I want to start this reading wrap-up with a disclaimer. Often, when I talk about the amount of books I read in a month, I receive comments from people who seem to be self-conscious about their reading life. It happens frequently, so I’m not trying to call anyone out here, but I do want to say that I don’t give my monthly reading total to brag. And it’s not a competition. If you only read one book this month because you were busy corralling kids while on vacation or traveling for work, that’s fine. If you only read one book this month because you chose to binge on Netflix, that’s fine. If you only read one book this month because that’s all your mind could handle, that’s fine. I’m a reader through and through, which means I set aside a lot of time to read in my life. (I’m also single and childless with a low-stress job, which means I have more hours in a day to get things done than most people.)
I also don’t feel like reading is the right hobby for everyone. I wish it was, only because I derive so much joy from it myself and I think reading does wonders for opening up one’s worldview. But for some people, reading just isn’t fun. It’s work. And so, I’m not going to sit here and implore everyone I know to read as much as they can. Read if you want, or don’t. But please don’t feel as if I am bragging when I tell you how many books I read, or that the fact that I can read so many books a month means I am superior. I’m not. I’m just a woman who loves to read and makes a conscious effort (at the detriment of other hobbies) to read as much as I can.
Okay! With that said, let’s get onto my reading wrap-up! In July, I read 13 books and abandoned two. My average rating was 3.9, which is the exact average rating I had last month. I had a few 5-star reads mixed in with a bunch of 4-star ones, so it was a pretty solid reading month for me.
Books Read
1) A Hope Divided by Alyssa Cole (★★★☆☆) – I found this historical romance to be lackluster in the romance department, but really interesting when it comes to the historical element. I learned so much!
2) The Cruelest Month by Louise Penny (★★★★☆) – This cozy mystery was slow to start but super stressful for a good chunk of it due to a secondary plot involving the chief inspector. Not for the faint of heart!
3) Heads in Beds: A Reckless Memoir of Hotels, Hustles, and So-Called Hospitality by Jacob Tomsky (★★☆☆☆) – I was unimpressed with this memoir and didn’t find it as dishy about working in hotels as one might imagine.
4) The Strongest Steel by Scarlett Cole (★★★★☆) – This romance was so much fun to read that I nearly stayed up late one evening to read the whole book in a night. (I paced myself, however.)
5) The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee (★★★★☆) – Pick up this book if you want to read about a bisexual man living in the 1700s and in love with his best friend who goes on a tour of Europe only to be attacked by highwaymen and pirates.
6) Intermediate Thermodynamics by Susannah Nix (★★★☆☆) – A slow plot and lackluster romance mean I probably wouldn’t fall over myself to recommend it, but I loved reading about a woman rocket scientist and how she dealt with constant misogyny and sexism at work.
7) The Sun Is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon (★★★★★) – A beautifully written novel that brings a human element to the topic of immigration and deportation. A must-read.
8) Someone Like You by Lauren Layne (★★★★☆) – This novel had a pretty heartbreaking side plot that had a major bearing on the overarching romance, but it never felt like it was too much or overpowered their love story. A very satisfying read.
9) The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli (★★★★☆) – I loved every minute I spent with this book and could relate the Molly, the main character, more than I’ve ever related to a character. Highly recommend, especially if you love sweet YA love stories.
10) The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager (★★★★★) – Another 5-star Riley Sager novel for me! His thrillers are just so damn compelling, and I couldn’t put this one down for anything.
11) Make Me Crave by Katee Robert (★★★★☆) – Just one of those sexy romances that had a really silly premise, but was carried out in a semi-believable way. And those sex scenes – whew!
12) The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson (★★★★☆) – This is the kind of self-help I love: giving me some great quotes to think about without overwhelming me with a bunch of action steps and to-dos. I hope he writes more books!
13) Lies She Told by Cate Holahan (★★★★★) – The premise of this thriller was so incredible and the execution so flawless that I couldn’t give it anything less than 5 stars. Highly recommend.
From the above list, the three books that I wholly recommend and think just about any reader will like are The Sun Is Also a Star, The Last Time I Lied, and Lies She Told.
Book Stats
- Number of pages read: 4,019
- Breakdown of formats: e-books (5), physical copies (5), audiobooks (3)
- Book that took me the longest time to read: The Cruelest Month (9 days)
- Book that took me the shortest time to read: Make Me Crave (3 days)
- Breakdown of genres: romance (5), nonfiction (2), historical fiction (1), YA (2), mystery/thriller (3)
- Number of diverse reads: 4 (31%)
- Where I sourced my books: library/Overdrive (10), Amazon (2), Book of the Month (1)
- How much my books cost me this month: $19.97
What was the best book you read in July?
I actually read three books last week, which is good for me (I think I have read… zero over the past few months). It’s nice to remind myself that I CAN finish a book, when I find one that does it for me! (And also when I have/make time specifically for reading.)
Yes! Sometimes, reading is something you have to set aside specific time for. It’s so easy to get sucked into social media or TV. Three books in a week is incredible! Nicely done!
I always have more time to read in the summer! I think I finished three books last month, which isn’t too bad for me! My favourite was “All We Ever Wanted” by Emily Giffin, followed by “The Hate U Give.”
Three books in a month when you’re running after two small children is amazing! Also, The Hate U Give was my favorite book from last year. So glad you read it!
I just finished The Dime by Kathleen Kent – I think you might enjoy based on other things you have liked, and I think you mentioned you were interested in reading more fiction with LGBTQ characters?
I neeeed more from Riley Sager, & I need to get on the library’s waitlist for “The Upside of Unrequited.” I love everything I’ve read by Becky Albertalli!
That was my first Becky Alberalli book and now I’m even more intrigued to read Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda! I need to get that one ASAP.
I read 6 books in July. The best book was “A Place For Us.” It’s definitely firmly in the literary fiction genre but it was beautifully written. I was sad when it was over because I really wanted to know what happened to the characters in the book. I also really liked “The Girl Who Smiles Beads.” It’s the memoir of a Refugee that fled Rwanda during the genocide. It was crazy to read about everything she went through at such a young age!!
I’m reading “The Alice Network” right now but it’s taking me awhile to finish it as it’s so long as my schedule hasn’t allowed for much reading this week between the travel I did and such. I usually read on flights but I was way too tired to focus on a book when I flew this week – especially on the way home yesterday!
I can’t believe how much you’ve still been reading, even with a newborn! Just goes to show you that even the busiest people can make time for reading if it’s important to them. Nicely done!
All three of the books you mentioned are on my TBR!
I also read the Upside of Unrequited this month and enjoyed it! I listened to it as an audiobook on my walk to work! Actually, I read three Becky Albertalli’s books this month…weird haha. Have you read her others? I think Simon is still my favourite.
Best book I read in July – toss up between Since You’ve Been Gone by Morgan Matson and, to my surprise, Every Day by David Levithan. I listened to both on audiobook and honestly could not wait to go to work because I was so excited to listen to them on the walk. I take that as a good sign!
Ooh, I love when I’m reading an audiobook that makes me excited to take a walk or do chores, haha. It’s very rare for that to happen, as audiobooks aren’t my preferred medium, but every now and then, I get surprised by one! “The Upside of Unrequited” is my first and only Albertalli book so far, but her other ones are on my TBR list.
Ugh. Some people just can’t help but compare, can they?! I think that really says something about people’s personality (that they’re insecure) when that is how they react to information like that! You do you and let me be passionate about my hobbies!
I love that you read so much!
Hahaha, I love this comment so much! And totally agree with it. It just makes me feel bad for “bragging” about how much I read. I can’t help it! I just have a lot of free time and I use it to read. On the other side of the coin, it took me nearly four years to watch the entirety of Gilmore Girls because I’m terrible at Netflix binge-ing. We all have our strengths! 😉
Impressed as always! I don’t ever take your reading recaps as a brag, but I do find it inspirational and encouraging. I know you set aside time to read in a way that I haven’t and I’ve tried to be more mindful about that this year and am going to far surpass my reading goal for the year. You’ve definitely inspired me to read more and to read more books by a diverse field of authors and I’m very, very thankful for that!
Awww, this makes me so happy! If I can help people find time to read more, that’s all I can hope for! I’m so glad you’re reading more this year and are going to surpass your reading goal – woop, woop!