November 2023 Reads — Like the Comet

It’s officially that time of year.

Time to layer up in both the warmest clothing and most moisturizing lotion because not only has it gotten colder, but my skin is so dry from running the heat that it’s starting to look like a dried up lake bed.

On the bright side though (figuratively speaking), this is also the best time of year to cozy up with a nice book because what else are you going to do after the sun goes down at 5pm? :) :)

November was dedicated to a lot of fantasy. Iron Flame came out on November 7th, so you know your girl had to first reread Fourth Wing before diving into its predecessor. Plus the Hunger Games prequel movie was coming out, so we had to squeeze The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes into the reading mix. Then I also had to see what all the fuss was about with Ninth House. So all in all, I read a lot of fantasy this month lol.

Do not fret though, most of my audiobooks were of other genres, so there’s something for everyone here.

If you need me, I will be in an ongoing battle with the mice terrorizing my apartment because I live in a charming old house. Otherwise, let’s get into everything I read in November.

*All summaries are taken or paraphrased from Goodreads.

CLOUD CUCKOO LAND by Anthony Doerr

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Summary: When everything is lost, it’s our stories that survive. How do we weather the end of things? Cloud Cuckoo Land brings together an unforgettable cast of dreamers and outsiders from past, present and future to offer a vision of survival against all odds. Constantinople, 1453: An orphaned seamstress and a cursed boy with a love for animals risk everything on opposite sides of a city wall to protect the people they love. Idaho, 2020: An impoverished, idealistic kid seeks revenge on a world that’s crumbling around him. Can he go through with it when a gentle old man stands between him and his plans? Unknown, Sometime in the Future: With her tiny community in peril, Konstance is the last hope for the human race. To find a way forward, she must look to the oldest stories of all for guidance. Bound together by a single ancient text, these tales interweave to form a tapestry of solace and resilience and a celebration of storytelling itself.

My Thoughts: I tried reading All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr a couple of summers ago and literally DNF’ed (did not finish) it after maybe 30 pages. So imagine my surprise realizing this is the same author after I had already started listening to the audiobook lol. I’m pleased to report that my experience with this book went much better. There’s a really beautiful message about the human connection and how people can find passion in the same things across thousands of years. The writing format is a little tricky to follow if you’re listening to it on audiobook only because it’s from the POV of multiple characters throughout every chapter. It got easier the farther I got into it, but it was a little tough to follow at first. The beginning was also a bit of a slow burn for me. However, Marin Ireland is the narrator and I absolutely love her voice, so I stuck with it. I thought it was really cool that as I became more invested in each character’s story, I started trying to piece together how they were all connected. I went from following them as individuals to looking at them as a collective. Honestly, this book is unlike anything I’ve read before, so if you’ve been curious, I highly recommend giving it a shot.

FOURTH WING by Rebecca Yarros (REREAD)

Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary: Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders. But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them. With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant. She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise. Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret. Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die

My Thoughts: Okay so I absolutely devoured Fourth Wing back in June when it was published (you can read my initial review here), but I wanted to give it another go before jumping into Iron Flame. Folks, I cannot say more good things about this book. I know some people think it’s too obviously stuffed with all of the best tropes and themes from other fantasy books, but I think that’s kind of a selling point. The writing is so easy to read and follow. The dialogue is thoroughly entertaining. The magic system is simple enough to understand if you’re new to fantasy (or romantasy). Honestly, the only thing that’s confusing is following the Wing/Section/Squad breakdown, but that’s not something that’s going to ruin the experience for you. If you haven’t read Fourth Wing yet, water u doin?

IRON FLAME by Rebecca Yarros

Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary: “The first year is when some of us lose our lives. The second year is when the rest of us lose our humanity.” —Xaden Riorson. Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College—Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky. Now the real training begins, and Violet’s already wondering how she’ll get through. It’s not just that it’s grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it’s designed to stretch the riders’ capacity for pain beyond endurance. It’s the new vice commandant, who’s made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is–unless she betrays the man she loves. Although Violet’s body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else’s, she still has her wits—and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules. But a determination to survive won’t be enough this year. Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College—and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end.

My Thoughts: Y’ALLLLLLL. IF FOURTH WING DIDN’T MESS ME UP ENOUGH, I WAS NOT READY FOR IRON FLAME. Oh my god, where to begin without giving spoilers??? This romantasy is everything I could’ve hoped for and more. The transition between the first book into this one was SEAMLESS. The plot never skipped a beat, the character development was on par, and I am still unapologetically obsessed with the dragons. There are PLENTY of moments that will have you clutching your non-existent pearls while gasping at the AUDACITY of mizz Rebecca Yarros. I swear to you I could not read this book fast enough. Also Xaden had me fuckin SWOONING the entire time. He was dropping quotes left and right that made both my heart melt and my hands sweat. “I’m grateful my life is tied to yours because it means I won’t have to face a day without you in it.” GORL. What a shadow wielding KING. Sign me up. I’m also so glad that not only do the human characters go through their own development, but can we talk about the ultimate sass of adolescent Andarna?? Without giving anything away: we love to see it. That being said, if I put all of my emotions aside completely and rated this book fairly, it’d be getting a 4.75 from me. Solely because there were a couple of ~things~ that occurred that I really wished we would’ve gotten more of an explanation about WHY they’re needed and/or exactly HOW that happened. Like spell it out for me please because ya girl is LOST. If you haven’t read this yet, my biggest recommendation is DO NOT SLEEP on the excerpts at the top of each chapter. They are so important lol. Anyhoo, I don’t know when the third book is supposed to drop, but if you need me in the meantime, I’ll be doing a deep dive into Empyrean theories.

THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES by Suzanne Collins

Rating: 3/5 stars

Summary: It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capital, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute. The odds are against him. He's been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined -- every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute... and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

My Thoughts: Okay so obvi loved The Hunger Games series and definitely wanted to read this prequel before going to see the movie. This book was kind of a tough read because it’s basically President Snow’s origin story. We know how he turns out later in life based on the rest of the series: a terrible person who absolutely THRIVES on control and the structure of the Capitol vs. Districts. So to see him as a teenager in this book who is vulnerable and still has some good in him was a little jarring. I wanted to root for him. I really did. However, I knew that there wasn’t some character redemption arc later on that I could look forward to. It does pose the question of nature vs. nurture and whether people are born inherently good and become evil by their environment/circumstances. There were a couple of slower parts to this book that I could’ve done without, but it was cool to find all the easter eggs and references to The Hunger Games series throughout. I saw the movie right after I finished reading this, and honestly, unless you really want all the details and nuances of Coriolanus Snow, you can just forgo this book. The movie follows the book almost exactly, so it’s not necessary to read it first.

THE WEDDING DRESS SEWING CIRCLE by Jennifer Ryan

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary: After renowned fashion designer Cressida Westcott loses both her home and her design house in the London Blitz, she has nowhere to go but the family manor house she fled decades ago. Praying that her niece and nephew will be more hospitable than her brother had been, she arrives with nothing but the clothes she stands in, at a loss as to how to rebuild her business while staying in a quaint country village. Her niece, Violet Westcott, is thrilled that her famous aunt is coming to stay—the village has been interminably dull with all the men off fighting. But just as Cressida arrives, so does Violet's conscription letter. It couldn't have come at a worse time; how will she ever find a suitably aristocratic husband if she has to spend her days wearing a frumpy uniform and doing war work? Meanwhile, the local vicar's daughter, Grace Carlisle, is trying in vain to repair her mother's gown, her only chance of a white wedding. When Cressida Westcott appears at the local Sewing Circle meeting, Grace asks for her help—but Cressida has much more to teach the ladies than just simple sewing skills. Before long, Cressida's spirit and ambition galvanizes the village group into action, and they find themselves mending wedding dresses not only for local brides, but for brides across the country. And as the women dedicate themselves to helping others celebrate love, they might even manage to find it for themselves.

My Thoughts: This book was an absolute delight! It’s been a minute since I’ve read some historical fiction, but it’s books like this that remind me of why I love the genre! The story is set during WW2 in England and follows three women: Cressida, Violet, and Grace. Cressida is a well-known fashion designer in London who just lost her home and design studio in a Blitz. With no luck finding an alternative solution, she’s forced to move home to Aldhurst manor with her niece and nephew. Violet, Cressida’s niece, has just been transcripted to become a driver for the American military even though her main goal in life is to get married to a wealthy duke. Grace, the vicar’s daughter, is set to be married to a devout man and needs help mending her mother’s wedding dress. Cue the town’s Sewing Circle which brings these three women together in addition to a group of other women doing their part for the war by creating clothing from old garments, curtains, etc. I absolutely loved the women supporting women camaraderie as this group starts collecting and redesigning wedding dresses for women across their community who would like to get married in a traditional gown. The character development of Cressida, Violet, and Grace was everything I could have hoped for and I appreciated that the plot perfectly intertwines their journeys. Although this story is set during WW2 and has some heavier scenes, I liked that the book’s focus stayed on the lighter side of war-related content. It was clear the author did her research before writing this gem and I truly appreciated learning more about how people rationed during the war and the influence it had not only on people’s lives, but culture and fashion as a whole. I wouldn’t say this was as groundbreaking for me as books like The Rose Code or The Alice Network, but I thoroughly enjoyed it all the same.

PARIS: THE MEMOIR by Paris Hilton

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Summary: Heiress. Party girl. Problem child. Selfie taker. Model. Cover girl. Reality star. These are labels that have been attached to Paris Hilton by others. Founder. Entrepreneur. Pop Culture Maker. Innovator. Survivor. Activist. Daughter. Sister. Wife. Mom. These are roles Paris Hilton embraces now as a fully realized woman. Paris rose to prominence as an heiress to the Hilton Hotels empire, but cultivated her fame and fortune as the It Girl of the aughts, a time marked by the burgeoning twenty-four-hour entertainment news cycle and the advent of the celebrity blog. Using her celebrity brand, Paris set in motion her innovative business ventures, while being the constant target of tabloid culture that dismissively wrote her off as "famous for being famous." With tenacity, sharp business acumen, and grit, she built a global empire and, in the process, became a truly modern icon beloved around the world. Now, with courage, honesty, and humor, Paris Hilton is ready to take stock, place it all in context, and share her story with the world. Separating the creation from the creator, the brand from the ambassador, Paris: The Memoir strips away all we thought we knew about a celebrity icon, taking us back to a privileged childhood lived through the lens of undiagnosed ADHD and teenage rebellion that triggered a panicked--and perilous--decision by her parents. Led to believe they were saving their child's life, Paris's mother and father had her kidnapped and sent to a series of "emotional growth boarding schools," where she survived almost two years of verbal, physical, and sexual abuse. In the midst of a hell we now call the "troubled teen industry," Paris created a beautiful inner world where the ugliness couldn't touch her. She came out, resolving to trust no one but herself as she transformed that fantasy world into a multibillion-dollar reality. Recounting her perilous journey through pre-#MeToo sexual politics with grace, dignity, and just the right amount of sass, Paris: The Memoir tracks the evolution of celebrity culture through the story of the figure at its leading edge, full of defining moments and marquee names. Most importantly, Paris shows us her path to peace while she challenges us to question our role in her story and in our own. Welcome to Paris.

My Thoughts: I have nothing but respect for Paris Hilton after listening to this memoir. The dumb blonde persona we’ve come to know as a culture for her could not be further from the truth of who this woman is at her core. She went through so much trauma at behavioral correctional facilities between the ages of 16-18 and came out stronger on the other side with her main goal being she would generate her own wealth instead of relying on her family’s inheritance. She is an absolutely brilliant business woman and although she’s had her fair share of bad press, I don’t think she gets nearly enough credit for how intelligent she is as someone who never graduated high school. This memoir was incredibly well-written, vulnerable, and truly eye-opening. If your only knowledge of Paris Hilton is the “that’s hot” girl from the early 2000s then I cannot recommend it enough that you should definitely give this a read.

KING OF GREED by Ana Huang

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary: Powerful, brilliant, and ambitious, Dominic Davenport clawed his way up from nothing to become the King of Wall Street. He has everything—a beautiful home, a beautiful wife, and more money than he could spend in a lifetime. But no matter how much he accumulates, he’s never satisfied. In his endless quest for more, he drives away the only person who saw him as enough. It isn’t until she’s gone that he realizes there may be more to life than riches and glory…but by then, it may be too late. | Kind, intelligent, and thoughtful, Alessandra Davenport has played the role of trophy wife for years. She stood by her husband while he built an empire, but now that they’ve reached the top, she realizes he’s no longer the man she fell for. When it becomes clear that she’ll always come second to his work, she finally takes charge of her life and puts herself first—even if it means leaving the only man she’s ever loved. But what she didn’t count on was his refusal to let her go…or for him to fight for their marriage, no matter what it takes.

My Thoughts: Anna Huang said, “let me give you a powerful man turned desperate, miserable, and pathetic out of love,” and that’s what this is. I was so invested in this broken relationship between investment mogul Dominic Davenport and his wife, Alessandra, who hasn’t felt appreciated or loved in far too long. She is his anchor to staying grounded and humble in his crazy world of deals, contracts, and billions of dollars. However, after continuously falling through on his promises and flaking on plans, Alessandra decided to serve him divorce papers and really start investing in herself. I was obsessed with their dynamics and the raw emotion that radiated between them even while they were divorced and living separately. I admired Alessandra’s will to put herself first even when everything inside of her said to fold and go back to the comfort of Dom’s arms. Instead, she was committed to making him prove himself and really acknowledge what had gone wrong in their marriage. Although he was an imperfect character, Dom had me swooning with all of his actions and declarations to Alessandra to show that she was half of his heart. This novel was a testament to the absolute WERK that goes into a relationship and Ana Huang once again had me eating out of the palm of her hand with this story. If you’ve started the King of Sin series, I definitely think this one is worth the read!

THE RIGHT MOVE by Liz Tomforde

Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary: RYAN - She’s a distraction, that’s what she is. I’m the newest Captain of the Devils, Chicago’s NBA team, and the last thing I needed this year was for Indy Ivers, my sister’s best friend, to move into my apartment. She’s messy, emotional, and way too tempting. But when the team’s General Manager vocalizes his blatant disapproval of my promotion to Captain, referring to me as an unapproachable lone wolf with no work-life balance, I can’t think of a better way to convince him otherwise than pretending to date my outgoing roommate. The only problem? Faking it feels far too natural. Having a fake girlfriend wasn’t supposed to be messy but having Indy under my roof and in my bed is complicated, especially when she wants all the romantic parts of life that I could never give her. | INDY - I never imagined I’d be living with my best friend’s brother, NBA superstar Ryan Shay. Even more unbelievable? He needs me to act as his loving girlfriend who’s suddenly changed him into a friendly and approachable guy. Because, well…he’s not. He’s controlling of his space and untrusting of others. Our arrangement isn’t one-sided, though. I’m in a wedding coming up, one where every one of my childhood friends, including my ex-boyfriend, will be in attendance, and there’s no better date than my ex’s celebrity hero. Blurred lines make it almost impossible to separate real from fake. Falling for my roommate was never part of the deal, especially when Ryan is quick to remind me that he doesn’t believe in love. I’m a romantic and can’t help fantasizing that he’ll change, but soon enough, I find myself questioning if sharing a roof with my best friend’s brother was the right move after all.

My Thoughts: I read the first book of the Windy City series a couple of months ago and although I really liked it, I wasn’t itching to jump right into this second book. However, after seeing it as a nominee for the Goodreads Awards and hearing great reviews, I decided it was time to get emotionally wrecked. I was OBSESSED with this story. For starters, it had all of my favorite tropes including grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, and fake dating. Then you give me main characters who I was wholly invested in individually which only compounded tenfold as I rooted for them as a couple. Indy and Ryan could not be more opposite at first glance, but the deeper you get into their stories, the more similarities you see between their personalities and what makes them so compatible. Indy is such a fun character, but also has plenty of depth to make her worthy of a romance this swoon-worthy. Ryan’s character is much more into structure and order, which could be off putting until you peel back his layers and get to know what made him this way. There are so many aspects of this story that made it easy to fall in love with their love and although I think this book could’ve ended just a TOUCH sooner than it did, I’m so glad I got to experience this with them. If you haven’t started the Windy City series, I’d say the first book is worth the read just to better understand the dynamics of the characters as a whole. However, this second book is the bread and butter to the entire experience.

NINTH HOUSE by Leigh Bardugo

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary: Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most elite universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her? Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs” are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywood’s biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive.

My Thoughts: Okay so Leigh Bardugo is the same author of the “Grisha Verse” which includes the Shadow and Bone series, as well as, the Six of Crows and King of Wolves duologies. I read Shadow and Bone before the Netflix series came out and I wasn’t super impressed. I liked it enough, but I wasn’t invested in it. Folks, I don’t know why her urban fantasy slaps so much harder than her high fantasy, but good lord. This was ten million times better! I feel like I should note that I read a majority of this book by listening to it on audio. The narrator was phenomenal and made it so easy to get invested in each one of these characters. As I mentioned, this story is an urban fantasy (which takes place at Yale), but it also has a little dark academia aspect to it that really sucked me in. Alex was the perfect main character for this. She was rough around the edges, but had every reason to be. She’s only 20 and has faced her fair share of adversity including being sexually assaulted, falling in with drug dealers, dropping out of school, etc. Now she’s been recruited into a secret society at Yale that basically keeps all of the other magical secret societies in line. Alex was sharp, witty, scrappy, and incredibly brave. I also loved her mentor, Darlington, as we got glimpses from his POV from the previous fall. Darlington mysteriously disappeared at the end of last fall and Alex is left to find him while she looks into a recent murder. The side characters like Dawes, Turner, and the Bridegroom added great dimensions to the story. The structure of the houses of these magical secret societies took a little bit of time to understand, but it wasn’t hard to roll with it after a while. This honestly was a really great reading experience and it’s taking everything in me to patiently wait for the sequel’s audiobook on Libby lol.

Aaaaand, that’s a wrap on November!

I’m pleased to announce this month pushed me past my 2023 Goodreads Reading Goal of 100 books. So that’s very exciting! :D

December is usually the perfect time to read some holiday rom-coms, but we will see what I’m in the mood for. I’m hoping that I’ll have more downtime to write a full round-up overview of everything I read in 2023 in addition to my regular monthly reviews. Don’t hold me to that though, plz lol.

2023 Book Count: 106

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YOUR TURN! What’s your favorite holiday movie? (Mine is Just Friends lol).