This year October has been one fantastic month for me. The only reason that it has been so special, giving, and memorable are due solely to the people in my life. My parents made me really awesome food, and we shared so much laughter around the table (mostly at my mum’s expense) that it will keep fed and warm until 2016’s end. I have friends who have showered in me in kindness and a boyfriend who has helped me heal from many wounds. This dude in my life worked very hard to give me a birthday that is worth celebrating and cherishing.

I have had an abundance of bad birthdays for the past eight years. Most of them filled with lots of sadness, so naturally I had grown to loathe this day with a passion. But Sir Boyfriend showed me that it wasn’t the day that was the mistake, it was the people that I had been sharing it with. He declared October to be my birthday MONTH, which was terrifying to be perfectly honest as I didn’t know what to expect. All month long he showered me with home cooked meals, long walks in the beautiful rain, a marvellous trip to Seattle, and more books than I know what to do with.

So, my beautiful book pumpkins, I’m here today to share this massive pile o’ books with all of you. Here’s to helping that TBR pile stay high and mighty, or to fulfilling a taste for something you didn’t know you were craving.  This is part one of a three-part post, each will be broken down by genre. I hope this will make it easier for you all to find your favourite biblio-flavours!

Asian Literature:

Ash by Malinda Lo

• It’s loosely reminiscent of Cinderella. When Ash’s father passes away, she’s left in the care of her cruel stepmother. Being a dreamer of fairy tales, Ash hopes that one day she will meet a prince to whisk her away from her miserable fate. A dark, mysterious figure and a strong, skilled warrior princess enter Ash’s life, making her believe that fairy tale endings, or true love, can be real after all.
• Young Adult, Supernatural Fantasy, Queer Literature
• WOC (Woman of Colour) Author

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

• A story about Chinese American parents, the Lee family, who had great hopes for their favourite daughter, Lydia, for fulfilling all of the dreams that they weren’t able to pursue. But then Lydia’s body washes up in a local lake, everything that the Lees thought they knew about their family is unravelled, leading to the unbalancing of the whole family.
• Adult Fiction, Crime Fiction, Chinese Literature
• WOC Author

French Concession by Xiao Bai

• Taking place in 1930s Shanghai, this is a story about of political intrigue, espionage, the criminal underworld, and murder. When a Nationalist Party member is assassinated after setting foot off the boat into Shanghai, his wife disappears causing suspicion to arise. As the pieces fall together, we learn that this mystery wife, Leng, had associations with a Russian woman, Therese, and the assassination was a minor detail in a much larger plot.
• Historical Fiction, War Fiction, Chinese Literature
• Chinese Author

Huntress by Malinda Lo

• When nature is thrown out of balance, the human kingdom begins to fall apart. Crops are failing and families are starving while hostile creatures stir and lurk in the dark. Two adolescent girls are dispatched to help solve the crisis. Together they embark on a journey to see the Fairy Queen, building a strong bond of friendship and something more, along the way. Yet as they near their destination, they realize that only one of them can be the saviour at a deadly cost to the other.
• Young Adult, Fantasy, Queer Literature
• WOC Author

The Other Me by Maha Gargash

• Majed, the head of the Naseemy family, is one of the richest men in Dubai. One evening he begins to have nightmares about the dead brother whose business he stole. As control over his own life begins to erode, Majed is further paranoid when he realizes that his niece and daughter are defying his orders. His niece strives to achieve the best education in the hopes that it will steal her far from her tyrannical uncle, while his daughter pursues a passionate career of singing. Stronger exertion of his authority leads to explosive consequences in this story about family, freedom, and individuality.
• Adult Fiction, Arabian Literature
• Muslim, WOC Author

Parade by Shuichi Yoshida

• Four Japanese twenty-somethings reside in a two-bedroom apartment in Tokyo waiting for their lives to begin. Kotomi waits for a boyfriend that never calls. Ryosuke is sleeping with his best friend’s girlfriend. Mirai’s drinking is turning into a severe problem, and Naoki, an aspiring film-maker, is the glue holding everyone together. Things are starting to crumble as tension reaches its peak. Then one night a homeless teenager arrives, setting off a chain of events that will bring all sorts of dark secrets into the light, throwing the flatmates’ balance into an uproar.
• Adult Fiction, Suspense, Japanese Literature
• Japanese Author

Hispanic Literature:

The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

• When wartime arrives, the Carver family leaves behind their home in the capital to move into a new house in a small coastal village. The mysterious house is haunted with the lurking spirit of a young boy who died by drowning. As Max and Alicia begin to explore the circumstances surrounding the boy’s death, they discover the existence of The Prince of Mist—a diabolical individual who’s returned to collect a very long-owed debt. What ensues is a sweeping tale of adventure amid sunken ships and enchanted statues.
• Young Adult, Supernatural Fantasy Horror, Spanish Literature
• Spanish Author

Thank you for taking the time to read Part One! I hope you found something interesting here. Please, keep an eye out for the other two posts: Young Adult & Science-Fiction / Fantasy.

Happy Reading. ♥