June Monthly Reading Wrap-Up

Write Off the Rails

Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: June 2023

Hey, everyone! Here we go again for month #4 of the Monthly Reading Wrap-Up. Here’s some of the cool things we read this month. Be sure to tell us if you see any of your favorite reads, something on the never-ending To-Be-Read list, or if you know of a comparable title we might enjoy. Thanks again for reading! Write on.

Kristin:

I have been so excited to talk about this month’s books! Poor Kamryn has been getting an earful and they’re both featuring BL (happy pride y’all!). To start off, I read They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera. Y’all, that book is such a journey and I mean that in the best way. Obviously given the title, it’s not the most light-hearted book. The two male protagonists receive a call from Death Cast informing them sometime within the next twenty-four hours they will meet their untimely demise. Wild. Which means the entire novel takes place within that twenty-four hour time period, making every minute in the story count. The two main characters were so vastly different from the other that I was very intrigued how their relationship would progress throughout the story. Mateo is a sweet soul always too scared to step out into the world while Rufus (also these names are top-notch) is more of the tougher-type with a not-so clean past.

I love the way the two actively work on the other’s flaws. They challenge each other while also getting along in a way that feels so natural. With each happy moment shared there’s also a bittersweet feeling knowing their time is short. I also love the unique use of character perspectives and side characters in general. Each one serves a purpose and sometimes that purpose isn’t known until further along in the story, connecting all the dots into a nice little bow. I love the use of consequences, both good and bad. It’s a reminder that our choices affect others, which in turn affects how they act and respond. It shouldn’t be a spoiler that the book doesn’t have a happy ending (it’s literally the title) but that doesn’t mean that there weren’t plenty of happy moments.

This book dabbles with both platonic and romantic love. And surprisingly, the romantic aspects did not feel rushed, given the context of the story and fit well into the theme. It was sad because they knew if they had more time, they could do so much more but that was also the beauty of it. We only have so much time to live, and we don’t get a courtesy call when our time is up. Don’t let the darker themes scare you, this book has plenty of lighthearted moments that will have you smiling ear-to-ear. I highly recommend it.

Next, I read Heaven Official’s Blessing Vol 1 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu. I just discovered this series a few days ago and I am HOOKED. So this light novel is xianxia, which is a Chinese fantasy novel that has been translated to English. I did watch the on-screen adaptation first and then quickly jumped to get the novels to see what happens next. This novel follows a fallen god, Xie Lian, who has gone from the most beloved god to the biggest laughing stock and even banished twice. His third ascension causes quite a number of problems for the other gods and he’s forced into the Mortal Realm to work on paying off his debt in the form of apprehending troublesome spirits. There, he meets San Lang, a charming traveler with a few secrets up his sleeves.

If you are a fantasy lover, this book has very well-developed world building and tons of unique characters. This book is one of seven with an eighth and final book coming soon so this book really is just the tip of the iceberg but I really enjoyed every bit of it so far.

Xie Lian is such a unique main character in the sense that you’re always wondering more and more about his past and his banishment, but ultimately he’s just a kind soul who wants to do good things and for people to love and accept him. But he’s clumsy, makes mistakes, and at times trying too hard to be good. All very relatable things but not something we would expect from a “god” figure. I’m excited to learn more of his past and see what he does next.

If you are into the morally gray, tall-dark-and-handsome, who-did-this-to-you sort of vibe, you will absolutely adore San Lang (think Rhysand from ACOTAR). You know right away that he’s not who he says he is and thankfully Xie Lian isn’t clueless about it either. But, while gives off quite the scary, powerful and sketchy aura, his treatment of Xie Lian is nothing but soft and adoring. This series is a slow-burn so their relationship will develop more through time but their moments in this book were filled with tooth-rotting sweetness.

Also, I was very surprised with the amount of humor in the novel. Even though it does have some dark themes, there were plenty of silly moments to lighten the mood. Not to mention, Xie Lian’s inner monologue is hilarious and full of sass. It’s a refreshing balance for a character depicted as good and sweet that I don’t always see with that type of character. Overall, I’m so excited for the rest of the series (and I do have seven of them!)

Kamryn:

For me, I got through two books this month, finishing out the Beautiful Creatures series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl with the concluding novels: Beautiful Chaos and Beautiful Redemption. As I went into detail about this series in last month’s wrap-up and don’t want to spoil it for anyone out there who wants to read these books in the future, I won’t go super in-depth regarding the plot, so I’ll brag on the series in a more general way.

Beautiful Creatures on its own would be an excellent stand-alone novel, but one thing I found this series did really well was constantly reinvent itself while staying true to the original story. In my opinion, a lot of the stories that are able to pull off having a successful series are ones that stick to the same basic format of the first book, but then continue to up the stakes more and more with each subsequent novel. With each novel in the series, you have the main plotline regarding Ethan Wate (the main character) and what’s immediately happening to him, as well as a series of flashbacks focusing on other characters that helped contribute to the current situation. With each book, the flashbacks in the past storyline switch onto different characters and the roles they’ve played, so you’re always getting a fresh perspective and new information to feed into the intrigue the world of Beautiful Creatures does so well. I especially love it when stories present you a character, then completely change how you see them- something I thought the third book, Beautiful Chaos, was great at, especially regarding Lena and Sarafine.

As the story goes on, each new book feeds directly off the events of the prior one, which typically leave a mess. I like that nothing in the story ever gets resolved easily or that fixing one thing always leads to a bigger mess for the characters, despite all their magic and determination.

Okay, I’ll stop rambling now about how good these books are. If you love magic, humor, romance, and some crazy Southern people, then definitely go read this series. I’m super glad I decided to revisit the books.