May/June Reading Wrap Up
Welcome to my May/June reading wrap-up, I took a little break from my blog but the stats never stop:
The total of books I read in May was: 12
The total of books I read in June was: 20
Of these: 3 were Library Books, 20 were E-books and 9 were from my physical TBR pile
Then: Out of the books I read I discovered 20 ‘new for me’ authors (i.e. the first time I have read their work).
And: 7 of the books read were written by Australian authors.
Best Book of the month: The last two months have been good reading months for me – as far as quality went – I had 2 ‘A’ books. I give ‘A’s (or 5 stars) to books that, regardless of genre, are complete page turners for me, that have me reading late into the night, suck me straight into the story and leaves me wanting more at the end; and I utterly recommend it. If I give a high score to a book it means it is a top example of whatever genre it belongs to.
The two genres that made it into my top 2 were a Contemporary YA and a Historical book. The books were ‘The Sky is Everywhere’ by Jandy Nelson and ‘Letters from Sky’ by Jessica Brockmole. As well as both titles having the word sky in them (quite unintentional and only just noticed as I typed this) both of them were top of their respective genres so are both highly recommended as such. However, overall, my book of the month was THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE by Jandy Nelson because the story is so well written that it just blew me away – it deals with death and recovery of those left behind as they learn not to feel guilty for being alive – and it does it well.
Least Favourite Book(s):
I say ‘least favourite’ because my lowest ‘score’ still means that I read the whole book, but for one reason or another I found it a bit of struggle to stay focused and finish. I only struggled with three books this month Dragon Actually by G.A. Aikin, I take you by Eliza Kennedy and Popeye Never Told You by Rodney Hall. Even though the style that Popeye Never Told You was written in drove me to distraction it is not my least favourite – came a close second though. My least favourite book of the month is I TAKE YOU by Eliza Kennedy – In fact it came very close to being a ‘Did Not Finish’. I could not relate in any way shape or form to the main character – her character was completely abhorrent to me and I could not reconcile to her lifestyle and why this type of lifestyle was considered normal – and even fun! This is just my personal opinion, and there some 4 and 5 star reviews out there and you may find that it may very well be perfect for you.
General Summary:
Because I am an eclectic reader I read many different genres, sometimes at the same time! The different genres covered over the last 2 months were Young Adult, children’s, Paranormal, Fantasy, Horror, Romance, Mystery, Non-fiction, women’s Fiction, Historical (set over 50 years ago), Contemporary Fiction (set in the last 50 years), Dystopian and Science Fiction. Many of the books were a blend of two or more genre.
The 7 Australian authors were 3 of the new-for-me authors Aaron L. Speer, Brenda Cheers and Jenn J McLeod; along with Natalie Herzer, Kendall Talbot, Kate Forsyth and Margaret Lynette Sharp. Just to clarify an Australian author is defined by me as either an Australian born author no matter where they live and write in the world now, or an author who currently lives and writes in Australia even though they have been born elsewhere.
Finally, the 20 ‘new-for-me’ authors I read were my three new Aussie authors Aaron L. Speer, Brenda Cheers and Jenn J McLeod; along with Jandy Nelson, Beth Revis, G.A. Aikin, Sarah MacLean, Jenny Wingfield, Jan Watson, Darynda Jones, Lisa Mondello, Lacey Weatherford, Jessica Brockmole, Rodney Hall, E.D. Baker, BB, Ellery Adams, Lauraine Snelling, Robert Beatty and Eliza Kennedy. With the exception of Rodney Hall and Eliza Kennedy I would happily read all of these new authors again.
Interesting book related links that I’ve come across this month:
27 obscure facts about Shakespeare
14 expressions with crazy origins you never would have guessed
The List
So let’s get onto what this post is about – what did I read during May and June? Here is the list of books that I read (each group is in the order I read them):
A (5 stars) = Excellent Stuff – a real page turner and hard to put down
The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson – Contemporary YA
Letters from Sky by Jessica Brockmole – Historical
B (4 Stars) = Really Good Read
Across the Universe by Beth Revis – YA Science Fiction
The Twelve Clues of Christmas by Rhys Bowen – Historical Mystery
Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean – Historical Romance
Prudence by Gail Carriger – Historical YA
Night Walker by Aaron L. Speer – Contemporary Paranormal
The Homecoming of Samuel Lake by Jenny Wingfield – Historical
Season of Shadow and Light by Jenn J McLeod – Women’s Fiction
All I Want for Christmas is You by Lisa Mondello – Romance
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell – YA Romance
The Trouble with Spells by Lacey Weatherford – YA Paranormal
The Hunt is On by Natalie Herzer – Fantasy Paranormal
The Wide-Awake Princess by E.D. Baker – YA Fantasy
Unlocking the Spell by E.D. Baker – YA Fantasy
No Ghouls Allowed by Victoria Laurie – Paranormal Mystery
Treasured Secrets by Kendall Talbot – Romantic Suspense
Murder in the Mystery Suite by Ellery Adams – Mystery
Sisters and Rivals by Margaret Lynette Sharp – Historical Romance
Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty – Historical YA Horror
Wolves of the Witchwood by Kate Forsyth – Children’s Fantasy
My Grandmother Sends Her Regards and Apologises by Fredrik Backman – Contemporary
In Strange Worlds by Brenda Cheers – Science Fiction/Dystopian
C (3 stars) = Above Average – very readable and enjoyable
Saint Maybe by Anne Tyler – Contemporary
The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness – Fantasy
Troublesome Creek by Jan Watson – Historical
First Grave on the Right by by Darynda Jones – Paranormal Mystery
The Little Grey Men by BB – Children’s Fantasy
Ruby by Lauraine Snelling – Historical
D (2 stars) = Average – it was OK, a bit of a struggle to finish
Dragon Actually by G.A. Aikin – Fantasy/Romance
Popeye Never Told You: Childhood Memories of the War by Rodney Hall – Non-Fiction
I take you by Eliza Kennedy – Chick Lit
So onward to July – Woo Hoo! I wonder what book goodies I will discover this month? I wonder if I will start to catch up on my reviews!
Books and Musings from Downunder 
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