Telling Tales | The “oops, I did it again” Haul

So, this month I’ve been purchasing a lot of books, I will admit that. However, the reason behind it is due to the sheer amount of books that are on sale right now, or that have been released. This time, I managed to spend my Waterstones rewards on a few, managed to get more on sale in HMV and pre-ordered my favourites on Amazon. Anyways, enough of me trying to justify why I treated myself, onto the list!

This Winter | Alice Oseman

Goodreads Rating: 4.17
Series: Solitaire
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, LGBT, Short Stories, Fiction, Health, Mental Health, Novella, Queer
Summary: A short story, based on characters from Solitaire – praised as ‘The Catcher in the Rye for the digital age’ The Times
I used to think that difficult was better than boring, but I know better now…
I’m not going to think about the past few months, about Charlie and me, and all of the sad. I’m going to block it all out. Just for today.
“Happy Christmas, ” I say.
The festive season isn’t always happy for Tori and her brother Charlie. And this year’s going to be harder than most.

---

The Starless Sea | Erin Morgenstern

Goodreads Rating: 3.86
Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, Adult, Magical Realism, LGBT, Romance, Magic
Summary: When Zachary Rawlins stumbles across a strange book hidden in his university library it leads him on a quest unlike any other. Its pages entrance him with their tales of lovelorn prisoners, lost cities and nameless acolytes, but they also contain something impossible: a recollection from his own childhood.
Determined to solve the puzzle of the book, Zachary follows the clues he finds on the cover – a bee, a key and a sword. They guide him to a masquerade ball, to a dangerous secret club, and finally through a magical doorway created by the fierce and mysterious Mirabel. This door leads to a subterranean labyrinth filled with stories, hidden far beneath the surface of the earth.
When the labyrinth is threatened, Zachary must race with Mirabel, and Dorian, a handsome barefoot man with shifting alliances, through its twisting tunnels and crowded ballrooms, searching for the end of his story.
You are invited to join Zachary on the starless sea: the home of storytellers, story-lovers and those who will protect our stories at all costs.

---

The Miniaturist | Jessie Burton

Goodreads Rating: 3.60
Genre: Fiction, Historical, Historical Fiction, Mystery Fantasy, Magical Realism, Adult
Summary: On an autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives at a grand house in Amsterdam to begin her new life as the wife of wealthy merchant Johannes Brandt. Though curiously distant, he presents her with an extraordinary wedding gift; a cabinet-sized replica of their home. It is to be furnished by an elusive miniaturist, whose tiny creations ring eerily true.
As Nella uncovers the secrets of her new household, she realises the escalating dangers they face. The miniaturist seems to hold their fate in her hands – but does she plan to save or destroy them?

---

The Collector | John Fowles

Goodreads Rating: 3.98
Genre: Fiction, Horror, Classics, Thriller, Mystery, Crime
Summary: Withdrawn, uneducated and unloved, Frederick collects butterflies and takes photographs. He is obsessed with a beautiful stranger, the art student Miranda. When he wins the pools he buys a remote Sussex house and calmly abducts Miranda, believing she will grow to love him in time.

---

Queen of Volts | Amanda Foody

Goodreads Rating: 4.29
Series: The Shadow Game
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance, Fiction, Mystery, LGBT, Magic
Summary: Return to the City of Sin, where the final game is about to begin…and winning will demand the ultimate sacrifice.
Only days after a corrupt election and brutal street war, one last bloodthirsty game has begun. The players? The twenty-two most powerful, notorious people in New Reynes.
After realizing they have no choice but to play, Enne Scordata and Levi Glaisyer are desperate to forge new alliances and bargain for their safety. But while Levi offers false smiles and an even falser peace to the city’s politicians, Enne must face a world where her true Mizer identity has been revealed…and any misstep could turn deadly.
Meanwhile, a far more dangerous opponent has appeared on the board, one plucked right from the most gruesome legends of New Reynes. As the game takes its final, vicious turn, Levi and Enne must decide once and for all whether to be partners or enemies.
Because in a game for survival, there are only losers…
And monsters.

---

Aphrodite Made Me Do It | Trista Mateer

Goodreads Rating: 4.05
Genre: Poetry, Fantasy, LGBT, Feminism, Adult, Queer, Health, Mental Health
Summary: Bestselling and award-winning author Trista Mateer takes an imaginative approach to self-care in this new poetry and prose collection, Aphrodite Made Me Do It. In this empowering retelling, she uses the mythology of the goddess to weave a common thread through the past and present. By the end of this book, Aphrodite make you believe in the possibility of your own healing.

---

Pre-order:
Kingdom of the Wicked | Kerri Maniscalco

Goodreads Rating: 4.25
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Historical, Historical Fiction, Paranormal, Mystery, Witches, Fiction
Summary: Two sisters.
One brutal murder.
A quest for vengeance that will unleash Hell itself…
And an intoxicating romance.
Emilia and her twin sister Vittoria are streghe – witches who live secretly among humans, avoiding notice and persecution. One night, Vittoria misses dinner service at the family’s renowned Sicilian restaurant. Emilia soon finds the body of her beloved twin…desecrated beyond belief. Devastated, Emilia sets out to find her sister’s killer and to seek vengeance at any cost-even if it means using dark magic that’s been long forbidden.
Then Emilia meets Wrath, one of the Wicked-princes of Hell she has been warned against in tales since she was a child. Wrath claims to be on Emilia’s side, tasked by his master with solving the series of women’s murders on the island. But when it comes to the Wicked, nothing is as it seems…