Tag: mystery

Monthly TBR – July 2025

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The books in today’s monthly TBR are all part of my 20 Books of Summer Challenge. It shouldn’t be a surprise, in a broad sense, what I’ll be reading over the next few months. In my recent Top Ten Tuesday post, I shared which books on that list I’m prioritising soon. 

The culmination of both these lists is my July Monthly TBR. Take a look at the books coming up on this month’s list – I’m very excited to pick each and every one of these up! 

 

Fixed Reads 

 

The Anxious Generation  

The first of my carryovers from June is The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. As of my monthly wrap-up post, I’d read the first 60 pages. As of drafting this monthly TBR, I’m another 100 pages along. Progress therefore stands at about 50%. 

The Anxious Generation has proven to be an interesting and relatively easy read. For a non-fiction, informative book, it’s not dry. The facts and figures are easily spelled out and backed up. Perhaps I’m biased by the subject matter meaning so much to me. Either way, I’m really enjoying The Anxious Generation so far and hopefully I’ll blast through the last half before the end of the week! 

 

Saint’s Blood

The second and final carryover onto this monthly TBR is my audiobook listen, Saint’s Blood. I’m even closer to the finish line with this book, with just 45 minutes listening time left as of drafting this post. I will absolutely finish this book tomorrow at the latest! 

Saint’s Blood has been a great listen and I’ve loved getting back into this series. With just one book left after this one is finished, it makes sense to pick the sequel up soon and finish the series. That way it’s fresh in my mind, and it’s a tick in the ol’ box for my series completion resolution 😅

 

The Measure 

I’ve convinced book club to pick up The Measure this month. I was a little worried about squeezing in book club reads on top of my Summer Challenge TBR. However, it was my turn to pick a book and so I made it work to my advantage! 

I think this will be a good fit for the group as well. The story type appeals to the reading tastes of several in the group. That’s a great start. Also, I think this will have some really interesting talking points for our meet-up. 

Win-win! 

 

Mood Reads 

 

The Pagan Lord

I’ve convinced my boyfriend Shane to start watching The Last Kingdom. We’ve recently finished watching Vikings (which he introduced me to), and he’s liking it so far. 

I reviewed Death of Kings recently and shamed myself a little over how long it’s been since I picked up the series. It’s quite a long one, so not a likely candidate for a finish this year. Pagan Lord is book seven of the series. I think there are 13 in total off the top of my head. That’s no reason not to make progress with it though! 

At around the 300-page mark, The Pagan Lord will make for a good recap to the series. I have watched the series, so I should be able to pick up the storyline quickly enough despite the reading gap. It should also be a relatively quick read – helpful to getting caught up with my reading goal! 

 

If We Were Villains

The oldest book on this monthly TBR, in terms of how long it’s been on my TBR, is If We Were Villains.

I’ve had a copy of this on my bookshelf for years. It’s finally time to get to it! Although I’m not a big Shakespeare fan, I do love literature and drama. This combination means I’m looking forward to this book. In the past, I’ve enjoyed dark academia books. If We Were Villains falls into this category. It all bodes well – let’s just hope the book lives up to my expectations. 

 

The Dragon Republic

Whilst events of The Poppy War are fresh in my mind, I want to pick up the sequel. As the second book of a trilogy, progress with The Dragon Republic means I’ll have just one book left in the series once it’s done. Naturally, I’ll then look to finish the trilogy this year! That’ll be another series ticked off my list ☺️ 

The Poppy War was a great read. It wasn’t the fastest because the story was quite dense. Not in a bad way. I enjoyed taking my time over it. I don’t know if The Dragon Republic will be the same. Having laid the groundwork, events could go either way. Things could speed up now the world-building is established. Equally though, if there is more to lay down it could be a repeat of the same. I’ll just have to see how it goes. If I expect the latter then I won’t be disappointed if reading progress is a little slower.  

 

Alan Turing: The Enigma

Another chunky read on this monthly TBR is in the form of an audiobook. I’ve deliberately chosen to listen to the book for this reason. As I’m so close to finishing Saint’s Blood, I should have plenty of time to listen to Alan Turing. 

I added this book to my reading list after watching The Imitation Game. I’m intrigued to learn more about the person who had such an important influence on history. What shocked me most was how Alan Turing was treated after all he did to end WW2. I’m hoping this is covered in the book, because it’s a significant part of Mr Turing’s story. I’ll let you know in due course whether it does and what my thoughts are on the book. 

 

Summary 

I have a good number of books on this monthly TBR. However, given I’m close to finishing the carried over books from June, I think this is achievable. Even if I have a repeat of this month and get very close, I’ll be happy. 

What books are coming up on your reading list? 

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Monthly Wrap-Up – June 2025

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In today’s monthly wrap-up for June 2025, I recap great reading progress over the last month. With my 20 Books of Summer Challenge well underway, I’ve made a respectable start to getting through the books featuring in that challenge. 

Want a reminder of what books those are? Let’s dive into this monthly wrap-up post and I can catch you up on what I’ve picked up so far 😌

 

Books Read 

Sunrise on the Reaping

At the very beginning of this month, I devoured the final 2/3 of Sunrise on the Reaping. This book isn’t on my 20 Books of Summer Challenge – it was just a carryover from my May TBR. 

This was such a highly anticipated read for me, and it’s fair to say the book didn’t disappoint! I love The Hunger Games books so much and this one was fantastic for giving backstory to Haymitch’s character.

Just when you think the hunger games couldn’t be any more dark or dystopian, Suzanne Collins surprises us once again. No character is safe in this world. That’s something I love! Weirdly, I love to be fearful for the characters I’m reading about and routing for. I don’t want to think they’re safe, especially in the world where that’s not realistic. 

It was fantastic to get back and up-to-date with the series. I definitely anticipate a full re-read later this year!

 

All the Light We Cannot See

All The Light We Cannot See

The book that took me the longest to read this month was All the Light We Cannot See. I was really looking forward to reading All the Light We Cannot See and I did enjoy picking up this book. If I’m entirely honest, I didn’t love it as much as I expected I would. 

Given the premise of the books is sold on two very different characters coming together, I thought this would happen earlier in the storyline. Not only that, but the way the book is structured into super-short chapters didn’t suit me. I like to get into a character perspective and take time in a scene to figure out what’s going on. The stories of Marie-Laure and Werner kept chopping around so much that you didn’t really get this chance. I understand why this works in the context of the story, but it did detract from my personal reading experience of the book a little.

What I did enjoy reading was a perspective from a character who is blind. So often when we read books, we are introduced to a setting by the way it looks more than any other sensory input. To instead be introduced to a setting by touch and sound was a change of perspective I enjoyed.

 

Little Fires Everywhere

One of the fastest books I read this month, maybe except for Sunrise on the Reaping, was Little Fires Everywhere.

Admittedly, I did have a deadline for this book, but that was today’s work book club meet. Even beyond the deadline, I found myself devouring this book, partly because it was on my Kindle and very convenient to pick up and put down, but also because the storyline hooked me.

Book begins with a present day fire, and then spirals to the events leading up to it happening. There is a good deal of mystery around several of the characters. Finding out what was going on motivated me to finish this book more than anything. Little Fires Everywhere was also a very easy read. The book was very easy to pick up and put down at will. I picked it up for good long stints at a time, and progress was fast! 

 

A Day of Fallen Night

The biggest book on this reading list was a carryover from my May TBR. As of last month’s monthly wrap-up, I had listened to around 11 hours of A Day of Fallen Night.

I listened to the remaining 28 or so hours over the course of this month. I finished this book last week whilst on annual leave. One of my favourite hobbies aside from books is crafting. Knitting, crochet, cross-stitch – that kind of thing. A hobby I can do with my hands works well with listening to audiobooks. Last week, I made the most of it with both A Day of Fallen Night and the next books on this list, 

As I shared in my Sunday Summary instalment just before the end of the month, I really enjoyed getting back into this series not too long after starting it. Picking the second book up within reasonable time to the first meant I could appreciate overlapping details; if I’d left it too long I was far less likely to pick up on and appreciate this detail. 

 

Saint’s Blood

In the last week of June alone, I listened to 80% of Saint’s Blood. That’s a lot of audiobook progress and I wouldn’t have been able to do it so easily if I wasn’t off work. 

Getting back into Saint’s Blood hasn’t been too bad. I thought it would be more difficult, given I haven’t picked up the series in three years. Even so, the book has recapped the broad points of the narrative so I’ve been able to follow along well. 

As of this monthly wrap-up post, Saint’s Blood is still a current read and I anticipate finishing the book in the next few days. The narrative is starting to come together, but I feel there is more to explore as well. Will there be another revelation? At the point of the book I’m at, I’m getting the enjoyment of the main characters being in a lot of danger. Going back to what I said about Sunrise on the Reaping, I like to be scared into thinking the main characters aren’t safe. 

 

The Anxious Generation 

The final carryover I have in this monthly wrap-up post that I’ll pick up in July is The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. As at the end of June, I’d read the first 60 pages of the book and I’m enjoying it so far. 

The Anxious Generation is an informative read for all. However, as someone who is and has family of age with the population featured in the subject of the book, it has a personal connection. 

The research of the book so far is well backed up by facts and figures. At the moment, that’s as far as I’ve gotten. Later in the book we get to actions we can take. I’m intrigued on the author’s take on this and I’ll update you in the near future. 

 

Summary 

This monthly wrap-up post includes all the books I set out to pick up in my June TBR. Whilst I had hoped it finish all the books on this list and maybe start another, I came very close to completing June’s reading list. Admittedly, All the Light We Cannot See took a little longer to read than I expected and A Day of Fallen Night is a very long audiobook. Equally though, I’ve listened to Saint’s Blood very quickly too. 

On balance, I think I can achieve reading 5-6 books a month at the moment. So, I’ll set my July TBR accordingly. If you want to see what I’m picking up this month, I’m publishing my July TBR in the next couple of days! I hope you can take a look and maybe find inspiration for your next read. 

Until then, have a good week and happy reading! 

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Sunday Summary – 29th June 2025

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I don’t quite know how, but we’re at the end of another week already! I hope you’ve had a good week and you’re ready for today’s Sunday Summary check-in. As always, I’m here to catch you up on the blog posts I’ve shared. Not only that, but I have four books I’ve read to update you on. finally, I share any I’ve added to my reading list this week. Make yourself comfortable, and then let’s get stuck in.

I had originally intended to share a review of Stolen Focus by Johann Hari midweek. Whilst I’ve made progress with drafting that review, I’m not yet happy with it. With this in mind, I decided to postpone publishing this post. When I get my review in a position where I’m happy to share it, it’ll go live then. 

Instead, my first post of the week went live on Friday. In my regular Shelf Control features, I look at upcoming books on my reading list and share them with you. I talk about why I’m excited to pick up those books, and often they get me hoped up to read them soon. This week’s feature is a mystery novel in which the book has an interesting psychological thriller storyline. If you have yet to read that post, here’s a handy link for you to take a look. 

 

Books Read

A Day of Fallen Night

Starting off this week with only four hours left of A Day of Fallen Night meant that I didn’t have long left in this audiobook. With the conclusion rapidly coming up, and some well-timed annual leave from work, I blitzed this final stretch.

I really enjoyed getting back into this series. It wasn’t that long ago that I read the first book of the series, The Priory of the Orange Tree. Picking up this next book within a few months of finishing the first book has been a godsend. With so much going on in the subtle hints and clues between storylines, it’s been really helpful to read these closer together to be able to pick up on and appreciate this detail. 

I enjoyed this prequel so much that I am now eagerly anticipating the next instalment of the series, due out later this year. As soon as that book is published, I’ll listen to the audiobook and get stuck back in.

 

Little Fires Everywhere

In last week’s Sunday Summary, I shared how I’d made light work of the first half of Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. That continued to be the case this week. Little Fires Everywhere is the first book I’ve read on my Kindle for a little while, and weirdly I enjoyed the experience. As much as I love physical books, the convenience of a Kindle can’t be downplayed.

I read and finished the second half of Little Fires Everywhere in rapid time. This was an interesting book to read and I enjoyed unravelling the characters’ backstories. Of course I was keen to figure out what was happening in the present day too. I’m looking forward to discussing this in our work book club next week.

 

Saint’s Blood

Given that I’ve been off work for a few days this week, I’ve leaned into audiobooks whilst crafting quite heavily. So much so, I have listened to the vast majority (est. 80%) of the next audiobook on my TBR. 

As of this Sunday Summary, I have just under four hours of Saint’s Blood. As I said to you and last week’s Sunday summary, with only four hours left and the end of the book rapidly approaching, I don’t think this will be long in finishing! 

Unlike A Day of Fallen Night, I’ve left it a considerable amount of time between listening to this audiobook compared to its prequel. To be more specific, I last picked up this series in June 2022 – three years ago!

That said, I haven’t found it too tricky getting into the story. I started the audio without a recap to see if events would naturally come back to me or be recapped within the story. Whilst there wasn’t too much of an info dump, I managed to pick up enough information that I’ve been able to carry on with the book without a recap. Would I have been better picking this up sooner? Absolutely yes. It’s not been a dealbreaker though.

 

The Anxious Generation 

The last book I’ve started this week is the final book on my June TBR, The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. 

Progress in this book hasn’t been so fast as the other books in this Sunday Summary update, but it’s been no less enjoyable.

It’s surprising really how many non-fiction books I now read, when you consider I barely picked up the genre even just a few years ago. In fact, it’s becoming one of my most read genres and that’s happened quite naturally. 

What helps in the case of The Anxious Generation specifically is that the book very much talks about people around or very close to my own age. I am someone who is not quite the subject of the book, but I have very close ties to it. I have no doubt that The Anxious Generation will continue to be an interesting read. It will also likely be a book I would recommend to all parents.

 

Books Discovered

This week has been a relatively quiet one. The good news is that I’ve managed to tick a couple of reads off the list and I’ve not added anything new. Yet… 😅 there’s still time!

 

Coming Up… 

The end of the month is back around again! So, next week I’ll be busy initially with sharing my monthly wrap-up post for June. In this monthly post, I recap the progress I’ve made against my TBR and give you a brief review of my thoughts on each of the books. I hope you can check-in with me for that post early next week.

Next, with a new month over the horizon, I’ll share which books I plan to read in July. We’re now officially into the second half of the year. It’s also the second month of the 20 Books of Summer reading challenge. The books on this TBR shouldn’t be a surprise, but I’ll be sharing what my reading priorities will be in the near future.

Finally, I’ll be back this time next week with another Sunday Summary instalment. If you want to catch up on the books I’m reading next week, that’s the post to check out. I don’t know how much reading I’m going to get done next week. We are stepping into a really busy period at work, but I’m determined to keep up pace with reading as much as I can! If nothing else, I’m setting myself the challenge of finishing Saint’s Blood.

What is your next upcoming read? 

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Shelf Control #92 – 27/06/2025

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What better way can I celebrate a fun Friday off work than with a Shelf Control post?! I mean, I could be reading the books on my reading list instead of talking about them, but there we are! It would help whittle the list down… 

Seriously though, I’m really happy to be back with my next Shelf Control instalment. In today’s post, I feature a psychological thriller novel I added to my TBR back in October 2019 – nearly six years ago. I even featured the books in a Top Ten Tuesday post geared around new releases I was excited for. If that doesn’t tell you how far behind I am, I don’t know what will. Even still, to date I’m excited to pick up this book. With a synopsis based on a psychology study, it’ll bring back the old days of taking psychology classes. 

Before I get ahead of myself, here is a recap of what the Shelf Control regular feature is about!

Shelf Control is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a celebration of the unread books on our shelves! The idea is to pick a book you own but haven’t read and write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up.

If you want to read more about the Shelf Control feature, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

 

An Anonymous Girl – Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Genre: Psychological Thriller

Pages: 375

Audience: Adult

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

CPublication Date: 08 Jan 2019

Goodreads – An Anonymous Girl

 

Looking to earn some easy cash, Jessica Farris agrees to be a test subject in a psychological study about ethics and morality. But as the study moves from the exam room to the real world, the line between what is real and what is one of Dr. Shields’s experiments blurs.

Dr. Shields seems to know what Jess is thinking… and what she’s hiding.

Jessica’s behaviour will not only be monitored, but manipulated.

Caught in a web of attraction, deceit and jealousy, Jess quickly learns that some obsessions can be deadly.

From the authors of the blockbuster bestseller The Wife Between Us, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen, An Anonymous Girl will keep you riveted through the last shocking twist.

 

My Thoughts

As somebody who enjoyed studying psychology at school, a book that plays on this subject and how people can be manipulated is naturally a topic of interest. It’s scary how easy the brain can be fooled. 

I’m also interested in the morality aspect of the storyline and how far it’s going to go. If you’ve ever done or taken part in a psychology experiment, you should know that those leading an experiment are not meant to do anything that can be seen as morally grey or worse. What exactly do the experiments entail, and what could they have in mind that could cross this line?

I’ve enjoyed picking up more mysteries this year. It’s a genre I go through spells where I’ll read more of it, and then less so. I’ve been enjoying getting back into this type of book. Picking them up for our work book club has been ideal. It’s a genre many people at my place like, so the club gets good engagement that way. This would actually be a good book to suggest to the group to read in future. 

Have you read An Anonymous Girl? Are there any other books you would recommend as great reads for book clubs? 

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Sunday Summary – 22nd June 2025

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It honestly feels like I’ve barely finished one Sunday Summary post before I’m starting the next. Where are the weeks going? 

Happy Sunday friends and welcome to my weekly catch up post! As always, in this Sunday Summary, I’ll recap the blog posts I’ve shared so far this week, then jump into my reading updates. 

My first blog post of the week was a Top Ten Tuesday post. I’ve shared a few books around this week’s theme in the past as it’s a quarterly re-occurring post. This week, it was time to share my top ten books on my summer TBR. As I’m taking part in the 20 Books of Summer Challenge, I decided to use this post to share which books I’ll be prioritising from that challenge after my June TBR.

On Friday, it was the return of my First Lines Friday feature. This week’s feature was a completely novel choice that I added to my reading list; normally I’m featuring one already on there. If you’re also looking for a quirky way to discover your next read, take a look at that post, as I share an interesting resource I stumbled upon via my local libraries website.

 

Books Read

 

All the Light We Cannot See

All The Light We Cannot See

This week, I read the final third of All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. I was pleasantly surprised actually. Overall, I found myself reading this book in lots of short stints. The pacing of the book meant that I was picking it up and putting it down often, not reading very many pages in one go.

However, I got to a point in the book where I was determined to finish it, and so I did. I spent a couple of hours one evening this week and I read between 120-140 pages in one sitting. 

I enjoyed All the Light We Cannot See, but it didn’t wow me either. Based on the write up, I’d hoped that Marie-Laure and Werner spent more time together once they finally met. In the context of this 500 page story, they meet quite a long way down the line, and for what feels like a very brief period of time. I had high hopes for this book, and if I’m entirely honest, it didn’t quite live up to expectation. It is still a decent read – I rated the book 3 stars.

 

A Day of Fallen Night

In last week’s Sunday Summary post, I shared that I’d made only a little progress with A Day of Fallen Night. 

Compared to last week’s one and a half hours progress, I’ve made an additional five hours progress on top of that benchmark this week. If I had listened to this book just a little bit more throughout the course of the week, I could’ve been sharing a completion with you here. As it stands, I only have four hours of this audiobook left as of this Sunday Summary update. I may not be able to share a completion of this with you this week, but the six and a half hours I’ve listened to this week sets me up so I can share it with you next week! 

Events are now bringing characters together for the conclusion. I’m really interested to see how this book wraps up. If nothing else, that’s my motivator to pick up this book. 

 

Little Fires Everywhere

The final book to update you on in today’s Sunday Summary post is my current read, Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. 

This is our work book club book. We’re next meeting at the beginning of July. I haven’t got the most time in the world to finish this book. Equally, I’ve read 45% in just the couple of days. Compared to All the Light We Cannot See, Little Fires Everywhere is progressing much quicker; the pacing of the book suits my reading preferences better. It’s a lot easier to sit and read in longer settings. I’m not worried about finishing it on time.

I’m starting to see where character conflicts are building. Do these explain the events at the very start of the book? Is it going to be as transparent as we think? I’m not so sure at the moment. I hope there is a bit of a mystery for me to unravel here. Hopefully, I’ll be talking more about that in next week’s Sunday Summary. Given how quickly I’m progressing with this book, I am optimistic for a completion very soon.

 

Books Discovered

If you read my First Lines Friday post (either on Friday or if you followed the link above) you’ll know that I added a book called The Great Passage to my TBR on Friday.

Books about books make for interesting reads. What also intrigues me is that the author and setting is based on Japanese language and culture. I read a lot more Westernised narratives but that’s something I’m looking to address. I’m intrigued as to whether that will be prevalent in the book and educate me on differences between my more familiar Western culture compared to Eastern. 

 

Coming Up… 

Given I have a number of book reviews to catch up with, I’ll tackle one of these early next week. The next book on my review list is Stolen Focus by Johann Hari. This was an interesting read; I’d recommend it to anyone who feels they struggle with their focus or attention span. It’s scary to realise what impact technology has had on our brains!

As I’ve just shared a First Lines Friday, that means this week’s Friday feature will be a Shelf Control post. I enjoy using this series as an opportunity to look forward to upcoming reads on my TBR. This week I’m featuring a psychological thriller with an element of mystery. I hope you can tune in to that upcoming post to see what it is. 

Finally, I’ll be back at the same time next week with another Sunday Summary catch up. Fingers crossed, I’ll have at least two completions in that post. We’re rapidly approaching the end of the month! I hope to get through my reading list before the start of July, so I’m making a push between now and then.

What book have you read recently that you would recommend to me? 

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Shelf Control #91 – 13/06/2025

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Happy Friday 13th friends! It’s the end of another working week for us 9-5 people. And, can I say, I’m ready for the weekend 🥳 It’s going to be a busy one, but I’m looking forward to it. But, for now though, we’re here to share my next Shelf Control feature. 

As always, before I get into featuring today’s chosen book, here’s a recap of what the Shelf Control is about.

Shelf Control is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a celebration of the unread books on our shelves! The idea is to pick a book you own but haven’t read and write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up.

If you want to read more about the Shelf Control feature, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

 

When You Disappeared – John Marrs 

 

Genre: Thriller

Pages: 349

Audience: Adult

Publisher:

Publication Date: 01 Jan 2013

 

Goodreads – When You Disappeared

When Catherine wakes up alone one morning, she thinks her husband has gone for a run before work. But Simon never makes it to the office. His running shoes are by the front door. Nothing is missing – except him.

Catherine knows Simon must be in trouble. He wouldn’t just leave her. He wouldn’t leave the children.

But Simon knows the truth – about why he left and what he’s done. He knows things about his marriage that it would kill Catherine to find out. The memories she holds onto are lies.

While Catherine faces a dark new reality at home, Simon’s halfway around the world, alive and thriving. He’s doing whatever it takes to stay one step ahead of the truth.

But he can’t hide forever, and when he reappears twenty-five years later, Catherine will finally learn who he is.

And wish she’d stayed in the dark.

 

My Thoughts

Not too long ago I enjoyed reading The Minders by John Marrs. It’s encouraged me to pick up more of his books. The synopsis of this book caught my attention even before reading The Minders. However, that has reinforced my want to pick up this book. I also want to pick it up because I’ve enjoyed a few mystery/thriller books so far this year. For a genre I enjoy, I feel like I went through a bit of a lull with reading these in favour of other genres. Naturally, I want to set this back aright. 

The synopsis has a good deal of mystery to draw us in before we even start reading. If The Minders is anything to go by, readers will be asking a lot more questions before we get answers. 

My only reservation about this book its that the first page of reviews on Goodreads are pretty polarised. Some love it, whilst others are not a fan. A couple of reading friends have picked this up and rated it 5 stars. May be I shouldn’t put too much stock in what others have rated it and just go for it myself. We’re all different. Of course I’ll give it a chance, and perhaps take it with a pinch of salt as it is John Marrs debut novel. It was originally titled “The Wronged Sons” when it was published in 2013. 

Thanks for checking out today’s Shelf Control post. Have you read When You Disappeared? 

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Monthly TBR – June 2025

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In today’s post, I share the books I plan to pick up throughout the month of June. This monthly TBR isn’t too heavy on the book count front, but that’s not to say I won’t be reading more if I manage to get through each of these. 

If you read the post I shared on Wednesday, you’ll know that I’m taking part in the 20 books of summer challenge. In that post, I set out 20 books I hope to read before the end of August. Should I get to the end of these five before the end of June, I’ll be picking up one of those to keep up momentum with the challenge.

Let’s take a look at what’s on my official June monthly TBR! 

 

Fixed Reads 

A Day of Fallen Night 

This book is the only carryover that I started in the month of May. That’s hardly surprising, given that this audiobook is a little under 40 hours long in total. 

I started A Day of Fallen Night as part of my May TBR but only started it around a week before the end of the month. In that first week, I listened to a good portion of this audiobook – over 12 hours – so I can’t grumble on progress. If I’m able to keep up the pace, then I should have plenty of time to read the second audiobook I’ve planned for later this month. 

 

All the Light We Cannot See

All The Light We Cannot See

I had originally planned to read All the Light We Cannot See last month. However, as it took me longer to read The Poppy War than I expected, I didn’t get to the mood reads on my May TBR. 

Instead, I incidentally picked up this book for the first time last Sunday, being the first of this month. Already I’m enjoying the book and keen to see where the set-up is taking us. I’m also intrigued by how the lives of the characters are going to intersect. That can only remain to be seen and I’ll be updating you on progress in my usual Sunday Summary posts.

 

Little Fires Everywhere 

Our work book club is meeting later this month, and for that meeting we have agreed to read and discuss Little Fires Everywhere. 

I was aware of the book before it was suggested, but as yet hadn’t made a decision on whether I was going to read it or not. That’s the great thing about a book club! It’s through picking up books that you wouldn’t necessarily read for yourself that you get to push yourself out of your comfort zone. 

I don’t know if Little Fires Everywhere is going to do that for me, but I’m intrigued to find out. And no, I won’t be cheating and watching the Netflix series instead 😂 

 

The Anxious Generation

Another book I didn’t quite get to on May’s TBR was The Anxious Generation. I’m still keen to pick up this book, so I’ve carried it forward onto this monthly TBR. 

I’m still looking forward to picking up this book. The Anxious Generation is the only non-fiction on my official reading list this month. When I get to it, it will be a refreshing change from this fiction-heavy list. There’s absolutely no reason why I wouldn’t get to this book, but on the off chance I don’t, I’ve made it a part of my 20 books of summer challenge so I have to read it to complete that! 

 

Saint’s Blood

It’s been a long time since I picked up Sebastien de Castell’s The Greatcoats series. It’s been three years, to the month, in fact. 

Given I’ve enjoyed the series to date, it makes sense to get myself back into it. I also want to read it because it will help me towards my reading goal of completing series this year. After Saint’s Blood, I only have one book left in this series until I’ve finished it. 

Given it’s been so long, I will definitely have to refresh myself on what’s happened to date. I do have some vague recollection, so I don’t think I’m going to have to spend too long doing that. However, that refresher is much needed. Once I’ve read Saint’s Blood, I won’t leave it too long before finishing the last book. If nothing else, I want to finish it before the end of the year towards my reading goal completion! That also means I won’t need to refresh myself again on what’s happened.

 

Summary 

I’m hoping setting myself a slightly less ambitious list will help me towards completing my June monthly TBR. As I’ve already shared, I know which books I want to read this summer, so I have a selection to choose from should I exceed expectations and get through this list. 

Thanks for checking out today’s monthly TBR post! What upcoming reads are on your list? Is there any particular book or series you’re looking to pick up this summer?  

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Shelf Control #90 – 23/05/2025

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Happy Friday, friends! It’s the start of a long weekend here in the UK, and I’m looking forward to a cheeky extra day off work. We’re not quite there yet, though! In today’s Shelf Control post, I feature the first book in a young adult series with a bizarre premise. 

As always, before I share details of the book, here’s a recap of what Shelf Control is.

Shelf Control is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a celebration of the unread books on our shelves! The idea is to pick a book you own but haven’t read and write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up.

If you want to read more about the Shelf Control feature, check out Lisa’s introductory post.


#MurderTrending – Gretchen McNeil

Genre: Thriller

Pages: 352

Audience: Young Adult

Publisher: Freeform

Publication Date: 07 Aug 2018


Goodreads – #MurderTrending

 

@doctorfusionbebop: Some 17-year-old chick named Dee Guerrera was just sent to Alcatraz 2.0 for killing her stepsister. So, how long do you think she’ll last?

@morrisdavis72195: I hope she meets justice! She’ll get what’s coming to her! BWAHAHA!

@EltonJohnForevzz: Me? I think Dee’s innocent. And I hope she can survive.

WELCOME TO THE NEAR FUTURE, where good and honest citizens can enjoy watching the executions of society’s most infamous convicted felons, streaming live on The Postman app from the suburbanized prison island Alcatraz 2.0.

When seventeen-year-old Dee Guerrera wakes up in a haze, lying on the ground of a dimly lit warehouse, she realizes she’s about to be the next victim of the app. Knowing hardened criminals are getting a taste of their own medicine in this place is one thing, but Dee refuses to roll over and die for a heinous crime she didn’t commit. Can Dee and her newly formed posse, the Death Row Breakfast Club, prove she’s innocent before she ends up wrongfully murdered for the world to see? Or will The Postman’s cast of executioners kill them off one by one?


My Thoughts

The strange concept behind #MurderTrending is why I added it to my reading list in September 2019. The appeal to a younger audience is apparent in the emphasis on social media. However, with it a more prevalent element of modern life, it’s an idea we are all very familiar with.

Aside from the bizarre premise, there’s a mystery here to draw readers in. Why is Dee being lined up for a crime she didn’t commit? Is she really innocent? There are already a number of unanswered questions before we even get to the first page!

This book has very mixed reviews, so I don’t know what to expect. However, this Shelf Control post has got me keen to try this first book and see what I think. If I like it, there are a couple more books in the series I can dive into.

What do you think of today’s Shelf Control feature? I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s post!

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Monthly Wrap-Up – February 2025

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We’re now two full months into 2025. I want to get in nice and early with my monthly wrap-up for February to update you on the books I picked up, and in some cases put down, during the last month.

One of my main reading goals for February was to pick up books around the theme of Black History Month. Not all of my books fit into this category, as they were either carryovers from January or I had to read them for other commitments. How I did with February’s TBR surprised me; there were books I wasn’t sure about that but I’ve gone on to really enjoy, yet equally there are books I thought I’d get on with, but didn’t. 

Shall we get into this monthly wrap-up so you can see just how this month has gone?

Books Read


A Darkness at Sethanon

A Darkness at Sethanon was a carryover from January‘s TBR. I was just a couple of chapters in at the point of setting this book on my February monthly TBR.

Admittedly, I didn’t get much further than that before I put it down. Although I had recapped myself on events so far in the series, I was struggling to get into it. If I’m entirely honest, I didn’t love the books before this one. They were okay to read, but I didn’t have any burning desire to pick up this last instalment. If anything, I was motivated to try so I could mark the series as complete.

However, I decided it wasn’t worth slogging through this book in order to give myself that accolade. I have now finished this series, but it has a DNF as opposed to a completion.


Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia

A few weeks ago, I started listening to Fearing the Black Body. I ended up listening to this audiobook over the course of a weekend. I didn’t expect to love this book in the way that I did. It was really interesting, and I liked how the book was broken down and considered different ideas and arguments. I wouldn’t say this book is to be taken as gospel. However, it does consider some interesting ideas on why racism could play a role in our current culture’s fat phobia.

I wouldn’t describe this as a book that I would typically read. However, I’m glad I did. It’s a good way to get an alternate perspective on things, as well as consider things from a non-racial perspective as well. In addition to the race argument, the author also offers religion as a possible source of some of the negativity around larger bodies too.


A Promised Land

The second audiobook I picked up this month, and admittedly I’m still reading as of this monthly wrap-up post, is A Promised Land by Barack Obama. If there’s one book on this TBR I thought I was at risk of DNFing, it was this one. In truth, it’s one of the books I’m enjoying the most this month.

Politics is a subject that is out of my comfort zone. My overarching opinion generally of politicians is that they don’t achieve anything for the masses. instead, they use their office to promote their own self interest. I can be forgiven for this view when you consider the amount of cronyism that gets highlighted on the news.

So far, I don’t find Barack to be your typical politician. My overall perception of Barack Obama when he was in office was that he was a decent president.

Listening to his book, I still have this view. I’ve enjoyed listening to some of his insights on what his priorities were as a president. He also covers a number of different unplanned situations he had to deal with in office.

Naturally, this book is far more involved to the likes of Michelle Obama’s Becoming in describing the politics of his life. He’s not averse to making jabs here and there against other parties and individuals, but for the most part I’m getting on with the book well.

The only reason I’m still listening to this audiobook at the end of February is because it is so long! The audiobook is just over 29 hours long. As a drafting this post, I have just under 12 and a half hours left to listen to.


In Every Mirror She’s Black

Another read I intended to complete as part of this February TBR relating to Black History Month is In Every Mirror She’s Black. A few years ago I acquired my copy of the book in a Waterstones sale after Christmas. I liked the sound of the book and I thought it was going to have something quite prominent to say when it comes to race – how seemingly different black women end up experiencing the same treatment in life.

However, having gotten a third into this book, I still couldn’t tell where the storyline was intending to take us or what message it was trying to put out. So, I decided to DNF it. I was bored. The plot was meandering between the three female perspectives and not really giving any context as to what it was trying to say. Nothing significant was happening and I wasn’t enjoying reading it.

It’s a shame, because I think it could’ve been a good book if it started to get to its point a little quicker.


The Da Vinci Code

If you are a regular reader, you will know that I host a book club at work. We meet once a month, typically towards the end of a month, and discuss a book of a members choice.

A couple of months ago, we came up with the idea of reading The Da Vinci Code. Some members had already read the book a long time ago, whereas others like myself had not read it before. It sounded like a good book for discussion, so we decided to pick that up.

I’m sorry to say that I didn’t like this one either. I read 29% of the book before I DNF this one too. Whilst I enjoyed the ideas of symbolism and the murder mystery aspect of the storyline, I felt overall that it was a very pretentious book. There is a lot of detail on symbolism and at times, I felt the narrative was talking down to me to have to explain some of it. I also found the idea of these clues being left for Robert too far-fetched.

In principle, one of the characters had approximately 15 minutes to lay down all these clues before he passed away from a fatal injury in order to point Robert to his murderer. After discussions with another book club member, there are perhaps reasons why this was plausible for the character to do given his position and preplanning for such an eventuality. However, it just felt far-fetched to me and I wasn’t a fan of the tone of the book.


Children of Virtue and Vengeance

Lastly, we get to the final book of my February TBR, Children of Virtue and Vengeance. I am still reading this book as of publishing this monthly wrap-up post, but I confess I’m not loving this one either. At this point, I don’t think it’s the fault of the book, but more to do with the fact that I’m in a reading funk.

As of this monthly wrap up post, I’m 20% into the book and I’m going to keep going with it for now. I probably not help myself in that it’s been a good number of years since I read the first book of the series. I have recapped myself on events, But leaving it so long is probably acting as a blocker helping me immerse myself back into the storyline.


Summary

It’s fair to say that reading progress in February didn’t end up going so well. Whilst I have read some enjoyable books in the month, I DNF’d three books – basically half the list!

I may need to reconsider my reading plans for March to help get myself out of whatever reading funk I’m in right now.

Thanks for reading today’s monthly wrap-up! Have you read any great books recently that you can recommend to help?

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Shelf Control #85 – 24/01/2025

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Good evening readers and welcome to this Shelf Control post – hope you are well? It’s been a wild one here! Today I’ve been relegated to working from home as the office was shut due to storm Éowyn. All things considered, I’ve not suffered badly. Losing half a roof tile is nothing compared to other people. Someone had half their roof ripped off!

Anyway, less of topical commentary and more of what to expect from this Shelf Control. Shelf Control is a meme run by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies. It’s a celebration of the unread books on our shelves! The idea is to pick a book you own but haven’t read and write a post about it (suggestions: include what it’s about, why you want to read it, and when you got it), and link up.

If you want to read more about the Shelf Control feature, check out Lisa’s introductory post.

In today’s post, I feature the first police procedural in a good while. I enjoy the genre but don’t read a lot of it. No doubt I’ll be changing that soon!


The Whisper Man – Alex North

Genre: Thriller / Police Procedural

Pages: 384

Audience: Adult

Publisher: Celadon Books

Publication Date: 22 Aug 2019

 

Goodreads – The Whisper Man

 

If you leave a door half-open, soon you’ll hear the whispers spoken…

Fifteen years ago, a serial killer known only as ‘The Whisper Man’ wreaked havoc on the sleepy village of Featherbank.

But with the killer behind bars, the village is now a safe haven for Tom and his young son Jake to make a fresh start.

Until another boy goes missing. It feels like history is repeating itself.

Could the killer still be out there – and can Tom protect his son from becoming the next victim?

 

My Thoughts

I already have a copy of The Whisper Man, so I anticipate I’ll be picking up this police procedural soon. I enjoy picking up books like this, even if I don’t very often. The suspense is already palpable from the synopsis. Once we get into the story, it can only grow from there!

I added this book to my TBR in June 2019 and purchased a copy on Kindle on 2020. Taking advantage of a book being discounted to 99p is always a good idea when you read as much as I do!

Alex North is a new author to me. At the time I added this to my TBR, he had nothing else published under that name. Now in 2025 he has several books out, and another due out in May. What I hadn’t realised is that he’s also published multiple books under the pseudonym Steve Mosby. If I go on to enjoy this book as much as I think I will, then I have plenty more of his to read in future.

Do you like the sound of The Whisper Man? Have you read it and is it worth the positive press it’s received?

Stay safe and I’ll see you in my Sunday Summary in a couple of days!

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