My August Reading Wrap-up + September TBR!

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This summer has been chaotic, and between covid, vacations, playing sports, and planning for school I've read fewer books than I'd hoped. I thought it would be fun to start doing a reading wrap-up for the books I read each month! So here's the first one, along with a look at some of the books I hope to get through (but probably won't get through) in September!

Love and the Sea and Everything In Between by Brian McBride

Love and the Sea and Everything In Between is a contemporary, romance novella that I was really excited to read. Brian is an indie author who I've heard great things about, and since I wanted to read more indie books this year, I thought why not check out this book! Sadly, I wasn't a huge fan of this particular piece. I love the title, cover, and some of the themes Brian integrated into the story, but the writing was pretty cliche. I didn't love the characters, and it just felt like a typical romance story to me. The book touched on God and religion, since the main character, Adam, went to a Christian college. I wish those themes were more prominent, and I think they would've added a lot to the story. I am no way targeting Brian as an author or his books. This was his debut novella, and I'm certain he's grown as a writer since then. I still plan on picking up his other books to see how he's improved!

Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls

This book was given to me by a family member I met for the first time over the summer. She loves to read just like I do, so she wanted me to have one of her books, which was so sweet! I chose this one because it's based on a true story and it's set in the 1900's—two of my favorite characteristics for books! This story follows the life of a girl named Lily Casey. Lily grew up with her parents and her siblings, Buster and Helen, riding and taming horses on a ranch in Texas. The book follows her life from age ten, up until she's about seventy. It lays out her life experiences—growing up poor, her eccentric family, her struggles to get a job, and how she raised her own kids—in an entertaining and adventurous light. The characters in this book are just amazing! It's crazy to think that a lot of the stories depicted throughout this novel are based on true events.

Dark Lord: The Early Years by Jamie Thomson

I really had no idea what this book was about going into it, but it was hilarious! I picked this story up from my library's book sale last year because the blurb on the back was intriguing, and the title stirred up some questions the main one being: Is this a book about some weird demonic cult? The story is actually one of those comedic middle-grade books (a Diary of A Wimpy Kid style, if you will) and it's actually a really fun read, despite the questionable title. The main character is Dark Lord (aka Dirk Lloyd) who accidentally gets stuck in the body of a middle school boy. He then has to make friends with puny humans in order to find his way back to his home: the Darklands. It's a book full of engrossing sketches, mysterious magic, and utter gibberish that, for some reason, is highly entertaining to me. Also there are apparently two more books in this series that I will have to pick up now.

Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds

Oh gee...where do I start with this one. I've had this book for over a year, and decided to read it for a change of pace from my regular fantasy novels. I really liked the premise of the story: The main character, Jack, is stuck in a time loop and has to try to save his girlfriend Kate. The characters in this book are so likable. The friendships and Jillian and Franny’s romance are my favorite parts. The writing is pretty cheesy, but enjoyable nonetheless. My least favorite thing about this book was the ending. It was very unclear to me, and the story didn’t end in the place that I hoped it would. The last two chapters were unnecessary to me, and seemed very preachy, if you know what I mean. Your story should be able to speak for itself, and this one definitely did. But there were parts where you could tell the author had a specific point he was pushing. Instead of letting it unravel naturally, he forced it right into your face, which was a little annoying. Overall, this story was good. It was a little cliche, cheesy, and went on longer than it needed to, but I enjoyed it.

Overall, I give my August reading list a 3.5 out of 5 stars.

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My September TBR

I start reading Animal Farm for literature next month, but along with that required book, I hope to get through at least five or six others. These are the books that I’m considering to read for September. I don’t think I’ll get through them all:

Rebel by Marie Lu

The final novel in the Legend series had been on my bookshelf for almost a year. I've started reading it twice now, but for some reason, haven't progressed.

The Lord Thief by Cornelia Funke

This is another book that's been sitting on my shelf for nearly a year. I started reading it over the summer, and actually enjoyed it, but got caught up in vacations. I don't really remember it very well, so I plan on starting from the beginning when I pick it up again.

Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

In May, I read one of the greatest books of my young life: Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff (click here to read my review). In the irrational state of my book hangover, I ordered the other two books in the series, but oh, oh, oh...did Gemina let me down. Gemina wasn't a bad book, but it had nothing I loved about the first book in it. Kaufman and Kristoff added two new characters who were NOTHING compared to Kades and Ezra (the greatest power couple EVER!) from book one. Obsidio is the third book in the series, and I know Ezra and Kades come back, so let's hope this is a knock-you-off-your-bed, throw-your-book-across-the-room grand finale.

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

Ever since I saw the awesome, and slightly disturbing movie trailer for this book that came out last year, I was like, "I must read!" I just picked The Goldfinch up from the library yesterday, and can't wait to start reading ASAP.

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy

Another library book that should be arriving for me to pick up any day now. The God of Small Things sound like one of those books that will make you bawl all the way through, but also offers a lot of historical knowledge and culture to its readers.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

I've probably been shunned by the entire YA fantasy fandom for never even touching a V.E. Schwab novel. But that all changes this fall! She's an author who's been on my TBR list for a while now, and considering people never shut up about her books, my expectations are EXTREMELY high! This is it folks—if it goes downhill with A Darker Shade of Magic, expect a rant review from me within the next month. If you don't hear from me at all, I've probably died of book-loving overload...or I'm on Pinterest.

Looking For Alaska by John Green

Ahh...John Green—an author that I always know what I'm signing up for when I decide to pick up one of his books. In all seriousness, I have no idea what this book is about. I picked it up because it said John Green, my friend likes it, and I want to watch the new Hulu show.

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Thank you for reading this post! Make sure to comment your reading plans for September down below. Also don't forget to subscribe to my blog! We've been growing a lot over the past few months, and I'm so grateful for everyone who has taken the time to read my work.

It's been a pleasure writing for you, and until next time—stay weird and stay writing! - Lexi