august wrap up

I feel like this month was pretty successful so let's just dive in!

The Island
First up, I read The Island by M.A Bennett which I gave 3 stars. Overall, this was an enjoyable read but what let it down for me was just how predictable I found it. That being said, as with the author's previous novel, S.T.A.G.S, there's something about it I'm drawn too. I feel like I can't rank this author with other books. It doesn't make sense to me but it's like I just sense something special about this author and I KNOW there is a crazy spectacular 4 or 5 star read waiting to come from them which is why I can't rate these ones as high? I have no idea what I'm on about either. 

All the Ever Afters
This sort of Cinderall Retelling was a surprising 4 star read for me! This retelling isn't so much Cinderella's story as it is her stepmothers. We follow her from childhood to adulthood and in many ways I sympathised with her. The story telling or perhaps the setting reminded me a lot of Gregory Maguire's Wicked, which we all know I adore, so perhaps that's why I gave it such a high rating, but I thoroughly enjoyed it- more so than I thought I would, having picked it up at YALC on impulse.

Gumiho (Wicked Fox)
This is one of those books everyone's been talking about but it's one of the few hyped books I understand. Again, I bought this on impulse at YALC and really wasn't expecting to love it but I gave it 4 stars. It truly surprised me. I'm not big on fantasy but with this being urban and mythology based it was easier to digest and overall I just found it engaging and fast paced. I'm not sure if there's a sequel (I think there will be) but I probably won't read it, just because I'm not super character driven so there's often not much reason for me to keep going with series but I would highly recommend this tale of a girl who happens to be a nine tailed fox that eats men!

The Wrong Side of Kai
You all know this was five stars and I loved it but just incase, I'll link my review. Vanessa Murphy isn't into committed relationships so when current fling Harrison suggests taking things more seriously, she calls it off only for the next day an explicit video of her hooking up with Harrison to be leaked. Enter Kai Washington, new boy at school who wants to team up and exact revenge on Harrison for something Vanessa doesn't know what. There's a lot of pranks and definitely some romance.

Outside
I only gave Outside 3 stars as I didn't find myself fully captivated. It was a good read and I liked it but I just wasn't blown away. The "reveal" at the end felt really anticlimactic in a way and Ezra-Dad didn't really feel all that believable in his actions. 
I would recommend this for sure, its just not one I see myself screaming about from the rooftops.

The Black Coats
I wasn't sure what to rate this book but in the end settled on 4 stars. I didn't know what to expect going into this - a tale of a secret feminist society of women exacting revenge on those who do wrong by women - but overall it was enjoyable and I'd definitely recommend it. 

The Strange Fascinations of Noah Hypnotik
I buddy read this book with my friend Joe who unfortunately did not like this book. I, on the other hand, found it to be exactly my kind of weird, kinda confusing read. I really don't want to give anything away - I just say give it a go! Officially, this has a 4.75 rating but could easily have went up to 5 but I think for now we'll keep it on 4 on goodreads. 

Letting Go
This short Barrington Stoke novella gets 4 stars from me. It was quick and easy to read (kind of the aim of these books) and the story was interesting. Without giving much away, it involves a girl having to follow through on a promise she made to her girlfriend at a funeral... now that girlfriend is her ex and she has to make good on the promise with the ex's new boyfriend in tow!

​Wilder Girls
This was a 4 star read, just falling short of the coveted 5 stars. This falls into the "creepy, dark, kinda weird" category that I just adore and I found this book really interesting. It's also set in a boarding school which gives it bonus points. 

And that's that. Sorry some of my descriptions are vague but you know what I'm like with spoilers and also just retaining info in general...

​Emma x