July 2023 Recap
July was a big reading month for me. I finished 18 new books and reread a few old favorites.
The Truly Excellent
The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles
What to say about this book other than the fact that I loved it? I’m so glad I discovered KJ Charles thanks to the Fated Mates podcast. Her books are smart and full of heart. I really enjoyed how she brought the setting alive in this one. I could close my eyes and imagine myself there in perfect clarity. I adored the characters too and I’m thrilled that she wrote a companion novel: A Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel, out later this year!
Rating: 5/5
Ship Wrecked by Olivia Dade
This is my favorite book by Olivia Dade thus far. I think there’s a lot of reasons why it really works for me. The first is it’s a celebrity romance and I really like when authors get into the public vs. private aspects of relationships like this. I also really enjoyed the details about filming their Game of Thrones like show, Gods of the Gates. But I think what really sold me on the book was how much I loved the main character, Maria. She’s confident, bold, sexy, and kind; an all around great romance heroine.
Rating: 5/5
Happy Place by Emily Henry
Emily Henry just doesn’t miss. I really liked this book and hadn’t heard a lot of the discourse until I finished it. *Spoilers ahead* but I can see why the idea of a woman giving up her job to follow a man bothers people. That said, I don’t think that really applies here. I think Henry did enough work throughout the whole story to make you understand just how much our MC hated her job and only followed that route to please other people. I also saw where she ended up as a “for now” thing rather than this is what she’ll do forever. All that aside, Happy Place has the signature Emily Henry wit and banter we all know and love, a lot of romantic angst, and is a great story about friendships changing and evolving as we grow older and into different versions of ourselves.
Rating: 5/5
The Quite Good
Lore Olympus: Volume Four by Rachel Smythe
I love the Lore Olympus graphic novels. I think Rachel Smythe is telling a really cool story. My only complaint is how quickly I tear through these and immediately want the next one. Which to be fair, you can find on Webtoon. I just love turning these glossy and beautiful pages.
Rating: 4/5
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
I thought for sure this was going to be a 5 star read but it didn’t quite live up to the hype or deliver for me. The writing is sharp and the voice is savage. The story R.F. Kuang is telling here is also a really interesting and worthwhile exploration of some questions about identity and story. I really enjoyed all of those aspects. Unfortunately the ending fell flat for me. It didn’t hit quite as hard as it could have and I was left wanting more.
Rating: 4/5
Atalanta by Jennifer Saint
Finally a book by Jennifer Saint I can rave about! It’s the first mythological retelling I’ve read in a while that really justifies its existence by doing something original and adding new dimensions to a well known story. It’s part adventure, part treatise on womanhood and love. I really liked her portrayal of Atalanta for the most part. The only thing I didn’t buy was her “true love” relationship at the end. We’re supposed to believe she didn’t have real feelings for someone she spent months on end with but did fall in love with a dude she met once. Other than that, I really liked the book.
Rating: 4/5
Demon from the Dark by Kresley Cole
It finally happened. I got to an Immortals After Dark book that I really liked! It only took nine installments for me to get there but I did! The hero isn’t toxic trash! The heroine is capable and kind yet still a badass! What a freaking relief. I didn’t realize it was Jen’s favorite of the series going into it but now I see why. The two characters actually seem to like each other and outside of the big betrayal (that I feel has really valid reasons for happening and being kept secret) they treat each other well. Fucking Finally.
Rating: 4/5
Much Ado About Nada by Uzma Jalaluddin
I’ve seen this book billed as a romance and I don’t think anyone should go in thinking about it that way. It’s more of a traditional “women’s fiction” novel with a strong romantic throughline. The story is clearly inspired by Jane Austen’s persuasion, set in a diverse community of Muslims. It’s lovingly told and I really enjoyed reading about Nada coming into her own and finding her path. The one nit I have to pick is her love interest held a grudge and made her feel like their relationship falling apart was all her fault. It wasn't! She was right to be hesitant and they needed the time they spent apart to grow into themselves before coming back together. He should have groveled.
Rating: 4/5
Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
Everyone was raving about this book and I can definitely see why they liked it. It’s incredibly romantic and the story is immersive. I can’t put my finger on why it’s not a 5 star read for me except for the fact that I just wanted more. The book definitely feels like a part one, which is inherently bad, but wasn’t enough to leave me feeling satisfied. I will definitely be picking up the next book in the duology when it comes out.
Rating: 4/5
Forget Me Not by Julie Soto
Another very romantic book that was quite good but not truly excellent. The dual timeline structure of the story is unique but ultimately detracted from the romance. I felt like I was watching each character exist in a one-sided love story rather than seeing them fall in love together. It also felt like we never got to know our hero and who he is in the present which makes it a bit harder to swoon over them as a couple. I really liked the writing and the characters were all easy to root for. Plus what romance reader doesn’t enjoy a book set during a bunch of weddings? For a debut, this book is great and I can’t wait to read Julie Soto’s next one.
Rating: 4/5
I Will Die in a Foreign Land by Kalani Pickhart
This book isn’t something I would usually pick up but I am glad that I did. I learned a lot about a region of the world that I wasn’t very familiar with. The subject matter is grim but it’s not so dark that you need to look away. The writing feels urgent if not super literary. To me it was more of an education than a character experience.
Rating: 4/5
The Bad
The Measure by Nikki Erlick
This was a pretty big letdown of a book if I’m being honest. The premise is really interesting but the writing was just not there. It read a bit amateurish. Additionally, the characters didn’t feel that well developed. The middle section of the book is okay but the first third and last third are not good.
Rating: 2/5
Emma of 83rd Street by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding
Yet another Jane Austen retelling that doesn’t really do much to expound upon the original story. It gets a few points for improving upon the character of Harriet but other than that it doesn’t really do or say anything new. I’d really suggest skipping this book and reading Sonali Dev’s Jane Austen retellings instead.
Rating: 2/5
The Decent
Capture the Sun by Jessie Mihalik
This book disappointed me but I think that was more a manner of my expectations than the book being bad. Since it’s a trilogy capper I was hoping we would spend more time with the characters we spent two books getting to know. Instead, this installment is a bit separate and doesn’t have the same found family themes that I loved about the others. It’s still well done though.
Rating: 3/5
Ebony Gate by Julia Vee and Ken Bebelle
This book has a lot of ingredients to be an excellent read. There’s a cool urban fantasy world, a unique mythology and magic system, and a heroine you can really root for. I think the book as a whole could probably have used another editorial pass but that could also be because I read an ARC. Change some of the pacing and it’s great. Regardless I was loathe to put it down and deeply invested in our heroine saving the day.
Rating: 3.5/5
The Sun and The Star by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro
Of course I’m not the target audience for this book but I can’t resist anything written in the Percy Jackson universe. Unfortunately, I didn’t sense Rick Riordan’s signature voice or humor in this one which made it somewhat of a slog to read.
Rating: 2.75/5
The Cuban Heiress by Chanel Cleeton
Chanel Cleeton’s historical fiction books are usually pretty solid and I can rely on her for an interesting story. My main complaint is the dual pov structure. It’s a bit one sided so we end up getting way more depth from one character than the other when they’re both the heroines of the story. It’s also way more of a revenge plot than I thought going into the book so you need to be prepared for the characters to make morally questionable decisions.
Rating: 3.5/5
The Celebrants by Stephen Rowley
I was looking forward to this book after having enjoyed The Guncle but it was a bit of a letdown. The characters didn’t come across as likable or liking each other despite being friends forever. It covers serious subject matter but still feels superficial. We never get to go below the surface with any of the characters. There are a few funny bits and Rowley’s prose is readable but I would skip it if I were you.
Rating: 3/5
The Future
I’m taking a vacation in August and spending a week at the beach. I’ll likely go through a book a day there so I’ll be packing a separate bag just for my books! There are also a few August romances I’m looking forward to like Code Name Charming by Lucy Parker and Knockout by Sarah MacLean. What did you read this month?