November started out with a very tense week while the presidential elections took place in the United States (and the relief I felt when results were announced was unparalleled, truly). It's been an otherwise quiet month, although I did get the chance to virtually meet James Bay (!), went out of town to have a socially distanced weekend away with the usual crew, attended a few virtual events (including one with Shannon Messenger, and one with Sarah J. Maas and Nalini Singh), watched a Dua Lipa livestream with the dumdums and had a quiet Thanksgiving celebration.

I actually didn't get a lot of reading done in November! My final numbers are 6 novels, 2 novellas and 1 pamphlet. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed just about every single thing I devoured. I finally read Wonder Woman: Warbringer (such a clever mix of superhero and mythology), reread The Bone Season, The Mime Order and The Song Rising (the first three books of The Bone Season, and all of them very much still hold up on a reread), and dove into Lore (one of my most anticipated reads for 2021 and it lived up to my expectations entirely).

Here are all the blog posts that went up in November:

Anxious People is the third Fredrik Backman novel I’ve read, and it has fully cemented him as an author whose work I enjoy. This novel has a premise that’s pretty out there: a would-be bank robber ends up holding a group of people attending an apartment viewing hostage. But this story is about more than just this singular encounter. It’s actually the story of each individual we meet, including their lives prior to and after the incident that ties them all together. Like the previous Backman novels I’ve read, Anxious People is less about the actual plot and more about the characters; this really works for me as a character-driven reader. Backman has a knack for capturing human complexity in his work. He writes nuanced personalities that transform from mere character caricatures (which is where they tend to begin) into individuals that feel real. Throw in his usual ability to organically weave in themes like mortality, adulthood and relationships and a dash of funny and charming bits to break up the tension, and it all really came together well by the end. Admittedly, Anxious People isn’t the easiest read (what with the unlikable characters, a nonlinear narrative and difficult content including suicide, depression, addiction, death of loved ones, violence, etc). But Backman’s work continues to impress me with its quality, cleverness and thoughtfulness, and I can’t wait to read more of his novels. (I also want to give a shoutout to the translator and the audiobook narrator for their part in my experience of this novel!)

Anxious People was released on September 8, 2020 by Atria Books.

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I rarely ever pick up non-fiction by individuals I’m unfamiliar with, and it was only because of my family book club (my sisters and my cousin) that I ended up reading Untamed. In this collection of short stories pulled from her own life experiences, Glennon Doyle writes about how many women tend to be brought up to be a certain way versus listening to your own natural guiding instincts. Part memoir, part self-help, Untamed ended up being a quick, interesting read. My biggest takeaway from this book, as well as the thing I appreciated the most about it, was that Doyle really managed to identify and put into words a variety of feelings and thoughts that I’ve had myself. It also made for a great discussion when we met up to chat about the book, as we each latched on to different aspects of what Doyle shared. While I did feel like it wasn’t as organized or fluid as I would have liked, I do think Untamed succeeded in detailing its main argument. It was enjoyable, and I appreciated the reading experience overall.

Untamed was released on March 10, 2020 by Dial Press.

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I’m not entirely certain what I was expecting from Big Friendship, but it definitely wasn’t what it ended up being – and that’s not a bad thing! Big Friendship is co-written by two best friends Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow (who run the podcast Call Your Girlfriend, which I was unfamiliar with prior to the book), and it’s about the evolution of friendship… specifically theirs. My expectations were that this was a book about friendship, especially the long-distance variety, so it caught me off guard to discover that the bulk of this novel is actually about each woman’s story and their actual friendship history and growth (which does include long-distance friendship). While I didn’t necessarily end up enjoying the reading experience as much as I’d hoped to, I did still appreciate the insights on friendship (especially in terms of growth and evolution). (P.S. The audiobook was a solid listen, as it’s narrated by the pair and a few guests that they invite/consult at different points in the novel.)

Big Friendship: How We Keep Each Other Close was released on July 14, 2020 by Simon & Schuster.

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There is an exquisite joy in reading a book that hits the mark for you as a reader and that, my friends, was my experience with These Violent Delights. This debut young adult historical fantasy novel from Chloe Gong is set in 1920s Shanghai (!) and draws inspiration from Romeo and Juliet (!!). Throw in a blood feud between two rival gangs, mysterious deaths rooted in magic and madness, and two former paramours on opposite sides forced to work together for the sake of everything they care about, and you’ve got yourself the makings of this story.

I always underestimate how much I love a good YA historical fantasy, and These Violent Delights was an excellent reminder of why this particular sub-genre works for me. Chloe Gong does a wonderful job at weaving in so many elements I adored, including:

Everything about These Violent Delights just came together beautifully, and I’m so, so incredibly awed by what Chloe Gong has managed to achieve with her debut. I was fully immersed in this story while I was reading it, that's for sure! I would definitely recommend this one (especially if you love the 1920s, gangs and rivalries or Romeo & Juliet).

(P.S. I’m still upset over that ending though. What a rollercoaster! Though, obviously, considering the source material, I should have expected no less. And now I’m highly anticipating the next book, which I needed yesterday because I need to know what happens next!)

These Violent Delights (These Violent Delights #1) | Pub Info: November 17, 2020 by Margaret K. McElderry Books

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Chasing Lucky is the newest contemporary young adult novel from author Jenn Bennett. The story centers around Josie St. Martin, who returns with her mom to their family hometown determined to simply get through her senior year and then get out of this place to go and live with her father. But when she’s reunited with her childhood best friend Lucky and he takes the fall for something she did, Josie realizes that her future might not be just like she planned. Chasing Lucky was an enjoyable slice of life story set in a small coastal town in the Northeast. I enjoyed being immersed in the lives of Josie and the women of her family, from the minute we first meet these unique individuals and see how complicated their relationships (with each other and with others outside the family) are. While there’s not too many big inciting incidents, there are catalyst events that really force Josie to see the situations and people in her life through a different perspective. I appreciated that journey nearly just as much as I enjoyed seeing the rekindled relationship between her and Lucky (which had its very sweet moments, as well as misunderstandings and misconceptions that felt true to both characters). All in all, I really liked Chasing Lucky and can recommend it to fellow YA contemporary fans.

Favorite non-book photo you've taken in 2020? I actually haven't taken all that many non-bookish photos in 2020, but I ended up settling on this photo that I took when I was in the car on my way into the city. I love capturing sunsets on my phone, simply because no two sunsets are ever the same.

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[A disclaimer: Prior to reading my thoughts on A Deadly Education, please check out this article regarding the controversy around this novel post-publication due to criticism of Novik’s portrayal of cultures and racial qualities. A lot of valid points were made by other readers, and I want to acknowledge that.]

A Deadly Education is the first book in Naomi Novik’s new series The Scholomance, and it centers around Galadriel (El for short) and a year in her life as a student at the Scholomance. It sounds pretty straightforward and likely would be save for three things: 1) your education is in your own hands, 2) the school is actively filled with things that may try to kill you and 3) you never know if the other students have it out for you or not. A Deadly Education is so odd in that it feels like a modern day slice of life story with a magical bent & a dark undertone (and that in itself makes this feel like an anime). It starts off very slow, and readers will find that a lot of information is thrown their way all at once. Everything about the reading experience is a super slow burn — getting interested in the character(s) and their lives, understanding the Scholomance (to an extent) and getting to the heart of the plot. It took about two thirds of the story before I was actually invested, and it was the sprinklings of humor and sarcasm, as well the darkly macabre twists along the way that did help me keep reading whenever I was tempted to set it down. In the end, I thought A Deadly Education was good, though it didn’t quite live up to my expectations for it. While it does feel like there is potential for this story to develop further as the series goes on, I’m still on the fence about whether to pick up the next book.

A Deadly Education (The Scholomance #1) was published September 29, 2020 by Del Rey.

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I can fully admit that I picked up Mexican Gothic for two specific reasons: 1) I kept seeing it everywhere online when it first came out and 2) my friend Kristin read and loved it. I kept it on my TBR shelf for a few months until the spooky season (AKA October, at least in my mind) hit, which is when I finally decided to read it since I felt so strongly that it would be perfect for this time of year. And it was! Mexican Gothic has a simple premise: Noemí receives a letter from her newlywed cousin begging to be helped, and so Noemí heads to High Place, an isolated home in the Mexican countryside, in order to see for herself what the truth is behind her cousin’s frantic message. Noemí is clever and unafraid and determined to do right by her cousin, but will she be able to escape High Place after she uncovers its dangerous secrets? While I do make Mexican Gothic sound very dramatic and high stakes, it’s important to know that the entire first half of this novel is roughly paced. It was so slow, and I personally struggled in staying interested in what was happening (which really felt like nothing at all for a good chunk). But things definitely take a turn for the horrific, and I was eventually impressed by how Moreno-Garcia succeeded in telling a slow burn, terrifically messed up gothic horror story that had me racing to the end to find out if Noemí would survive. While Mexican Gothic certainly isn’t going to be a book for everyone (and please, check out my friend Bethany’s review as she lists out content warnings in detail), it did wind up being a good spooky season read and a rather solid first experience with Moreno-Garcia’s storytelling style.

Mexican Gothic was published on June 30, 2020 by Del Rey.

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Rebecca is a classic I’d meant to read for some time, especially after seeing praise for it from so many online friends. I picked it up on a whim in October and, overall, I liked it. Before we get further into my thoughts, here’s a quick synopsis of the tale if you happen to be unfamiliar with it. This classic penned by Daphne du Maurier follows a nameless heroine who has a whirlwind romance with Maxim de Winter that culminates with their return to his country estate, Manderley. As our heroine attempts to find her footing in her new life, she has to contend with the lingering memory of Rebecca (the first Mrs. de Winter), the oppressive silences and mystery blanketing the house and the secrets that might be the key to figuring out what really happened in the past. The truth is that I’m a little disappointed I didn’t wind up loving this one as much as I expected to. I did appreciate the narrative style, including the lengthy descriptions and rather imaginative internal monologues that appear here and there. Both contributed well to the rather eerie, unsettling emotional atmosphere that permeated the story. But I overall couldn’t help feeling rather critical of the plot (including the turns it takes) and the characters, and that personally just wasn’t the reading experience I was looking for. In the end, it was definitely interesting to finally pick up and read a classic I’d heard so much about. Unfortunately, Rebecca just ended up not being one of my personal favorites.

Rebecca was published in August 1938. The edition I read was published by Virago Press.

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