June Wrap Up

June was a slow month for me, in terms of reading. While I read my goal of 5 books, I wished I had read more. With my personal life freeing up, I definitely plan on doing so in July. However, June was the best month for my blog with records in views and visitors. I hope to continue growing as a writer and maybe my blog will do so too.

Total Books Read: 5

Books Read from TBR: 4/5 

Highlights:

1. Lemons by Melissa Savage

Official Summary:

“What do you do when you lose everything that means anything?

Nine-year old Lemonade Liberty Witt doesn’t know the answer to that question, except what her mom taught her. When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. But what if those lemons are so big that you forget how?

How do you make lemonade out of having to leave everything you know in San Francisco to move to the small town of Willow Creek, California and live with a grandfather you’ve never even met? In a town that smells like grass and mud and bugs. With tall pines instead of skyscrapers and dirt instead of sidewalks. Not to mention one woolly beast lurking in the woods.

That’s right, Bigfoot.

A ginormous wooden statue of the ugly thing stands right at the center of town like he’s someone real important, like the mayor or something. And the people here actually believe he’s real and hiding somewhere out in the pine filled forests.

How can anyone possibly be expected to make lemonade out those rotten lemons?

Everything is different and Lem just wants to go back home. And then she meets Tobin Sky, the CEO of Bigfoot Detectives, Inc. and sole investigator for the town. He invites her to be his Assistant for the summer and she reluctantly agrees. At least until she can figure out her escape plan.

Together, Lem and Tobin try to capture a shot of the elusive beast on film and end up finding more than they ever could have even imagined.”

My Thoughts:

“Lemons provides an emotional and surprisingly mature novel for the young audience while also satisfying adults. Its likeable protagonist, solid supporting characters, and charming world allow the novel to stand out among its peers.”

2. Windfall by Jennifer E. Smith

Official Summary:

“Let luck find you.

Alice doesn’t believe in luck—at least, not the good kind. But she does believe in love, and for some time now, she’s been pining for her best friend, Teddy. On his eighteenth birthday—just when it seems they might be on the brink of something—she buys him a lottery ticket on a lark. To their astonishment, he wins $140 million, and in an instant, everything changes.

At first, it seems like a dream come true, especially since the two of them are no strangers to misfortune. As a kid, Alice won the worst kind of lottery possible when her parents died just over a year apart from each other. And Teddy’s father abandoned his family not long after that, leaving them to grapple with his gambling debts. Through it all, Teddy and Alice have leaned on each other. But now, as they negotiate the ripple effects of Teddy’s newfound wealth, a gulf opens between them. And soon, the money starts to feel like more of a curse than a windfall.

As they try to find their way back to each other, Alice learns more about herself than she ever could have imagined…and about the unexpected ways in which luck and love sometimes intersect.”

My Thoughts:

“Windfall does nothing new to the genre. It has some solid characters and some nice moments throughout, but the plot is painfully predictable. Those who like this genre will be satisfied with this novel and those who don’t will not find anything that will convince them to look at this genre in a new light.”

3. Fireborn by David Dalglish

Official Summary:

“Bree and Kael Skyborn have seen their island invaded, their Seraphim disbanded, and their royal family imprisoned.

A rebellion grows from the ashes, demanding Bree to be their Phoenix, their symbol against Center’s tyranny, and for Kael to find the doomsday prophet Johan and sway his cult to their side.

Should they fail, the hope of their rebellion fails with them. ”

My Thoughts:

“While Skyborn was a fun and exciting novel, Fireborn is a much more refined and mature novel that surpasses the first entry. Kael and Breanna get some much needed character development that makes it much easier to get attached to them. While some supporting characters are pushed to the background, the addition of Johan adds some ambiguity and unpredictableness that livens up the plot and sets up the finale. To top it off, Dalglish gets deeper into the lore of the islands and continues to amaze with the fight scenes. All in all, Fireborn serves as an excellent sequel to Skyborn.”

Here’s to July!