Another month of reading has passed, so it’s time to tell you what we read. Was August a good reading month? Did we find any new favorites? Keep on reading our August wrap up to find out!

Candyce

In August I read 26 books (10 paperbacks, 5 audiobooks, 4 eBooks, 4 eARCs, and 3 hardcovers). I wasn’t sure what my reading would do when I worked closer to home, but I actually read just about the same amount as I’ve done previously. The only difference is I read more physical books than audiobooks. I’m not complaining. And after a month filled with books that were just okay, August was filled with many books that I loved. Let’s see what I read last month!

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil – V.E. Schwab

V.E. Schwab is one of my favorite authors and she proved it over again with Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil. The writing is magic and had so many amazing quotes. I have the Fairyloot edition, so I wasn’t going to annotate in that, haha. Not much happens in this book, but we get so much of the characters we followed. I definitely see myself rereading this one.

The Knight and the Moth – Rachel Gillig

Look at me reading another Fairyloot edition this month! The Knight and the Moth was one of my most anticipated releases after I loved The Shepherd King duology by this author. This is another interesting fantasy book with a touch of romance. Gargoyle stole the show for me in this one and I’m curious to see what will happen in the sequel.

This Ravenous Fate – Hayley Dennings

I’m always down for a vampire story and This Ravenous Place sounded like fun. The 1920s is a time I love reading about, so I was expecting to be blown away. While I really did enjoy this story and the world, I needed some things to have more depth. I missed some world building and information about certain aspects of the story. I had a good time reading This Ravenous Fate, but I’m not sure if I’ll read the sequel.

Nightshade – Autumn Woods

Nightshade wasn’t on my radar, but after seeing it in a few YouTube videos, I was intrigued. I flew through this dark academia/dark romance book. Ophelia and Alex were such interesting characters and their relationship had me obsessed. After the ending of that book, I need the sequel to this book immediately!

Holding the Reins – Paisley Hope

Ever since I read the Chestnut Springs series, I’ve loved cowboy romances. Holding the Reins has been one I’ve been curious about, and I’m so glad I finally picked it up. CeCe and Nash now have a place in my heart and I highly suggest reading this brother’s best friend romance. I’ll be continuing this series soon.

One Golden Summer – Carley Fortune

Even though I’m not a seasonal reader, I did feel it was fitting to read One Golden Summer while we had a heatwave here. After Every Summer After, I’m glad we got Charlie’s happily ever after. I would’ve appreciated his POV in this book as well if I’m being honest. Other than that, Alice and Charlie’s story had me hooked from the start. Also, Alice’s Nan definitely stole the show.

Atmosphere – Taylor Jenkins Reid

Taylor Jenkins Reid is an author I go to for emotional books and Atmosphere was definitely one I’ll remember. I enjoyed this being set around NASA and seeing women find their way into this space journey. The first chapter already had me tear up, so I knew it was going to be a hard one. Especially as we get to know the characters when going back and forth in the timeline. I loved the love story, but I’ll say the plot point with Joan’s niece was the most memorable for me. That bond was amazing and I loved seeing family play an unexpected part in this story.

Maid for Each Other – Lynn Painter

Just like I go to some authors for an intense, emotional book, I go to Lynn Painter for laugh out loud stories. Maid for Each Other had me smiling from page one and the fake dating element wouldn’t let me put this one down. Abi and Declan being together and seeing them slowly grow closer was so much fun! There were some emotional moments and a couple of times I wish these two would just sit down and talk, but all in all, Maid for Each Other was a five star read for me.

Face Off – Chelsea Curto

Okay, I found a new favorite hockey romance! Chelsea Curto wrote one of my new favorite couples: Maverick and Emmy. There was banter, romance, spice, found family, and some emotional aspects to this story. Face Off is a book I couldn’t put down and I’ll be reading book two very soon.

The Listeners – Maggie Stiefvater

The Listeners is Maggie Stiefvater’s adult debut I believe and it was beautifully written. I don’t read much historical fiction, but this one takes place during World War Two. There is a touch of magical realism that I would’ve loved to have been explained a bit more, but other than that I really enjoyed this story. The characters and plot were both very interesting.

The Thursday Murder Club – Richard Osman

This is a book I’ve seen everywhere since it released. The Thursday Murder Club also has a movie adaptation now, so I needed to finally read it before watching the movie. I loved this group of elderly characters trying to solve these murders. The many POVs had me a bit confused in the beginning, but I ended up really enjoying this story. It even got a bit more emotional at times than I was expecting. I’ll definitely be reading the next book.

The Entanglement of Rival Wizards – Sara Raasch

The Entanglement of Rival Wizards was everything I needed from this book and I didn’t even know it. We had found family, rivals to lovers, banter, spice, and forced proximity. This book had me laughing and even tearing up. I can’t wait for the second book in this series.

Love Arranged – Lauren Asher

Love Arranged is the final book in the Lakefront Billionaires series and I think it was my favorite. Lily and Lorenzo were so much fun and fake dating is something I’ll always read. These two really wanted best for the town they lived in for different reasons. This book was filled with spice (slow burn though!), banter, emotional moments, family, and so much more. I’m sad this series is over!

The Blood Traitor – Lynette Noni

The Blood Traitor is the final book in The Prison Healer trilogy. While I loved a lot of it, I do feel like we needed an extra book. We had trials that kind of came out of nowhere and them going after the evil in this story went so quickly. The ending felt kind of rushed. All in all, I am glad that I read this trilogy.

Roll for Romance – Lenora Woods

Roll for Romance was so much fun! Besides a great romance between Sadie an Noah with a bit of a slow burn, I loved how the author incorporated D&D. We got to actually read some of their sessions and it was so much fun. I also appreciated Sadie’s journey figuring out what she wanted in her life and career. I hope this author gives us more books like this.

Red Card – Maren Moore

It’s been so long (at least it feels that way) since I’ve read a sports romance, I needed Red Card. I was lucky to get an eARC of this one and I read it almost in one sitting. Red Card is actually described as She’s All That meets She’s the Man and I definitely see that. This coach’s daughter romance was sweet, emotional, and filled with some banter. Add some flirting/dating lessons and I had a great time. There were some emotional aspects in this story that I wish had a little more depth and the issues near the end kind of came out of nowhere, but all in all, I loved this book.

Dream On – Jennifer Hartmann

I always know that Jennifer Hartmann is going to break my heart and that was the case with Dream On. Lex and Stevie’s story is heartbreaking, but hopeful at the same time. I enjoyed the time jump in this book and how everything came together in the end. This does handle some darker topics and I don’t feel like this is a YA book as it is advertised. If you’re looking for a book to hit you in all the feels, I suggest picking up this book.

Back After This – Linda Holmes

Even though I don’t listen to podcasts myself, I love seeing them incorporated into books. Especially when it leads to a series about modern dating as our main character looks for love. Cecily has had some bad experiences with relationships and isn’t looking for love. The dates she ends up going on for this podcast are interesting and I loved that she seemed to be finding love without even realizing it. I’ll definitely pick up more by this author.

Camp Damascus – Chuck Tingle

Horror isn’t my genre and this one kind of made me realize that again. I’ve been curious about Chuck Tingle as an author for a while and this sounded like a good one to start with. This deals with a lot of things the queer community deals with in the US and camps that shouldn’t exist. While the horror side of the story wasn’t for me, I do appreciate the author’s take on all of these subjects.

If We Were a Movie – Zakiya N. Jamal

Sometimes I just need a cute contemporary story. If We Were a Movie takes place the beloved Black-owned movie theater, Horizon Cinemas. It was fun seeing our characters work there and the little mystery aspect was an added bonus. Rochelle and Amira’s romance was another part of this book that kept me hooked. Them getting to know each other and actually like each other was really sweet.

The Lovers – Rebekah Faubion

The Lovers was an entertaining second chance romance that started off really strong for me. Kit and Julia run into each other at a wedding and that’s where everything starts. Kit is also an influencer and that’s something I enjoy seeing in books. That being said, I do feel like I didn’t really get to know the characters. It made it harder for me to connect to either of them. All in all, I did have a good time.

Everyone On the Train is a Suspect – Benjamin Stevenson

I loved Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone. The way the author had the main character talk to the reader while writing their book and telling the story was brilliant. So I finally decided to get to the sequel. The train setting was interesting and once again, I loved the way the story was told. I do think I’ll reread this one physically, because I do think I missed some things by only listening to this story.

Belladonna – Adalyn Grace

In August it was time for my reread of Belladonna for my series slayers discussion. Once again, I loved this book and it was the great start for me heading into the cozy season. This gothic and dark fantasy was great to read again and I have to say I remembered more than I thought I would.

Dirty Talker – Piper Rayne

After loving a couple of the books in a different series by Piper Rayne, I decided to read Dirty Talker for the daily chapters I read on my phone. This started off pretty promising, and had it’s good moments, but in the end it was just a bit too much smut for me and not enough plot/development. I don’t think I’ll continue this series.

The Blade Itself – Joe Abercrombie

Joe Abercrombie is an author I’ve heard a lot about, but I finally read a book by this author myself. The Blade Itself was my book club’s book this month and it was an interesting one. The characters aren’t very likable but I still thought they were fun. I will say, I missed plot? For over half of the book I couldn’t tell you what was going on and I honestly still don’t know, haha. There was no clear go. I keep hearing we get that in book two, so I should probably pick that one up.

Pride and Premeditation – Tirzah Price

Pride and Premeditation is a mix of genres, but it was so much fun. I loved the mystery and it was great seeing Lizzie being way ahead of her time. There was some humor and a cute start of a romance in these pages. I kept trying to guess who had done it. While I didn’t like the character, I wasn’t able to guess it was that person before the big reveal. I’ll definitely read the other two books in this trilogy.

 

Isabelle

August was a pretty good reading month for me, especially compared to July haha. I ended up reading 8 books, I’m really happy with that. Hopefully I can keep it up now that work has started again.

We Are All Guilty Here – Karin Slaughter

Karin Slaughter is probably my favorite crime author, so obviously I had to read her newest book immediately. This is the start to a new series and I really enjoyed it. It once again has a lot of twisted things happening. I liked the new characters and I’m excited for the next book in the series.

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil – V.E. Schwab

Talking about favorite authors, V.E. Schwab is one of them for sure! So this is another book I simply had to read and I’m glad I did. This, like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, is a character driven book and not one with a lot of plot. I really enjoyed reading about these characters, but I understand this one isn’t for everyone.

Automatic Noodle – Annalee Newitz

I love a good novella, especially the tordotcom novellas. This one had a fun premise and a great cover. Turns out, it was also a fantastic story. It was short and sweet, but if you draw some parallels it’s also quite deep.

Pole Position – Rebecca J. Caffery

As a Formula 1 girlie I obviously had to read this sports romance. I had put it down for a while, but I did finish it this month. It was enjoyable for sure and I would like to read the next book in the series as well. Maybe I’ll try some other F1 sport romances next.

The Deal – Elle Kennedy

I saw the teaser trailer for the Off-Campus series and that was the push I needed to finally pick up The Deal. My friends love this series and have been telling me to read it for years haha. I enjoyed it a lot and will be reading the next book in the series for sure.

SpyxFamily 5 – Tatsuya Endo

This is my current manga obsession and I really enjoyed this fifth volume. I hope to get more volumes so I can binge a bit more of the series. There are 15 volumes so far and the series is still going. I hope the rest is as much fun as these first volumes have been.

Finlay Donovan is Killing It – Elle Cosimano

Another book I started a while ago and finally finished. I really enjoyed this one, it was so much fun! With a synopsis like that I knew it would be my kind of book. Candyce really enjoyed this one as well, so I had high hopes. I can’t wait to read the rest of the series.

The Thursday Murder Club – Richard Osman

I’ve talked about this one for the last three days now haha. With the movie coming out it was the perfect time to finally read this one. It was very enjoyable and I do want to read the rest of the series. Hopefully we get more movies as well!

So that’s our August wrap up! Have you read any of these books? Or did you find any new favorites last month? Let us know in the comments. We’d love to hear from you!