Hi guys, I hope you are all well. It’s time for the last wrap up of 2017. This month I read a lot of great books which is a pretty good way to end this reading year.

Monstress Vol 1: Awakening /  Marjorie M. Liu (writer) & Sana Takeda (artist) / ★★★

While I did end up enjoying this graphic novel, I did also have some issues with it. Firstly, let’s talk about the positives. I loved the art style and the premise is an interesting one. I thought the main character was intriguing and I’m definitely interested to see more of her. My favourite characters were probably Kippa and Master Ren, though. I think the depth of the characters is a little lacking as we don’t know a lot about any of them but perhaps that will come in later volumes. Some of the artwork of Maiko with the monster on her arm really reminded me of Ashitaka from the Studio Ghibli film, Princess Mononoke, when he’s cursed. Anyway let’s talk about some of the issues I had. I thought that the world building was quite lacking. Perhaps it’s to keep the mysterious aspect of it all but I wanted more explanations of things, like the world and the mask. I also felt that the plot was kind of confusing at times so it was a little tricky to keep up with it. Another thing to be aware of is the level of violence and gore in this graphic novel. If you are not a fan of blood and gore then I would probably miss this one out. Overall I thought this was good but I didn’t love it as much as I wanted to. I will probably be checking out the second volume at some point.

The Night Without Stars / Peter F. Hamilton / ★★★★

This is the second and final book in the Chronicle of the Fallers duology. I was initially a bit worried that it has been a while since I read the first book but I actually found it quite easy to get back into the flow of the story. As with the first book, the plot is compelling and the world is an interesting one.  I think the plot did drag a little at times but these sections never lasted for long. We see some familiar characters as well as meeting some new ones. I found that all of the characters are well written, although some were a little lacking in depth. Overall I thought this was a fantastic continuation of this series and I would highly recommend checking it out.

The Makioka Sisters / Jun’ichirō Tanizaki / ★★★★

I’ve had this on my shelf for quite some time now so I’m glad that I finally picked it up. This book was originally written in Japanese and my edition was translated by  Edward G. Seidensticker. I thought this was a fantastic book. It was definitely quite slow at times but the insight into Japanese culture at the time and an insight into the dynamics of the Makioka family. The writing was easy to get into and you become quickly invested in the story. The characters are definitely a strength of this book. I really enjoyed seeing them progress through the 500 page book. Overall I thought this was a great read and I would recommend checking it out.

A Natural History of Dragons / Marie Brennan / ★★★★

This is the first book in the Lady Trent series. I have to admit that I’ve been debating on whether to read this series for quite a while now and I finally decided to try it out this month. From the beginning I found the story to be compelling, despite being quite different to a lot of fantasy I’ve read. The characters were well written and the writing is good. Basically I really enjoyed this book and a full review will be posted in January.

The Tropic of Serpents / Marie Brennan / ★★★★

This is the second book in the Lady Trent series. I thought this was a fantastic continuation from the first book and it was great to be back in this world. Once again it was an easy and enjoyable read; I may have even enjoyed this one slightly more than the first book. It was great to be back with these characters and I enjoyed meeting the new ones too. I will be continuing on with this series, although I haven’t got my hands on the next book yet.

Tales from Watership Down / Richard Adams / ★★★★

Watership Down is one of my all time favourite books so of course I enjoyed this short story collection. I love the writing, the stories are compelling and it was great to be back with familiar characters. Basically I really enjoyed this book and it kind of makes me want to reread Watership Down.

Death’s Mistress / Terry Goodkind / ★★★★

I picked this one up on a bit of a whim in a bookshop and I am glad that I did as I really enjoyed this book. Now this follows a character that is first introduced in another series by this author which I have not read but I didn’t have any issues getting into the flow of the story. The writing is easy to get into, the plot is compelling and the characters are well written. The second book is set to be released in January and I will definitely be checking it out. I will have a full review of this up at some point.

The Girl in the Tower / Katherine Arden / ★★★★★

Since this is not being released for a few weeks and I’m doing a full review closer to the release date, I’m not going to say much about this book yet. All I’m going to say is that I thought it was fantastic and I definitely recommend checking this series.

I had a pretty great reading month in December and I just about managed to complete my Goodreads reading goal of 100 books. In terms of my January TBR I’m going to keep it simple and just read what I want to at the time, although I do plan to read Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. That’s it for my 2017 wrap ups – hopefully I’ll have another great reading year in 2018. What was your favourite book in December? I hope you are all having a wonderful day and I will see you next time.

Pippa