Books I’ve Been Avoiding

This week’s Top Ten Tuesday prompt aligns perfectly with my TBR for September. I am using this month to catch up on all of the books I physically own that have been sitting on my shelves for quite a while now. I guess I am about to out myself on why I have been procrastinating on these books, but I will be trying to push myself to get through at least 50% by the end of the month!

So this is 10 books on my TBR I have been avoiding and why:

The 7 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

This one is just purely the size of the book and the fact that the whole mystery/thriller genre is still relatively new to me. I am really highly anticipating this book but I know it’s going to be a bit of a commitment to finish so I have been putting it off!

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The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden

I have heard so much about this series over the last year and it’s been nothing but good reviews, though a lot of people have said it’s a little slower paced. I much prefer fast paced, high action fantasies so that has really deterred me from picking this series up!

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The Astonishing Colour of After by Emily X.R. Pan

I think every single person who has read this book has loved it from what I gather. Again I’ve heard that it’s a bit of a slower paced book and that it’s quite sad as well, which really makes me pause. I can handle sad stories but I really need to be in the right mind frame to be able to cope and I just haven’t been there yet…

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The Lightbringer Series by Brent Weeks

Again the only reason I haven’t picked these books up yet is because of the size. Now I really don’t mind long books especially in fantasy series, I mean I marathoned The Stormlight Archives late last year and they are all over 1000 pages each, so usually length doesn’t cow me away from books. However it’s more so the premise/concept that isn’t really pulling me in and that along with the size has put me off a little!

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The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi

This book at one stage this year was super hyped and I impulse bought it when I saw it at a bookstore and now it’s just been sitting on my shelves ever since. When I bought it I didn’t really know much about it and then after reading the blurb and seeing some not very good reviews it made me put it on the back-burner. I still do want to read it and see whether or not the hype was justified, I just haven’t felt the need to yet.

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5 Mystery/Thriller Books Update

This year I really wanted to branch out from fantasy and get into some other genres and mystery/thrillers always interested me, I just never picked any up. So back in February I posted 5 mystery/thriller books I wanted to read in 2019 and I thought since we are now in mid-June I would give an update on what I’ve read and some of my thoughts on these books!

The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn

I liked the twists and revelations that occur in the book as well. I am not really an avid reader of mysteries or thrillers so all the tropes are relatively new to me. I enjoyed the steady progression of suspense and the flashbacks really helped to establish Anna’s frame of mind and why she is so adamant in finding out the truth. It definitely kept me intrigued and eager to read on and see what was going to happen next. I couldn’t predict any of the plot points so I was definitely surprised when the truth was finally uncovered.

My Rating: ⭐️4/5 stars

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The Death of Mrs Westaway by Ruth Ware

The overall tone of the book was very dark and foreboding and also very cold, be it the weather or the house and even Mrs. Warren. I finished this book in basically one sitting and I was swept into this story by Ruth Ware’s immensely detailed and descriptive prose. I loved every second of this book. The mystery elements really kept me on my toes; the pacing was perfect and the plot twists… OMG! I did not see anything coming and I was very much surprised and satisfied with how this book ended!

My Rating: ⭐️5/5 stars

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Never World Wake by Marisha Pessl

This book was super obscure and very interesting! I liked the slow buildup of tension throughout the plot and how things started unraveling as the storyline progressed. I didn’t really know what to expect from the premise but I enjoyed the direction the book went with.

My Rating: ⭐️4/5 stars

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The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendriks & Sarah Pekkanen

I love how we are always misdirected in this book. It says it in the blurb to not make assumptions about this love triangle but of course I thought Vanessa was just another alcoholic housewife whose husband has left her and moved on to greener pastures. I was so invested in the storyline that I almost forgot that it was a thriller and when that first plot twist hit me I was thrown.

My Rating: ⭐️4/5 stars

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