’s worlds whenever her next book is out, because all of them so far have been amazing. 4.5/5
Twas the Nightshift Before Christmas by Adam Kay
Like I said when I reviewed This is Going to Hurt back in January, I find it quite difficult to write a lot about non-fiction, but I thoroughly enjoyed this and I`m going to give describing it a decent shot. It`s more entries from former junior doctor Adam Kay`s diaries whilst he worked in the NHS, and this time they`re specifically themed around the festive period. As with the first book, this is incredibly funny for the most part- I`m laughing just remembering some of my favourite anecdotes- but there are also a few points that were so emotional that I cried. It`s an absolutely brilliant read, and I absolutely plan to read whatever Adam Kay decides to release next. 4.5/5
The Girl Who Stole an Elephant by Nirzana Farook (received from the publisher in exchange for my honest review)
This is the story of a girl called Chaya who must go on the run with her friends and Ananda the elephant after stealing the crown jewels, albeit for a very noble purpose, and the revolution she becomes part of in the process. My favourite thing about this was definitely the writing, because it`s fast paced and so exciting; things never let up for a moment and I was totally hooked the whole way through. The style was absolutely beautiful as well, though- it made the Serendib setting so vivid and three-dimensional. Another huge highlight were the characters. Chaya is an amazing heroine with so much bravery and I loved her. I also really liked her friends Neel and Nour, especially Nour, because her dynamic with Chaya was great and it was so fun seeing them go from enemies to friends. Also, I don`t want to give any spoilers since I didn`t really know how instrumental it was to the plot going in, but the revolution plotline is amazing. This is a brilliant adventure, and I`m so excited to pick up whatever Nirzana writes next, because this was fabulous. 4.5/5
Which books did you read in October? Do we have any in common? Are you planning to pick any of these up at some point? I’d love to hear in the comments!
Amy x
Hello everybody! Today, I’m going to be talking about books that make think of autumn as part of Top Ten Tuesday– fair warning that they’re a super eclectic bunch and some of my reasons are pretty random!
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Harry Potter– I know Harry Potter ends up on a lot of these lists, but sorry not sorry. They always begin at back to school time, which is a quintessential part of autumn, and there are usually scenes for Halloween as well. Plenty of autumhal vibes in there to justify its place.
Soulmates– there’s a lot of bad weather in this book on account of the whole finding your soulmate can end the world idea it explores (which is so interesting!) and I think we can all agree that autumn usually brings worsening weather, much as I adore it.
City of Ghosts/Tunnel of Bones– Victoria Schwab’s MG books are about ghost hunting in different citues, and they’re pretty spooky. I ran out of room on last week’s list so it seems only fair to put them as my spooky autumnal vibes spot on this one!
A Pinch of Magic– I didn’t want to include too many witchy books on this because I’ve got tentative plans for next year’s Halloween freebie but I figured one wouldn’t hurt. This is witchy and mysterious and brilliant. Actually, all Michelle Harrison’s books are pretty autumnal in feel. My personal fave is the Other Alice, but I like all of them a lot.
Strange Star– this has rain on the cover and it’s got a ghostly element AND it’s about Frankenstein. Absolute autumnal vibes.
In Darkling Wood– yes, I am putting two Emma Carroll books on here, because it’s my list and I just want to. This is a dual narrative timeline between two intersecting girls in 2015 and 1918, and it’s kind of amazing- there’s this magical element to do with the possible discovery of fairies but also the tackling of some very real issues. The vast majority is set in November, which is a month I am fond of for obvious reasons (if you don’t know me, my birthday is in November).
Jolly Foul Play– yes, I will take any excuse to talk about Murder Most Unladylike, but this is set at Guy Fawkes night, so I’m not even cheating for once!! In this one, the (rather horrid) head girl is murdered and the Detective Society must investigate.
Nevermoor/Wundersmith– I think these mostly remind me of autumn because I read them both in autumn. I’m so sad the 3rd one isn’t out till February, I love my annual visit to Nevermoor to see Morrigan and friends a lot!
The Secret Starling– okay, I know I’m at 11 now but just wanted to give this a quick mention! The cover is pretty autumnal and it’s a mystery set in the 1970s with very creepy villains. Highly recommend!
I’m sure there are loads of others I’ll kick myself later for forgetting, but I’m pretty chuffed with that this list! What books give you autumnal vibes? Do you have any thoughts on the ones I’ve mentioned? I’d love to hear in the comments!
Amy x
Hello everybody, and happy Halloween! Today, I’m going to be doing the Halloween book tag, which I found on Katie’s blog. Onto the post!
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1. Carving Pumpkins: What Book Would You Carve Up and Light On Fire?
Yerma. Absolutely hated that when I had to read it for school last year.
2. Trick or Treat: Which character is a trick and which is a Treat?
Trick- this is so hard to do without spoiling something! Since Harry Potter is pretty old now, I feel like I can get away with saying I was so shocked about the Moody reveal in book four.
Treat- Wilbur from Geek Girl. What a sweetheart though.
3. Candy Corn: What Book is Always Sweet?
I, Cosmo is the most precious book ever. Read it.
4. Ghosts – Which Character Would You Love to Visit You as a Ghost?
Sirius Black. Love him, always. Would love a chat with him about so many things.
5. Dressing up in Costume – What Character Would You Want to be for a Day?
I did a whole post about this last year! But this year, if I was dressing up I’d want to be Alba from the TV show Cable Girls.
6. Witches & Wizards – What is Your Favourite Harry Potter Moment?
Ooh, this is hard. My favourite comedic moment is the “you don’t have to call me sir, professor” one, my favourite dramatic one is Sirius’s death.
7. Blood & Gore – What Book was So Creepy You Had to Take A Break From it For A While?
Definitely Close Your Pretty Eyes!
What are your Halloween plans? Do you have any thoughts on the books I’ve mentioned? I’d love to hear in the comments!
Amy x
Golden Books Girl 