December 2021 Reads

I have SO much to share from the last few weeks and starting the new year off, but I must start with my book review!

I read 9 books in December to bring my year tally to 124, yay! I will, OF COURSE, do a full book breakdown over the coming weeks, but this was my highest book total ever!!

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy - This was SUCH a unique book/premise! It followed a woman, Inti, who is a scientist working to rehome wolves in Scotland. The descriptions of nature and this process were fascinating and beautiful, but I really struggled to connect with Inti. She made a lot of choices that were questionable or downright bad. We discussed this in Blog Friend Book Club, and I was in the minority {everyone else LOVED it, all gave it 5 stars} and Natasha made a great point about Inti's childhood playing a role in her decision-making, and while I could see that...I just still couldn't get past it.

Will by Will Smith [audiobook] - This was so fantastic and fun! I love listening to memoirs read by the author and this was no exception. I didn't know much about Will Smith's childhood and how he became famous for rap, I just really knew him from The Fresh Prince onward, and it was such an interesting story. He was funny, he shared struggles that felt so real, he was insightful. I can't recommend this enough!

A Cup of Water Under My Bed by Daisy Hernandez - This book was another memoir {read for work book club} about a first generation American growing up in her Cuban-Columbian family. I didn't love it because it was written really out of sync {again this is my problem, not the author's} but her experiences and thoughts were really eye-opening to me - I feel like I learned a lot and it gave me a lot to think about!

Ants Among Elephants by Sujatha Gidla [audiobook] - Another book I read for a work book club - the one I started ha - about a family of Untouchables in India rising up and helping break the Caste system. It was such an interesting story and SO MUCH happened to this family, I was amazed at how much 1 family could withstand, but it was also a hard read! It definitely made me appreciate even more what I have.

The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth - This is my type of thriller! I couldn't put this down! This story follows twin sisters - one sister's story is told in the present and the other through journal entries. It was just twisty enough to keep me guessing but also had really good character development. One sister I grew to LOVE and I was so stressed about how things would turn out, but it had just the best possible ending!

How Not to Die by Michael Greger [audiobook] - One word to describe this book: mind-blowing. Dr. Greger took each of the 15 top killers and discussed foods that help prevent/reverse disease. I learned so much listening to this book and am working to implement what he talked about. Given my life-long battle with food, I'm hoping this will help me tackle some of my food demons.

The Becoming by Nora Roberts - I didn't love this book as much as the first in the trilogy, but the ending got good, so I'm hopeful for the conclusion!

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir - This is the first book in a 4-book fantasy YA series, and it was EXCELLENT! We follow 2 characters, Laia and Elias, who should be enemies {Laia is the lowest level of society who are often slaves and Elias is the top soldier from a top family} but through circumstances become allies. I am really excited about this series!!

Always, in December by Emily Stone - Ugh, I'm going to struggle to describe this one. It's about 2 people alone at Christmas-time who run into each other by chance {literally, she runs him over with her bicycle} and have a connection and then keep running into each other. I loved 90% of it and HATED the last 10%, so I really can't say whether I recommend it or not. If you want to know why I hated the end {and I will spoil it for you}, email me. {grin}

I'm already 1 book down in 2022 and love what I have coming up. I can't wait to breakdown my 2021 reading and set some goals for 2022!