What did you read in June?

[charlatti]

And maybe May too, as it looks like we might have skipped that one. Recommendations or ratings?

[wawa]

May & June books!
Mexican Gothic - was good, but surprisingly forgettable considering the reviews
Last Argument of Kings - final book in a the First Law trilogy. Decent wrap up.
Warm Hands of Ghosts - very atmospheric, would recommend.
Little Thieves - I've been reading more YA to have books to recommend to my bookish kid. This was a keeper.
The Warded Man - it was fine. My library doesn't have the next in the series and I am not willing to pay to read it. Interesting premise, but character growth and pace were both uneven.
One Dark Window and Two Twisted Crowns - fine but overhyped on the book socials.

[dearprudence]

wawa I hate when the library doesn't have the whole series! I've been encountering this a lot with my son's books. He reads the first, loves it, and then the library doesn't have the rest... and it's also out of print.

[dearprudence]

4*
River Mumma
A Ship of Bones and Teeth
Into the Drowning Deep
Practice Makes Perfect
What Is Love
Calamity
The Cheat Sheet
Right on Cue
Happy Medium

3*
Cruel to Be Kind
The Fairytale Life of Dorothy Gale
Morally Gray
Chlorine
A Song of Silver and Gold
Fathomfolk

[Vespasia]

May:
How to Survive Your Murder - fun but convoluted
The Familiar - disappointing
An Easy Death (Gunnie Rose #1) - fun
Slayers (audio) - meh
The House that Horror Built - expected more but good
The Hunter - good
Paladin's Grace - excellent, highly recommend
The Princess of Las Vegas - fine

June:
The Last Murder at the End of the World - enjoyed some parts but overall just okay
Lies and Weddings - fun
Tress of the Emerald Sea - I really struggled to get through this but not sure why
The Z Word - entertaining
The Merciful Crow - very good, recommend
The Longer Fall (Gunnie Rose #2) - also fun
How to Be Eaten - started good but the end was weird
Along the Saltwise Sea - fine


I've definitely been drawn to lighter, fun books lately

[travella]

May

4*
Benediction by Kent Haruf
3*
On A Night of A Thousand Stars by Andrea Yaryura Clark
Daughter of Mine by Megan Miranda
The Likeness by Tana French
2*
Coronation Year by Jennifer Robson

June

3*
The Lost Letters from Martha's Vineyard by Michael Callahan
North Woods by Daniel Mason, 2.5* (I may have liked this book much better had my first book not been missing a large chunk of the middle of the story).
I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Where You Once Belonged by Kent Haruf
DNF
Lock in by John Scalzi

[charlatti]

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton - 2 very meh stars. It needed to be more of a mystery or more of a dystopia, maybe.

Real Americans by Rachel Khong - 3 stars overall. Three sections and three narrators, one of which I really enjoyed and two that I did not not
Magic Hour by Kristin Hannah - 3 stars. Fine if you don’t think about the plot holes too much.

The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand - 4 cute beachy stars
The Body in the Garden by Katharine Schellman - 4 fun-series stars
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn - 4 stars, solid and engrossing historical mystery
The Crossing by Michael Connelly - 4 stars, mostly because I enjoy the characters
Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan - 4 stars for frothy fun
The Lake House by Sarah Beth Durst - 4 stars, YA mystery with nicely drawn characters
The Guncle Abroad by Steven Rowley - I’m not sure why I gave this 4 stars. More like three but with a strong ending

James by Percival Everett - 5 stars, fascinating reimagining of Huck Finn
The Last Note of Warning by Katharine Schellman - 5 stars for another series I love and an especially strong installment

[1yeartogo]

3*
Warm Hands of Ghosts
Project Hail Mary
The wishing game
The Parliament
The vacancy in room 10

4*
The Other Valley

Currently listening to an audio book of The only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11. It is heartbreaking but so well done 45 narrators. This will be a 5* recommendation to everyone (audiobook version)

[mrspez07]

May and June, including some vacation reading:

Audio:
No Crying in Baseball by Erin Carlson 3*
DNF Madame Fourcade’s SecretWar by Lynne Olsen
(Interesting bits of history in this, just couldn’t stay interested or keep names straight. Was listening while traveling and kept falling asleep.)

Visual:
The Absent One by Jussi Adler Olsen 3*
The Postman Always Rings Twice by James Cain 2*
The Women by Kristin Hannah 3.5*
The Matchmaker’s Gift by Lynda Cohen Loigman 4*
Dread Nation by Justina Ireland 3*
Re-read of A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon 4*

[estrellita]

May
-The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah ***
-Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell ****
-Gild by Raven Kennedy ****

June
-A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire by Jennifer L Armentrout (Blood and Ash series) ****
-The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot by Marianne Cronin ****
-The Crown of Gilded Bones by Jennifer L Armentrout (BoA) ****
-The Women by Kristin Hannah *****