December isn’t quite over yet, but I wanted to go ahead and get my monthly post out of the way. Tomorrow is the beginning of 2024 (which is so hard to believe!!) and I’ll be posting my new goals for the next year. This month has been pretty amazing, so let’s get into it.

December Reads

• The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco
• A Danger to Herself and Others by Alyssa Sheinmel
• Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
• Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
• The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
• Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
• Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
• Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
• Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle
• Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros
• 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
• Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

That’s 12 books for this month! That’s a lot! It has helped that I’ve started listening to audio books. That added 4 books to my total. I still think that I’ll only use those for rereads, but it’s been fun starting to explore those.

Challenge Updates: 2023 Recap

My GoodReads goal this year was originally to read 100 books. I didn’t quite make it, but I did read 91 books, which is still a lot!

1. The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau 
2. Heart of the Sun Warrior by Sue Lynn Tan
3. The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau
4. The Prophet of Yonwood by Jeanne DuPrau
5. The Diamond of Darkhold by Jeanne DuPrau
6. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
7. The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
8. Wilder Girls by Rory Power
9. The Dust of 100 Dogs by A.S. King
10. Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake
11. One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake
12. Two Dark Reigns by Kendare Blake
13. Five Dark Fates by Kendare Blake
14. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
15. The Testaments by Margaret Atwood
16. Chain of Gold by Cassandra Clare
17. Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare
18. Chain of Thorns by Cassandra Clare
19. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
20. The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
21. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
22. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
23. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
24. Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune by Rosalind Lim
25. Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
26. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
27. The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
28. The Retribution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
29. The Girl In Between by Laekan Zea Kemp
30. Allusion by Andi Hyldahl
31. Banded by Logan Byrne
32. Eluded by Logan Byrne
33. Liberated by Logan Byrne
34. Incubation by Laura DiSilverio
35. Incineration by Laura DiSilverio
36. Regeneration by Laura DiSilverio
37. Queen of Shadows by Dianne Sylvan
38. Shadowflame by Dianne Sylvan
39. Shadow’s Fall by Dianne Sylvan
40. Of Shadow Born by Dianne Sylvan
41. Shadowbound by Dianne Sylvan
42. Shadowstorm by Dianne Sylvan
43. Shadow Rising by Dianne Sylvan
44. Citadel by C.M. Alongi
45. Zone One by Colson Whitehead
46. The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud
47. The Golem’s Eye by Jonathan Stroud
48. Ptolemy’s Gate by Jonathan Stroud
49. A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
50. The Glow by Aubrey Hadley
51. Hello, Cruel Heart by Maureen Johnson
52. Beyond the Story: 10-Year History of BTS by Myeongseok Kang et al.
53. The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson
54. Arrows of the Queen by Mercedes Lackey
55. Arrow’s Flight by Mercedes Lackey
56. Arrow’s Fall by Mercedes Lackey
57. Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
58. The Rule of One by Ashley Saunders and Leslie Saunders
59. The Rule of Many by Ashley Saunders and Leslie Saunders
60. The Rule of All by Ashley Saunders and Leslie Saunders
61. A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
62. A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas
63. A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas
64. A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas
65. The Night Parade by Kathryn Tanquary
66. Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
67. The Vanishing Stair by Maureen Johnson
68. The Hand on the Wall by Maureen Johnson
69. The Box in the Woods by Maureen Johnson
70. Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson
71. Jane Anonymous by Laurie Faria Stolarz
72. The Last Secret You’ll Ever Keep by Laurie Faria Stolarz
73. You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost) by Felicia Day
74. Mosquitoland by David Arnold
75. XOXO by Axie Oh
76. The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson
77. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
78. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
79. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
80. The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco
81. A Danger to Herself and Others by Alyssa Sheinmel
82. Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
83. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
84. The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black
85. Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
86. Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
87. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
88. Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle
89. Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros
90. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
91. Anne and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

This year, my goal was to complete 6 of the series on my list and I am happy to say that I completed it! Here are the series I finished:

• The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (2 books)
• The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau (4 books)
• Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (3 books)
• Arrows trilogy by Mercedes Lackey (3 books)
• Bartimaeus trilogy by Jonathan Stroud (3 books)
• Shadow World series by Dianne Sylvan (7 books until Jan 2024)

I’m still counting Shadow World since I didn’t realize that all the books were out yet. The last one is coming out soon, and I will definitely be reading it.

My goal for Beat the Back list was to read 25 books off my owned TBR and I am happy to say that I exceeded this one with 26 books!

1. The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau
2. The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
3. Wilder Girls by Rory Power
4. Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake
5. The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
6. The Road by Cormac McCarthy
7. Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
8. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson
9. Natalie Tan’s Book of Luck and Fortune by Rosalind Lim
10. Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
11. The Girl In Between by Laekan Zea Kemp
12. Allusion by Andi Hyldahl
13. Banded by Logan Byrne
14. Incubation by Laura DiSilverio
15. Zone One by Colson Whitehead
16. The Golem’s Eye by Jonathan Stroud
17. The Glow by Aubrey Hadley
18. Hello, Cruel Heart by Maureen Johnson
19. Arrow’s Flight by Mercedes Lackey
20. Arrow’s Fall by Mercedes Lackey
21. The Rule of One by Ashley Saunders and Leslie Saunders
22. Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
23. A Danger to Herself and Others by Alyssa Sheinmel
24. Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
25. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
26. Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle

I also completed by A to Z Challenge! Here are the final books:

Overall, I think my reading goals for 2023 were a success. Looking forward to seeing what next year brings.

Blog Updates

This month, I wrote 15 posts (including this one). Here’s the breakdown:

• Month in Review posts: 2
• Teaser/Top Ten Tuesday combo posts: 3
• WWW Wednesday posts: 4
• Reviews: 6!!

6 reviews! I am so proud of that! I’ve been really trying to do better with those, and with blogging in general. Hope to carry this energy into 2024.

December and 2023 are done. I’m still working on some other plans and goals, so hopefully 2024 will be the year for it.

Wishing all of you a happy and healthy new year!

Categories: Month in Review

Tags: books, Month in Review