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My Favourite Books of 2025

Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a lovely day today. As you will have seen last week I shared my least favourite books of the year so far, excluding December as that month has not finished yet, and now I am sharing my favourite books of each month so far this year.

January – Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

This year started off with a bang. I had been putting this book off since it came out, I wasn’t sure I was going to like it and now, I think about it every day. It also started a dragon obsession, I now own over ten dragon teddies.

February – Murder by Candlelight by Faith Martin

I read this book one night while I was in the hospital as it was a deal on my kindle and I ended up absolutely loving it. I can’t wait for the third book to be released in January.

March – Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano

Another book I had been putting off, I liked the first two but I didn’t love them but this one I must have read it at just the right time because I loved this one. It was fun and action packed.

April – Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco

This year is definitely the time for reading the books I have been putting off, this is another one. It is the final one in the Stalking Jack the Ripper series. I loved getting to see the end of this story though I love the characters and would want to spend every day with them, currently this is up there as my favourite book of the year.

May – In Want of a Suspect by Tirzah Price

This book follows Lizzie and Darcy as they solve mysteries together, I adore this series and while there are some things I would change about the two characters I will read any book by this author.

June – The Protest by Rob Rinder

The third in his series, following a lawyer who gets more involved in solving cases than a usual lawyer. I love this series, I have so far read every book the day it came out. The mysteries are great but I just love Adam and can’t wait to see what happens to him next.

July – A Deadly Night at the Theatre by Katy Watson

The fifth? I think, in the three dahlias series. Even though this was my favourite read this month, this was my least favourite of this series so far. I felt that the relationship between the three lead characters was different and not as good as usual. But I still loved it.

August – Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

Oh the nostalgia. The emotion. This book has my heart definitely. It was beautifully told and made me understand Hyamitch’s character a lot better.

September – The Killer Question by Janice Hallett

A great mystery, as usual from Janice Hallett. I love the way these stories are told through mixed media, it makes it much more interesting.

October – Pandora by Susan Stokes-Chapman

I loved this book. It had both a gothic and a historical feel about it. It was much darker than I expected it to be but I really enjoyed it, I loved the character of Dora.

November – Fate of the Argosi by Sebastien de Castell

The third in the Way of the Argosi series, a spin off of the Spellslinger series. I have loved following Ferrius Parfax and seeing how her character became what it is in the Spellslinger series. This series is all about adventure and the unlikely hero. I love it.

What are some of your favourite books of this year?

Monthly Wrap Ups

October Wrap Up!

Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a great day today.

October is over, Halloween has happened, and Christmas is on the horizon, which means it is time to talk about the books I managed to read in October.
Honestly, I am surprised by how many books I managed to read, considering I have been finishing up my PhD this month at the same time. I thought I would maybe read one or two, but I also ended up in hospital at the beginning of the month so that gave me some more reading time that I wasn’t expecting.

What was your favourite read of this month?

What I read from my TBR:

  • Empire of Storms by Sarah J Maas – I have not yet read this, mainly because I am still slowly making my way through Queen of Shadows, I am getting there and I will probably have managed to start Empire of Storms before we reach the end of October (I’m writing this on the 22nd)
  • The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent – I have not read this yet either. Again, I have been waiting for some free time to sit down and read because I think when I start this one that I will want to sit there and read until I finish it. Again, I am hopeful I will have managed to start this one before the end of the month but we will see.
  • Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson – I have read this one, actually I finished it last night and I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed it.
  • Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz – I did read this, it took me a while to get through it but I got there eventually.
  • Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo – I am currently reading this book so I should manage to finish it before the end of October.
  • Hex Appeal by Kate Johnson – I read this, it is a book out of my comfort zone as it is a romcom novel but I surprisingly enjoyed it, there was more to the plot than just the romance which was nice.
  • The Thirteenth Child by Erin A Craig – I have not read this one yet but I am looking forward to it, I enjoyed House of Salt and Sorrow by the same author.
  • Pandora by Susan Stokes-Chapman – I did read this one. It was a very original book which I very much enjoyed.
  • The Coven by Harper L Woods – I did read this one. It was a disappointing read for me, I expected more because the premise sounded so good but it did not deliver unfortunately.

So, I read six books this month, which considering how much work I have been doing and not so much free time, I am quite happy with six books read.

Monthly TBRs

October TBR!

Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well today. It is October, the colder weather is drawing in quickly and I for one am feeling all comfy and cosy in jumpers, curled up with books and tea. Spring might be my favourite season because of all the flowers but Autumn has to be a close second.

Anyway, what are you all up to at the moment? I am spending October finishing up and submitting my PhD which has been a long time coming, but during that I have a lot of waiting around time in between – waiting for feedback etc. So, that means a lot of free time to be reading and I’ll need a good TBR.

What are you all planning on reading in October?

TBR

  • Empire of Storms by Sarah J Maas – I am enjoying my trip through the Throne of Glass series and I have just finished Queen of Shadows and will be moving onto the next book. I will not be doing the tandem read, one huge book at a time is enough for me.
  • The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent – I have been looking forward to reading this one for a while and I think October is the right time to be reading about vampires.
  • Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson – this book has been on my bookshelf for years and I haven’t got around to it yet but I have loved both of her other books and loved them so I have high hopes for this one.
  • Close To Death by Anthony Horowitz – I find his books to be very hit and miss, some I enjoy and some I do not so we shall see how this one goes, the premise looks enjoyable.
  • Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo – oh, here we go. Another book I have had for a long time, I need to read it to see if it is worth finishing off the series.
  • Hex Appeal by Kate Johnson – a romance with a little bit of magic involved, I am not usually a fan of romance novels so this could be light and fluffy to break up all the fantasy but I might not love it.
  • The Thirteenth Child by Erin A Craig – this one looks really dark and gothic so I am excited about that but I don’t know a lot about the actual premise, it will be a nice surprise.
  • Pandora by Susan Stokes-Chapman – I have been excited for this since I got it but I have been waiting for the right time to read it and I think October might be it.
  • The Coven by Harper L Woods – what better time to read a spooky, witchy book than halloween.

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them?

Monthly Wrap Ups

November Wrap Up!

Happy Monday bookish people! How are you all today? It is December, the final month of 2024 but before that we need to talk about how November went.

As a month in general, not the best honestly. It seemed to be a month of one bad thing after another, but hopefully we are past all of that now. Onwards and upwards. In terms of reading, it was actually one of my best months of the year. I have started doing an hour or two of reading every evening instead of watching something on TV and it has made me feel much better, not only in terms of loving what I am reading but also I just feel better within myself, most of the time. Reading has been a great escape from everything this month.

How was your reading this month? Any new favourite books?

My November TBR was:

  • Murder At The Playhouse by Helena Dixon – the third book in the Miss Underhay cosy mystery series – I did read this and LOVED it, it might be my favourite one in the series so far.
  • Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Fairies by Heather Fawcett – I did not get to this one, I really wanted to and still do but it wasn’t at the top of my priorities for this month.
  • Curtain Calls to Murder by Julian Clary – I did read this book. It looked like something i would love from the description and I didn’t hate it but it also wasn’t something I loved. If you’re interested in knowing why I will be writing a review soon.
  • Powerless by Lauren Roberts – I finally read this and again, I loved it. I will be putting up my review for this in December so look out for that if you are interested.
  • The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannon – I am currently reading this book and honestly, I’m not sure at the moment if this is going to be a soft DNF and I will come back to it later or if I am going to push through and see if I like it. I am 100 pages ish in and I have no idea what is going on so we will see.
  • People of Abandoned Character by Clare Whitfield – I did not read this. I just was not in the mood this month for a gothic feeling book.
  • The Secret Service of Tea and Treason by India Holton – I did not get to this either which was a shame because I was hoping to get a series finished and crossed off my list.
  • Queen B by Juno Dawson – I did read this, I love anything Anne Boleyn so I wanted to make sure that I gave this book a go.
  • Diabolical Bones by Bella Ellis – I did not get around to this book either unfortunately.
  • Pandora by Susan Stokes Chapman – This was one book that I really wanted to get around to but it just didn’t happen this month.

So, from my TBR I read five books this month which I am pretty happy with but, I also read two books outside of my TBR. I finished Throne of the Fallen by Kerri Maniscalco and then I also read The League of Lady Poisoners.

So, overall I read seven books this month. Which is a great amount in my opinion. I am happy with it and excited to get started on my December TBR.

Monthly TBRs

November TBR

Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all having a good day today! Today I am sharing with you the books that I hope to get to in November. I have been a little ambitious this month, my TBR is long but I wanted to give myself a lot of choice so I could also sort of mood read at the same time.

What are you planning to read in November?

The Secret Service of Tea and Treason by India Holton

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen

People of Abandoned Character by Claire Whitfield

Queen B by Juno Dawson

Powerless by Lauren Roberts

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Fairies by Heather Fawcett

Pandora by Susan Stokes Chapman

Curtain Calls to Murder by Julian Clary

Murder at the Playhouse by Helena Dixon

Diabolical Bones by Bella Ellis

Monthly TBRs

March TBR

Happy Friday bookish people! It is March, the BEST month. Of course, I am biased, it is my birthday month and my Guide Dog’s birthday month – which makes it the best.

I have a variety of books on my TBR for this month and a lot that I am very excited about.

The Good Thieves by Katherine Rundell

Your Turn To Die by Sue Wallman

Gwen and Art Are Not In Love by Lex Croucher

The Plague Letters by V L Valentine

Pandora by Susan Stokes Chapman

A Little Bit Country by Brian D Kennedy

Finale by Stephanie Garber

Murder on the Christmas Express by Alexandra Benedict

Blood and Honey by Shelby Mahurin

Bingo Hall Detectives by Jonathan Whitelaw

Paris Dallencourt is about to crumble by Alexis Hall

The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman

Hunting Party by Lucy Foley

Kingdom of the Cursed by Kerri Maniscalco

What are you all planning on reading in March?