What I Read in November

~ Elaine Howlin

November Wrap Up

Here we are once more, my friends, another monthly wrap-up. I hope you all had a wonderful November with lots of reading 😉

November TBR
October Wrap Up

November was a great month for me. I got to visit with my friends and family. We got all of our Christmas shopping done and we managed a bit of a clear out of crap in our house.

Reading wise, I continued my urban fantasy kick with Kim Harrison and got in a bit of contemporary romance with Penny Reid.

Books Read
Sapphire Flames by Ilona Andrews Elaine Howlin Bookstagram

Sapphire Flames (Hidden Legacy #4) by Ilona Andrews

Urban Fantasy, Mystery, Magic

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Nevada’s sister Catalina has taken her place as narrator and head of house. I was a bit weary of the change but I loved it. Catalina is very different to Nevada but she really shines at the fore. The series is broken into trilogies so even though this is book 4 it’s really book 1 in a new trilogy following another character.

Catalina and her family run a small detective agency that gets entangled in a high profile murder and somehow, her former teenage crush, Alessandro, is involved.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas Elaine Howlin Bookstagram

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Fantasy, Young Adult, Beauty and the Beast Retelling

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Awesome but I’m not really seeing the reason for all the hype… It did drag a bit in the middle but had a very solid ending. It feels more like a stand-alone than the first book in a series.

Feyre shoots a wolf to help feed and cloth her starving family when it turns out that wolf wasn’t what he appeared to be. She is taken away to pay restitution for her crime by the fae where she discovers she never really understood how her world worked.

Caribou’s Gift by Eve Langlais

Paranormal Romance, Short Story, Christmas

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Ok, I am a huge paranormal fan but when shifters change into something other than a wolf or large feline, I find it weird. In this they change into caribou and it creeps me out…. I have no idea why! Anyway, this story is short and sweet and would be good for you if you like it when the man rescues the woman.

One Snowy Night by Jill Shalvis

Contemporary Romance, Short Story, Christmas

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Another short one but I really liked it.

>RELATED: December TBR

Grin and Beard It by Penny Reid Elaine Howlin Bookstagram

Grin and Beard It (Winston Brothers #2) by Penny Reid

Contemporary Romance, Funny

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

I kept putting off this one cause I don’t like reading about celebrities and those elements did annoy a bit but it was still a great story.

Sienna is a major Hollywood star filming in Green Valley when she gets lost in the mountains and is rescued by park-ranger Jethro Winston, the eldest of the Winston brothers.

Beard Science Winston Brothers by Penny Reid Elaine Howlin Bookstagram

Beard Science (Winston Brothers #3) by Penny Reid

Contemporary Romance, Funny

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I love it! I wasn’t really a fan of Cletus in the first two books. I thought he was a bit of an odd character (which he is) but he’s really given dimensions in this book and I freaking LOVE him!

Cletus Winston is a planner and doesn’t accept anything outside of his plans until his head is turned by the Banana Cake Queen, Jennifer Sylvester. This pairing was so much fun to read.

White Witch Black Curse The Hollows by Kim Harrison Elaine Howlin

White Witch, Black Curse (The Hollows #7) by Kim Harrison

Urban Fantasy

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

OK, first one (other than book 1) to get less than 5 stars from me. I love my urban fantasy to be fast paced with lots of action but there seems to be an awful lot going on in this one. Despite everything that was going on it felt a bit drawn out and the ending was a bit anticlimactic. It wrapped up a story-line that has been going through a few books now but considering how driven Rachel was by the event it’s resolution fell a bit flat.

Black Magic Sanction (The Hollows #8) by Kim Harrison

Urban Fantasy

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Nice to learn more about witch society in this one but it felt a bit all over the place. I did really enjoy it though and loved learning more about the characters and world.

Pale Demon The Hollows by Kim Harrison Elaine Howlin Bookstagram

Pale Demon (The Hollows #9) by Kim Harrison

Urban Fantasy

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Hooray for another 5 star read!! This is a road-trip story which I didn’t expect to enjoy as much as I did. We get to see the many side of Mr Trent Kalamack in this one and I loved it! He really runs hot and cold and then hot again.

Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy title page picture Elaine Howlin bookstagram

Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy

Classics, Victorian, Romance, Rural

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I absolutely adore this book. It has some issues but I accept them completely as part of what makes it such a joy to read.

November Wrap Up from @elainehowlin_

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Links provided are affiliate links. If you make a purchase from these links I will earn a moderate commission. This post contains advertisements. None of this influences my review. Synopsis and book cover from Goodreads. Photos from my Instagram @elainehowlin_

Published by Elaine Howlin

Elaine lives in the lush green countryside of Ireland with her husband. She spends her time lost in the pages of books and journals, reading and creating for hours on end.

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