I keep asking “How is the summer already half over??” but simultaneously, I’ll concede that I’m already starting to daydream about fall afternoons with leaves changing colour, warm coffees, and a pile of good books to keep me company.

Some of this daydreaming may be because it’s been the hottest summer on record here in Atlantic Canada and we are simply not equipped to deal with it. I’ve always lived next to the Atlantic Ocean, where it’s foggy and chilly and the heat never scorches with the same ferocity as it does in the city, but with climate change has come a major shift in our weather patterns, and even the ocean breeze couldn’t keep away the unrelenting heat in July. I like the odd warm day, particularly if I have nothing to do, but I’ve tired of it more quickly than usual this year and am already looking forward to fall.

That said, July was still superb in so many ways. My husband and I took a weeklong vacation with friends and did a lot of local touristy things, which was incredibly fun and also the cup-filling we both needed. We also got to spend some time hanging out with family, which included the world’s most precious toddler tea party and some beautiful walks along the waterfront. The busyness with friends and family didn’t leave me as much time as usual for reading, but I still managed to squeeze in six great books, two of which are probably my favourite reads of all of 2023. I’m looking forward to taking a little more vacation in August and hopefully plowing through even more great reads 😊.

Books Read in July 2023

While things were very busy for me this month, I squeezed in a handful of truly fantastic books. It’s been a while since I read anything below 4 stars, and I think that’s partly due to taking my recommendations from bookstagrammers I really trust and partly because I’m honing in well on the types of books I know I’ll enjoy.

Here are all the books I covered in July:

• Heart of the Sun Warrior (The Celestial Kingdom #2) by Sue Lynn Tan: this book was even more stunning than the first in the Celestial Kingdom duology. It’s not very often a book makes me truly sob, but I’ll tell you I was crying my heart out on multiple occasions with this one, and Tan is now an auto-buy author for me because of it. I rated this book 5 stars, and you can read my full review here.
• Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros: this might be the most hyped book of the year and it took me ages (and a friend stalking the Chapters website) to get my hands on a physical copy, but WOW I loved it. Not since ACOTAR have I been so immediately and completely invested in a story. I rated this one 5 stars and you can read my full review here.
• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas: speaking of ACOTAR, I did a re-read of the first book via audiobook as I begin my ACOTAR and Crescent City re-reads in preparation for House of Flame and Shadow being released this coming January. Unsurprisingly, I once again rated this book 5 stars, and you can read my full review here.
• Witch King by Martha Wells: this was my first-ever Illumicrate book and not only is it physically gorgeous, but the story itself was wonderful. It was heavy high-fantasy with a lot of world-building, and I enjoyed it immensely. I rated it 4 stars, and my full review should come this week.
• Cursed Fates (Zodiac Academy 5) by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti: this series has me in a chokehold even though Peckham and Valenti seem to hate happy characters and are intent on breaking my heart. I rated this book 4 stars, and my full review is set for later this week.
• Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross: I jumped this book up my TBR because I’d seen so many people raving about it and the hype was fully warranted. I am actually in love with this book. It tore my heart open and ripped it to shreds and I am devastated that the second book in this series isn’t set to hit shelves until sometime in 2024. I cannot say enough good things about this book, it’s a favourite of 2023 and my review should be out later this week.

TBR Lists

As my physical shelves slowly but surely begin to fill up, I’ve known for a while that it might be more economical to start adding ebooks back into my reading mix. My Kindle has been collecting dust for several years now, but I whipped it out this month, signed up for Kindle Unlimited, and now my TBR is overflowing at an unreasonable pace.

I have an obscene amount of books flagged for Kindle Unlimited specifically (which I’ll likely do a full post on separately) but for now, here’s a bit of a mix of the various books I’ve added to my TBR in the past month:

• North Queen by Nicola Tyche: a fantasy romance based around a princess who loses her memory and the boy who loved her. I’ve seen a lot of booksagrammers who love romantasy indies like this one.
• Sword Catcher by Cassandra Clare: a fantasy about two outcasts who find themselves at the centre of world-altering change. I haven’t read Clare’s other works, but this one sounds very promising and is the start of a new fantasy series.
• To Shape a Dragon’s Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose: an indigenous woman enters a colonizer-run dragon academy and quickly finds herself at odds with the “approved” way of doing things. I think I’m on a dragon kick right now, and I love the sound of this one.
• Heavenly Bodies by Imani Erriu: a world where no entities exist except the stars, who are cruel and merciless gods, wrapped up with a love story. I’ve seen this one recommended by a few people and it sounds divine.
• The Stars are Dying by Chloe C. Penaranda: tyrants, celestial guardians, vampires, and a love story. This one piqued my interest when I saw it making the rounds on bookstagram.

What I’m Loving Right Now

This past month was such a fun one that while I didn’t get a huge amount of reading done, I finished off feeling like my soul was satisfied. Here are a few of the things contributing to that feeling lately:

So much time with loved ones

We literally spent every single day of our vacation with friends and family and while it was crazy busy, it was also so fun and fulfilling. Sometimes the pandemic feels like a weird fever dream that I can’t quite recall all the details of, because how did we ever survive without being able to squeeze and love those closest to us?? I hope we never have to find out again.

Adding more home décor

This month, we FINALLY finished our guest room, which we painted white and seafoam green. We found some super cute vintage-feeling beach photography and used all-white furniture. The result is a room that feels like it should be at a beach house, and I LOVE IT.

We also found the perfect writing desk for our bedroom. We’ve been looking for something that was the right fit and feel for about 3 years now so that we could have a little workspace away from the home office and I’m already obsessed with it.

Seafood, seafood, and more seafood

My husband and I love seafood. We try to eat it as often as we can, which is easily facilitated by living next to the ocean, but having guests always means that we get to up the ante a little and treat ourselves. In one week, we had lobster twice, massive halibut steaks, salmon eggs benedict, and a big pile of shrimp. I just love the summer and all the seafood that comes with it. We’ll be continuing to indulge for the rest of the season.

So that was July! It was busy and fulfilling and wonderful.

What was your favourite read this month?