So far my reading month has been really good. I have read a lot more than I thought I would after only reading about 4 books in February. Another bonus is all the books I have read so far have been 5 or 4 stars, I have really been enjoying the books I have decided to pick up. I was thinking I was going to be entering a book slump since I have been reading slower than usual, but it seems that I have been able to avoid it for now. Anyway, here are the books I finished so far this month.
Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed the second installment of this series. It was wonderful to see more of the worlds beyond the doors and learning more about Jack and Jill. I have already told quite a few people to start this series. It is a fun retelling and reimagining of our beloved fairytales with a gruesome and interesting twist.
The writing is beautiful, the characters are unique, and overall I just loved this book as much as the first.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I want to start off by saying I received this book from publisher via netgalley for free in exchange for an honest review. Also, if you want to know about the specifics on what I liked and did not like, please check out my post, REVIEW | If, Then by Kate Hope Day. I did a whole explanation of my rating and I would love it if you checked it out.
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I ended up enjoying this novel a lot more than I thought I would. For it’s size it was very fast paces and things were happening constantly. There was love, betrayal, deceit, revenge, adventures, and travels. There were pirates, princes, and many other works of life. When I sat down to read this book I would fly through it. I really enjoyed seeing parallels through some of the characters as well as seeing people struggle with right and wrong, and trying to define justice. This was most definitely an adventure pushed by a mans need for revenge.
The one thing I did not like was at times it was hard to keep track of who is who. I ended up going onto spark notes and printing out the character list and it really helped. When/if you read this you will see why I needed to a little bit of help to keep track of this.
There are some dark themes in this book, so be warned. There is some gruesome stuff, stories of past wrongs that were a little detailed as well, and some talk of self harm. I do not have difficulty with reading about these themes, but I know that others might so I thought I would mention.
The Last Hours by Minette Walters
I am slowly reading this historical fiction while I am on my lunch break at work. It surround the time of the onset of the black plague. I am really liking how this book is showing how confused, closed minded, and scared it is portraying those who saw the devastation. I also like how it gives a peak into life during this time for a majority of the peasants who were tied to the land. I am currently 61 pages in.
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
Sadly, I have only gotten to read about 35 pages of this book due to this month getting very, very busy. I look forward to diving into this fun fantasy novel as soon as I have more free time.
Neverworld Wake by Marisha Pessl
I am buddy reading this very interesting thriller with Reg, Amy, and Jenna this month and so far I am really, really loving it. It is very interesting idea and so far the execution is done really well. I will admit I am bouncing between the ebook and audiobook from my library, but I am flying through it. I am currently sitting at 34%.
Current TBR: 39
Current Backlist TBR: 20
What was the last book you read?
What are you planning on reading next?
This is a book I am very much interested in. I have read a few of Shannon’s books in the past and I really enjoy her creativity and her writing. When I found out she was writing a standalone I was very much excited. Between the teasers and cryptic tweets from her as well as the mention of forbidden magic, I was pulled in and I preordered the book.
This was one of the books I was most looking forward to reading this year. I was a bit worried when I saw some reviews saying the language/writing was difficult to get through so I put it off a little. But, I finally picked it up. I just have to say Colson Whitehead did a great job with this historical fiction novel. He took what every kid things of when they first here the term “The Underground Railroad” and mixes in the true horrors that many people faced. I found it interesting that he would take such a “childish” way of thinking of the underground railroad and telling such a serious and heart wrenching story. I personally did not find any fault with the writing style and I actually read this rather quickly.
I loved this non-fiction account of the “Last True Hermit”. I loved how Finkel approached this story both interviewing Christopher Knight as well as research. I don’t really want to say much because this is such a short book, I don’t want spoil anything. Even though this book was so short it was very interesting. I was absorbed in the story within pages. I do talk a bit more about this book in my post entitled 
This is a nonfiction book that I received from Netgalley for an honest review. I will link the full review below, but I will say I did enjoy this story. Kate Moore did an excellent job talking about how Radium was used, how these women were exposed to it, and the aftermath. She made something that seems so distant come to life from the pages.
I found this gem in my local used bookstore and read the description on the back and was intrigued. When I finally got around to reading it I soared through it. It is BASED upon the lives for three anthropologists who form a bit of a love triangle while out in the field. While I don’t usually love, love triangle (you see what I did there?) I enjoyed this book anyway. Now as I said earlier it is based upon a true story, but it is not a historical account. Which, for me only intrigues me more, what really happened? I talked about this book a bit in my The Cake Book Tag, if you are interested check it out.
quarter of 2017 is nearly over so I thought I would take this time to do a little update on my 2017 goals, you can find the post here: 
Classic Bhaer 