August Book Haul!

Another month has come and gone which, of course, means that it is time for another book haul! Once a month I am going to recap some of the books I got the previous month! I will be sharing with you some of the highlights of the books that I found in my ongoing Little Free Library hunts, my Goodwill/thrift store trips, any Barnes & Noble visits, and any books that I receive from authors and publishers!

Amazon Wishlist Splurges

I bought two books this month off of Amazon, using a gift card that I had.

Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Romance

First Son Alex Claremont-Diaz is the closest thing to a prince this side of the Atlantic. With his intrepid sister and the Veep’s genius granddaughter, they’re the White House Trio, a beautiful millennial marketing strategy for his mother, President Ellen Claremont. International socialite duties do have downsides—namely, when photos of a confrontation with his longtime nemesis Prince Henry at a royal wedding leak to the tabloids and threaten American/British relations. The plan for damage control: staging a fake friendship between the First Son and the Prince.

As President Claremont kicks off her reelection bid, Alex finds himself hurtling into a secret relationship with Henry that could derail the campaign and upend two nations. What is worth the sacrifice? How do you do all the good you can do? And, most importantly, how will history remember you?

This book is beloved online and I have been putting off buying it since I have so many books on my shelf already. Amazon Prime released a film adaptation of this book last week and I have seen so many people talking about it since! I am easily influenced when it comes to books, you probably already know that by now, and couldn't resist picking this one up. I'm looking forward to seeing what all the hype is about!

Suddenly a Murder by Lauren Muñoz

Mystery/Young Adult

Someone brought a knife to the party.

To celebrate the end of high school, Izzy Morales joins her ride-or-die Kassidy and five friends on a 1920s-themed getaway at the glamorous Ashwood Manor. There, Izzy and her friends party in vintage dresses and expensive diamonds--until Kassidy's boyfriend turns up dead.

Murdered, investigators declare when they arrive at the scene, and now every party guest is a suspect. There's the girlfriend, in love. The other girl, in despair. The old friend, forlorn. The new friend, distressed. The brooding enigma. And then, there's Izzy--the girl who brought the knife.

To find the killer, everyone must undergo a grueling interrogation, all while locked in an estate where, suddenly, the greatest luxury is innocence.

I have missed the last couple of book club picks because I have been busy/haven't been reading as much as usual. When they suggested this book, I quickly went to Amazon and added this one to my cart! Its supposed to be delivered this weekend, which will give me plenty of time to read it before our next meeting. I am really looking forward to reading this one--a mystery will be perfect for fall.

Little Free Library Finds I didn't have the opportunity to go on any Little Free Library Hunts (or to any library sales) this month. I spent my birthday in Las Vegas and came home to start the summer semester of my Masters Program--hopefully I will have some more time soon to get back to LFL hunting!

Gifted books from Publishers

While I have had quite a few authors reach out to send me their books for review, I have recently started receiving recent (or advanced) releases directly from authors/publishers.

Here in the Dark by Alexis Soloski

Thriller

Vivian Parry likes the dark. A former actress, she now works as the junior theater critic at a major Manhattan magazine. Her nights are spent beyond the lights, in a reserved seat, giving herself over to the shows she loves. By day, she savages them, with words sharper than a knife.

Angling for a promotion, she reluctantly agrees to an interview, a conversation that reveals secrets she thought she had long since buried. Then her interviewer disappears and she learns―from his devastated fiancée―that she was the last person to have seen him alive. When the police refuse to investigate, Vivian does what she promised herself she would never do again: she plays a part. Assuming the role of amateur detective, she turns her critical gaze toward an unsanitary private eye, a sketchy internet startup, a threatening financier, fake blood, and one very real corpse. As she nears the final act, she finds that the boundaries between theater and the real world are more tenuous and more dangerous than even she could have believed. . .

You know that I consider myself to be a thriller connoisseur and that makes getting a thriller in the mail so exciting. I also like that the author is actually a theater critic, I will be interested to see how her personal experiences translate into this book. Thank you to the author and Flatiron Books for the gifted copy! This one is 12/5!

Living My Best Life, Hun: Following Your Dreams Is No Joke by London Hughes

Non-Fiction/Memoir

London Hughes has come a long way from secretly writing Frasier fan fiction alone in her bedroom. Between her breakout Netflix comedy special, her dating podcast “London, Actually,” and her award-winning TV performances, London the South Londoner has taken the entertainment world by storm. And now, in this sassy, brash, fearless, and funny memoir, London is ready to inspire women of all ages and races with her story—because London is absolutely the best person in the whole wide world to take you on a wild journey of self-discovery. As she herself puts “I’ve always been funny. I’ve always been cute. I’ve always been confident. I was born to do this shit.”

All her life, London longed to be a badass—an awesome bullet-proof woman who nobody could mess with. At a young age, she made sure she was ready to become a star, developing her own living-room popstar training regimen to prepare for her future life. But London also had her fair share of disastrous experiences in terms of friendships, relationships, and career choices. Each of the fiascos in London’s life has, with hindsight, proved to be a formative life lesson, and helped her grow into the fearless person she is today. You'll definitely be grateful these setbacks happened to her and not you , but you'll also learn that however bad things get, you can always build your self-worth, think long-term, and emerge triumphant, no matter what the world throws at you.

London leaves no stone unturned in Living My Best Life, Hun . It took London some time to find her voice and her people, but now that she has, she's mentally high-fiving her 14-year-old self every day.

As someone who is always striving to 'live their best life', I think I'll love this one. Thank you to the author and to Grand Central Publishing for sending me an early copy of this book--they always spoil me! This book will be OUT 09/05!

It has been a good month for book hauls, I hope you have enjoyed recapping some of my recent finds with me!

As always, thank you for reading! XO, Madison