July Wrap Up!

Another ridiculously busy month means I have read less books than usual, but still managed to read 8, so not too bad. Hopefully will manage to read more next month. But below you can check out the mini reviews of the ones that I did manage to read.

1. The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige A good follow up up from the first in the series, Dorothy Must Die, not quite as gripping, but read this really quickly. Danielle also still managed to keep the originality of the story going and not once did I figure out what was going to happen. Looking forward to the third part in the story. 2. The Heavenly Italian Ice Cream Shop by Abby Clements This super quick read follows up from Vivien's Heavenly Ice Cream Shop. This was a really enjoyable read that had me yearning for Summer at the time I read it. Be warned, you will want to read loads of Ice Cream after this! 3. Frank Derrick's Holiday of a Lifetime by J.B. Morrison I first met Frank in The Extra Ordinary Life of Frank Derrick, Age 81 and to be perfectly honest fell in love with his character. When I heard there was a second book coming out, I could not wait to read and meet Frank again. I thoroughly enjoyed this, I love Frank's dry sense of humour and how J.B. Morrison manages to turn what is axsn ordinary octogenarian into someone you end up having so much endearment for.  I really hope there is a third book!

4. I Followed the Rules by Joanna Bolouri  This book gets top marks from me for making me see the funny side of life again. I whizzed through this brilliant story. It has one of the best female characters in fiction who writes a fantastic column for a newspaper to amuse her readers and this time she is following The Rules of Engagement to help her find a man. Cat thinks these rules are laughable, but as a journalist she intends to follow them for her readers. What ensues is a very funny and surprising account on her 'quest' for love. 5. The Hunt by Tim J. Lebbon I was so excited when I got a personalised proof of this and it was dubbed thriller of the year. I understandably could not wait to get stuck in. Unfortunately, this fell a little flat for me. Yes it was original and in real life circumstances, I would not survive, but I just could not get my head around the concept. I did start to get into it in the second half though, and definitely think others will enjoy it. 6. The Potion Diaries by Amy Alward I had been waiting for this book to be published for ages, so as soon as I got my hands on a copy, I started straight away. This was another brilliantly original young adult book. This definitely was my favourite book cover in July, it just looks gorgeous. I adored this fantastically magical book that reminded me slightly of Harry Potter. Love books that have anything to do with magic in them and am thrilled that there is a second book coming out next year.  7. Fishbowl by Bradley Somer I am constantly impressed with the amount of truly original stories that have come out this year, and Fishbowl was no exception. Fishbowl tells the story of Ian the Goldfish and what he sees as he plummets 27 floors down of the Seville on Roxy apartments. We get to learn so much about the residents there as Ian makes his descent and they have to be the most eclectic set of characters I have ever come across in one book. This was a wonderfully quirky novel that I think loads of people will enjoy. 8. Fairytale Beginnings by Holly Martin Another absolutely beautiful cover! Fairytale Beginnings was a really cute read full of of course fairytales, which is another aspect I love in fiction. Not only was this set in a castle, it had all the things that go with it; ghosts, a curse, missing treasure, true love and a villain. I sighed with contentment at so much of this. I cannot deny myself a good fairytale story and Holly delivered here. The Disney references did not go amiss and I would happily watch this if it ever became a film.