November Wrap Up!

Hello everyone and welcome back to my blog, where I don't regularly post! First, I'd like to acknowledge my lack of posting recently. School has been very hectic with finals, but I just finished the semester! I'll have an extended break from the 15th until the first week of the new year. Hopefully I'll be writing enough posts to keep me afloat. :)

During November, I read 10 books! I am pretty proud of this number since I had so much going on. Here are the 10 I read:

1) The Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson 

 Goodreads

 The Accidental Beauty Queen is a quick, light, rom-com about two twins doing the classic switcheroo ala The Parent Trap at a peagant competition. It wasn't my favorite book ever, but it was great to read during such a stressful time.

2) Hamlet by Shakespeare

Goodreads

I wrote a whole research paper about Hamlet, so I'm kind of done talking about it. Hamlet isn't my favorite Shakespeare play (honestly, I don't know what is), but I enjoyed it and understood it a lot more than I did three years ago on my first read. 

3) Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare

Goodreads

By reading Lord of Shadows this November I was able to finally catch up with the Shadowhunter chronicles. Since Queen of Air and Darkness just released, I am now behind the curve. LoS was a wonderful book, but it wasn't completely perfect. Still, it's one of Clare's best additions!

4) My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren

Goodreads

I love Christina Lauren, so I was ecstatic when I won My Favorite Half-Night Stand through a goodreads raffle. I will say, Lauren's latest release is not my favorite, simply because I felt uncomfortable about the catfishing scenario. Nevertheless, this author duo's writing style is spot-on again. 

5) This Cruel Design by Emily Suvada

 Goodreads

This Cruel Design is the sequel to one of my favorite books of last year, This Mortal Coil. Though This Cruel Design didn't live up to my ultimate crush on This Mortal Coil, I really liked the sequel and the plot kept changing course so many times. I'm eagerly anticipating the third novel! Emily Suvada here I come! 

6) Bro Code by Kendall Ryan

 Goodreads

 Ah, another romance novel. I mean, would this be a wrap up anymore if I didn't have a romance novel with a cringe-y cover on the list? Bro Code wasn't a new favoirte, but it was a quick read. I'll be looking up Kendall Ryan on Scribd and seeing what else I can read from here!

7) Macbeth by Shakespeare

Goodreads 

Oh, Macbeth...what a play. I really enjoyed both Hamlet and Macbeth, and much like Hamlet, I understood and enjoyed it much more than my first time. If you are new to Shakespeare, I would recommend this or Romeo and Juliet as a first read! 

8) Trouble Brewing by Suzanne Balstar

Goodreads 

I recieved Trouble Brewing via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Much like all the romance novels on the list, Trouble Brewing wasn't the best thing ever, but it was entertaining. I also liked the feminist undertones as well. 

9) The Marriage Bargain by Jennifer Probst

Goodreads 

The Marriage Bargain was definitely my least favorite of the month. I saw it on Scribd and thought, why not? I normally read romance novels that are recently published, but I wasnted to give Jennifer Probst a try since she's so popular. Unfortunately, this didn't age well. There's cliches after cliches, and the love interest isn't that great of a guy, even after his "redemption."  

10) The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory

 Goodreads

I have heard such wonderful things about The Wedding Date! While my sister went crazy at the local mall on Black Friday, I got tired of shopping quickly and headed over to the Barnes and Noble and read half of the book in one sitting. I then listened to the rest of it via audiobook on Scribd, and really enjoyed myself. While I thought some of the actions from the love interest were troubling (reacts harshly and kicks/throws things when angry), it was pretty good. The dailogue could get pretty stilted, but I liked The Wedding Date enough that I'm planning on reading Guillory's other release soon, The Proposal. 

Life Updates!

Goodreads Challenge!

I completed my goodreads challenge this month! My goodreads challenge was set to 100 books, and I surpassed that easily this year. This surprises me because I've rarely reached my goal these last two years. Being in English classes at my university helps, because it makes me read books even when I'm busy, because it's homework! I'm not going to up my challenge, and instead just read what I want with no pressure at all. 

Her Campus Articles!

As I mentioned last month, I am a staff writer for Her Campus, which is an online collegiate magazine. There's chapters all around the world, and I work for the one for my university. 

#WomensHealthAwareness: The Truth About the Susan G Komen Foundation 

Why I Decided to Live Off-Campus

#Gratitude: 2018 Has Been Difficult. Here's How I'm Staying Thankful.

Romance Novels Aren't Guilty Pleasures

Well, that was my November wrap up? Have you read any of these books? What did you think?

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!

November Wrap Up!

Hey everyone and happy December! I hope everyone had a great November, and will have an even better December! I'm personally very excited (on the 15th, I am done with my first semester of college), but I do have a lot of work to do in the next couple of weeks. I'm taking all (6!!) of my finals in the next two weeks, so don't be surprised if you don't see a lot of me! (A week has passed since I wrote this, so I only have a week left!)

In November, I read 10 books, and one short story. I'm in the middle of several books right now, and once I finish those, I will only be 2 books away from completing by goodreads goal of 100 books!

Without further ado, here are the 10 books I read this November, in order of date read!

1) Kindred by Octavia Butler
This was one of my favorite books this month. I actually had four 5/4.5-star books this month, and this for sure made the cut. I read this for one of my classes, and I'm so glad it was on the syllabus. The plot is hard to explain, so I urge you just to click that link and go to the goodreads page! Kindred was so spectacularly done, and I can't wait to read more from Butler.

2) Love and First Sight by John Sundquist
Love and First Sight was my only audiobook this month! It's been quite some time since I've picked one up, and I miss it! Though this book was fun, I didn't like the narration that much and sometimes the book was so frustrating. There was this weird mix of mature and juvenile in all the characters, and I didn't really like anyone. But I did end up liking this book!

3) The First Kiss Hypothesis by Christina Mandelski
I was given The First Kiss Hypothesis in exchange for an honest review from Entangled:Crush. You can check out my review of this here! I thought this book was really cute, but it won't make a lasting impact on me. If you like pies and sweet romances, then I would recommend this. Also, the book was great if you want to read something fast and get your mind of all of your responsibilities!

4) Run Away With Me by Mila Gray

Run Away With Me was another five star read for me! It is the third book in a companion series, and the second book I've read my Mila Gray. I had really high expectations because I loved the first book in this series, Come Back to Me, and this didn't disappoint. The romance was so well done, and Gray deals with trauma very respectively as well. Check out my review here!

5) Talk to Me by Clare James
6) A Thousand Letters by Staci Hart
7) If You Were Mine by Melanie Harlow
So as you can tell, I didn't leave thoughts for Talk to Me and A Thousand Letters. To be honest, those two books and If You Were Mine all bleed together. They were all fine, but they didn't have enough originality to stick out. However, they were super quick reads and de-stressed me, which I very much appreciated! 

8) The Empress by SJ Kincaid
Okay guys, this book might be my favorite of all the five stars. I mean....it was SO freaking good. I really enjoyed The Diabolic (review here!) but The Empress blew it out of the water. The Empress subverts YA tropes, and I honestly don't know what will happen next. The characters feel so real, and the plot always takes turns I never see coming. Stop sleeping on this series, and go read it! 

9) Winter Kisses by Addison More
Once again, I barely remember anything from this, except that it was my least favorite of the NA romances I read in November. It was another quick and easy read, but lacked depth and personality.

10) This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada
And last, but certainly not least, is This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada!! I just reviewed this on my blog (once again, here is my review), so check out the review for more detailed thoughts. This Mortal Coil does have some tropes, but Suvada takes them and makes them her own. I thought This Mortal Coil is one of the best debut books I have read this eyar, and I cannot wait until the sequel! My only main issue was that I predicted the twist; if you read a lot of YA, you might be able to pick up on it!

As of right now, I am currently reading Watchmen by Alan Moore, The Chaos of Standing Still by Jessica Brody, and Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare!

What are you reading? Have you read any of the books I mentioned above?

Thanks so much for stopping by and I'll see you soon with another post!

Happy Reading!

Genni @ Ready, Set, Read!