Hey, y’all! It’s Lila, a.k.a. your favorite Holiday hobgoblin! HAPPY DECEMBER!!! We’re almost there, folks! We’ve almost made it through this crazy year, can you believe it?! It seems like just yesterday it was 2016!
Anyhoo, it’s time for my November wrap up. November was a pretty good month, in all regards. It had its ups and downs, but I made it through intact, so I guess that’s good, right? Lol! So now that I’ve come out the other side of November alive, let’s take a look back at the month…
Blogging Business
The only major change for the foreseeable future is that Maggie will be taking a bit of a break from blogging here at Hardcover Haven. It’s not for forever, but she is going through some personal stuff that makes co-blogging difficult at the moment. She will be returning as soon as she can, but until then, it’s gonna be just me and Claire on the job. As this is the case, I am currently contemplating either picking up another co-blogger or starting a guest post series. Nothing on that front is set in stone yet, but we’ll see where it goes, so definitely stay tuned!
POST FLASHBACK
- Lila reviewed Avenged by Amy Tintera
- Lila discussed books she feels deserve more appreciation
- Lila reviewed Dividing Eden by Joelle Charbonneau
- Lila made some #BookBlogger confessions
- Lila did the Book Bloggers Test
- Lila did the #Diverse8 Book Tag
Reading Wrap Up + Mini Reviews
I’m sad to report that I didn’t read anything this past month. My TBR is currently accepting thoughts and prayers. 😭 😭 😭
Book Haul
BOUGHT/WON
RECEIVED FOR REVIEW
TBR
Music Favorites
https://open.spotify.com/user/thebookkeeperssecrets/playlist/0kyxUB6S42fFIoF3NXF61Z
Movies/TV Favorites
I finally saw Spider-Man: Homecoming and I LOVED it! It was the perfect mix of action-packed and adorkably awkward. I think the filmmakers hit the “teenager” notes perfectly–not only did all of the characters look like teens, but the scriptwriters and actors did a fantastic job at making the characters talk and act like teens too! I love that almost every character with a speaking part was a person of color and I particularly adored the addition of Michelle’s character, I think she was definitely a highlight of the film for me! All in all, if you have the chance to see Spider-Man: Homecoming, I’d say to go for it!
Around The Booknet
- The gals at YA Wednesdays taught us about ways you can support an author while you’re on a budget
- Lashaan at Bookidote revealed why he reads
- 24hryabookblog recommended podcasts based on what YA books you like
- Katie at Never Not Reading explained why she dislikes used books
- The ladies at Pages Unbound created a quiz so you can find out which female character from Murder on the Orient Express you are
- Beth at Reading Every Night asked why there are more female protagonists than male
- Heather at The Sassy Book Geek talked about what makes her DNF a book
- Kourtni at Kourtni Reads discussed opinions changing over time
- Fadwa at Word Wonders gave us a look into how she reviews books
- Marie at Drizzle And Hurricane Books reflected on blogging stats, letting them define you, popularity, and more
- Izzi at Ravenclaw Book Club thought about why people read book blogs
- Melanie at MNBernard Books explored stress and reading
- Shanah at Bionic Book Worm wondered if you read reviews before you buy books
News
- Maggie Stiefvater gave us a sneak peak of her upcoming Raven Cycle short story and new tarot card
- Cassandra Clare revealed that she is writing a new Adult high fantasy series which is wholly separate from the Shadowhunters world
- Becky Albertalli’s Leah on the Offbeat got a cover
- The trailer for Love, Simon (the adaptation of Becky Albertalli’s Simon VS The Homo Sapiens Agenda) was revealed
Life Events
The only major event that happened in November was that 🎉 🎉 🎉 I HAD MY 23RD BIRTHDAY! 🎉 🎉 🎉
I had a really quiet birthday this year, but it was still good and I had a great time with my family and some friends. I don’t feel much different save for the fact that the dreaded Existential Aging Terror has set in, lol! Looking back, I think 22 was a pretty good year–it was full of lots of personal growth and I feel like I made a ton of tiny, but still significant, strides. I’m hoping that 23 is just as good, if not better! For now, I’m just focusing on enjoying one day at a time, though!
Hardcover Haven 
Thanks for the mention! And I can’t wait to see what you think about The City Of Brass. It’s been getting so much buzz recently!
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no problem, shanah! i’m actually reading The City of Brass right now and ohmygosh i love it so, so, so much!
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Invictus is SO GOOD – I hope you’ll enjoy it! I need to read This Mortal Coil soon. Happy belated birthday, btw! And thanks for mentioning my post 🙂
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thanks, kourtni! i’ve heard so much praise for both Invictus and This Mortal Coil, so i’m super excited to get to them and i can’t wait to discuss my feels with y’all!
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Oh gosh, thank you so much for the shout-out!!! ❤ I truly appreciate that. 🙂 Also, HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY!!! Pretty cool to see you've reached my age!! 😛 Hope you had a wonderful birthday, but by the looks of it, you sure did have a wonderful month though!! 😀
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sure thing, lashaan! haha, thank you for the birthday wishes, m’dear! yay for fellow 23-year-olds–here’s to being an “adult” and *still* having no clue what on earth you’re doing, lol!
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Happy birthday! I hope you’re having a great December!
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thank you, m’dear 🙂 i hope your december is wonderful as well!
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Thank you so much for linking to my post, I’m glad you liked it! And also happy belated birthday! 😊
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no problem, it was a great post! thank you for the birthday wishes 🙂
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Wooow! There is so much here! How comprehensive and it’s very cool that you’re highlighting so many awesome bloggers. (Thank you, by the way. 😀 ) You were very busy in November. I commend you for that!
And I’m a November birthday girl, too! 😀 Yay! Happy late birthday to you!
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thanks melanie and it was no problem at all to feature your wonderful post! yay for november babies and happy belated birthday to you–i hope yours was magical!
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Hahaha! Thank you. I stayed home and worked on a puzzle. Most relaxing birthday I’ve had in a few years. Hee hee! :p
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that sound like heaven!
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HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY, Lila! I hope you had an amazing day 🙂
You have such a great TBR for this month, I hope you will love City of Brass, I keep hearing great things about this book 🙂
Thank you so, so much for sharing my post, I’m so glad you enjoyed it ❤ Wishing you a great December! xxx
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thank you so much, marie! The City of Brass seems to be a fan favorite–and i can totally see why because as far as i’ve currently read, it’s STELLAR (i mean, at this point it would take something drastic to drag the book downhill, but i don’t think i have anything to worry abut lol)!
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Oh I’m so happy you’re loving it so much! It sounds so, SO good, I can’t wait to read it 🙂
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Oh happy birthday for last month, I hope you had a brilliant day filled with bookish presents! 😀 Also thanks so much for featuring my post in your recap, I’m glad you enjoyed it enough to feature it. 🙂
You got some really great books in November, The City of Brass is currently one of my favourite reads of the year so I really hope you love that one, also I’m glad to see your really enjoyed Spiderman: Homecoming. I saw that at the cinema when it was released and oh it was just such a great film.
Again thanks for featuring my post, and great recap as well. 😀 ❤
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thank you, beth! so far i’m really loving The City of Brass! it’s really magical, and as someone who is part arab myself, i’m loving the rep, which i think chakraborty did a great job on! thanks for stopping by!
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That’s all right, and that’s great to hear. Here’s hoping you’ll continue enjoying The City of Brass, it’s great there’s representation for you in this book Lila. 🙂
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Thanks for including me! I feel so special. ❤
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sure thing!
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