• I read 19 books this month
• I DNFd 4 books this month
• Genre: 6 fantasy, 3 romance, 3 thriller, 2 murder mystery, 2 sci-fi, 2 non-fiction and 1 gothic
• Gender of authors: 14 women and 5 men
• Race of authors: 11 white authors, 6 asian authors, 1 black author and 1 Egyptian-Canadian author
• Age range: 14 adult and 5 YA
• Format: 10 ebook, 8 paperback and 1 hardback
• 4 stars average rating for the month

DNFS

• The Stars Too Fondly – Emily Hamilton
• Rouge – Mona Awad
• The Mermaid of Black Conch – Monique Roffey
• The Duke and I – Julia Quinn

Fake Flame – Adele Buck (3 stars)

A super fun and engaging romance that took me not time at all to finish. We had characters that had incredible chemistry off the bat, engaging side plots discussing important topics, brilliant supporting cast, great use of communication. This was just such an enjoyable read and I would recommend it to any contemporary romance fan. And shoutout to the 40 year old FMC. I want to see more characters like Eva in romance fiction!

The Secret Adversary – Agatha Christie (3 stars)

I haven’t read many Christie thrillers apart from 2 many years ago. So I was excited to jump into this story and read about characters I have never met before. This was a good jumping off point for a fresh new series and brand new characters. The characters were engaging, witty and I enjoyed following them around on their escapades. The plot kept me guessing and I enjoyed how intense it was. I wasn’t expecting myself to fear for the life of a Christie protagonist. I had to pure satisfaction of guessing the elusive Secret Adversary which was a fulfilling moment. I will say I prefer her murder mysteries over her thrillers. I can only suspend so much disbelief and I find her murder mysteries to be more structured and therefore more enjoyable for me.

You Must Be This Tall to Propose, Vol. 1 – Fumi Mimifyu (3.5 stars)

A super sweet and funny YA rom com that puts my gorgeous tall girlies on a pedestal. We love to see it. With funny comedy of error moments, this manga is beautiful coming of age tale about a young man trying to grow in order to propose to his childhood crush. I devoured this volume and I can’t wait to see what the rest of the series has in store. I am too invested in these characters now.

Good Girl, Bad Blood – Holly Jackson (3.5 stars)

Compared to the previous book in this series, I was underwhelmed. I found the interpersonal relationships and Pip’s character arc to be incredibly engaging and compelling. I am very interested in how Pip’s character is developing especially after the events of this book. But the plot was just not on the same level as the first book and I guessed a lot of key elements. And the elements that I didn’t guess kind of came out of left field too much for me. Hopefully, I will enjoy the last book more.

Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun Vol. 1 – Osamu Nishi (4 stars)

This volume genuinely had me laughing on my commute home. A perfect comedy of errors story about a boy who gets sold to a demon and has to attend Demon School. I love how the author uses very on-the-nose plot armor and coincidence to allow Iruma to get through this first initial volume. It is done with so much nuance and is incredibly hilarious. I love the message about kindness and avoiding violence. I cannot wait to see what the rest of the series has to offer.

Covenant – LySandra Vuong (4 stars)

A friend of mine had read this WebToon and for ages was raving about how incredible it was. I knew I had to try the series out for myself. This was an exhilarating, action-packed series about angels and demons and saving humanity. I feel that this volume gave us a really solid look into our key characters and the main plot points we need to understand the series going forward. How the magic system works, the politics surrounding the different churches as well as the interpersonal dynamics between our core characters. I am looking forward to seeing all of this expanded upon in future volumes!

The Devil’s Flute Murders – Seishi Yokomizo (4.5 stars)

Probably my favourite book in this series since the very first book, The Honjin Murders! I really feel that this book is Yokomizo on top form. Eerie atmosphere that builds with each chapter, complex characters that have you guessing even yourself and a plot that is liking walking through a labyrinth it has so many twists and turns. I really enjoyed every second of reading this book and read it in 2 days.

The Worst Ronin – Maggie Tokuda-Hall (4.5 stars)

This graphic novel was a great showcase in balance. Tokuda-Hall did a great job of giving you laughs and moments of sadness. She delivered you moments of outrage and moments of calm. I felt every emotion under the sun reading this story – it was amazing. The characters are complete opposites of each other and therefore balanced each other out. Watching them bicker and fight was hilarious but I did enjoy their more tender moments towards one another. The art-style was amazing. The fights scenes were great and Schaffer knows how to make me laugh with a single illustration. I hope we will see more books from these two and this world!

Before the Fact – Francis Iles (4.5 stars)

This book is such a compelling and thrilling read from start to finish. Diving head first into the intricacies and toxicity of a marriage based on lies and betrayal I found myself enraged for the whole 300 pages towards the main character’s husband. Looking at this book through a modern lens the way that Iles constructs a slowly growing suspenseful and harrowing narrative where each turn of a page makes you feel even more anxiety-induced is astounding. I loved the way you could watch the problem get bigger and bigger when it started off small and you get to the end and you can and cannot believe you have got to this moment.

Other books I read

• Griz Grobus – Simon Roy (3 stars)
• Mortal Monarchs – Suzie Edge (4 stars)
• The Examiner – Janice Hallett (4 stars)
• Burning Roses – S.L. Huang (4.5 stars)
• Sorcery of Thorns – Margaret Rogerson (5 stars)
• Unlikeable Female Characters – Anna Bogutskaya (5 stars)