This Week In Books is a weekly update on what you’ve been reading hosted by Lipsyy Lost & Found . A similar meme is hosted by Sam @ Taking on a World of Words.
∧ Then ∧ Queen of Shadows, Sarah J. Maas / Snowflakes and Christmas Cakes, Lindsay Paley
The queen has returned.
Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she’s at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past…
She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight.
She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen’s triumphant return.
The fourth volume in the New York Times bestselling series continues Celaena’s epic journey and builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.
I never thought the day I’d say this would come but… I NEED the next book in the series NOW! I had little expectations for the 4th book, but Maas proved me she finally knew where she was going, and without the constant reminder of the “fantastic” smell of the Faes, I would have given it 4 and a half star. Seriously, don’t use “smell” that often in a book.
When all-round buttercream princess, Millie Carter, becomes stranded at Craiglea Manor Cookery School, she believes her chance of enjoying a merry festive season is over.
The village of Aisford is Christmas-card perfect, but Millie hates it – she hates the snow, her freezing fingertips, and being forced to look like her Aunt Marjory in a mud-splattered wax jacket and wellies instead of her beloved shorts and sparkly sandals.
She plots her escape but ends up locking spatulas with the estate manager, Fergus McKenzie, who is forced to rescue her before she succumbs to a severe dose of hyperthermia. Things start to improve with the arrival of handsome Sam Morgan, fresh from the beaches and rum shacks of the Caribbean.
Can Millie accept her fate? And will Aisford sprinkle some of its seasonal magic on her troubles?
Snowflakes and Christmas Cakes is a festive story of love and friendship and reaching for the buttercream icing and edible glitter when life gets tough.
As I am part of the blog tour, I’ll keep my thoughts to myself for the moment!
≈ Now ≈ A Suitable Lie, Michael J. Malone / Lolita (I swear I’m reading it now)
Andy Boyd thinks he is the luckiest man alive. Widowed with a young child, after his wife dies in childbirth, he is certain that he will never again experience true love. Then he meets Anna. Feisty, fun and beautiful, she’s his perfect match, and she loves his son like he is her own. When Andy ends up in the hospital on his wedding night, he receives his first clue that Anna is not all that she seems. Desperate for that happy-ever-after, he ignores it—a dangerous mistake that could cost him everything.
As a reward for finishing two ARCs in a row and for opening Lolita again, I jumped on A Suitable Lie, a cover love I was drawn to very recently. It feels good to be back home! I’m 40% in and I am loving it!
∨ Next ∨ ????????????????????
Between assigned books and mood picks, I have no idea what will be next!
Have you read any of these books? What is on your list this week?
Do share in the comments
Happy reading!
Meggy's Bookish Corner 
I’ve read Queen of Shadows which I really enjoyed! I love Sarah J Maas! I hope you enjoy your reading this week. 🙂
LikeLike
Queen of Shadows was a real surprise for me, I never thought I’d enjoy a book in that series this much! Thank you 🙂 I’m so happy to have A Suitable Lie to escape Lolita, haha!
LikeLike
Yes it is a necessity that you read Empire of Storms. I know what you mean about the ‘smell’ thing though, I find it a little off-putting lol. The other books look interesting, will add to my TBR pile 🙂
LikeLike
I think I will wait a little for my expectations to lower a bit and give the book a real chance, but I will read it either for Christmas or in early January between two exams! 🙂 So happy I’m not the only one having a problem with the smell, haha! Great! I hope you enjoy them if you get to read them! Happy reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s an eclectic mix this week – good to see some variety. Happy Reading
LikeLike
The busier my schedule, the more mixed my readings to avoid the burnout! 🙂 Happy reading to you too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Happy to hear you found book love for Maas :-). Your mention of ‘smell’ reminds me suddenly that I never got any further than chapter 3 of Suskind’s book (Perfume), but I don’t know if it was his writing style or the whole focus on the smells. A suitable lie is more my kind of read, I’m very interested in hearing more about that one! You’d almost be afraid to be married because it always starts when you’re hitched 😉 or moving in together.
LikeLike
I took my time but I’m finally enjoying Maas’ story a lot! 🙂 I never read Perfume, but my hubby did and loved it. Smell is not my favorite sense, haha! I am enjoying A Suitable Lie a LOT, it’s a pleasure to come back to the story every night, even if as you can guess, it’s not a happy one. The advice you get from all those domestic noirs is to NEVER GET MARRIED! Ever. When nicely done, I love how authors turn a happy thing (marriage) into a dark tailspin.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am currently reading Queen of Shadows… I’m kind of bored so far but only 100 pages in. Hopefully it’s better than Heir of Fire…
LikeLike
I enjoyed the entire book this time, but it does seem a little slow at the beginning. I had been told the last 100 pages were worth it, and I totally agree! I hope you’ll enjoy the rest of it 🙂
LikeLike
As someone who enjoyed Throne of Glass more than most, I am super excited to here you say you want more at the later point int the series!
LikeLike
I don’t know what happened, I stopped complaining, I started frenetically reading page after page, and now I want more! But I’m afraid that if I yield now and get the next book, the wait will be harder once I’m done!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha! I am feeling extremely hopeful since I loved the first. But I know what you mean about hesitating with the next book. I have done this before with other series.
LikeLike
I really like the sound of A Suitable Lie. It sounds like a domestic thriller but with reversed roles. I can’t wait to read your review. Happy reading!
LikeLike
It’s exactly what A Suitable Lie is 🙂 The book caught my eye on Twitter, and I instantly knew it was for me. I just can’t wait to find time to finish it this weekend. I never realized I was looking for a perfect male protagonist to come and bring something different to the genre. Now I found him! Happy reading!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did really enjoy Queen of Shadows, it was a little on the long side but the ending was wow. I was a little disappointed by the next book but I think it’s building to an epic conclusion.
I totally believe you’re reading Lolita 🙂
LikeLike
The beginning felt a little slow, but I still found it to be better than the previous books 🙂 I’m sorry to hear the next was a bit of a disappointment for you, I heard her series goes this way, one great, one in preparation of the next to come, one great, one in prep of the next… I hope my expectations won’t ruin the rest of the series for me!
Lolita is killing me 🙂
LikeLike
Glad to see that you enjoyed QoS, its probably my favorite of the series. I love it so much
LikeLike
I never expected it to be so good! 🙂 I even forgot to complain. I hope the next book won’t disappoint me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
fingers crossed 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
A Suitable Lie sounds awesome! I’ve read so many good reviews for it. I’ll be looking out for yours. She uses smell that much in one book? Grrr! I hate when authors constantly describe how someone smells. It’s so annoying. 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s brilliant! I hate saying that before reaching the end in case I jinx it and I’m left disappointed, but I love the writing, and having a male main character adds originality to the author’s story. YES, it looks like smell is the only sense Maas knows. It’s too weird and adds nothing to the story. I want to cut their noses now. All of them. Last night, my mom was cooking and said “smell this”, I ran away 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I can’t wait to read it. 🙂 I hate smells in books. Or when they compare a man’s smell to the woods. Yuck! Haha! No more smells. Mom is torturing you. 😂
LikeLike
Haha so how many pages of Lolita are read? A Suitable Lie sounds good as that Anna sounds a bit dangerous!
LikeLike
Only 63 pages! 😀 I’m back to the passage that made me DNF it in February. I feel there is a reason why my brain just won’t read it, so I might skip this assigned read if it becomes too painful! I am having issues putting A Suitable Lie down every night, it is such an engrossing story!
LikeLike
Love these covers!!
LikeLike
I mixed genres quite a bit this week 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Good for you! I normally stay within one genre.
LikeLike
I also loved Queen of Shadows!! One of my favorites of that series. I’m interested in hearing your thoughts on Empire of Storms. A Suitable Lie sounds different and great. Will you be doing a review on it? Glad you’re loving it!
LikeLike
I think I’ll keep Empire of Storm for Christmas, it sounds like the right book for the holidays, as I’ll be studying for my exams in January and in dire need of a good distraction! Yes, I’ll be reviewing A Suitable Lie, I’ll finish it this weekend so the review will be up in two weeks! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
awesome!!!! Good luck with your exams =)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
“Seriously, don’t use ‘smell’ that often in a book.”
Ha! Oh, that’s awful. But hurray for the series developing a clear direction and purpose! I hope the fifth and sixth books blow you away (with as few repetitions of ‘smell’ as physically possible). =)
LikeLike
Someone should forbid Maas to use the S word!!! I feel like reading a different series, things have changed a lot 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you enjoyed Queen of Shadows! Sarah J. Maas’s books for me have kept getting better and better so I’m glad you’re liking the series more than you were when you read the first book. Luckily the fifth has been released so you don’t have to wait for that one, do you plan to read Empire of Storms soon? Fair warning the ending for that book will make you so desperate for the sixth book it is unreal! 😀
LikeLike
Oh oh, thanks to your warning I might put off reading the next book! I hate the wait for a new release! I never planned on catching up, oops! I was thinking about reading Empire of Storm for Christmas 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
If you can stand to wait to read the fifth book I would recommend doing that, because trust me you won’t be able to wait for the sixth!
Yeah I’m like that, a lot of the time I try to wait for series to be finished before starting them but other times it never seems to work out that way! 🙂
LikeLike
Rewarding ourselves is so important! I’m currently down to a handful of ARCs to read and review and once I’m down I will swear off them for a while! Like 3-6 months. lol. I’m not a fast enough reader to keep requesting ARCs or accepting review copies when I also have a huge book-buying addiction.
LikeLike
Same here, I cut back on ARCs (says the girl who accepted a review request yesterday xD) because my book buying has been out of control and those poor books are gathering dust!
LikeLike
yay *claps hands with glee*- so glad you enjoyed Queen of Shadows!!! (haha now you’ve pointed it out, I’m always gonna notice the word smell in her books though!)
LikeLike
Smell is everywhere. Everywhere. Does she know other senses exist????
LikeLiked by 1 person
hahahaha well that could be equally bad- I once read a book where someone was obsessed with sound- specifically silence… It was a good book- but the descriptions got old really fast!
LikeLike
Lesson learnt: no obsession on any senses is okay!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahaha true 😉
LikeLike
So how IS Lolita coming alone?! xD
LikeLike
It’s not xD I’m stuck where I DNFed the book in February! My brain refuses to go past p63. I’m seriously considering skipping this assigned read!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh noes!! Try playing 500 miles while reading it is all I can think of now 😉
LikeLike
I would be to busy dancing to read :p
LikeLiked by 1 person
I totally agree about the ‘smell’ thing!! Queen Of Shadows was a great book though… Spoiler alert: book five is nowhere near as good unfortunately. 😦 Fingers crossed you will enjoy it better though!
LikeLike
Oh no! Well, I should adjust my expectations to my experience with the previous books instead of basing them on Queen of Shadows!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Definitely start with low expectations and be prepared for a whole lot of romance…
LikeLike
Oh no. Exactly what I was dreading!
LikeLiked by 1 person