December TBR

For December I have decided to choose books that aren’t too big and taxing because I know I am going to struggle to find the time to read with it being a busy month at work. As with previous months I have gone for a mixed bag of books and this month I have even got a graphic novel in my TBR.

 

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Heartstopper: Volume One by Alice Oseman

Charlie and Nick are at the same school, but they’ve never met … until one day when they’re made to sit together. They quickly become friends, and soon Charlie is falling hard for Nick, even though he doesn’t think he has a chance. But love works in surprising ways, and Nick is more interested in Charlie than either of them realised. Heartstopper is about love, friendship, loyalty and mental illness. It encompasses all the small stories of Nick and Charlie’s lives that together make up something larger, which speaks to all of us.

I have been hearing a lot about the Heartstopper series and when I saw the Kickstarter campaign a few months ago I decided to buy a copy. This is a graphic novel style book and I am so excited to start reading this gay love story. 

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Normal People by Sally Rooney

 

Connell and Marianne both grow up in the same town in rural Ireland. The similarities end there; they are from very different worlds. But they both get places to study at university in Dublin, and a connection that has grown between them despite the social tangle of school lasts long into the following years.

Normal people has been all over the book community recently and after reading the description I immediately bought a copy because it sounded like something I would enjoy reading. I don’t normally read this sort of book but after its been long listed and shortlisted for a few awards I am intrigued to give this a try. 

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The Mortal Word by Genevieve Cogman

Peace talks are always tricky . . . especially when a key diplomat gets stabbed. This murder rudely interrupts a top-secret summit between the warring dragons and Fae, so Librarian-spy Irene is summoned to investigate. In a version of 1890s Paris, Irene and her detective friend Vale must track down the killer – before either the peace negotiations or the city go up in flames. Accusations fly thick and fast. Irene soon finds herself in the seedy depths of the Parisian underworld on the trail of a notoriously warlike Fae, the Blood Countess. However, the evidence against the Countess is circumstantial. Could the assassin – or assassins – be closer than anyone suspects?

I have not read the Invisible Library series but this book did grab my attention and I have been told that I don’t have read the series to enjoy this book. The Mortal Word looks like its going to be an interesting and exciting read because it has everything you want for a great read. 

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The Last by Hanna Jameson

Historian Jon Keller is on a trip to Switzerland when the world ends. As the lights go out on civilisation, he wishes he had a way of knowing whether his wife, Nadia, and their two daughters are still alive. More than anything, Jon wishes he hadn’t ignored Nadia’s last message. Twenty people remain in Jon’s hotel. Far from the nearest city and walled in by towering trees, they wait, they survive. Then one day, the body of a young girl is found. It’s clear she has been murdered. Which means that someone in the hotel is a killer. As paranoia descends, Jon decides to investigate. But how far is he willing to go in pursuit of justice? And what kind of justice can he hope for, when society as he knows it no longer exists?

I was offered this book to review and I was so glad I did because it sounds amazing. I haven’t read a good murder mystery in a while and I think this will be what I need. I also think that this is the sort of book that is perfect to read over Christmas because who doesn’t love a good murder mystery? 

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City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab

Ever since Cass almost drowned (okay, she did drown, but she doesn’t like to think about it), she can pull back the Veil that separates the living from the dead . . . and enter the world of spirits. Her best friend is even a ghost. So things are already pretty strange. But they’re about to get much stranger. When Cass’s parents start hosting a TV show about the world’s most haunted places, the family heads off to Edinburgh, Scotland. Here, graveyards, castles, and secret passageways teem with restless phantoms. And when Cass meets a girl who shares her “gift,” she realizes how much she still has to learn about the Veil — and herself. And she’ll have to learn fast. The city of ghosts is more dangerous than she ever imagined. 

Even though V. E. Schwab is one of my favourite authors and City of Ghosts has been out for while now, I have yet to get round to reading this. I am expecting something completely different with this book compared to her other books and I am interested to see what’s in store. 

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The Body in the Boat by A. J. Mackenzie

Across the still, dark English Channel come the smugglers. But tonight they carry an unusual cargo: a coffin. Several miles inland, a respected banker holds a birthday party for his wife. Within days, one of the guests is found shot dead.
What links this apparently senseless killing to the smugglers lurking in the mists? Why has the local bank been buying and hoarding gold? And who was in the mysterious coffin?
Reverend Hardcastle and Mrs Chaytor find themselves drawn into the worlds of high finance and organised crime in this dramatic and dark Georgian mystery.

This was another book that I was offered to read and review and even though this is the third book in a series it can still be read as a standalone. This is another murder mystery but its sounds completely different to The Last. I have never read anything from these authors before but I have heard some really positive things. 

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Empress of all Seasons by Emiko Jean

In each generation, a competition is held to find the next empress of Honoku. The rules are simple. Survive the palace’s enchanted seasonal rooms. Conquer Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall, and you can marry the prince. All are eligible to compete – all except yokai, supernatural monsters and spirits whom the human emperor is determined to enslave and destroy. Mari has spent a lifetime training to become empress. Winning should be easy. And it would be, if she weren’t hiding a dangerous secret. Mari is a yokai with the ability to transform into a terrifying monster. If discovered, her life will be forfeit. As she struggles to keep her true identity hidden, Mari’s fate collides with that of Taro, the prince who has no desire to inherit the imperial throne, and Akira, a half-human, half-yokai outcast. Torn between duty and love, loyalty and betrayal, vengeance and forgiveness, the choices of Mari, Taro and Akira will decide the fate of Honoku.

Empress of all Seasons is a book that I have heard some positives reviews about but haven’t heard much talk about it on the book community. But I am sure that the positive reviews are well deserved and I will love it. This looks like it’s going to be something different from what I’ve read in the past and I’m intrigued by it. 

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Have you read any of the books on this months TBR?

What do you plan on reading this month?

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