Category Archives: Books

Monthly Recap: July

Books I Read

A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee (reread)

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle

She Is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick (finished July 1)

So I read A Wrinkle In Time for the first time. And I can see why it’s so beloved and classic. However, some of it was too on-the-nose for me and some of it was a hair too out-there. It’s like when I watched Interstellar for the first time, and I was pretty sure where it was going and I watched as this movie teeter-tottered on the fine line between interesting sci-fi and going off the deep end. I wanted to feel just a little more invested in the characters and could have done with less unnecessary riddles. I also watched the trailer of the new movie coming out the same day I finished and felt a little disappointed. I guess I wanted the movie to feel more classic, but to me it already screams: THIS WAS MADE IN 2017, so I don’t see it enduring as a movie. But that’s based off a two-minute trailer, so what do I know? Maybe it will be amazing.

A New Favorite…

Baking mix! Though don’t let the fact that it comes in a box fool you, this is almost as involved as made-from-scratch, but just as delicious and so worth it!

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

For some reason, it feels really momentous to have finished Deep Space Nine again. Probably because I love the show so much and the end is just so satisfying for me. As is reflected by my top episode of the season, the Nog arc really did it for me. But of course there are also the great arcs we see for Kira, Bashir, Damar, Sisko… It could be talked about forever, which is why there are podcasts dedicated to such. (If you’re a fan of DS9, be sure to give The Orb podcast a listen.)

#bookstagram Images of the Month

I think that both Caraval and Wall-E have made it onto my #bookstagram images of the month before, but they’re just so photogenic!

Movies I Watched

My husband and I saw Spider-man: Homecoming and Dunkirk. I reviewed Spider-man here, and I’m still sorting out my feelings for Dunkirk. It’s incredibly raw and intense, but without much of a narrative it was hard for me to appreciate it as a story. It’s a beautiful film, that’s for sure, but I would have loved to have gotten to know the characters onscreen better. I mean, in a way we know them because we see them when they’re afraid, but… I just wish I could adequately describe how I respect what Nolan was doing but just don’t really love it but I desperately want to. I actually want to try to see it again, preferably in film, now that I better understand what happened, thanks to the movie’s Wikipedia page that spelled it out.

In Case You Missed It…

I was featured on Andi’s ABCs talking about what decision I wish technology would make for me!

Plans for August

Switchfoot concert! I’m so excited. I lost count on how many times I’ve seen them long ago. It’s got to be around the dozen mark at this point. It’s also my husband’s birthday month! Which means CAKE! Oh, and celebrating my wonderful husband. 🙂 It also means my birthday is around the corner SOS I don’t want to get older.

Potential July TBR

It Started With Goodbye by Christina June (already started)

These Vicious Masks by Kelly Zekas and Tarun Shanker

Without a Summer (Glamourist Histories #3) by Mary Robinette Kowal

(yes I know those last two were on last month’s list… shhh…)

How was your July? What are you looking forward to in August?

Monthly Recap: June

Books I Read

Better Off Friends by Elizabeth Eulberg

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling (reread)

By Your Side by Kasie West

(Finished on July 1) Duels and Deceptions by Cindy Anstey

So Better Off Friends… Why did no one tell me this book was a ME book? OK, I guess no one else could know that. It wasn’t quite as amazing as The Start of Me and You (AKA the most ME young adult contemporary I have ever read), but still pretty great.

Also, I ran out of time on my To Kill A Mockingbird audiobook from the library I was listening to, so I haven’t finished it yet, but I plan to physically read the rest once my hold from the library comes from (or until I find the physical copy in our house that I am pretty sure we own… whichever comes first). I was having a hard time with the narrator’s portrayal of Scout anyway. She made her sound like a very irritating girl with a very annoying Southern accent, instead of the more precocious girl with a not-annoying Southern accent that I imagine in my mind.

Stanley Cup Finals

I was pretty unhappy with how the Finals played out in games 5 & 6 (do not even get me started on the refs) but I am still proud of the Preds for getting so far when none of the experts expected it and enjoyed the ride! I also now have two Preds t-shirts and look forward to rooting for them in the future!

#bookstagram Images of the MonthPotential July TBR

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab

A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

These Vicious Masks by Kelly Zekas and Tarun Shanker

Without a Summer (Glamourist Histories #3) by Mary Robinette Kowal

Movies I Plan to See in July…

Spider-man: Homecoming and Dunkirk! My husband and I haven’t made it out for Wonder Woman so I think we’re waiting for it on Redbox at this point, but Spider-man and Dunkirk are two movies we are going to make a point to go see. If you don’t know anything about Dunkirk, all you need to know is that Christopher Nolan made it. SOLD.

I did a thing…

I ordered from Book Outlet for the first time and got seven books for $37… Which I think is a pretty good deal but it’s still not a very me thing to do. I slept on it before I made the purchase though and as long as I enjoy my books I see no reason to regret it… other than the fact that I already need less stuff in my house rather than more… but books are different, right?!Totes.

How was your June? Any big plans for July?

 

The Top 10 Series I’ve Been Meaning to Start or Continue But Haven’t

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week’s topic is Top Ten Series I’ve Been Meaning To Start But Haven’t. Starting a series can definitely be a struggle, but sometimes it’s continuing the series that is the problem! So I created a list of series that I need to start or finish.

Series I’ve Been Meaning to Start

The Lord of the Rings 

YES, I KNOW.

Insignia

I bought the ebook of this a good while ago and really need to read it.

Percy Jackson

YES, I KNOW. And I’ve had this ebook for a while as well.

Space Trilogy

I want to read all of C.S. Lewis’s works, though admittedly I have not made a great effort towards this. I hardly ever see this trilogy anywhere, but I definitely want to read it.

These Vicious Masks

I’m sensing a pattern with these ebook acquisitions…

Series I’ve Been Meaning to Continue

For this, I made the criteria be that the next book in the series that I haven’t read yet needs to have been our for more than a year.

Jackaby

I enjoyed the first book, even though I wasn’t expecting the paranormal aspect, and really have wanted to read on.

Gallagher Girls

I’ve read the first two Gallagher Girls books but haven’t made it to #3 yet.

The Selection

I am less and less certain if I really want to continue & finish this series, but part of me kind of does.

Hitch-hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

When I read the first book, I thought it would feel like a standalone, but it does leave off in a sort of strange spot, clearly setting up for the second book. Since I think of the movie version more though, I haven’t been real motivated to pick up The Restaurant at the End of the Universe though I want to.

The Young Elites

I enjoyed the first book a lot, and then I pretty promptly moved on with my life. So will I read on? We’ll see.

Bonus: Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes

I read the first book of this series, The Beekeeper’s Apprentice, in college, and didn’t realize it was the beginning of a series. But then my then-boyfriend now husband continued to collect and read the books, and I have yet to continue despite enjoying the first book and knowing how he’s enjoyed the others.

Which series have you been meaning to start or finish?

Monthly Recap: May

Books I Read

Freefall to Fly by Rebekah Lyons

The Secret of a Heart Note by Stacey Lee

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling (reread)

Paper Wishes by Lois Sepahban

I also listened to two non-fiction books on audio in May. I decided to try adding audiobooks in with my podcast routine to switch things up. I don’t like audiobooks quite as much as podcasts because it’s not conversational, but it’s still working out pretty well for me. It’s a good way to absorb information while doing something else. Right now I’m “re-reading” To Kill A Mockingbird on audio, though I’ve thought about abandoning the audiobook to finish reading it for myself since the narrator’s attempt at a Southern accent has grated on me a little. We’ll see.

 

Netflix

As you may have seen on my post about Anne with an E, I got a Netflix free trial after never having it before, and watched that entire series. Since then, I’ve watched a little of Girl Meets World (thanks to Annie) and my husband and I have started Sherlock. We’re planning to keep the service through the summer, until our shows come back on TV. If you have any other recs, send them my way!

#Bookstagram Image of the Month

Life Things

A few days before our anniversary, my husband and I made a somewhat last-minute decision to take a quick, one night trip to a nearby city, Chattanooga, a few days after our anniversary. It was a really great little trip! I have a future post planned where I will share a little more about it.

We also ordered our first set of living room furniture! For our first 8 years of marriage we have been using hand-me-down furniture, which has been great and we have been thankful for, but since we’ve gotten into our new house last year we have been ready to sort of really make it our own. It will be several weeks before we get the new furniture, but when we do we’ll move the old couch upstairs to our bonus room and probably get rid of our old chairs. It’s kind of crazy to think about as it’s just another thing that feels so “adult”!

Looking Forward to in June

I don’t really have big plans, which is nice. Just some family stuff, and hopefully just enjoy the beginning of summer. I’m also rooting for the Preds for the Stanley Cup; GO PREDS! I’ve been to one Preds game before (a couple of years ago) and I honestly didn’t love it (getting shut-out probably didn’t help…), but watching them advance through each round of the playoffs has been so exciting! They’re down in the series right now, but it’s been a year of comebacks so I haven’t lost faith yet!

Potential June TBR 

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling (reread)

Duels and Deceptions by Cindy Anstey

I’m still undecided on what else I want to read, but I’ll figure it out. 🙂 I also finished Better Off Friends already and really enjoyed it.

What are you looking forward to this month?

The Top 10 Books on my Summer TBR + Most Anticipated Releases of 2017

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Last week’s topic that I missed was Summer Reads Freebie, and this week’s topic is Top Ten Most Anticipated Books For The Second Half of 2017. So I thought I would sort of combine these two to share my summer TBR and releases I’m anticipating from the latter half of this year.

On my summer TBR…

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling (reread)

As I continue my HP reread, I’m very excited to get started on my second favorite book of the series!

Duels and Deceptions by Cindy Anstey

I enjoyed Love, Lies & Spies last year, so I’m looking forward to Anstey’s follow-up!

These Vicious Masks by Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas

This wasn’t on my spring TBR I don’t know what you’re talking about…

Without a Summer by Mary Robinette Kowal

The way something was handled in the previous Glamourist Histories book makes me not as eager to pick up this one, but I have it so I want to give it a fair shot. Hopefully what happened last time will be redeemed.

A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

This is one of my many library holds and I’m hoping it’ll come through this summer. My husband and I just started the BBC Sherlock so it’s put me in the mood!

By Your Side by Kasie West

Another library hold I hope will come through soon. I know that this one has been generally less liked than West’s other works, but I still want to read it.

What I’m Anticipating From The Latter Half of This Year

Here Lies Daniel Tate by Cristin Terrill, Coming June 6

I thought All Our Yesterdays was fantastic, so I’m ready to read something new by Cristin!

Wonder Woman by Leigh Bardugo, Coming August 29

It’ll be interesting to read something by Leigh outside of the Grishaverse!

The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo, Coming September 26

More Grisha!

Renegades by Marissa Meyer, Coming November 7

Confession: I felt burned by Heartless. I adored The Lunar Chronicles and Heartless was just way too much of a downer for me. I’m cautiously optimistic that Renegades could be better, but I’ll probably try to borrow from the library instead of buying it right away like I did Heartless. But the concept definitely sounds interesting!

What are you planning to read this summer? What releases coming later this year are you anticipating?