Melting Pages
Book Reviews and Recommendations
November 2022 Wrap Up
Hi everyone! Today I’m wrapping up my November reads, because I didn’t realize this was still sitting unfinished in my drafts. I had a really great reading month and finished some fantastic books! In fact, a few made me cry which doesn’t always happen often. I’m thinking my end of the year wrap up post is going to be a tough one to choose my favorite books for after how many amazing books I’ve read this year!
Before we get into the books themselves, let’s look at my stats! I read a total of 7 books in November for a total of 2,478 pages. Five were adult and two were YA, with my genre breakdown being 1 horror and 6 fantasy. My format breakdown was 2 audiobooks, 3 eBooks, and 2 physical books. Finally, my ratings were four 5 stars, one 3.5 star, and two 3 star reads for an average rating of 4.2 stars.
Heart of the Sun Warrior
By: Sue Lynn Tan
Series: The Celestial Kingdom #2
Format: eBook
Rating: ★★★★★
I read an e-ARC for this book because I adored the first book and just couldn’t wait for this to be released to read it! I did also get the Waterstones special edition as well with the beautiful pink sprayed edges. I do have a full review available on my blog for more details, but in short, I loved the emotional and physical journey that these characters went on and I loved Xingyin’s character even more in this second book. I wasn’t as big of a fan of Liwei, his plotline kind of took a backseat in this book. The ending was unexpected and bittersweet, and I really hope we get to see more of these characters again in the future!
Related: Heart of the Sun Warrior Review
A River Enchanted
By: Rebecca Ross
Series: Elements of Cadence #1
Format: Physical & Audiobook
Rating: ★★★★★
I listened to this on audio while also reading it physically and I think it made me love this book even more than I would’ve if I had just read it physically! The audiobook narration is honestly perfect and made me feel like I was really listening to the characters. I loved how atmospheric this was, I felt like I was actually on the isle with these characters! And speaking of the characters, I love all four of the main characters, Jack, Adaira, Torin and Sidra, they’re all so complex and felt like real people. The romance between the two couples was so realistic and built on respect. Since I waited until November to read this, and it’s now almost the end of December that I’m finally writing this wrap up, I’m already about halfway through A Fire Endless which came out earlier this month and it’s just as good! It also makes me love this first book even more, with everything we are learning in this sequel!
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches
By: Sangu Mandanna
Series: Standalone
Format: Audiobook
Rating: ★★★☆☆
I initially wanted to read this in October as a cozy, non-scary Halloween read but I didn’t get around to it until November. This was super cute and heartwarming and made me think of the way that The House in the Cerulean Sea made me feel when I read that, since they’ve got a lot of similarities. Witches in this world stay isolated so that their magic stays unnoticed by non-witches, but Mika is invited to teach three young witches how to control their power and ends up finding her place in the world and a family who loves her. My reason for only giving it a three star is because I don’t really remember many details of the book and it hasn’t been that long since I read it, I had to look up what the main characters name was for this review. So for me, it was cute and enjoyable, but forgettable unfortunately.
Lost in the Moment and Found
By: Seanan McGuire
Series: Wayward Children #8
Format: eBook
Rating: ★★★★★
This is the eighth book in the Wayward children series, and I’ve been super lucky to have been approved for ARCs for the last 4 or 5 of these books! I feel like I’ve said this with the majority of these books, but I think this one has been my favorite so far! We’ve learned more about the Doors that appear, and I loved learning more about Antsy. I had tears in my eyes for a good majority of this book because I just felt so bad for Antsy and what she went through, and even after she thought she was safe she found that she wasn’t quite there yet. I also loved how this tied into the other books in the series, and I can’t wait to read the next book! Lost in the Moment and Found comes out on January 10th, make sure you get a copy!
Related: Lost in the Moment and Found Review
House of Hunger
By: Alexis Henderson
Series: Standalone
Format: Audiobook
Rating: ★★★☆☆
I listened to House of Hunger on audio as part of the Literally Dead Book Club for November, and it was just okay for me. It was definitely atmospheric and the writing was beautiful, but I just didn’t feel like I connected or cared about what happened with Marion or the other bloodmaids. The characters were clearly in danger, but I didn’t really feel any suspense or urgency and the pacing was off, with a fairly slow beginning and a rushed ending. I didn’t feel any sort of emotional attachment to the characters. The world building also left me feeling unsatisfied. I did like the commentary on how the rich prey on the poor, but I just wanted more of this book than what I got.
The Book Eaters
By: Sunyi Dean
Series: Standalone
Format: Physical
Rating: ★★★☆☆ .5
This was an interesting book! I loved the premise and the idea of these vampiric kind of people but instead of blood, they eat books. There are also some of their kind that are born that crave human minds, which was incredibly interesting especially considering their tongues are more tubelike so they can feed properly, which is really where the horror aspect comes into this book (it’s listed as a fantasy horror). I loved how unique this was and the main character was interesting, especially her journey to finding a cure for her son and her motivations. I did enjoy learning more about her past in the flashback chapters, but I feel like there was a lot unresolved by the end of the book. I also wanted to see more about the mind eaters and the book eaters, but there was a pretty heavy focus on motherhood and Devon’s struggle to get her daughter back and care for her son, which is absolutely fine, but not at all what I was expecting with the synopsis. I think if you adjust your expectations going into this it would be a great book, I was just expecting a bit more action, more fantasy and more horror than what we got.
Song of Silver, Flame Like Night
By: Amelie Wen Zhao
Series: Song of the Last Kingdom #1
Format: eBook
Rating: ★★★★★
I loved this book so much, and one scene in particular made me sob! I tend to be a pretty big fan of Chinese inspired fantasy stories so I was expecting to love this, and I’m so glad that I did! The setting was beautiful, and the world building was complex and detailed, I love when the world has a rich history that’s referenced and has an impact on the story currently taking place. I loved the qi based magic system and how this kingdom was trying to fight back against its oppressors in any way that they could find. I also adored the characters, especially Lan and Zen and their relationship with each other and the complexities that go into how they feel and treat each other which also relates back to the magic system and the history of this world. I loved how interwoven every piece of this story was, and everything has an impact on some part of the story. I can’t wait to hear more news on the sequel, and fingers crossed I don’t have to wait too long!
What books did you read in November? I know I’m a bit behind, but I’d love to talk more about these books!
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