January has actually been a good reading month for me and I'm happy with my mixture of books I've picked up.
This is the first year I've decided to join in with the Popsugar Reading Challenge. The challenge is a list of prompts to help you up your reading game and try reads you wouldn't normally opt for. There are 40 standard prompts and a further 10 advanced prompts.
I'll also be reading books not in the prompts though as my goal is to read 65 books this year. With that said let's jump in to what I have read.
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
I picked this for the prompt "The book you meant to read in 2019". Having read The Great Alone, I knew I wanted to read The Nightingale as I had heard good things. I unfortunately hadn't got around to picking it up in 2019 so made it my first read of 2020.
In love we find out who we want to be. In war we find out who we are.
The Nightingale is a beautifully written historical fiction based in World War two. I loved this emotional read and feel it lived up to my expectations. It's definitely not my favourite fiction of this era but enough for me to give it a 4 star rating.
The Selfcare Project by Jayne Hardy
This book I picked up for the prompt " A book with only words on the cover". The Selfcare Project shares everything you need to know about Selfcare, what it is, why it's important, why it's such a struggle and how to integrate it into every day life.
Although a great book I felt it was more of a book for someone who needs convincing about making selfcare a priority. For me I have read many other selfcare books which I've learnt from and this one unfortunately didn't give me anything new hence why I've given it 3 stars. For the right person this would be a wonderful book.
Trianglum by Masande Ntshanga
Picked for the prompt "A book you picked because the title caught your attention". Trianglum was definitely a book I wouldn't usually pick up however I loved it. I found it hard to know what to rate this one I've put it as 3 stars as I found the second half not as great as the first. Trianglum is a science fiction novel based in South Africa. It's about a school girl who sees a machine and it questions about if it's a vision or if it's evidence of something supernatural.
Never Look Back By A.L.Gaylin
I cant go into too much detail with this one as it's for a book tour I'm being involved in. Definitely head back to this blog on 9th of February if you want to know more about this read. I will tell you that it's a gripping thriller.
The Doll Factory by Elizabeth Macneal
I picked this up for the a book with a 3 word title prompt. It also happens to be a book I hadn't got around to reading in 2019. I love that its based in London in the Victorian times which is one of history periods I remember enjoying learning about in school. It's a story featuring love, art, obsession and possession.
