Hitting A Reading Slump
It’s been a strange reading month for me because I read one of my favourite books this year, then I ended up in a reading slump.
I have only managed to get through two books and that hasn’t been from a lack of trying. I kept picking up to start reading so many books. In the end, my friend Kelly picked a book out of my huge TBR pile. Then I forced myself to get through it. It took two weeks!
So… here’s another monthly reading wrap up…
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
This is one of the biggest books on BookTok at the moment. And for good reason.
In this book we follow Violet Sorrengail who wanted to enter the Scribe Quadrant. Basically surrounding herself with books and archiving. In this fantasy world, everyone enters a different quadrant when they are of age.
Her mother, who is the commanding general, orders Violet to join the Riders Quadrant. As in dragon riders.
We follow Violet as she starts training. Making friends and enemies along the way. Using every advantage and strength she has.
Violet is built smaller than others, has a brittle body and is basically perceived as “weak”. After getting through training, in which you could die at any moment, you have to bond with a dragon. But dragons don’t bond with “fragile” humans.
At the same time, outside the training school, the world is facing war. The kingdom’s protection is failing and the death toll is rising…
As they say in the Riders Quadrant; “A dragon without its rider is a tragedy, a rider without their dragon is dead”. Will Violet make it to the end? Will a dragon choose to bond with her? Is the Kingdom bound for war?
This book has been the cause of my reading slump. It has also been my favourite read of 2023… well, so far. I have recommended this to everyone. I have made people buy this book. Without spoiling this too much, I am just going to say I loved the world building, the story line, the twists, the character developments and the sarcasm of the characters. Being British, I love my sarcasm.
The other thing that really hits home for me is reading about a character who is chronically ill / disabled. This book has been such a talking point in the disability and chronic illness communities. Like Violet, author Rebecca Yarros has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. It goes to show that people love to read about main characters with chronic conditions / disabilities. And from authors in the same situation.
This is, of course, a 5* read.
The Keeper Of Stories by Sally Page
In this book, we meet Janice. Who is a cleaner and a collector of stories.
People tell her their stories and she overhears them. When working or on the bus. But when she starts working for Mrs B, a tricksy woman in her nineties, it’s not her who wants to hear a story.
Janice had kept her own life story to herself. Not even sharing it with her husband. But Mrs B is no fool and knows there is more to Janice than meets the eye.
You’ll come across many characters from all walks of life. Learn more about Janice and hear the story of Becky, told by Mrs B.
It certainly is a book of stories…
I am going to be very honest, I struggled with the first few chapters of this book. I really like Sally Page’s writing but it seemed a lot to take in at once. As I started to read more about the characters in interactions and not just from Janice’s point of view, it got easier.
The stories being told have both their uniqueness and normality. I enjoyed how we saw Janice’s life and yet it wasn’t her story. In my opinion, her interactions with Mrs B and Decimus the dog are what make the book. Without spoiling it too much, the twists are great. The story of Becky was fascinating and, with nods to classic books, I added more to my TBR list. I enjoyed this, but it makes me wonder, would I read a book like this again? I rate this 4 stars.
Here’s to hoping I can get through a few more books in August!
As always, thanks for reading…