Tag: stephanie garber

Monthly Wrap Ups

May Wrap Up!

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Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a lovely day today. It is the end of June. I honestly don’t know where this month went. I have been so busy trying to meet my PhD deadlines that the month has flown by. How has the month been for all of you?

I did manage to read a bit this month, not as much as last month but I got through some pretty good books and I did manage to finish my TBR so I’m happy with that.

From my TBR I read:

  • The Ballad Of Never After by Stephanie Garber – I enjoyed this book a lot more than Once Upon A Broken Heart so I’m glad about that because I loved her Caraval series then when I wasn’t sure on Once Upon A Broken Heart I was worried, but unnecessarily because the second book was much better.
  • Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas – I finally got around to reading this book after far too long. I have to say the first half of the book was dragging a little bit but once the action started kicking in I was more intrigued, and I got sucked into the story and I can’t wait to keep going with the next book in the series. I will be posting a book review on the 23rd June.
  • Library Of Shadows by Rachel Moore – I wasn’t sure about this book going into it but I was pleasantly surprised. If you want to see all my thoughts about this book I will be posting a book review on the 13th June.
  • The Murder Hypothesis – again, another book that I wasn’t sure about when I picked it up but I thought it was good, for a YA mystery it was intriguing, nothing overly special or groundbreaking but an enjoyable read.
  • The Secret Service of Tea and Treason by India Holton – another book that has been on my shelf for a while that I have been meaning to get to, and of course I loved it. It was actually in line for my favourite book of the month, it just missed out on that accolade.
  • In Want of A Suspect by Tirzah Price – the continuation of Lizzie and Darcy’s story that started in Pride and Premeditation. I loved the first book, it was one of my favourite books that I read in that year, and this second book was just as good, I have to say that the romance in this novel wasn’t quite as good as in the first book in my opinion but it was still good. This was my favourite read of May.

Outside of my TBR I also read: The Mysterious Affair of Styles by Agatha Christie which I was a little bit underwhelmed with, it was okay but not the best of her novels. And I also read Murder At The Charity Ball by Helena Dixon which is maybe the tenth book in the Miss Underhay series? A solidly good book all round.

So, that means this month I read 8 books which is a pretty good effort with how my month has been going. How many books did you get through this month? Which book that you read was your favourite?

Book Tags

The Book Boyfriends Book Tag

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well today. Seeing as it is Valentine’s Day today, what else could I bring you except a post celebrating some of my favourite book boyfriends. I have to say, it was hard to choose. I made a list of them all and then picked the best ones for the questions and it was a long list.

I found this Tag on Got Meghan’s Blog if you want to check out how they answered the tag.

  1. The Most Romantic Boyfriend: LORD PHILLIP STANTON from The Lady in the Tower by Marie Louise Jenson. Phillip is a bit of a rogue for most of the book but by far out of my fave book boyfriends he would be the most romantic. He is a Lord in the Tudor period brought up on chivalry and how he should treat a lady.
  2. A Dark and Moody Bad Boy With A Good Side: KAI from Powerless by Lauren Roberts. He is the epitome of dark and moody especially for the first half of the book but deep down he’s a softie, he just doesn’t want everyone to know that.
  3. Paranormal Boyfriend: WRATH from Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco. I wasn’t sure who to put to start with then I remembered, he’s a prince of hell so a demon of sorts. Which I am saying counts, okay.
  4. Boy You’d Be Friends With Benefits With: JULIAN SANTOS from Caraval by Stephanie Garber. Now, I wouldn’t be friends with benefits at all but for the purpose of this tag it would be Julian. I love him and he had to make it onto this list somewhere, so I put him here because he dresses like a cross between a circus performer and a pirate.
  5. Your Soul Mate: THOMAS CRESSWELL from Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri maniscalco. You can’t convince me otherwise. He is my favourite book boyfriend by a mile.
  6. Boyfriend You’d Venture Anywhere with: NATHANIAL HAWTHORNE from Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson. He’s magic, it would make life interesting.
  7. Boyfriend You Want to be Stranded on a Desert Island With: KELLEN ARGOSI from Spellslinger by Sebastien de Castell. He literally spends most of the series trekking across a desert trying to survive so he must have picked up some skills from all of that which could help us.
  8. Most Badass Boyfriend: RHYSAND from the A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J Maas. I don’t think I need to explain this one, if you’ve read the series then I am sure you will understand.

That’s my answers! Who are some of your favourite book boyfriends?

Uncategorized

25 to read in 2025

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all good today, a bit of a warning, this might be a long one.

I have been seeing these lists everywhere and I thought it would be fun to do my own. So, these are the 25 books I want to prioritize in 2025. I have chosen these books because they are either: oldest on my TBR, continuing series I have started which is one of my goals for the year or they are books I feel like I should have got to by now.

The ACOTAR series (yes, I am counting the books I have left to read – A Court of Wings and Ruin, A Court of Frost and Starlight and A Court of Silver Flames – as one together because I really want to finish this series in 2025)

I Hope You’re Listening by Tom Ryan

Capturing the Devil by Kerri Maniscalco

The Gilded Cage by Lynette Noni

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber

The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V E Schwab

The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid

Sabriel by Garth Nix

Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

Assassins Apprentice by Robin Hobb

Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson

Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

Map of Days by Ransom Riggs

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Traitors Blade by Sebastien de Castell

The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater

A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer

City of Brass by S A Chakraborty

Where Dreams Descend by Janelle Angeles

Us in Ruins by Rachel Moore

The Guest List by Lucy Foley

The Painted Dragon by Katherine Woodfine

That’s the ones on my list, what books do you want to read in 2025?

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them?

Uncategorized

Book Series Tracker

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing good. I wanted to do something a little bit different today. I have been seeing everywhere people tracking the series’ that they are reading. How many they have started, how many they have completed and reminding themselves of which series’ they are currently in the middle of. So, I thought, why not have a look at how many series’ I am reading… there’s a lot. It’s about the amount I was expecting because I do love reading a series and getting all that time with a group of characters but I am terrible at keeping up to date with them. I have found over the years that I can’t binge a series one book right after the other, I have to spread them out with other books inbetween so then it takes me forever to get around to reading them again.

So, here’s a breakdown of the series’ I own and the ones I have read – or not.

BOOK SERIES’ I HAVE COMPLETED:

  • The Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead – a nostalgic favourite
  • The Bloodlines series by Richelle Mead – a spin-off to the Vampire Academy series
  • The Spellslinger series by Sebastien de Castell – LOVED this series
  • The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood – as it stands I am up to date on this series but a new book will be coming in 2025
  • The Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo
  • The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman – i have read the four books currently out even though he is writing more but I think I am going to dnf this series.
  • The Stalking Jack the Ripper series by Kerri Maniscalco – a favourite for me
  • The king dom of the wicked series by Kerri Mnaiscalco
  • The Caraval series by Stephanie Garber – another favourite series
  • The Cruel prince series by Holly Black – started my love of fae
  • The Brown Sisters trilogy by Talia Hibbert – a romance series that surprisingly I enjoyed
  • The Hatmakers trilogy by Tamzin Merchant – a middle grade series which is stunning
  • The new Faraway Tree series by Jacqueline Wilson – up to date on the two currently published
  • The Dog Sitter Detective series by Antony Johnston – two books out currently so I am up to date
  • The Trial/The Suspect by Rob Rinder – a great new murder mystery series that has two books out currently and I have read both so I am up to date as of 2024
  • Gir, Missing trilogy by Sophie Mckenzie
  • City of Ghosts by V E Schwaab – a short children’s series following Cassidy who can see ghosts
  • The Maze Runner series by James Dashner
  • The Divergent series by Veronica Roth
  • The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
  • The Vicious Duology by V E Schwaab – a great morally grey, are they heroes are they villains kind of book
  • Name of the Star series by Maureen Johnson – I absolutely loved this when I was younger, it is for teen readers but it is pretty dark

That is all the current series that I have finished/ got up to date with = 22 – not bad but not great either, the next category is the big one…

BOOK SERIES’ I HAVE STARTED BUT NOT FINISHED:

  • The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen – currently reading but I am unsure if I will continue the series or not.
  • Powerless by lauren Roberts – a definite five star for me
  • Shadow and Bone by leigh Bardugo
  • Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas
  • The Maid by Nita Prose
  • A Court of thorns and roses by Sarah J Maas
  • The Miss Underhay series by Helena Dixon
  • Sabriel by Garth Nix
  • The left handed booksellers of london by Garth Nix
  • The three dahlias by Katy Watson
  • Crescent City by Sarah J Maas
  • Finlay Donovan is killing it by Elle Cosimano
  • Grave Expectations by Alice Bell
  • The Cat who solved three murders by
  • Throne of the fallen by Kerri Maniscalco
  • The Prison Healer by Lynette Noni
  • Once Upon A Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber
  • Shatter me by taherah Mafi
  • A Marvellous light by Freya Marske
  • The strange case of the alchemist’s daughter by Theodora Goss
  • Six Tudor Queens by Alison Weir
  • A Curious beginning by Deanna Raybourn
  • Hercule Poirot series by Sophie Hannah
  • The art of the dying by Ambrose Parry
  • Bringing down the duke by Evie Dunmore
  • Clockwork Sparrow by Katherine Woodfine
  • Pages and Co by Anna James
  • Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
  • Anatomy a love story by Dana Schwartz
  • Love and gelato by Jenna Evans Welch
  • The vanished bride by Bella Ellis
  • Pride and Premeditation by Tirzah Price
  • The windsor knot by Sophia Bennett
  • Truly devious by Maureen Johnson
  • How to solve your own murder by Kristen Perrin
  • The Good Girl’s guide to murder by Holly Jackson
  • An ember in the ashes by Sabaa Tahir
  • Spin the dawn by Elizabeth Lim
  • Court of miracles by Kester Grant
  • From blood and ash by Jennifer L Armentrout
  • The beautiful by Renee Ahdieh
  • Dangerous remedy by Kat Dunn
  • Serpent and dove by Shelby Mahurin
  • house of salt and sorrows by Erin A Craig
  • The wisteria society of lady scoundrels by India Holton
  • A curse so dark and lonely by Brigid Kemmerer
  • The Bear and the nightingale by Katherine Arden
  • The Invisible library by Genevieve Cogman
  • A darker shade of magic by V E Schwaab
  • Scythe by Neal Shusterman
  • The raven boys by Maggie Stiefvater
  • Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
  • Miss Peregrines by Ransom Riggs

Which gives us 53 started series…

BOOK SERIES’ I OWN BUT HAVE NOT STARTED:

  • The Graceling series by Kristen Cashore
  • Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
  • Faebound by Saara-El Arifi
  • Phantasma by Kaylie Smith
  • The Bone Spindle trilogy by Leslie Vadder
  • The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon
  • Legendborn by Tracey Deonn
  • Crown of Ivy and Glass by Claire Legrand
  • Furyborn by Claire Legrand
  • Sisters Grimm by Menna Van Praag
  • Bone Criers Moon by Kathryn Purdie
  • The Guinevere Deception by Kirsten White
  • Traitors Kiss by Erin Beaty
  • The Gilded Wolves by Roshani Chokshi
  • The Crowns Game duology by Evelyn Skye
  • Nevernight by Jay Kristoff
  • The fate of wrath and fame by K A Tucker
  • Shadowscent by P M Freestone
  • Seafire by Natalie C Parker
  • Al of us Villains by Amanda Foody
  • Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody
  • Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
  • Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
  • Truthwitch by Susan Dennard
  • Traitors Blade by Sebastien De Castel
  • This Savage Song by V E Schwaab
  • Trial of the Sun Queen by Nisha J Tuli
  • The library of the Dead by T L Huchu
  • Defy the Night by Brigid Kemmerer
  • Library of the Unwritten by A J Hackwith
  • Song of the Forever Rains by E J Mellow
  • lightlark by Alex Aster
  • Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman
  • Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare
  • Chain of God by Cassandra Clare
  • Swordcatcher by Cassandra Clare
  • Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Fairies by Heather Fawcett
  • A Winter’s Promise by Christelle Dabos
  • Threadneedle by Cari Thomas
  • Set Fire to the Gods by Saara Rasch
  • Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim
  • Everyone in my Family has killed someone by benjamin Stevenson
  • One of us is lying by Karen M Mcmanus
  • Lockwood and co by Jonathan Stroud
  • Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare
  • lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare
  • The Diviners by libba Bray
  • Daughter of smoke and bone by laini Taylor
  • All the stars and teeth by Adalyn Grace
  • Fable by Adrienne Young
  • Incendiary by Zoraida Cordova
  • Where Dreams Descend by Janelle Angeles
  • Deal with the elf king by Elise Kova
  • Well Met by Jen DeLuca
  • A Thief’s Justice by Douglas Skelton
  • Marion Lane and the midnight murder by T A Willberg
  • Blood and sugar by Laura Shepherd Robinson
  • The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder by C L Miller
  • Twin Crowns by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber
  • A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik
  • Empire of the vampire by Jay Kristoff
  • little thieves by Margaret Owen
  • This Woven Kingdom by Taherah Mafi
  • Godkiller by Hannah Kaner
  • The Atlas six by Olivie Blake
  • A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross
  • Stolen Heir by Holly Black
  • Realmbreaker by Victoria Aveyard
  • Belladonna by Adalyn Grace
  • Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall
  • Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim
  • The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten
  • One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig
  • The Wren in the holly library by K A Linde
  • Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland
  • Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
  • Castles in their bones by Laura Sebastien
  • Dance of Thieves by Mary E Pearson
  • Only a monster by vanessa len
  • The North wind by Alexandria Warwick
  • The Crimson Moth by Kristen Ciccerelli
  • The Coven by Harper L woods
  • Crucible of chaos by Sebastien de castell
  • Play of shadows by Sebastien de castell
  • A Dark and hollow star by Ashley Shuttleworth
  • These Hollow vows by Lexi Ryan
  • Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
  • The Serpent and the wings of night by Carissa Broadbent
  • Way of the argosi by Sebastien de castell
  • When the moon hatched by Sarah A Parker

Which brings us to 90 series I own at least the first book for but I have not started. Let me know if you have read any of these and what you thought of them.

So, final tallies are: 90 series’ not started, 22 completed series, and 53 series that I have started and not finished

Grand total = 165 series!! Wow, that’s a lot. Hopefully I will make better progress with them in 2025. What are your priority series’ for 2025?

Monthly Wrap Ups

October Reading Wrap Up!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well today. It is the first of November and the cold weather has arrived which means it is time for my October Reading Wrap Up! Enjoy!

What I read from my TBR:

  • Murder at Enderley Hall by Helena Dixon – I did read this! This is absolutely my new obsession. It is the second book in the Miss Underhay mystery series. Kitty Underhay and her Grandmother run the Dolphin Hotel and Kitty ends up getting involved with investigating thefts and murders alongside an ex-military man named Matthew Bryant. I love this series, I am planning on reading one a month so I should finish the series in around eighteen months….
  • Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft – I did not read this, I am interested in the premise but this month there were other books I was more excited about.
  • Throne of the Fallen by Kerri Maniscalco – As I am writing this post, I am currently 100 pages into this books so I should get it finished by the end of October. Another book that I am loving, it follows Envy, the brother of Wrath from the Kingdom of the Wicked series, he is a prince of sin and I am very intrigued so far about what Envy needs the main female character, Camilla, for.
  • A Perilous Undertaking by Deanna Raybourn – I did not read this, again there were other books I wanted to read more.
  • Belladonna by Adalyn Grace – I did not read this. Honestly, in September and October I have been redecorating parts of my house and I am not sure where I have put my copy of Belladonna so I wasn’t able to read this in October.
  • A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik – similar to Belladonna, I didn’t read this because my copy is hidden away on my bookshelves for the time being.
  • Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson – I have not read this yet but I am hoping to still get to it by the end of October, I am going on holiday so I will have some travel time to do some reading.
  • Shadowscent: The Darkest Bloom by P M Freestone – Same as Enchantment of Ravens I have not got to this book yet but I am still hoping to by the end of this month. Fingers crossed.

Outside of my TBR, I also read The Examiner by Janice Hallett, The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman and also, (I haven’t yet, as I am writing this my copy will be arriving tomorrow but I will be reading it immediately), Spectacular by Stephanie Garber.

Overall, that means I have read 5 books and hope to finish two more on top of that by the end of the month. I am happy with that, I didn’t realise I had read as much this month as I have.

How has your reading been this month? Any new favourite books? Let me know in the comments!

Book Tags

October Book Releases

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day.

It is a new month and that means it is time to see what books are coming out in October, I have put together a small collection.

The City in Glass by Nghi Vo – 1st October

Heir by Sabaa tahir – 1st October

Best Hex Ever by Nadia El-Fassi – 3rd October

The Kiss of the Nightingale by Adi Dever – 3rd October

The Wedding Witch by Erin Sterling – 8th October

The Crescent Moon Tearoom by Stacey Sivinski – 10th October

Swordcrossed by Freya Marske – 10th October

The Mistletoe Mystery by Nita Prose – 10th October

The Treasure Hunters Club by Tom Ryan – 15th October

Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy – 15th October

Spectacular by Stephanie Garber – 22nd October

Throne of Secrets by Kerri Maniscalco – 29th October

Uncategorized

September Wrap Up!

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a lovely day today.

It is October already, the skies are getting darker and it is time to talk about what I read in the month of September.

From my September TBR:

  • Nightshade by E S Thomson – I did not read this book
  • The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent – I was really hoping I would find the time for this book but unfortunately this month I ran out of time.
  • The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern – I am currently reading this book with ten days left in the month when I am typing this so there should be no problem there, I should finish it by the end of the month.
  • Nine Lives by Peter Swanson – I did read this book and my review is coming on the 21st October.
  • Five Broken Blades by Mai Cortland – I did not read this book. I have been trying to prioritize reading the books that have been on my TBR the longest.
  • Murder at the Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon – I did read this book and loved it. I recommend this to everyone.
  • Covent Garden Ladies by Hallie Rubenhold – I did read this book and the review is coming on the 14th October.
  • The Wren in the Holly Library by K A Linde – I did not read this.
  • An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir – I did read this, as I am writing this it is the last book I finished.
  • Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber – as it stands right now if I finish the Night Circus quickly then I may get this book read as well.

That means I definitely read 4 books, and two depending on how quickly I can read for the rest of the month. So 4 – 6 books read this month is pretty good.

What books did you read this month? Which one was your favourite? My favourite read this month was Murder at the Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon.

Monthly TBRs

September TBR

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day today.

September is a busy busy month for me. I start my final year of my PhD and I am writing a second novel alongside it, I am also rearranging and redecorating my house so everything is all over the place at the moment but I am hopeful that I will still get some reading done.

These are the books on my September TBR:

Nightshade by E S Thomson

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Five Broken Blades by Mai Corland

Murder At The Dolphin Hotel by Helena Dixon

Covent Garden Ladies by Hallie Rubenhold

The Wren in the Holly Library by K.A Linde

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber

Nine Lives by Peter Swanson

The Serpent and the Wings of Night by Carissa Broadbent

Book Tags

Mid Year Freak Out Tag

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Happy Friday bookish people! I hope you are all doing well today.

I have been seeing lots of people doing this tag and it looks fun so I wanted to share my answers as well.

Best book you have read so far in 2024?

Best sequel you have read so far in 2024?

New release you haven’t read yet but want to?

Most anticipated release for the second half of 2024?

Biggest disappointment?

Biggest surprise?

New favourite author?

Rob Rinder, I like him on TV anyway and I met him at the end of May which was a great experience but I wasn’t sure how I would find his writing but I loved it.

Newest fictional crush?

This was a difficult one but in the end I chose Detective Rowan Crane from How to Solve your own murder, which was a surprise even to myself because the book itself was only a three star, but I did love his character.

Newest favourite character?

This would be Juliet from Shatter Me by Taherah Mafi, because of her strength with everything she goes through in the book.

A book that made you cry?

A book that made you happy?

Most beautiful book you’ve bought so far this year?

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

There aren’t any specific books I need to read but I would like to make more progress in series’ I have started because what I tend to do is read the first one, buy all of the series and then not get around to reading them.

Monthly Wrap Ups

June Wrap Up!

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Happy Monday bookish people! I hope you’re all having a good day today. It is nearly halfway through the year and June is coming to an end.

What a month it has been! I have spent most of my time buried under edits of my novel, I have been working on it almost non-stop this month and I have just sent off a query to an agent, so fingers crossed for that. Because of that the month has gone by very quickly, and I have got some reading done which has been nice, no stand out reads, they were all average and one DNF which was a surprise, I thought that book was going to be a five star.

How has your reading been this month? Did you read any books you would recommend?

My Wrap up:

  • Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo – I did not read this book this month
  • These Hollow Vows by Lexi Ryan – I was hoping to get around to this book this month but I didn’t, I had to prioritise books that will help with my PhD so most fantasy books aren’t getting read at the moment.
  • The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber – Same as above, another fantasy book I did not get around to reading
  • Belladonna by Adalyn Grace – This is a book I am very excited to get around to reading but I didn’t read it this month.
  • Tempest of Tea – I did not read this book this month
  • The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young – I did not read this
  • Uprooted by Naomi Novik – I started to read this book but I ended up DNF’ing it after 115 pages, it was dragging for me. I might pick it up again in the future and try and read it but not right now.
  • The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino – I did read this book, it was good but very creepy – I will give more of my thoughts in my review coming in July
  • How to Survive Your Own Murder – I am currently readying this book, I should be finished and have started another book by the end of this month
  • Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood – currently I have not read this book but I should have a few days at the end of this month where I start this book

Outside of my TBR I also read the second in the Dog Sitter Detective series. So, overall I read three books (four if I get to Love on the Brain), and I DNF’d one book which is quite a productive reading month foe me. I can only hope July will be just as good or even better.