THE TEN THOUSAND DOORS OF JANUARY by Alix E. Harrow

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Personal Rating: 5/10 C+

The premise/idea of this book was perfection, and I very much wanted to fall into the world of Doors with January and Love this story. But, in the end it didn't pull me in the way I expected and it didn't keep me the way I needed it to. The imagination to come up with this premise is genius, but the execution of the story took way too long to pull me in. I was not pulled in until at least page 150, and that's just too long. I know many people loved this story, including a good friend of mine. But it just wasn't for me.

I also read this with my husband who couldn't finish the story, he is not much of a reader and this just wasn't the right book for him. But I thought the adventures of January would be fun for us to read together.

I ended up rating this book 3 stars, I gave the premise 4 stars, the ending 3 Stars but the slow beginning 2 stars. If I wasn't reading the book with my husband I probably wouldn't have finished it honestly but since I stuck in and finished it, the ended was better than the beginning.

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THE FIVE: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Personal rating: B-

Let me first say that this book was very well done and super interesting. Hallie Rubenhold made it very clear that simply labelling these women as protestutes is short-sighted and incorrect (in several of the cases). I learned so much about London in the time of Jack the Ripper, as well as about these women themselves and at times it didn't feel like Non-Fiction. These women's lives were very interesting, each one unique and tragic in their own way. But i have to admit by the time I got to Mary Jane I was a bit burned out on information. And this is why I do believe that my rating may reflect more about how I read it and I will read it again one day - what I think is the right way - and update my review at that time to reflect.

To Explain:
There is a TON of information to absorb, all relevant and important to the time and these women's lives that it deserves proper time and reflection. when I re-read this book I will read it a chapter at a time over a longer period of time. Taking time to absorb and reflect before moving on to the next woman. when I re-read I will purchase a physical copy so that I can highlight, note, tag as needed within the book itself. I don't think that I will ever go back to the highlights in the kindle book for reflection.

I am still very happy that I read this book and were introduced properly to these interesting women.

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THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LARUE by V.E.Schwab

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
My GoodReads rating: 3 of 5 stars
(rounded down from 3.5)
My Personal rating: 7/10 (B) Enjoyable

I picked this up as a buddy read with a friend and had VERY high expectations. I had just come off of reading THE YEAR OF THE WITCHING by Alexis Henderson (if you haven't read it - you should!). I really did want more of the same eerie feeling from this book that was in THE YEAR OF THE WITCHING but it wasn't there. This book was definitely more contemporary, which is fine and it was a very good book - if maybe just a bit predictable in the end.

I do see what all the hype is about. I love the imagination of this story and the way it was written. It just fell a little short in what I needed in the moment - by no fault of the author. All in all - i enjoyed the story and will look to read more by V.E. Schwab. Nicely Done.

Can't wait to discuss with it with my buddy.

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THE YEAR OF THE WITCHING by Alexis Henderson

The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson
My goodreads rating: 4 of 5 stars

My Personal Rating: 8/10 (B+) GREAT!

This was the book that was exactly what I needed just at the right time. I love spooky reads and I love October spooky feelings and this one just hit it right where I needed it to. Although it may be technically YA - I would not hold it against this book.

Immanuelle was a strong independent female character who held the story completely on her own. I would love to see a map of Bethel because the author described it so vividly that I felt I could see it for myself and would love a comparison. This was a really well done book with great character development and a good amount of spookiness and witchcraft.

I hope that this becomes a series because I would immediately pick it up to see the future of Immauelle and Bethel.

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Doctor Sleep by Stephen King

Doctor Sleep by Stephen King
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I read THE SHINING (5 stars) last month and was so excited to grab this book and continue Danny’s story.

I read 30% and just had to stop. I was just so disappointed in this story. At 30% in I didn’t care about any of the characters and the 3 story lines were so obscure I didn’t care to see how they converged and ended. I am not one to stop a story midread but it took me a week to get to 30% and I just couldn’t continue.

It didn’t even feel like a Stephen King novel to me.

I struggled with if I should rate the book or not since I did not finish it, but ultimately decided to rate it because I spent a week attempting to read and care about this story. I do not hold this one against King and I will continue to read his stories as he is the master of horror. But I know that not every book he reads is going to be 5 Stars for me - and that's ok. View all my reviews