Best Books of July
As I say every month, I’m shamelessly stealing this idea from Jessica Lahey. She has a recurring monthly date where she reviews all the books she read that month. Book reviews are important for authors, and I want to get better about doing this.
So. I’m going to review them here and also online, but I’m going to do it a little differently. I’m only going to review the stuff I really liked. I don’t see a reason to spend my time writing about something I didn’t love; it’s just using up more of my energy. So only positive reviews.
These are the books I liked (or mostly liked) from July.
The Dark Vineyard (Martin Walker): This is the second book in the Bruno series, and it’s even better than the first story, which introduces you to the town and its inhabitants. Now you know the people and have the lay of the land, and Walker takes you on a deep dive into wine making… and… murder. They’re lighter mysteries—your brain won’t spend a lot of time focused on solving the case because it’s too busy enjoying the food, people, and scenery.
The Maidens (Alex Michaelides): If you know anything about therapy, psychology, or human nature, you probably will not enjoy this novel. But if you can set aside everything you know about life and people, you will thoroughly enjoy this second novel by the author of The Silent Patient. I say that even though there are too many plot points that don’t move the story forward or wrap up too quickly. Okay, maybe a better review would be that this is not a well-written book BUT I enjoyed the process of reading it.
The Magician King (Lev Grossman): ChickieNob and I listened to the audio book version, and it made me want to go on a walk every afternoon. I think this book (and the whole trilogy) should be required reading in high school. It makes me sad when people quit after the first book and never get to witness Quentin’s transformation. This book is my favourite in the trilogy, and it means so much to me that my favourite line in it hit ChickieNob in the same way, too.
Moonflower Murders (Anthony Horowitz): A great book by one of my favourite authors? Yes, please. This was such a fun story, and the way the mystery wrapped up in the end was perfect and brilliant. You probably need to read the Magpie Murders to understand everything in this one, but that’s a plus in my book.
The Secret Bridesmaid (Katy Birchall): I am completely stunned by this book. Someone told me to put it on my TBR, and I did. It’s not the sort of thing I normally read, but I LOVED this book. It was so sweet; a great celebration of friendship. But it’s also a masterclass in conversation. Seriously! There were so many times when the main character needed to have a hard conversation, and she navigated them all perfectly. There’s even a breakdown of how you comfort a person towards the beginning of the book that literally spells out, “Step one,” “Step two,” “Step three…” I love this book so much, and I’m going to recommend it to everyone.
The One (John Marrs): This is a book that gives you a lot to think about. It was a decent Netflix show and a better book. It’s easy to pick up and put down, and it’s designed in such a way that it’s easy to keep the stories straight and always feel compelled to read another chapter. There are some pretty disturbing twists, but all of them make you think about the intersection of technology and humanity.
What did you read last month?
4 comments
I enjoy these posts because you always seem to read at least one or two books I haven’t even heard of. I’ve been on the fence about whether to read The Maidens: I enjoyed The Silent Patient but have heard bad reviews of the author’s latest book from friends whose opinions I trust.
Here are a few of my own notable reads from July. (I’m not including every book I read, though.)
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders. I listened to this book on audio, and I believe that the cast greatly enhanced my enjoyment of this book. The book itself was odd and unlike anything else I’ve read recently but well done.
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. I am still trying to decide exactly how I feel about this book but am glad I read it.
The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth. This book ended up being a bit different than I expected, and I did not see the ending coming. It’s not one you will want to read, though, Mel, because infertility is a plot point for one of the characters and is dealt with in a way you would dislike.
Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. This book might be a little too on the nose to read at present — as it deals with the aftermath of a devastating global pandemic that wipes out approx. 1% of the earth’s population — but I enjoyed it.
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson. I will admit that many of these concepts are beyond my full comprehension, but Dr. Tyson does a good job of breaking them down into language that can be understood by someone who isn’t a physicist.
I have been looking at Anthony Horowitz’s mysteries for a while now. Glad to know you recommend them!
I read four books in July, all reviewed on my blog and on Goodreads. Most of them were for various online book clubs & reading groups I belong to.
* “Hungry” by Grace Dent. I had never heard of Grace Dent (she’s the food writer for the Guardian), but I absolutely loved this book, about growing up in a working class family in northern England, her relationship with food, and how she managed to go to university and build her writing career. Hilarious in some spots and poignant in others.
* “Summerhills” by D.E. Stevenson. A sequel to “Amberwell,” which you should probably read first. A family saga set in post-WWII Scotland.
* “Love Lives Here: A Story of Thriving in a Transgender Family” by Amanda Jette Knox. I learned a lot from this book about the challenges faced by a family when one of the children comes out as transgender.
* “Malibu Rising” by Taylor Jenkins Reid. A great light summer/beach read, following four surfer siblings on one day (August 27, 1983), with all the various plot lines coming together at a huge party that night.
Found a Halloween costume for Beorn: https://www.chewy.com/frisco-bumble-guinea-pig-costume-one/dp/288606
I think this is the first time that I don’t have any of your books on my TBR list currently! I did like The Silent Patient, but this made me snort: “if you can set aside everything you know about life and people, you will thoroughly enjoy this second novel” I keep passing over The Maidens because something about it doesn’t seem as compelling as other options. I’m going to add The Secret Bridesmaid, and I am ashamed to say I haven’t started the Magicians trilogy yet but I do have the first on on my TBR shelf! So there’s one! I love this peek into your reading life. 🙂