Well, I definitely wasn't expecting to get this many books, especially after such a big May haul. I got 22 total books across the three platforms of physical books, ebooks, and audiobooks. I'm only going to be talking about 19 of them, though. Let's go ahead and dive right in because this is going to be a long one!
The first category is physical books which I got 17 of. I'm only going to talk about 14 of them simply because the other 3 aren't super interesting and were hand-me-downs essentially. Still, I'm excited about all of these and can't wait to read them all!
First I have a signed arc of
Whisper of the Tide by Sarah Tolscer. I won a giveaway that the author was doing to celebrate the upcoming release of this book and I definitely didn't expect to win. Considering she said she was going to pick a winner before the 3-day Memorial weekend, I was surprised when Tuesday rolled around and she picked me. Now that I have this book, I'm excited to binge this duology!
The next book I got was
A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir. I'm beyond happy to finally have this book in my hands after such a long wait. I don't know how I'll be able to handle waiting for the final book to release on account of everyone saying that this book has been destroying their hearts. I'm also planning on doing a reread of the first two books just so that I'm all caught up on heartbreak before this one. One of the highlights of my month was going to a Sabaa Tahir signing and getting to meet her. For the full run-down and pictures, you can check out my blog post about it here!
Next, I got an arc of
Dive Smack by Demetra Brodsky. I got this book because I was involved in a blog tour for it and I'm excited to have it. It's a thriller set in a high school that has been described as
Teen Wolf meets E. Lockhart or
Mara Dyer meets
Riverdale. For my blog post stop, you can check out my post here!
The next book I got was an arc of
The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle. This releases in September and I'm super excited to have gotten a copy through BookishFirst. It's all centered around the question "If you could have dinner with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?" This book is about the main character showing up to that dinner. I'm super excited to be reading this and reviewing it soon!
Up next, I have an arc of
Terror is Our Business by Joe R. Lansdale and Kasey Lansdale. This is a horror mystery compilation from a father-daughter writing duo. It sounds pretty interesting and I'm excited to be reading and reviewing it for Smith Publicity.
Next, I went to a used bookstore to trade in some old DVD's and left with a hardcover of
City of Glass by Cassandra Clare. I had every Cassie Clare book in hardcover except for the first three in the
Mortal Instruments and
Clockwork Angel and I've been wanting to get all of them in hardcover for a while. When I saw this one at the store for $5, I knew that I had to get it. My collection is only 3 books away from all hardcovers, which means that my sister is that much closer to getting my old paperbacks and starting her collection!
I went to the used bookstore again to trade in more DVDs and walked out with
Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. I've been wanting to read his
Kane Chronicles books for a couple years now and decided to get it when I saw this like-new paperback. I was originally planning on getting hardcovers, but I couldn't pass up the $3 price tag for such a beautiful book.
Next, I traded somebody on Twitter for a copy of
Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser. The moment that I knew I was going to be getting an arc of book 2, I knew that I wanted to finally get this beautiful book in my hands. I am so excited to have this book and can't wait to do a duology binge this fall!
I also traded somebody on Twitter for a signed arc of The Darkest Star by Jennifer L. Armentrout. Jennifer is one of my absolute favorite authors and when I found out that she was releasing a spin-off/continuation of the Lux series that follows Luc, I knew that I needed it. I just can't believe that I have a signed arc in my hands. I don't even have any signed books by her so this is pretty much a dream come true. Thank you thank you thank you to the lovely people on Twitter who made this happen.
Then, still riding my Jennifer L. Armentrout high after getting an arc, I ordered
Wicked. This is the first in a trilogy of hers that I hadn't read yet (because, let's be real, I'll be trying to catch up on Jennifer books for as long as I live) and have been interested in for a while. It's a supernatural/paranormal book set in New Orleans. All I know is that I saw a teaser for the third book and knew that it was finally time for me to get this book.
Next, I got Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova. The second book in this series just recently released and peaked my interest for this book. When I saw that Amazon had it on sale for $7, I knew that it was finally time to get it. All I know is that it's about magic and witches and awesomeness. I can't wait to read it and, hopefully, love it!
Then I got a completely unexpected package from Macmillan and Wednesday Books: an arc of
Sadie by Courtney Summers. I got home from work one morning and found this in my mailbox and completely freaked out. Not only have I been seeing this book everywhere and wanting to read it, but this is the first time a big-league publisher has sent me a book that I didn't win in a raffle or giveaway! The only thing I really know about this book is that it's about a girl looking for her sister's killer and a podcast.
The final book I got this month was Legendary by Stephanie Garber. I went to Target one day with my sister and, of course, I checked the book section. I had just gotten paid for housesitting and I didn't have the self-control to not get a book. I've already read this book and loved it (you can find my review here) so it was time for me to finally get a physical copy!
I only got four ebooks this month, but considering how many physical books I got this month, that's probably a good thing. I also only paid for one of them, so I'm pretty proud of that. I'm super excited about all of these and can't wait to read them all!
The first on that I got was
Fallen Crest High by Tijan. I've read one of Tijan's other books and really loved that one, so I thought it was time to finally try her most popular series. I enjoyed this book but thought that it fell a little flat for me (you can find my review here). However, I feel like this is an author who's books get better as you go, so I'm definitely going to try the next book in this series. Plus, the characters are flawed and kind of immoral, which I love.
The next ebook I got was a review copy of
Captivating Melody by Katherine Mcintyre. This is one that I will be reading and reviewing this summer and I'm excited to read it! Usually, I don't accept ebook review copies because screens give me headaches after long periods of time, but this one sounded so interesting that I couldn't resist!
Next, I got a review copy of
Harnessing the Winds by Morena Silver. This is an RH romance and I'm so excited. I love RH books and this one has pirates! I can't wait for it. This is also another case of me being too interested to turn down an ebook copy. Stay tuned for my review by the end of August!
The last ebook I got was an arc of Seafire by Natalie C. Parker. I got this through Penguin's First to Read program and I can't wait. I've seen nothing but hype and amazing things about this book! The only thing I know about this book is that it takes place on the sea and features a female crew!
I also got three audiobooks this month. The first of which is
The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Braken. Audible was having a sale this month for its members and this audiobook was only $3. Considering how I haven't read this book in years and the movie is coming out soon, I figured it was worth it for me to get and listen to before the movie releases!
The second book I got in their sale was
Autoboyography by Christina Lauren. I've heard nothing but awesome things about this book and I can't wait to listen to this cute story! Again, it was one that was only $3, so I couldn't pass up on that sale price!
The last audiobook I got was
The Novice by Taran Matharu. This is one of my best friend's favorite books and I've been meaning to read it for such a long time. I'm excited to have this because it means that maybe I'll finally be able to finish this book!
Thanks so much for reading! I hope you guys enjoyed this post and I can't wait for what July will bring (I already have some exciting books for my July haul).
xoxo
Lauren
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At number 5, we have Legendary by Stephanie Garber. I did enjoy this book but I didn't think that it lived up to the first one. My enjoyment could have been tampered by the fact that the e-arc I was reading had really bad formatting and that prevented me from getting sucked in, but I felt like the plot moved slowly and there wasn't as much "wow" factor as the first one until the very end. I just want to reiterate one more time, though, that I did enjoy this book and I'm still very excited for the last one, I just thought that my expectations weren't met. You can find my review here. 
For number 4, we have A Wild and Unremarkable Thing by Jen Castleberry. I had high hopes going into this book. It sounded amazing and fun and fantastical, all things that are right up my alley. But then I read it and it was an honest-to-god struggle. I rarely say I hate books but I hated this book, which is really sad because the author is a super nice person and I really wanted to like it. I feel as if this could have been improved with a lot more editing and beta-readers, but it fell seriously flat for me. You can find my review here. 
Coming in at number 3, we have White Stag by Kara Barbieri which actually just released this month. I was lucky enough to read an early copy of it and I had some high hopes going into it. They weren't met. I will say, though, that looking back on the events of the book and the writing and the idea of the characters and plot, I should have enjoyed this book more. I liked the writing style, I liked the plot direction, I liked the characters for the most part. But I didn't connect. I didn't get sucked in. I felt as if this could have gone through another round of heavy editing and it could have been amazing. You can find my review here. 
At number 2, I picked Lies You Never Told Me by Jennifer Donaldson. This was a YA thriller that released in 2018 that I was super excited to get a review copy of. And I hated it. I didn't feel thrilled, I hated or was indifferent about most of the characters, and I just felt like it was a below-average book. You can find my full, rant-filled review here. 
Lastly, at number 1, we have The Cruel Prince by Holly Black. Everyone seemed to love this book. Everyone was raving about how amazing it was with political intrigue, faeries, and about how much they loved Cardan. I'll be honest, when I finished it I was thinking, "is this really the book everyone is raving about?" I gave it 4 stars initially because I was influenced by everyone else's hype. But then the more I thought about it, I kept dropped my rating until it finally settled at 1 star. Although, I'm thinking of raising it to 1.5-2 stars. This was just not the book for me. I felt like I was ready a shitty high school drama set in a faerieland. I do think, though, that people interpret books in different ways and due to my own personal experiences, I just could not get behind the justification/cycle of abuse that went on. I knew Cardan would be cruel, but from the way everyone was talking him up I expected him to have some redeeming qualities. But no, he's got the emotional range of a potato and he is the actual worst. Sorry for this rant, but if you want more of my thoughts, you can find my rant review here. 
