What I Read Last Quarter // October - December

The forth and final quarterly reading round-up of 2024!!! *Klaxons sound*
I like reading. And I like collecting books. I also like to share the books I've read as I don't quite have the same tastes as many 30-odd-year-old women and enjoy shouting about the things I think need more love. It's been said that I rate too highly and rarely mention anything under a 3-star, however, it must be said that I only read for pleasure and so I choose things that I'm pretty sure I will love. Life is too short (and there are far too many good books to get around to), to waste time reading books that aren't my thing!

So, anyway, here is everything I read throughout October, November and December.

Check out the previous post here > 
What I Read Last Quarter // July - September
What I Read Last Quarter // April - June
What I Read Last Quarter // January - March

October
Island of Whispers by Frances Hardinge 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Forest of a Thousand Eyes by Frances Hardinge 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
 The National Trust - Ghostly Haunts by Michael Morpurgo & 9 others. 🌟🌟🌟
The House on Hoarder Hill by Mikki Lish & Kelly Ngai (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Magician's Map by Mikki Lish & Kelly Ngai (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟🌟
A Treasury of Spooky Stories [chosen] by Jane Olliver 🌟🌟🌟
The Spellbound Tree by Mikki Lish & Kelly Ngai (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟


I was going to say that this was a fantastic reading month, however, it was more like an average reading month with two particularly wonderful reads at the beginning. I can't tell you how great those first two books were - so eery and magical, Island of Whispers in particular is up there for one of my favorite reads of the year.

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November
The Worlds We Leave Behind by A.F. Harrold 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Whispering Hollow by Rachel Burge 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Complete Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis, Adapted by Brian Sibley (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Gravebooks by J.A. White 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Forest of Forbidden Magic by Eve Wersocki Morris 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Hag Storm by Victoria Williamson 🌟🌟🌟🌟


November ended up being the reading month I had planned October to be, many of the books were originally on a giant (overly optimistic) October TBR and so were carried on through to November. 
Yet again, the month began with an incredible book - the type of book that is so special that anything you read around the same time fails in comparison. And that is saying something because as you see from the ratings it was a wonderful month.
A stand out not only in genre but also enjoyment-wise was the BBC Radio 4 dramatization of The Complete Chronicles of Narnia. Some of my favorite books ever in and audio movie?! Loved. 

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December
The Children of Lir by Laura Ruth Maher 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
In All Weathers by Matt Gaw 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Tidemagic: The Many Faces of Ista Flit by Clare Harlow 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Howling Hag Mystery by Nicki Thornton (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Poisoned Pie Mystery by Nicki Thornton (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟
Still Waters & Wild Waves by Angela Harding 🌟🌟🌟🌟

And we rounded out the year with some beautiful books. Beautiful writing and beautiful art, a really nice way to wind down for the start of winter. In All Weathers was a book I won online through The Wildlife Trusts back in June and I really wanted to get around to it in a wild weather month. It was nice to read about someone else love for those weathers that most people would describe as 'horrible'. 

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Just some quick stats...
Total books read in the final quarter of 2024 - 19
Physical books - 13
Audiobooks - 6
Longest book - Tidemagic: The Many Faces of Ista Flit (303 pages)
Shortest book - The Children of Lir (32 pages)

Favorite book from each month...
October - Island of Whispers by Frances Hardinge 
November - The Worlds We Leave Behind by A.F. Harrold 
December - Tidemagic: The Many Faces of Ista Flit by Clare Harlow


That is where I am going to leave this post and hopefully, my annual reading round-up won't be too far behind this...
I'd love to hear what you read in the final quarter of 2024 and what your favourite reads of these latter months were.

What I Read Last Quarter // July - September

 

The third quarterly reading round-up of 2024!!! *Klaxons sound*
I like reading. And I like collecting books. I also like to share the books I've read as I don't quite have the same tastes as many 30-odd-year-old women and enjoy shouting about the things I think need more love. It's been said that I rate too highly and rarely mention anything under a 3-star, however, it must be said that I only read for pleasure and so I choose things that I'm pretty sure I will love. Life is too short (and there are far too many good books to get around to), to waste time reading books that aren't my thing!

So, anyway, here is everything I read throughout July, August and September.

Check out the previous post here > 
What I Read Last Quarter // April - June
What I Read Last Quarter // January - March

July
Wishtree by Katherine Applegate 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
A Vanishing of Griffins by S.A. Patrick (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟
The Last Whale by Chris Vick 🌟🌟🌟🌟
A Thunder of Monsters by S.A. Patrick (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Shadow Fox by Carlie Sorosiak 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Any month where you read something by Kathrine Applegate or Carlie Sorosiak is going to be a good reading month. I have not once been anything other than completely enthralled and emotionally ruined by both of these authors every time I read them - in the best way possible. 

August
An Immense World by Ed Yong  (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Natural History of Fairies by Emily Hawkins 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Footprints in the Woods: The Secret Life of Forest and Riverbank by John Lister-Kaye 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Brilliant Abyss by Helen Scales (Audiobook) 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Birds: Brilliant and Bizarre by Jo Cooper 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Good Bug by George McGavin 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Wildlife Year by Sally Coulthard 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
A Natural History of Magick by Poppy David 🌟🌟🌟

Before this year I was not a non-fiction reader for the most part. However, after January's reads I fell down the rabbit hole of nature non-fiction and dedicated the whole month of August to purely that. 
I started out the month listening to the audiobook of An Immense World and after the introduction alone I had to buy the hardcopy because it's now one of my favorite non-fiction books ever. 
As you'll see from the ratings, it was an extremely successful reading month and I highly recommend all of the 5 stars above inparticular The Good Bug, especially if you are someone who dislikes insects, beetles, bugs and all of their relatives.

September
The Lighthouse at the World's End by Amy Sparkes 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Inkspell by Cornelia Funke (audiobook) DNF
The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner's Dilemma by Trenton Lee Stewart 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Firestar by Chris d'Lacey 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Back to some lighter themes, I'm in the middle of so many book series that I wanted to crack on with a few. The Velveteen Rabbit is obviously the odd book out and that was just a one-night read when I'd left my current book in Baker's room at bedtime! I'm glad I included it though because it was a beautiful breather, such a lovely story.
Inkspell, however, is the bain of my life currently. The physical books are too large and heavy for me to read in bed so I wanted to listen to the audiobook. The English version is nowhere to be found apart from on one website, in parts and unable to be sped up so I started and had to end the month having only gotten 7.5 into the 20 or so hours. In general, I do find this series to be quite slow-paced which is annoying too haha.
 
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Just some quick stats...
Total books read in the third quarter of 2024 - 18
Physical books - 13
Audiobooks - 5
Longest book - 
Shortest book - The Velveteen Rabbit, 60 pages

Favorite book from each month...
July - Wishtree
August - Footprints in the Woods: The Secret Life of Forest and Riverbank by John Lister-Kaye
September - The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams 


Here's to more awesome reads in the final quarter of 2024 and I hope that you have had a great reading year so far too. 

What I Read Last Quarter // April - June

The second quarterly reading round-up of 2024!!! *Klaxons sound* 

I like reading. And I like collecting books. I also like to share the books I've read as I don't quite have the same tastes as many 30-odd-year-old women and enjoy shouting about the things I think need more love. It's been said that I rate too highly and rarely mention anything under a 3-star, however, it must be said that I only read for pleasure and so I choose things that I'm pretty sure I will love. Life is too short (and there are far too many good books to get around to), to waste time reading books that aren't my thing!

So, anyway, here is everything I read throughout April, May, and June.

Check out the previous post here >  What I Read Last Quarter // January - March

April

Wilding by Isabella Tree and Angela Harding 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Animal Tales from India by Nikita Gill 🌟🌟🌟

The Wheel of the Year by Fiona Cook 🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Magic Callaloo by Trish Cooke 🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Unadoptables by Hana Tooke 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Viva Durant and the Mystery at the Masquerade Ball by Ashli St. Armant 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 (audio)

Winnie the Pooh: Tales from the Forest by Jane Riordan 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two by Catherynne M. Valente DNF


Getting some hardbacks and larger books off my TBR shelves! It was a pretty successful reading month too if you discount the DNF... I've read the previous two and loved them but Fairyland 3 I just really struggled to get into. I decided to set it aside for now and come back to it at a later date.  Highlights were of course (as you can see from their ratings) Wilding and The Unadoptables.

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May

A Street Dog Named Pup by Gill Lewis 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Doggie Language by Lili Chin 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Spellhound by Lian Tanner 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

In Defence of Dogs by John Bradshaw 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Mountain Rescue Dog by Juliette Forrest 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Black Dog Mystery by Ellery Queen Jr. 🌟🌟🌟🌟 (audio)

Dog month! So good! Everything I read was awesome and I highly recommend literally every single book, maybe leaving out the audiobook, as with its age there was some questionable language. 
When I say I highly recommend them, I also wish it was a legal requirement for dog owners to read up on dogs. In Defence of Dogs is an incredible read that goes through everything from the very beginning of dog domestication to why dogs are the way they are. Current owners, future owners, ex-owners, dog lovers, dog haters - read it. 
A Street Dog Named Pup by Gill Lewis needs to be mentioned too. Though billed as a middle grade, this is a heartwrenching story that needs to have more eyes on it. The journey of Pup, owned, dumped, street dog, fighting dog, pound dog, rescued dog and all the ups and downs that all brings. It was actually a pretty hard read for an empath animal lover like me but it shines a light on the trials that dogs face in today's scary world. 

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June

Twister by Juliette Forrest 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Icefire by Chris d'Lacey 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Dracul by J.D Barker and Dacre Stoker 🌟🌟 (audio)

Storm by Sarah Driver 🌟🌟🌟

I'm absolutely gutted that June ended up being my worst reading month of the year so far! Not in quality but in quantity. Not that how many books I read matters, but out of the whole year June was when I had touted being an awesome reading month as we had our holiday this month. Our holiday ended up being cut short (as in we came home after 1 night) and later in the month Baker was poorly so reading was on the backburner. 
After reading The Mountain Rescue Dog by Juliette Forrest last month, I decided to try Twister and though very different in many ways, it was a beautiful, unique story. 
Storm is the last in a trilogy, a trilogy that I adore and so 3 stars may seem rude. I actually feel so conflicted by the rating as overall I enjoyed the read and especially liked the ending, however as a rule I remove stars for certain things and sadly this book included some of those things (in this case it was unnecessary animal killing). 
Oh, and I was so disappointed with Dracul. I've had it on my shelf since it came out but this month decided to audiobook it and I'm so glad I didn't waste time reading the hardcopy.

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Just some quick stats...
Total books read in the this quarter - 18
Physical books - 15
Audiobooks - 3
Longest book - The Unadoptables, 389 pages
Shortest book - The Magic Callaloo, 32 pages

Favorite book from each month...
April - The Unadoptables by Hana Tooke 
May - A Street Dog Named Pup by Gill Lewis
June - Icefire by Chris d'Lacey

Here's to more awesome reads in the next quarter of 2024 and I hope that you have had a great reading year so far too. 

What I Read Last Quarter // January - March

 

The first quarterly reading round-up of 2024!!! *Klaxons sound* 
I like reading. And I like collecting books. I also like to share the books I've read as I don't quite have the same tastes as many 30-odd-year-old women and enjoy shouting about the things I think need more love. It's been said that I rate too highly and rarely mention anything under a 3-star, however, it must be said that I only read for pleasure and so I choose things that I'm pretty sure I will love. Life is too short (and there are far too many good books to get around to), to waste time reading books that aren't my thing!

So, anyway, here is everything I read throughout January, February and March.

January
The Life of Birds by David Attenborough 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Finding Bear by Hannah Gold 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Golden Mole by Katherine Rundell 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Taming of the Cat by Helen Cooper 🌟🌟🌟🌟
The Swan's Warning by Holly Webb 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Etta Lemon: The Woman Who Saved the Birds by Tessa Boase (Audiobook, not pictured) 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 What a start to the year?! I'm not usually a non-fiction reader but after buying a signed copy of The Life of Birds (admittedly for Sir David Attenborough's signature...) I decided to make it my first book of 2024. It was so magical and actually fun to read, that it spurred me on a non-fiction wave. As with last year, I did continue my 'themed' reading months into this year. Can you guess this month's theme? You'd think it was animals or nature but, in fact, these were all signed books from our collection, apart from the audiobook of course. I obviously recommend every single one of the above books - just look at those ratings!

February Little Foxes by Michael Morpurgo 🌟🌟🌟🌟
 Calling the Whales by Jasbinder Bilan 🌟🌟🌟

The Incredible Adventures of Gaston le Dog by Michael Rosen 🌟🌟🌟🌟
 The Guinea Pig Detective Agency by Kezia Racher-Kaye 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Viva Durant and the Madness of Madam Bouchard by Ashli St. Armant (Audiobook, not pictured) 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
 I Believe in Unicorns by Michael Morpurgo 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Lark by Anthony McGowan 🌟 (DNF) Mary Poppins in Cherry Tree Lane by P. L. Travers 🌟🌟🌟
 The Puffin Keeper by Michael Morpurgo 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

The Queen's Nose by Dick King-Smith 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
 The Sheep-Pig by Dick King-Smith 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Sophie's Tom by Dick King-Smith 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
 The Tiger Rising by Kate DiCamillo 🌟🌟🌟

In February I aimed to get through as many of the 'under 150 pages' books on my shelves as possible. I read 12 and an audiobook!
 I'll let the ratings do the majority of the talking, but I'd also like to say that just because a book is short or is primarily aimed at children does not mean it's not for adults. If people took the time to give middle-grade and children's books a shot, they'd be much happier! Many can have different, deeper meanings from an adult perspective too, and I can't stress how many incredibly poignant, well-written books are out there not receiving the credit they deserve.

March

Murtagh by Christopher Paolini 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
A Darkness of Dragons by S.A. Patrick 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Dragon Mountain by Katie Tsang & Kevin Tsang (Audiobook, not pictured) 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Dragon Boy by Dick King-Smith 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Dragon Legend by Katie Tsang & Kevin Tsang (Audiobook, not pictured) 🌟🌟🌟🌟

My smallest stack of the quarter but I'm very happy to have whacked out the mighty Murtagh at around 700 pages. Its technically the fourth in the Inheritance Cycle and I'd go as far to say as it's one of my absolute favourites in the series. It's been 12 years since the previous book came out, and although we aren't following Eragon through Alagaësia it still feels like we're sucked straight back into the world. Can't wait for more!
If you hadn't realized, March was Dragon month! Fitting it being the Year of the Dragon!

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Just some quick stats...
Total books read in the first quarter of 2024 - 25
Physical books - 21
Audiobooks - 4
Longest book - Murtagh, 688 pages
Shortest book - The Guinea Pig Detective Agency, 46 pages

Favorite book from each month...
January - The Golden Mole by Katherine Rundell
February -  The Puffin Keeper by Michael Morpurgo
March - Murtagh by Christopher Paolini


Here's to more awesome reads in the next quarter of 2024 and I hope that you have had a great reading year so far too.