The end of this month was dire. I was DNFing like crazy and struggling with my reading after a stellar early month. Oh, well, it comes and goes in phases, I guess.
6/1: Penric's Progress (World of Five Gods, Penric & Desdemona #1-3) by Lois McMaster Bujold (library, 2020) - This series is absolutely wonderful to read. 5/5 stars
6/3: Leviathan Falls by James. S.A. Corey (The Expanse #9) by James S.A. Corey (library, 2022) - A fitting end to an amazing series. 5/5 stars
6/4: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (library, 2022) - What an exciting debut from Garmus! Very good book. 4.5/5 stars
6/5: Still Life (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache #1) by Louise Penny (library, 2007) - A reread of a book I've read before and I stand by my "meh" review. I want to read Louise Penny like everyone else, but I guess she's just not for me. 3/5 stars
6/6: One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston (library ebook, 2021) - Too long. Fine, but not great. 3/5 stars
6/8: Accidentally Engaged by Farah Heron (library ebook, 2021) - Not my type of romance. 2.5/3 stars
6/10: When She Woke by Hillary Jordan (library ebook, 2011) - Dystopian novel in which felons are "chromed" - their skin is altered to a different color - instead of imprisoned. Hannah is a Red because she had an abortion. I have relatively few thoughts about this novel except that the pro-religious stance was too overt for the likes of me. Interesting concept, though. 2.5/5 stars
6/15: A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher (library ebook, 2020) - Funny, smart. I liked it a whole lot. 5/5 stars
6/17: Take a Chance with Me (The O'Callaghan's #5) by Kristen Proby (Kindle purchase, 2022) - I am a big Proby fan, but this book was one of the most generic, boring romance novels I've read in a long, long time. Disappointing. 2/5 stars
6/24: Dark Lover (Black Dagger Brotherhood #1) by JR Ward (library, 2005) - A reread for book club. This went over surprisingly well with my book club members - everyone thought the worldbuilding was interesting and surprising. It's not the best book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, but a solid start. 4/5 stars
6/27: When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen (library, 2021) - An interesting debut about what happens when a black woman returns to her hometown after a decade away to go to a wedding at a plantation. The creepy atmosphere was a particular strength. 3.5/5 stars
Average star rating: 3.6/5 stars
Did Not Finish:
The Road Trip by Beth O'Leary - I really loved The Switch and The Flatshare by this author, but The Road Trip was practically unreadable to me. All of the characters were mean, they weren't talking about what needed talking about, and I found reading it to be an incredibly frustrating experience. DNF at 45%.
We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry - There are a lot of players on a lacrosse team and the book starts at a lacrosse camp with multiple teams and there were so many characters and I was so confused and I actively started to avoid the book. DNF at page 30 or so.
Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon - I knew this was probably not going to work for me when the author's note mentioned rape and genocide and I was one chapter in and there had been domestic violence and attempted murder. The name should have been a tip-off that this was maybe not the right book for me. DNF after the first chapter.
I Feel Bad About My Neck by Nora Ephron - I know this is supposed to be humorous, but it actually just made me feel bad about aging. DNF after the first two essays.
Crosstalk by Connie Willis - This was like an incredibly confusing episode of Black Mirror and it was clear I was not a patient enough audience to get to the meat of the story. DNF at 8%.