Holiday Book Haul

Hey guys, this is Abi here, 

And today I'm posting something I haven't posted about in ages- I have a book haul! 

YAY! 

I'm way too excited to say anything else, so I'm gonna jump in here and now. 

I hope you enjoy it. 

Most of these are second, which is why I have so many- mostly from my holiday to Lake District at the start of the month- but I think you'll agree with me that they're quite varied! 

1. A Mind Full of Murder (Skulduggery Pleasant #16), by Derek Landy 

Okay, so this one is new- an anniversary present, and a book I've been desperate to own since it's release. I will of course be getting to this one in the next couple of months, since you all know I can never resist a Derek Landy novel for too long once I have my hands on it. 

A Mind Full of Murder is the sixteenth Skulduggery Pleasant novel, the first book in Phase three. Phase one consisted of nine novels, phase two had six, and now A Mind Full of Murder is the first of a trilogy. I will never get tired of reading about Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain and their exciting adventutes, and hopefully you guys are starting to love them just as much. 

2. All the Broken Pieces (The Boy in Striped Pyjamas #2), by John Boyne

I've always been skeptical about sequels to well-known books being released a number of years after the first book, and this one was no different. But even knowing how long after it was written, I knew I had to give this a chance. For one, I couldn't pass up the chance to read from one of the best writers that ever lived, in my opinion, and secondly, I love these types of books: seeing how an event has unfolded, and impacted the remaining characters, even years later. Honestly, I never even knew this book existed. 

All the Broken Places takes place over seventy years after the events of The Boy in Striped Pyjamas, and follows Greta, Bruno's older sister, as she shows us what happened to her family post-war, how she no longer talks about what it was like, even decades later. 

Then, a family suddenly moves into the apartment below her, and in spite of herself, she becomes close with them, and especially a young boy named Henry. One night, she witnesses a violent argument between Henry's mother and domineering father, and when conflicted as for whether she can help save the boy, she must comfront the past, and only then might they both get out alive. 

3. Necropolis (The Power of Five #4), by Anthony Horowitz

I read Necropolis way back in middle school over a decade ago and loved it. Never mind that it was the fourth book in the series, I read it over and over. Of course I eventually finished them all in order, but Necropolis is, and always will be, my favourite of the series. 

The reason I purchased another copy is this: I read and re-read it so much the book was coming apart in my hands. 

I know I probably won't re-read this again, and if I do it'll be a very long time before I do, but I felt I needed a working copy at least. 

If you didn't know, Necropolis is the fourth book in The Power of Five series, by Anthony Horowitz. It tells the story of five children, with extroadinary powers, coming together to defeat the Old Ones- like they did a thousand years ago. But this time, the Old Ones are ready- and determined to keep the heroes apart. Necropolis follows Scarlett- the last of the five- to Hong Kong, where Matt and the rest of the children are determined to get to Scarlett before she disappears forever. 

Very creepy, very action packed, you get to see the best of Anthony Horowitz' imagination, (much bettet than the Alex Rider in my opinion, but I might be in the minority in that) in this penultimate novel. Glad to finally have a replacement copy. 

4. Inkheart (Inkworld #1), by Cornelia Funke

I'll be very surprised if you haven't heard of this: I believe Inkheart is one of those books that changed the book community. Like The Book Thief or Twilight. Inkheart tells the story of Meggie and her father, who one night, is listening to her dad read Inkheart, when the villainous Capricorn leaps from the page and into the real world. Now, Meggie must learn to harness the magic that has conjured this nightmare. Only Meggie has the power to rewrite the story that has changed her life-forever. 

I read this book forever-ago, and like most of the world, never picked up the sequel, Inkspell. As soon as I saw this in a charity shop in Glossop, the decision was made. I can't wait to jump back into this world. 

5. The Shadows in the Street, by Susan Hill 

Okay...

So it looks like this is book five of an eleven book series. 

Yeah, there's no way I'm commiting to the full series. 

Just this one. 

Susan Hill has always been an author on my radar. You know, ever since Daniel Radcliffe starred in the film adaption of The Woman in Black (yeah, I was the kid that watched anything he was in at the time, for obvious reasons). But I always try to pick up the not so famous works of an author, before the big seller, hence why I bought this. 

And in truth, it does sound okay. Standard bloody series of murders, all strangled, all prostitutes. That's the only link really. But with a page count of 380-odd, surely it must be decent enough to read. Right? 

I hope I enjoy this. I'd hate for my introduction to Susan Hill's story-telling to be negative. 

And of course...

6. The Woman in Black , by Susan Hill 

One of the horror classics in my opinion. I'm hoping to knock this out in a spooky readathon some time in October. If not it'll definitely be on my TBR. I don't know much about this book, and honestly, I don't think I need to. I know it's about a man called Arthur Kipps, a junior solicitor, that's called to Crythin Gifford to attend the funeral of Mrs Alice Dablow. But then, shrouded in the mist and fog of the village, he glimpses a woman, dressed all in black. A sense of unease begins to take hold, especially at the villager's reluctance to talk about this mysterious lady... 

I'm expecting extreme creepiness from this book. Coraline graphic novel creepiness. I know this book won't disappoint. 

7. The Porpoise, by Mark Haddon 

The Porpoise tells the story of a woman, who is alone and isolated from the world by her wealthy father. She believes their lives together is normal, but as time passes, she begins to realise that something about their lifestyle is very very wrong. 

With nothing else to turn to, she turns to her books- her only escape. Her favourite tales are the ones of the angry gods, and heroic mortals, one of whom will come to her rescue- eventually. 

Soon, she will forget where the book ends, and she begins. 

What drew me to this book was how different it felt to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the night time- but I guess that's the point. Extremely interested in the premise, and even more excited to pick it up and finally read it. Out of all of these, this is one of the book that's constantly in the back of my head. 

8. Girl, Woman, Other, by Bernardine Evaristo 

Does anybody have a book that's maybe, been on your radar for a while, maybe a year or more, but never seem to have bought it? This was that such book for me (or one of them at least). But then Lygendary (instagram- female retro gamer- if you're into that, look her up) just happens to put this book on her story. Then, boom! It's in my hands, it's mine now. 

The power of instagram, everybody. 

Girl, Woman, Other is a collection of short stories. Mostly women, mostly black, telling the stories of their families, friendships, lovers and past experiences. I've heard phenomenal things, so I get the feeling that if I'm in the right mindset for it, it just might make my favourites list of 2024. I can't wait to sink my teeth into this one. 

9. Cogheart, by Peter Bunzl 

Cogheart. This series has been around a while, but I still fail to pick it up. I don't know what changed to make me want to finally purchase it, but I know something definitely did. 

Cogheart is the first in a four book series, and it follows Lily in her pursuit for the truth as for where her father has disappeared to, why silver-eyed men stalk her in the middle of the night, and what the heck they want from her? Enlisting the help of her friend Robert- the clockmaker's son, and Malkin- her mechanical fox, Lily is plunged into a murky and unfamiliar world. Too late to do anything, Lily realises that those she holds dear may well be the very ones to break her heart... 

I've never read anything by Peter Bunzl, so it'll be interesting to see how I gel with his story-telling and writing style, not to mention his characters. 

10. A Monster Calls, by Patrick Ness

Okay, confession time. I've been an idiot. When all the hype arrived for this, because there was a movie coming out, I dug my heels in and refused to read even a page of this. But after reading the premise, I've admitted defeat. This book truly sounds magnificent. I've come to this conclusion purely from reading the blurb and the review quotes. 

I've seen the words brave and compassionate tossed around a lot with this book, so I have a feeling I'm going to start ugly crying when I read this. 

Let me know in the comments what you thought, if you've read it. 

11. Near the Bone, by Christina Henry 

I had a stint of wanting to read nothing but Christina Henry back in 2019, and since then, I've sort of moved on to other types of books. I've looked at the odd Christina Henry book when I've been browsing the shelves, but nothing ever seeemed to jump out. Until I came across this... 

Near the Bone doesn't sound much like any fairytale I've come across, to be honest. It definitely sounds savage, dark and twisted, and that's all I need. There are some fantastic reviews online, and I can't wait to add to them, because I just know I'm going to love this. 

In a nutshell, Near the Bone is this:

1. Mattie and William live alone on a mountain. 

2. There's a creature roaming the woods. It makes sounds in the night, and has sharp clawd and teeth. 

3. Three strangers appear on the mountainside looking for the creature in the woods, which Melanie knows will anger William. 

I can't wait to pick this up. 

12. The White Queen, by Phillipa Gregory 

Okay, another book in a long series I know nothing about. But at least I now own a Philippa Gregory book. I can finally call myself a historical fiction fan now (only joking, I need a Hilary Mantel book for that haha). 

I actually got this at a car boot sale the sunday after my lake district holiday, but since it was only a day later, I figured it still counts. 

From what I've been told, Philippa Gregory's books about her tudor queens have action, politics, and less than admirable doings going on behind the scenes. That starts with Elizabeth Woodville, the White Queen. I'm not entirely sure when I'll be getting to this, but you can bet, after all these Lucinda Riley books I've been picking up, I'm going to want something to fill the void once I finish them all. I think this just might fit the bill. 

Okay! Those are all the books I accumilated in or around the lake district! If you've picked up any books recently and are excited to share them, let me know in the comments below! 

I'm going to bed now, cos it's 00:26 in the UK right now, but I hope you have a wonderful evening/ day, wherever you are! 

See you soon! 

Byeeeee! 

-Abi xxxxxx