July was actually a productive month. Despite being very busy at work I managed to read quite a lot. I also had a lot of fun participating in a couple of readathons.
WRAP-UP STATS
BOOKS: 13
PAGES: 3963
(Page count includes Audiobook page numbers)
Looking at these stats actually surprised me I had no idea I had read that much this month as it just felt like such a slow reading month. It’s my second best month of the year and raises my hopes for tackling my over ambitious N.E.W.Ts TBR this month.
GENRES:
A good mix, a few more graphic novels than normal, but I was just in that kind of mood. The bright red of Contemporary showing its face again, which is unusual for me.
AUDIENCE:
A lot more swing to the Adult this month, readdressing the balance to achieve my goal of having a 50/50 split.
FORMAT:
RATINGS:
5 STARS: 4
4.5 STARS: 1
4 STARS: 2
3.5 STARS: 2
3 STARS: 3
2 Stars: 1
WHAT I READ –
This month I am going to discuss these books in the order I read them. I was taking part in two readathons this month, The Book Junkie Trials and the Medieval-a-thon. I will note which challenges each book completed within each of the readathons, so this post can be considered my wrap up for both of them.
Nevernight
Jay Kristoff
5 Stars
I joined in on a re-read of this series in anticipation for the release of dark dawn. I adore this series so far and loved diving back into it. I still have not wrote and official review and will need to get round to doing so.
The Book Junkie Trials: Orc Grove
Medieval-a-thon: Dual Daggers
The Beholder
Anna Bright
2 Stars
This was soo disappointing. It was such an interesting setting but just did not deliver.. the characters were flat, the plot was obvious and extremely repetitive and it didn’t even have a conclusion.
The Book Junkie Trials: Ol’ Pirate Cove
Medievalathon: Sword
Murder in Mesopotamia
Agatha Christie
4 Stars
I always include an Agatha Christie in a readathon. They are just such fun, fast paced reads that they always make you feel accomplished during a readathon. This was such an interesting one. It is a Poirot mystery but not told from the perspective of Hastings. What I love is Christie really wasn’t scared about voicing her own opinions within her writing. There is some real sass in this one.
The Book Junkie Trials: The Drowning deep
Medieval-a-thon: Boots
One fine day in the middle of the night
Chris Brookmyre
4 Stars
I read this years ago and decided to pick it up again. It is just such a fun read. Brookmyre is one of my favourite crime writers and he has a dark and wicked sense of humour that just comes up with such entertaining scenarios. This is one of the best.
The Book Junkie Trials: Crimson Peaks
Medievalathon: Axe
The Kingdom
Jess Rothenberg
5 Stars
This was an eARC I got approved for last minute (which is why it was not on any of my TBRs) and I was so glad a did. It was exactly what i was looking for at the time and it just swept me away. It was such an inventive setting and tale that I was just captured by it. I have a full review here.
The Book Junkie Trials: The Queendom Stone
Medievalathon: Crown
The Flat Share
Beth O’Leary
3.5 Starts
A Contemporary on my read list, for the second month in the row, which I enjoyed! What has become of me? This was a genuinely sweet romantic read, perfect for a lazy summer read. I really liked the communication between the two main characters. I do wish there was more on some of the subplots and side characters. I have a full review here.
The Book Junkie Trials: Glimmer
Medievalathon: Brest Plate
Temeraire
Naomi Novik
4.5 Stars
I am so glad I picked this up. I have had it on my shelves for ages and had just never picked it up and I have no idea why. It is like a more military focused how to train your dragon. But it is very relationship heavy, focusing on the development of the bond between a man and his dragon. I have a full review here.
The Book Junkie Trials: The Draconic Isle
Medievalathon: Helmet
Sea Witch
Sarah Henning
3 Stars
I ended up adding this to my TBR as I got approved for the ARC of Sea Witch Rising (Review upcoming) but I had yet to read this one despite owning it since its release last year. This was a solid middle road YA fantasy. It has its faults but also its high points and it is worth the read, a nice twist on the little mermaid story released during the summer of mermaids last year.
The Book Junkie Trials: Dwarf Mount
Monstress Vol 2
Marjorie Lu
3 Stars
I am still not sure about this series I just not sold on it. The art is gorgeous but I am still not sold on the story. I may continue when my library gets the third volume.
The Book Junkie Trials: The Hollow Isle
A Day in the life of Marlon Bundo
5 Stars
This was a bit of a fun and indulgent on a whim read. It became available digitally vis my library and I just had to read it. It just too cute not too. I will definitely be purchasing a copy for such a good cause.
The Book Junkie Trials: The Empty barrel Inn
Stardust
Neil Gaiman
3 Stars
This was entertaining, for me it wasn’t phenomenal just a solid entertaining read. I can see why some love it but I can also see why others may find Gaiman’s writing style frustrating. One of the most fascinating parts for me was actually the additional material in which Gaiman discussed its conception and its many incarnations.
The Book Junkie Trials: The Bookish Grail
Medievalathon: Bow
Mooncakes
Wendy Xu and Susanne Walker
5 Stars
This was just so sweet and beautiful and jam packed with awesome rep. I loved this graphic novel. I cant gush about it enough. You can read my full review here. Put it on your wish list for August.
The Book Junkie Trials: Dwarf Mount
Medievalathon: Cape
Murder at the Vicarage
Agatha Christie
3 Stars
Snuck another Christie into my reading list at the last minute as I just read through them so fast. This is the first in the Ms Marple series and it shows, a lot of the recurring characters are present but not fully established (some have starkly different personalities from what they later become). As usual it has a great twist that really does have you chasing the red herrings till the very end.
The Book Junkie Trials: The Great Library
Overall I think I can call both readathons a win. I reached the Bookie Grail and Armed myself to the teeth in medieval-a-thon. In fact made it to the rank of Queen and the only prompt I was missing was leggings. So I am a very well armed bare legged queen.
Did you participate in either of these readathons? How did you do? How did your July reading go?
I would love to chat all things bookish with you! You can comment down below or find me on Twitter or Goodreads!
Happy Reading!
Fi's Bibliofiles 