What I read in July

Ahhh, July. Tis the season of my annual PTO. That's why there were so many books read this month! I LOVED The Quiet Tenant, so much that I think it will be in one of my top five books of the year. This may be one of my first months without having a book less than 3 stars in the wrap-up!

Blew me out of the water; loved! (5 stars)

The Quiet Tenant by Clemence Michallon: The book is told from three perspectives: one is the woman in the shed/house. She was abducted by a man 5 years ago and has been held captive in his shed. The other perspectives are his 13-year-old daughter and a local bartender who has a crush on this seemingly normal family man. I loved how women’s voices were centred and they were the narrators. I’d classify this as a literary suspense - less of a whodunnit and more of a what is going to happen and how the hell are they going to get out of this. It was addicting to read and I could NOT put it down. It was a refreshing take on the serial killer/thriller genre.

Stone Cold Fox by Rachel Coller Croft: After a lifetime of conning beside her mother, Bea is ready to set herself up for life and marry into one of America’s wealthiest families. A very fun, fast-paced, con-woman thriller. Our main character, Bea, had such a fun and unique internal monologue you couldn’t help but root for this hard-to-love character. A few twists and an ending that leaves you thinking. I wouldn’t hate to see a sequel!

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah: A classic Kristin Hannah (especially if you loved The Great Alone)! I'm not typically a historical fiction girlie, and this was a part of American history I didn't know much about. I went into this story not knowing much about it at all but something a bit unexpected (to me) happens around a quarter of the way in and that's when the book really took off for me. It was a great story with a badass heroine, and the ending made me cry!

Little Monsters by Adrienne Brodeur: This was a great family drama. I loved the oceanside setting and how it was centered on a marine biologist dad and his relationship with his two adult kids, a daughter who's an artist, and a son in the corporate world.

I liked it! (4 stars)

The Guest by Emma Cline: This book was mesmerizing, intimate, and strangely unputdownable. It's the story of a young, resourceful woman who finds herself without a landing pad for the week leading up to Labour Day weekend on the heels of a breakup. Loved Cline’s debut and loved this one too.

Under the Influence by Noelle Crooks: This behind-the-scenes look at influencer culture is a great summer read. Harper is hired by self-help guru Charlotte Green and quickly swept up in the glamour of moving to Nashville and as the newest team member of “the Greenhouse”. She’s just as quickly swallowed up in the bizarre work culture with mandatory dance parties, daily intentions, long hours, and her boss’ persistent demands for loyalty. If you liked Anon Pls by DeuxMoi I think you’d really like this.

It was good (3 stars)

The Inseparables by Simone de Beauvoir: There were My Brilliant Friend vibes from this one (centers around a complicated friendship between two young women). It was based on a true story, so it was cool to see some of the letters from the author and the friend the book is based on.

Kill Joy by Holly Jackson: If you know me, you know A Good Girl's Guide to Murder is one of my favourite series. This prequel was cute about how the main character Pip got into her love of solving cases through a murder mystery party, but this book was not needed.

The Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros: Yes, I gave into the hype and read this one. It was fine! It didn't wow me compared to Crescent City (my standard for amazing fantasy) but thought the dragons were a really cool element and I will probably read book two.

Unsettled Ground by Claire Fuller: I LOVED The Memory of Animals so was really excited for this one. It was a bit of a letdown for me, I found it super slow (and boring - a word I hate to use but the one that works), but it was one that had such a unique premise and memorable characters that it will stick with me for a while.

You Were Always Mine by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza: I listened to this book and I kept finding reasons to go out for walks, do errands, or clean because I did not want to stop listening. It was so well narrated and much more character-driven than I would have thought. It centers around a Black woman who finds a white baby and takes her in while she tries to find the baby's birth mom.

Like, Literally, Dude by Valerie Fridland: I'm apparently into books on linguistics after loving Wordslut. This one as a whole wasn't super memorable for me, but I found the chapters on "uhm" and "like" the most interesting.

Goodbye Earl by Leesa Cross-Smith: I almost gave up on this one because of the amount of characters and the four different POVs. I ended up enjoying it and loved the friendship between the four main characters. And yes the title and premise of the story is based on the song!

Magnolia Parks by Jessa Hastings: This book was absolute chaos and all the characters are completely irredeemable and toxic. I whipped through this one in 24 hours and the entertainment value was there, my big qualm was that it was hard at times to distinguish who was narrating (along with everyone being super terrible).

Cutting Teeth by Chandler Baker: This was an entertaining (not quite thrilling, I'd say) read about school children who are showing some vampiric tendencies. It reminded me of the amazing Netflix show Santa Clarita Diet (canceled too soon)!

Really Good, Actually by Minoca Heisey: I was drawn to this book because the author wrote for Schitt's Creek. It follows a young woman navigating life while going through a divorce. It was fine, I didn't find it as funny as some other reviews claimed it was, but it did have a bit of Canadian charm.

Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion: I'm not quite sure how to review a book by an all-time great, so I won't. But I will say the opening essay, 'Some Dreamers of the Golden Dream', was fantastic, and wanted more of this almost true-crime-esque writing from Didion.