I can’t believe it’s already September despite the fact that August honestly seemed like the longest month of the year so far – but that’s probably because I’m not a fan of the heat!! Still it was nice to see the sun even if it got a little hotter than I think anyone wanted and it was a little dry too where I am. I hope you had a good summer and managed to get some reading in. I’m actually really really pleased reading-wise this month.

By the time my last post went live I’d just recieved all the books I got last month, so I thought I’d share them here. They’re all books I was super excited to read. Only one of them was from a new to me series, which I’m really pleased with because as I said last month the goal is to get rid of my tbr pile.

This month I managed to read 11 books and clear 3 from my tbr pile.

I did most of my reading at the start of the month because I was stuck at home and needed to keep myself entertained.

The first book I finished this month, I actually started in July, was Trouble with the Cursed by Kim Harrison. It is the latest book in the reboot(??) of Harrison’s Hollows series, a series I’ve really enjoyed reading. I found it a bit hard to get back into the series in this book, but overall I enjoyed it and thought it was a good read. Normally I tend to read books in this series within a couple of days, this one took me over a week. I think fans of the series will be pleased with this book. This gets a 4 out of 5 stars from me.

The next book I read this month was Wild Sign by Patricia Briggs, the latest addition to her Alpha and Omega series. This book was a delight, everything I wanted and expected from this series. It was nice to return to Anna and Charles and see how they are doing. There were some really interesting revelations in this book, which I really enjoyed and I liked the further background they provide. Without getting too spoiler-y I just wanted to say that I thought the final few pages of the book had a real punch to them and I am excited to discover more. I devoured this book in a day. This book gets a very first 5 out of 5 stars from me.

The third book I read this month was A Stranger in Town by Kelley Armstrong the penultimate book in her Rockton series. This book finally answers some questions that have been haunting the series, which I found really interesting. It follows the same format as the rest of the series and I really enjoyed watching events unfold. This was exactly what I wanted from a book in this series. This book gets a 4 out of 5 stars from me.

The fourth book I read this month was Crowbones by Anne Bishop, the third book in her The World of the Others series. This is a great continuation of the series, and it was nice to return to a familiar place and characters. I think this would make for a great spooky read. The plot was well thought out and kept me guessing. I could not put this down. I look forward to more books set in this world. This book gets a 5 out of 5 stars from me.

The next book I read was Cat + Gamer by Wataru Nadatani. This is the first part of a new manga I discovered, with the second (and final?) part due out in late August. The cover and illustrations are absolutely gorgeous. The story is simple but delightful. If you’re looking for a cute, fun read that’s light then this would be a perfect book to try. I’m excited to get to the second part. This book gets a 4 out of 5 stars from me.

The sixth book I read this month was Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim, which is the first part of what I believe is a duology of the same name. First off I have to admit that what initial attracted my attention to the book was the cover – it is absolutely gorgeous!! The book itself did not disappoint. There is a definite feel of a fairy tale to this book. The story is intriguing and the writing beautiful. I love how complex the relationships in this are, I particularly liked how Princess Shiori’anma’s relationship with her brothers was shown and her complicated feelings about being a princess and what that means. I am definitely curious about what is to come. This book gets 4 out of 5 stars from me.

The seventh book I read this month was Gallant by V. E. Schwab which is a standalone novel that because of the protaganist’s age I belive falls into the middle grade/young adult category. I can definitely see where the comparissons to The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson-Burnett come from. There are definitely similar vibes and ideas between the books, although there is more of the feel of Stardust by Neil Gaiman to the book in my opinion. This is an interesting read. It feels quite dark and deals with tragedy and new beginnings. I really quite enjoyed it. This book gets 4 out of 5 stars from me.

After reading this many books at the start of the month I was a bit overwhelmed, so I decided to take a break pretty happy with my reading progress.

I saw these three books and couldn’t resist buying them towards the end of the month – Soul Taken literally arrived on its publication day.

The eighth book I picked up this month was The Deepest of Secrets by Kelley Armstrong, the final book in the Rockton series. Honestly the mystery of this book was a bit blah, it seemed pretty meaningless but that was probably because of how things were unfolding within Rockton itself. There is a definite feel of an ending to this book, but there’s also promise of what’s to come. It really solidified the events of A Stranger in Town. I kind of spoiled myself a bit for this book because I had a general idea how things would end (I wanted to check that this was the last book in the series and found out more than I bargained for on the author’s website). This book gets a 3 out of 5 stars from me.

The next book I read this month was Soul Taken by Patricia Briggs, the latest book in her Mercy Thompson series. This is a brilliant return to Mercy and her pack; I really enjoyed it, the mystery is well written. It’s always fun to return to this series because nothing is ever boring – though I’m sure Mercy and her pack wish it was quieter sometimes. This is actually set after Wild Sign, and there’s a little easter egg there if you read both series which I enjoyed. My only complaint was the resolution happened off page, but it needed to be as it would have made Mercy et al overpowered. This book gets 4 out of 5 stars from me.

The final book I completed this month was A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas which I believe is part of the A Court of Thorns and Roses series. This sucked me straight in and I really enjoyed it. I think I’m glad for the huge break between this and A Court of Frost and Starlight. I honestly think I needed the gap to allow me to get out of Feyre’s head and into Nesta’s. It was really interesting to get her point of view, and I actually really liked her as a character. I like the way she grew through the book. There is a lot of potential set up in this book. I think there are supposed to be two more books in the series after this one, so I’m really curious where Maas is going to take us in them.

And last but not least, The Orphanage of Gods by Helena Coggan the only book I did not finish this month which I’m super pleased with. I got my copy in the 14th Illumicrate box where it was the featured book. I struggled to read one hundred pages honestly. I didn’t gel with the characters or the setting. It just wasn’t for me so I put it down and moved on.

Thank you for making it this far down this rather long post. I hope you had a good August. I’d love to know your favourite read (or re-read) of the month. See you in October.