Hello everyone! It is August 2nd and I am excited to share with all of you the five books I’m planning to read in the next month.
Book I finished August 1st:
In Sight of Stars by Gae Polisner
Seventeen-year-old Klee’s father was the center of his life. He introduced Klee to the great museums of New York City and the important artists on their walls, he told him stories made of myths and magic. Until his death.
Now, forced to live in the suburbs with his mom, Klee can’t help but feel he’s lost all the identifying parts of himself—his beloved father, weekly trips to the MoMA, and the thrumming energy of New York City. That is until he meets wild and free Sarah in art class, with her quick smiles and jokes about his “brooding.” Suddenly it seems as if she’s the only thing that makes him happy. But when an act of betrayal sends him reeling, Klee lands in what is bitingly referred to as the “Ape Can,” a psychiatric hospital for teens in Northollow.
While there, he undergoes intensive therapy and goes back over the pieces of his life to find out what was real, what wasn’t, and whether he can stand on his own feet again. Told in alternating timelines, leading up to the event that gets him committed and working towards getting back out, Gae Polisner’s In Sight of Stars is a gorgeous novel told in minimalist strokes to maximal effect, about what makes us fall apart and how we can put ourselves back together again.
Gahh!! This book is amazing! I can’t wait to review it! I think this is a book all should read!
Book I am Currently Reading:
The Price Guide to the Occult by Leslye Walton
From the author of The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender comes a haunting maelstrom of magic and murder in the lush, moody Pacific Northwest.
When Rona Blackburn landed on Anathema Island more than a century ago, her otherworldly skills might have benefited friendlier neighbors. Guilt and fear instead led the island’s original eight settlers to burn “the witch” out of her home. So Rona cursed them. Fast-forward one hundred–some years: All Nor Blackburn wants is to live an unremarkable teenage life. She has reason to hope: First, her supernatural powers, if they can be called that, are unexceptional. Second, her love life is nonexistent, which means she might escape the other perverse side effect of the matriarch’s backfiring curse, too. But then a mysterious book comes out, promising to cast any spell for the right price. Nor senses a storm coming and is pretty sure she’ll be smack in the eye of it. In her second novel, Leslye Walton spins a dark, mesmerizing tale of a girl stumbling along the path toward self-acceptance and first love, even as the Price Guide’s malevolent author — Nor’s own mother — looms and threatens to strangle any hope for happiness.
I loved The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender! So of course I had to request this book when I saw it on Netgalley! So far I’m enjoying it and I can definitely see the author’s unique style in this book.
Tbr:
Miles Away From You by A.B. Rutledge
It’s been three years since Miles fell for Vivian, a talented and dazzling transgender girl. Eighteen months since a suicide attempt left Vivian on life support. Now Miles isn’t sure who he is without her, but knows it’s time to figure out how to say goodbye.
He books a solo trip to Iceland but then has a hard time leaving the refuge of his hotel room. After a little push from Oskar, a local who is equal parts endearing and aloof, Miles decides to honor Vivian’s life by photographing her treasured Doc Martens standing empty against the surreal landscapes. With each step he takes, Miles finds his heart healing–even as he must accept that Vivian, still in a coma, will never recover.
Told through a series of instant messages to Vivian, this quirky and completely fresh novel explores love, loss, and the drastic distances we sometimes have to travel in order to move on.
The synopsis alone gives me chills. I have a feeling deep within me that this is going to be beautiful. I can’t wait to finish this so I can hopefully sing it’s praises for the world.
Nothing But Sky by Amy Trueblood
A 2018 Junior Library Guild selection.
“Trueblood’s action-packed first novel explores the post-World War I époque with visceral period detail, and Grace’s ambition carries the story about fighting for one’s dreams, seeking stability in some form, and a team becoming a family.” —Publishers Weekly
Grace Lafferty only feels alive when she’s dangling 500 feet above ground. As a post-World War I wing walker, Grace is determined to get to the World Aviation Expo, proving her team’s worth against flashier competitors and earning a coveted Hollywood contract.
No one’s ever questioned Grace’s ambition until Henry Patton, a mechanic with plenty of scars from the battlefield, joins her barnstorming team. With each new death-defying trick, Henry pushes Grace to consider her reasons for being a daredevil. Annoyed with Henry’s constant interference, and her growing attraction to him, Grace continues to test the powers of the sky.
After one of her risky maneuvers saves a pilot’s life, a Hollywood studio offers Grace a chance to perform at the Expo. She jumps at the opportunity to secure her future. But when a stunt goes wrong, Grace must decide whether Henry, and her life, are worth risking for one final trick.
Cold Hard Truth by Anne Greenwood Brown
Emmie O’Brien is a former good girl now on the fringe. She spent a crazy year involved with Nick, her mom’s drug dealer; after her arrest she was lucky to go back to her old life. But she’s haunted by the choices she made—first, to be with Nick, and then later, to testify against him. Max Shepherd is a senior varsity hockey player with serious anger issues. His grief over the death of his girlfriend causes him to see injustice wherever he looks. When they meet in community service, Max is drawn to Emmie’s calm energy, but Emmie knows better than to get too close to anyone. When friends of Nick show up seeking revenge, Emmie is forced to come to terms with her past, while Max has to control his protective instincts. They must trust one another, especially when Emmie’s situation takes a dangerous turn.
I would normally say a fun contemporary when I look at a book like this, but really this looks like a dark contemporary and that might be even better in my book.
Paramnesia by Brian Wilkinson
Nora Edwards finally had everything she wanted out of life, including the boy of her dreams, Andrew, until one night that dream turned into a nightmare. On their way home from prom, Nora and Andrew are attacked by a supernatural creature called the Revenant that sucks the souls out of the living in order to feed itself. Nora manages to escape from the creature, but tragically, Andrew is not as fortunate.
Although Nora suffers loss that night, she gains something as well: the ability to see the dead, including her recently deceased boyfriend. Whether the skill is a gift or a curse is yet to be determined, since those around her assume Nora’s erratic behaviour is due to “paramnesia,” a disorder in which a person confuses dreams with reality. She’s also attracted the attention of the Revenant’s masters, who need to preserve the secret of their supernatural existence and will stop at nothing to prevent her from talking. Nora, along with Andrew and her living and dead allies in the Deadish Society, quickly finds herself in a battle for her life—and the souls of her city.
This book sounds exciting! I really like the concept. It sounds action packed and super interesting.
Thanks for reading! Let me know your thoughts down in the comments below. What are you reading in August?
-Till next time!
That’s sooooooooo many books ♥ ♥
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Right? This post is the one that takes forever for me to complete each month, but supporting all the newly released authors out there is important to me so I always try to put it together.
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Happy Reading
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Thanks! Happy reading to you too!
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In Sight of Stars sounds so good!
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It is good!!! It’s so emotional and heartfelt. With such a real feeling. It’s raw and human.
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My favorite kind of book!
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These look like cool reads!
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They do! I’m excited to see how I enjoy them!
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Nice selection, and Happy Reading! The only set-in-stone book I’m going to read this month is A Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne. My best friend and I are doing a buddy read for it since our book club took the month of August off for everyone’s busy schedules. Other than that, I’m not sure yet what I’ll be reading. Hopefully something good! 🙂
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I hope you enjoy your buddy read! I’m trying to catch up on my Netgalley books and i have 14 left so the five I’m going to read are all from that list. After that… I’m off to reading with my mood!
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I can’t wait to read your review of Miles Away from You! It’s one I’ve been checking for some time now.
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I can’t wait to read it!! I already appreciate the way they handled the synopsis. I’m so excited to read it!
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It turns out I will not be reading this book. I was going to start it today, but I found out it is transphobic and promotes harmful stereotypes including the white savior trope and I don’t need that in my life.
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Most of these I haven’t heard of before but I did manage to get an early UK copy of The Price Guide to the Occult last weekend and I am SO excited to read it. I loved Ava Lavender so much. Hope you have a great reading month 🙂
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I hope you enjoy The Price Guide to the Occult!! I’m excited about it too!
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Sounds like another good selection of books.
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I’m so excited!!! It’s a great month of releases!
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I read Nothing But Sky and while I love the general plot and setting, I sadly didn’t love it. But I’m curious of what you’ll think 🙂 slay that TBR!
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I’m interested in seeing what I think about it when I get to it. I really hope I enjoy it!
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Have an amazing August filled with great books!
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I have a feeling that it will!
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I want to move to a place called Anathema Island, lol. What a great list of books!
I just nominated you for the mystery blogger award. I hope you’ll play along! https://quixoticpixels.blog/2018/08/03/mystery-blogger-award/
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Thanks so much! Anathema Island does sound cool! I don’t usually do awards anymore, because I get nominated a lot and they tend to be repetitive, but I am really grateful for the nomination! I’m excited for the reading that August will bring!
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No worries! Happy reading!
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Hope you enjoy reading these books! 🙂
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I hope so too!!
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The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender is one of my very favorite books. I enjoyed Price Guide, but not as much as the former. I hope you enjoy the rest though. Happy reading!
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I did love both!! It seems I am in the minority as a lot of people who love the first Didn’t Like the second as much and the ones who disliked the first really love the second. They are both my brand of strange!
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In Sight of Stars sounds SO incredible (can’t wait to hear your thoughts!) and I actually just recently read Price Guide to the Occult! I REALLY enjoyed it (her writing style is so gorgeous) but I thought the end was a bit… odd? And I just wanted a little more background to Fern. Leslye Walton is an actual queen though.
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For me the end was exactly Walton’s style. It is odd and a little weird, but honestly I could understand it and why it went that way. I wish I could discuss it fully in a review, but that would be so spoilery especially for a book that just came out, but when you think about it if anything like that actually happened IRL wouldn’t the gov have gotten involved? It was realistic in Lesley’s odd way and I couldn’t have been happier.
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The only part of the end that I was confused about was basically the last sentence? I just felt like I was supposed to know what it meant and since I didn’t I was confused.
Ooohhhh, but it would be so awesome in a review! I would looove to see a spoilery review at some point if you are ever so inclined. 🙂
Don’t get me wrong, I still adored it! Leslye is fantastic and I will continue to read everything she writes.
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Ohh that part! Yeah I made sense of that by accepting that it won’t ever make full sense. I’m so happy you loved this too!
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Haha okay fair. Absolutely!
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Ps YOU MUST read In Sight of Stars!!! It is so good and the beginning had this ethereal quality to it, but it all transforms as the story goes and the Mc heals his mind and I LOVED it!
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Ahhh okay it sounds amazing! I’ll add it to my TBR!
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Ooh, the cover of Paramnesia looks so pretty! 😀
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Right? I really like it!!
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