What a month! It’s been utterly crazy work-wise, with many extra hours and not even from home. It was a good thing to do though, but after work and doing my chores around the house, there wasn’t much energy for anything else.
There were some good reads though! Several 5 and 4 stars. It’s also noticable by my picks the more tired I got when we were running towards the end of the month, the ratings get lower and lower. But, there’s also a new thing coming. I have two books inhere that will get their very own long reviews! Hopefully soon.
But let’s dive into the books shall we? So what have I read this June?
#46 Napoleon in a Nutshell, by Neil Wenborn and Rupert Degas (English, 3 stars)
Informative hilights of Napoleon’s life and actions. This was a weird read for me, but I needed it for a challenge prompt, and it was really short and on audio, so it was like listening to a podcast. I was also, once again, reminded that I really need to visit the Austerlitz Pyramid, because it’s at a drivable distance and a good area for hikes. :-p
#47 The Last Mrs. Parrish, by Liv Constantine (English, 3.5 stars)
One of my Secret Santa gifts from last year! And she was right, it was very entertaining and a bit of a surprise too. As this is a domestic thriller, I wasn’t sure at first, because I normally don’t enjoy these. And for the first part I was indeed boring myself a bit with all the classic happenings, while simultaneously being curious about why this got recommended to me. They were right though. The second and third part were very satisfying!
#48 Reaper Man, by Terry Pratchett (English, 5 stars)
A reread for #AroundTheDisc800. I remember I didn’t enjoy the storyline of the wizards a lot during my first read, but it was a lot better now that I have got to know the characters better the last few years. I’m upping it to a 5 star-read, because there wasn’t a thing that bothered me! The storyline of Death himself was amazing, and if there truly is a Reaper Man out there, I hope he cares just as much about the corn as Bill Door did.
#49 Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, by Heather Fawcett (English, 5 stars)
Oh my cats, I loved this so much I think I’ll write a long review of it. So stay tuned!
#50 Dissolution, by C.J. Sansom (English, 4 stars)
Loved it! I was looking for a good historical mystery for a while now, and remembered Victoria (from WhatVictoriaReads) has a whole stack of this series in her cabinets. So let’s try! Well, it was a succes. Even though this is between slow- and medium paced, it was mysterious, it was often tense, and it was for sure something different as the main character is actually a lawyer (during the middle ages) with a physical disability. His views of the world (or at least, his world) get challenged beautifully. It wasn’t perfect, but I loved it and I am curious to find out how Matthew Shardlake’s stories continue.
#51 Devil Aspect, by Craig Russell (English, 4 stars)
This was A RIDE!! Really, such a thrill. Even though i called it pretty early, this was a true pageturner. It kept me up at night, simply because I needed one more chapter. And another one. And just one more. The Devil Aspect gave me all of the Silence of the Lambs vibes, but more modernly written. Can recommend!
#52 Exiles, by Jane Harper (English, 3 stars)
Honestly, I am a bit disappointed. Not by the story per se, but as the previous Jane Harper stories I’ve read all blown me away this was just… okay. This either is one of those “middle books” setting up a new storyline to settle some grounds for next novels, or I am not loving this series as much as I remembered. I’m hoping it’s the first reason, as the ending does leave room for “small town detective stories with found family”, like the Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series I love so much. Fingers crossed!
#53 The Other Side of Midnight, by Simone St. James (English, 2.5 stars)
This story is written well enough, but I had a hard time connecting to the characters. Therefore I couldn’t fully get into it and can’t give it more than three stars. The mystery was mysterious, I rather enjoyed how that played out. Having a psychic during the 1920’s investigate a murder is to my opinion still an interesting plot, but sadly, this story didn’t do it for me.
#54 On Spine of Death, by Tamara Berry (English, 3.5 stars)
Another fun bookish cozy mystery, but the ending felt quite abrupt and leaves a bunch of questions. For all the build-up that has been done, I feel another chapter would gave been great. There is however a next book, hopefully that answers some of my questions!
#55 The Pull of the Stars, by Emma Donoghue (English, 4 stars)
Wow do I got opinions! I think I might turn this into a long review too. Stay tuned!
What about you? Did you have a good reading month? Or did you only want to read some easy works? What about the books I’ve read, do you know any of them? What are your opinions? Tell me all about it in the comments!