1 — Mistletoe: What’s a book with a ship you can’t help but love?

There are two ships that I like in A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin, and, strangely enough, both of them have a beauty-and-the-beast dynamic to them. The first is Sandor Clegane A.K.A. The Hound, and Sansa Stark A.K.A. “Little Bird” (good thing this is fiction because Sansa is a minor and it’s illegal!). Anyway the second would be Jaime Lannister and Brienne of Tarth, though this time, Jaime is the beauty and Brienne is the beast.

Indie In Aletheia by Megan Tennant, I really liked the romantic undercurrent between the trio 736, 93, and Rose. I would ship 736 with either one of them… or both?

2 — I’ll be home for Christmas: What’s a fictional world you’d love to spend the holidays in, if only in your dreams?

I would probably enjoy playing the game in Caraval by Stephanie Garber.

Indie For the holidays, I wouldn’t mind checking out Elysia in The Elysian Prophecy by Vivien Reis.

3 — Star on the tree: What’s a book with a cover so fine, you’d duct tape it to the Christmas tree?

The cover of Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas is very striking to me. I was immediately tempted to read the book when I first saw it. The book itself was not as amazing as the cover, though, but I still managed to enjoy it.

Indie Divinity Falling by Nour Zikra – it looks very enchanting, plus I love the effect of the red feathers and the large moon. Haven’t had the pleasure of reading it yet.

4 — Santa IS real: What’s a book you loved as a young child?

I really enjoyed the Nancy Drew Mysteries by Caroline Keene as a child. I remember I would always want to read another mystery right after I’ve finished one.

Indie I think that the Helm of Darkness by A. P. Mobley would probably be something I would enjoy as a child.

5 — Gift Boxes: Gift boxes come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Name a book w/ a diverse cast.

The Witcher Saga by Andrzej Sapkowski has a compelling cast of characters that are not only diverse but also very grey, including Geralt the main character himself.

Indie The Savior’s Champion by Jenna Moreci has a diverse cast that are just oozing with personality.

6 — Let it snow: Show us a book with snow or ice on the cover. If you can’t find one, then a book with a primarily white cover.

Frostblood by Elly Blake. This book has sequels now, and I still haven’t read it.

Indie Legacy by Kilian Grey. I am currently reading the sequel for this year’s Indiecember.

7 — Reindeer: Show us a book with a hooved creature in it.

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. I enjoyed this book, despite not being a fan of the main character.

Indie Song of the Dryad by Natalia Leigh, which I haven’t read yet.

(mini-theme: “Leigh”)

8 — Old ornament: A tattered, beat-up book you can’t throw away because memories.

I don’t have an answer to this because my old books are in my childhood home (or probably gone) and my current books are mostly ebooks now.

9 — Artificial Tree: Do you read ebooks? If so, what’s your favorite e-reader device?

Yes, I primarily read ebooks from my iPad. Even if I get a physical copy of a book, I still end up buying the ebook version and read it from my iPad. It’s easy to bring around and I can carry a whole library in one device. It’s also convenient to look up words and phrases, as well as post or look up a review right after.

10 — Comfy and cozy: What’s your favorite place and position to read in?

Probably lounging or lying on a bed or couch, preferably with a duvet or a fleece blanket.

11 — Christmas miracle: What’s a book or series that you really didn’t like at the beginning but it turned around and surprised you.

Believe it or not, it was Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. I only continued reading it, after finishing a lackluster book one, because of all the hype. And I’m so glad I did!

Indie Firestone Key by Caroline Noe. It started off by telling instead of showing, which was a bit boring, but eventually, it proved itself to be a gem of a story.

12 — Winter Solstice: What’s one of your favorite novellas or short stories?

The Lesser Evil in The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski. It touches on the Rapunzel and Snow White fairy tales with some cruel twists, and is where Geralt became known as “the Butcher of Blaviken”.

Indie So to Honor Him: The Magi and the Drummer by Laura VanArendonk Baugh. Another retelling, this time of the Christmas song (and my favorite Christmas song) “Little Drummer Boy”, told like historical fiction.

(mini-theme: retellings)

13 — Lump of Coal: Show us a book with a primarily black cover.

The First Girl Child by Amy Harmon is a book I got from a Scribbler box, which I’ve yet to read.

Indie Murder at Macbeth by Samantha Goodwin is a book that came to my attention because of Instagram just recently.

14 — Evergreen: What’s a book that you can read over and over again and never grow tired of?

Right now, probably nothing. But I went through a phase where I read and reread A Song of Ice and Fire books.

Indie What Have You Done to the Angel? by me. Because, of course.

15 — Fruitcake: The thickest, densest book you own. Bonus points if it isn’t by George RR Martin.

Aside from having GRRM books, the Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson is 800+ pages long, and The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova has 700+ pages. I’ve read and loved both these books.

Indie Shadow of the Conqueror by Shad M. Brooks has 600+ pages. Haven’t read it yet, but I have high expectations!

16 — Glitter: What’s a book that was hard to shake off? One that stuck with you long after finishing?

George R.R. Martin’s A Storm of Swords because of the Red Wedding. Watching the scene on the TV show made me weep, knowing what I already knew. But when I was reading it, I was just stunned. And probably traumatized.

Indie Aletheia by Megan Tennant. The emotional rollercoaster I went through with this book was one heck of a ride. I cannot wait for the sequel!

17 — Resolutions: Did you have any reading goals this year? How did you do?

As of this writing, I still need to read 16 books to meet my goal of 50. It’s clear now I’m gonna fail that 😭

Indie For Indiecember, since I’ve decided to simply aim for bingo instead of flush, I’m only left with 2 books to review, and currently in the middle of one of them. So I’m a bit more confident about this goal.

18 — Snowball Fight: What characters would have the most epic snowball fight? They can be from the same book or different books.

Geralt and Ciri from The Witcher Saga by Andrzej Sapkowski. Okay this is cheating because they had a snowball fight in the Witcher 3 video game. I liked that because it’s one of the rare happy father-daughter moments they had.

Indie I think that a snowball fight between Atriya and Verus from Echo series by Kent Wayne would be quite epic.

19 — Ugly Sweater: What’s a book that you love that’s hidden beneath a cover that you don’t love?

Indie Reflections by Briana Morgan. I don’t really hate the current cover, but I actually liked the previous one better because of its simplicity.

20 — Three Kings: Show us three books with titles containing King, Queen, Prince, Princess, Crown, or Throne.

A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin, Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling.

21 — Frosty the Snowman: What’s a book with characters that felt so real they basically came to life before you.

George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire, if you can believe it.

Indie Aletheia by Megan Tennant has compelling and emotionally realistic characters.

22 — Gifts: What’s a book you were gifted? If you have multiple, give one of your favorites.

I remember one time a friend of mine gave me a copy of Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho.

Indie If we consider the Indiecember prize pack I won last year as “gifts”, then I will say my favorite from that pack was Reciprocity by Sean M. Locke.

23 — Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: What’s your favorite ‘chosen one’ story.

I love the twist in The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson.

Indie Canellian Eye: Prophecy by Caroline Noe, which I read just recently.

24 — Bookish Christmas tree: How tall is your current TBR? Bonus points if it’s an Indiecember TBR.

Probably 16 books tall if I’m gonna aim to complete my goal of 50 by the end of this year. But I’m thinking of writing books, poetry books, novellas, and other light reading materials.

Indie I have two books left in my Indiecember TBR (then I reassess if I can still make the flush or not, but not likely given the time constraints).

For more info on the Indiecember Book Tag, check out Megan Tennant’s video.