Bookworms,
Hello, hello! December has flown by and I am have been drowning in all things The Poppy War. That’s the truth. Even now, I am reading The Burning God and really devouring it and feeling the burn from it! Granted, I haven’t read many books this month but all the books I read were so good! I think I didn’t read much but I am totally okay with that. I think, for me at least, it wasn’t possible to read more books while I was also reading The Poppy War trilogy.
In any case, let’s get into what I did on the blog during the month, shall we?
I changed my reading plans and might have put down a highly anticipated read but my mind simply wasn’t there for it. So I changed my books/series and it went fairly well, I think. I also removed quite a lot of books this month. A total of five, I think. So…that’s progress, innit?
Pretty Covers (November Edition)
I followed my tradition of enjoying and admiring the cover art of the books. November had some truly pretty covers. I also did another end of the year tag because why not? I wasn’t doing much else as far as blogging went anyway. I swear, I do write reviews. My brain just hasn’t been functioning in that department for some reason, I have some half-written (abandoned) reviews on my Google Docs and they mock me everyday, okay?
Authors I Discovered in 2020 & Loved
Top Book Series of 2020
I also talked about a few new finds, a couple of my new favourites and a few disappointments. I mean, it was basically a wrap of the year, just done in the best and the worst. I hope you find some good books to read in those posts, if you have already read them all, then consider me in awe of you.
Book Haul
I also hauled a few books. It wasn’t the extravagant number as that of the October haul but there were few, okay? All of them very carefully planned and none of them an impulse buy. Pssh. What even is an impulse buy anyway?
I read five books, I think? Three of which were novellas and vastly different from each other as far as genres go. So, yay for diversity in genres. The other two were from the same trilogy. You can take a guess and win yourself a glass of water if you guess correctly.
Out of Body by Jeffrey Ford
I think, at the time, I needed a book like this. A novella that felt like a start to something new but never quite starting out properly? Or rather, it felt like I am reading a book starting in the middle part? Does that make any sense? In any case, it worked for me and made me want to pick up another book after this one ended, so there’s that. The premise is what made me intrigued but somehow, I felt like the author left me stranded on a road while the characters went on an adventure as the book ended. So make of that what you will.
Korea: A Very Short Introduction by Michael J. Seth
As the title says, it is a very short introduction and left me wanting more. However if you just want to be up to speed on what’s been happening in Korea for like the last couple of thousand years then this is the Sparks Note version of the events. I admit that the author really manged to cram everything in a fairly great way. It did not deviate from anything and made me more curious about a country that’s been divided for a while.
The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang
This was a journey I totally knew I was going to enjoy/not enjoy when I started it. I absolutely love R. F. Kuang for writing about this series in general. It was so different from the kind of fantasy I generally read and I need more of that. I need more of what R. F. Kuang does with Poppy War. This book is definitely not for the fainthearted and goodness, read all the content and trigger warnings before going into it. Especially the very dreaded Chapter 21. If any of the things bother you, you really need to be prepared for it. It’s brutal, it’s unforgiving and it’s absolutely one of the best books I read this year. So, there’s that.
The Dragon Republic by R. F. Kuang
The second book in the trilogy starts where the first one left off and it starts with a bang. I mean, the previous one ended with a bang, if you know what I mean. The pace, the writing and the characters, all three come together so well in this one. Rin made me want to tear my hair out in frustration, I wanted to cry with her for what the war did to her and so many of the other characters but my god, I also couldn’t wait to read the next book despite all the pain and heartbreak.
I know, not too many books and absolutely no reviews. I know! However I am hoping to change that in the coming weeks. If you don’t see at least a couple of reviews, you have full permission to DM me at Instagram and berate me over that.
Also! I know a few places are going back to normal but there are many countries that are still struggling because of the virus. So, please, take all the precautions. Stay safe and take care of each other. Second waves are a thing and they are happening, please, don’t think it’s okay to let go of the precautions just yet, okay?
What about you guys? What was your best read or the worst one? Or, let’s not call it the worst, let’s call it the most disappointing read. Tell me all about it in the comments.
bookwormmuse 