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Half City

Half CityTitle: Half City
Author: Kate Golden
Series: Harker Academy #1
Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Format: Audio
Pages: 480
Length: 16h 35m
Narrator: Taylor Harvey, Teddy Hamilton
Reason Read: Recommended
Rating:

My Thoughts

Wow! That ending! I need book 2 now! At least I only have to wait until October for it to come out. I loved HALF CITY so much! I loved the dark academia setting, the Shadowhunter feel to the story, and the characters. I’m so interested to see what happens next, especially to Viv and Reid. Is Reid really reformed? I’m starting to get the sense that he might not be. I hope we get to meet the elusive elders in the next installment and we get to find out who the High Thane is. I’m so so curious if my hunches are right.

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The Stardust Thief

The Stardust ThiefTitle: The Stardust Thief
Author: Chelsea Abdullah
Series: Sandsea Trilogy #1
Genre: Fantasy
Format: Audio
Pages: 480
Length: 15h 38m
Narrator: Nikki Massoud, Rasha Zamamiri, Sean Rohani
Reason Read: Book of the Month
Rating:

Also in this series: The Ashfire King
My Thoughts

I’ve always been fascinated by stories of genies, magical lamps, and wishes. It wasn’t until I read THE GOLEM AND THE DJINNI by Helene Wecker that I realized genies were a misappropriation of Middle Eastern folklore and mythology. Since then, I’ve tried to learn more about the actual mythology. So when THE STARDUST THIEF was a Book of the Month option, I snatched it right up. 

THE STARDUST THIEF was everything I wanted it to me and more. I love that the story took inspiration from ONE THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS so that parts of it were familiar. The characters, the world, and the djinn’s magic system were amazing! I loved Loulie and Qadir so much. I loved their connection and how much they rely on each other. At first I thought Mazen was kind of a sissy, but I’m glad he grew into his strengths and stood up for what he believed. I loved that it was told from different POVs so we could witness more of the whole picture. I’m excited how this one ended and I’m looking forward to how the story continues.

Hang The Moon

Hang The MoonTitle: Hang the Moon
Author: Jeannette Walls
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Audio
Pages: 349
Length: 12h 29m
Narrator: Jeannette Walls
Reason Read: Book of the Month
Rating:

My Thoughts

I love prohibition era stories so when I read the synopsis for HANG THE MOON, I was super excited to read it. I didn’t realize until about a third of the way through the story that Walls was using Queen Elizabeth I’s life as inspiration for the main character. At first, I liked the allusion but then it just got to be too much. I wished it hadn’t so closely followed that history because I kept wondering who each character represented in Tudor era England. The story was also a little slow and, at times, really grim and sad. (I get it. Both of the these times in history were grim and sad. I had just hoped for something a little more inspiring.) I’m glad I read the book, even if it was a little disappointing.

The Thursday Murder Club

The Thursday Murder ClubTitle: The Thursday Murder Club
Author: Richard Osman
Series: Thursday Murder Club #1
Genre: Mystery
Format: Audio
Pages: 388
Length: 12h 26m
Narrator: Lesley Manville
Reason Read: Book Club
Rating:

My Thoughts

THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB was a delightful read. It took me a bit to get into it because of the writing style and quirky characters. By the end, though, I loved the characters, quirks and all. I thought the mystery aspect was compelling and it kept me reading. I’m curious what the rest of the series is like and if Bogdan gets caught.

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XOXO

XOXOTitle: XOXO
Author: Axie Oh
Series: XOXO #1
Genre: Romance, Young Adult
Format: Audio
Pages: 337
Length: 9h 13m
Narrator: Greta Jung
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: ASAP
My Thoughts

XOXO was a really cute YA romance. I’m surprised by how much I liked it because I don’t read a lot of YA anymore unless it’s an old favorite, and I thought any book about someone dating a K-pop idol would be super cheesy and fanfic-ish. Fortunately, the first one was a non-issue and this story was really well done.