It’s the first Sunday in August, and I’m looking back at July feeling unsatisfied with my reading. I read 14 books, but somehow I still felt like I was in a reading slump.

Six of those books were ARCs, and three were from the Throne of Glass series. I also spent an entire week finishing zero books.

What I gathered from this look back is that I’m a mood reader who forced herself to do homework in July, and I didn’t like it.

The ARCs were all fine, but most were three-star reads. I’m enjoying the Throne of Glass series more than I expected, but the books are long, and I’m not even halfway through the series yet.

There were a few bright spots, though.

Violet Thistlewaite Is Not a Villain Anymore

This is what I want every cozy fantasy book to be. It had a great story, a witch looking for redemption, and a little romance. It made me laugh and kick my feet, and I just wish I knew Violet in real life.

She is so sweet and earnest and wants so badly to be a good person. I immediately requested the ARC of Prudence Marsh Is Not a Nobody Anymore because I need more of this village and its people.

The Mash Up

The Mash Up gave me Barbie movie energy mixed with middle school nostalgia.

I loved that the main character had just turned 35 instead of being in her early twenties. In her MASH world, she had a mansion, two pools, and 13 fish.

The story delivered a romance, but it also gave her a chance to reinvent herself. And who hasn’t wanted that at 35?

This one might make my list of favorite books of the year.

Good at Being Alive

Good at Being Alive begins with Bex and her family preparing to film a reality show that could save their family travel agency. Then they are tragically killed in a train wreck, leaving Bex as the only survivor.

So yes, I cried in Chapter 2.

What made the book work was watching Bex survive that loss, sell another reality show, and end up in a fake marriage. Bex and Theo had great chemistry, and they really pulled off the fake-marriage plot.

I also loved that the book dealt with heavy topics without becoming relentlessly sad. The characters still had great dialogue, chemistry, and room to have fun together.

Now I want to read some of Elizabeth O’Roark’s backlist because this book delivered everything I want from a romance novel.

So, Was It Actually a Slump?

Not exactly. I wasn’t in a reading slump. I was in a satisfaction slump. Too many books felt like obligations, and not enough of them reminded me why I love reading.

For August, my goal is less homework and more fun.

Then again, I just made a long list of books I want to read before their adaptations come out. I also still have September ARCs waiting for me.

I would love to say I’ve learned my lesson and plan to embrace my mood-reader life. Unfortunately, I am also a person with a lot of FOMO.

I will probably overcommit and hope I can still deliver. The real problem starts when reading stops feeling like something I chose. 

See you next Sunday.