Hi guys! How are you? I hope you’ve had a lovely May! This was an amazing reading month for me, I actually finished 18 books!!! 12 of those I’ve already talked about in another post, so even though I read a lot, this is going to be a pretty short wrap-up. So, here’s what I read in May:
Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
TW: sexual assault, anxiety attacks.
This is the best YA contemporary I’ve read in so long. It actually gave me a book-hangover and those are usually reserved for heartbreaking SFF books, so there’s that. It’s told from the dual POV’s of Sam and Penny. Penny is a writer and college student, Sam working and living in a coffee shop, but wants to make documentaries. The two of them meet, then start a friendship, which turns into romance, mostly via text and it’s so well done. Texting in books is usually a mess, but this was so natural and realistic and cute. I ship Penny and Sam so hard, you guys.
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
This was an absolutely delightful MG novel, about a young girl who’s whisked away to a magical city, by a mysterious stranger – on her 11th birthday. To stay in Nevermoor, Morrigans has to compete in four difficult trials and become a member of the Wundrous Society. I was so charmed by this. I love how magical and full of whimsy the city of Nevermoor is, with all it’s parades and celebrations. Morrigan’s new home, the Hotel Deucalion, is another wonderful setting, with rooms that change to fit the owner, a colorful staff and many secrets yet to explore.
Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is a really beautiful and powerful book, written in verse, about a young Dominican girl finding herself and finding her voice, through poetry. It explores themes like religion, sexuality, sexism and parental expectations. My favorite part was getting to read the poems Xiomara wrote, like the rough drafts for her English assignments, so I wish we’d gotten to see more of those. My fave lines: If Medusa was Dominican and had a daughter, she might wonder at this curse/ At how her blood is always becoming some fake hero’s mission. Something to be slayed, conquered.
Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This is a You’ve Got Mail-inspired contemporary about a girl who moves to a surfing town in California to live with her dad, without telling her internet friend/crush – who happens to live in the same town. This was such a fun and summery read, with a super cute hate-to-love romance, lovely family relationships, surfing and lots of classicmovie references.
The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead ⭐⭐⭐
This is book’s shelved as YA fantasy, but I think alt-history’s a better label for it, cause there’s nothing fantastical about it. It follows a young noble woman who escapes an arranged marriage by taking her servant’s place at a finishing school, which sends girls to the New Worldas brides. I really liked the focus on the female friendships in the first half of the book and I thought the romance was well done and really sweet. The plot wasn’t very well paced though, it dragged in some places and felt very rushed in other, especially towards the end.
Sunburn by Laura Lippman ⭐⭐
I though this would be a sexy, twisty noir – but it was just bland and it’s a shame, cause I think there’s a good story in there somewhere. It just got lost in the terrible pacing and unnecessary POV’s. No one wants a chapter from a minor character’s sister or the main character’s ex-mother in law… I gave this one star for the main characters, who are actually charismatic and interesting, and one for the A+ food descriptions. If you want a twisty noir for summer I recommend checking out Peter Swanson or Megan Abbott instead.
As I mentioned, I also read 12 other books, which you can read about in my Bookish Buzz-Words VS. BookishNope-Words, if you want to know what I thought about any of these:
I cannot believe May is almost over, it is crazy! Glad you had a wonderful reading month!😍
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It is, this month’s gone by so fast. Thank you! 😊
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Wow you read a lot this month. I had a bad reading month. But hopefully I can catch up in June with the marvel-a-thon readathon in June.
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It’s the best reading month I’ve had in a while! The marvel-a-thon looks like so much fun, I hope it helps you catch up on your reading 😊
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Looks like you read some amazing books last month!
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Thanks, I did! 😊
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You had SUCH an amazing reading month! (And I read Nevermoor too and completely loved it!) I hope you have an amazing June, my love! Happy reading! 💕xx
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Thank you so much, Melanie! Nevermoor is the cutest! I hope you have an amazing June too and happy reading, lovely! 💕
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Ohh congratulations on a fantastic month of reading, Aurora! ❤
I'm so excited to read Emergency Contact, because I'm always here for books that tackle sensitive subjects well, and a new pairing I can ship. 😍
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Thank you so much, Lily 💕
Emergency Contact’s my favorite contemporary of the year. I hope you enjoy it!
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Congrats on 18 books! That is ridiculously awesome! Nevermoor looks really cute! I want to read it just to learn about the giant cat in the window haha
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Thank you so much! It was an awesome reading month 😊 Nevermoor is the cutest! The giant cat in the window talks and has A LOT of personality – so that would be an excellent reason to read the book!
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I still really want to read Emergency Contact! Everyone says it’s soo good and I just need it now :’) Also wow you had a great reading month! That’s a lot of books 😀 and a lot of really good looking books. 😀
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Thank you! I know right? I can’t resist a pretty cover 😂 Emergency Contact’s my favorite contemporary of the year, I really hope you enjoy it! 😊
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I’ve read so many mixed reviews about Emergency Contact, it seems like everyone on my dash either loves or hates it.
Nevermoor has such a great cover! MG novels somehow always have the best covers.
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I’ve seen some mixed things too, but I adored it 😊
That is so true! 9 out of 10 times I’m tempted to cover-buy something, it’s a MG novel. They’re just all so pretty and colorful like candy, and have such gorgeous illustrations on the cover.
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Alex, Approximately is on my summer TBR! Can’t wait to get to it! And wow! You had a really wonderful reading month!!
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I hope you enjoy it! It’s a perfect summer read! Thank you so much 😊
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18 books!!! You’re a wizard Aurora, and a good one. I’ve read 3.5 😥 Now that I’ve read your Bookish Buzz post again, I’ve upped the Undead Girl Gang to my urgent tbr, it sounds amazing!
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I wish I was! But it was an amazing reading month 😊 Yes! Read Undead Girl Gang! It’s so fun and it definitley gave me those witchy 90’s movie vibes.
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Awesome, hope this month will be as awesome for you! 🙂 Oooh sounds even cooler now, I’ll have to get to it soon. 😀
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I love the way you’ve set up this post it’s so gorgeous??????
also I love texting in books so much it’s become ridiculous, I tihnk I would give a book 5 stars if it included texting c: I did a horrible thing and skimmed through Emergency Contact while @ the bookstore and I feel like a horrible person, bc now I lost interest in it bc it didn’t seem interesting??? i don’t deserve friendship *hides in shame*
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Thank you so much, Melanie!!! That’s so nice of you to say 💕
I love it too, especially when it’s done as well as in this one! Hahahaha, I’ve totally done that too, we’re both shameful. And I totally get that, it’s not a super eventful books, it’s just low-key friend to lover, mostly via text, So yeah, not a lot happens.
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Wow so many reads!!!
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I didn’t realize Alex, Approximately was hate to love!! Hmmm I think it just moved up my TBR. One of my favourite tropes! You had such an amazing reading month!
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Thank you! It’s one of my favorite tropes too! I hope you enjoy it 😊
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18 books is amazing, Aurora! And I’ve had Emergency Contact on my radar, but you just bumped it up my list. Contemporaries don’t generally give me book-hangovers, either, so I’m VERY curious. I’ll pick it up at the library this weekend. 😀
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Thank you, Kathy! It was a really good reading month for me. Yay! Emergency Contact’s definitley my favorite contemporary of the year. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! 😊
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You’re a reading wizard! I have Emergency Contact on hold at the library and I can’t wait to read it!
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Hahaha, thank you! I hope you love it as much as I do! 😊
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You had such a great month! Alex Approximately and Emergency Contact are on my TBR!
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Thank you so much! They’re both such great summer reads, I hope you enjoy them! 😊
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You had such an amazing reading month! I read Alex, Approximately back when it came out and thought it was adorable. I finally caved and bought Nevermoor because it seems like no matter what everyone’s favorite genre is, everyone seems to love it.
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Thank you so much, Justine! That’s exactly why I caved and read Nevermoor too, even though MG usually isn’t my favorite genre, and I loved it. I really hope you do too!
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me and my 9 books i read in may are gonna just sit here and cry quietly……………
im so happy u had such an amazing reading month!!!! hope june will be just as good!
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Thank you so much, Anna! I hope June’s an amazing reading month for you too!!!
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