August 2017 Wrap-Up

I just have no idea where this month has gone. I've started a new job, my housing situation has completely changed and now I spend half my evenings grudgingly waiting to be woken up by a small crying child.

I haven't been reading all that much, so it surprised me when I realised I've finished nine books this month. Not as much as normal, but the second half of the month was very chaotic. I'm hoping things will settle down and I can get back to reading more because I miss it.

It didn't help that two books - The Haunted Hotel and The Dark Circle seemed to take forever to finish, and The Shadow Rising (which is the book after The Dragon Reborn pictured - I just couldn't find it) actually did take forever. At 1,006 pages long it really felt like it was dragging and I was getting quite frustrated.

Fiction

The Haunted Hotel by Wilkie Collins

One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus

The Power by Naomi Alderman

The Shadow Rising (Wheel of Time #4) by Robert Jordan

Meg by Steve Alten 

The Dark Circle by Linda Grant

Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel

Re-reads

Magician's Gambit (Belgariad #3) by David Eddings

Non-Fiction

Where Am I Now? by Mara Wilson

It's weird, but it seems like every book I read in August is a candidate for either the 'Best of August' or 'The Worst of August' categories. I just haven't read a lot of middle-ground books this month.

The Power completely blew me away when I read it, but then Meg was a fun read, Sleeping Giants was an unexpected gem and Where Am I Now? made me cry in three places and want to be instant best friends with the author.

I barely managed to finish The Dark Circle because it was written so badly, The Haunted Hotel and The Shadow Rising sent me to sleep, and I have major issues with One of Us is Lying.

All this will be explained in reviews, but I quite frankly just haven't had time this month. Still, I'm grateful that I've read some really great books this month and I'm looking forward to talking about them.

Best Book of August 2017:

 Where Am I Now? by Mara Wilson

 

I've had way, way too many books come into my house this month. Twenty-three in total. And I've read nine, one of which was a reread. Great.

The pile in the middle is my birthday pile - the lovely Charlotte bought me a copy of Maus, which I've been dying to read forever and also The Unseen World, which we're going to buddy read at some point. I also used Amazon vouchers to buy Strange the Dreamer, A Natural History of Dragons and The Radium Girls. I'm super excited about all of these, particularly the latter which is non-fiction about the young women encouraged to use radium as make-up before the dangers were properly understood, but obviously I have read none of them yet. Figures. I'm hoping to start The Radium Girls this weekend though.

The pile on the right is my library pile, of which I have actually read three, in fairness. Admittedly I've now had most of them for three weeks. There's an amazing new library literally a two minute walk from my new office and they have so many new releases that I got over-excited. I've read Sleeping Giants, The Dark Circle and Where Am I Now?  

The pile on the left is my usual Hanna-Can't-Control-Herself pile. Charity shops, book swaps, the usual suspects.

How many books have you read this month? Have you read any of my TBR pile? Which should I read next?