Tag: sarah j maas

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2025 Books Ranked + 2026 Goals

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well. Today I will be doing a full rundown of all the books I read in 2025, starting with my least favourite book that I read and ending with my number one book of the year. What are some of your favourite and least favourite books of 2025?

The Veiled Kingdom by Holly Renee
A Novel Murder by E C Nevin
The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid
The Village Library Demon Hunting Society
The Creeping Hand Murder by Maureen Johnson
The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
To Sway A Bard
The White Queen by Philippa Gregory
Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
A Witch’s Guide to Love and Poison
A Rivalry of Hearts by Tessonje Odette
The Ripper of Whitechapel by Yvette Fielding
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
This is Not a Game by Kelly Mullen
Traitors Legacy by S J Parris
Graveyard Shift by M L Rio
Phantasma by Kaylie Smith
The Murder Hypothesis by Sarah Wishart
The Coven by Harper L Woods
I Hope You’re Listening by Tom Ryan
The Whispering Dark by Kelly Andrews
The Painted Dragon
The Austen Christmas Murders by Jessica Bull
Hex Appeal by Kate Johnson
Pages and Co 3 by Anna James
A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping
Library of Shadows by Rachel Moore
Us In Ruins by Rachel Moore
A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J Maas
Murder at Christmas
The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter
An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson
Grimstone
Close to Death by Antony Horowitz
Fearful by Lauren Roberts
The Agency of Scandal by Laura Wood
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Fairies
Vera Wong’s Guide to Snooping on a Dead Man
The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Murder at the Wedding
Murder in First Class
Murder at Midwinter Farm
Murder at the Country Club
Murder on Board
Murder at the Charity Ball
Murder at the Beauty Pageant
Murder on the Marlow Belle by Robert Thorogood
Murder at the Village Fair
Murder at the Highland Castle
Murder at the Island Hotel
Murder on the French Riviera
Murder in the Countryside
Murder in New York
Murder on the Cornish Coast
Murder in Paris
Murder at the English Manor
Murder at Traitor’s Gate by Irina Shapiro
A Quiet Life in the Country by T E Kinsey
Murder at the Foundlings Hospital by Irina Shapiro
The Dog Sitter Detective Christmas Tail by Antony Johnston
The Highgate Cemetary Murder by Irina Shapiro
In Want of a Suspect by Tirzah Price
Powerful by Lauren Roberts
The Dog Sitter Detective Plays Dead by Antony Johnston
The Secret Service of Tea and Treason by India Holton
How to Seal Your Own Fate by Kristin Perrin
Reckless by Lauren Roberts
Fearless by Lauren Roberts
The Mythmakers by Tamzin Merchant
A Deadly Night at the Theatre by Katy Watson
A Corruption of Blood by Ambrose Parry
Murder at the Orpheus Theatre by Irina Shapiro
Unravel Me by Taherah Mafi
Ignite Me by Taherah Mafi
The Diabolical Bones by Bella Ellis
A Gift of Poison by Bella Ellis
Throne of Secrets by Kerri Maniscalco
The Killer Question by Janice Hallett
Miss Winter in the Library with a Knife by Martin Edwards
The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber
A Curse for True Love by Stephanie Garber
Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera
Fate of the Argosi
Fall of the Argosi
Way of the Argosi by Sebastien de Castell
The Protest by Rob Rinder
Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano
A Dangerous Train of Thought by Faith Martin
Seige and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
Crown of Midnight
Heir of Fire
Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas
Pandora by Susan Stokes-Chapman
Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson
The Last Word is Death by Faith Martin
Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros
Murder by Candlelight by Faith Martin
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros
A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco

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

Monthly Wrap Ups

December Wrap Up!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all having a good day today, and Happy New Year! For this, my first post of 2026, I am bringing you the usual monthly wrap up for December, but later in the month I will be sharing an all-encompassing 2025 Wrap Up that covers genres, favourite books etc. Check back later for that if you are interested.

December was a month that felt insanely busy and yet, I couldn’t tell you what I spent the month doing, it is all just a blur. Plus, I was sick for the whole month with different things. Hopefully January will be better.

From my December TBR:

  • Murder at the Orpheus Theatre by Irina Shapiro – I did read this.
  • Pages and Co: Tilly and the Lost Fairytales by Anna James – I did read this.
  • The Dog Sitter Detective: Christmas Tails by Antony Johnston – I read this too.
  • Miss Beeton’s Murder Agency by Josie Lloyd – I did start to read this but unfortunately, I ended up DNF’ing it quite early on. I did not enjoy the writing style of this book and I struggled to be able to tell which time period it was set in.
  • Traitor’s Legacy by S J Parris – I did read this.
  • Fearful by Lauren Roberts – I did read this.
  • Death and the Harlot by Georgina Clarke – I did not read this.
  • Miss Winter in the Library with a Knife by Martin Edwards – I did read this.
  • A Quiet Life in the Country by T E Kinsey – I did read this.

So, from my TBR I read 7 books from my TBR, DNF’d 1 and I did not manage to read 1. Overall, that’s pretty good, even though I did not complete my TBR. Outside my TBR, I read The Austen Christmas Murders, The Mythmakers by Tamzin Merchant, Murder at Christmas, A Dangerous Train of Thought by Faith Martin and, I FINALLY read Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas.

That means, in December, I read a total of 12 books and I DNF’d 1.

What did you read in December? What did you think of the books you read?

Monthly TBRs

December TBR

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a lovely day today. It is now December and that means it is time to talk about what books we will be reading this month.

What books do you hope to read in December and before the end of 2025?

December TBR

Murder at the Orpheus Theatre by Irina Shapiro

Pages and Co: Tilly and the Map of Stories by Anna James

Dog Sitter Detective Christmas Tails by Antony Johnston

Miss Beetons Murder Agency by Josie Lloyd

Traitors Legacy by S J Parris

Fearful by Lauren Roberts

Death and the Harlot by Georgina Clarke

Miss Winter in the Library with a Knife by Martin Edwards

A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J Maas

Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas

Monthly Wrap Ups

November Wrap Up!

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Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you are all having a lovely day. It is the end of the month and that means it is time to discuss the books that I did and did not read in November.

What books did you read this month? Did you enjoy them?

From my November TBR:

  • Immortality by Dana Schwartz – I did not get around to reading it this month
  • Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead – I decided, after putting two on my November TBR, not to do any rereads this month so I did not read this one
  • The Guest List by Lucy Foley – I did read this book. I have been putting it off for a long time but I have finally read it and I thought it was good, not amazing but good enough.
  • The Whispering Dark by Kelly Andrews – I did read this.
  • Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco – this was the second book that I put on my November TBR as a reread, so I did not read this.
  • Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Fairies – I did read this.
  • Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft – I did not read this
  • To Steal From Thieves by M K Lobb – I did not read this.
  • A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna – I did read this.
  • Agency of Scandal by Laura Wood – I did read this.
  • Fate of the Argosi by Sebastien de Castell – I did read this.
  • Tower of Dawn by Sarah J Maas – I am writing this a little early, I have a week left of November and in that time I plan on finishing Queen of Shadows, Empire of Storms and Tower of Dawn.

Outside of my TBR I also read The Ripper of Whitechapel by Yvette Fielding and A Quiet Life in the Country by TE Kinsey.

That means in November, I read a total of 8 books so far this month, but I might be able to add three more to this if I manage to read the three Sarah J Maas books.

Uncategorized

End of year TBR

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Happy Friday bookish people! How are you all today? I hope you are all well. We are so close to the end of the year now, the time of cosy reading is here and with more time on my hands I have been thinking about the books I haven’t managed to read yet this year that I am still wanting to get to.

What books do you want to get to before the end of the year?

The Dog Sitter Detective’s Christmas Tail by Antony Johnston

A festive murder mystery where I have enjoyed the rest of this series, I will be putting this on my December TBR.

Queen of Shadows – Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas

At the start of this year I wanted to finish the Throne of Glass series and the A Court of Thorns and Roses series and so both of these are on this list.

The Ripper of Whitechapel by Yvette Fielding

I am intrigued what this will be like because of who it is written by, and it is only a short book so I am excited to read it.

Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco

I have started rereading the stalking jack the ripper series and I remember this second one being my favourite of the series so I am excited to get back into it.

A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J Maas

I would love to be able to finish this series before the end of the year, I read the rest at the beginning of the year and then I took a pause because I wasn’t sure if I would like Nesta in this book but enough is enough, it is time to finish the series.

Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber

I can’t wait to read this! Stephanie Garber is easily one of my favourite authors and I love everything she writes, I have been itching to read this since I got my hands on a copy.

Bloodlines by Richelle Mead

I recently got hold of second hand copies of this series. I remember absolutely loving it when I was younger so I’d like to do a reread and see what I think of it now.

A Quiet Life in the Country by T E Kinsey

I recently bought this book after being recommended it, and I would like to read it soon so that I know whether or not I would like to continue with the series into next year.

A Death in Diamonds by S J Bennett

Another mystery series I have loved all the books in so far, but I have been putting this one off as I need to be in the right mood to read it, but I would like to finish up this series before the end of the year.

Murder at Midwinter Farm by Helena Dixon

I have read and loved all of the Helena Dixon, Miss Underhay series so far and this book is coming out before December so I will be buying and reading that immediately.

Monthly TBRs

November TBR!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a lovely day today. It is November and now that I am free from my PhD work (at least until January), I have a lot more time to read and that makes me very excited – so many options!

What are you all planning on reading this month?

Fate of the Argosi by Sebastien de Castell

Agency of Scandal by Laura Wood

A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna

To Steal From Thieves by M K Lobb

Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Fairies by Heather Fawcett

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

The Whispering Dark by Kelly Andrew

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Immortality by Dana Schwarz

Tower of Dawn by Sarah J Maas

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

Monthly Wrap Ups

October Wrap Up!

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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!

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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

September Wrap Up!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all well today. September has been and gone in a whirlwind and that means it is time to share my wrap up for the month.

In terms of reading, it has been a mixed month. Good, when thinking about the amount of reading I managed to get through which I was surprised, though pleased, about. Not so good because I had a couple of DNF’s this month, they were books I had thought potential DNF’s but it was still a shame that I didn’t manage to get through them.

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

My Wrap Up!

From my TBR:

  • The Killer Question by Janice Hallett – I did read this. I have read, and loved, all of her books so far and this one was no exception. I felt that the build up took a little while to get going but around a third in you do get hooked into the action. It was interesting to have it all centred around a pub quiz as I love a quiz myself. The end had a twist I did not see coming at all.
  • Murder In The Countryside by Helena Dixon – I did read this. Another quick, fun, cosy mystery.
  • Us In Ruins by Rachel Moore – I did read this. I will share my thoughts in a review coming on the 13th October.
  • Listen For The Lie by Amy Tintera – I did read this and if you’d like to see my review that will be coming on the 20th October.
  • I Hope You’re Listening by Tom Ryan – Unfortunately, I did DNF this one, it took me seven days and I only got through 118 pages of it and I was not engaged in the story or the mystery of the missing girl.
  • The Wolf And The Woodsman by Ava Reid – Again, unfortunately, I couldn’t get into this book and I ended up deciding to DNF it.
  • Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard – I am currently reading this book and I plan to finish it before the end of the month.
  • Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas – I am also halfway through this book currently and I plan to finish this book also by the end of the month.

Outside my TBR:

  • A Gift of Poison by Bella Ellis
  • Murder In New York by Helena Dixon
  • Murder On The Cornish Coast by Helena Dixon
  • Murder At The English Manor by Helena Dixon
  • Murder In Paris by Helena Dixon

So, in September I read 11 books and I did DNF 2.

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

Monthly TBRs

September TBR!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day today. It is September, and that means it is time to talk about the books I am planning on reading this month.

The Killer Question by Janice Hallett

Murder in the Countryside by Helena Dixon

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas

Us In Ruins by Rachel Moore

Listen For The Lie by Amy Tintera

I Hope You’re Listening by Tom Ryan

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid

This month is a bit of a mix for me, its some books that I am excited to get reading but also others that I have had on my shelves for years and I need to get to them to see if I like them, I have less excitement for these but I still want to give them a chance.

What are you reading in September? Have you read any of these books, what did you think of them?