A month in reading: January 2022

In January, I read 6 books. I'm pretty pleased with the quantity of books I read, but I feel like the overall quality I read this month was a bit lacking. I only remember really enjoying one book, and a couple felt like a real dredge to get through. I think my average rating for this month is probably a 3/5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐

1. Dear Aaron- Mariana Zapata: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This was my favourite book of this month. The romance was really cute and I enjoyed the characters. However, I thought that the best part of the book was the email correspondences, everything else felt kind of awkward and out of place. After this book, though, I did feel the urge to track down and read another letters-to-a-military-man-who's-far-away-that-i-end-up-falling-in-love-with kind of book. I also kind of wish it was longer and I could've had the dramatic Dear John moment where he finally comes home and she's with someone else but eventually they end up together. Oh, and some pining while hes at war. 

2. Portrait of a Scotsman-Evie Dunmore: ⭐⭐⭐

I really don't like historical romances. I only really tried this one because of how much attention it's been getting online, but it either feels sexist or like it's a modern romance with people who are really into old time-y cosplays. Plus, I really hate the "oh no, we got seen by others standing too close so now we'll have to make a lifetime contract for us to get married or we'll both into ruin!" And yes I understand that's what could've happened then but it still just feels really annoying in my romances. Also I thought the characters were incredibly bland. And most of it was filled with feminist preachy stuff, which, when its about suffrage, and you're like "yeah we did that... like a while ago... let's move on". 

3. Hot Vampire Next Door- Nikki St. Crowe: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is one of the only novellas I've ever read and enjoyed. Usually, I find it rushed and the characters and romance are shallow. With this one, I really liked the premise and the plot was great-- it flowed really well. But the writing was very average, and the romance was super sudden and had no build up which I hate. I'm still going to read the next book though, mostly because I'm pretty sure I know where it's going and I think I'm going to hate it so I'm really hoping the author won't handle the story in that way. 

4. Scarred- Emily McIntire: ⭐⭐⭐

I'm writing this right at the end of January and I've already forgotten most of what happened in this book. 

5. The People in the Trees- Hanya Yanagihara: ⭐⭐

This one felt really long, I skimmed a lot. It was fine, I liked the end reveal a lot and it was a very interesting concept.

6. Villette- Charlotte Bronte: ⭐⭐

I had to read this one for school and it pretty much took me the whole month. The narrator is super unlikable (even as much as I love an unreliable narrator, a la Fitzgerald's Nick Carraway), and a lot of it felt like something I've read before. In my essay on this one, I just talked about how the narrator's identity was related to one of the two love interests and she just switches back and forth based on whichever she's with. Super annoying.