November was the month of audiobooks. I finished a few physical things, but mostly audiobooks saved me. I mentioned that I wanted to read Words of Radiance on my tbr. I did pick it up but with the Thanksgiving holiday rush and sickness I haven’t made it as far as I wanted. So while I worked my way through it physically I worked on the audiobooks on my commute to work. Let’s get to my November 2022 wrap up.
The Turn of the Screw
Synopsis:
The Turn of the Screw tells of a nameless young governess sent to a country house to take charge of two orphans, Miles and Flora. Unsettled by a dark foreboding of menace within the house, she soon comes to believe that something malevolent is stalking the children in her care. But is the threat to her young charges really a malign and ghostly presence or something else entirely?
My Rating: 2/5
My Full Review: https://wildwoodreads.com/2022/11/09/the-turn-of-the-screw-review/
Hemlock Hollow
Synopsis:
Caroline McAlister, college professor and life-long skeptic, is reeling from the loss of her father and her marriage. Her once promising career has come to a standstill. When her father bequeaths the family cabin to her, it comes with a ghost who haunted her childhood. When she discovers a century-old journal in the attic, she awakens the voice of Carson Quinn. The journal reveals Carson’s love for the same hollow that enthralled Caroline growing up. A little sleuthing uncovers rumors that the kind, curious boy in the journal grew up to murder his brother. Caroline plunges into the project of exonerating Carson, only to find herself in the throes of a personal past she’s spent her life trying to avoid. Hemlock Hollow is about how we forever haunt the places we love and how they haunt us in return.
My Rating: 5/5
My Full Review: https://wildwoodreads.com/2022/11/23/hemlock-hollow-review/
Witch Hat Atelier Vol 1
Synopsis:
In a world where everyone takes wonders like magic spells and dragons for granted, Coco is a girl with a simple dream: She wants to be a witch. But everybody knows magicians are born, not made, and Coco was not born with a gift for magic. Resigned to her un-magical life, Coco is about to give up on her dream to become a witch…until the day she meets Qifrey, a mysterious, traveling magician. After secretly seeing Qifrey perform magic in a way she’s never seen before, Coco soon learns what everybody knows might not be the truth, and discovers that her magical dream may not be as far away as it may seem…
My Rating: 4/5
My Full Review: I picked this manga up on a whim because it looked fun. And I was right. It was a lot of fun and set up an interesting premise for volumes to come. I hope the world develops a little more the more the story develops.
Audiobooks
My Story
Synopsis:
In this memoir, Elizabeth Smart reveals how she survived and the secret to forging a new life in the wake of a brutal crime. On June 5, 2002, fourteen-year-old Elizabeth Smart, the daughter of a close-knit Mormon family, was taken from her home in the middle of the night by religious fanatic Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee. Elizabeth was kept chained, dressed in disguise, repeatedly raped, and told she and her family would be killed if she tried to escape. After her rescue on March 12, 2003, she rejoined her family and worked to pick up the pieces of her life.
My Rating: 5/5
My Full Review: I have been really interested in true crime most of my life. And Elizabeth Smart’s case was one that I remember from a very early age. This memoir was so interesting. I remembered a lot of details of the case, but this really delved into how she felt at the time. It got a little deeper than just the facts of the case. Her faith and resolve at such a young age and even now is astounding. This was such a good read.
The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher
Synopsis:
In June of 1860 three-year-old Saville Kent was found at the bottom of an outdoor privy with his throat slit. The crime horrified all England and led to a national obsession with detection, ironically destroying, in the process, the career of perhaps the greatest detective in the land.
My Rating: 4/5
My Full Review: After reading My Story I wanted another true crime story. I found this one randomly on Libby. It Is about on the the first Victorian detectives and the crime that haunted him through his career. It was interesting and apparently several Victorian crime novels were based on this case. For the most part this was a fun read, but it did drag toward the middle. Overall, I enjoyed it.
Anxious for Nothing
Synopsis:
Anxious for Nothing, from pastor and New York Times bestselling author Max Lucado, provides a practical and powerful roadmap for battling with and healing from anxiety. Combining hopeful scripture with timeless stories, Max will equip you with the tools you need to overcome your anxieties, no matter what you’re facing.
My Rating: 3/5
My Full Review: Anxious for Nothing gives a lot of good Biblical advice, but it felt so repetitive. The first hour I listened to it I loved it, but quickly lost interest further in.
So that’s my November 2022 wrap up. What did you read this month?
