This is the first month of me combining these two posts, and I definitely chose a good time for it; I managed to read the grand total, of a whole zero books. Yes you heard that right, I didn’t manage to finish any books at all in the month of July. Admittedly it was a bit of a crazy month, what with moving, falling down the stairs, a holiday and my partners baby’s first birthday party. But I have high hopes for August, so lets get started.

So this month, I have a few things going on that will make less time for reading, but it should still be better than July. With my Dad’s birthday, partners daughter’s birthday, a wedding and another weekend away; I definitely will be a touch busy, but should still get plenty done. Plus have I mentioned that most of my books are still in storage from where we moved, which does limit my book choices.

In July I did manage to get half way through at least one book, and that was Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo, not too sure why I didn’t manage to finish it to be fair, but I am confident I will finish it in early August. Ive also started The Light Between Us by Katie Khan. I absolutely adored her debut novel, full review here, and although only a chapter in I can tell that I’m going to love this one just as much.

With the upcoming release of Bright Ruin, I have decided to do a reread of both Gilded Cage and Tarnished City. I honestly cant remember much of anything but I do remember that I truly enjoyed these books. Hopefully by rereading, I should fly through these. Who knows, I may also pick up Bright Ruin by Vic James straight away. We’ll have to wait and see.

How I have not already flown through this next book I do not know! I have been waiting for this to come out for so long, longing to get my hands on a copy of it. And yet somehow with the move, I just haven’t gotten around to picking it up. But I am certain that I will be picking up Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik. A fairy tale retelling of Rumpelstiltskin I believe, I am adamant that this will live up to Novik’s previous novel, Uprooted.

Finally, I am hoping to get time to dive into Marc Elsberg’s second novel, Zero. To be honest, I know nothing about this, I only know that I adored Black Out, full review here. I have only heard good things, and if its anything like the previous book then I will be flying through it.

I am very excited to have a month of rereading and new release books, I just hope that I don’t turn out to of slipped into another reading slump!

What are your August reading plans?

I’m so excited to once again be working with Titan Books, to bring you the chance to win one of two copies of this fabulous, genre blended novel. Mixing thriller, with fantasy, woven together in a historical fiction setting. This is a book that you really do want to get your hands, and what better way than through a free giveaway.

Now if you haven’t been following the blog tour for this fabulous book, then that’s a good place to start to convince you that you really do need a copy of this. This tour has been filled with some amazing bloggers, and some really worthwhile content all about this book.

Europe. 1963. And the true Cold War is fought on the borders of this world, at the edges of the light.
 
When the assassination of a traitor trading with the enemy goes terribly wrong, British Intelligence agent Christopher Winter must flee London. In a tense alliance with a lethal, mysterious woman named Karina Lazarov, he’s caught in a quest for hidden knowledge from centuries before, an occult secret written in the language of fire. A secret that will give supremacy to the nation that possesses it.
 
Racing against the Russians, the chase takes them from the demon-haunted Hungarian border to treasure-laden tunnels beneath Berlin, from an impossible house in Vienna to a bomb-blasted ruin in Bavaria where something unholy waits, born of the power of white fire and black glass . .

Have I convinced you yet? Well then I should tell you how to enter, its very simple really. There is two ways this time around. You can either comment on this blog post with your email address so I can contact you if you win; or if you aren’t comfortable with that, then you can follow me on Twitter and RT my pinned post.

This competition closes at midnight on Wednesday the first of August, winners will be announced and messaged on the Thursday. Everyone is open to enter, International okay.

Good luck to all..

For some reason lately, I have just been adoring thriller novels, which is odd for me in this time of year. That’s why I thought I’d pick up A Baby’s Bones, that combined historical fiction with a thriller plot. This book in short, was a gripping quick read that was really enjoyable. The two plots were equal, without one being favoured and generally was a well rounded book- which I find unusual for two different time periods. However the ending let it down for me a little.

I would just like to thank Titan Books and Rebecca Alexander herself, for sending me a copy to review, I always appreciate getting the opportunity to read and review books and help promote.

Archaeologist Sage Westfield has been called in to excavate a sixteenth-century well, and expects to find little more than soil and the odd piece of pottery. But the disturbing discovery of the bones of a woman and newborn baby make it clear that she has stumbled onto an historical crime scene, one that is interwoven with an unsettling local legend of witchcraft and unrequited love. Yet there is more to the case than a four-hundred-year-old mystery. The owners of a nearby cottage are convinced that it is haunted, and the local vicar is being plagued with abusive phone calls. Then a tragic death makes it all too clear that a modern murderer is at work.. (from Goodreads)

I adored Sage’s character in this novel, I found her to be so down to earth and slightly flawed that it made her appear realistic and relatable. Personally, I found myself having a sympathy for her and her situation, between the knowing what was right and the longing of the heart. When I was younger I wanted to be an archaeologist for a while, so her work in that field was really interesting to me; and of course I love my history. 

Normally in a joint split plot like this one, with the two stories running together, I find myself skimming one in order to prioritise the other; but this one I found equal enjoyable. Neither of them stood out more than the other to me, and was constantly engaged and wanting to keep reading. I read this book in just two sitting, and if life hadn’t got in the way, it was one of those books I could of read in just one sitting, it was really that good.

The only one downside for me was that I had guessed the culprit to the modern day murder. I pretty much could tell after only a quarter of the book, and although it was still interesting to see how it came about, it was a bit disappointing that I had guessed it. But to be fair that isn’t too big a deal, as the book as a whole is still very enjoyable.

I would personally say, as a psychosis sufferer myself, that it may not be the best book to read if you are a chronic sufferer, as there was a scene that could possibly trigger.

Overall this book was a good solid four star read, and definitely one for any thriller or historical fiction fans out there.

Over the last few years, Christina Henry has found her way to becoming one of my favourite authors; I wait each year in anticipation for her novels and their spooky fairytale vibes. The Mermaid, which I believed was a Little Mermaid retelling was no different. Although this was very different to my expectations, it was never the less, another amazing novel.

I just want to thank Titan Books and Christina Henry for sending me a copy to review, it is always very much appreciated, especially when its a book I am so excited for.

Once there was a mermaid who longed to know of more than her ocean home and her people. One day a fisherman trapped her in his net but couldn’t bear to keep her. But his eyes were lonely and caught her more surely than the net, and so she evoked a magic that allowed her to walk upon the shore. The mermaid, Amelia, became his wife, and they lived on a cliff above the ocean for ever so many years, until one day the fisherman rowed out to sea and did not return.

P. T. Barnum was looking for marvelous attractions for his American Museum, and he’d heard a rumor of a mermaid who lived on a cliff by the sea. He wanted to make his fortune, and an attraction like Amelia was just the ticket.

Amelia agreed to play the mermaid for Barnum, and she believes she can leave any time she likes. But Barnum has never given up a money-making scheme in his life, and he’s determined to hold on to his mermaid. (from Goodreads)

The thing I love about Christina Henry’s novels are the fact that the take some of my absolute favourite fairytales as a child, and twists them to show the spooky scary side of what could of happened. I always find I have to read her books in the day time with all the lights on and my dog snuggled at my feet; but I absolutely love it. This one was not quite like that.

I started this in the afternoon, prepared that I would probably struggle to sleep that night, but instead of scary this one had more of a morality vibe to it. Do not get me wrong, I still absolutely loved it, and finished this book in less than 24 hours, which is a record for me. It had me thinking about the classification of what we count as human, the treatment of animals and also of those that are unique. Admittedly this was more a thing in the past, but I definitely feel like there was something to be taken from this

Amelia was a character that you just found your heart reaching out too. She’d gone through such heartache, and knew that it was bound to happen again, I can appreciate this feeling. Having to decide what was worse, denying herself what her heart wanted, or knowing that it would all come apart in the end; I felt so sorry her, and wanted everything to be okay.

Im not too sure whether I would say it was closely linked to the Little Mermaid if Im honest, but you can definitely see the influence. Though then again I am only going from the Disney movie as I have not actually ever read the book- yes that is something I need to fix.

In the end, I gave this novel a four star rating. There was nothing wrong with it, I just didn’t love it as much as I have her previous novels, but this will be because I was expecting something different. I think I may need to reread it at some point. This novel is now available in the UK.

You have got to love the month after you have defeated your reading slump; to be able to pick up a book that you are look forward to reading and know confidently that you will be able to stick with it. That has been my month. Admittedly, this month has been a busy one with a trip and what not, but I have also not been too well therefore giving me plenty of resting reading time. I have tried to make the most of it without pushing it too much- last thing I want is to knock myself back into the slump. So this is what I read this month.
The first book I finished was The Hazel Wood, and was an amazing start to the month. I loved this book giving it a full four and a half stars, with a fantastical creepy vibe, and a rather unique story in my opinion. This was a great book to read coming out of a reading slump as wasn’t too much information to take in while still very interesting and fast paced.

Only Human was my next read, which was one of my most anticipated books of the year, and it did not disappoint, being a five star read. This series was just amazing and Im not normally a Science fiction fan! I am actually a little sad that this is now over, but I have not given up hope that there may be more books in the universe at some point.

One of my most anticipated books of the year is always Christina Henry’s latest fairytale novel, and The Mermaid was just the same. Although this one was not as spooky as the rest of her beloved novels, I definitely felt like this one had more of a moral understanding to it. This was a four star read for me, there wasn’t anything wrong with it, it just lacked the hide under the blanket spookiness that I have grown to love from her books.

I have been doing so good this month, I then finished a book that has been on my shelves ever since the day it came out, and I have always been too daunted to pick up; and that is The True Queen by Alison Weir. This is the first in her Six Queens series, and I have been meaning to jump into it for the longest time. I love everything that Alison Weir writes, and this was no exception.

Following on from my thriller kick of last month, I picked up A Baby’s Bones by Rebecca Alexander. This book, following two different parallel stories, in two different time periods, for once didn’t have me split. I found that I enjoyed both the stories and was excited for both equally, well until the end where I found the modern day story to be very predictable and unsatisfying. Though it was still a really good read and a solid four stars.

My final book of the month was Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo. I now own both Six of Crows and Crooked kingdom, so I’m trying to get through the Grisha series first. Last year I read Shadow and Bone and absolutely loved it, Siege and Storm wasn’t quite as good to begin with, but did then really pick up and I feel it has prepared me for the final book. I gave this 3.5 stars.

So that’s what I read in June, a much better reading month than what I have had lately. What did you read this month?