July Book Haul

I bought myself new books on the very first day of the month, so I can’t even say I tried, this month. I have a problem. I went on holiday towards the end of the month, and not surprisingly I picked up a few books here and there while I was on my travels. Also, there is little to no internet access where I am, so that’s why I’ve been less active lately. I should be back to normal in a couple of days.

Moxie – by Jennifer Mathieu

Vivian Carter is fed up. Fed up with her high school teachers who think the football team can do no wrong. Fed up with sexist dress codes, hallway harassment and gross comments from guys during class. But most of all, Viv Carter is fed up with always following the rules.
Viv’s mum was a tough-as-nails, punk rock Riot Grrrl in the ’90s, and now Viv takes a page from her mother’s past and creates Moxie, a feminist zine that she distributes anonymously to her classmates. She’s just blowing off steam, but other girls respond and spread the Moxie message. As Viv forges friendships with other young women across the divides of cliques and popularity rankings, she realises that what she has started is nothing short of a girl revolution.

TIME TO FIGHT LIKE A GIRL

I’d been hearing about this for a while, and so when I saw it on the shelves, I knew I had to buy it. I was so excited to read a book about feminism and girl power and I was not disappointed. I have a full review for this here, but spoiler alert, I loved it!

Letters to the Lost – by Brigid Kemmerer

Juliet Young has always written letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother’s death, she leaves letters at her grave. It’s the only way Juliet can cope. 

Declan Murphy isn’t the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he’s trying to escape the demons of his past. 

When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can’t resist writing back. Soon, he’s opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither of them knows that they’re not actually strangers. When real life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart. This emotional, compulsively-readable romance will sweep everyone off their feet.

Another book from the Zoella book club, they were on buy one get one half price, so I couldn’t resist getting this one too. I read the first page in the shop and like what I saw. I took this on holiday with me, and finished it in a day, which is pretty good for me. I really liked this one, and overall, I’m really impressed with the Zoella book club books this summer. I’ll definitely be checking out more of them over the coming months.

Because You Love to Hate Me – Anthology Edited by Ameriie

Leave it to the heroes to save the world–villains just want to rule the world.

In this unique YA anthology, thirteen acclaimed, bestselling authors team up with thirteen influential BookTubers to reimagine fairy tales from the oft-misunderstood villains’ points of view.

These fractured, unconventional spins on classics like “Medusa,” Sherlock Holmes, and “Jack and the Beanstalk” provide a behind-the-curtain look at villains’ acts of vengeance, defiance, and rage–and the pain, heartbreak, and sorrow that spurned them on. No fairy tale will ever seem quite the same again!

Featuring writing from . . .

Authors: Renée Ahdieh, Ameriie, Soman Chainani, Susan Dennard, Sarah Enni, Marissa Meyer, Cindy Pon, Victoria Schwab, Samantha Shannon, Adam Silvera, Andrew Smith, April Genevieve Tucholke, and Nicola Yoon

BookTubers: Benjamin Alderson (Benjaminoftomes), Sasha Alsberg (abookutopia), Whitney Atkinson (WhittyNovels), Tina Burke (ChristinaReadsYA blog and TheLushables), Catriona Feeney (LittleBookOwl), Jesse George (JessetheReader), Zoë Herdt (readbyzoe), Samantha Lane (Thoughts on Tomes), Sophia Lee (thebookbasement), Raeleen Lemay (padfootandprongs07), Regan Perusse (PeruseProject), Christine Riccio (polandbananasBOOKS), and Steph Sinclair & Kat Kennedy (Cuddlebuggery blog and channel). 

I couldn’t help myself, I was so intrigued by this book. An anthology about villains, featuring some of my favourite authors collaborating with some of my favourite booktubers. How could I resist. I’ve already read the first story, and so far so good.

The Fifth Season – by N.K. Jemisin

This is the way the world ends…for the last time.

A season of endings has begun. 

It starts with the great red rift across the heart of the world’s sole continent, spewing ash that blots out the sun. 

It starts with death, with a murdered son and a missing daughter. 

It starts with betrayal, and long dormant wounds rising up to fester. 

This is the Stillness, a land long familiar with catastrophe, where the power of the earth is wielded as a weapon. And where there is no mercy.

I have heard so many amazing things about this book that I couldn’t help myself. Especially when I spotted it in a lovely independent book store. I don’t know exactly when I will be getting to this. I haven’t been doing so well with fantasy books just lately.

A Closed and Common Orbit – by Becky Chambers

Lovelace was once merely a ship’s artificial intelligence. When she wakes up in an new body, following a total system shut-down and reboot, she has no memory of what came before. As Lovelace learns to negotiate the universe and discover who she is, she makes friends with Pepper, an excitable engineer, who’s determined to help her learn and grow.

Together, Pepper and Lovey will discover that no matter how vast space is, two people can fill it together.

Okay, now I already had the hard cover edition of this book, I pre-ordered it. But, when I saw the paperback copy in Waterstones, while on holiday, I couldn’t help myself. I rationalised it by the exclusive Lore in the back of the Waterstones edition. I dived in to it and I loved it just as much as the first book. Another wonderful, 5 star, favourite.

Made You Up – by Francesca Zappia

Armed with a take-no-prisoners attitude, her camera, a Magic 8 Ball, and her only ally (her little sister), Alex fights a daily battle to decipher what is real and what is not. And after a really unfortunate incident, Alex is ready for a fresh start at a new school where no one recognizes her. Alex is used to being crazy. She’s not prepared for normal. Before she knows it, she is making friends, going to parties, and falling in love. But Alex’s inability to separate her delusions from reality is always just under the surface and could have disastrous consequences for the people closest to her.

This has been on my radar for quite some time, so when I saw it in Waterstones I couldn’t resist. Also, how gorgeous is that cover, I’m in love. I’m looking forward to diving in to this one soon.

Since You’ve Been Gone – by Morgan Matson

It was Sloane who yanked Emily out of her shell and made life 100% interesting. But right before what should have been the most epic summer, Sloane just…disappears. All she leaves behind is a to-do list.
On it, thirteen Sloane-inspired tasks that Emily would normally never try. But what if they could bring her best friend back?
Apple picking at night? Okay, easy enough.
Dance until dawn? Sure. Why not?
Kiss a stranger? Um… 
Emily now has this unexpected summer, and the help of Frank Porter (totally unexpected), to check things off Sloane’s list. Who knows what she’ll find?

I’ve been hearing great things about books by Morgan Matson for so long now, and I finally decided it was time to see for myself. Plus I’ve been on a real young adult contemporary kick for the past few months. So I picked this up in a lovely book shop in St. Ives.

I didn’t get too out of control this month, which I am really proud of. I’m also really proud to say that of the seven books hauled here, I have already read three of them, which isn’t bad really. I would like to add that I haven’t included the July Fairyloot book in this haul because my box arrived a few days after I went on holiday, so I haven’t unboxed it yet (although I’m fairly sure that I know what the book is). I do know however that the box is currently sat on my kitchen table, thanks to my wonderful neighbour who looked out for the delivery for me. I can’t wait until I can finally unbox it!

Have you read any of these yet? What did you think? Also have you got any YA contemporary recommendations for me? I’d love to hear in the comments.

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