August 2021 Reading Wrap Up

Instead of trying to think of an interesting intro, this month we’ve decided to provide you with some obvious statements in the form of a haiku:

It is September

We read some books in August

August is over?

Books Read:

Malka:

I read 7 books this month and that makes me really happy! This month was pretty busy and I was worried that I’d only have the chance to read 2 or 3 books, like I did in July, but thankfully that was not the case! Not only did I read a fair amount, but a good chunk of the books I read made me feel accomplished in some way either because of how long they were on my shelf for or because they were ARCs that I needed to get to. So yay for that as well!

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

I was already resigning myself to a month with no 5 star reads when I read this book. It’s a graphic novel that pokes fun at classic gothic romances. It’s hilarious and smart and has a really fun premise. I’m so glad that I decided to pick it up on a whim!

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Rating: 4 out of 5.

These books that I gave 4 stars both pleasantly surprised me! My friend had recommended Twice Shy, so I gave it a shot, and I thought it was really sweet and wholesome. There was a really unique premise with some fantastic tropes that were handled perfectly!

Then I impulsively accepted a NetGalley widget for an ARC of The Dating Playbook less than 2 weeks before it was published. I managed to get my review up in time though, so if you want a more thorough explanation for why I enjoyed it, you can find that here!

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Rating: 3 out of 5.

My 3 stars were more of a mixed bag this month. I actually really disliked The Spanish Love Deception. It technically got 2.5 stars, but being the kind, benevolent soul I am, I rounded up my rating. I know a lot of people loved this one, but I just did not enjoy it.

My review for First Love, Take Two will be up later this month, but this is one that I actually really enjoyed. I gave it a 3.5 rating, but chose to round down in this case. I thought it had some wonderful discussions in it, but I would have liked to have the romance a bit more at the forefront!

Lastly, there’s Baby which is by the same author as Soppy, one of my absolute favorite books. I didn’t quite love this one, and so it got a middle of the road 3 star rating from me.

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Rating: 2 out of 5.

Even though I gave this book 2 stars, this is the one I’m proudest of reading this month. This book is a bind up of two stories, and from the cover it looks like a cowboy romance. Which explains why I requested this book on NetGalley way back in 2014. However this is romantic SUSPENSE, which is not a thing I enjoy and is also the reason why is took me over 5 years to pick this book up. Was it worth the read? No. Do I recommend it? No. Am I glad that it’s forever off my NetGalley shelf now? HELL YEAH!

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Chana:

I’m really happy with my reading this month! I read 12 books and am finally not behind on my reading challenge! I did lower it by 25 books at some point, but still I think it’s a win. I reread The Magisterium series (I won’t be posting the covers under ratings because I don’t rerate rereads), and I got to read a bunch of new exciting books!

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Rating: 4 out of 5.

Out of these three, The Witness for the Dead was definitely my favorite! I loved having the opportunity to return to the world of The Goblin Emperor.

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Rating: 3 out of 5.

Both the Bone Ships Wake and The Exiled Fleet were sequels that I had slightly higher expectations for than what ended up being delivered. I still enjoyed them! But not as much as I thought I would. As for Wild Seed, it was interesting! But I had no idea that it was a prequel to a whole different series, so that’s really on me.

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Books Acquired:

Malka:

Another month where I acquired more books than I read this month! However, since it’s my birthday month, I’m okay with that! Plus, I’m really excited about all the books I received!

NetGalley:

Like I already mentioned earlier, I received a NetGalley widget for an ARC of The Dating Playbook. But I also received a widget for The Sweetest Remedy which I’ll be reading in September so that I can review it before it gets released! I’m quite obsessed with the cover and I’m hoping that I’ll love the actual book itself just as much!

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Giveaway:

I took part in an Instagram live with several romance authors hosted by Alanna Martin, and I was lucky enough to win one of her books! I actually won another book from a different author through this giveaway, but it hasn’t arrived yet, so it will be a part of my September haul!

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Purchased:

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Then we have the books I purchased. I obviously had to visit Barnes & Noble on my birthday, because what could be better than being surrounded by books on your birthday? And then of course, once I was there I had to actually buy a book or three. So I picked up Bombshell, because it shares a birthday with me, and because I had my eye on it. Then I picked up Battle Royal on a whim because I had seen good things and the cover looks cute. And lastly I purchased Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong because I love graphic novels and I already know that I adore Faith Erin Hicks’ art style.

The last book I bought was because of Jayati @ It’s Just a Coffee Addicted Bibliophile! She read 40-Love on my recommendation and was interested in reading the companion books in the series, so we decided to buddy read Sweetest in the Gale! Which was the lovely excuse I needed to purchase a copy for myself!

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Publisher:

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Then Forever sent me a package with some romances in it since August is Romance Awareness Month! I chose the steamy box option, and these were the 5 (technically 6, since one book contains two stories) books that I received! I am SO excited to read these books, and this package arrived just as I was bemoaning the fact that I had read all the romances on my shelves already. I hope to at least get to half of these before the year ends!

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Chana:

Purchased:

The books I purchased this month show that I have been reading waaay too much science fiction recently. I definitely need to take a break from the genre before I get sick of it.

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Publisher:

Thank you to Orbit for these wonderful books!! My review for The Bone Ships Wake will be out eventually~ And I can’t wait to read A Little Hatred!

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Things We Did:

Malka:

I’m trying to remember what I did in August and my mind is drawing a blank. I finished my summer internship, which was very bittersweet, but since I’m part time this semester, I’m actually continuing my internship 2 days a week moving forward! However, I know it’s not going to be the same without my summer intern friends there.

In exciting news though, I’m now an aunt! I’m obsessed with this cutie and can’t wait to meet her in a few days when I go on a mini vacation to see her!

I also had a really fun birthday and a surprise party/event the following day where I got to spend time with friends and have a great time!

So I guess that sums up my month. Now it’s back to school and all that entails for the next few months!

Chana:

August was so long but also so short?? (Aka every month ever) I can’t believe it’s over, and it sucks because now that means that summer’s officially over. I didn’t do much this month. I studied, I finished my summer class, I went to orientation.

But now it’s September and life needs to start back up again!

How many books did you read this month? What was your favorite book of August? Did you acquire any new books? Did you do anything fun to celebrate the end of summer?

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