We’re back with my annual analysis of what I’ve spent on books! It’s not 100% accurate, but it’s pretty close.
This has become a really popular post, and an annual tradition for me, which is actually very useful in attempting to help me control my spending and prevent my bookcases from overflowing entirely.
It is Ireland in the early 1950s and for Eilis Lacey, as for so many young Irish girls, opportunities are scarce. So when her sister arranges for her to emigrate to New York, Eilis knows she must go, leaving behind her family and her home for the first time.
Arriving in a crowded lodging house in Brooklyn, Eilis can only be reminded of what she has sacrificed. She is far from home – and homesick. And just as she takes tentative steps towards friendship, and perhaps something more, Eilis receives news which sends her back to Ireland. There she will be confronted by a terrible dilemma – a devastating choice between two worlds.
3.5* Read!
It’s that time of year again… It’s the End of Year Book Survey!
Even though I’m not blogging as often as I’d like due to work and other commitments, I just want to say a big THANK YOU to all of you who read my blog, comment on my posts, and visit me here in my cosy corner of the Internet! I hope you had a great 2017, and I wish you all health, happiness, and love in the coming year!
Now, let’s see what my year of reading looked like…
There’s something special about Christmas music, it makes me ridiculously happy, and when it comes on in a pub (after everyone has had a couple of tipples) and everyone sings it at the top of their lungs, I just LOVE it.
Here are 20 of my favourite Christmas tunes. Share any of yours that I haven’t included in the comments!
Find out what my favourite Christmas song is, what I’ll be eating on Christmas Day, and which three books are on my Christmas wishlist in this tag created by Trish over at Between My Lines! #ChristmasBookBloggersTag.
A couple of years ago, I took part in something called Blogmas, where I (failed miserably) at posting every day in December. One of those posts was on my favourite Christmas movies, so I’m upcycling some content today as I revamp that old post and bring it to you in all of its new glory!
Every year I bring you my Bookish Gift Guide with EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT CODES, and this year is no different! Enjoy!
Today’s post is a list of 14 Non-Fiction Recommendations. So, if you’re a sometimes-nonfiction-reader, or someone who doesn’t tend to gravitate towards nonfiction, why not branch out this November and give these books a try?
My October wrap up includes meeting an author, seeing a musical, and a handful of reviews that I’ve actually managed to post, as well as a delicious book haul!
Have you heard of Unbound?
It’s a book publishing crowdfunding website, and Book Blogger, Amy, over at Ten Penny Dreams is using it to fund the publication of her first novel, which sounds AMAZING.
Find out more about Amy’s novel, The Disappeared, as well as more about Unbound, the future of book publishing.
Molly Thomas is a feisty, independent soul, born on the Winter Solstice. At every stage of her life, she has faced troubles. As a young woman, her family are evicted from their home at Christmas. Molly swears vengeance on the jealous neighbour and land agent responsible, Flann Montgomery. Then in 1896, her baby son is taken from his pram. While Molly searches the streets for little Oliver, the police are called but her baby is gone.
Why does trouble seem to follow Molly? And will she ever find out what happened to her child? December Girl is a tale of family bonds, love, revenge and murder.
4* Read!
Chaol Westfall has always defined himself by his unwavering loyalty, his strength, and his position as the Captain of the Guard. But all of that has changed since the glass castle shattered, since his men were slaughtered, since the King of Adarlan spared him from a killing blow, but left his body broken.
His only shot at recovery lies with the legendary healers of the Torre Cesme in Antica—the stronghold of the southern continent’s mighty empire. And with war looming over Dorian and Aelin back home, their survival might lie with Chaol and Nesryn convincing its rulers to ally with them. But what they discover in Antica will change them both—and be more vital to saving Erilea than they could have imagined.
4.5* Read!
The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those don’t.
As the kingdoms of Erilea fracture around her, enemies must become allies if Aelin is to keep those she loves from falling to the dark forces poised to claim her world. With war looming on all horizons, the only chance for salvation lies in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear. Will Aelin succeed in keeping her world from splintering, or will it all come crashing down?
4.5* Read!
Book lovers have long held the notion that reading is good for you – ask any Book Geek and they’ll tell you reading is relaxing, fun, and educational, that they feel more empathetic and understanding as a result of the stories they’ve read, and that their horizons have been broadened, which is all great stuff, but now there’s scientific evidence to prove that reading actually is a superpower 😉
Cherry has a hidden talent. She can see things other people can’t and she decided a long time ago to use this skill to help others. As far as the rest of the town is concerned she’s simply the kind-hearted young woman who runs the local bakery, but in private she uses her gift to add something special to her cakes so that after just one mouthful the townspeople start to feel better about their lives.
They don’t know why they’re drawn to Cherry’s bakery – they just know that they’re safe there and that’s how Cherry likes it. She can help them in secret and no one will ever need to know the truth behind her gift. And then Chase arrives in town and threatens to undo all the good Cherry has done. Because it turns out she’s not the only one who can see what she sees…
4* Read!
Yale hopeful Bronwyn has never publicly broken a rule. Sports star Cooper only knows what he’s doing in the baseball diamond. Bad body Nate is one misstep away from a life of crime. Prom queen Addy is holding together the cracks in her perfect life. And outsider Simon, creator of the notorious gossip app at Bayview High, won’t ever talk about any of them again.
He dies 24 hours before he could post their deepest secrets online. Investigators conclude it’s no accident. All of them are suspects. Everyone has secrets, right? What really matters is how far you’ll go to protect them.
4* Read!
Confessions of a Book Geek 