Wrap Up | July 2017

I refuse to accept the fact I am already wrapping up July! How can we only have 5 months left of 2017? This year is just flying in but I am still finding enough time to read a fair few books. I'm pretty impressed with my reading in July as I started back on placement and expected to have a similar experience to the last time. However, unlike in March, the last time I was on placement, in which I only read one book, I managed to read 7 in July, the same number I read in both May and June. I think I've done quite well and hopefully I'll keep it up.

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver -

I was never all that interesting in reading this book but with it being made into a movie, I decided to give it a go on audiobook. This is about a girl who is forced to relive the day she dies multiple times and I have heard some pretty mixed things about it so my expectations weren't high. I thought it was an okay book. It was interesting enough, the plot was fine but the characters were very unlikeable and didn't really redeem themselves enough. I definitely think it could have been shorter and maybe that would have made it a bit less repetitive.

Rating: 3/5 | Review To Come | ATY Challenge: #13 Recommended by a favourite author

Did I Mention I Love You? by Estelle Maskame -

Since finding out that Estelle Maskame is a fellow Scot I have been dying to read some of her work. This is the her first book and the first in a series following a girl who goes to live with her father and his new family for the summer. I enjoyed this much more than I was expecting. As the author is so young I expected the book to be quite immature but was pleasantly surprised to find there were only some small moments that I found immature. This was a very fun, enjoyable first book in the series and definitely made me want to pick up the next book.

Rating: 3.5/5 | Review To Come | ATY Challenge: #49 From someone else's bookshelf

The Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares -

The movie adaptation of these books was one of my favourite movies when I was younger so for nostalgia I decided to give the books a go. I picked up the first book on audiobook, which follows four best friends as they spend their first summer apart but share a pair of jeans to keep each other close. I loved this book just as much as the movie. It was great to see these characters again and go on their summer adventures with them. It was a really quick read and I can definitely see myself reading a book from this series each summer. 

Rating: 4/5 | Review To Come | ATY Challenge: #19 A New York Times bestseller

Grey's Anatomy by Chris Van Dusen -

I don't even know why I decided to pick this one up. I love the TV show and while binge watching it for the first time a couple of years ago I discovered that this book existed,  featuring two stories based on the TV Show, one from the perspective of a nurse and one from Joe the Bartender. I just decided I was in the mood for it this month and read it all in a day. It was fun to go back to the early seasons of the show and remind myself of some of the main story lines. It was also great to see some of the many characters Shonda Rhimes has killed off over the years back in the mix. I would definitely recommend this if you're a fan of the show and need something to keep you going until the next season starts.

Rating: 3/5 

Saga Volume 1 by Brian K Vaughan & Fiona Staples -

I have heard so many great things about this graphic novel series that I decided to see what all the fuss was about. In all honesty, I've read the first volume and I'm still not sure what this series is about. I liked this graphic novel but I'm not sure the story is for me. It was enjoyable and I was definitely interested but I preferred the art to the story, probably just because it was very sci-fi, which isn't really my thing anyway.

Rating: 3.5 | ATY Challenge: #36 Hugo award winner or nominee

All We Have Is Now by Lisa Schroeder -

The less said about this book the better. I am always intrigued by books about the last day before an asteroid destroys the planet but I never end up enjoying them. This book follows two homeless teens on their last day before an asteroid is to hit and destroy part of the United States (but apparently everywhere else is safe). I really did not like this book. I hated the characters, they were both very unlikeable and even though they went round helping others and proving they were good people, I couldn't stand them. The plot itself was just boring and the ending was a complete cop-out.

Rating: 1.5/5 | Review To Come

Summer Days & Summer Nights edited by Stephanie Perkins -

This is the summer anthology that followed the holiday anthology Stephanie Perkins edited in 2014 and features 12 summer love stories. I was actually a little bit disappointed with this anthology. There were some really great stories in it but also quite a few that I really wasn't a fan of. I definitely preferred My True Love Gave To Me but I did enjoy a lot of this book and there were some stand out stories. I will discuss each story individually in my review and give you more of my in depth thoughts.

Rating: 3/5 | Review To Come | ATY Challenge: #51 A Collection

That is everything I read in July. I read a few things that were a bit different and I wouldn't normally read, which is good as it got me out of my comfort zone a bit. Apparently, though, I also fell a bit behind on my reviews and haven't posted reviews for any of my July books yet, expect them all very soon. I would love some recommendations for Graphic Novels, preferably ones that are a bit less sci-fi or high fantasy. Any suggestions would be great.

Was July a good reading month for you? What was the best thing you read?

Sophie :)