WWW WEDNESDAYS is a weekly meme hosted by Sam @ Taking On A World Of Words and is all about answering the three questions below.
It’s been a while since I last did one of these! Three months to be exact… Oops? This time around it’s all about the books I’ve been reading so far in 2018; next week will be back to normal. (Hopefully)
- WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?
I’m almost finished with The Ends Of The World by Maggie Hall, which will be the first series I will be able to finish this year. I loved the first two books of the series, but I’m kind of struggling with the final one… I’m just not feeling it, there is way too much politics involved and I can’t find the same magic of the first two books. It might just have been me, but definitely not the experience I was expecting. I’m dying to read The Hating Game by Sally Thorne though, which I’ve sampled already and sounds like a winner.
- WHAT DID YOU RECENTLY FINISH READING?
1. Keep Her Safe by Richard Parker (4,5/5 stars) REVIEW 11/01
I already had a feeling this was going to be good, but I honestly couldn’t have wished for a better book to start the reading year with. Keep Her Safe was one heck of a thriller with so many intense moments I found it impossible to stop reading. I practically devoured this story and its many plot twists and the final part of Keep Her Safe definitely had some jaw droppingly fierce moments. A trigger warning for those if extreme and violent scenes aren’t your thing! Otherwise, I can highly recommend this thriller.
2. Life In Outer Space by Melissa Keil (3/5 stars) REVIEW 18/01
I love my geeky/nerdy reads and I was so sure I was going to enjoy this one… But I guess it just wasn’t ment to be. Basically I feel this book is trying too hard. The geeky/nerdy elements felt forced and unnatural and I wasn’t a fan of the characters either… And there were a LOT of high school cliches involved.
3. Her Last Lie by Amanda Brittany (3/5 stars) REVIEW
I had high hopes for Her Last Lie, but unfortunately I can say that only the last part of this story actually lived up to expectations. The writing is good, the premise is promising and the ending is surprisingly strong. There were a few plot twists I didn’t see coming either, and I loved the travel elements. That said, I found there was too much focus on the romantic relationships of the main character, I found the cheating/love triangle highly annoying and the main character itself very unlikeable. My feelings for this book are basically all over the place, because while I felt a strong dislike for the story during most of Her Last Lie, I absolutely loved the final part (starting with the Northern Lights scene). It’s hard to wrap my head around these feelings, but I do admit these positive feelings sure took their time making an appearance. Fans of slower paced psychological thrillers with a romantic focus might enjoy this one a lot better though. Just don’t expect a lot of suspense and excitement until the very end.
4. The Bunker Diary by Kevin Brooks (4/5 stars) REVIEW 18/01
I was intrigued as soon as I started reading The Bunker Diary and this is both an addictive, shocking, thought-provoking and emotional read. I sure wish I would have picked it up sooner! The writing is interesting and we learn about what is happening through the diary of the main character. Not only tells us about the events in the bunker, but it also shows the mental state of the character as well as how the things that happen have their effect. It’s hard to talk properly about this story without giving away too much, but The Bunker Diary will crush your heart, make you stare at the final page and at loss for words. A trigger warning for some graphic descriptions, but all in all I can really recommend reading this story. It definitely blew me away.
5. The Tattooist Of Auschwitz by Heather Morris (4/5 stars) REVIEW 13/01
I have a weak spot for WWII historical fiction, so I just had to request a copy of this title as soon as I heard about it. This book is based on real events and the author has interviewed the main character of this story personally. It gives a remarkable insight in the life at Auschwitz and how the main character manages to survive by having given the task of tattooing the numbers on the arms of the prisoners of Auschwitz. You won’t keep your eyes dry with this one!
- WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU’LL READ NEXT?
As part of the whole finishing my series goal, I’m probably picking up The Last Star by Rick Yancey next. I’m not a big fan of the trilogy, but since I have already read the first two and have a copy of the last book on my kindle, I’ll give it a go anyway. I also need to read my last pending January ARC The Silent Girls by Dylan Young… And I want to read The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter ASAP as well (although I might pick up another thriller first since it’s a ‘sort of’ ARC?) My newest TBR jar pick is still Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly.
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So many interesting sounding books! I’m especially intrigued by The Bunker Diary and The Tattooist of Auschwitz.
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Both are without doubt excellent reads. 🙂
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The Hating Game!!! One of my favorites – enjoy!! I have a copy of The Lilac Girls…I hope it’s a good one!!
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I’m ready to dive into The Hating Game tonight! It sounds like such a fun read from what I’ve seen. 🙂
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Lilac Girls was good, but a little slow for me. It took a while for the story to unwind. Heartbreaking since the topic is WWII, but worth the read. Enjoy!
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Good to know, I’ll be ready for a slower pace then! I have a weak spot for WWII historical fiction, so I’m looking forward to it.
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I like the sound of The Hating Game too, I hope you enjoy reading it this week. I read The Good Daughter a little while back and found it utterly engrossing so I hope you find it the same when you read it.
Here’s my WWW post: https://rathertoofondofbooks.com/2018/01/10/www-wednesday-10-jan-what-are-you-reading-this-week/
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I can’t wait to read both! Good to hear you enjoyed The Good Daughter as well. Happy reading!
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I really want to read The Tattooist Of Auschwitz but I’m not sure if my emotions could take it!
Here’s my WWW – https://bookboodle.co.uk/2018/01/10/www-wednesday-january-10th
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Things can get emotional for sure… Especially during the last part. But it is without doubt an excellent WWII historical fiction read.
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I really liked The 5th Wave and The Infinite Sea, but that third book was just not good; which totally sucked since I actually did like the first two books.
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Oh no! I’m not sure where that leaves me then, since I already didn’t like the first two… xD Good to know I’ll have to brace myself though.
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It’s such a shame when a final book lets you down! I hope you have a better reading experience with it soon!
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The final book definitely didn’t live up to expectations… But I’m having high hopes for my next read. 😉
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Oh I love the Hating Game so much. One of my fave reads. I really hope you enjoy it.
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I can’t wait to finally dive into it!
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You’ve been quite busy lately! It is really nice to have you back! xx
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Thanks! ❤ It's good to be back. xx
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Okay, I think I need to pick up Keep Her Safe. I have to admit I had to take a break from thrillers for a bit after Stillhouse Lake/Killman Creek because they weren’t living up to those two. Thanks for the recommendation! And also, it’s nice to see you back at WWW. 🙂
Here’s my link.
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Yeah, I don’t think another thriller will be able to live up to the Stillhouse Lake series some time soon… But Keep Her Safe did come pretty close. And it’s good to be back, thanks! 🙂
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I have wanted to read The Haring Game! Looking forward to your review 🙂
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So far I’m having a blast reading it!
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I can see that you’re into thrillers too. 🙂 I requested Keep Her safe from netgalley and hopefully get approved. I’m now thrilled to read it. 🙂 The last thriller I’ve read was/were the Stillhouse Lake series and loved it. It’s actually the reason why I wanted to read many Grisham this year. and why I requested too much thrillers from Netgalley. 🙂 Enjoy reading The hating Game, I read it last year and liked it. 🙂
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I love the Stillhouse Lake series as well! One of my absolute favorite thrillers… I hope you will enjoy Keep Her Safe as well. Bookouture is without doubt a little goldmine if you like thrillers. 😉 The Hating Game is definitely so much fun so far!
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Yay! Netgalley just approved me a copy of Keep HEr Safe. 🙂 🙂 I’m so excited. 🙂
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That’s excellent news! I hope you will enjoy it.
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🙂 🙂
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Oh, The Hating Game definitely sounds nice – plus the cover is so cute.
I heard lovely things about Lilac Girls and almost picked up the book during one of my crazy shopping spree, so I am looking forward to your thoughts on it!
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I’m having a blast with The Hating Game so far! Without doubt a great read! And I’ve heard a lot of excellent things about Lilac Girls as well, so fingers crossed it will be good.
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You underestimate me, I did keep my eyes dry 😉 but I admit it’s a really touching novel. I have The Hating Game as well and I’m very curious about it, so many people love it so much, it must be something special. The Good Daughter is on my readlist too and I’m happy to see you’re going to read it too. I’m already convinced I’ll like it 🙂
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Haha I was actually surprised I did end up needing a tissue, because I almost never cry while reading… The ending hit a nerve I guess. xD The Hating Game is such a fun read so far! Definitely the perfect book to recover fully from The Tattooist Of Auschwitz. And I’m pretty sure I’ll like The Good Daughter as well! It sounds fantastic.
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Interesting list 🙂
Happy Reading 🙂
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I keep hearing such good things about The Good Daughter. Now that I’m getting back into thrillers I feel the bug to keep reading them 🙂
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I know right? I don’t think I’ve seen a negative review yet and I’m really looking forward to it.
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These are some great book choices! The Tattooist Of Auschwitz and Lilac Girls sound like they’ll be interesting reads. I’ll have to look into reading them.
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The first is an excellent WWII read and I’ve heard good things about the second. 🙂
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I’m sorry you’re not enjoying The Ends of the World – it’s always upsetting when a series you liked takes a turn you can’t get behind.
Good luck juggling all of your reads!
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The ending was definitely mediocre compared to the rest of the series… But it won’t be the first time the final book(s) don’t live up to the rest of a series. Happy reading!
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I’ve been wanting to read The Hating Game too- it looks fun. And Keep Her Safe looks like a great thriller!
https://gregsbookhaven.blogspot.com/
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Keep Her Safe was such an intense thriller! And The Hating Game a fun read as well.
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