Books I've Bought Recently

Hey Guys!

There are so many books I want to read but unfortunately, I'm not one who can read four books at a time, especially when they are all of a similar genre. So instead I'm just going to have to work my way through the books I've currently got piled up on my bedside table. I'll do a separate post on my reading list but for now here are some books I've brought recently:

I highly recommend searching for the books you want in charity shops first before looking to buy them brand new, at least then you'll get a discounted price and you'll be giving money to a good cause. If you can't find the books you are looking for in your local charity shops try AbeBooks (you can buy literally any book second-hand and they are sold for amazing prices and most of the time postage & packing is free!) I've brought a few books from them now and they have only cost £2.65 each!

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

A lot of you will probably have heard of the Mortal Instruments franchise as Lily Collins starred in the 2013 movie The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones and there has been a popular Netflix season called ShadowHunters which follows the Mortal Instruments books by Cassandra Clare. When I was younger I was never really interested in the books (even though it is my favourite genre) but as soon as I saw the film I did gain some interest but didn't really think to go buy them until I started watching the series (if you haven't seen the series you should! It is really good). 

I was eyeing it up in the charity shop in my hometown for a while but because I have such a huge pile of books to read already I didn't see the point. But after eyeing it up every time I went in I decided to finally buy it (£1.99!) and now I'm desperate to read it ❤

The plot summary states "Clary Fray is seeing things: Vampires in Brooklyn and werewolves in Manhattan. Irresistibly drawn to the Shadowhunters, a secret cadre of warriors dedicated to ridding the world of demons, Clary encounters the dark side of New York City - and the dangers of forbidden love."

I already know the basic outline of the story as I've seen the movie and series which both follow the storyline of the City of Bones but I'm interested to see if they have missed any parts of the book out in the film and the series (like what I found in Harry Potter). There are six books in the Mortal Instruments series so I'll be purchasing the next book City of Ashes once I've read this one. I've found myself buying books that are all part of collections, like with Fallen and Harry Potter, so at some point, I'll just have to stick to one collection and finish all those books before moving on to other books. At the moment I'm halfway through the Harry Potter books, then I need to buy and read Torment which is the second book to Lauren Kate's Fallen series and then find the second book to this series and finish this collection of books (this may take me a while). 

The Interpretation of Murder by Jed Rubenfeld

I got The Interpretation of Murder in Paris at Shakespeare and Company in the second-hand section. My mum and I both chose to pick this book as we both love a murder mystery so we knew if one of us enjoyed it the other would. Shakespeare and Company did a great selection of books and this one stuck out, especially as it is about Sigmund Freud and his first and last trip to the USA (I read a lot of Sigmund Freud's work for my degree). 

The plot summary states "On the morning after Sigmund Freud arrives in New York City on his first – and only – visit to the United States in 1909, a stunning debutante is found bound and strangled in her penthouse apartment, high above Broadway. The following night, another beautiful heiress, Nora Acton, is discovered tied to a chandelier in her parents' home, viciously wounded and unable to speak or to recall her ordeal. Soon Freud and his American disciple, Stratham Younger, are enlisted to help Miss Acton recover her memory and to piece together the killer's identity. It is a riddle that will test their skills to the limit and lead them on a journey into the darkest places of the city, and of the human mind". 

I've read tons of books that are murder mysteries where people have disappeared out of nowhere and for me one thing I love is seeing the story unravel and everything making sense at the end. Something I always do is try and guess who the murderer is looking at the logic behind all the clues! So when I come to the end of the book and I guessed right I love it! Or even better the culprit is someone completely unexpected and was never even considered the person behind the murder. I've read a few Agatha Christies which got me into the crime genre. So, I think both myself and my mum are going to really enjoy reading this book! 

Recommended Books

I thought I'd add another section to this post for books I'd recommend you guys to read if you are into mysteries and crime novels. 

No Time For Goodbye

I read this book on holiday a few years ago when I got bored with the book I was reading, so I picked this one up from a selection of books my mum had brought with her. I didn't really expect must as I just looking for something different to read while we were sat sunbathing or on the terrace. But to my surprise, I could not put the book down! I was sucked in! I was constantly picking it up when I had a spare five minutes and it is actually the first book I have finished in one week. The story is gripping and I was desperate to know what was going on and what was behind the disappearances. 

Source: Wikipedia

The plot summary states "On the morning she will never forget, suburban teenager Cynthia Archer awakes with a nasty hangover and a feeling she is going to have an even nastier confrontation with her mom and dad. But when she leaves her bedroom, she discovers the house is empty, with no sign of her parents or younger brother Todd. In the blink of an eye, without any explanation, her family has simply disappeared.

Twenty-five years later Cynthia is still haunted by unanswered questions. Were her family murdered? If so, why was she spared? And if they're alive, why did they abandon her in such a cruel way? Now married with a daughter of her own, Cynthia fears that her new family will be taken from her just as her first one was. And so she agrees to take part in a TV documentary revisiting the case, in the hope that somebody somewhere will remember something - or even that her father, mother or brother might finally reach out to her . . .

Then a letter arrives which makes no sense and yet chills Cynthia to the core. And soon she begins to realise that stirring up the past could be the worst mistake she has ever made . . ."

Other than Agatha Christie's novels this was one of the books that got me into crime novels and mysteries. Unfortunately, I think we gave the book away for someone else to read but I wish I would have kept it so I could give it another read. It is hands down one of the best books I've read, especially out of all the crime and mystery books I've read. It's so fast moving and there are so many ups and downs!  

A true rollercoaster!

What books do you recommend? Let me know in the comments below ❤

See you soon!

Amy xx