Is it midway through December already? Is there only a week until Christmas? Wow.
I am finally finished with the first semester of my sophomore year at UMass Dartmouth, after barely making it out of finals week alive. The cold weather has only just begun, and I’ve already drunk a few several hot chocolates in the past two weeks alone. The Christmas tree is decorated, my fireplace is almost always turned on, and for the next month, I finally get to spend time with my family, friends and…
MY BOOKS.
Oh, how I’ve missed spending countless hours of each day curling up with a good book and thinking about fiction (because sometimes life just loves to hand you curveballs that you’re not at all ready to deal with). I remember how during my sophomore year of high school, I spent so much time reading, that I actually read 20 books in the month of April alone.
I am without a doubt, the person in my family who not only reads the most, but has the most books. I am (at least in my mind) the easiest person to buy presents for, because my go-to-gift has been the same since at least the first or second grade.
Books.
Books are the present that you can gift me, and if you want to get me something else-
Books and chocolate.
So finally, finally after a long hardworking semester, I can curl up on the couch with a soft blanket and read-read until my eyes can’t stay open and my neck won’t hold my head up any longer.
Believe it or not, I haven’t finished a single book (unless you count a college textbook) in the last four months.
But now,
Now I can read!
And so in honor of the next month where I will read, read, read and spend the only other activity that does not include reading-write (because an author is never finished writing unless she is finished breathing) here are some of my favorite books and authors (in no particular order, because I simply can’t rank them)
I’m currently reading “The Wish” by Nicholas Sparks. My grandmother bought this book for me about two months ago, and I’ve yet to finish it. It’s one of those books where you know how it’s going to end (or at least, you know that you’ll be crying before the final page, and then some) but even so, you can’t put it down.
“10 Days” by Jule Selbo. This is a book that I started to read during the semester (and yes, I’m one of those crazy people who tries to read multiple books at the same time) but couldn’t finish due to finishing papers, projects and having slightly-mild-almost-panic-attacks-at-the-thought-of-failing-classes (which thankfully, I managed not to do). I haven’t gotten very far, but as a new member of the crime and mystery genre, I’m already hooked. The story is about a policewoman who’s trying to locate the daughter of man who created a huge tech company (so both dad and daughter are like, super-rich) who basically announced that she’s getting married, and then fell off the face of the Earth. The “high tech heiress” is super hard to find, and if that weren’t enough-the policewoman is also recovering from a slightly-but-not-really-so-slightly-case-of
-leg amputation.
Yeah, minor detail.
I’m also going to read “Judge Hartwell” by J.A. McIntosh. I haven’t started this book, so all I know about is that a judge is trying to find out who killed her sessions clerk, and why.
I should be able to finish three novels in a month, right?
If you know me at all, you’ll know that I am seriously addicted to reading, and you’ll say that I can do this.
If you know me really well, you won’t even be surprised when I tell you that I’ve already ordered even more books, and hope to finish them before the Spring 2022 semester starts.
I, Annie Grace Bellassai, do solemnly swear to read as much as I can, and in doing so, swear off nearly all other activities (except for the occasional spending time with friends and family because believe it or not, I’m not entirely the introvert that I used to be) until I lose my brain, or have to go back to the real-world.
So, what other books will I try to read?
“The Bridgertons: Happily Ever After.” By Julia Quinn. I’ve read the 8-book series where Quinn tells the story of how eight siblings each find romance in the 1800s (my favorites are Books 3 and 8) and can’t wait to read this new book where Quinn writes what happened after each of their stories ended.
P.S.-I 100% recommended the Bridgerton books.
I’m also going to read “The Nightingale” by Kristen Hannah, a book that one of my best friends recommended to me, but because of college, stress, life etc. I haven’t been able to start it (it’s arriving today though)!
Books. Oh how I love them.
That’s all for now! If anyone has any other book recommendations for me, feel free to comment below!
Happily Holidays everyone. Now that I’m finished with the semester, hopefully, I’ll be able to post more often (even though I’ll probably spend most of my time reading).
-Annie G.B.
Taylor's Bond 