I’m on a reading mission!
You may remember that one of my aims this year was to read more books, because I’ve always been a total bookworm but my attention has wavered over the past few years!
So, I deleted the Reddit App, vowed to spend less time scrolling social media, and instead filled my Kindle with books to read.
I’ve got through quite a few books already this year, and it’s such a lovely feeling to have a book waiting for you. I sit and read a chapter over breakfast, then again at lunch and even during my bath in the evenings. Yup, I’m officially ancient.
Anyway, here’s what I’ve been in to lately…
A few I’ve already read this year…
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
I had this sitting on my Kindle for a while before I decided to read it, I think it was one of the first books I read this year. I like that this is set in Glasgow, although she doesn’t really mention the location much! The book follows Eleanor, a lonely 30-something with some rather quirky personality traits. Her fixation on a man she’s never met, as well as the formation of some blossoming friendships, are the focus, but there’s a lot more to this story!
It’s heart-wrenching, but I liked the journey to self-discovery… it was heavy at times, but the way it dealt with some of the tougher issues sat really well with me.
I didn’t love the small twist at the end, but it’s well worth reading nonetheless!
Hold Back The Stars
I panicked bought this book on the way to Miami when I realised I didn’t have much to read on the flight, and I finished it in one sitting! It completely consumed me, I was obsessed with turning the pages.
This is set in a Utopian future, part in space and part on Earth, but not an Earth that we know…
It’s a love story, but very different to anything I’ve come across before… I’m a fan of anything set in space though, so this was always going to intrigue me.
The book follows Max and Carys, a young couple who are floating in space after becoming detached from their ship. They have 90 minutes to live, with no way of survival, and we flash between past and present as we learn more about their world and the beginnings of their relationship, and how they got to be in space.
It’s well worth a read if you enjoy a romance with a twist!
Everything I Never Told You
This was a great read, although very sad. I quite like Celeste Ng, but I never find her books all that gripping – more like an easy read for now and then.
Everything I Never Told You follows the aftermath of a teenager who goes missing and is later found dead. Lydia is the favourite child of her mother and father, she works hard at school and is seemingly popular too – everything her parents hope her to be.
Her death sends shockwaves through the family and we follow each of them as they struggle to deal with life without her. Again, I did enjoy this but it wasn’t hugely inspiring for me!
The Girl Before
Another airport find, I picked this up without looking it up and I’m still not sure how I feel about it. I wasn’t engrossed by it, but I did finish it… it’s an odd one!
The story features a rather mysterious house that is owned by the architect that built it, and we follow Jane, who lives in the present, and Emma, the previous tenant who died in the house. In short, they both become obsessed with the architect despite knowing he’s a bit of an oddball.
I can imagine some people would love this but it was a little strange for me! Think 50 Shades Of Grey…. yikes.
Close To Home
My most recent read, my friend recommended this to me and said she couldn’t put it down. It took me a while to get in to this but I did enjoy it. It’s a crime thriller, and it features a missing young girl who is taken from a family party, but we soon realise that things just don’t add up. The main suspects are the parents, but the story comes with more than a few twists and turns.
It’s a bit of a ‘whodunnit’ but I have to admit I didn’t see the ending coming, which is rare!
On my ‘to read’ list…
Call Me By Your Name
On to a few books I have lined up, the first being Call Me By Your Name – everyone seems to be talking about this at the moment so I’m going to have to give this a go!
From what I can tell, it’s a coming of age novel (my favourite!) involving a summer romance between two teenage boys. It’s meant to be incredibly gripping, heartwarming and so full of feels!
Lullaby
I started reading this already after I saw someone recommend it, but it’s taken me a little while to get in to it. So far I have gathered that the story involves the death of two small children under the care of their nanny, which is a liiiiiittle grim but I’m never one to shy away from a gritty thriller! Has anyone read this? Should I persevere?
Sweet Little Lies
Another book I bought for a flight (there seems to be a theme here…), although I meant to buy this for my Kindle and actually got a paperback sent to my house so that was annoying! Why am I like this.
Anyway, another crime read with this one; a girl goes missing in the 90s where a family is holidaying, and the narrator suspects her dad… which sounds pretty dark! I’m excited to read this one actually, it sounds very Gillian Flynn!
Some really good reads here, I’m quite hard to please when it comes to books so even me just finishing a book is a compliment! Have you guys read any of these?
