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Monthly Wrap-Up: August 2021

  • The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid (★★★★☆)
  • Hexed by Michael Alan Nelson (★★★★★)
  • Shiver by Junji Ito (★★★☆☆)
  • Sleepless Volume 1 by Sarah Vaughn (★★★★☆)
  • Sleepless Volume 2 by Sarah Vaughn (★★★★★)
  • Fangs by Sarah Andersen (★★★☆☆)
  • Uzumaki by Junji Ito (★★★☆☆)
  • Something is Killing the Children by James Tynion IV (★★★☆☆)
  • The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould (★★★★☆)
  • Grass by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim (★★★☆☆)
  • Magma by Thora Hjortleifsdottir (★★★☆☆)
  • She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan (★★★★★)
  • Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys (★★☆☆☆)
  • The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris (★★★★★)

MONTHLY TOTAL: 14
YEARLY SO FAR: 72

This deceptively large number of books read is brought to you by the ridiculous quantity of graphic novels I’ve consumed this month. As I’ve been saying, I have been vaguely slumpish all summer, and in an effort to combat said slumpiness, I’ve tried reading shorter books and graphic novels. This way, I can actually finish things, and I also don’t fall behind on my Goodreads challenge.

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Monthly Wrap-Up: July 2021

  • Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca (★★★☆☆)
  • Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw (★★★★☆)
  • A Dark and Secret Place by Jen Williams (★★★☆☆)
  • Practical Magic by Nikki Van De Car (★★★★★)
  • Assembly by Natasha Brown (★★★★☆)
  • Madam by Phoebe Wynne (★★★☆☆)
  • Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater (★★★★★)
  • Dragonslayer by Duncan Hamilton (★★★☆☆)
  • Breach of Peace by Daniel Greene (★★★★☆)
  • Love and Luck by Jenna Evans Welch (★★★★★)
  • The Maidens by Alex Michaelides (★★★★☆)
  • The Colour of God by Ayesha S. Chaudry (★★★★★)

MONTHLY TOTAL: 12
YEARLY SO FAR: 58

It’s been a weird reading month. I can’t seem to determine if I’m in a reading slump or if I’m just being extra picky about the books I read. I DNF’d three books this month, and set two aside for later reading, when I’m in a hopefully better mood. I don’t know, I feel like this year in general I’ve been way more liberal with DNF-ing, and that tends to make me think I’m in a slump, but maybe I’m just being extra discerning? Because I have managed to read quite a few books this month, and I have five-starred and four-starred a few of them, so maybe I’m just being real with myself about which books I don’t want to waste my energy on.

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Monthly Wrap-Up: June 2021

  • People Like Us by Dana Mele (★★★★☆)
  • For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten (★★★★☆)
  • Persuasion by Jane Austen (★★☆☆☆)
  • The Ophelia Girls by Jane Healey (★★★★☆)
  • The Return of the Sorceress by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (★★★★☆)

MONTHLY TOTAL: 5
YEARLY SO FAR: 46

I started off the month by almost immediately DNF-ing POSSESSION by A.S. Byatt lmaooo, literally did not even make it 20 pages into the book before I put it down. Pretentious, distant literary fiction works for a lot of people, but it’s just really, really not for me except in a handful of circumstances, and I need to learn to stop forcing myself to try to like it. In any case, one of these exceptions was THE OPHELIA GIRLS, which I picked up completely on a whim after seeing a review on Goodreads, and I enjoyed it a lot even though it does have aspects of pretentious lit fic. It was beautifully written and full of mythological symbolism.

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Monthly Wrap-Up: May 2021

  • The Mask of Mirrors by M.A. Carrick (★★★★☆)
  • The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse (★★★☆☆)
  • A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djeli Clark (★★★★★)
  • The Haunting of Tram Car 015 by P. Djeli Clark (★★★★★)
  • Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (★★★★☆)
  • Night Film by Marisha Pessl (★★☆☆☆)
  • Working on a Song: The Lyrics of Hadestown by Anais Mitchell (★★★★★)
  • In the Ravenous Dark by A.M. Strickland (★★★☆☆)
  • A Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark (★★★★★)
  • Emma by Jane Austen (★★★★★)

MONTHLY TOTAL: 10
YEARLY SO FAR: 41

I had a much, much better reading month than April, thankfully (though, the bar was admittedly very low). Not only did I read much more, I enjoyed so much more of what I read.

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Monthly Wrap-Up: April 2021

  • The Wolf of Winter by Paula Volsky (★★★☆☆)
  • Piranesi by Susanna Clarke (★★☆☆☆)
  • Love & Misadventure by Lang Leav (★☆☆☆☆)
  • Hex Life by Christopher Golding & Rachel Autumn Deering (★★★★☆)
  • The Drowning Eyes by Emily Foster (★★★★★)
  • Mansfield Park by Jane Austen (★★☆☆☆)

MONTHLY TOTAL: 6
YEARLY SO FAR: 29

I…have had a rather dismal reading month. I DNF’d three books, skimmed the non-fiction book I was reading, and generally just did not love most of what I read. I was definitely in a slump for much of the month, brought on by a variety of factors (one of which I am certain is Mansfield Park, which was such a slog!). Thankfully, over this past week I have been slowly fighting my way out of the slump, and I look forward to a much better reading month in May!

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