November reading update and December TBR

In the last couple of months, my reading has been wildly beyond my usual dismal rate of 2-3 a month. I have been reading heavy-duty books and finishing them too! Reviews have been another matter, though. I now have a review backlog that is the length of my arm. Here are a couple of sentences about the books I read in November.

• An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen – Not as good as their other novels, but still worth a read.
• The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides – I was afraid I would find this book overhyped, but I quite enjoyed it. Enough to straightaway order his next book – The Maidens.
• The Maidens by Alex Michaelides – I started this book right after I finished The Silent Patient – review yet to come, but it was fun. I loved the whole Cambridge environment, the mystery was crazy, and there’s an unexpected tie-in to The Silent Patient, which was awesome.
• The Mirror and the Light by Hilary Mantel – The third book in the Cromwell trilogy. I liked it, but it wasn’t as compelling as Wolf Hall and Bring up the bodies. I think this was just a bit too introspective and moody, not enough going on to keep my attention. Review yet to come.
• The Testaments by Margaret Atwood – Well-written YA is the closest that describes it. Fast-paced, interesting, but just did not read like a Margaret Atwood book.
• A House for Mr.Biswas by V.S.Naipaul – In one word – sublime. This was supposed to be a slow read that would take me till the end of this year, but I wrapped it up within a week. The writing flows beautifully, and even though there’s not much of a plot, I related so completely to it, and fell in love with it.
• Dead to her by Sarah Pinborough – This was a bit of a meh. I loved some of its elements, and the general plot structure, but it waffled on for way too long.

December reading plans

I have four books on my TBR:

• Animal by Lisa Taddeo – I loved Three women, and so this book automatically went on my TBR list. I started it but for some reason, I am just not feeling it.
• Klara and the sun by Kazuo Ishiguro – I picked up this book for Dolce Belezza’s Japanese literature challenge that starts in January. But it’s tempting me so much, I might just read it ahead in December.
• Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah – Just because I watched the Netflix show, which I couldn’t finish. Story was interesting, but the acting horrendous, so I am pretty sure I will enjoy the book better than the show.
• Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell – I know this book about Shakespeare’s grief over the death of his son will probably break my heart, but I’ve heard so many good things about it, I will definitely be reading it over the end of year Christmas shutdown.

Are there any books on my reading list that I should prioritize or that you would recommend? What’s your reading looking like this past couple of months?