Quarterly Reading Recommendation

This is my fourth and final instalment of my quarterly reading recommendations for 2019. Every 3 months I have been looking over all the books I’ve read in that time and picking out my top 10 favourites. Since its now the end of the year I will going through all four of these lists and picking out my overall top 10 favourite books of the year which I will be posting next week!

So in no particular order my reading recommendations for October – November – December are:

Darkdawn by Jay Kristoff

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The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

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My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing

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You by Caroline Kepnes

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The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand

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Dispel Illusion by Mark Lawrence

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Starsight by Brandon Sanderson

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Gathering Darkness by Morgan Rhodes

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Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin

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Crown of Feathers by Nicki Pau Preto

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🎄Books I Hope to Find Under the Tree 🎄

This week’s Top 10 Tuesday is books that I hope to receive for Christmas this year! I don’t usually get a lot of books as presents but if I was to be gifted any I would love to get physical copies of books that I’ve read and loved but don’t own!

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

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Final Girls by Riley Sager

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Uprooted & Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

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Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey

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Josh & Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren

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Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

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Wilder Girls by Rory Power

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Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

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The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand

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Serpent & Dove Review

42608037._SY475_I really enjoyed this!

Serpent and Dove follows the story of a witch named Lou who is on the run from her coven. When she ends up in the hands of the Chasseurs (witch hunters) as a thief and known witch associate through some unforeseen circumstances she is forced to marry one of them.

 I thought this book was cleverly done. I had heard it involved a witch and witch hunter being forcing to get married and I didn’t quite understand how it was going to happen, but the way the plot line played out it made sense. It wasn’t at all insta-lovey and there was definitely a period of hatred, turned to indifference, to mutual respect and then we started getting more feelings involved. It definitely progressed on the slower side of thing but I didn’t mind it.

I absolutely loved Lou’s character, especially how crass she is in the presence of the Chasseurs and how uncomfortable she makes them. I like that she acknowledges how prudish they are and goes out of her way to make them horrified or embarrassed by her behavior. It definitely kept me entertained throughout the plot.

Reid’s character was at first a little boring and too rigid for me but I like that we gradually see him thaw and actually get to know Lou and accept her for who she is. I thought his blind reverence for the Archbishop a little stale to be honest but it did play a key role in how the story played out. He was a lot more of an integral character than just Lou’s love interest and I like that he was a strong presence in the book. He is quite staunch and firm in his beliefs that all witches should be burned and to see how his perception of what he thought was right get drastically changed because of his feelings was a moment!

The pacing like I said was a little on the slower side but I was so invested in the plot that I honestly didn’t care, I just wanted more. I thought the premise was highly original and the whole dichotomy between the witches and the different covens was fascinating to get into. Hopefully after that ending and the witches being the main focus at the moment we get a deeper insight into that world in the next book!

⭐️4/5 Witchy, dark, high stakes!

5 Quotes from last 5 Books I’ve Read

These are five of my favourite quotes from the last 5 books that I have completed!

The Girl the Sea Gave Back by Adrienne Young

“It had been a long time since I’d prayed to Thora or Sigr. Not because I didn’t believe in the gods, but because I wasn’t sure they listened.”

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Crown of Feathers by Nicki Pau Preto

“But is love ever truly a choice?”

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Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

“Then his heart, now broken into a thousand pieces, slowly began to turn to ice.”

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Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

“A witch and a witch hunter bound in holy matrimony. There was only one way such a story could end-a stake and a match.”

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An Anonymous Girl by Sarah Pekkanen & Greer Hendriks

“If you have to ask if you can trust someone, you already know the answer.”

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