June marks a new year. A new reading year. Another year of reading my TBR. But before I do anything else, I need to recount my books. I want to start with a clean sheet. I’m afraid I miscount some books. Here’s the thing, I never wrote down a list of all the books. So, I’m not sure which books I counted for the TBR and which I didn’t. Not every book I own is part of this challenge. Some books I sort of inherited, and others were given because the other person didn’t want them anymore, but that doesn’t mean I’m interested in reading those books. Now, with a list, there will be no more mistakes.

June

I was still feeling the downfall of a subscription to Everand. I like the idea of reading whatever you want at any moment, but it always takes a toll on my TBR. Probably something to consider once I finish this challenge. There are so many new books, some that sound so interesting compared with what’s on my shelves. While it keeps me in a great reading mood, it’s terrible when it’s over.

Still, I read the ARC for The Curious Secrets of Yesterday by Namrata Patel. Family secrets, healing spices, and an MC looking for herself. It was a nice book. With character-driven stories, it’s always hard for me to fully get lost in them. The characters were lovely, and there was a moment or two that made my blood boil in a good way. There’s a dedicated review here on the blog if you’re interested to know more about it.

I also read Absent in the Spring by Mary Westmacott, aka Agatha Christie. I didn’t know what to expect from a non-mystery from her. And it was surprising. I’m still not sure if I understood that story. However, I know I want to read the other books she published under this alias.

Do you know what a book subscription doesn’t affect? Buying books. I might want to read anything else instead of my TBR, but making it grow is a totally different talk. I bought His & Hers by Alice Feeney, thinking I had read a book by her before (I was thinking of Lucy Foley). Turns out, this is just the first… of many by her that I’ll buy. Then, I bought My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante since I’ve heard Emily Fox talking about it in her videos. Little did I know, it was coming out as the number one best book of the 21st century by the New York Times.

Finally, I also bought a Portuguese play from 2023 called Catarina e a Beleza de Matar Fascistas by Tiago Rodrigues – which translates to “Catherine and the Beauty of Killing Fascists”. The book came out in April, and in May, it was already in its 2nd edition. It has gained a lot of popularity, and even to be turned into a book shows how popular the play was. Sadly, I didn’t have a chance to see it. I didn’t even know it existed until I saw the book. I’m guessing it will be very fitting for the times we are living in all throughout Europe. And have plenty of food for thought.

July

This was set up to be another normal reading month. Obviously, it turned out not to be. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be talking like this. And that’s because I discovered the Hardest Reading Challenge You’ve Ever Done. Apparently, I thought it would be a great idea to join a year-long readathon with some of the hardest prompts I’ve ever seen, like reading a 500+ page book in a day. However, a plus side is that I can read my TBR and count it towards the challenge. At least, that’s what I’m telling myself to justify taking part in the challenge. Spoiler alert, it’s not!

I started the month reading My Brilliant Friend. I’m trying to read the books shortly after buying them. I don’t want to create more TBR veterans, so why wait? The quicker I read it, the quicker it will stop being a problem. And let me tell you, there’s a reason why this book is so loved. I can’t pinpoint what I loved about this book. The only thing I know is that it doesn’t feel like fiction. The characters are so complex, and the story is so detailed that I felt I was reading about real people. About someone’s life. My Brilliant Friend is the first book in a quartet and spans over the preteen and teen years of the characters. All the other books will follow along as they grow up until their 60s. I can only imagine how amazing it will be to know the whole life of these characters.

Then I jumped to an ARC for Camp Lanier by Sylvester Barzey for the HRCYED prompt of reading new releases in the month they come out. I also have a review here on the blog. It’s a nice horror book good for this time of the year. It follows a black teenage girl as she is sent to a summer camp as punishment for a crime she didn’t commit. It deals with racism, including racism in history, and she’s just a badass. I loved her. Then, I attempted to read a 500-page book in 24 hours. And failed. But also didn’t since I finished the Illuminae Files series with Obsidio by Amy Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. I’m glad that’s over. And don’t even think about Memento. I’m done. The series ends here.

To finish the month, I also read His & Hers. And O. M. G. That is a well-crafted book. It’s ingenious how the author manipulates the reader. She doesn’t need to use red hearings because she sets a thin string for the reader to trip over. And you don’t even realise it! The plot twist is so well crafted the reader can’t find it. Whether you like it or not, that’s another story. But the way it tricks the reader is phenomenal. Best purchase ever. Give me all the others!

August

I finished the ARC of The Essential Elizabeth Stone by Jennifer Banash I started the previous month. It was a hard book to read through. I lost interest in the middle. Again very character-driven and also overly descriptive. That can be amazing if you are loving the story, but to me, it felt too much. Then I read another ARC for The Bachelorette Party by Sandra Block. This opportunity came into my inbox, and I grabbed it since it sounded interesting. And it didn’t disappoint. It was fast, intense, a little dumb, to be honest, but an enjoyable ride. This is probably one of the most intense thrillers I’ve read so far.

Then, I was still missing a new release for August since I tried the ARC of Murder on the Interstellar Express by Gregory D Little but had to DNF it. My review explains in detail why I had to put it down if you want to know. So, I proceeded to subscribe to Everand again. I know, I know, I’ll regret it afterwards, but I needed a new release. And there I found Here Lies a Vengeful Bitch by Codie Crowley. Yes, she’s just as cool as the title might suggest. Not that bitchy though. She was actually a sweet girl in a toxic small town like they always are. It was a nice way to end the month.

September

Since I started the subscription in the middle of the month, I still have some days left. I listened to A Study in Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro, which I was hoping would be my new favourite 4-books series, and Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco, my actually new favourite series. I also read Nothing but Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw because I was curious why it was so disliked, and I still don’t know why. It was an okay book to me. Not as horrific as I was expecting, also not a bad time. I also listened to The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reys, which was cute and a needed palate cleanser for the romance genre. I should try more gay romances to see if it will restore my faith in the genre. And read Paper Girls Volume 1 by Brian K Vaughan for good measure. Whenever I have a subscription, I try to milk it as much as I can. I’m getting my money’s worth!

In the middle of all that, I read The Casual Vacancy. My second attempt at the 500 page-book in a day. Failed again. And worse! I enjoyed the book. There isn’t a single redeemable character in this story, but I think that’s why I liked it. Apparently, I enjoy reading about terrible people. The story got progressively worse and worse. A slow-motion train wreck. I couldn’t look away. And half of the time, I was baffled by the sheer poison coming out of all of them. The Casual Misogyny would be a better title.

Lastly, I was gifted Grapefruit Moon by Tomo Serizawa, a one-hit manga translated into Spanish. This is going to be a first. I’ve never read anything in Spanish, but I grew up watching a lot of dubbed cartoons in Spanish. I’m curious to see if I can easily understand it or if I still need to learn more than I think. It will be an interesting experience. I can’t wait.

Recap

Just thinking about the 69 books I had on the last post, and now the number has grown. And I didn’t do anything to help that. It was my fault for not making a list in the beginning and thinking it wouldn’t be a problem. The discrepancy is probably due to which books I counted initially versus the ones I’m counting now. I know it’s not because of any book I bought. I keep a close track of those. So, it has to lie on the books already on my shelf.

Looking back, I had some great reading months. Completing 15 books is really good. Although only a third was from my TBR. And that’s not so positive. I was either reading ARCs for HRCYED or going wild on Everand. And while it does feel good to read this much, it saddens me that it’s not with the books on my TBR. I want the list to be smaller. I love to put them back on the shelf knowing another one was read. Although this constant reading and buying, buying and reading, takes me to nowhere.

I’ve been thinking that in a perfect world where my TBR is non-existent, I would immediately read the books I buy. However, there’s something else I can do. I can have a subscription without any guilty feelings about it. It would be a great way to read whatever I’m in the mood and also new releases without burning a hole in my wallet. And it would still be cheaper than buying all those books. I can read 5 to 6 books with an Everand subscription for just 12€ or 13€ a month. And for that price, I can only buy one book. And in English! In Portuguese it’s about 18€. So, a subscription is a pretty good deal. I think I just found a new motivation to make this third year the final year.

It won’t be.

Year 3 1st Quarter	TBR	Read	Free	Increase	TBR Left
June	78	1	1	3	80
July	80	3	1		77
August	77		3		77
September	77	1	5	1	77
Total:		5	10	4