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June was a slow reading month for me and I blame the first two books on this list because I didn’t like them that much. Then the third one just took me a while to read because it’s non-fiction/biography. I only read five books in June but they were all ones (except the last) that I was VERY excited to read, so it wasn’t all bad even if they weren’t all good.
- If you want to listen to some of these, consider trying Audible! You can get your first month free (one free book) plus tons of others they have for free. Get that Audible deal here.
- If you’re on more of a budget, try Scribd! You can get your first month free there. You can read books and listen to audiobooks. It is unlimited (especially the reading) but if you listen to tons of new audiobooks you may be restricted after a few. I don’t listen to enough to confirm this, but I do use Scribd myself and like it a lot. Sign up for Scribd here!
- Shop my collection of bookish goodies on Etsy! These aren’t my shop items, but other shops I’ve curated into a book-themed collection. Shop my Etsy bookish goodies here!
- If you want to read more on your Kindle but don’t want to buy books, Kindle Unlimited is a wonderful option. It’s $9.99 a month but if you read a lot and like to read more than just new releases, it could be worth it. Get Kindle Unlimited here!
- Get $5 off of $25 from BookOutlet! This is a great place to find new books for pretty cheap. They also have sales quite a bit, so keep an eye out for those. I tend to check here for books I want if they’re more expensive other places. They don’t have everything but they do have a lot. Shop BookOutlet here!
- Thrift Books has become my go-to when I’m looking for a book and want it cheap. It’s great if you like buying used books. With this you can get a free book after spending $30!
- Shop my book lists here! You can find every book list I have on Bookshop.org (except my monthly round-ups) and I add everything I can but they occasionally won’t have some. I do occasionally add extras though. If any lists are empty, they’ll be filled in shortly! Shop my bookshop.org book lists here.
- Shopping internationally? Check out Book Depository!
Serpent & Dove
About the book: Louise le Blanc fled from her coven two years ago and has been living without magic in Cesarine, where witches are feared, hunted, and burned. Reid Diggory is a Chasseur of the church who hunts witches and, after a wicked stunt, is forced to marry Lou. The war between witches and the church is an ancient one and a choice must be made when she can no longer ignore her growing feelings.
Author: Shelby Mahurin
Rating: 3/5
Genre: YA Fantasy
Final thoughts: “This was fine” is my actual Goodreads review and I stand by it. I tend to agree with Read With Cindy’s thoughts on this one.
A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
About the book: Coriolanus Snow is left with almost nothing after their house has fallen on hard times, but his chance to redeem himself comes during the tenth annual Hunger Games where he will be one of the first tribute mentors. Too bad he gets the worst one, the girl from District 12. Now his every decision could lead to her triumph or failure and vice versa.
Author: Suzanna Collins
Rating: 3/5 (I say 3.5 below, but I think 3 is better)
Genre: YA Dystopian
Final thoughts: I was underwhelmed. This could have been so much better. I did think it was interesting we would get to see where Snow came from and why he is the way he is, but it was kind of boring.
Also, my exact Goodreads review: 3.5 rounded down. I like it but it took me so long to read. I felt like parts of it were just too.. easy? Like, a chapter would end with snow doing something mischievous with an obvious point but the next chapter would explain exactly why he did what he did. Like, let us figure some of it out. You don’t need to feed us everything. It probably didn’t need to be that long but I did enjoy it for the most part but I probably won’t reread it. Or at least not anytime soon.
The Butchering Art
About the book: This is a dramatic (but true!) telling of Joseph Lister’s work in pioneering in the medical world, including claiming germs were the source of all infections and could be countered by antiseptics. We get to meet some of his contemporaries, some outlandish, others outright criminal as we go through dingy hospitals and grimy medical schools.
Author: Lindsay Fitzharris
Rating: 4/5
Genre: Biography
Final thoughts: I did enjoy this, but it was a lot more biography than gross victorian surgery stories, which is was I was hoping for. The parts talking about the surgeries had me into it, but the biography parts were a bit slower. It was overall really good though.
The Sundown Motel
About the book: Every small town like Fell, New York has a place like the Sundown Motel, especially back in 1982. Some guests are out-of-towners and others are locals trying the hide their secrets. Viv Delaney is the night clerk and determined to uncover all their secrets, but things don’t go as planned and her niece follows her footsteps years later uncovering even more.
Author: Simone St. James
Rating: 5/5
Genre: Thriller
Final thoughts: I LOVED this! This is one of my tops reads of this year so far. I loved how the past played into the present, the creepy atmosphere, and just everything. I had been looking forward to this for months (since it came out in February!) and finally got it for my birthday at the end of May. SO GOOD!
Stranger in the Lake
About the book: Charlotte married a wealthy widower, Paul, causing a lot of gossip in their small town. Everything is going well, at least until she finds a body under the dock in their backyard. And it’s not the first. Paul’s first wife drowned in the same spot and it seems like a coincidence at first, but it turns out Paul knew this woman. His lies start to crack their marriage and a mountain of dark secrets come out over the course of the investigation.
Author: Kimberly Belle
Rating: 4/5
Genre: Thriller
Final thoughts: I got this in my June Bookish Box and actually read it right away! I really enjoyed it. It was a pretty easy read, not too long, and twisty enough that it wasn’t totally outlandish like some thrillers can be.
It may not have been my best reading month, but I got a few out of the way that had been haunting me on my TBR for a while and a new release, which I almost never go out and get right away, much less read right away.
Also, funny story about the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. A week or so before it came out my mom texted me and asked if I knew there was going to be a new Hunger Games book. I said yes and that I was so excited and then didn’t think about it again.
Then, a day or two after it was released, I got it and told her I did and was so excited! But she wasn’t because she had gotten it for me for my birthday, which was a couple weeks before it was released. It was pretty funny how that worked out.
Have you read any of these? Which ones? What did you read in June?
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