December Recap & Haul Time!

January 14, 2022

It’s time for a look at my December reading life!

It’s time for another wrap-up/haul post! This one is really late because I’ve had so much content I’ve wanted to make for my blog over the past couple of weeks, but not enough time to do it all, and this one got pushed off by the wayside for a bit. I still need to post some end-of-year wrap-up stuff too!

I read a good bit in December, though most of the books I read were manga and graphic novels. I couldn’t seem to focus on novels to save my life last month!


First, what I read:

(each title link will direct you to my review for more thoughts!)

🌟 5 stars 🌟

Eyes That Kiss in the Corners // Joanna Ho
I don’t usually ever log the books I read to my 5-year-old son, but this one was so sweet and lovely that I had to! It’s just a really sweet picture book about this little girl embracing the beauty of her and her family’s features.

Sweat and Soap, Volumes 3, 4, 5, and 6 // Kintetsu Yamada
Yep, all four of these volumes were 5-star reads for me. In fact, a little spoiler for my January wrap-up here, but I’m up to volume 10 in this series now and all of them have been 5-star reads. ♥

Lore Olympus: Volume One // Rachel Smythe
I got this new bind-up for Christmas and read it immediately (like, while my spouse and son had their Christmas post-lunch nap 😂). I’ve finally given in to the obsession with this Hades/Persephone romance, just like I knew I would.

Peel Back and See // Mike Thorn
Mike’s short stories never disappoint me! This collection has a lot of themes surrounding the ugly, bleak underbelly of society and capitalism, and I really enjoyed it.

🌟 4 & 4.5 stars 🌟

The Visitor // Sergio Gomez
This was such a fun little Christmas horror novella about aliens!

Ghost Girl // Ally Malinenko
This MG horror/paranormal story about a girl who sees/talks to ghosts was good, though it took me way too long to finish reading. I think for personal enjoyment, it’s really more of a 3, but I tend to be lenient with MG ratings because I’m not the target audience.

Living with Mochi // Gemma Gene
A super cute comic book about life with Mochi, the author’s dog. It wasn’t anything shockingly cute or funny, but I think most dog lovers will enjoy it.

🌟 3 & 3.5 stars 🌟

Lunarbaboon: The Daily Life of Parenthood // Christopher Grady
If you follow Lunarbaboon on social media, you’ve probably already seen every comic in this collection, and reading so many of them in one short span of time made me realize Lunarbaboon is hit-and-miss for me.

The Boss Who Stole Christmas // Jana Aston
This Christmas rom-com between a Christmas-obsessed woman and her Grinch boss was a re-read for me, and I sadly enjoyed it a lot less this time around, mostly because the main character is just insufferable with her obliviousness.

The Backstagers, Vol. 3 // James Tynion IV
Another disappointing read — I adored volumes 1-2, but volume 3 was more of a collection of spin-off holiday-themed stories, and I didn’t enjoy most of them. That said, I strongly recommend the first 2 volumes of this series! It’s about a group of queer as hell high school theatre kids.

Ice Planet Barbarians // Ruby Dixon
I finally gave into the hype and started this alien romance series! I had a lot of issues with this first book, specifically in how the characters view pregnancy and a woman’s agency in general, but I was intrigued enough to finish it. I originally thought I would definitely continue the series, but it’s been almost a month now since I read this and I’ve decided I probably won’t.

🌟 2 & 2.5 stars 🌟

Nothing to see here!

🌟 1 & 1.5 stars 🌟

Nothing to see here!

❌ DNFs ❌

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Sugar and Spice // Eli Wray
I fully get why so many people love this, but it was too sickly sweet and innocent for me and I couldn’t finish it.


And now, for some of my favorite recent hauls:

Echoes: The Saga Anthology of Ghost Stories // Ellen Datlow (purchase; adult horror anthology)
My Heart is a Chainsaw // Stephen Graham Jones (purchase; adult horror)
Aurora’s End // Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (purchase; YA sci-fi)
A Touch of Darkness // Scarlett St. Clair (purchase; adult romance)
The Wolf and the Woodsman // Ava Reid (purchase; adult fantasy)
Screams from the Dark: 29 Tales of Monsters and the Monstrous // Ellen Datlow (review copy; adult horror anthology)

Lore Olympus: Volume One // Rachel Smythe (gift; adult romance)
The Queen of the Tearling // Erika Johansen (gift; adult fantasy)
Dark Rise // C.S. Pacat (gift; YA fantasy)
A Dowry of Blood // S.T. Gibson (gift; adult horror)
Near the Bone // Christina Henry (gift; adult horror)
The Shadow of the Gods // John Gwynne (purchase; adult fantasy)


And finally, a little life update:

December was a pretty good month here! Christmas is my favorite time of year, and I won’t lie, I feel like I went into some kind of Super Gift Giver mode this year, because I managed to surprise all of my family members with some gifts that were pretty perfect. 😂 Gift-giving is my love language, so being able to pleasantly shock everyone is basically one of my favorite things ever and I rode that high for a little bit.

In other news, after years of playing only the creative modes in Fortnite because I typically can’t stand battle royales, my spouse and our son talked me into giving it a try with them, and I had so much more fun than I thought I would! I wasn’t in a gaming mood much otherwise in December, so I basically only played Fortnite and a new game I got called To the Rescue!, which is a dog shelter simulator that’s still early access and VERY buggy, but cute and fun regardless.

To The Rescue | Download and Buy Today - Epic Games Store


How was your month? What was your favorite book you read or hauled, or what was something nice that happened in your life?


 

destiny

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More about Destiny @ Howling Libraries

Just a horror aficionado/geek girl trying to juggle motherhood, reading, blogging, gaming, and everyday life.

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