In July, I read 37 books and I reached my reading goal of 300 books (I’m on 313 books now). This is a personal record for sure, and I really don’t know how I managed to read so many books already this year! I’m not actually sure what I’ll raise my goal to, honestly – I just want to continue reading however much or little I want.
My favourites of the month have been How to Be a Movie Star by TJ Klune, Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters, A Psalm For the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers, and You and Me on Vacation by Emily Henry.
In this post, I’ll share my Goodreads reviews of my 4 and 5 star reads of the month. Want to keep track of my reading in more detail? Feel free to add me on Goodreads!
Corinne Duyvis – The Art of Saving the World
This is an incredibly fun take on the chosen one trope that has me craving more YA sci-fi. It was like reading a Doctor Who episode!
Supriya Kelkar – That Thing About Bollywood
Sonali has learned early in life that when she has a feeling, it’s best to shove it way, way down. But when her parents announce they’re getting divorced, suddenly it gets a lot harder to do this. Sonali finds herself in an alternate reality where everything is like it is in a Bollywood movie, and every time she has a feeling, she starts singing and dancing about it, whether she wants to or not. To get back to her own reality, it seems like she needs to get those pesky emotions under control, but how?
I always love contemporaries with a slightly supernatural twist, and this was a really fun and charming one, with a main character who goes through a lot of growth.
Adiba Jaigirdar – Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating
I just read this pretty much in one sitting and I enjoyed it so much! I love fake dating and I love the grumpy x sunshine dynamic, and both worked so well here. I loved both Hani and Ishu as characters. They were so different and because of that, they could help each other work through stuff.
Elizabeth Lim – Six Crimson Cranes
I sat down to read the first few chapters of this book, but I was drawn in immediately because the book starts in a very engaging way, and before I knew it, I had finished the entire book in one sitting. It’s a chunky one too, but I just couldn’t put it down. This book gave me all the magical fairytale vibes you might be expecting from the cover, and it turned some tropes on its head in a really interesting, fresh way that I adored.
TJ Klune – How to Be a Movie Star
I didn’t review this, but it’s 100% a new comfort read for me, I loved it so much.
Sarah Hogle – Twice Shy
This was very different from You Deserve Each Other, so I can understand why people have been disappointed – they’re not comparable books. But I loved this book a lot in different ways, and I particularly really loved Wesley!
TJ Klune – Flash Fire
Does this book have the best plot ever? No. But I’m just enjoying this series sooo much, it’s hilarious and I love the way it plays with the genre. TJ Klune’s books get more fun the more you read and I can’t wait to dive into more of his books.
Torrey Peters – Detransition, Baby
This was such a thought-provoking read and exactly what I want out of literary fiction. The main characters were complex, messy, and unlikable but in a way that made them so intriguing
Bex Hogan – Venom
I didn’t review book 2 in this series, but I’m so glad I finally got around to reading the rest of this trilogy, it’s so entertaining!
Bex Hogan – Vulture
I read book 1 in this series back in 2018 and really enjoyed it, but I hadn’t expected to remember it as vividly 3 years later. But I did and when I sat down to reread it and finally read book 2 and 3, I just had an incredible time. This has been such an enjoyable series, and I love how action-packed and full of plot twists it is – it kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time.
Debbie Rigaud – Truly, Madly, Royally
Had such a good time reading this one! I saw a lot of mixed reviews and sure, you shouldn’t expect a story with too much substance, but it really achieves what it sets out to do and feels like watching a fun romcom! If you like stories about royals, definitely give this one a try!
Becky Chambers – A Psalm For the Wild-Built
Becky Chambers absolutely excels at cosy sci-fi that makes you ponder about the meaning of life. This book actually helped me a lot to realize that my value as a person is not determined by my productivity, which is something I struggle with a lot. This was just such a kind-hearted read and I absolutely loved it.
A huge bonus for me is that the main character uses they/them pronouns and the book is written in 3rd person POV, so you actually see their pronouns used a lot, which was very validating.
Emily Henry – You and Me on Vacation
This book had NO right to make me this emotional. I was told this was a romcom, yet I cried several times and just felt so incredibly emotional over it, and yes, I loved that about it. It’s still also a romcom, and a really funny one too, just one that also takes your heart and squeazes it until it hurts.
Combining the friends to lovers trope and the trope of following the characters throughout the years, with a healthy dose of mutual pining added to it, just hit all the right spots for me. I had expected to enjoy this, maybe even a lot, but I hadn’t expected it to touch my soul in the way it did. I related so much to both Poppy and Alex, and I love them so incredibly much!
Rebecca Podos & Ashley Herring Blake, ed. – Fools in Love: Fresh Twists on Romantic Tales
My full review will be up soon!
What was your favourite read this month?
Anniek's Library 
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