Monthly Wrap Up: November 2020

Hello!

I can't quite believe I'm saying this but...it's December!!

This year has been a very unpredictable and scary one to say the least. But hopefully 2021 is a brighter year for us all. 

I thought it would be a good idea to talk to you about the books I have been reading this month. It's been pretty hectic with 3 university assignments due, netball commitments and lots of other little bits going on. 

Having said this, I did manage to read 3 books and I started a 4th yesterday so I'm pleased about that. 

As I said in my previous post, please don't feel pressured to read a certain number of books each month - we're all busy at different times of the year and we can only read when we have the time and that's okay!

My November reads:

• The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena 

• Cock & Bull by Laura Barnard 

• Blood Orange by Harriet Tyce 

The Couple Next Door - Shari Lapena 

My rating out of 5 stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This book was one I couldn't put down! At first I wasn't sure if I'd like it but I had seen lots of people enjoying it on Bookstagram so I thought I'd give it a go. 

This story is about a couple who plan to have dinner and drinks at their next door neighbour's house one evening. Their babysitter cancels on them just before they're due to go and their neighbour doesn't want the baby to disrupt the evening. So they decide to leave their baby daughter asleep in her bedroom at their house, taking the baby monitor with them to dinner. The couple check on their daughter every 30 minutes until on one occasion, she isn't there. She's gone. 

I think the style the book is written in can be so important for me and determines whether I'm going to carry on with it or not. It was the first of Lapena's books that I read and I really liked the writing style.

The plot was very enticing and made me want to keep reading it.  

This was a really good read and when trying to figure out what happened to the baby, I changed my mind so many times. I didn't predict the ending at all.  

Cock & Bull - Laura Barnard 

My rating out of 5 stars: ⭐⭐⭐

I won this digital ARC copy in a giveaway hosted by the author a couple of months ago but I only just got round to reading it. 

This book is about 2 sisters who inherit a run down pub from a family member who they haven't met. They move to Ireland to check it out after agreeing to take it on. When they get there they realise it needs a lot of work and I think it's then that they know they're in for a bumpy ride. They try to win the town over whilst their competition tries to bring them down. 

I did enjoy this book but I felt like it was quite unrealistic. One of the main characters narrates this and I just felt that there were too many bad things happening throughout the book. It made me think that in real life, this amount of things surely couldn't go that badly but I could be wrong. 

Despite finding the negative parts a little repetitive, I did enjoy following the characters on their journey. I love to get into a book and enjoy all, if not most of it, and I feel like I did with this book. I didn't like some of the characters but overall it was a decent read. 

Blood Orange - Harriet Tyce

My rating out of 5 stars: ⭐⭐⭐

I've had this book on my tbr shelf for a few months and finally managed to pick it up!

This book is about a mother of one, Alison, who lives with her husband and young daughter. Her career is going well - she's been given the opportunity to defend her first murder case. However, Alison is drinking too much, has a rocky relationship with her husband and is having an affair with a colleague - she says time and time again that she'll sort things out but will she manage it? 

It was a good read and I felt gripped to the plot but I wasn't keen on any of the characters which is unusual for me - I usually like a few characters in a book.

That's all from me today!

I hope you enjoyed reading these short reviews of the books I read in November. Let me know what you have been reading during the last month. What was your favourite book?

Take care,

Kate x

Where to find me: 

Instagram: @katereadsx