December Wrap Up

This month kind of ran away with me and in the end I didn’t end up reading as much as what I wanted. However, it’s the end of the year, I didn’t want to put too much pressure on myself to read if I wasn’t in the mood and this is what happened. I had one really great read, one disappointing read and one fun, fast read so I feel like overall it was a successful month!

In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead⭐️5/5 stars

The Storm of Echoes by Christelle Dabos⭐️2/5 stars

These Witches Don’t Burn by Isabel Sterling⭐️3/5 stars

My Favourite Books of 2021

These were my absolute favourite books I read this year! Definitely didn’t read as many books as I would usually but it was a hard year and I’m proud of what I accomplished and have read some new all time favourites which is fantastic!

Lightbringer by Claire Legrand

A Sky Beyond the Storm by Sabaa Tahir

Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff

In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead

Stormcaster & Deathcaster by Cinda Williams Chima

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The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Worst Books of 2021

These are the books that I just didn’t quite enjoy this year! I definitely tried to be more honest with my reviews and give more 1 and 2 stars if I wasn’t all that into a book rather than just giving it a three like I usually would. I definitely didn’t actively hate any of these book they just weren’t my style and taste!

A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow

The Girl and the Stars by Mark Lawrence

The Storm of Echoes by Christelle Dabos

The Deep by Rivers Solomon

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

Burn our Bodies Down by Rory Powers

Catherine House by Elisabeth Thomas

A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer

The Ones We’re Meant to Find by Joan He

The Project by Courtney Summers

Quarterly Reading Recommendations

This is my final Quarterly Reading Recommendation post for 2021.  I will be listing my top 5 favourite books I read during the last 3 months before I start compiling my lists and picking out my top ten overall of 2021 which I will post in a few days! If you want to check out my third quarterly reading recommendations click HERE!

My recommendations for October – November – December are:

In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead

Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff

One by One by Ruth Ware

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson

These Witches Don’t Burn Review

Hannah’s a witch, but not the kind you’re thinking of. She’s the real deal, an Elemental with the power to control fire, earth, water, and air. But even though she lives in Salem, Massachusetts, her magic is a secret she has to keep to herself. Hannah will have to test the limits of her power if she’s going to save her coven and get the girl, especially when the attacks on Salem’s witches become deadlier by the day.

Hannah’s character was definitely interesting to read from. She’s still very much coming to terms with her break up with Veronica and I feel like her feelings and reactions to her were very realistic and in line with her age. She definitely goes through a lot emotionally throughout the course of the storyline and that definitely made me feel more sympathetic and connected to her. But overall I didn’t find her to be particularly likeable.

Veronica I didn’t like at all. I thought she was just playing with Hannah’s emotions all throughout the story and just kept dismissing her feelings and trying to force her to take her back. Maybe if this was a dual perspective and we see things from Veronica’s point of view I might have developed more of a connection to her but I was just mostly indifferent to her.

I would of loved if we delved more into the training in regards to Hannah’s abilities. She said various times in the plot that they have weekly training sessions with their high priestess which we don’t get to see that I would of loved to read and see. In general we don’t get to see quite as much magic as what I would of liked. I was just expecting it to be more focused on the witchcraft and not so much on the mystery behind the blood witch.

Overall I was definitely surprised with the direction the story went. I appreciated how we see Hannah just be a normal teenager even though there is so much going on in her life that she has to keep secret from everyone else in her life other than Veronica. I didn’t see any of the twists coming and there was an underlying feeling of urgency woven throughout the plot that kept me wanting to read more. The pacing was just very fast and it was just one thing after another that was happening which in the end I enjoyed however I would of liked to be shown more about the witches and their abilities rather than told.

⭐️3/5 stars A solid witchy, entertaining story!