What I Read in July 2023

After a May and June that threw me off-piste (illness, overspending and all the anxiety!), I made sure to prioritise downtime, no-screen time and library visits in July and, boy, did it pay off. It was another fruitful reading month and I’m so happy with my 2023 reading journey. I’m discovering some great books, delving into important themes and topics, and always looking forward to compiling my next monthly TBR.

This month is the month I really began to prioritise library loaning, NetGalley ARCs and Kindle reads too. Watch out world, she’s unstoppable now that she’s not spending all of her disposable income on new physical copies! But, in all seriousness, I feel much lighter knowing my reading footprint is a little less, particularly when I DNF books like my library-loaned Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel. Every little helps.

Lie, Lie Again by Stacy Wise

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for my advanced reader copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Rating: ★★★/5

I read and finished this one in June, but didn’t get ‘round to collating my thoughts in time for a review, so I thought I’d add it into my next round-up.

Lie, Lie Again is a chick-lit mystery-thriller that revolves around three women with secrets to hide… and a body at the bottom of their apartment building’s staircase. Sylvia is overly confident and is defined by her boyfriend, whose ex-girlfriend frequently reappears. Riki is a private school teacher, struggling with the pressures of teaching privileged kids. Embry is a devoted mother and wife to a bartender-slash-actor.

The novel slowly intertwines the three women’s narratives in a way that does keep you turning the pages. I loved Sylvia and Embry’s characters: they felt distinctive and really draw you into the story. However, as twisty and turny as this was, the book reads more like chick-lit than it does mystery and, for me, the twist and ending was predictable from about the halfway point. An enjoyable little summer read.

Other Names, Other Places by Ola Mustapha

Thank you to Fairlight Books and NetGalley for my advanced reader copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Rating: ★★★.5/5

I am SO undecided about how I feel towards this book. Written uniquely in a second-person voice, Other Names, Other Places is a curious little peek into the life of a daughter of immigrants. Nessie is a London-raised Tunisian, forever caught between cultures upon the backdrop of classic tumultuous teenage life and bustling London. Her insights and experiences felt piercing, despite the jarring second-person narrative, and you really feel deep empathy for the back-and-forth she experiences; the way in which Nessie is trying to find herself.

The narrative style really threw me off for a majority of the book, and it is a bit of a slow burner with many short chapters. But the book picks up with Nessie moves to Japan: her self-discovery here really speeds up and there’s far more action. I suppose it’s more ‘generally relatable’. While this one wasn’t quite so satisfying to read as others with a more classic writing style, I really appreciated this take on the immigrant experience.

Venomous Lumpsucker by Ned Beauman

Rating: ★★★★/5

After reading so many rave reviews about this title in Jessie’s Patreon book club, I was desperate to get my hands on a copy of Venomous Lumpsucker. This ‘zoological thriller’ is set in a near-future Earth where an extinction industry has been established, supposedly to address the issue of mass extinction. Really, with this primary subject, it doesn’t stray too far from what is actually going on in reality at the moment, and I’m discovering that I quite like that in speculative fiction. I love the exploration of what could be a reality!

Amidst extinction credit chaos, the capitalistic solution to the ecological problem (which, for a big environmentalist like me, was quite on the nose!), two unlikely protagonists team up in a search for the last surviving colony of the venomous lumpsucker, a fictional fish that is thought to be the most intelligent fish. I’m about halfway through thus far and absolutely loving it – it’s sharp, funny and pacey, while exploring and exposing the systems behind our societal approach to the Holocene extinction.

A great little read for fellow speculative fiction fans and environmentalists alike.

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

Rating: ★★★.5/5

My friend Emmie recommended this one to me, and when I spotted it on Kindle’s daily deals, I had to snap it up. The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches is a cosy witchy magical romance book, making it quite the summer read (or autumn!). Our protagonist Mika Moon is a witch and YouTuber, part of the UK’s secret society of witches and soon summoned to become a mentor to three young witches.

This is a classic coming-of-age, romance novel: there’s a burgeoning romance, magical chaos and all of the best representation you could ask for. While, again, this isn’t the sort of book I typically go for – although perhaps maybe I can’t say that anymore?! – I found it to be super fun and a real page-turner on these light summer nights.

Devil’s Breath by Jill Johnson

Thank you to Black & White Publishing and NetGalley for my advanced reader copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Rating: ★★★.5/5

“I’ve always been better with plants than people..”

Eustacia Rose is a professor of botanical toxicology, living a curiously solitary life in London with a collection of equally curious, poisonous plants in her secret rooftop garden for company. Her quiet and unassuming life is punctuated by a tendency to people-watch through her telescope – her particular focus on one neighbour and her many guests. When Eustacia befriends said neighbour, she is soon pulled into a toxic crime investigation, taking matters into her own hands.

This character-driven story is a fun little detective, crime novel. It starts with several beautifully evocative passages, painting a picture of a stunning London. The author pays glorious attention to detail, taking time to include plants and interesting tidbits about them all. I also loved how Eustacia constantly compares humans to plants in order ‘to understand them better’. Professor Rose reminds me a lot of Eleanor Oliphant from Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine; I’m not sure of the author meant to present her as neurodivergent, but Eustacia presented that way to me, with great effect. She undergoes some incredible character development, going from avoidant to fear-facing as the story develops.

As far as detective narratives go, I thought this was a compelling one, as I truly didn’t know where the story would take me next. My only qualm is that there are a LOT of character names to remember, some of whom disappear and don’t resurface until quite a while later!

Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry

Rating: ★★.5/5

Finally got off the waiting list for Matthew Perry’s memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, earlier in the month and I was incredibly excited to read it. Like 99% of all millennials, I love Friends and it is one of my ultimate comfort shows, but I didn’t keep up with any of the gossip or extracurriculars surrounding the series because I was likely a smidge too young.

Perry’s memoir is heartbreaking, authentic and honest. It is eye-opening to read his troubles with addiction and with alcoholism and the impact that this disease has had on him. His voice is distinct throughout – you can tell how much of his own personality and humour made it through to his on-screen character, Chandler.

Sadly for me, that’s about all the praise I can really give here. The memoir is written in a non-chronological order. Sometimes, this works. But here it was weirdly jarring, especially from somebody who did keep many of these struggles private and hidden. It took me out of the ‘story’ and made it that bit more difficult to stay focused (and this is a 250-pager!). I also absolutely HATED the way he talks about women throughout the entirety of this book. At first, I put it down to a narrative choice – perhaps he was using this language to show how he once thought – but it’s just a bit gross really. Perry comes across as a little narcissistic and expectant that women would fall at his feet simply for being an actor, or a troubled actor.

Bride of the Shadow King by Sylvia Mercedes

Thank you to Daphne Press and NetGalley for my advanced reader copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Rating: ★★★★/5

Clearly, I’m back in my fantasy bag because I really enjoyed reading Bride of the Shadow King by Sylvia Mercedes. Faraine, our main character, is a lovable heroine with a distinct voice. Sometimes, dual-voice narratives are tricky but it works mostly well here, nestled against Vor, our male lead, the Shadow King. This fantasy romance is a gorgeous slow-burner with some wonderful world-building and interesting back stories.

Shunned from court, Faraine has been living in a convent after supposedly embarrassing her family and also dealing with a chronic illness. As such, her right to the crown has been filtered to her beautiful younger sister. When the handsome Shadow King arrives, seeking a bride, he quickly agrees to an arranged marriage with Faraine’s sister, Princess Ilsevel. This is an easy, readable and captivating forbidden love fantasy romance. The worlds are rich, believable and fantastically written, and even the dual-voice style really serves to enrich the settings. However, at times, the dual POV technique makes the story feel hard to follow and throws off the pace, since we go back and forth in time as the author tells both Faraine and Vor’s perspective of a scene. It’d propel better with a forward-moving timeline. Equally, while I loved all of the writing, there’s actually not a whole lot of content here and in hindsight this feels like it could’ve been a prequel.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this, and already can’t wait for the sequel!

Bride of the Shadow King publishes on 29 August 2023.

Two Brothers by Ben Elton

Rating: ★★★★/5

I picked this one up on my Kindle on my boyfriend’s recommendation, as it is one of his favourite books. (There is truly not much more special than sharing favourite books!) Following our trip to Berlin in July, it felt like a good one to start immediately and I’m so glad that I did. I’m completely new to Ben Elton, so I’ve since done a little extra-curricular reading and it seems as though this was his first ‘more serious’ book. He does it great justice.

Two Brothers tells the story of two brothers – Otto and Paulus Stengel – born and raised in Berlin, ‘twins in everything but blood’. Beginning in the 1920s and continuing through as Germany marches into its Nazi Armageddon and the World War II, one family is tested to its limits. Given the sobering subject matter of this book, there’s a heavy sense of foreboding throughout the first half – we all know what happened next. Ben Elton does an incredible job, however, at telling the story of being Jewish in the Third Reich without overplaying or underplaying it. You truly connect with the family and all of their everyday happenings, to their emotions, jobs and relationships.

Brothers Otto and Paulus form a ‘gang’ with their friends and sweethearts Dagmar and Silke, ‘The Saturday Club’, making a promise to one another that runs throughout the book. The narrative takes us back and forth between wartime Berlin and post-war London, at times this threw me off but it also beautifully builds tension and emotion. Be warned that I sobbed throughout my read of this, yet I’d still wholeheartedly recommend it.

(My boyfriend has good taste! … But we knew that already, right?!)

Educated by Tara Westover

Rating: ★★★★/5

Educated had been on my TBR list for years. I think there was a bit of a clamouring for it in 2020(?) but, as ever, it has taken me an age to get ‘round to it – mood reader woes! I borrowed a copy from my local library and absolutely flew through it.

Tara Westover was born in Idaho, Utah, to a Mormon ‘end-of-days’ survivalist family. Her parents rejected the government, doctors, hospitals and public schools and, as such, Westover and her siblings were off the record, homeschooled and greatly sheltered from everyday society. This memoir is fascinating, not least because of the extraordinary childhood that Westover endured, but for the hope that it shows and watching on as Tara reconciles what she knew and what she knows.

In terms of the writing/book style, I found Educated to have a compelling, smooth and readable one. I flew through this book in two days’ worth of commutes, but I do find that to be the case with many non-fiction books and memoirs.