July 2019 Wrap Up

Afternoon, book nerds!  

I promise I didn’t fall back off the face of the blogging world, I’ve just been super swamped with my musical recently! In case you missed it, I’ve been rehearsing the past two and a half weeks for my show, which premiered over the weekend. What show you ask? Check out the picture on the right for a clue. 😂

Between work, rehearsals, shows, chores, puppy care, etc., I’ve been insanely busy, and the blog (unfortunately) took the majority of the hit. But now that rehearsals are done, I’m going to try and get back on the blogging wagon! *She thinks to herself while tiredly typing this after an afternoon matinee*

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*Listed in order of completion date*

JULY READS (Full RsTC):1) Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey – 4 STARS 

So here’s the deal: I, like many of you I’m sure, was swept into the Tessa Bailey pull by a quartet of popular booktubers. I read Getaway Girl first (a backlisted title) and absolutely loved it so I figured I’d enjoy her more popular (according to Goodreads at least) new release. The thing I’m realizing now (since I can’t find my notes for this novel anywhere!!) is that I really don’t remember much about this contemporary. Like I’ve got the basics (clown younger sister crushing on older’s brother’s pro baseball playing bestie, a friends-to-lovers plot, steamy scenes and dirty talk, etc.), but I can’t remember the important stuff i.e. WHY I gave this 4 Stars…maybe I should rethink my rating??

2) Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid – 4 STARS  

As a die hard Fleetwood fan, I’m alarmed by how long it took me to finally cross this heavily-inspired historical fiction novel off my list. This is one of those books that I finished in one day (thanks to the full-cast audiobook) and its characters have lingered ever since. I wrote up a mini review of my pros and cons for this novel here!

3) ARC: Everything Must Go by Jenny Fran Davis – 1 STAR

Eesh, y’all! I want to say this is an extreme case of “it’s me, not the book,” but I’m honestly not sure I believe that when it comes to this young adult contemporary. I know plenty of my friends have really enjoyed this, but this story did not work for me. At all. You can check out my full review as to why here!

4) ARC: Six Little Secrets – 3 STARS

This little novella has been haunting my backlisted ARC TBR list for ages and since July became my month devoted to backlisted ARCs, it finally got read!🙌It had tons of potential, and darker Breakfast Club vibes, but ultimately it went a little too extreme for my taste. Check out my full review here!

5) ARC: Waiting For Tom Hanks by Kerry Winfrey – 2 STARS

Trust me, I’m probably more upset by this news than y’all are, but yeah this is another romance that just missed the mark for me this month! I really wanted to love this, but the female lead tested every last one of my nerves. It was like a young adult protagonist fell into an adult contemporary where nothing exactly fit right. I break down my full thoughts on why this flopped in my review here!

6) Recursion by Blake Crouch – 4 STARS 

Taking a much-needed breather from the contemporary scene, I next picked up Crouch’s newest sci-fi installment. I was a big fan of Dark Matter, and the synopsis of this time-bending novel instantly had me hooked. Per usual, Crouch delivered a wild tale that left me thinking about the meaning of life and the choices we make. If you’re into books that take interesting fictional leaps on the repercussions of real-life scientific principles, this book, and Crouch’s works, are for you!

7) The Bride Test by Helen Hoang – 3.5 STARS

Many of you have already read and devoured this companion novel to Hoang’s fabulous debut. And while I didn’t love this one as much as I liked TKQ, it’s not without its charms. There were a few issues that rubbed me the wrong way, but at the end of the day this isn’t a contemporary I’d kick out of bed! Check out my mini review thoughts here!

8) ARC: Announcing Trouble by Amy Fellner Dominy – 5 STARS

By this point you’re aware that I read several books (and romances) that let me down this month. And maybe I was influenced by that when it came time to pick this sports-themed contemporary up, but I’d like to think this novel would have knocked it out of the park regardless. This nostalgic young adult title caught me completely off guard and was one of my favorite reads of the past few months. There was so much to love about this story and its characters, and you can read all about it here!

9) ARC: The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman – 1.75 STARS

What goes up must come down, am I right? Again, maybe after reading a book I adored so much I was destined to be harsher with my next read and land on a rating on the total opposite end of the spectrum. But, after discussions with several trusted sources about this bad boy, I’m inclined to believe it just wasn’t that great of a story. The synopsis proves the potential was there, but I didn’t gel with the female lead, her actions, or her romance. You can check out my thoughts here!

10) Obsidio by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff – 4 STARS

Wrapping up the month, I FINALLY got to complete the Illuminae Files. It was an emotional journey filled with a cast of characters I’m going to miss, but I’m glad I was able to see it through to the end. Like with Gemina, parts of this novel felt repetitive and formulaic, but I’d never regret putting up with recycled plot points in order to hang out with this crew.

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At A Glance…

📖Books Read: 10

5-Star Reads: 📚

4-Star Reads: 📚📚📚📚

3.5-Star Reads:📚

3-Star Reads:📚

2-Star Reads:📚

1.75-Star Reads:📚

1-Star Reads:📚

🌟Average Rating: 3.23 Stars 

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Beyond Books…

3 ARC Reviews: Waiting For Tom Hanks, Everything Must Go, & Six Little Secrets

2 Mini Review Monday posts: – The Bride Test/Miracle Creek & Daisy Jones/Red, White & Royal Blue

2 Top Ten Tuesday posts: Bookish Settings I LIVE For & Most Anticipated Reads for the Second Half of 2019

1 First Lines Friday posts: – FLF #12 – Can’t disclose titles obviously 😉

1 Blog Tour: Chasing Hope

2 Reading Rush Readathon Posts: TBR & Wrap Up

1 Book Tag: The Netflix Book Tag

and

1 Book Haul: July 2019 Book Haul

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That’s it, y’all! That’s my July in a nutshell. I know this is kind of late, but what are your thoughts? Did you like these posts? These books? These ratings? Have you read any of these titles? How did your July fair? Let me know below! 

And, as always, Happy Reading!!

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