Recent Reads > August

August was actually one of my best reading months that I’ve had so far! Before we get into the books themselves, I want to share my stats with you.

I read a total of 3,608 pages in 9 books, with the majority being paperback.

I surprisingly read only one book from a male author! August was just a month of reading books written by women, which is fantastic!

Unsurprisingly, I read mainly fantasy in August, although I did read one contemporary, one horror, and one book of poetry!

 

And now on to the part you have all been waiting for, the actual books!

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I first read Long May She Reign by Rhiannon Thomas. I have a full review for this book, so if you want all of my thoughts, check here. While this was a fairly stereotypical YA fantasy, it was made interesting by the fact that our main character Freya was never meant to be queen and loves science! She uses her knowledge of chemistry to solve the murders of the entire court, and it was so refreshing to have a heroine who wasn’t preoccupied with her appearance and was the typical “strong” female MC. She doesn’t fight with a sword, but with her smarts! This was such a great way to start of the month, and it just got better from here.

 

I then started my reread of Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas before the release of Kingdom of Ash. There isn’t really much to say, other than this is probably one of my all-time favorite series ever! I just adore Celaena, Chaol and Dorian and their relationship with each other. If you haven’t yet read this series, I suggest that you at least give it a try, or if you read the first book and didn’t love it, try book two because it gets so much better!

 

 

Continuing on with my reread, I completed Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas! This may be one of my favorite books in the series because I love the dynamic between Celaena, Dorian and Chaol, not to mention the fact that I am strongly team Chaol. The best part of this book is actually the ending where Chaol finds out who Celaena really is, and it’s just so powerful and emotional! The next book introduces a character that I’m not the biggest fan of (looking at you, Rowan) but that’s fine, because there is still so much more about this series that I love!

 

I also read my first ever poetry collection, which was written by booktuber Katie from Katesbookdate! I don’t think I ever thought that I would connect with a book of poetry as much as I did with this one. I felt like Katie was speaking right to me and I felt like I wasn’t so alone. From unhealthy relationships to anxiety to trying to figure out how to love myself, I had to just sit there and let her words sink in as I read the poems. I highly recommend this to anyone, poetry lovers or not!

 

 

Next I finished Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant. This is another book I have a full review for, so again, check that out for my full thoughts. If you’ve ever thought about what mermaids would be like if they actually existed, would they be more along the lines of The Little Mermaid or would they be deadly predators? Well, chances are they wouldn’t be singing about how they want to be human, that’s for sure. This was so creepy and realistic because it brought science into it, making it seem like mermaids could actually exist which makes it that much more terrifying. Mira Grant is actually a pen-name for Seanan McGuire, so if you love her writing and want something realistically disturbing, check this book out, I promise you won’t regret it!

 

After being freaked out by mermaids, I decided I needed something light and fluffy, so I read To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han! This was probably the cutest book I have ever read, and after falling in love with Lara Jean and Peter K, I immediately bought the next two books in the series. I’m planning on doing a full series review once I finish the final book, so keep an eye out for that! But basically, if you haven’t read this book yet I have no idea what you are doing. You HAVE to read this book!

 

 

While waiting for those books to come in, I decided it was finally time to finish Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb. I originally started and subsequently put this book down a few months ago because it was pretty slow in the beginning, but when I picked it back up it started to pick up, and eventually ended in a place where I know that I just have to continue on to see what happens to poor FitzChivalry! I’m not really surprised that I didn’t love the first half of this, because Fitz was just a child and there really isn’t a lot of exciting things that can happen to a child.

 

Then I finally finished Theft of Swords by Michael J Sullivan, and let me tell you, this has become one of my favorite books ever! I love Royce and Hadrian and their relationship with each other. Their banter is so enjoyable and I cannot get over the twist at the end! I’m excited to pick up the next book and see what trouble my favorite duo will get into! The most unique thing about this series is that each book is a bind up of two books in the series, and each book has a self contained story. There is an overarching story line, but it’s a very episodic way of telling a story and it was really enjoyable!

 

I then read Grace and Fury by Tracy Banghart, which I got in an Owlcrate box. First, let me just say how GORGEOUS this cover is! I always love Owlcrate’s exclusive editions. This is a YA fantasy set inspired by Italian culture, and that was a really interesting twist on the fantasy setting. Grace and Fury follows two sisters who are living in a world where women are oppressed. One sister is meant to be a grace, which is a consort to the king, and the other sister wants to change how women are treated. Their lives are completely changed when one sister is caught reading and is sent off to prison. While full of the standard YA tropes, it was still an enjoyable read and I recommend it to anyone looking for a feminist fantasy read.