JUL WRAP UP | The Books & the Stats

This month, I’m writing this post on 31st July so if it doesn’t go live until mid-August, at least I started with good intentions. I’m getting better and hey, maybe this is the month that I post more than just my wrap up!

July has been busy, culminating in YALC last weekend. I don’t know yet whether I’m going to do a YALC post or not, but I will say that with that and my birthday, my July haul is off the charts. I’m never going to catch up on my TBR.

Big stat for the month though – this was my most consistently enjoyable reading month of 2019 so far with my star average being 4.63! My next closest was January with 4.42!

The Fever King (Feverwake #1)
by Victoria Lee
★★★★½

YA Dystopia [GR | BUY]

I actually started reading this back in March when it came out in Prime First Reads*, but I had so much going on that I never really read it. I always end up prioritising physicals over ebooks, but I picked it up again as an audiobook. Once I was well and truly invested, I switched back to ebook and devoured this.

It’s a dystopia with fantasy elements, queer characters and diversity in abundance. I would die for these characters, and this book just kept me guessing.

*Prime First Reads gifts you with a free ebook every month, a choice between a selection of soon-to-release novels across multiple genres. Get an Amazon Prime 30 Day free trial here.

Murder on the Orient Express by
Agatha Christie
★★★★

Classic Mystery [GR | BUY]

July felt like it was the month of audiobooks, but only three and a half of the books I read this month were audiobooks.

I grew up watching David Suchet’s Poirot TV show, but I’d never actually read one of the books. This was really enjoyable, but as with a lot of Christie, she is a author of her time and there is some questionable content and severe lack of diversity. I have ticked off another book written before I was born though!

False Hearts (Pacifica #1)
by Laura Lam
★★★★½

YA Sci Fi [GR | BUY]

False Hearts was on my list of 12 books I had to read in 2019 and hooo mama, am I mad I didn’t read this earlier. This book was amazing.

Luke actually picked this out for me because I couldn’t choose what to read next and he smashed it out the park, so shoutout to my boy.

I would describe this as a bit VR but with drugs and future and undercover spies and bi baes. Conjoined twins and cults and just gloriousness. Laura Lam is a gem and this book is seriously underrated.

The Wicked Deep by Shea Earnshaw
★★★★★

YA Urban Fantasy [GR | BUY]

This was another of my 12 books for 2019, and another book chosen to read by Luke.

Atmospheric, intriguing and witchy as heck, this novel is about the ghosts of three girls who were murdered in witch trials who have since haunted the town in the hundreds of years since. I lived for the water imagery, the feminist messages and all-round witchy summer vibes.

Prince Charming by Rachel Hawkins
★★★★★

YA Romance [GR | BUY]

2019 is clearly the year of the romance, because this is the third month in a row where a romance has been my read of the month (and the only three months where I have done read of the month)!

Prince Charming was originally released as Royals last year before being rereleased this year, and I was gifted this for my birthday from Cora @ Tea Party Princess!

This book was so much fun. No, it was not necessarily a very accurate example of Scottish life, culture or royalty, but guys it was a really fun romance. However, I was mortally offended by Daisy’s hatred of Pimms.

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue (Montague Siblings #1) by
Mackenzi Lee
★★★★½

YA Historical [GR | BUY]

This has been on my shelf for a while but it showed up on my library’s audiobook library so I thought I’d give it a listen while driving home from my parents’ house and I was hooked. So hooked that I whipped out my physical to finish it the next day!

A fun frolic set in the 1700s (ish) with great bi rep, hints at ace rep and just general greatness.

However, I am aware that a lot has come up recently regarding Mackenzi Lee’s upcoming novel and her treatment of the trans community. I struggle with situations like this because this series has some great rep, and is hilarious and heart-warming and I really enjoyed it.

Viper (Isles of Storm & Sorrow #1) by Bex Hogan
★★★★★

YA Fantasy [GR | BUY]

This was a birthday gift from the lovely Connie @ Connie Reads and HOLY SHIT THIS WAS BRILLIANT.

Vicious, fierce females, pulled heartstrings, forbidden love – honestly, it’s like Bex Hogan went around finding out exactly what I love in a novel and checked them all off as she wrote. I sat in the corner of YALC sobbing to myself on the final day while Hogan broke my heart and put it back together again.

If you loved To Kill A Kingdom, Daughter of the Pirate King or even A Darker Shade of Magic, this book has all the female pirate, secret magic vibes you need.

The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy (Montague Siblings #2) by Mackenzi Lee
★★★★½

YA Historical [GR | BUY]

The sequel to Gentlemen’s Guide, this book follows Felicity as she tries to make her mark on a world that believes her gender is inferior. It’s defiant, strong and again, hilarious. I don’t feel like I need to say much more on the Mackenzi Lee topic but this novel also includes ACE REP.

2019 Reading Challenge	Goal	Actual
January	7	12
February	14	21
March	21	30
April	28	37
May	35	43
June	43	52
July	50	61

The below charts are taken from my reading spreadsheet, created annually by Brock Roberts.

Yes, YALC ruined my July Completed vs Acquired

2019 Reading Aims	Goal	So Far
Backlist Must-Reads	12	3
Friend Recommendations	10	1
Graphic Novels	6	4
Pre-1995 Books	6	2
Male protagonist / author	25	15

How did your July go? If you posted a wrap-up, link me in the comments!

---

If you like my content, please consider supporting me elsewhere
TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | GOODREADS | BUY ME A COFFEE | WISHLIST

Imi is part of the Amazon Associates Affiliates programme.
If a book is purchased from this blog through a link to Amazon UK a small commission will be given to Imi at no extra cost to you.