Books I Read in August

I had a fairly good reading month in August, I read 9 novels and a graphic novel. I feel like with all the new releases that are coming out this fall, I'm slowly getting back into my typical goals, since I typically average around 12 books a month. So here are the books I read and some of my thoughts on them...

Between Frost and Fury by Chani Lynn Feener - This is the second book in the Xenith Trilogy, which centers around a girl who has to pose as an alien princess, to avoid a galactic war. This book was extremely high on my most anticipated books of the year, I randomly picked up the first book, Amid Stars and Darkness, and absolutely fell in love with the characters and their story. The second book did not disappoint, I enjoyed revisiting this world and seeing the new conflicts that the characters faced. I absolutely can't wait for the last installment in the series.

Dance of Theives by Mary E. Pearson - This is the first book in Pearson's latest duology, that is set in the same universe as The Remnant Chronicles. TRC is one of my all time favorite series, and I knew that I would be picking up this book as soon as it was announced. Since this is a spinoff series, it can be read independently from TRC, and I think the author did a good job in building from the world she created in TRC, but also kept a wall of separation for those who hadn't read TRC. This book did not disappoint, I loved being reintroduced to the world that Pearson created, and also gaining a new perspective from Jase and Kazi.

The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan - This book follows Leigh, after her mother commits suicide and she travels to Taiwan to understand her mother better. The writing of this book was lyrical and carefully constructed. I really enjoyed the depths of culture Pan delved into and overall I really liked this read.

Heart of Thorns by Bree Barton - This book is set in a world where witches are hunted and after her mother is murdered by one, Mia's sole purpose in life is to become a witch hunter, until she ends up bethroed to the prince. I really wanted to love this book, the premise sounded amazing when I first read it, and I really enjoyed the idea that women gained magic as a defense mechanism to combat abuse from men. But overall, the execution fell flat to me, I had a hard time connecting with the two main characters and I think that the romance elements took away from the actual story.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr - This is a story about a blind, French girl and a German boy whose paths cross during WW11. This book has been on my TBR list for years and I finally listened to the audiobook! I've heard so much hype about this book, and unfortunately I wasn't blown away by this book, but I still really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed how this story had a sense of fantastical elements, but also stayed true to the historical fiction aspect. I really enjoyed that this book held my attention because I never sure the direction the story was going. 

To All the Boys I've Loved Before Trilogy by Jenny Han - This trilogy follows Lara Jean, after her past love letters are unexpectedly delivered. This was a reread for me, because I initially just wanted to read the first book before the movie came out. As soon as I finished the first book and I watched the movie, I was reminded of how much I love everything about this series and I had to continue on. I was a little nervous going in to this reread, because I wasn't sure how I would react to Lara Jean's story now that I'm older, but I still really love these books and her character.

Nightblood by Elly Blake - This is the final installment in the Frostblood Trilogy, which is set in a world divided by people who have the ability to wield frost and people who have the ability to wield fire. This is an amazing final installment, each book in this series gradually improved upon it's last and I was highly entertained reading this series.

Fence (Vol. 1) by C.S. Pacat, Johanna the Mad and Joana Lafuente - This is a graphic novel that follows Nicholas, an aspiring fencer, who lives in the shadows as the illegitimate son to a fencing legend. I've been wanting to read more graphic novels lately, and I picked this one up on a whim because I heard it had great representation. This was a good introduction to the characters and their story, but I feel like this installment mainly focused as a build up to the next, so I'm looking forward to continuing on with this.

And those are all the books I read in August. As I mentioned there's a lot of new fall releases coming out this month and I can't wait to get to them all. - Jessica