December wrap-up

Happy 2025! December is over, the new year is here, and 2024 wrap-ups are in full swing. But before we get to that blog post, it's time to take a look at my December reads. This month was full of long-forgotten series, surprises, and a mad dash to the finish line on December 31st, on which I finished 4 books! Absolute madness, I know! Anyway, without further ado, let's go over what I read last month...

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Unravel Me

Tahereh Mafi

⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Juliette has escaped. She has found the headquarters of the rebel resistance – and people like her. People with gifts. She is free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch. Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible."

Now, I read the first Shatter Me book in 2023, and to say I didn't enjoy it was an understatement (in fact, I slated it in my Hot or Not! blog post). I found the first book to be boring, so much so that I couldn't bring myself to read book 2... so it sat on my shelf for another year. Tbh, I probably wouldn't have given the series another chance, except I'd already bought the entire boxset and felt like I had to read them. And for once, I'm really glad I did!

Unravel Me is FAR better than its predecessor (and it's not even the best one in the series). Once I was 20% in I felt so much more immersed in the story and engaged with the characters. I grew to like Juliette, was desperate for Warner to appear again (purely for entertainment purposes - he's the most fun character by far) and was really enjoying the plotline. It felt like it had direction, and you were being swept along with the characters. Also something that I never noticed in Book 1 is just how beautiful Tahereh Mafi's writing is. You're in the mind of a socially exiled girl who spent 4 years in an asylum... and her metaphors and way of thinking are exquisite. The amount of book quotes I highlighted in this? Insane!

There were a couple of boring points (I hate Adam, he's such a dull love interest) but overall I thoroughly enjoyed this one, and was so pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it!

Fracture Me

Tahereh Mafi

⭐⭐⭐.5

"Watch through Adam's eyes as he bridges the gap between Unravel Me and Ignite Me. As the Omega Point rebels prepare to fight the Sector 45 soldiers, Adam is more focused on the safety of Juliette, Kenji, and his brother. The Reestablishment will do anything to crush the resistance … including killing everyone Adam cares about."

So this is book 2.5 in the Shatter Me series, aka the second novella. And it was fine, but not great, and not that important. I've read two of these novellas now and I think they serve two purposes:

1. To give you the POV of a different character

2. To bridge the events between two books

Neither of which are necessary for understanding the story - in fact, the brand-new details of the plot always get revealed in the first 100 pages of the next book. I actually think that the POV change is the more interesting part, allowing you to take a dive into the minds of our supporting cast. The first novella (which I read last year) allows you to see the thoughts of the villain, Warner. Fracture Me is unfortunately less interesting: this one is from the POV of Adam (aforementioned dull love interest) who I honestly couldn't care less about. So it was fine. Some details were interesting, but mostly it was just fine. My advice: skip the novellas.

Ignite Me

Tahereh Mafi

⭐⭐⭐⭐.25

"With Omega Point destroyed, Juliette doesn't know if the rebels, her friends, or even Adam are alive. But that won't keep her from trying to take down The Reestablishment once and for all. Now she must rely on Warner. The one person she never thought she could trust."

Guess who was obsessed with the Shatter Me series in December?! Not me! *wink wink*

Ignite Me was the best book in the series so far as Juliette really came into her own. Not only did she learn how to use her powers, but she decided from the start that she wasn't taking shit from anyone, especially Adam, and I was SO here for it! The developing romance between Juliette and Warner is really the star of the show in this one - a slow burn oozing with tension and unsaid feelings, I could not stop reading it purely because of them. Also, Aaron Warner's true motivations are fully revealed in this book, making him go from morally-grey-yet-suave, to the man of every book girlie's dreams, and I'm happy to report that I now understand the hype. The rest of the supporting cast were also great, and although it wasn't the most epic finale ever (this book is technically the end of the first trilogy), the plot was enjoyable with some good action scenes and fun displays of supernatural power.

Powerless

Lauren Roberts

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

"In the kingdom of Ilya, the Elites have possessed powers for decades, while those born Ordinary are just that, banished from the kingdom and shunned from society. When Paedyn Gray unsuspectingly saves one of Ilya's princes, Kai Azer, she's thrown into the Purging Trials. If the Trials don't kill her, the prince she's fighting feelings for will if he discovers what Paedyn is... completely Ordinary."

Despite starting this book in November, I didn't actually finish it until the very last day of the year (along with 3 other books - I had a reading goal, ok!). I have really mixed feelings about this one - to put it simply, I enjoyed the beginning, got bored in the middle, and then liked it again at the end.

To analyse this further, I think my enjoyment depended on my mood. What I mean by this is that Powerless is not a masterpiece by any means: it's full of tropes, stereotypical dialogue and very common fantasy plot points. Whether this falls into "cringey and uninspired" or "fun and swoonworthy" truly depended on how I was feeling - it's the kind of book you have to be in a certain mood to enjoy. Despite all that, my main criticism is that it's too long. If it had been 150 pages shorter and the plot had moved along quicker, I'm certain I would have enjoyed it more, especially in the middle where the momentum starts to dip (the first Hunger-Games-esque trial was far too drawn out). Overall, I'm not sure if I'd recommend it, but I'll probably finish the series at some point.

The Six Deaths of the Saint

Alix E Harrow

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

"The Saint of War spares the life of a servant girl so she can fulfill her destiny as the kingdom’s greatest warrior in this short story of love and loyalty."

This was a short story that I also completed on the last day of 2024 (reading goals!). Part medieval warfare, part fantasy time travel, it was a unique idea that was well executed in the short story format. The writing was beautiful and it told the story well in only 30 pages. A good read, but short stories are obviously harder to get invested in and care about, hence the 3.5-star rating. A good palate cleanser if you have Kindle Unlimited.

Taylor Swift and the Clothes She Wears

Terry Newman

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"Analysing the global pop music megastar through her expertly selected wardrobe and stage costumes, the fourth in Newman's stunning photographic series is an absolute must-own for any self-respecting Swiftie."

A 2023 Christmas present, it took me over a year to flick through this book, reading a page or two at a time. I finally decided to finish it in 2024 because I have more Taylor Swift books to read in 2025 (namely, Sarah Chapelle's Taylor Swift Style and Taylor's own The Eras Tour Book). This one was enjoyable, but not perfect. You could tell that the author had a lot of knowledge about fashion and fashion history, but not Taylor Swift - some details were inaccurate, which let the book down. I also wish it had been in chronological order of Eras; instead it moved back and forth throughout her career with no discernable structure. The fashion observations and information were brilliant, but I think you need someone who is also a long time Taylor fan to get this right.

Midwinter Murder

Agatha Christie

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"There's a chill in the air and the days are growing shorter... It's the perfect time to curl up in front of a crackling fireplace with this winter-themed collection from legendary mystery writer Agatha Christie. But beware of deadly snowdrifts and dangerous gifts, poisoned meals and mysterious guests."

My very last read of 2024 came in the form of this wintery Agatha Christie short story collection. This was such a fun and cosy read - one that has made me want to read more Agatha Christie in the future. I enjoyed seeing a variety of her fictional detectives - Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, of course, but I also loved Parker Pyne and Tommy & Tuppence. It was such a nice experience to just sit down and read a whole mystery in half an hour each day. Every story was intriuging and unique and I intend to read her other short story collections in the future!

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And that brings us to the end of 2024 - can you believe it?! I'm working hard on my yearly ranking, but you'll have to wait a teeny bit longer before it's done - who knew it was so hard to rank and review 50-odd books?! I'll be seeing you shortly for that, but for now, Happy New Year! I hope 2025 brings you a fabulous year of reading. <3