My November Reading Round-Up
This November I focused most of my time on #SciFiMonth, which mainly focuses on hard sci-fi, meaning spaceships, aliens and of course, romance (although not typically with aliens). Not all books have full reviews, but I do highlight the ones that I have something to say about or recommend.
This month I read 15 books. I’ve listed them below with star ratings, link to the full review (if I wrote one), and a short description.
Christmas and Other Horrors: An Anthology of Solstice Horror
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Ho-Ho-Horror! This holiday horror anthology begs you to no let the Christmas spirit in.
The holidays may be the most magical time of year, but what if that magic turns against you? In this short story anthology, some of our top horror writers imagine the winter solstice as a time of dark and brutal cosmic retribution.
The Long Fall Up: And Other Stories by William Ledbetter
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Super compelling, hard sci-fi short story collection that deserves all the hype.
Read this if you love The Expanse
Read this if you love Station Eleven
Read this if you love hard sci-fi, soft world building and flawed but ultimately relatable characters.
Merciless Waters by Rae Knowles
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
An ethereal folklore re-telling, incandescent with female rage.
As the book begins we are on an all-women pirate ship, following our main character Jaq. he soft world building reveals parts of the characters and the story slowly, keeping the mystery of who these women are, how they got here, where they're going and why.
Same Time Next Year by Tessa Bailey
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
A short, cute and spicy hockey romance, perfect to keep you warm this winter ;)
Available now on Kindle Unlimited, our MMC, Sumner, is a Canadian goalie playing in the US. He needs a marriage of convenience to stay in the country, and who better to ask then the woman he’s been crushing on from a distance for years?
The slow burn almost killed me, but the sparks are pure 🔥🔥🔥
The Blighted Stars by Megan E. O’Keefe
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
An action-packed, hard sci-fi conspiracy adventure with rivals trapped on a dying planet. Also there are space zombies (it's not what the book calls them, but yes, space zombies, and they're terrifying)
The soft-world building with the high-paced action, wrapped in the mystery of how she got into this body and what she's supposed to to now, will keep you turning the page right up to the very end.
The Vicious Lost Boys series #2, #3, #4
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
A dark fantasy romance re-telling of Peter Pan, with an unhinged FMC.
Get up close and personal over four novellas with Peter Pan, the Lost Boys, Captain Hook and Tinkerbell’s family in this 4 book series.
Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient Roman World by Mary Beard
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
I listened to the audiobook which is narrated by Mary Beard - highly recommend.
This is my first time hearing about Emperor Hadrian and his boyfriend/lover Antinous. I need a 'Song of Achilles' type retelling of this immediately. The last chapter of this book is the last words reportedly said by each of the emperors, and they're so interesting for the variation from the mundane to the ethereal.
Ghost Station by S.A. Barnes
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Top tier sci-fi horror!
This book has everything I want in a sci-fi horror. We have aliens. We have a crew with secrets. We have an unknown planet with constant storms. Yes. Yes and Yes.
If you're looking for a story that puts you right in the action, this is it. Out April 2024.
Capture the Sun: Starlight’s Shadow series #3 by Jessie Mihalik
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
The Starlight's Shadow trilogy reminds me of the TV show Firefly, but with more romance. It's found family, it's deep space travel, it's a crew of misfits with hearts of gold.
Overall a really fun read.
Calamity by Constance Fay
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
A fast-paced, hard sci-fi space adventure with open door M/F romance.
I love sci-fi romance, but it's difficult to find sci-fi romance between two humans (aliens just aren't for me), which is why I was thrilled to read Calamity by Constance Fay. The first chapter grabs you by your ill-fitting body armour and refuses to let go for the entire book.
Hollow by Karina Halle
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
A dark Legend of Sleepy Hollow retelling with top tier kink romance.
The pacing is great, the characters are interesting, the mystery keeps me turning the page and the smut is
🔥🔥🔥
The Mystery Guest: A Maid Novel by Nita Prose
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
A cozy murder mystery with our favourite maid and her sweet-as-honey colleagues from the Grand Regency Hotel.
If you liked the first book in this series, The Maid, then you'll be happy to be back with our lovable characters in the familiar walls of the hotel they all work in.
Kismet by Gab Tuls
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
A fun, raunchy choose-your-own adventure.
Have you ever debated between being a topless waitress or downloading Tinder? Well this book provides you scandalous and comical choices as we follow our FMC's trail of chaos in this choose-your-own adventure romance.
Hunt on Dark Waters
⭐⭐⭐/5
A magically spicy pirate story with witches, vampires and even a dragon.
Our FMC is a witch who impulsively steals when she’s stressed. Our MMC is a pirate captain who fishes our witch out of the sea and forces her to pledge her life to the pirates. This is a fast paced, action-adventure, with some of Katee’s trademark smut - but now it’s magical.
Lost Ark Dreaming
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
A dystopic eco-sci-fi thriller, but with stunning prose interludes that transcend genre convention.
On the surface this is a fast-paced, eco-dystopia story about class, survival and sea monsters. But as soon as we dive below the surface of the story, the importance of memories, the impact of stories and the depth of grief stare back at us through watery eyes.
