It’s time for a look at my June reading life!
It’s time for another wrap-up/haul post — and some fun stats!
What I read:
(each title link will direct you to my review for more thoughts!)
emoji key:
✨ review copy → 💞 buddy/group read → 🔁 re-read → 🎧 audiobook → 🍰 graphic novel/manga
🫙 TBR jar → 🗓️ 2022 TBR → 🌻 seasonal TBR → 😻 Devour Your TBR
💫 half-star
- Grown // Tiffany D. Jackson: ✨🫙🌻 + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → Phenomenal, heartbreaking, and so gorgeously written.
- Furiously Happy // Jenny Lawson: 🎧 + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → This was hilarious and shockingly deep. I related SO much to Jenny.
- Her Soul for Revenge // Harley Laroux: 💞 + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → I might have loved this just as much, or even a little more, than the first book! (buddy read with Malli ♥)
- Dustborn // Erin Bowman: ✨🎧🫙 + ⭐⭐⭐ → A stand-alone that vastly suffered from not being written as a duology. 🙁
- Sleeping Giants // Sylvain Neuvel: 💞 + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → Not what I expected, but INCREDIBLE! (buddy read with Misty ♥)
- The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester // Maya MacGregor: ✨💞 + ⭐⭐💫 → Such a disappointment. 😭 (buddy read with Malli ♥)
- The Visible Filth // Nathan Ballingrud: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ → I’ve owned this forever and finally read it! It was pretty solid.
- Sundial // Catriona Ward: ✨💞 + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → One of the best books I’ve read all year, hands down. (buddy read with Ashley ♥)
- My Best Friend’s Exorcism // Grady Hendrix: 💞🗓️ + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → I’m so happy I finally read this, and had so much fun with it. (buddy read with Kay ♥)
- Three Days in the Pink Tower // E.V. Knight: ✨ + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → A very heavy, difficult read that was so rewarding. I’m so proud of the author for taking back her power this way.
- The Clown Hunt // Judith Sonnet: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ → Soooo fucked up and fun.
- Mapping the Interior // Stephen Graham Jones: 🫙 + ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ → I love SGJ’s particular specific brand of gorgeous, haunting, tragic horror.
And now, for some of my favorite recent hauls:
June was a VERY good haul month! 👀
- Lost in the Moment and Found // Seanan McGuire (eARC; adult fantasy)
- The Mysteries of Thorn Manor // Margaret Rogerson (eARC; YA fantasy)
- We Are Here to Hurt Each Other // Paula D. Ashe (purchase; adult horror)
- The Violence // Delilah S. Dawson (purchase; adult horror)
- Ghost Hunters Adventure Club and the Express Train to Nowhere // Cecil H.H. Mills (purchase; YA mystery/humor)
- For the Throne // Hannah F. Whitten (purchase; adult fantasy)
- #thighgap // Chandler Morrison (ARC; adult horror)
- Stargazers // L.P. Hernandez (ARC; adult horror; READ)
- Blood Country // Jonathan Janz (eARC; adult horror)
- A Marvellous Light // Freya Marske (gift; adult fantasy; thank you, Dini! ♥)
- 40-Love // Olivia Dade (gift; adult romance; thank you, Leslie! ♥)
- When the Reckoning Comes // LaTanya McQueen (purchase; adult horror)
- I’ll Be Gone in the Dark // Michelle McNamara (purchase; adult nonfiction/true crime)
- Waking Gods // Sylvain Neuvel (purchase; adult sci-fi)
- The Dead Romantics // Ashley Poston (audio review copy; adult romance; READ)
- Mary: An Awakening of Terror // Nat Cassidy (eARC; adult horror)
And finally, a little life update:
June went by in such a blur, but then again, doesn’t every month lately? My son turned 6 in June, so I may have had a little bit of an existential crisis over him getting a year older, but for the most part, it was a really good month. I read more than I had in a while (and enjoyed nearly everything I read!), caught up on a ton of reviews and blog posts, finally got my ADHD and anxiety to work nicely with audiobooks again (I missed them so much over the past couple of years!), and, of course, had lots of family time and kitten snuggles. ♥ Sorry for the brief update, but it was overall a mostly calm, quiet, peaceful month and it was really nice!
How was your month? What was your favorite book you read or hauled, or what was something nice that happened in your life?
— destiny ♥
Jordyn @ Birdie's Book Nook
July 12, 2022You hauled SO many books last month! I’m in awe! I can’t wait for you to read A Marvellous Light as that is (so far) one of my favorite reads this year! Great wrap up, and happy belated birthday to your son!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 14, 2022I did! 😅 I hadn’t hauled that many in quite a while. It was exciting! And thank you! ♥
Teri Polen
July 12, 2022Ooohhhh – you read some good ones. Looks like we’ve got the nearly the same taste in reading!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 14, 2022It was a good reading month! 🙂 Awesome, it’s always nice to find another reader I have a lot in common with! ♥
Tammy
July 12, 2022Ooh The Violence! It’s so good😁
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 14, 2022It sounds incredible and I think I got it for $2 or $3 on kindle sale! Gotta love those. 😀 So glad you enjoyed it!
ChapterMalliumpkin
July 14, 2022Your haul looks amazing! ♥ Plus, we’ll have some good buddy reads for this month, hopefully! Also, we stan SGJ and I’m so glad you loved Mapping the Interior!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 14, 2022Thank you! I’m so excited and I hope our buddy reads go well! I’m only about 20% into our current buddy read but really enjoying it so much at this point. I hope you’ve been enjoying it and I’m looking forward to discussing it all soon!
frayedbooks
July 14, 2022It sounds like you had such a good reading month, thats so awesome!!
And I see you hauling Waking Gods – I can’t wait for you to read more in the Themis Files series!!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 14, 2022Thank you!! I am SO excited to continue the Themis Files series. I literally ordered the 2nd book about 5 minutes after I finished the 1st one! 😂 It was THAT good!!
frayedbooks
July 17, 2022YESSSSS I know that feeling, and I agree, because I thought Sleeping Giants was just that good too!!!! One of my favorite series 🙂 <3
Caro @ bookcheshirecat
July 15, 2022Sorry to see that you were disappointed by The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester 😭 It’s great that you had such a high average rating though! Very hyped for Lost in the Moment and Found!! 🥰
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 15, 2022Thank you! I know, I was so bummed 😭 but I’m so glad it worked better for you and so many other people!!
dinipandareads
July 15, 2022Awesome monthly wrap up, Destiny! It looks like you had a pretty fantastic reading month in June—look at all those five stars 😍 Ngl, I’m a little jealous, haha! I’m so glad to see that Grown, Furiously Happy were two of them because they’re on my TBR and I can’t wait to read them. Mapping the Interior also has such a stunning cover and although I’m not really a horror reader, its’ piqued my curiosity! Might have to check out what it’s about 👀 I hope you have an amazing July and enjoy all the books!
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 15, 2022Thank you so much! I don’t think I’ve EVER had such a high average rating in a month and it was such a good feeling! 😍 hehe sending you all the good vibes for such a highly rated reading month soon, too! Grown and Furiously Happy were both SO good, oh my gosh. I can’t recommend them highly enough. 🥰 thank you, friend! Happy reading!
Kit @ Metaphors and Moonlight
July 17, 2022Wow, you had a great reading month to find so many 5 star books! I loved A Marvellous Light, have you read it yet??
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 19, 2022I haven’t yet, but I’m so excited to pick it up! I’m glad you loved it!
Sarah
July 17, 2022that average rating, though!!! i’m so glad you enjoyed so many reads in june. 🙂
Destiny @ Howling Libraries
July 19, 2022Isn’t it the BEST?! 😀 Thank you friend ♥