It’s time to talk about the books we read last month! Did we find any new favorites? Are we happy with how our reading month went? Keep on reading our July wrap up to find out!

Candyce

In July I read 26 books (8 paperbacks, 6 eARCs, 4 audiobooks, 4 Kindle Unlimited, 2 eBooks, and 2 hardcovers). July was a weird reading month for me. I mostly had 3 star reads at the beginning of the month. And 3 stars isn’t bad at all, but I tend to have more 4 or 5 stars. Thankfully the month ended with some amazing books. I’ll be hitting 200 books read pretty soon.

The Wish Switch – Lynn Painter

Lynn Painter has become a favorite author of mine. I’ve loved her YA and adult romances, so I was very excited about her middle grade debut. The Wish Switch was really sweet. I love the lore of the wishes and how they had to be made. This book was also filled with friendships, family, and life not always going as planned. Emma and Jackson were interesting characters and I really enjoyed their story.

Not Safe for Work – Nisha J. Tuli

This enemies to lovers, workplace romance was one I really enjoyed. It had the perfect balance of banter, romance, friendships, and it hits in all the feels. Trishara just wants to be recognized for how good she is at work. Being a woman, and a colored woman as that, she’s never felt appreciated in this white male privilege and nepotism that clearly happens at her office. I really enjoyed seeing Trishara find her confidence and realize her worth during this work resort. Rafe is the boss’ son, and even though he seems to be the enemy, we quickly realize there is a lot more going on there. I only wish we had some chapters from his POV.

Those We Drown – Amy Goldsmith

Those We Drown is a YA horror that’s been on my shelves for quite some time. A friend of mine picked this one up and said she was hooked, so that had me reading it myself. I love a cruise ship as a setting. Especially with at sea school programs. It’s clear from the start something is off about this ship and no one seems to believe Liv. Those We Drown had me hooked from the start. Unfortunately, the ending was a bit underwhelming compared to the rest of the book.

Broken by Daylight – Elizabeth Helen

This is the fourth installment of the Beasts of the Briar series and it kept me hooked. I will say that this one felt a little more like a filler book than the previous books, but it still kept me very entertained. Once again, we learn so much about the world, our characters, and some of the twists I didn’t see coming. It’s going to be a long wait until we get the next book in 2026.

A Lesson in Vengeance – Victoria Lee

A Lesson in Vengeance is definitely a good book for a stormy day! It’s very atmospheric and dark and the writing had me hooked from the start. I loved the mystery/thriller element to this dark academia story, but the pacing could’ve been a bit faster in my opinion. I expected a lot of the twists and I think they would’ve hit harder if the pacing wasn’t as slow. All in all, I still enjoyed A Lesson in Vengeance.

Bloodguard – Cecy Robson

Gladiators aren’t something I read a lot about, but Bloodguard caught my eye. This was probably a cover buy in the beginning, haha. The world this takes place in was very interesting and there were a lot of twists and turns I wasn’t expecting. I like Maeve and Leith as characters. Bloodguard definitely has some flaws and I would’ve loved just a bit more depth in some areas, but all in all, this was a fun read.

Sleep Like Death – Kalynn Bayron

I’ve read Cinderella Is Dead by this author and had a good time, so I was really excited about this Snow White retelling. I loved this author’s take on the story and how she made it her own. Eve and Nova were interesting characters and I was happy I couldn’t predict exactly how everything would go.

Hotel Magnifique – Emily J. Taylor

Hotel Magnifique caught my eye because I love the idea of a hotel that changes location every day at midnight. This is a book that’s been on my shelves for a while and I’m glad I finally sat down to read it. There was definitely more to this hotel than meets the eye and definitely a villain in this story. I want to read more by this author.

Alone With You in the Ether – Olivie Blake

If I’m being honest, I was very hesitant about starting this book. After loving The Atlas Six and not liking Masters of Death, I wasn’t sure how this one would go. Alone With You in the Ether is very character driven and not much happens. I really enjoyed how she told this story and it kept my attention the whole way through.

Anywhere You Go – Bridget Morrissey

Bridget Morrissey has written a few books that I’ve loved and I was really excited about Anywhere You Go. This one definitely lived up to my expectations. Think The Holiday but during the summer. Both of our main characters were dealing with a lot and needed to get away for a bit. They were able to find themselves and even more.

Sweet Addiction – J. Daniels

After loving this author’s Alabama Summer series, I wanted to finally catch up with more of her backlist. I wanted to love Sweet Addiction, but this book just didn’t work for me. If Dylan and Reese had just sat down to talk we could’ve cut half of this book. There was just so much miscommunication. Which made Dylan upset and eventually had them making up and more smutty scenes. Dylan’s best friends were honestly the reason I kept on reading. I don’t think I can do another two books about this couple.

The Last Encore – Elodie Colliard

I have to say the cover of this book is what caught my eye at first. Our main character, Avery, just needs a break because things just aren’t going her way. She definitely wasn’t expecting the best friend who left her life years ago (and one she had a crush on) to appear all of a sudden. The Last Encore is also a pretty emotional book as they’re finding their way back to each other. I will say she did annoy me just a little bit at times and I think Josh’s POV would’ve made me love this one just a little bit more.

All the Truths & All the Lies – Rina Kent

I’ve been slowly working my way through Rina Kent’s backlist and the Lies & Truths Duet was up next. All the Truths was a book that kept me on the edge of my seat and I needed to know what happened to Reina and what she was really like. Unfortunately, All the Lies was disappointing. I just needed more! So much was going on and I felt like some things were rushed or not mentioned at all.

Vows & Ruins – Helen Scheuerer

I finally finished the second book in The Legends of Thezmarr series. It didn’t take me that long because I wasn’t enjoying it, but because I kept getting distracted by other books, haha. Thea and Wilder have quite a few interesting adventures. We get to learn a lot more about the world but also about Thea’s past. I will say I wasn’t expecting that ending!

Off the Hook – Julie Olivia

Off the Hook is a great single dad/ex’s brother romance with hints of Peter Pan and it was so good! Jasper and Wendy are both characters who are trying to figure things out and just happen to fall in love. Neither of them want to, but they just can’t help it. This book had plenty of funny, heartwarming, and swoony moments. I’ll definitely be reading the next book in this series.

Not Quite Dead Yet – Holly Jackson

Not Quite Dead Yet is Holly Jackson’s adult debut and I was so excited about it. The idea of having seven days to solve what is going to end up your own murder isn’t something I’ve read before. I wanted to love this book, but while it was entertaining I felt it just wanted to do too much. That made the pacing feel off at times and like nothing was happening during other moments.

Love in Focus – Lyla Lee

Love in Focus was a fun second chance sapphic romance. It was cute and kept my attention, but I don’t think it’ll be one I think about often now that I’ve read it. Gemma and Celeste were interesting characters to read about, but I wasn’t as invested as I had hoped I would be.

Backhanded Compliments – Katie Chandler

Backhanded Compliments was my first DNF of the year. I just couldn’t keep on reading. At 19% I had to stop when friends came over and I had no desire to pick it back up. It was a combination of the writing and the characters. I didn’t love them and there was just a bit too much tennis and not enough of the characters. Also, I love the idea of getting a mark for your soul mate, but that reveal would’ve been more fun after we got a little more invested into the story.

The Goldens – Lauren Wilson

An author I love talked about The Goldens and how amazing she though it was, so I had to request an eARC. This book explores the influences of social media and toxic relationships in a cult like setting and it kept me reading. I will say there’s something about this that just didn’t have me as pulled in as I had hoped. I think I missed an element of suspense and tension throughout this story. Maybe an extra POV or a quicker pacing?

Love on Paper – Danielle Parker

Books that have characters who love to write or love books are something I’ll always want to read. Love on Paper has a main character who wants to be a novelist and who goes to an exclusive writers’ retreat. Need I say more? For me the added mystery of a missing manuscript really made this book. It brought our main characters together even though their families didn’t seem to like each other. I felt like this helped them grown and make their own way. Maybe even giving in to the feelings they have for each other!

Write Me For You – Tillie Cole

Tillie Cole knows how to break your heart with her books and Write Me For You is no exception. June and Jesse are both terminally ill and go to a ranch for one last treatment to try and save their lives. While they’re trying to beat the odds, they find love. This book is filled with family, friendship, love, hope, and dreams they’re not sure will ever come true. I teared up quite often while reading Write Me For You and the ending took a turn I wasn’t expecting, but this was a beautiful book I’ll think about often.

My Oxford Year – Julia Whelan

My Oxford Year wasn’t a book on my radar until a friend mentioned she was reading it before the movie comes on Netflix in August. When I started reading this I went in pretty blind. It started off really interesting and I can tell you I wasn’t expecting some of the evens in this one. This book hit me in all the feels and then some. I’ll definitely have tissues ready when I watch the movie.

Seven Days in June – Tia Williams

Seven Days in June is a book I’ve seen all over the place and it’s one that gets great reviews. So I decided to pick up the audiobook and see what it was all about. This book made me think, it was emotional, and even funny at times. Unfortunately, it just didn’t blow me away like I was expecting it to.

This Far: My Story of Love, Loss, and Embracing the Light – Allison Holker

I don’t read memoirs that often, but this is one I’ve been curious about. I’ve seen Allison on Dancing with the Stars and Twitch on many dancing shows. Allison’s story of her life before her dancing career took off, her life with Twitch, and her life after. This definitely isn’t an easy read. It’s very emotional, but I also feel it’s very brave. I feel bad that she’s received so much backlash for releasing this book. I don’t understand it. It’s her story to tell!

The Four Engagement Rings of Sybil Rain – Hannah Brown

I can only imagine how awkward it is going on a tropical getaway and running into two of your ex fiancee’s. This happens to our main character Sybil. I do feel like this isn’t your typical romance. The flashbacks we get for each of her engagement rings and her time on this island were also a lot about things that were going on with her. A lot would’ve been different if there was some communication, but I really enjoyed this book.

Isabelle

July was a horrible reading month for me, I ended up reading only 2 books. I was really busy with the last weeks of work and got sick as well. When my vacation started I still didn’t read the much, I did spend a lot of time gaming though haha. Let’s take a look at the books I did manage to finish.

Silvercloak – L.K. Steven

I am so glad I read this one! Laura Steven is a wonderful person and I was so happy to get an eARC of Silvercloak. I really enjoyed reading this one and I can’t wait for the sequel. The world building was really well done and I liked the characters a lot.

The Assassin’s Blade – Sarah J. Maas

I have had a lot of trouble sleeping again lately and one of the things I try to help myself fall asleep in listen to an audiobook. Of course I have to pick a story I already know or I would want to stay awake. I decided to go with the Throne of Glass series, I adore the series and this way I didn’t feel bad about reading it again haha.

So that’s our July reading wrap up! Have you read any of these? Or how was your reading month? Did you find any new favorites? Let us know in the comments! We’d love to hear from you.