Hi there! Happy November! It’s time for another Spell the Month in Books. I first saw this on several blogs and thought it looked like fun! It was originally created by Reviews from the Stacks, and the idea is to spell the month using the first letter of book titles.
This month I thought I’d highlight some memorable reads of 2021. This was really fun to do becuase I got to look back and think about all of the amazing books I read this year. Most of my picks are YA or romance.
D: Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft
Title: Down Comes the Night
Author: Allison Saft
Page Length: 400
Publication Date: March 2, 2021
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Synopsis: He saw the darkness in her magic. She saw the magic in his darkness.
Wren Southerland’s reckless use of magic has cost her everything: she’s been dismissed from the Queen’s Guard and separated from her best friend—the girl she loves. So when a letter arrives from a reclusive lord, asking Wren to come to his estate, Colwick Hall, to cure his servant from a mysterious illness, she seizes her chance to redeem herself.
The mansion is crumbling, icy winds haunt the caved-in halls, and her eccentric host forbids her from leaving her room after dark. Worse, Wren’s patient isn’t a servant at all but Hal Cavendish, the infamous Reaper of Vesria and her kingdom’s sworn enemy. Hal also came to Colwick Hall for redemption, but the secrets in the estate may lead to both of their deaths.
With sinister forces at work, Wren and Hal realize they’ll have to join together if they have any hope of saving their kingdoms. But as Wren circles closer to the nefarious truth behind Hal’s illness, they realize they have no escape from the monsters within the mansion. All they have is each other, and a startling desire that could be their downfall.
Allison Saft’s Down Comes the Night is a snow-drenched romantic fantasy that keeps you racing through the pages long into the night.
Love makes monsters of us all.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
E: Every Day in December by Kitty Wilson
Title: Every Day in December
Author: Kitty Wilson
Page Length: 384
Publication Date: Aug. 20, 2021
Publisher: One More Chapter
Synopsis: Two people. One month to fall in love.
Belle Wilde loves December. Yes, she’s just lost her job and Christmas is not a good time to find yourself ‘financially challenged’. And yes, her parents are still going on about the fact that she really should have it all together by now. But Belle believes that in December, magic can happen.
Rory Walters hates December. Whilst it looks like his life is together, he’s still reeling from a winter’s night five years ago when his life changed forever. Now back at home, he’s certain that this will be yet another Christmas to endure rather than enjoy.
But as midnight on December 31st draws closer, Belle and Rory’s time together is coming to an end. With a little help from a Christmas miracle could Belle find the one thing she really wants underneath the mistletoe?
C: Cast in Firelight by Dana Swift
Title: Cast in Firelight
Author: Dana Swift
Series: Wickery (Book 1)
Page Length: 448
Publication Date: Jan. 19, 2020
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Synopsis: Adraa is the royal heir of Belwar, a talented witch on the cusp of taking her royal ceremony test, and a girl who just wants to prove her worth to her people.
Jatin is the royal heir to Naupure, a competitive wizard who’s mastered all nine colors of magic, and a boy anxious to return home for the first time since he was a child.
Together, their arranged marriage will unite two of Wickery’s most powerful kingdoms. But after years of rivalry from afar, Adraa and Jatin only agree on one thing: their reunion will be anything but sweet.
Only, destiny has other plans and with the criminal underbelly of Belwar suddenly making a move for control, their paths cross…and neither realizes who the other is, adopting separate secret identities instead.
Between dodging deathly spells and keeping their true selves hidden, the pair must learn to put their trust in the other if either is to uncover the real threat. Now Wickery’s fate is in the hands of rivals..? Fiancées..? Partners..? Whatever they are, it’s complicated and bound for greatness or destruction.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
E: Eat Your Heart Out by Kelly Devos
Title: Eat Your Heart Out
Author: Kelly deVos
Page Length: 348
Publication Date: June 29, 2020
Publisher: Raxorbill
Genres: YA Fiction, Horror, Thriller, Zombies
Synopsis: Shaun of the Dead meets Dumplin’ in this bitingly funny YA thriller about a kickass group of teens battling a ravenous group of zombies.
In the next few hours, one of three things will happen.
1–We’ll be rescued (unlikely)
2–We’ll freeze to death (maybe)
3–We’ll be eaten by thin and athletic zombies (odds: excellent)
Vivian Ellenshaw is fat, but she knows she doesn’t need to lose weight, so she’s none too happy to find herself forced into a weight-loss camp’s van with her ex-best friend, Allie, a meathead jock who can barely drive, and the camp owner’s snobby son. And when they arrive at Camp Featherlite at the start of the worst blizzard in the history of Flagstaff, Arizona, it’s clear that something isn’t right.
Vee barely has a chance to meet the other members of her pod, all who seem as unhappy to be at Featherlite as she does, when a camper goes missing down by the lake. Then she spots something horrifying outside in the snow. Something…that isn’t human. Plus, the camp’s supposed “miracle cure” for obesity just seems fishy, and Vee and her fellow campers know they don’t need to be cured. Of anything.
Even worse, it’s not long before Camp Featherlite’s luxurious bungalows are totally overrun with zombies. What starts out as a mission to unravel the camp’s secrets turns into a desperate fight for survival–and not all of the Featherlite campers will make it out alive.
A satirical blend of horror, body positivity, and humor, Kelly deVos’s witty, biting novel proves that everyone deserves to feel validated, and taking down the evil enterprise determined to dehumanize you is a good place to start.
M: Mazarine by Cece Louise
Title: Mazarine
Author: Cece Louise
Series: The Forest Tales #3
Publication Date: June 22, 2021
Synopsis: She’s cursed. He’s dead. How far will they go to change their fates?
Princess Marilee is cursed. A mermaid by day and a human by night, she made a fateful decision that has left her trapped between two worlds.
Disgraced Prince Darius is dead. At least, that’s what he wants everyone to think when he’s thrown overboard from a prison ship.
When Marilee and Darius meet, they reluctantly make a deal—Darius will help Marilee return to her family in exchange for enough money so he can disappear forever.
A doomed girl and a condemned man. Can they find redemption, or will they be lost to an unforgiving sea?
B: The Bachelor Bargain by Maddison Michaels
Title: The Bachelor Bargain
Author: Maddison Michaels
Series: Secrets, Scandals, and Spies #1
Page Length: 400
Publication Date: May 17, 2021
Publisher: Entangled: Amara
Synopsis: Bachelors, beware. For those who keep secrets and prey on the innocent, you will be exposed, with all your dirty little secrets laid bare to one and all. You have been warned…
Lady Olivia Haliford has had enough. Tired of seeing women lose their reputations, futures, and sometimes even their lives to scandal while the men walk free, she is ready to take back power and stand up for women everywhere. Along with her two closest friends, she plans to start an anonymous publication dedicated to dishing the dirt and exposing the secrets of society’s most eligible bachelors. But in order to do so, she will have to make a deal with the devil…
Sebastian Colver, known as the Bastard of Baker Street, is feared throughout London as the city’s most notorious gambling den owner and undisputed king of the underground. His life is nothing but darkness and danger, so he is shocked when the petite lady gracing his doorstep seems anything but frightened of him. He agrees to be a silent partner in the publishing of the Gazette if she will use her connections to sponsor his sister and launch her into Society and away from his dark world.
But exposing the secrets of the rich and powerful can be dangerous. Almost as dangerous as a lady falling in love with the king of the underground.
E: Ember of Night by Molly E. Lee
Title: Ember of Night (Ember of Night #1)
Author: Molly E. Lee
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: May 4, 2021
Book Description: I’ve been told I was as useless as a weed most of my life. Mainly by my worthless father.
But I’d suffer anything to give my kid sister a better life—the minute I turn eighteen, I’m getting us the hell out of here. And some hot stranger telling me I am the key to stopping a war between Heaven and Hell isn’t going to change that.
Let the world crumble and burn, for all I care.
Draven is relentless, though. And very much a liar. Every time his sexy lips are moving, I can see it—in the dip of his head, the grit of his jaw—even if my heart begs me to ignore the signs.
So what does he want?
I need to figure it out fast, because now everyone is gunning for me. And damn if I don’t want to show them what happens when you let weeds thrive in the cracks of the pavement…
We can grow powerful enough to shatter the whole foundation.
R: Rules for Heiresses by Amalie Howard
Title: Rules for Heiresses
Author: Amalie Howard
Page Length: 312
Publication Date: Oct. 26, 2021
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Synopsis: Amalie Howard whisks you away with a historical romance full of drama, true love, and the perfect happily ever after.
Sometimes, finding love means flouting the rules…
Born to a life of privilege, Lady Ravenna Huntley rues the day that she must marry. She’s refused dozens of suitors and cried off multiple betrothals, but running away–even if brash and foolhardy–is the only option left to secure her independence.
Lord Courtland Chase, grandson of the Duke of Ashton, was driven from England at the behest of his cruel stepmother. Scorned and shunned, he swore never to return to the land of his birth. But when a twist of bad luck throws a rebellious heiress into his arms, at the very moment he finds out he’s the new Duke, marriage is the only alternative to massive scandal.
Both are quick to deny it, but a wedding might be the only way out for both of them. And the attraction that burns between them makes Ravenna and Courtland wonder if it’ll truly only be a marriage of convenience after all…
Have you read any of these? Which books would you use to spell the month in books? Comment below!
I just got Cast in Firelight for my birthday and I have an ARC for the sequel so I’m so excited to get to them!
I can’t wait to hear what you think of them!!
A nice mix of books Julie. A great way to look back and highlight some of your favourites for the rest of us to see.
Thanks Carla!
I’ve only read Cast in Firelight from this list. It’s such a great duology!