Stacking The Shelves: June + July Edition

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tyga's Reviews, but I've tweaked it a little to adapt to my own blog. The reason why I've changed it a little is because I usually do monthly hauls as opposed to weekly ones, so I figured I'd just change the name. So yes, without further ado, here are the books I bought in the months of June and July! 

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In The Shadow of Blackbirds - Cat Winters

Plot:

Mary Shelley Black has always led a rational and logical life. At 16, she is sent to live with her aunty, after the Influenza spreads throughout America. She doesn't buy into all the craze of spiritual photos and seances after the constant deaths, but one day Mary wakes up to a boy lying next to her. A boy she knows is dead.

Review:

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Gilt - Katherine Longshore

Plot:

Kitty Tylney and Catherine Howard are joint to the hip, both growing up with a group of girls who dream of joining court. Then Cat does it, she worms her way in and Kitty follows suit. They're both thrusted into the central workings of court but Kitty discovers it's might be too late to escape after falling in too deep.

Review:

Gilt had me hooked right from the start, although I can't really pinpoint why. It might be because the pacing was done just right and the writing was easy to read. It was straight to the point, compact and engaging. Longshore builds on the Tudor world with elements of scandal and passion, both factors that aren't new to historical fiction, but one of the many reasons why I actually like this genre. I know it's not historically accurate, but it's such a fun way to explore history and its characters.

What I liked most were the bigger issues of friendship and loyalty, and self-interests. Kitty constantly had to question her loyalties and if her priorities were where they should be. It opens up to whether being best friends with someone justifies the actions that they commit and what you do to help them. Or do you step in and try to prevent them from doing what they shouldn't be doing? It's the whole matter of whether you have to put your self-interest first or protect those you care about the most.

Kitty, as a character, is definitely likeable. She's smart, strong willed and knows her worth. Her only fault, really, is being friends with Cat and having to be dragged into the courts happenings. Cat is a character that, from what I've read about her, isn't portrayed  in a great light. She's ambitious and attractive, but only uses her head to achieve what she needs without thinking of the consequences. I didn't particularly like any of the other characters, finding none of them quite memorable. It was only the shadier characters that drew out stronger emotions from me.

I flew through Gilt in a few hours and loved every moment of it. Since then I've bought Longshore's other novel and am so excited to read it. I definitely recommend it, especially if you love historical fiction. It was more the writing and the plot that boosted the novel, with the characters being pretty one-sided, but that's not noticeable whilst reading it.

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The Waiting List

The Waiting List is a new feature hosted by PrintedWordsAnd (me), where I list some upcoming releases for the month that I'm most excited about! It's not an original idea, but I'm hoping it'll be useful guide for you guys.

(Links to Goodreads via images and titles)

YA Sequels

1. Opposition (Lux #5) by Jennifer Almentrout - 5th August

2. Isla and the Happily Every After (Anna and the French Kiss #3) by Stephanie Perkins - 14th August
One of the most raved about series, this final novel draws out the story of Isla and Josh who come to the quick realisation that happily ever afters may not really exist.
I still haven't ventured into this series yet, but I'm very tempted with all the hype around it. 

3. The Revenge of Seven (Lorien Legacies #5) by Pittacus Lore - 26th August

4. Yolo (Internet Girls #4) by Lauren Myracle - 26th August

Out of the series listed I've actually only read Internet Girls by Laruen Myracle, and really did like it. It might seem silly, but the format and the content is cute and funny. I do remember reading it in high school so I might revisit this series for nostalgic reasons. 

Mystery

1. Dangerous Boys by Abigail Haas - 14th August 

A thriller about three teens who enter a building one night, but only two come out alive. Questions are asked and Chloe has all the answers yet, can't seem to unlock them. 

I love a good mystery and this just sounds like the perfect one. 

Zoe who co-writes on Deadly Darlings listed this as her favourite read last month; read her review here!

Fantasy

1. Gates of Thread and Stone by Lori M. Lee - 5th August

2. Percy Jackson and the Greek Gods by Rick Riordan - 19th August

A companion novel to the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, Rick Riordan brings back Percy Jackson to recount the origins of Olympus and the gods. 

I am so pumped for this because 1) I love Greek mythology and 2) the Percy Jackson series is simply amazing. 

Horror/Paranormal

1. Of Metal and Wishes by Sarah Fine - 5th August

Wren is horrified at herself after making a deadly wish only to have the Ghost who haunts the medical clinic grant it. She soon learns that there are more things to fear, including the fact that the Ghost has watched over her for a very long time. 

I completely freaked out after realising that this is a modern take on The Phantom of Opera, one of my favourites musicals ever! Definitely on my TBR list this month.

2. The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco - 5th August

3. Into the Grey by Celine Kiernan - 26th August

After the fire, two boys realise they draw the attention of a ghost who seem to think he has found home with them.

Just how creepy does it sound to have a ghost target you for a person they think is familiar/want to be with. 

Sci-Fi

1. The Islands at the End of the World by Austin Aslan - 5th August

2. Lock In by John Scalzi - 26th August

Fifteen years on and a virus has spread across the globe. Of the 95% afflicted, 1% are diagnosed as "locked in" - awake and aware but paralysed. Before these people are deemed useless, two new technologies emerge, both depending on virtual reality. The use is regulated and licensed, but it's impossible to not lure others to abuse it. 

I'm not a massive fan of sci-fi but this one just seems like one of the best concepts of this genre. I think I'm going to get sucked in, especially because it involves a lot of social justice issues.

Historical Fiction

1. The King's Curse (The Cousins War #6) by Philippa Gregory - 14th August

Margaret Pole, cousin to Elizabeth of York, finds herself in the company of Arthur, prince of Wales, and his bride Katherine of Aragon. She becomes the chief lady-in-waiting after Katherine becomes Queen, but faces the challenges of court, whilst struggling to hide her identity.

This is by far my most anticipated novel for this month, following the era between The Lancasters and the Yorks. Gregory writes fascinating historical fiction and this series has been excellent so far. I am so excited for the finale and love the fact that it ties into the Tudor period.

Contemporary

1. I Love I Hate I Miss My Sister by Amelie Sarn, Y. Maudet  - 5th August

2. Two Girls Staring at the Ceiling by Lucy Frank - 5th August

Written in verse, two girls meet in a hospital ward and find themselves easing into a surprising friendship. 

I feel drawn to this novel only because I think it will be a beautiful and heartwarming read, whilst wringing out some emotions from me as well. Very high expectations here.

3. A Little Something Different by Sandy Hall - 26th August

4. Play Me Backwards by Adam Selzer - 26th August

Leon Harris is a sloth, slack and unmotivated, until he hears that his middle school girlfriend is returning home. He takes on advice from his best friend Stan, who claims to be Satan, but soon begins to think that maybe he shouldn't have agreed to hand over his soul after all.

I can already tell that this will be humorous and witty (well hopefully anyways). I'm ready for a good laugh out loud contemporary to get ready for Spring to come.

This is my waiting list for August, what's yours?

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July Wrap Up

Well this month has definitely been something. I'd have to say July marks such a big step forward in what I've been doing. In terms of my personal life I've been on holidays, which I thought meant more reading time, but amazingly I was kept busy with work and just catching up with friends. Still, I had a refreshing rest, managed to meet some amazing people via work and had a great time with the girls.
I participated in two read-a-thons this month.

1. #AYearAThon - (where I read books according to a topic, starting and ending on the first week of the month). This month's topic was Classics, which was a great chance for me to get into the genre I have neglected since graduating. 
2. Booktubeathon - hosted by Ariel Bisset on YouTube, this is a week long read-a-thon whereby booktubers get the chance to just read together. My wrap up for that can be watched below:

I also hit a millstone! PrintedWordsAnd reached its 2nd year of existence! It was never something I foresaw coming, but here I am 2 years down the track and loving the fact that I can discuss books and readings with so many people in the world. To celebrate I'm hosting a giveaway, which ends in a week so go and enter! The anniversary also meant a revamp to the appearance and some new features. Let me know what you think! 

Books Read:

Favourites:

  

Reviews:

Discussions:

I talk Fifty Shades of Grey's official trailer in Page to Screen.

Challenges:

2014 Reading Challenge: 74/80

BBC 100 Books To Read (Before You Die): 10/100

So that's my month of July done and dusted. How'd you go?

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