What I read in November 2023

This month flew by, and honestly, I don't think I got much reading done. It took me forever to finish ACOSF, and even though the book itself was amazing, it was very daunting to go into it knowing how long it was. In total I read 4 books, which is much less than my usual months (I average out at about 5-6 books a month). That means this post is going to be short and sweet, so let's get into it!

Heartstopper #3 by Alice Oseman - ★★★★★

Heartstopper continues the amazing story of Charlie and Nick. Alice Oseman just released the information that book 6 will be the final book in the series, and I'm so upset! This story is so heartfelt and feel good, and I highly recommend giving it a read.

A Court of Silver Flames (ACOTAR #4) by Sarah J. Maas - ★★★★★

This story was different from the other books in the series, because it's written from Cassian and Nesta's point of view. Now before reading this book I hated Nesta. I just felt like she was so selfish and cruel, and really took the people who cared for her for granted. Every time throughout the series that it looked like she was going to change, she would revert or become even worse. While Nesta will never be my favorite character in the story, this story was so well told. It was a true redemption novel. She didn't have it easy, and still failed on her journey to improve herself and become a better person. She also asked for forgiveness and felt genuine remorse for her past actions. It was so fun to see her growth through the book. I completely understand why this book was as long as it was. I fell in love with all of the new characters introduced, and can't wait to see more of them. I loved the whole Valkyrie plot line. I don't want to say too much without giving anything away. Just know that I loved this book so very much.

This is the last book (so far) in the ACOTAR series, and I'm honestly so upset! I have gotten so attached to the characters, and I wasn't quite ready to let them go yet. I know there's supposed to be two more book in this series, but the fact that I have to wait is already unbearable. I don't know how some people have already waited years.

I know she recently released information stating that after CC#3, she's going to release the next ACOTAR book, so that's exciting!

The Inmate by Freida Mcfadden - ★★★

This was November's book club, for Front.porch.reads' monthly thriller book club book. If you're interested in ever joining send her a dm on Instagram! We do a monthly zoom, so it's been fun to have a lil group of people to talk books with. This book itself was a little disappointing, especially after really loving The Housemaid. This thriller, was still super quick paced and easy to read, I just felt that the unfolding of everything wasn't as great as The Housemaid. It followed a nurse who goes to work for a prison where her ex-boyfriend is imprisoned in. This ex-boyfriend attempted to murder her

Haunting Adeline by H. D. Carlton - ★★★

This book was hyped up on Tiktok, Bookstagram, and even my friends. I wasn't sure what to believe going into this book. The only thing I knew about it was that it was a romance between a stalker and a normal woman. I mean that's the basis of the book, but there's a lot more going into it. Firstly, the writing in the first book is very average (it does get better in the second one). I also felt like the plot was kind of all over the place. They had an unnecessary sub-plot of Addie trying to figure out who murdered her great-grandmother. The book would have gone a lot smoother if that plot line was completely removed. I hated the fact that this romance felt super insta-lovey, which is one of my least favorite tropes. I know this is about an obsessive stalker, but the fact that she was also insta-lovey was something I didn't really love.

Now, the spicy parts can be...a lot. They definitely are morally gray, and a bit dark. The book itself isn't super dark, especially if you read a lot of thrillers and mysteries. Other than the spicy parts, I would go as far to say that the main plot line isn't as dark as I thought it was going to be.

By the end of the first book, I ended up feeling a bit disappointed, which I usually do after reading an over-hyped book. It's similar to when about 10 years ago, people would hype up 50 Shades of Grey, because they had never read a well written spicy book before, and again, feeling very disappointed.

Another thing I want to add is the fact that this book is long. When I opened up my Kindle, it told me it was going to take 9 1/2 hours to finish, when the average book I read will take 4-6 1/2 hours.

I will say, the ending for the book was really good, and made you want to start the next one immediately.

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I told you I didn't get that much reading done! Nonetheless, I actually hit my reading goal back in October. So by the end of November, I have currently read 93 books. My yearly goal was 85, which I usually read by over a book or more. So this was pretty cool, so see that I'm almost 10 books over my reading goal. I already finished my first book of December, so I can already tell that I'm going to read more than 4 books in December. I'm trying to get one more 5 star read before the end of the year. Any Suggestions?