I can't get over the fact that it's December. And I feel like I'm already behind on my holiday reads because um, I haven't started any yet. BUT, I met my Goodreads goal! So that was exciting. Fun fact- three of these are/have been turned into TV/film, and I love that! I almost always try to read the book before it becomes a show or movie. (Alternately, I almost never read the book after watching since I already know the story... just another weird quirk I suppose!) Here's what I read last month to round out my reading goal.
library e-book
Trigger warnings: Addiction, sexual assault
The prologue gut-punched me right in the feels. But then when we fast forward, I found her to be a bit...quirky for her age, hardly ever going out and at a job she obviously didn't enjoy, I was confused, wondering how her life has gone so off-track. She moves to Texas and runs in to a guy who knows her, but never reveals why or how, or even tells her that he knows who she is! But he wasn't a bad guy. He was a bit odd, but I was kind of always rooting for him. There was a part towards the end about him "deserving her" that pissed me off, like what is she, a prize? Aside from that though, I really enjoyed this NA romance, the twists (another smaller gut punch), the confessions (the dedication states that these are real confessions written anonymously by readers, so I thought that was really interesting), and the art.
And I found that there's a series on Amazon Prime so looking forward to watching that adaption soon.
"It’s amazing how you don’t realize just how alone and scared you were until you have someone by your side to support you."
library e-book
Talk about a slow burn! I hadn't even finished reading this book when I decided it wasn't making it above three stars because it took forever to even get to the halfway point. The entire first half is all description on how the MC is an unreliable narrator, and I did not need 170 pages to tell me that! It immediately pulled me in, as our protagonist wakes up in a foreign hotel room next to a corpse (that isn't a spoiler- it's in the description), so obviously I wanted to know what happened, but the getting there took too long. The ending did deliver quite a twist, but it seemed very rushed and convoluted- there were still too many questions left unanswered. Also, the epilogue didn't fit AT ALL.
TBH, I only picked this up because I saw that there was going to be an HBO Max series with Kaley Cuoco (Penny!) and I wanted to read it beforehand. I've been watching the HBO Max adaption, and I don't think I like it. They tried to make it "cheeky?" Also, the amount the protagonist drinks is downright nauseating. I mean, I knew that already, but watching it in action actually makes me a bit queasy. I'm curious to see where it goes... is anyone else watching this?
library e-book
This has been on my TBR for years and was such a weird little book, but I guess that's to be expected from a Shirley Jackson novel. And I guess this is considered "gothic?" If so, I don't think I like gothic. But I finished it, which is more than I can say than The Haunting of Hill House. We find out who put the arsenic in the sugar bowl (again not a spoiler, it's in the description) but WHY? And the title- are these girls alive or dead or in limbo? Also this was a personal pet peeve but Merricat is supposed to be 18 but acts more like a 14-year old, and is treated like someone younger than 18 by everyone as well.
Another one I finally read so I could watch the Netflix adaptation, which added an unnecessary assault scene, and was just as off-putting as the book. Based on all of the "OMG THISWASTHEBESTBOOKEVAAAHHH!!!" I feel like I missed something...
library e-book
2.5?
Maybe I should have read Bridget Jones Diary (I mean, I saw the movie) and Americanah so I could understand the comparison but I was disappointed with this, probably because there was a lot of hype around it and my expectations were way off- I was thinking lighthearted/funny, and this was not. In fact, I liked the Corgis (minus Cassandra) more than I liked her. I just read Kristen (Seeyouinaporridge) review though, and I did not realize that happened in the beginning...so. I just kinda thought she was slutty and made a lot of 20-something-stupid-decisions. She seemed really spineless, just letting things happen to her and I really just wanted her to wake UP and stop acting a damn fool. (And not losing her job after literally doing no work, coming in late/not at all, and having a workplace affair would never happen IRL, just sayin'.)
“The road to recovery is not linear. It’s not straight. It’s a bumpy path, with lots of twists and turns. But you’re on the right track.”
Book Stats (previously /now)
Total number read: 51
Netgalley: 13 / 14 - no change
Owned: 5 /7 - no change
Non-Fiction: 6 / 7 - no change
WOC: 11 /12
Given Away: 37 / 38
Currently Reading: Shit, Actually: The Definitive, 100% Objective Guide to Modern Cinema- Lindy West
On Deck: The 12 Dates of Christmas - Jenny Bayliss and Mind the Gap, Dash and Lily (Dash and Lily #3) - Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
