This is it! January has officially set the tone for my reading adventures in 2025 and I am PUMPED! I’ve always loved reading but I dunno what happened over the past few months; I’ve just been absolutely smashing book after book. From July 2024 ’til December 2024 I ready THIRTEEN books. Wild! To be fair 7 of then where Harry Potter which I guess ignited this need-to-read (lol☺️) in the first place. All I know is I have to keep going at all costs. It seems like as each book ends some part of me changes because of it, sometimes a big part but sometimes small…and on a very rare occasion my entire soul is shifted.

Without further ado…the reviews 🙌🏽

Fangirl – Rainbow Rowell ⭐️⭐️ (2/5)

Coming-of-age, young adult literature

I wouldn’t go out of my way to read this one but if you happen upon it and have some time to kill, go for it. The writing style is good, the storyline is sweet and easily believable; my only problem was not being all that interesting in the life of a first year uni kid given that I’m a 30 year old women. This was just one of those books sitting on my shelf that I was curious about.

📖This story follows a girl through her first year of university where she steps into her identity-defining era. She’s always felt overshadowed by her social butterfly of a sister (who’s also her twin) and so tries to use this new start as a means of detachment without destruction. Oh, and there’s a boy she likes!

Human Acts – Han Kang ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 💫(4.5/5)

Historical and political fiction

It’s only February and I’m confidently prepared to say that this was likely my best read of the year! This historical fiction will have you queasy, teary and in disbelief but determined to carry on. The author doesn’t hold back in sharing every shameful little detail of a time when the Korean people were deeply and brutally betrayed by their own leaders.

📖The book shows the blunt reality of what took place in Gwangju (Korea) under martial law in 1980. Han Kang puts you front and centre as you follow stories from 6 six different view points through the same historical event. My favourite part being her personal account at the very end, having being from Gwangju herself.

*Disclaimer– this is a tough read with the vivid descriptions and emotionally heavy themes being consistent throughout.

The Vegetarian – Han Kang ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5/5)

Psychological fiction

Before anyone comes at me for my rating I need to admit, I’ve yet to have a discussion panel with my fellow bookworms about this one. I’m a little confused by the last few chapters (but maybe that was the point🤷🏽‍♀️). Other than my slight lack of understanding, man this was a great read! I was firmly on the edge of my seat finding myself too eager to turn pages to make sense of it all (in the best way of course). I should probably also mention I’m a total sucker for anything that sheds light on the blatant mistreatment, disinterest and gaslighting of women and what our lives entail, especially in Korea.

*fun fact, this author was the first Korean to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature

📖A beautiful yet haunting look at the life of a young Korean woman trapped in more ways than one. Her simple choice to become vegetarian turns out to be a choice that her family can’t to accept. The more insistent they become the further within herself she retreats.

Verity – Colleen Hoover ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5/5)

Psychological thriller, romance, suspense.

If you haven’t already heard about this one…stop everything you’re doing and hunt it down RIGHT NOW! When I tell you I could not put this book down, I mean it literally. I got through the whole thing in a day. Utterly gripping stuff! Colleen does an excellent job of placing you right in the moment with the characters, as if you’re living this story out alongside them. 

📖A not so well known writer is hired to take over a wildly popular series after the original author falls ill and a whole bunch a sh*t goes down when she has to move into the authors house to fully get into the mind set of completing the series.

If you’ve read any of these I’d really like to know if you agree with my reviews but, more importantly, I’d wanna know if you didn’t and why. I genuinely love hearing different perspectives of the same story.

Anyway, I’ve already got my next 4 books for February lined up, so keep an eye out for those reviews.