As the autumnal season loses its final leaves, we enter my favorite time of year: winter. With frosty weather, hot chocolate, Christmas and snow days, there is nothing more exciting to look forward to. For the November Book of the Month, I’ve decided to recommend three books that I think are the perfect reads for wintertime. Lets get into it!
1.) The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare:
I read The Infernal Devices trilogy eight years ago, and fell in love with it. I recently decided to return to the world of 1878 Shadowhunter London, and can say with the utmost certainty that this series is even better than I thought it was all those years ago.
“Clockwork Angel,” the first book in the series, follows Tessa Gray as she travels to London from New York to be with her brother. When she arrives, she is taken in by the Dark Sisters and forced to learn about the abilities she has — and doesn’t want. She is rescued by Will Herondale, and taken in by the London Shadowhunters. The story goes from there. Full of mystery, magic, romance and humor, The Infernal devices is perfect for any one looking to escape from reality this winter season.
2.) “Silence for the Dead” by Simone St. James:
I have learned many things about my reading taste this year, but the most shocking was my love for thriller and horror novels. Simone St. James is a master at her craft, effortlessly combining mysteries and supernatural with a romance subplot. Her novels are fast paced and exciting, keeping me on my toes from start to finish.
“Silence for the Dead” follows Kitty Weekes, a ‘nurse’ who goes to work at the Portis House, a remote mental hospital for soldiers after the Great War. While there she sees figures that don’t belong to any of the inmates, noises at night when everyone is asleep and mysteries that were never solved, but I wanted to be heard. She teams up with Jack Yates, the enigmatic patient of the house, in order to find out what happened to the former owners of the home — and why they seem adamant to harm those who live there now.
3.) “A Dowry of Blood” by S.T. Gibson:
If you are anything like me, you love a supernatural element to a story. But, do you know what else I love? Vampires. I wasn’t a fan of vampire stories until I read “A Dowry of Blood.”
Told in an epistolary form, “A Dowry of Blood” follows the story of one of Dracula’s brides from the time she meets him, until the day she decides his love isn’t worth the abuse and pain she goes through with him. An absolutely heartbreaking and beautiful tale, the story is perfect to curl up under a blanket after dark and read.
