December 2021
I’ve been reading so much, but I don’t always feel like writing a full review for everything. I was inspired by Modern Mrs. Darcy’s Quick Lit posts, as well as Hannah at So Obsessed With‘s monthly Quick Lit posts, and decided to do something similar as a way to briefly discuss the books I read in a month but don’t write full reviews for.
Well, better late than never I suppose, but I’m overdue in writing up my December quick lit post! I just ran out of blogging steam towards the end of the year, and now I find myself wanting to look forward to books I am going to read rather than looking back at what I did read. But I’m doing this because I know it will annoy me down the road to have left it undone.
So in December 2021, I read 29 books. That number includes a bunch of novellas and graphic novels, but I’m still pleased that I ended my 2021 reading year on a high.
Here are the December reads that I have reviewed or will be reviewing on the blog:
Blame It On The Mistletoe, Beth Garrod;
Several People Are Typing, Calvin Kasulke;
Call Us What We Carry, Amanda Gorman; and
As Good As Dead (A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder #3), Holly Jackson.
I also read an e-ARC of How to Date a Superhero (and Not Die Trying) by Cristina Fernandez, which is not out until August, so I will not be reviewing that until closer to the release date.
I read some graphic novels and comics that I won’t be reviewing but will just mention here:
Bee and Puppy Cat vols. 1 and 2, Natasha Allegri;
The Fangirl’s Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Girl Geeks, Sam Maggs and Kelly Bastow;
Lore Olympus: Volume One, Rachel Smythe;
Pumpkinheads, Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks;
Reading Quirks: Weird Things That Bookish Nerds Do!, Javier Garcia del Moral, Andres de la Casa Huerta, and Laura Pacheco;
Stranger Planet, Nathan Pyle;
100 Ghosts: A Gallery of Harmless Haunts, Doogie Horner;
Uzumaki, Junji Ito and Yuji Oniki (transl.); and
Lumberjanes #58, Shannon Watters, Kat Leyh, Anne Rogers, and Maarta Laiho.
Here are my thoughts on the rest of my December reads:
Under the Whispering Door, T.J. Klune (owned) – 2⭐
Sadly this one just wasn’t for me. I didn’t care for the characters and was so bored. The story dragged and felt so heavy-handed. I also didn’t buy View Spoiler ». I only read this because it was a book club pick, and I was definitely the odd one out in terms of not liking it.
Assembly, Natasha Brown (won) – 4⭐
I won this in a Goodreads giveaway and eagerly jumped in. What an intriguing, contemplative read, and for such a slim book it was complex and took me some time.
Self Care, Leigh Stein (owned) – 3⭐
I so wanted to love this one. In the end, I wanted more from it. I thought Maren and Devin were both parodies of white feminism, and wellness as a product. But I wasn’t sure what exactly the point was or what it was trying to say beyond parodying its characters and self-care and wellness culture.
The Atmospherians, Alex McElroy (owned) – 3⭐
This was just fine. I think it was supposed to be satire but didn’t quite hit the mark for me.
My Life With Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues, Pamela Paul (owned) – 3⭐
I love the idea of the book of books and the author’s life as told through her adventures with Bob were interesting at times. I mostly liked how this book made me reflect on my own reading history.
Revenge, Yoko Ogawa (Scribd) – 3⭐
This was an interesting series of loosely connected dark stories, some of which I enjoyed more than others, but I liked seeing the way things looped around in the end and connected.
Chasing the Boogeyman, Richard Chizmar (owned) – 4⭐
This was a really interesting concept, as it was not actually a true crime story but was written as such. I was pleased that I figured out the ‘whodunit’ of the story, but also that that was not necessarily the book’s focus.
Lock & Mori, Heather W. Petty (e-ARC) – 3.5⭐
I quite enjoyed this, and want to carry on with the rest of the series. This was an interesting take on Sherlock and Moriarty, with mention of Holmes (although I’m not sure if he will be in the future books). This was a dark, YA take on familiar characters that just worked for me.
Three Keys (Front Desk #2), Kelly Yang (Scribd audio) – 4⭐
This was just as delightful as the first book! I’m looking forward to reading book three (or listening on audio again) to see what happens next in Mia’s story.
Artificial Condition (Murderbot Diaries #2), Martha Wells (owned) – 4⭐
I love Murderbot! This sequel novella to All Systems Red hooked me on this series.
Inside Man (Prosper’s Demon #2), K.J. Parker (owned) – 4⭐
I loved the first novella and this sequel was nearly as captivating.
Vicious Spirits (Gumiho #2), Kat Cho (owned) – 3⭐
This companion / sequel to Wicked Fox didn’t grab me as much as the first book, sadly, but I liked getting to finish the storylines and see what happened to everyone. I think my biggest hurdle with this book was that it just felt too long and dragged at times.
The Last Witness, K.J. Parker (owned) – 3.5⭐
This was an interesting, sort of twisty novella with a fascinating premise.
Bookshelf, Lydia Pine (owned) – 3.5⭐
This had been on my bookshelf (well, my Kobo) for years, and I was pleased to finally read it. It was an interesting examination of the history of the bookshelf, although fairly dry at times.
What have you been reading lately?
