I keep saying it, but I’ll be saying it once again. This year is moving so incredibly fast, it’s already December! Last month, I wrote that October was such a disappointing month considering my reading and that I really hoped November would be better. I was partially right, because November was better in terms of quantity. In quality however, not so much. Without further ado, let’s take a look!

My monthly stats

In November, I finished 8 books. This is 50% more books than in October, so that’s a win! These 8 books made up a total of 2,630 read pages and 14.17 hours of audiobooks. One of these was actually acquired this month, so I mainly focused on my backlog. Compared to October, it took me equally as long to finish a book. The average time was 4 days. However, I read nearly every single day this month whereas many days have gone by without touching any book in October. When looking at the languages I read my books in, Dutch was pretty dominant. I only read 2 English books this month. I feel myself gravitating more towards translated literature, I think because that’s still a bit easier for me although I don’t have trouble with reading in English. Regarding genres, this month has been another mishmash of everything. Romance, literary fiction and fantasy are all thrown in the mix, with alternating results. My average rating for the month November is 3.06 stars.

My read books

1. This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan – This is my first book of the month and I picked it up because I was in desperate need of something I surely would enjoy. This is the second book in the “ Skyland” series, but can be read as a stand alone. I would strongly recommend to read them in publication order though as the characters from the other books will make an appearance. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿📱⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
2. Arcana Academy by Elise Kova – One of the biggest fantasy hypes of the summer and everyone was raging about it. Of course I had to take the plunge and the bar was set so high for me. However, it was pretty disappointing unfortunately. 🇳🇱📱⭐️⭐️⭐️
3. Crossroads by Devney Perry – Another book I had high expectations for. Last year I dug romance and I squeezed in some cowboy ones too. Some I enjoyed, some where just meh. Many people seem to love this author, so this is a recipe for high expectations. Unfortunately, I felt let down. It was enjoyable, but I wasn’t fully convinced. 🇳🇱📱⭐️⭐️⭐️
4. Home Front by Kristin Hannah – The Dutch publisher is (re)publishing older books by this author, so this 2012 novel came on my radar. I expected an emotional rollercoaster. Hannah’s potential shines through, but there was still a distant feeling that I didn’t feel with her later work. Still a good one though. 🇳🇱📱⭐️⭐️⭐️
5. The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan – Okay, I had forgotten about this book, although I only bought it a few months ago. I stumbled on it when I was deciding my next book. This is for fans of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid and Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry, but it can’t be compared. This book is the weaker one of the three. This is mainly because it’s a bit incoherent and it was hard to empathize with the characters. Fortunately it was an easy read. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿📱⭐️⭐️
6. Honor by Elif Shafak – I was eyeing another book by this author for a while already, but decided to read this older one first. Also a republished edition by the Dutch publisher, but the English title suits the storyline better. It took me a while before I figured out what direction the author was moving the story In, but once I got the hang of it, it was hard to put it down. I wasn’t too happy with the narration though, but this is only understandable when you’re a Dutch speaking person. 🇳🇱🎧⭐️⭐️⭐️,5
7. Very Bad Kings by Jane S. Wonda – Somehow I was convinced this book was fantasy, but it’s a very, very dark romance. Please check your trigger warnings before considering picking this book up. I’m not typically a dark romance reader, but I flew through this one in a breeze. Not really for the characters, but for the game that is being played. 🇳🇱📱⭐️⭐️⭐️
8. Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree – A book for a second chance! I read this some years ago in the end of winter transitioning into spring and that obviously is not the best time for books about lattes, coffee and cinnamon buns. Or for cozy books at all. Again, cozy is not my usual genre, but for now it was okay. An easy read with vibes which made me able to switch my brain off for a while. That was exactly what I was expecting and looking for at the moment. 🇳🇱📱⭐️⭐️⭐️

My bookhaul

1. Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber
2. The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer
3. Coldwire by Chloe Gong
4. Wild Reverence by Rebecca Ross
5. A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross
6. Very Bad Kings by Jane S. Wonda
7. Very Bad Elite by Jane S. Wonda
8. This Could Be Love by Lilly Lucas
9. For Whom the Belle Tolls by Jaysea Lynn
10. Warrior Princess Assassin by Brigid Kemmerer
11. The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst
12. Lessons in Falling by Selina Mae
13. Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao
14. Rebel Witch by Kristin Ciccarelli
15. Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree

I know I know, there were loads of book sales 😉

How was November for you? Do you have to take a reading sprint in order to hit your reading goal for the year?