My March

I’ve had a mixed March – I got offers from the university I wanted and managed to firm and insure two unis! Now for the hardest part – to actually get the grades I’ve been offered! I went back to college in person for 2 weeks and it was tiring but nice to see my friends again. I’ve had a chance to relax and read too thankfully, because April and May will be much busier months for me with revision and exams which I’m sick of talking about, so no more college related talk!

One of the best things that happened this month was Becca’s 48 hour live Bookoplathon. I have a TBR post and wrap up that goes in more detail, but it was just so fun and a great way to connect with other people who love reading!

Here are my weekly updates throughout the month:

• 01/03-07/03
• 08/03-14/03
• 22/03-27/03

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Reading Stats

I read 13 books and 3950 pages with an average of 127 pages a day!

♡ my average rating was 4.21

♡ 3 physical books, 5 ebooks, 5 audiobooks

♡ 6 fantasy, 4 contemporary (including 2 graphic novels), 2 sci-fi, 1 dystopia

♡ 3 YA, 10 adult

I read a lot this month for me! Definitely down to Bookoplathon and those shorter books that were easier to get through, especially graphic novels which I want to read more of. Another thing that helped me read more was audiobooks so I’m going to try and continue with that in the future! (I use Scribd and you can get 2 months free with my link). I also had a better reading month in general with almost every book being 4 stars and above!

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The Books

★★★★★

I started the month off strong with two 5 star books! My favourite of the month has to be Gods of Jade and Shadow, which you can find a review of here! It has everything – mythology, historical setting, romance subplot, quests, gods and more. I highly recommend! The Obelisk Gate was amazing too, even if not that much actually happened. I think I prefer sequels because if I’ve managed to continue with a series then I’m very invested and attached to the characters already. It’s not quite as good as The Fifth Season to me but there are still lots of reveals, world-building, magic and sad moments (it’s on my books that made me cry list!).

★★★★½

More amazing but very different books! Jade City has such intricate world-building in all aspects of the clan and its politics, whereas This is How You Lose the Time War leaves you in the dark on all the explanations and mechanics of the world. Despite their differences, there was a focus on characters and relationships in both that made them so memorable – the Kaul family dynamics in Jade City and the relationship between Red and Blue in This is How You Lose the Time War.

★★★★

To keep this from being unbearably long, I’m linking my thoughts about the first 4 books to my Becca’s Bookoplathon wrap up (spoiler – they were all great!).

Moon of the Crusted Snow wasn’t exactly what I expected but still interesting – I recommend the audiobook because not much happens but I wasn’t bored at all with the audio. It seamlessly integrated indigenous culture with the story and the atmosphere was so tense as we experience the possible start of the apocalypse!

The audiobook for Radio Silence is great too, especially for the podcast chapters. I loved the focus on friendship, and the balance of fun moments and more serious topics. Some events and characters felt a little unrealistic and exaggerated, but I had a good time!

Lastly, the Bone Shard Daughter. This is probably the best book out of the 4 stars group, because it had such an original magic system and intricate world-building. The characters all had their own voice and were really fun to follow – my favourites were Lin and Jovis. Sadly I wasn’t that invested in the sapphic relationship, maybe because it had already been established, and the other POVs became slightly tiring to follow. However, it was a great first book and it felt like the author knew exactly what she was planning next, which makes me excited (and nervous) for the sequel! Also Mephi (the animal companion) is precious.

★★★½

I was a little underwhelmed by All Systems Red and I’m not sure if I’m going to continue with the series but it was entertaining all the same. This is one book I would have benefitted from reading physically because I got a bit lost with the plot and side characters in the audio. I did love Murderbot and their cynical personality though.

☆☆☆☆☆

I decided not to rate Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 because although it’s fiction, it reads like a non-fiction, especially with the footnotes that remind the reader of the reality for half of the population. Although we don’t get much explanation for Kim Jiyoung’s behaviour in the present, the structure was clever yet easy to follow and I think the audiobook did a create job of incorporating the statistics and facts within the story.

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Thanks for reading! How was your March?

—ella♥

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