If my May Books were in a Popularity Contest
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- čas přidán 5. 07. 2024
- My monthly reading wrap ups are pure chaos as I have decided to give up on star ratings. Hopefully I am not just confusing you, but also simply recommending some good books!
Books mentioned:
00:00 Explaining my convoluted rating scale
00:44 Undrowned by Alexis Pauline Gumbs
02:30 The Pear Field by Nana Ekvtimishvili
05:28 The Farmer's Wife by Helen Rebanks
08:49 When I Sing, Mountains Dance by Irenen Solà
11:44 Pleasantview by Celeste Mohammed
14:48 Under the henfluence by Tove Danovich
17:36 Happy Place by Emily Henry
19:57 The Bird King G. Willow Wilson
23:22 The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
26:14 The Home Place by J. Drew Lanham
29:12 Just Kids by Patti Smith
Find me on instagram:
/ fayesparallelstories
When I Sing Mountains Dance has been shouting to me from bookshop shelves. To be honest I actually haven’t heard many people talking about it here, so it’s good to hear your perspective! I didn’t even realise it was an experimental novel.
I’d be curious what you thought of it. I feel like it has been getting a bit more attention in Germany, at least I am seeing the German translation in lots of bookshops. For me it was just a bit too inconsistent, with chapters that really grabbed me and others that left me cold.
I read 14 books 5,851 pages (the US had a long holiday weekend so I got a lot of extra reading done)
It was on the lower end quality-wise but very productive so I'm happy with it.
Top 3
-Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (my first and only 5☆ this year)
-Dragon Rider by Taran Matharu (great animal companion)
-The Crypt by Scott Sigler (best sci‐fi horror so far)
High hopes that fell flat but weren't bad
-The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
-Sunbringer by Hanna Kaner
-Delicate Condition by Danielle Valentine
-I Myself am a Woman by Ding Ling
-The Romance Recipe by Ruby Barrett
-Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen
-Animal by Lisa Taddeo
The 2 I strongly disliked
-The Dispissessed by Ursula K LeGuine (read it for an online book club and was the only to actually finish it lol)
-The Scourge Between the Stars by Ness Brown (my only 0☆ for the year)
Some thriller recs
-Bluff by Michael Kardos
-The Undesired by Yrsa Sigurdardottir (or "Last Rituals")
-The Lost Village by Camilla Sten
-Insomnia by Sara Pinborough
-Near the Bone by Chrisina Henry
-Call me Princess by Sara Blædel (content warning)
Thank you so much for the Thriller recommendations. I have been considering a few of your recent reads (especially Animal and Patricia Wants to Cuddle) but now I feel I may push them back.
You had a great reading month! Maybe June will send you a few more high 4star reads!!!
@@fayesparallelstories
Animal was pretty good I just preferred "New Animal" by Ella Baxter and "All Night Pharmacy" by Ruth Madievsky which cover most of the same ground (New Animal is even sort-of referenced in Animal), i wouldn't disagree if someone put Animal on top of the pile.
Patricia WtC was a balloon that deflated rather than popped for me, I just finished "Pew" by Catherine Lacey which has very mixed reviews but I liked it quite a bit!
Oh dear. I had safely put you in the "does not read crime fiction" category. Now I feel challenged!
Great and divers reading month. Congrats. xx
Thank you 😊 I always strive to be unpredictable 😄
Definitely confusing rating metrics intro, especially as I'm sure your audience isn't a monolith but rest assured I'm still subscribed and watching and very curious about your book list. 😊
Haha! Yes, I definitely had this idea that I could ask 100 readers “family feud”-style about their opinions on the books but then I just went rogue 😄 In the end I just accepted the chaos and got to talk about books!