June 2020 Wrap-Up

It only took me three whole months to adjust to my new life during a pandemic, but I can happily say that my appetite for books and writing have finally returned! I spent countless hours forcing myself to read even when I didn’t want to, simply because I knew that it would be a better use of my time than staring out the window and letting my depression win.

June has been my most productive month of 2020, and I hope that July will be even better! There have been some things happening in my life that I don’t think are appropriate to share with the internet, but what I can say is that it has definitely been a rough three months. I’ve gotten very little writing done despite the abundance of time that being laid off has given me, and with no jobs currently hiring, I feel that there is no better time then now to force out a couple thousand words each day even if it physically hurts my brain to do so.

Anways… Books! I have read/listened to a total of 6 books this month, which is my all-time high for 2020! I consider that to be something to celebrate. All of them were wonderful, and if I have done a review on them, then I will make sure to leave a link if you are interested in reading about my thoughts.

• Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates: 5/5
• Home Before Dark by Riley Sager: 4/5
• Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender: 5/5
• The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon: 5/5
• Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell: 5/5
• Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World by Mark Miodownik: 5/5

I will be starting up another writing project that I began a few months ago and will write some bad poetry in my journal just so I can say that I am at least trying. There are plenty of reviews coming this July, and I can’t wait to share my bookish thoughts with everyone!

What was your favorite book from your June 2020 reads? Do you have a large TBR stack ready for July, or are you going to see where the books take you and find new books as you go? I’ve got a growing list of books that I would like to read throughout July, but I tend to wander from the path that I had planned earlier…

Happy reading!!

My Top 5 Reads of 2019!

2019 is officially over and I manage to exceed my goal of reading 30 books this year! This year I embarked on a mission to read every Agatha Christie novel, and I also started my first year of college. I’m excited to share with you my favorite reads of 2019, which are in no particular order because I found it impossible to pick a favorite from these five.

Warning: Minor spoilers 

The Toll by Neal Shusterman

The Toll was an amazing finish to the trilogy that I had been following for years. It is beautifully written and each character is memorable despite having a large number of characters that are in the novel. I was crying tears of joy at the very end when Tyger was brought back and I found it impossible to put down this novel with every chapter bringing each character one step closer to being reunited.

Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

Ever since my first taste of the thriller genre, I have found it impossible to stop reading mysteries and horror alike. It’s fun to try and predict what could possibly happen next, and my favorite thing is being able to pick up on the subtle hints from the author. This novel, in particular, made its way to the top five by perfectly incorporating each creepy hint in ways that I had never imagined. It’s one of those books that no matter the length, I can’t help but finish it in less than a week because I have to know just what happens next.

Wilder Girls by Rory Power

The first thing that drew me in about this novel was the cover, which is extremely beautiful and already conveys just what this novel is about: Girls slowly falling apart from some strange disease. What I love most about this novel is how gay it is. It was refreshing to have the same eerie horror that I have grown to love, while also having a main character that I could really relate to. Even though this book was full of monstrous curiosities, it felt strangely comforting, and I believe that it was because I was finally reading a novel where the main character wasn’t straight.

With that said, this novel doesn’t focus much on the romantic relationships between characters. This novel is mostly about the horror of this strange disease that has turned the entire island that the Raxter School for Girls is on to an apocalyptic nightmare.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

This book was amazing. Of course, any book that is full of mystery and magic is automatically amazing to me, so that statement is just my opinion. I read this book earlier in the year, so I can’t recall every single detail, but when I was looking through the list of books that I had read this year, the cover of this particular novel stood out to me as one that had to be on this list. It’s an adorable love story like Romeo and Juliet, but with less death and more common sense.

The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman

It is impossible to be as obsessed with books as I am and not take interest in this novel based on solely the title of this book. When I saw this all over my Instagram feed I thought Hey, I like books. This book should be pretty relatable and cute. Spoiler alert: I was right. This book was adorable and full of cheesy romance that I loved so much. It is one of those books that I can see myself rereading in the future when I need something comforting and familiar to lean on.

 

That’s about it for my thoughts on my top 5 books of 2019! This post is short and sweet because I’m writing this a little last minute, and I didn’t want to miss the deadline for posting this when New Year’s themed things are no longer relevant. What are your favorite reads from the past year? From the past decade? Were you able to reach your reading goals this year?

If you are interested in reading more blog posts like this then click the follow button on the side. That way you get notified every time I post something new, so you don’t miss it!

If you’re interested in checking out some of my original work, then head over to my Tumblr where I post various poems and short stories!

A Very Late June 2019 Wrap-Up

My life has been very busy lately. There hasn’t been much time to read, but hopefully this July I will be able to fit in more books!

Otherworld by Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller

This was my least favorite read. It was overall pretty disappointing, and I won’t continue reading the rest of the books in this series. The blurb made it sound like a book I would like, but the characters were static and stereotypical. The main character was especially annoying and self-absorbed.

The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie

On my neverending quest to read all novels by Agatha Christie, I decided to take a break from Hercule Poirot mysteries and switch to Tommy and Tuppence. This novel was so cute and I enjoyed every minute of it. The characters are all so enjoyable and there were plenty of twists that I never expected.

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld

There’s nothing better than a good YA dystopian novel, in my opinion. Sometimes the romance can get in the way, but in this novel, there was none of that. Tally (the main character) does some stupid things in this novel, but she is still a good example of a strong female protagonist. I’m looking forward to reading the last book in this trilogy.

 

What was your favorite read from June? I enjoy reading your comments, and I would love to hear what you have to say!

If you are interested in reading more blog posts like this then click the follow button on the side. That way you get notified every time I post something new, so you don’t miss it!

If you are interested in supporting the blog and keep it ad-free then scroll down to the button to see the various ways that you can help out!

-Liza