october wrap up Archives - Diary of Difference

Welcome to the November Book Wrap Up!

I can’t believe it’s December already! I am so excited for Christmas, and the New Year, and all the bright and shiny lights! Everyone is in a happy spirit, and I think that November and December are my favourite months in the year.

November was busy for me. I was off for a week, but didn’t manage to read too much. Hopefully, I am going to read more books in December.

I read 5 books in total. I ended up giving two 5-star ratings and three 4-star ratings. Quite a positive month, it seems 🙂

Books I read in November:

~ To read my review – click on the book titles! 🙂

1. I’ll Be Home for Christmas by Abbey Clancy – ★★★★

I was so lucky to be able to be part of the blog tour for I’ll Be Home for Christmas. It is amazing for a start of the Christmas mood. Be prepared for some drama, a bit of romance and get ready to choose sides.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

2. Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano – ★★★★★

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano is one of the few books that instantly captures your heart, then shatters it into hundred pieces and teaches you many life lessons at the same time. This is now a favorite of mine and I will keep it in my heart forever!

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

3. The Temple House Vanishing by Rachel Donohue – ★★★★

Twenty-five years ago, a sixteen-year-old schoolgirl and her charismatic teacher disappeared without trace…

The Temple House Vanishing left me with a tiny scar in my soul after reading it. It is intriguing and mysterious, it is real and delusional. The next time when I mention a special mystery, with a cruel end – this will be the first book that pops in my mind.

Purchase Links:
Amazon UK

4. Death in the Dojo by Sue Leather – ★★★★★

I remember reading The Death in the Dojo a few years ago. I still remember the story and the feelings it brought me. This is a story about a mystery, about karate and the love between a daughter and her dad. I need to just say that this book has and always will have a special place in my heart.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

5. Her Crown of Fire (Molten Crown, #1) by Renee April – ★★★★

Her Crown of Fire is the first book of the Molten Crown series.

Rose Evermore is a girl trying to survive high-school. But she suddenly has dreams that can predict the future and she seems to be able to control fire.

Curious about the power she possesses, she finds herself in the fantasy realm of Lotheria with her best friend Tyson. When she arrives, she is welcomed as a fire mage at the academy, while Tyson is forced to hide in order to survive.

With a lot of plot twists and new power discoveries, Rose and Tyson are in trouble and have to find a way back home.

I enjoyed this book, and I loved the characters.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

And that is my November Wrap up! How did your November go? How many books did you read? Let me know! I love reading your comments!

Welcome to the October Book Wrap Up!

I can’t believe it’s November already! It’s also my Birthday Month and I am so excited about it!

This was a very fun October, I was reading a lot of books I wanted to read, and most of them were spooky, which matched my Spooky October Theme. I read 7 books in total, of which 4 were on my Spinning Wheel list. Sometimes, I have a tendency to ignore my list and pick up other books, and I hope November is a bit different.

I ended up giving three 5-star ratings. zero 4-stars, two 3-stars, zero 2-stars and two 1-stars.

Books I read in October:

~ To read my review – click on the book titles! 🙂

1. The Awakening by L.J. Smith (The Vampire Diaries #1) – ★★★★★

The first book from the Vampire Diaries series. I have watched and loved the TV Show, so wanted to read the series as well. It’s a story about a popular girl Elena, who meets the mysterious boy Stefan, and the adventures and dangers she is yet to have. I really loved the first book!

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

2. The Struggle by L.J. Smith (The Vampire Diaries #1) – ★★★★★

The second book of the Vampire Series. A continuation of Elena and Stefan’s adventures, but with a little twist – Stefan’s brother Damon appears. And he wants Elena as well. I loved this book too, and cannot wait to read the rest of the series. BTW, team Damon all the way!

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

3. Blood Shadow by Dianna Hardy (Blood Never Lies #1) – ★★★

Blood Shadow (Blood Never Lies #1) is a companion novel for An Eye of The Storm Series.

This book can be read without reading the previous books. At the beginning, the author has included a recap of everything you need to know about the main character, before you start reading this book. It is a story about a woman, who is a werewolf, but then has an accident and anonymous person gives her a new life, but she is also strangely human now. But there is a danger coming, and the anonymous person has to reveal himself to her…

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

4. Reverie by Ryan La Sala – ★

I wanted to love Reverie by Ryan La Sala so much!

Reverie has a wonderful cover that draws you in immediately. The plot mentions a boy and a fantasy world that revolves around dreams. Everything I hoped this book would be – it wasn’t.

Kane is a gay teenager who is trying to pick up the pieces of his life back together after an attack leaves him with no memories of the past. He is in the search of who he is and who he was, and he discovers an alternate reality that he was involved in.

Reveries are worlds born from a person’s private fantasies, and once they manifest they can only be unraveled by bringing their conflicts to a resolution. Reveries have rules and plots, magic and monsters – anything you could wish for. And one wrong step can twist the entire thing into a lethal nightmare maze.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

5. The Devil Aspect by Craig Russell – ★★★★★

The Devil Aspect by Craig Russell was a very pleasant read for me for many reasons! I am so glad I got the chance to read it!

The Plot

A terrifying novel set in Czechoslovakia in 1935, in which a brilliant young psychiatrist takes his new post at an asylum for the criminally insane that houses only six inmates–the country’s most depraved murderers–while, in Prague, a detective struggles to understand a brutal serial killer who has spread fear through the city, and who may have ties to the asylum.

Psychiatrist Victor is starting a new job in the Asylum where the Devil’s Six are – Czech Republic’s most dangerous murderers. Victor has a theory by the name of the Devil Aspect, where he believes that is manifested in these six murderers. He believes it comes out in certain circumstances, making these people commit crimes, but not being aware they have done it. Something similar to a split personality, but in this case, the murderers think that the Devil is next to them, and he is making them do all these things.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

6. Close to Home by Cara Hunter (DI Adam Fawley #1) – ★

Close To Home is, I believe, the first mystery/thriller book I have given one star to. I had very high hopes for this one. And it crashed my hopes quite hard.

Close To Home is the first book in a series called DI Adam Fawley.

The books are not related to themselves and can be read as standalones. They all feature the detective Fawley, therefore the series solution. Something similar to Dan Brown’s series. I listened to the audio book, and I think that the format might have a little blame on my rating.

In this book, the 8-year-old girl Daisy Mason disappears from her parents’s summer party. No one in the neighbourhood saw anything, not even the parents, and the detective is trying to keep an open mind in this whole situation, as someone is clearly lying.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |

7. Love, Heather by Laurie Petrou – ★★★

Love, Heather is one of the most disturbing YA novels related to bullying I have read! Please be aware that this book has bullying and assault triggers.

Stevie and Lottie have been friends since they’ve known about each other. And when Lottie starts to hang out with the popular kids, Stevie wants to fit in too. One thing leads to another, and Stevie gets bullied by them, which quickly leads to the whole school avoiding her.

Then Stevie becomes friends with Dee, and they start plotting a revenge on the popular kids, which very quickly gets out of hand. The ” Love, Heather ” pranks are now spreading without anyone being able to stop them.

Purchase Links:
| Amazon UK |Amazon US |