The Newest Additions to My Bookshelf | The “post” Christmas Bookhaul!

2020 started very well for my bookbuying addiction. I received a few books for Christmas, my “Black Friday” buys finally arrived, and I also treated myself to some more books from the thrift bookshop. I think I will need to implement a rule soon when it comes to book buying at the thrift shop – to only purchase new books after finishing the ones I bought. Otherwise, I can see my TBR shelf getting out of control very quickly.

As of right now, I have approximately 78 unread books on my physical TBR. Considering that I’ve been reading mostly ARCs and E-books in December and January, and probably will continue this trend in February and March, this will become a BIG problem in 2020.

But let’s not talk about the downsides of book hauls, and instead focus on new and shiny books!

I’m joining the Top Ten Tuesday meme today and featuring the Ten Most Recent Additions to My Bookshelf.

USED BOOKS

ALL THE MISSING GIRLS by megan miranda

It’s been ten years since Nicolette Farrell left her rural hometown after her best friend, Corinne, disappeared from Cooley Ridge without a trace. Back again to tie up loose ends and care for her ailing father, Nic is soon plunged into a shocking drama that reawakens Corinne’s case and breaks open old wounds long since stitched.

The decade-old investigation focused on Nic, her brother Daniel, boyfriend Tyler, and Corinne’s boyfriend Jackson. Since then, only Nic has left Cooley Ridge… more

elizabeth is missing by emma healey

Maud’s been getting forgetful. She keeps buying peach slices when she has a cupboard full, forgets to drink the cups of tea she’s made and writes notes to remind herself of things. But Maud is determined to discover what has happened to her friend, Elizabeth, and what it has to do with the unsolved disappearance of her sister Sukey, years back, just after the war.

A fast-paced mystery, an unforgettable voice: you will laugh and cry but you’ll never forget Maud… more

the essex serpent by sarah perry

Moving between Essex and London, myth and modernity, Cora Seaborne’s spirited search for the Essex Serpent encourages all around her to test their allegiance to faith or reason in an age of rapid scientific advancement. At the same time, the novel explores the boundaries of love and friendship and the allegiances that we have to one another. The depth of feeling that the inhabitants of Aldwinter share are matched by their city counterparts as they strive to find the courage to express and understand their deepest desires, and strongest fears… more

NEW BOOKS

THE TOLL (arc of a scythe #3) by neal shusterman

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own… more

THE SECRET COMMONWEALTH (THE BOOK OF DUST #2) BY PHILIP PULLMAN

Malcolm Polstead is the kind of boy who notices everything but is not much noticed himself. And so perhaps it was inevitable that he would become a spy…

Malcolm’s father runs an inn called the Trout, on the banks of the river Thames, and all of Oxford passes through its doors. Malcolm and his dæmon, Asta, routinely overhear news and gossip, and the occasional scandal, but during a winter of unceasing rain, Malcolm catches wind of something new: intrigue… more

the song of achilles by madeline miller

Greece in the age of heroes. Patroclus, an awkward young prince, has been exiled to the court of King Peleus and his perfect son Achilles. Despite their differences, Achilles befriends the shamed prince, and as they grow into young men skilled in the arts of war and medicine, their bond blossoms into something deeper – despite the displeasure of Achilles’s mother Thetis, a cruel sea goddess. But when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, Achilles must go to war in distant Troy and fulfill his destiny… more

uprooted by naomi novik

Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life.

Her people rely on the cold, ambitious wizard, known only as the Dragon, to keep the wood’s powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman must be handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as being lost to the wood… more

the song rising (the bone season #3) by samantha shannon

The year is 2059. Nineteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working in the criminal underworld of Scion London, based at Seven Dials, employed by a man named Jaxon Hall. Her job: to scout for information by breaking into people’s minds. For Paige is a dreamwalker, a clairvoyant and, in the world of Scion, she commits treason simply by breathing.

It is raining the day her life changes for ever. Attacked, drugged and kidnapped… more

a little life by hanya yanagihara

When four classmates from a small Massachusetts college move to New York to make their way, they’re broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition. There is kind, handsome Willem, an aspiring actor; JB, a quick-witted, sometimes cruel Brooklyn-born painter seeking entry to the art world; Malcolm, a frustrated architect at a prominent firm; and withdrawn, brilliant, enigmatic Jude, who serves as their center of gravity. Over the decades, their relationships deepen and darken, tinged by addiction, success, and pride… more

city of girls by elizabeth gilbert

In 1940, nineteen-year-old Vivian Morris has just been kicked out of Vassar College, owing to her lackluster freshman-year performance. Her affluent parents send her to Manhattan to live with her Aunt Peg, who owns a flamboyant, crumbling midtown theater called the Lily Playhouse. There Vivian is introduced to an entire cosmos of unconventional and charismatic characters, from the fun-chasing showgirls to a sexy male actor, a grand-dame actress, a lady-killer writer, and no-nonsense stage manager. But when Vivian makes a personal mistake that results in professional scandal… more

Have you read any of these books? Which one should I read first?
Let me know in the comments below!

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47 thoughts on “The Newest Additions to My Bookshelf | The “post” Christmas Bookhaul!

  1. Yaas, I’m loving this list! A Little Life, Song of Achilles, and Uprooted are some of my faaves! I hope that you enjoy all of these reads 🙂 Also, I’m currently reading The Toll and I’m almost finished with it. This series is just 💜Great list, Alex!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you! So glad to hear that you loved some of these books! I feel like Uprooted will be a perfect book for me, as well as the Song of Achilles. And I’m a bit scared of A Little Life – the edition I got is HUGE and has the tiniest font. Lol

      Like

      1. Oh Alex… I’ve so been there. I mean I’m still there. I am always borrowing library books and reading them instead of the books I actually own ooops!

        Liked by 1 person

  2. I have read All the Missing Girls, and I remember really liking it, but now I can’t remember much about it. 😉 I have The Song of Achilles on my tbr for 2020 too! I hope you enjoy these, and I’ll be anxious to hear what you thought.

    My Top Ten Tuesday

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Yaay! It was really unique with it beig told backwards. It took some getting used to since you constantly have to remind yourself that what you just read in the previous chapter hasn’t happened yet in the current chapter. A bit tricky! Once you get into it I think it’s great 🙂 Hope you’ll enjoy it too.

        Liked by 1 person

  3. Wooof A Little Life was long and heartbreaking, but SO good! I wouldn’t recommend starting it just yet, you really gotts be in the right mindset for that!
    I didn’t enjoy Uprooted, but I hope you like it more than I did. I just couldn’t get into it.
    The second Book of Dust book!! I still gotta read that, but when I saw the size of it… I was like I’m not ready just yet haha! I hope it’s just as good as the first! 😀

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Uprooted and Song of Achilles are SO good!! Then again, I feel like this list is exclusively populated with great reads, even the ones I haven’t had the chance to read yet (like A Little Life!)

    Liked by 1 person

  5. Oh, my. You actually *counted* all your physical unread books. *insert horrified expression here* Why would you do that to yourself?! If I don’t know how many it is, I can totally just tell myself that sure, it LOOKS like a lot, but that’s just because I read big books. Pffft. Surely it’s not as bad as it looks. But when you have a number, it’s kind of concrete and hard to lie to yourself. xD

    I really liked The Toll! Hope you do, too. And I really need to read The Song of Achilles. I’ve heard it’s great.

    Here’s my TTT post.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Ahaha, I had this great idea to add all of my physical TBR to one goodreads shelf, so when I want to do some monthly challenges, etc, it would be easier to sort the books out the way I need them to. 😀 But I didn’t add ALL of them, there are still 2 shelves I haven’t gone through, and don’t think I will. Haha

      Liked by 1 person

  6. “Book of Dust” … HIGH PRIORITY this year ha-ha! I was gonna re-read the trilogy, but I think I’m just going to hop into the books … especially since I’ve re-read the trilogy 4 times now?

    “Uprooted” has been on my list for quite a bit now, when everyone started posting reviews on it. Might pick that one up this year.

    “Song of Achilles” is a book I’ve been volun-told to read because it’s that good ha-ha!

    Great list, love!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Both books in the Book of Dust series are HUGE. I mean… could he write less words??? I’m kinda scared to start them. 😀

      Everyone seemed to love Uprooted and Song of Achilles, so my expectations are really high for these two. ❤

      Liked by 1 person

  7. When I found out that you could get really great books at thrift stores, my book buying got out of hand LOL. So I think that’s a good rule to have, haha. Great list! I just bought The Toll this month as well and I can’t wait to read it. Hopefully I can get some of these ARCs that I have read and reviewed, so I can start it. The Song Rising was so good!

    Liked by 1 person

        1. I’m exactly the same!
          That’s why I already DNF’d two books this year (only one was ARC). And by DNFing the one I wasn’t enjoying, I read another 2 that I really liked, so I think it worked out rather well. 😀
          Hope it gets more interesting soon!

          Liked by 1 person

  8. The Song of Achilles is so good!! I hope you enjoy it 😁 I also got The Toll recently, and I had planned on reading it immediately because of the cliffhanger in Thunderhead…and then I didn’t. So I think it’s probably going to join the large pile of physical books that are waiting to be read.

    Liked by 1 person

  9. The song of Achilles!!! Please!!! It’s wonderful and I absolutely loved it! Also, it’s really amazing you manage to find cool titles in a thrift bookstore – in Porto, I rarely do ): Good luck on finishing all the books in your TBR 😛

    Liked by 1 person

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