What I Read: July (2023)

It’s rare that I am not reading anything. I am usually so wrapped up in a book, that I have to force myself to put it down to do literally anything else. I have always been like this, even as a child, teachers often had to tell me to put a book away and pay attention to class. I still, however, sometimes fall into reading slumps, where I pick up a book, and no matter how well it is written or how interesting the plot is, I can’t seem to fully immerse myself in the story and am almost constantly distracted.

Reading is a form of therapy for me, or at least a successful way to escape the world for a few hours, and so I always feel a spike in my anxiety when a slump hits. June was a slump for me, and I was stressed. It wasn’t about the numbers, how many books I could read, or needed to read to reach my annual Goodreads goal, but was more about a sense of concern that my usual methods to quell the voices in my head weren’t working. I started several books in June and didn’t finish a single one.

When July hit, I had had enough. I needed something to pull me out of my own head and back into the bookish world I love so very much. I needed a book that I couldn’t possibly not love. It just so happened that one of my instant-buy authors had a new book release in July, and I knew it would be the one to pull me back up.

And how well it worked.

The Only One Left by the talented Riley Sager, sucked me in so quickly and so immersible that I was no longer reading, I was IN the tilted gothic mansion so aptly named Hope’s End. I sat, curled up in bed, until the wee hours of the morning, unable to put it down until I had unfurled every single clue in the mystery. Riley Sager’s books are not new to me, I have read (I’m pretty sure) all the books he has published and have enjoyed the ride of each one. Something about The Only One Left just felt right. I was genuinely shocked, heartbroken, and breathless throughout the story, but also closed it, when finished, completely satisfied.

I have also loved thrillers, mysteries, and really suspense of any kind. The past few years, however, have kind of morphed into a thriller of sorts in the outside world; so I took a hiatus, needed comfort, not suspense. I have kept up with a few, now and then, but The Only One Left drew me right back in; reminding me that there is so much more to a good thriller than the feeling of suspense.

Riding the thriller high but not ready to jump completely into another thriller. I decided to re-read Red, White, and Royal Blue before the movie adaptation was released. Can I just tell you how much I love Alex and Henry? How much I love their emails? Their banter? Their declarations of love? This book, even on the second (third?) re-read, left me, a fully grown – thirty-year-old- married woman, giggling on the couch like a starry-eyed schoolgirl. Awash in the glow of my re-read I watched the movie that Friday night and was thoroughly pleased. The main characters, Alex and Henry, were portrayed by wonderful actors who I think really embodied their characters perfectly. I was sad to see a few of the book characters cut out (June?!?) and as a Texan, grimaced a little through Uma Thurman’s commitment to her unique take on a Texan accent. But overall really enjoyed the movie! I understand there have to be cuts and changes to a story in order to adapt it to the big screen, and I think they did a great job. Do I still like the book better? Yep. Will I rewatch the movie an embarrassing number of times over the next few months? Also, yes.

So, highlights, one excellent new release, one excellent re-read, a cute movie, and a summer reading slump, over!

P.S. I recently picked up Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall. I am about halfway through and am already OBSESSED. Will talk about it in my August Reading Wrap-Up.