I saw this fun challenge on Susan Loves Books and thought I’d give it a try! It was originally created by Reviews from the Stacks. Go check them both out!

I thought I would do this with books on my To Be Read (more to shame myself with the amount on there!) so here we go!

N – Ninth house by Leigh Bardugo

O – Obsidio by Jay Kristoff

V – Verity by Colleen Hoover

E – Echo North by Joanna Ruth Meyer

M – Mathilda, Superwitch by Kristen Ashley

B – The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones

E – Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

R – Red Sister by Mark Lawrence

What books would you use to spell out the month?

I normally don’t make a reading list but for the last couple of months it has actually worked for me so I’m going for it in November! We are officially back in lockdown from Thursday so will have a bit of time of my hands!

I’m using this as my last ditch attempt to actually complete some challenges, finish off some series and read my last arc of the year so I have can have a ‘read what I want’ December!

Touched by Elisa A Amore

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong

Fable by Adrienne Young

How to Love Your Elf by Kerrelyn Sparks

Obsidio by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman

Truelife by Jay Kristoff

What books will you be reading in November?

Happy Halloween!

‘When black cats prowl and pumpkins gleam, may luck be yours on Halloween.’

Welcome to Closing the Chapter! I hope you had a great reading month?

In blogging life I did a little rebrand of my social medias! My Instagram, Twitter and Facebook pages are now called CJRTB Book Blog! I am trying to be a lot more active on IG and would love if you would like to follow me here.

In my personal life, it was a weird month! Felt a bit out of sorts most of the month and that showed up in my reading but one a good note, it was my sons birthday! It certainly was a different one this year thanks to COVID but he still had a great day!

📚

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas – See my review here.

Vampires Never Get Old – various – See my review here.

Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco – See my review here.

The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell – Was a DNF at 38%…..for the moment. I do plan on revisiting this book because I think it was just me and my mood!

🎧

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir – unforts a DNF: see my semblance of a review here.

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E Harrow – See my review here.

What did you read in October?

My goal this month was to reign myself back in on the old book buying front….and it sort of happened! I stuck to my ‘rule of 3’!!! 👏🎉🥳  I probably deserve to buy myself an extra book to celebrate!!!!!

📚 Physical

The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd Jones

(It was on offer, what can I say?!)

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🎧 Audio

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E Harrow

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🧚‍♀️Fairyloot

Fable by Adrienne Young

Top Ten Tuesday is featured by That Artsy Reader Girl.It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Theme – Halloween Freebie

Now I couldn’t let Halloween 2020 pass without getting out my Hocus Pocus book and candle!!!

I do it every year so you all shouldn’t be surprised……get ready for the wonder….

Now I know this is 1 and that’s no where near 10 but I thought 10 pictures of the same book would be overkill!

Happy nearly Halloween 🎃 👻

Just a small bit of fun with a Halloween theme!

Mine would be:

📚 books

☕ coffee

🍫 chocolate!

I saw this tag on Hawthorn Book Reviews and May got it from Anna’s Book Nook and wanted to do it….because Halloween! 👻

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🎃 Carving Pumpkins- What book would you carve up and light on fire?

I hate to trash a book, I just don’t have it in me so I will politely decline to answer (but you can see my DNF’s on Goodreads)!!!

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🎃 Trick or Treat- What character is a treat? What character is a trick?

Wrath from Kingdom of the Wicked is just delish and is a total treat (for me!)

A Trick? The only thing that pops in my head is Tric from Nevernight but totally not in a bad way. Tric is also my treat!!!!

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🎃 Candy Corn- What book is always sweet?

Until November by Aurora Rose Reynolds. I read this when it came out in 2013 and still reread it now! You can read the blurb here.

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🎃 Ghosts- What character would you love to visit you as a ghost?

Jacob from City of Ghosts/Tunnel of Bones by VE Schwab. I just loved him, I felt for him and wanted to give him a motherly hug (or 3!)

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🎃 Dressing Up in a Costume- What character would you want to be for a day?

Manon Blackbeak. Although those iron teeth might sting a bit!

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🎃 Wizard and Witches- What is your favorite Harry Potter moment?

Sirius asking Harry to live with him. Waaaaah, don’t make me relive it 😔

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🎃 Blood and Gore- What book was so creepy that you had to take a break from it?

Not creepy as such but just mind blowing….The Nocte Trilogy by Courtney Cole. See the blurb for book 1, Nocte, here.

I wasn’t tagged so am not tagging anyone but please feel free to do!

Title: Gideon the Ninth

Series: The Locked Tomb #1

Author: Tamsyn Muir

The Emperor needs necromancers.

The Ninth Necromancer needs a swordswoman.

Gideon has a sword, some dirty magazines, and no more time for undead bullshit.

Brought up by unfriendly, ossifying nuns, ancient retainers, and countless skeletons, Gideon is ready to abandon a life of servitude and an afterlife as a reanimated corpse. She packs up her sword, her shoes, and her dirty magazines, and prepares to launch her daring escape. But her childhood nemesis won’t set her free without a service.

Harrowhark Nonagesimus, Reverend Daughter of the Ninth House and bone witch extraordinaire, has been summoned into action. The Emperor has invited the heirs to each of his loyal Houses to a deadly trial of wits and skill. If Harrowhark succeeds she will become an immortal, all-powerful servant of the Resurrection, but no necromancer can ascend without their cavalier. Without Gideon’s sword, Harrow will fail, and the Ninth House will die.

Of course, some things are better left dead.

This was really hard for me but I DNF’d. I hate to do that but whilst I loved certain aspects, it was just so darn slow that my attention wandered. A lot. Maybe its me, I don’t know. But I do feel bad as I normally do when I DNF!!

To look on the bright side, here are the things I loved but unforts it wasn’t enough to keep me listening:

The narrator was fabulous! I was laughing at the different voices she did!

I loved Gideon! Her humour was just brilliant,

The plot was so unique,

Finding out about their world, their court and their lives.

But I constantly wanted to shout for it to move faster. Have I made a mistake with DNF’ing? I don’t know. But I have the ebook too so might give that a go.