June 2020 Wrap Up // #MakeYourMythTaker

I can’t believe it’s time for another one of these, I’m here today with my June wrap up!

Last month I participated in Ashleigh and Charlotte’s Make Your Myth Taker readathon. You can check out my TBR post here in case you wanted to check that out and pick up what the rules were!

I decided I wanted to be a Queen with faerie and assassin traits and pledged to read eight books. I also have vlogs for each week of the readathon if you wanted to see some more in depth thoughts and other ramblings. Let’s see how I got on and get stuck into my June wrap up!

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The first four books were all for the prompts that led to the Queen character.

Furyborn by Claire Legrand

In this book we follow two characters in two different timelines in a world with elemental magic. Sadly, I was a little underwhelmed. I really thought I would love it more. I just couldn’t really get on board with one of the perspectives which let it down a lot for me. However it was very sex positive which I enjoyed and the plot was fast moving with some twists I didn’t always see coming! I would probably pick up the sequel but not right now unfortunately.

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

Ok so this is my most disappointing read of the year so far. There is a lot of hype around this book and after enjoying Aurora Rising and Burning I thought I would love this just as much. Unfortunately that was not the case. 

I didn’t engage with the characters, I found the book a little difficult to sink into due to the format and the plot just didn’t do it for me. In my vlog I said I wouldn’t continue with the series and while I won’t be any time soon, the hype may just suck me back in...

Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare

This was my first time reading this series after almost giving up on the Shadowhunter world a few years ago and I’m so glad I didn’t! This book had me in TEARS. For me the plot of this book is definitely secondary to the characters. The storyline was good, though I didn’t really enjoy the villain, but the characters are really what did it for me. Will and Jem are everything! 

I’m so excited to be back in this world and can’t wait to devour more of Cassandra Clare’s books.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

I’m not going to rehash everything here because this is the sixth time I’ve read the book and… y’all know this is my favourite series. For discussions on Tamlin’s redemption arc and more check out my vlog!

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Ok so that’s the first character completed, let’s move on to the Assassin!

The Dare by Elle Kennedy

If I’m being honest forgot to add this to my original TBR; it came out in June and I‘d pre ordered it months ago and knew I wanted to read it on release day. So, I’m considering this my secret book! It’s a fake dating college sports romance from one of my fave new adult authors with a plus size main character. 

Looking back there was some questionable dialogue used in relation to a character’s body type which I didn’t appreciate. I found the fat rep and the main character’s insecurities relatable for me personally and of course, I loved Conor 🥵

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire

I can’t believe I waited so long to read this! It’s a short story about a house of children who have visited other worlds through magic doors and returned to our world. It has ace, trans and contamination anxiety rep, it was creepy and gripping and just the perfect length. I can’t wait to read the rest of the series!

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

So this one I added at a later date – I realised my original TBR was not at all diverse and that’s not ok! I decided to use this for the prompt “A friend’s pick” because this was bought for me by Kirsty and so many people have loved it.

A powerful story told in verse about two girls from different countries who unknowingly share a father. It has discussions of racism and privilege, it deals with grief, death and sexual harassment. I need to read more of Elizabeth Acevedo’s work!

Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

This was exactly the kind of YA fantasy I love. We follow multiple POV from the feuding kingdoms, there is elemental magic and broody love interests (we stan). I didn’t expect to have such visceral reactions as I did to certain things. I believe there are 6 books in this series and a prequel series too so I am super excited to continue!

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Now we move on to the Faerie character reads!

If It Makes You Happy by Claire Kann

Another book added after my initial TBR for the same reasons as Clap When You Land. This book is about our main character Winnie who is black and identifies as Queer and describes herself as fat. She visits the small town of Misty haven as she does every year to work at her gran’s diner.

It’s a really low stakes plot and the story is much more character driven. It’s a very diverse read in terms of sexuality and ethnicity, and while yes there is fat rep which resonated with me, there was a lot, and I mean a lot, of talk of diet culture and weight loss which i think could be quite triggering.

The Falconer by Elizabeth May

This one has been on my TBR a loooong time and I’m so glad I finally picked it up. In the Falconer we follow our main character Aileana in 1800s Edinburgh. She spends her nights hunting fae after one killed her mother and her days trying to conform to societal rules. She doesn’t always succeed at the latter. There was exciting action, steampunk vibes, lots of different faeries and some excellent commentary on how women were viewed in society at that time.

I didn’t quite love it as much as i hoped but it had a grumpy fae love interest in which you know I am trash for. I’m excited to continue with the series!

The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend

Morrigan Crow is a cursed child destined to die on her eleventh birthday. But before midnight can strike she is whisked away to a world she never knew existed: Nevermoor. Once there she begins to participate in several magical trials in order for her to join the Wundrous Society!

This book was so unique; the world was so vibrant and the world building was impeccable. It could literally have gone anywhere because there was so much happening i really didn’t know what would be happening next! It didn’t quite live up to the hype for me but it was definitely a fun filled read.

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Ok, phew, there we have it – all of the books I read in my June wrap up.

So after pledging to read 8 books and become a Queen with Assassin and Faerie traits, I actually became a fully fledged Assassin Queen and ALMOST a Faerie.

The Stats

• I read 11 books

• A total of 4,507 pages

• There were three 5 star reads, two 4.5 star reads, one 4 star read, two 3.5 star reads, two 3 star read and one 2.5 star read

• The average rating for the month works out at 4 stars!

I’m super pleased with how my reading month turned out. I’ve discovered some hidden gems, a couple of new favourites and also narrowed down my TBR slightly by realising what books I don’t need to read anymore.

I’ll be sharing my July TBR with you all on here in a couple of days and *spoiler alert* I think I’m going to have another awesome reading month!

What was your favourite read of July?

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