July 2024 Reading TBR

[zephroar]

The first of July is literally tomorrow and as such I've decided that I wanted to do a TBR in the hopes to downsize the amount of books that are on my physical shelves or that I've gotten from the library. To make things easier for myself, I'll separate the books into two separate categories: Owned and Library.

There are some books that I know for sure I want physical copies of, these books will have an asterisk before the book title. I am enjoying my time with these books so much that I know I want them in my personal collection, but for now I have to save money for a new bookcase since one of my larger bookcases is starting to fall apart due to age. I've had this bookcase since I was fifteen years old and it's definitely survived quite a few moves since I first started university.

So without further ado, let's get to this month's TBR. I definitely hope to finish the books I am currently reading this month so those are top priority.

~OWNED BOOKS~

• Aurora Floyd by Mary Elizabeth Braddon- I read Lady Audley's Secret by this author back in September of 2022 and I enjoyed the book immensely. Earlier this year, I made the decision to buy Aurora Floyd now that I am sort of over the book high that Lady Audley's Secret brought me. I do like this book but I am only on the third chapter, so pretty early on in the book. I think that Mary Elizabeth Braddon is going to be an author that I enjoy so much that I will start a collection of her other books.
• Crouchback by Sarah Woodbury- This book was recommended to me by somebody who shares my love for historical murder mysteries. Crouchback is the first book in The Welsh Guard Mysteries and so far I am really enjoying my time with it. Sarah Woodbury is a new to me author who is self-published, and she's written another murder mystery series that I am excited to check out called The Gareth and Gwen Medieval Mysteries. If you are a fan of books by Susanna Gregory, Michael Jecks, and Bernard Knight, I feel that this author is going to be your cup of tea!
• The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World by Steve Brusatte- I love Dinosaurs and the prehistoric world. I've got so many books about dinosaurs and the Ice Age that they are predominately displayed on their own shelf. I am happy that I got this book to add to that collection and the author is amazing.

~LIBRARY BOOKS~
I took out way too many library books. I just go through phases where I go overboard on placing holds on library books. This last time I took out fourteen library books and I plan on reading all of them, but the ones on my top priority are listed below.

• *The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang- I love this book so far. I love it! It gets into the nitty gritty of training for war, there's battles and warfare, and I am absolutely in love with Rin's character. She's amazing. She's kickass. She's absolutely brilliant. I love some of the other characters in this book, but Rin is the hero and main protagonist, and I really love her as a character.
• Two Can Keep A Secret by Karen M. McManus- This is my fourth book by this author and I love it. Ironically, this is her second book and I didn't realize until I started reading. There are definitely some predicable elements of the plot going on, but I do love this book. The author always has a mother that isn't the best, but as somebody who can really connect to these characters where they have shitty parents (and in my case a shitty abuser of a stepfather), I don't mind reading the same thing in every book by this author. Besides, I really love Ellery and Ezra and the mystery they find themselves in is really interesting.
• *Sisters of War by Lana Kortchik- Funny story about this book. I own the companion (sequel?) where it alludes to events in this book and made for a confusing read, so I temp DNF-ed 'Sisters of the Resistance' and decided to get this book out of the library. That way I can judge for myself if I want to buy this book for my personal collection or if I just keep the companion (sequel?) to this book. Right now, I feel that this is going to be an instant case of love because of how attached I am to Natasha and Liza's characters and their personal stories in this book. It is a book about the Second World War with Ukraine as the backdrop so it is a devastatingly hauntingly heartbreaking read so far.
• The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton- I keep getting distracted but this is the month I am going to read this book. I've heard amazing things about this book and it does have a trope I do want to see more of in a mystery novel which features in the main plot.
• Ithaca by Claire North- I take issue with feminist retellings of ancient Greek, Roman, and Arthurian literature. Once I figure out how to do it, I will link a video I found that addresses the issues I have because this person explains the issues they have with ancient Greek myth retellings in a way that I never could. However, that said... I want to read this one. I can't explain why? Maybe the issues I have with other Greek myth retellings won't be an issue with Claire North's works.
• Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi- This is a middle grade and I've always had my eye on it. I think that it sounds amazing so I want to give it a read.
• The Winter Guest by Pam Jenoff- This is my fourth Pam Jenoff book and I do like her writing. I enjoyed my time with The Woman with the Blue Star and The Things We Cherished. I didn't really like The Lost Girls of Paris but this book is set in Poland during the Second World War with the tragedy of the Holocaust in the background. I feel like I am going to enjoy my time with this one and who knows, maybe I will buy myself a copy from the secondhand bookshop.
• Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan- I was always interested in picking this one up but never did because it was YA. It does come with a trigger warning which I am grateful for, but I know what I am getting into and I do intend to read this one even though it's going to be difficult to read.
• The Davenports by Krystal Marquis- I saw this book on Book Outlet and nearly bought it before I made the decision to look for it in my library. The cover is stunning and yellow is my favourite colour, but just because a book is your favourite colour and has a stunningly beautiful cover, it doesn't justify buying the book even off of a site like Book Outlet. It is YA historical romance (I think?) and the plot sounds really intriguing because it features a wealthy black family in the early 20th century where the daughters of the family try to forge their own destinies and find love. It sounds like a fun read so I decided to just pick it up from the library.