Recent Reads

I wanted to initially do a book wrap-up for July because I read so much, but some stuff ended up getting in the way. Instead, I’m now just going to do a recent reads post. For the record, I only actually read 3 out of 14 of these books. The rest were all audiobooks. I 100% credit that to me being able to finish all of these books. Also, how amazing is it that I read 11 books in July? I was so proud!

Book #1: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

I know this series came out some time ago, but I always just brushed it aside. This summer I spent a lot of time with my cousin who’s in middle school, and she is obsessed with this series. The two of us talk about books a lot now, especially since she’s starting to read books I’m also interested in. Because of all of this, I decided to finally start the Lunar Chronicles. I didn’t love this book, but I did enjoy it. I like the characters and the plot is cool, but it just wasn’t a favorite for me. It’s a great set-up, but I wasn’t really begging for more until I got to the end of the book.

If you don’t know about this, it’s basically a Cinderella inspired story with a sci-fy twist. That doesn’t fully do it justice, but it is alluring. I’m not the biggest sci-fy fan, but I really like where this series has been going. It’s more political than I initially expected, and I sort of love that.

Book #2: Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

This was a reread for me. I read it back in May and loved it. I had heard amazing things about the casting for the audiobook, though, so that intrigued me. I was not disappointed. I cried reading this book. I cried listening to this book. There was just one thing that I think reading the book really strengthens that the audiobook kinda skims over (not really, but ugh). Basically, if you read the book there’s like a weird little… slip-up (?) a character has while speaking and you don’t know why until the end.

Okay, no more going into that because that’s bordering on spoilers. This book follows the rise and fall of a band. It’s told in an interview format from the perspectives of the band members and those close to them. I love this book. Please read it.

Book #3: Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald by J.K. Rowling 

Where do I begin? Okay, so I saw the movie after reading this. The movie helped the ending feel more climactic to me. A lot happened. Very quickly. I think some of it was for fans just to make connections. All that being said, I didn’t hate it. I think my biggest issue was how much happened in such little time. The events in this really should have been stretched out longer in my opinion, like over a couple scripts rather than one. There was a lot of stuff going on, as I said, but this felt very much like a huge set-up. I know some people are still unhappy with it not feeling like Harry Potter, but I’m somehow able to separate it in my mind, so I still like it. I’m probably going to continue reading and watching the series.

Book #4: Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code by Eoin Colfer

I’m very iffy about this series. This is the third book in this series. I enjoy it and the characters, but it almost feels like homework sometimes to read this. I’m not quite sure why I feel like this. I liked the plot for this one a lot, too (especially the ending). Maybe I’m just a little too old for it? The idea of a child genius and magic is just so captivating, though! Who am I kidding? I am definitely going to finish this series, albeit slowly. As long as I finish each book before the movie, I’m okay. This specific book really challenged Artemis with a new foe in a way we hadn’t seen before, and for that I really appreciated it.

Book #5: The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan

Why did I put this book off for so long? I love this book. It made me cry so much. This book handles grief and struggle in such an important way. Some moments made me cry while others made me smile. It’s a beautiful magical realism book that I think every person should give a try. This book follows the story of a girl who loses her mother but then sees her mother as a bird. In an effort to get leanrn more and to get closer to her mother, she goes to Taiwan.

Book #6: The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater 

This is the second book in The Raven Cycle. I know this book is a huge favorite for everyone, but I’m sorry to say it’s not mine. That being said, I did like it. I loved learning more about the dreaming aspect of this world, but I’m just not a huge Ronan girl. This book is heavily Ronan-focused, so that was just a flaw for me. Learning what we did in this book, though, definitely made me like Ronan much more throughout the entire series. I will forever remember Ronan throwing Noah out of a window.

Book #7: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer 

This is book two of the Lunar Chronicles, and it follows Scarlet as she tries to find her grandmother. On the other end of things, we also get to see how Cinder breaks out of jail and what that entails. I much preferred this book to Cinder. This book was much faster paced, and that really worked well for me. The love story was a bit too insta-love for me, but I like Scarlet and Wolf. Wolf’s role in this was a bit too predictable for me, but it was a really fun read. I also loved Cinder so much more in this book than the first one. Also, Thorne? Love him. I’m also glad we’re still able to see what’s going on with Kai and Levana.

Book #8: Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater 

This is the third book in The Raven Cycle. I don’t know why, but this book is kind of a blur for me. Granted, I was so sleepy when I was working my way through it. I did enjoy this one, though. Listening to the audiobook sometimes gave me chills, especially when there was some chanting by a certain character who will be unnamed. Honestly, so much happened in this book, but it was heavily character-driven and I really loved that. It felt like all of the pieces were beginning to fall into place.

Book #9: Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

I love this book! This was a reread for me, mainly because I was going to read the second one, but wanted a refresher. My refresher basically solidified how much I love Thomas Cresswell and Audrey Rose Wadsworth. Seriously, I love them so much. My love for them competes with my love for Will and Tessa. (I heard Cassandra Clare is doing a series about their children, but I stopped reading her books after The Infernal Devices. I might pick up the series about their kids.)

Back to this book! This book is set in Victorian England during the time of the Ripper murders. Audrey Rose secretly learns forensics from her uncle and takes it upon herself to solve the gruesome murders. Along the way, there is a romance I am an utter sap for.

Book #10: Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco 

This is the sequel to Stalking Jack the Ripper. The main characters return and head off to a new place with new murders occuring. Along the way, we meet some new wonderful characters (Daciana is amazing).

I loved this book just like I loved the first one, but this one was a bit more predictable to me. When it came to the first book I kept going back and forth between who I thought the killer was, but I really stuck to my guns for this one (and I was right). In this book we also get to see Thomas not be so perfect all the time, which was nice. His big mistake really pissed me off, though. I understand he’s all stressed, but I really wanted to slap him. I’m glad he owned up to his mistake right away, but just thinking about what he did still irks me. If you’ve read this, you know the big mistake. I don’t know how he thought that would fix everything, but they ended up finally talking so fine.

Book #11: The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee

I did not know what to expect from this book, but it exceeded all my expectations. This book is also set in the Victorian era and follows Monty go on a roadtrip with his best friend, Percy, and his sister. Oh, he’s also madly in love with Percy. Monty is such a flawed character, but he’s also so lovable. The tour they all go on ends up detouring in a big way, allowing this book to form into a crazy adventure story I just was not expecting. There is so much banter, and I am here for it. This book also discusses racism in a very open way, which I was not expecting but was grateful for.

Book #12: The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy by Mackenzie Lee 

This is the sequel to The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue. While we do get to see Monty and Percy, this book focuses on Monty’s sister, Felicity. Much like her brother, Felicity also has her flaws in how she treats and thinks of women who are not like her. This also takes on an adventure plot, but shies away from romance. By doing so, it was honestly really refreshing seeing such badass women get shit done. It was also interesting seeing a character like Felicity not only grow as a person, but also be presented as the main character even though she doesn’t really feel sexual attraction. That’s just something I haven’t seen very often in books, so it was something that definitely stood out to me.

Book #13: The 5th Horseman by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro 

This is the fifth book in the Women’s Murder Club series. It wasn’t as interesting as some of the other books in the series, but it was a nice change compared to everything else I was reading.

This book follows two murder mysteries. On one hand, patients are being killed at a hospital and having buttons placed on their eyes. On the other hand, young women are being killed and posed in luxury cars. I personally found the hospital murders more interesting, but was a bit let down by the ending moments. I just feel like it was wrapped up too nicely. The court cases in this book were very interesting, though, and definitely a highlight for me.

Book #14: The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater 

The final book in The Raven Cycle! I love this book! Hands down, this is my favorite book in the series. He knew! He knew the whole time! Ah! I screamed so loud when I finished the little prologue thing. I am just the biggest Gansey girl. Also, this book was so much darker than the rest, and I loved that. I genuinely got so scared when Adam attacked someone and when Noah attacked someone. I enjoyed this series, but this last book has made it one of my favorites. I think the only thing that makes me sad is that Noah isn’t mentioned in the epilogue at all. Noah deserved something there, even if it was just a passing thought.

That’s it. Those are the 14 books I finished recently. Thanks for reading to the bottom. School starts tomorrow for me, so I probably won’t get as many books done. That does not mean I won’t try, though. Wish me luck. Until next time.