October Wrap Up and November TBR

Hi guys, I can’t quite believe it is now November! You know what that means? It means it is time for my October wrap up and my November TBR. I am so excited that it is getting ever closer to Christmas time! Anyway back to bookish things. I had a pretty good reading month – not the best, but not the worst either. I read 9 books throughout the month. I did also start The Magicians by Lev Grossman, but I decided to put it down after 200 pages. To be honest, I don’t think I am going to finish it. It will probably end up on my DNF shelf on Goodreads. On the subject of Goodreads, as always I have link each book to the site for your browsing pleasure. I have also linked each book to the Wordery site using my affiliate link so you can buy them if you want to. Using my affiliate link is a great way to support me as I get a small commission, if you want to :). Onto the books I read in October.

 

Daughter of the Shadow / Tyler Sehn ★★★ 

This is probably more of a 2.5 star rating. It had so much potential that I feel was kind of wasted. Firstly the plot. To me it felt quite confused at times and too drawn out – in my opinion it didn’t need to be that long. I also felt that the editing could have done with some work. The biggest issue I had was the lack of depth with the characters. One of the main characters is Melea. I absolutely loved her and felt that she was going to be such a strong character, but she lacked depth and I didn’t understand her motivations. Literally all that really defines her is her fighting abilities and her mysterious past. She had so much potential that was completely wasted, in my opinion. All the characters were very surface level. I did enjoy the politics of the Shining Empire – that was quite interesting. Overall it was a good start and in the right direction, but it definitely has some issues. Goodreads page

 

The Promise of Child / Tom Toner ★★★

*I received a digital copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

This was a bit of a mixed one for me. First off I have to say that Toner has created an amazingly detailed and interesting world. However I also have to admit that I struggled with the density. There are alot of characters and alot of things going on, which makes it a little confusing. It is well written book with good characters and the world building is at an epic scale. I found the pacing to be a bit uneven at times and overall this book is quite slow – I struggled to get into it at the beginning. There is a lot to learn about this new world, which made it hard to follow at times. I just found it a little hard to keep track of everything that was going on, which then meant that I didn’t feel completely invested in the plot. Overall I enjoyed this but I did also struggle with it. Perhaps this wasn’t quite my thing. I would still recommend this, especially if you are a fan of epic space operas. Goodreads page

 

A Dance of Cloaks / David Dalglish ★★★

This is the first book in the Shadowdance series. To be honest this was quite an average read for me. Don’t get me wrong I liked it, but I wasn’t blown away by it and I didn’t love it. It was quite a predictable read to me and I never felt full invested in the characters or plot. The world building was generally good but could have done with a bit more depth. The character development wasn’t great, in my opinion. To me the characters were really inconsistent, especially Aaron. One minute he’s killing people and then he’s moping about it the next. Overall I liked it, but it also fell a little flat for me. I think I will continue on with this series at some point. Goodreads page

 

The Kraken Wakes / John Wyndham ★★★

This was my fourth book by this author and once again I very much enjoyed it. To be completely honest, this was probably the weakest of the books I’ve read. It is still very well written and there is nothing wrong with but I just didn’t find myself enjoying it as much as his other books.  I liked that you never get to meet the aliens – I think it adds a level of mystery and creepiness. This is also a bit of a depressing read as the people sit back and wait to see if they can do anything about this alien invasion – it really highlights the possibility of being powerless. I think it may have worked better if there were multiple points of view, because there would be a wider view of the invasion. Overall I liked this but I didn’t love it as much as the other books I’ve read by him. Goodreads page

 

All the Birds In The Sky / Charile Jane Anders ★★★.5

This was such a strange book and I’m still not entirely sure how I feel about it. I don’t really know how to describe this book – it is a big mix of genres. I have to say again that this was a weird book, but it was a good kind of weird. I haven’t read anything like this before. I found it to be quite a meandering plot and so at times it did drag a little. I wasn’t a huge fan of the portrayal of adults during the opening sections – every adult is either manipulative or negligent. There were no adult role models in this section. To me, it just seemed to be unrealistic . The writing is kind of uneven. I initially struggled to get into it, but I persevered and I ended up enjoying it. The characters were frustrating at numerous points of the books. Having said that, I did generally enjoy the characterisation. What I most liked about this book was the uniqueness of it – I liked the mix of genres.

 

Acceptance / Jeff Vandermeer ★★★.5

This is the third and final book in the Southern Reach trilogy.  If, like me, you struggled with Authority (book 2), you will be glad to know that this one is better. The writing is wonderful, as with the other books. The plot is generally engaging. The characters can be a little confusing at times – you can’t speed read this book as you need to pay attention to keep track of the characters and so you don’t miss any important details. Overall I was satisfied with this conclusion but it definitely still leaves a lot of questions. If you like books that have a nice tidy ending where everything is resolved, then this is not the book for you. This was a great and kind of weird science fiction trilogy and I definitely recommend checking it out. Goodreads page

 

The Ladies’ Paradise / Emile Zola ★★★★

This is my second book by Zola and I definitely intend to read more. It took me a little while to get into the writing style again, as it can be a little wordy, but you can’t deny that he is a great writer. The plot was engaging and it is set in an interesting time. The character studies in this book are very interesting and one of the best things I’ve found when reading Zola. He is great at writing complex and flawed characters. I don’t have a lot to say really, other than that I really enjoyed this book. Goodreads page

 

Six of Crows / Leigh Bardugo ★★★★

I have been debating whether or not to pick this up since it was released. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the Grisha trilogy so I thought I wouldn’t read this, but then I heard so many good things about it. I am glad I have now read it – I was pleasantly surprised. The best thing about this book was definitely the characters. The diverse range and the moral ambiguity was a pleasure to read and I am excited to read another book of these characters. Inej is a new favourite character of mine. The plot was generally engaging and enjoyable. It was perhaps a little predictable at times and the rescue portion of the story was slow to start, but I enjoyed the reading the experience. I will definitely be continuing on with this duo-logy. Goodreads page

 

The Tiger and the Wolf / Adrian Tchaikovsky ★★★★

To be honest, I initially picked this up purely based on the cover and I am so glad I did. I very much enjoyed this book. It was a bit of a slow start for me, but from the very start I loved the setting. Humans in this world have the soul of an animal within them, and they can ‘step’ to become that animal. There are many different tribes each based around an animal, because of this there is a lot of information with this book. The world building is very well done, in my opinion, but the vastness of the world and the amount of information means that it is a bit slow at times. However I never felt overwhelmed or bogged down by it, for me it just set slower pace. I don’t mind a slower pace so I didn’t have an issue with it. The characters were amazing. I especially loved Maniye – she is such an interesting and complex character. All of the characters were extremely well written. Overall I loved this and I will definitely be continuing on with this series. Goodreads page

 

The Golden Fool / Robin Hobb ★★★★★

Wow this was so good, but I didn’t expect anything less from Robin Hobb. I love the intricacies of the story and the characters – it is just a pleasure to read her books. I have very little to say about this, other than that I loved it and I am so excited to get to the third and final book in the trilogy. Goodreads page

 

In terms of my November TBR, I think I am going to keep it pretty simple and just read what I feel like reading at the time. I did start Eagles at War by Ben Kane at the end of October so I will continue to read it.  Having said that, it is Non Fiction November so I would love to get to some of my non fiction book. I find that they kind of get pushed to the side with me. I hope to read The Girl With Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee and then I hope to at least start either In the Shadow of the Sword by Tom Holland or The Impossible State: North Korea Past and Future by Victor Cha. I am definitely going to be reading Fool’s Fate by Robin Hobb. My classic pick of the month is probably going to be Middlemarch by George Eliot. Other than that I’m just going to read what I feel like reading at the time. As always the best way to keep track of my reading is to follow me on Goodreads as I do try to keep it updated. What was your favourite book you read in October? I hope you are all having a wonderful day and I will see you next time.

 

Pippa