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I love books with “weird” premises. From a dystopian bee colony to hibernating humans, it’s always a thrill to pick up something you never knew you needed. Here are four books I recommended and three I plan to read soon:

The Bees by Laline Paull - This was one of my favorite books in high school. It follows a worker bee, Flora 717, whose curiosity makes her stand out in the hive. When the hive is threatened, Flora must rise up and save the bees!

Wilder Girls by Rory Power - I read this book in two days and ever since I have been tempted to reread it. The all-girl school, Raxter, has been in quarantine ever since a strange disease took over the island. When Hetty’s best friend goes missing she and Reese will do anything to bring her back.

Early Riser by Jasper Fforde - I keep telling my brother to read this book and maybe one day he will finally listen! What if winters made the Earth uninhabitable for four months out of the year? What if humans had to hibernate to survive? And what if dreams were deadly?

The Municipalists by Seth Fried - I have never, never, laughed out loud at a book until I read this. A buddy-cop story starring an uptight human and wildcard robot, need I say more?

Now for the books I am excited to read in the future!

Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye - a genderswapped Jack the Ripper retelling.

Let’s Call It a Doomsday by Katie Henry - Ellis is ready for any and all of the ways the world will end. Hannah can see the future. The two girls instantly connect.

Reverie by Ryan La Sala - a genderswapped Alice in Wonderland retelling with a drag queen villain.

What’s your favorite weird book? 

[joulesreads]

January TBR 

For January I am reading the continuation to series I started in 2019. This is a little late as I was waiting on a couple of books to arrive in the mail. 

Physical Books:

Crier’s War by Nina Varela - This is not a continuation of a series but I started it in December and needed to finish it.

Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller - Sequel to Daughter of the Pirate King

A Gathering of Shadows by V. E. Schwab - Sequel to A Darker Shade of Magic

Legendary by Stephanie Garber - Sequel to Caraval

eBooks:

One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake - Sequel to Three Dark Crowns

Audiobooks:

Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor - Another book I started in December and wanted to finish.

The Titan’s Curse by Rick Riordan - the third book in the Percy Jackson Series

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer - the sequel to Cinder 

What are you reading this month?

[joulesreads]

Q: Do you include your book subscription box books in your monthly haul?

Here are my @bookofthemonth picks for January and add-ons. • Things in Jars by Jess Kidd

• The Wives by Tarryn Fisher

• Reverie by Ryan la Sala

https://www.instagram.com/p/B7CH_3-AnHU/?igshid=yca5gk3ejk2w

[joulesreads]

Top 10 Books I Read in 2019

2019 was the year I dove back into reading and I read a lot of incredible books! Originally, I wanted to do a top 5 list but it was too difficult not to include all of these great reads.

10. The Hypnotic City by Andrea Berthot - This is the sequel to The Heartless City and follows my favorite character, Philomena, as she tries to make it on Broadway in 1905 New York.

9. The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman - This follows a group of teens who are the descendants of their town's founders, as townsfolk start disappearing the teens have to work together to solve the mystery.

8. Winterwood by Shea Ernshaw - Set in the wintery woods, Nora Walker is rumored to be a witch but when a boy goes missing from the nearby camp only to defy odds and resurface alive but clueless she can’t help but get involved.

7. Wilder Girls by Rory Power - Raxter School for Girls has been under quarantine since the Tox took over the island. When Hetty’s best friend goes missing she will stop at nothing to find her, even breaching the fence to the horrors outside.

6. Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller - Alosa has been sent on a mission by her father to track down a map that leads to a legendary treasure. Her obstacle? Riden, the first mate of a rival pirate crew.

5. Well Met by Jen DeLuca - Emily is spending the summer taking care of her sister and niece and gets pulled into working the Renaissance Faire. She meets the uptight English teacher in charge, Simon. When acting they have a flirtation going, but outside the faire they cannot stand each other.

4. With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo - Emoni is a teen mom with a passion for cooking. All she wants to do is finish her senior year so she can get a job to support her daughter and grandmother, but when she gets the chance to take a culinary class at school her plans change.

3. Circe by Madeline Miller - Based on Greek Mythology, Circe is the unusual first child of Helios, who must struggle to find her way in a world not accepting of her.

2. Daisy Jones and The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid - This is the story of a fictional band's rise and sudden fall, focusing on the bombastic Daisy and Broody Billy.

 1. Spin the Dawn by Elizabeth Lim - Maia disguises herself as a man so she can compete to be the Emperor’s new seamstress, in her ailing father’s place.

[joulesreads]

December 2019 Wrap-Up

I read 9 books in the month of December:

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White - ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆

Romanov by Nadine Brandes - ⋆⋆⋆

Winterwood by Shea Ernshaw - ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆

The Great Pretender by Susannah Cahalan - ⋆⋆⋆⋆

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan - ⋆⋆⋆⋆

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo - ⋆⋆⋆⋆⋆

The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis - ⋆⋆⋆⋆

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis - ⋆⋆⋆⋆

The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis - ⋆⋆⋆

[joulesreads]

December 2019 Book Haul

This past month I bought 10 books! All of these books were either purchased with my own money or with credits I had saved up.

Physical Books:

Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson - a murder-mystery set at a private school, following two different time periods.

Daughter of the Siren Queen by Tricia Levenseller - the sequel to Daughter of the Pirate King.

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert - Alice and her mother are constantly moving due to ‘bad luck,’ Alice’s grandmother dies and her mother goes missing.

Let’s Call It a Doomsday by Katie Henry - Ellis is a doomsday prepper and Hannah has foreseen when Doomsday will happen.

The Guinevere Deception by Kiersten White - A King Auther retelling from Princess Guinevere’s POV where she is not what she seems.

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston - hate to love romance about the President and Queen’s sons.

Ebooks:

Unspeakable Things by Jess Lourey - set in the 1980′s, boys start disappearing only to resurface changed for the worst, Cassie has to find out what is going on after her sister is taken.

Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron - Arrah is the daughter of two witchdoctors but she seems to be powerless, but when children start disappearing from the kingdom she has to act.

A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer - A Beauty and the Beast retelling

The Paper Magician by Charlie N. Holmberg - Ceony just graduated from her magical school but disappointed when she is assigned to apprentice with paper magic when she wants to use metal magic.