I love the weather we're having in the UK right now, sitting outside with a good book sounds like the ideal way to spend a couple of hours. So, that's what I've been doing. I finished six novels this month, all by authors I've never read before but some of these books have been on my to read list for a while!
All The Bright Places
Jennifer Niven
Current Kindle price: £4.99
Current Kindle price: £4.99
"Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, and he constantly thinks of ways he might kill himself. But each time, something good, no matter how small, stops him.
Violet Markey lives for the suture, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister's recent death.
When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it's unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the 'natural wonders' of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It's only with Violet that Finch can be himself- a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who's not such a freak after all. And it's only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet's world grows, Finch's begins to shrink. How far will Violet go to save the boy she has come to love?"
Violet Markey lives for the suture, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister's recent death.
When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school, it's unclear who saves whom. And when they pair up on a project to discover the 'natural wonders' of their state, both Finch and Violet make more important discoveries: It's only with Violet that Finch can be himself- a weird, funny, live-out-loud guy who's not such a freak after all. And it's only with Finch that Violet can forget to count away the days and start living them. But as Violet's world grows, Finch's begins to shrink. How far will Violet go to save the boy she has come to love?"
This has been on my to read list for ages, since Zoella started her book club but I only just got round to reading it. It fell flat for me, it didn't live up to the hype I've heard but it was a decent read and I definitely want to read more by Jennifer Niven in the future.
13 Reasons Why
Jay Asher
Current Kindle Price: £4.99
Current Kindle Price: £4.99
"Clay Jensen comes home from school to find outside his front door a mysterious boc with his name on it.
Inside he discovers a series of cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker- his classmate and crush. Only, she committed suicide two weeks earlier.
On the first tape, Hannah explains that there are 13 reasons why she did what she did- and Clay is one of them.
If he listens, Clay will find out how he got onto the list- what he hears will change his life forever."
I mean, who hasn't of this book right now?! I read this after finishing the second season of the netflix show so I wasn't expecting any surprises here. This is one of my sister's favourite books and she hasn't watched the show (but I have told her to!) and I was curious to see if there were any differences to the show. There are a few, Sherri is Jenny in the book, clay listens to the tapes in one night and he gets the tapes before Jenny. Overall I prefer the show, the timeline of Clay listening to the tapes so you have more time to see how all the characters are coping is more interesting. Probably the most important change is the fact that Clay is number 11 on the tapes in the show and that he skips Bryce and passes the tapes on to Mr Porter. In the book, Clay mails the tapes to Jenny so the assumption is that Bryce does get the tapes in the books. So that means, there is no side B to the last tape, book Clay doesn't get a recording of Bryce confessing to raping Hannah. Obviously the differences set up the first season to carry on the story, and with no source material to work from, I was really impressed with season 2. Bring on season 3!
Inside he discovers a series of cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker- his classmate and crush. Only, she committed suicide two weeks earlier.
On the first tape, Hannah explains that there are 13 reasons why she did what she did- and Clay is one of them.
If he listens, Clay will find out how he got onto the list- what he hears will change his life forever."
I mean, who hasn't of this book right now?! I read this after finishing the second season of the netflix show so I wasn't expecting any surprises here. This is one of my sister's favourite books and she hasn't watched the show (but I have told her to!) and I was curious to see if there were any differences to the show. There are a few, Sherri is Jenny in the book, clay listens to the tapes in one night and he gets the tapes before Jenny. Overall I prefer the show, the timeline of Clay listening to the tapes so you have more time to see how all the characters are coping is more interesting. Probably the most important change is the fact that Clay is number 11 on the tapes in the show and that he skips Bryce and passes the tapes on to Mr Porter. In the book, Clay mails the tapes to Jenny so the assumption is that Bryce does get the tapes in the books. So that means, there is no side B to the last tape, book Clay doesn't get a recording of Bryce confessing to raping Hannah. Obviously the differences set up the first season to carry on the story, and with no source material to work from, I was really impressed with season 2. Bring on season 3!
Final Girls
Riley Sager
Current Kindle price: £1.99
Riley Sager
Current Kindle price: £1.99
"The media calls them the Final Girls- Quincy, Sam, Lisa- the infamous group that no one wants to be a part of. The sole survivors of three separate killing sprees, they are linked by their shared trauma.
But when Lisa dies in mysterious circumstances and Sam shows up unannounced on her doorstep, Quincy must admit that she doesn't really know anything about the other Final Girls. Can she trust them? Or can there only ever be one?
But when Lisa dies in mysterious circumstances and Sam shows up unannounced on her doorstep, Quincy must admit that she doesn't really know anything about the other Final Girls. Can she trust them? Or can there only ever be one?
All Quincy knows is one thing: she is next."
I really enjoyed reading this. It kept me guessing, I thought I had it all figured out then the reveal threw me through a loop. I wasn't expecting that ending! If you're into thrillers, then this is a must read, it's one of the best I've read this year.
Doll Hearts
Colleen Clayton
Current Kindle price: £3.73
Current Kindle price: £3.73
"17-year-old Julianne Bell's life is caving in on her. Literally. Her mother is a hoarder and shopping addict whose retail drug of choice is collectible dolls. Their house is not a home but more a bizarro game of garage sale tetris in which flea markets finds, amazon boxes, and QVC shipments are puzzled together in a labyrinth of consumer excess and looming bankruptcy. It's a situation Julianne has grown adept at hiding. That is, until the day her school cafeteria account slips into the red. Meal skipping is not an option for someone with Type 1 Diabetes, so when Julianne has a seizure in class, her father claims custody.
Living two hours from her home, with her dad and annoyingly perfect step-mom, is not how Julianne planned to spend her summer, let alone her senior year. Needing fast cash to help her mom avoid foreclosure, Julianne takes a job at an amusement park, and as luck would have it, her former classmate- heartthrob Brandon Wright- also works there. Between sweeping up cigarette butts at the park, racing to solve her mother's financial crisis, managing her diabetes, and navigating a budding romance, Julianne Bell's life just got a whole lot messier."
Living two hours from her home, with her dad and annoyingly perfect step-mom, is not how Julianne planned to spend her summer, let alone her senior year. Needing fast cash to help her mom avoid foreclosure, Julianne takes a job at an amusement park, and as luck would have it, her former classmate- heartthrob Brandon Wright- also works there. Between sweeping up cigarette butts at the park, racing to solve her mother's financial crisis, managing her diabetes, and navigating a budding romance, Julianne Bell's life just got a whole lot messier."
I had two favourites this month, and this is the first one. I really enjoyed Colleen's writing style, I was sucked into the story straight away. The romance side of the story was a bit of a miss, I just didn't like Brandon much. It was Julianne's relationships with both of her parents that made the book for me.
Supernova
Ericka Waller
Current Kindle price: £1.99
Current Kindle price: £1.99
" Four friends, one year.
Sex, drugs, rock n roll.
What can possibly go wrong?
1997- somewhere dull on the outskirts of London (think middle-class home counties dull as dishwater suburbia.) School oddities, April, Jamie and tom, are trying to work out how to be 15.
April is battling anxiety, is obsessed with Sylvia Plath and has a crush on Tom.
Tom's dad died 18 months ago. His mum had turned into a ghost and his little sister his become his big responsibility. His life is held together by secrets and Critpop, and oh yeah- Tom is in love with April.
Jamie is angry, and she wants everyone to know it. There's more to her story, but Jamie won't tell.
Yuki, Tom's weird neighbour thinks he has life sorted and imparts his pearls of wisdom by channelling Jim Morrison, leather trousers and all."
This was my other favourite of the month. Any book set in the 90s is onto a winner with getting me invested. I feel like I've discovered a hidden gem here as it only had 2 ratings on Goodreads when I bought it! It's such a good YA book, but if you're older like me, don't let that put you off reading it. This is going on my reread pile!
Sex, drugs, rock n roll.
What can possibly go wrong?
1997- somewhere dull on the outskirts of London (think middle-class home counties dull as dishwater suburbia.) School oddities, April, Jamie and tom, are trying to work out how to be 15.
April is battling anxiety, is obsessed with Sylvia Plath and has a crush on Tom.
Tom's dad died 18 months ago. His mum had turned into a ghost and his little sister his become his big responsibility. His life is held together by secrets and Critpop, and oh yeah- Tom is in love with April.
Jamie is angry, and she wants everyone to know it. There's more to her story, but Jamie won't tell.
Yuki, Tom's weird neighbour thinks he has life sorted and imparts his pearls of wisdom by channelling Jim Morrison, leather trousers and all."
This was my other favourite of the month. Any book set in the 90s is onto a winner with getting me invested. I feel like I've discovered a hidden gem here as it only had 2 ratings on Goodreads when I bought it! It's such a good YA book, but if you're older like me, don't let that put you off reading it. This is going on my reread pile!
Before I Let You Go
Kelly Rimmer
Current Kindle price: £1.99
Kelly Rimmer
Current Kindle price: £1.99
"As children, Lexie and Annie were incredibly close. Bonded by the death of their beloved father, they weathered the storms of life together. When Lexie leaves home to follow her dream, Annie is forced to turn to her leatherbound journal as the only place she can confide her deepesr secrets and fears...
As adults, sisters Lexie and Annie could not be more different. Lexie is a successful doctor and happily engaged. Annie is an addict- a thief, a liar and unable to remain clean. When Annie's newborn baby is in danger of being placed in foster care, Annie picks up the phone to beg her sister for help. Will Lexie agree to take in her young niece? And how will Annie survive, losing the only thing in her life worth living for?"
As adults, sisters Lexie and Annie could not be more different. Lexie is a successful doctor and happily engaged. Annie is an addict- a thief, a liar and unable to remain clean. When Annie's newborn baby is in danger of being placed in foster care, Annie picks up the phone to beg her sister for help. Will Lexie agree to take in her young niece? And how will Annie survive, losing the only thing in her life worth living for?"
I had tears running down my face while reading this. This is such a good novel, it toyed with my emotions a lot. I want to read When I lost you by same author, as I have high expectations after reading this.
What were you reading in June? Have you read any of these before?
Danni
X
What were you reading in June? Have you read any of these before?
Danni
X
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