Howdy Bibliofriends!
The Summer Holidays are finally HERE! I’ve already had about 2 weeks off and it has been so nice to catch up with myself, my life, my housework and… my reading!
Life Update
In my last update I was counting down the days until I finished at my place of work, which I have now left. It felt like a weight off my shoulders to hand those keys back and walk out the door for the final time. I’ve been able to catch up on some much needed housework and clearing a few things out which has put me into such a great headspace that I’ve really been missing. My usual horsey trips and cinema trips are back in full force so normality seems to be on the up!
The rest of this Wrap Post follows my usual format (Past Reads, Current Reads, Upcoming Reads, Films/TV, Music/Podcasts, Pokemon Go) so feel free to skip any irrelevant parts!
What I’ve Been Reading
In July I finished reading These Violent Nights by Rebecca Crunden. Rebecca sent me this towards the start of 2021 and it is a multi-layered fantasy which branches off in two directions before converging again into one storyline and ending. It was so nice to read something quite dark and adult after lots of YA reads. I’m currently writing the review which should be up in a couple of weeks.
The second book I finished this month was The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta. Being in verse form I was desperate to read this as I’m a bit of a fan about things like that. I found the whole symbology of the flamingo really intriguing and can’t wait to write my review.
#CurrentlyReading
I’m currently reading Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim. I was lucky enough to receive an e-ARC of this from NetGalley but didn’t manage to get more than 5 chapters in before it was archived. Thankfully, a stunning exclusive edition of this same novel arrived last week in one of my books subscription boxes so I can finally finish the story. I’m excited to see what happens to Shiori and her brothers.
I got myself into a great habit of listening to audiobook whilst I would get ready for work but as it’s the holidays now this routine hasn’t been as frequent. I purchased Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami whilst it was on special offer so I’ve been plowing my way through that whenever I’m out in the car. Listening to Murakami via audio is so much easier than when I tried to read The Wind Up Bird Chronicle, I love Murakami’s style but sometimes it just doesn’t sink in when I read it myself!
Upcoming Reads
I always get to Summer and think about the entire bookshelf of novels I’m going to tick off my TBR… it almost never happens so I’m trying not to give myself a ‘goal oriented’ list this month – it’s bad enough Goodreads telling me I’m still 7 books behind schedule! 🙈
I do want to try and get as much reading in as possible though. Similarly to Six Crimson Cranes I also had the e-ARC for She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan but again couldn’t read it before it was archived… and again – thankfully a gorgeous special edition of this also came my way via one of my book subscriptions. That’s definitely on my priority list this Summer.
I have a review request from Brittany Willows for her Urban/YA Fantasy novel Bloody Spade and I am also part way through graphic novel series called Fiery Crown by Charles Cutting which I’ll be making real efforts with over this Summer. Watch this space for these reviews!
Other books which are pretty high on my TBR list are:
Dune by Frank Herbert (which I am hoping to read before the movie comes out).
Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline (I have been waiting to give this book my complete, undivided attention)
Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust
What I’ve Been Watching
I’ve tried to really curb by TV time this month to get some more reading time in – it seems to have been working so far but I am now hopelessly addicted to this series of Love Island. It’s one of those guilty pleasures that I find so bad but so good at the same time!
At the cinema this month we’ve been watching:
- Freaky – cheesy horror with a great correlation to the film Freaky Friday (which I have a bit of a soft spot for).
- Black Widow – Loved this! felt so good to be watching a Marvel film again and I love Scarlett Johansson’s character so I’m glad she got her own movie.
- Old – This was a definitely a horror with a difference. I didn’t quite know what to expect but the plotline was unique and intriguing.
- Escape Room: Tournament of Champions – I am a huge fan of Escape Rooms! I caught the first film of this series on Netflix during the lockdown and it quenched my first for not being able to participate in a real-live one. I just had to catch the sequel on the big screen and it did not let me down! It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but it’s definitely mine!
- Jungle Cruise – This was such an awesome film! One of my favourites of the entire year! Slightly long perhaps for the storyline but it was so funny and the scenery gave me total wanderlust vibes.
What I’ve Been Listening to
Not much other than my audiobook of Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami.
Pokemon Go Update
This month we finally had Go Fest! I spent the entire weekend just walking round my village catching Pokemon and raiding – it was great for my step count! 😂 I do love it when they host big events like this but they do tend to completely monopolise your time. I got a pretty decent shiny haul thought and the legendary raids day helped me to fill some gaps in my dex.
July’s Shiny Haul
Skarmory x2
Skorupi
Ralts
Slakoth
Aron
Audino x2
Alomalola x2
Kricketot
Roggenrola
Tangela
Snivy
Eevee
Rayquaza
Galarian Ponyta (with Meloetta hat)
My Trainer Code: If any fellow Pogo players want to add me, my trainer code is: 8327 7170 2277
And that’s a wrap! How are you all doing? What are you looking forward to this August – do you have any special holiday or reading plans? What are the upcoming book/film releases that you’re looking forward to the most?
As always, drop me a comment to chat! ☺️
T xx
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