January has been a bit of a slow reading month for me, especially with the return to online school and mock exams! I was still able to finish three books this month and started my fourth though so not a really bad reading month!
So I thought it would be cool to recap the books I’ve read this month and finish with what i’m excited for next month!
- The Testaments – Margaret Atwood
I had been waiting ages for The Testaments to be released on paperback to read it and I finally ordered a copy at the beginning of the year. As you may know it is a sequel to A Handmaid’s Tale which I read a few years ago and ended up enjoying it (even though I wasn’t expecting to).
When beginning The Testaments I initially found it difficult to follow as the three stories intertwined, but eventually I got the hang of it and ended up enjoying it! I think it was nice to see Gilead from different character’s perspectives who all ranked differently in the world.
Overall if you have read The Handmaid’s tale and are considering if The Testaments is worth it then I would say go for it! I really enjoyed it and I thought the ending is very sweet.
You can get The Testaments here: https://amzn.to/3aeRvLG * - Concrete Rose – Angie Thomas
If you read my last blog post: https://rosiereviewsx.wordpress.com/2021/01/23/concrete-rose-review/ I did a full review of the prequel to The Hate U Give, but in summary:
Angie Thomas is incredible at what she does, she is able to provoke emotions so easily through her characters and created atmospheres which are able to make you feel something! You are able to connect so easily to the characters and empathise with them which is one of the reasons that makes her books so special.
Concrete Rose is a brilliant book and is one I believe everyone should read as it has very important stories to share!
You can get Concrete Rose here: https://amzn.to/3ad5Ms4 * - A Very Large Expanse of Sea – Tahereh Mafi
A Very Large Expanse of Sea is set a year after 9/11 which was an extremely turbulent time politically but especially for Shirin, a 16 year old Muslim girl who is tired of being stereotyped and is never surprised at how horrible people can be.
I really loved this story, like Concrete Rose I think it is a very important book which everyone should take the time to read. Many of us are lucky to have never experienced what Shirin has experienced but it’s not the same for everyone so we have a responsibility to read and learn!
The complex relationship between Ocean and Shirin was really interesting to see also and does not fit in with the ‘everything’s perfect’ relationship trope you often see which in itself is important!! I really enjoyed this book and thoroughly recommend it!
You can get A Very Large Expanse of Sea here: https://amzn.to/3oxx2Xv *
These were the books I managed to complete in January and for those interested I am currently reading The Cruel Prince by Holly Black which will appear in next months summary! Now onto the books I am excited for February:
- Princess at Heart – Connie Glynn:
Princess at Heart is the fourth book in The Rosewood Chronicles following on from The Lost Princess. I was lucky enough to receive an Arc of ‘Undercover Princess’ (the first in the series) and have been reading every since! (with quite a large collection of the books too!)
‘Ellie is a rebellious princess hiding her real identity.
Lottie is her Portman, acting as the princess for the public to shield Ellie from scrutiny.
Jamie is Ellie’s Partizan, a lifelong bodyguard sworn to protect the princess at any cost.
Lottie, Ellie and Jamie are back for another year at Rosewood – but nothing will ever be the same again.
They’re still reeling from their discovery that someone rather close to home is leader of Leviathan – the group determined to take the princess down at any cost.
Together they must piece together clues to Leviathan’s evil plans. But this is far from simple – especially as an undercover Leviathan agent is now attending the school.
Friendships are at stake, families must be reunited and hearts are at risk of breaking . . .’
Pre-order Princess at Heart here: https://amzn.to/3tdHiYI * - The Desolations of Devil’s Acre – Ransom Riggs
The Desolations of Devil’s Acre is the final book in the Miss Peregrine’s series and is something i’m really looking forward to! If you haven’t read this series I cannot recommend it enough and it remains my favourite book series! I also manged to get a signed copy which i’m very excited about.
‘The last thing Jacob Portman saw before the world went dark was a terrible, familiar face.
Suddenly, he and Noor are back in the place where everything began – his grandfather’s house. Jacob doesn’t know how they escaped from V’s loop to find themselves in Florida. But he does know one thing for certain: Caul has returned.
After a narrow getaway from a blood-thirsty hollow, Jacob and Noor reunite with Miss Peregrine and the peculiar children in Devil’s Acre. The Acre is being plagued by desolations – weather fronts of ash and blood and bone – a terrible portent of Caul’s amassing army.
Risen from the Library of Souls and more powerful than ever, Caul and his apocalyptic agenda seem unstoppable. Only one hope remains – deliver Noor to the meeting place of the seven prophesied ones. If they can decipher its secret location.’
Pre-order The Desolations of Devil’s Acre here: https://amzn.to/3ad7E44 *
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Let me know what your favourite books from January are and what you’re looking forward to in February in the replies!
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