January Wrap Up (2019)

Hey guys, this is Abi here,

And today I'm doing my January Wrap Up!

Aside from having a day off today and having significantly more time to work on this, I also finished another book yesterday, so it seemed right to post my Wrap Up today, instead of yesterday or tomorrow!

Here are all the things I did in the month of January!

BOOKS

I read a total of 6 books this month. It actually started off as a really good month, because I finished my first book on the 2nd.

Anyway! Here are the books I read this month:

1. This Mortal Coil (This Mortal Coil #1), by Emily Suvada

The first thing I wanted to do this year was read This Cruel Design, because it was one of the last books that I owned that I hadn't read yet, and it seemed fitting to re-read this novel, not just because I wanted to refresh my memory of how the story ended, but because I started off 2018 reading this the first time, it seemed fitting to have it be my first read of 2019 too. You can see all my in-depth thoughts in my review, which is linked into the title. I think, if it's possible, I might have enjoyed this book more the second time round.

2. This Cruel Design (This Mortal Coil #2), by Emily Suvada

I posted my review of this last week, and even though I didn't enjoy it as much as the first one, I am really looking forward to the concluding book in the trilogy. This trilogy remains to be one of the most unique trilogy's I've ever read and the ending of the second book set up a very good premise for the concluding novel, which is out sometime in September, I think.

3. Still Me (Me Before You #3), by JoJo Moyes

Truthfully, I did not think I was going to complete this series, but after hearing how much everyone loved this novel (well, most of the people) I decided to pick it up. It had a different feeling to the other two, like you would be able to pick this one up without having read the others, but I would certainly recommend it. Overall, a surprising and fulfilling ending to the Me Before You trilogy (though I feel like it would have been better if Me Before You was a standalone.)

4. Two Can Keep A Secret, by Karen McManus

After reading One of Us Is Lying in one day for the Booktubeathon last year, Two Can Keep A Secret seemed like the perfect book to read for the journey to London. Although it wasn't as quick paced and explosive (it was more mystery and intrigue) as One of Us Is Lying, I learned more about the characters, and I grew to care more about what happened to the twins and the people around them. I will be posting a review for this soon.

5. The Miniaturist, by Jessie Burton

One of the genres that I wanted to pursue more of this year was historical fiction. I know this wasn't on my TBR for the month, but this book was recommended to me by a sales assistant at Waterstones and I was just sold on it. Not expecting much, I picked it up- and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. I'm not sure what it was about this book, but something just clicked with the characters and the premise that I just couldn't put it down.

6. Mind Games, by Teri Terry

I decided to pick this book up on a whim, because I knew I was going to be behind on my Goodreads challenge if I didn't pick up something I'd read before, so I decided on Mind Games, because it was the first book that sprung to mind. That's the be-all and end-all of it really. I was reminded once again of why I love Teri Terry's writing, and it got me pumped and ready for Fated to come out in March, (which is the prequel for the Slated trilogy- which I also will be re-reading afterwards.)

FILMS AND TV SHOWS

1. Stan and Ollie

A wonderful film about Laurel and Hardy- a little insight into their personal lives, though it was a tad bit sadder than I thought it would be. Both characters were played wonderfully, and even though it was different to what I was expecting, I still thoroughly enjoyed the film and recommend going to see it.

2. Dragonball Z

I am some way into this series and thoroughly enjoying it. It's getting to the point where I'm thinking of it outside the time that I'm watching it, and it reminds me of Pokémon, because the graphics are incredibly similar to one another. If you're into anime and violence then this is the series to watch.

3. The Impossible

I convinced my mother and boyfriend to watch this movie. It's one of those movies that you cry buckets-full. The story is about a family trying to find one another after the 2004 tsunami in Thailand hit. It really takes a personal view on what it is like, not just for the nation, but what's it like for individuals when disaster strikes. It's honestly a film to watch if you haven't yet done so.

4. Chicago Med

I have been watching clips on YouTube for this show for some time but I didn't start watching it until London, when I got the DVD from HMV. It is everything I expected it to be, and I'm already at the end of season 1.

5. Sunshine on Leith

This is one of my favourite films and I'm glad I got to watch it again. If you don't know much about it, it's a Proclaimers musical set in Scotland, unlike some other movie musicals I could mention, the story weaves with the songs incredibly well and the story has both heartfelt and lively moments.

Okay! So that was my January Wrap Up (2019)! I hope you enjoyed it, and feel free to let me know what you read in January!

Right! I hope you have a good rest of the week and I will see you soon!

Byeeeeeee!

-Abi xxxxxx