We’ve already reached June 16! This month is really flying by. We’re now only a week away from my birthday! My daughter has finished her last week of the school year, and I just bought a car over the weekend. I’m not sure how I found any reading time, but I did. This week I got to an advance reader copy (ARC) of a book that will be coming out in about a week and a half, followed by a nonfiction title on a subject I’m passionate about. Here’s the full recap.

1. Wildfire – Deb Ellen

CW: Grief, Death of Parent, Neglect, Graphic Descriptions of Violence & Injuries, Gaslighting, Graphic Sexual Content, Torture, Confinement, Fire & Burn Injuries, Toxic Relationship, Age Gap Romance, War, Child Death, Vomit, Gore, SA, Memory Loss

A big thank you to The Nerd Fam for the eARC! This one will be coming out on June 28th. It’s currently available for pre-order through several different UK retailers.

Summary:

Evie has never felt like she’s fit in anywhere. It didn’t matter how many far-flung places her parents moved the family to while she was growing up. Nowhere felt like home, and her younger brother Will was her only friend. When she takes off after turning 18, she’s hopeful she’ll start to grow roots. Instead, her life only grows more chaotic after Will and her parents are attacked and Will is the only one to make it out alive.

From there, he develops magical powers and when she dreams, Evie is transported to another dimension where those who killed her parents try to eliminate her too. This happens night after night until one night, Kit is there too. He’s a stranger who feels awfully familiar. However, Evie is sure she would remember such an attractive man with the ability to shapeshift into a fox. What matters is that he’s willing to help keep her and her brother safe, and he has the answers to their most burning questions. In return, they’ll need to trust him and follow him through a portal to another world.

My Thoughts:

I was drawn to this one because of its synopsis, but I didn’t connect with it as thoroughly as I’d hoped to. Largely, this was because the book itself seemed uncertain of what it was trying to do. It wasn’t until halfway through the book that the plot started to take notable shape. Before that point, the focus is on who Evie is and the budding attraction between her and Kit, which did not land right for me.

Although the spicy scenes were well-executed, they did not feel like they fit. For one, I never got the sense that the pair actually liked each other. Truth be told, they both exhibit a number of behaviors that do make them harder to like. Additionally, there were some complicating factors in each of their histories that brought a new level of awkwardness to the trope of an age gap romance. This included the older character having a friendship with the younger one’s parents, and even referring to her and her brother as “children” at their current age. The spicy scenes would have served better outside of that context.

Excluding those scenes, I still would have liked to see more character progression and plot progression by the end. Overall, this ended up feeling like an almost-complete fantasy novel spliced together with an erotica novella. Either of those books could have made a better story with a some adjustments. There were some fun characters and political intrigue. I enjoyed a lot of the concepts within the magic system. Still, the final result was a book that I couldn’t quite get a handle on. I may try future projects from this author because I saw a lot of potential, but this particular one wasn’t for me.

2. How to Protect Bookstores and Why: The Present and Future of Bookselling – Danny Caine

CW: Discrimination, Book Bans, Consumerism (list may update next week)

Summary:

You probably have a good idea already what this one’s about from the title. It’s an exploration into what modern bookstores look like, how they contribute to their communities, the threats that they face today, and actions that the average person can take to help defend them.

My Thoughts:

If you’ve spent any time at all on my website or social media (and if you’re reading this, I know you have), then you already know I’m passionate about supporting independent bookstores. It’s why I started my video series showcasing indie bookstores around my home state. They serve vital roles in our communities, most even going above and beyond providing that crucial access to information and entertainment. If they’re going to continue to do so, they need the help of the communities they reside in.

I haven’t finished it yet, but this book is doing a great deep dive into the challenges that modern bookstores face. It covers both the obvious as well as the more subtle and nuanced. It’s also doing a great job of illustrating the variety of ways that individuals can show up for the stores nearest them. A lot of these ways are very simple and a little surprising. For example, buying a book from your local bookshop is great, but if you buy a shirt with their logo, it’s likely that the store will keep a larger percentage of the purchase price, and each time you wear it in public, the store gets more marketing.

If this is a topic that you’re also passionate about, this is a good book to pick up. I would recommend doing so at your local bookstore or through Bookshop.org who did get a shout-out in the text!

June 16 is Now in the Books

That’s my reading through June 16! Next time you get a reading recap from me will be on my birthday. I’m wishing for more books this year. Next week I’ll update you on How to Protect Bookstores and Why, and I’ve also got a bunch more ARCs on my list plus an ever-growing physical TBR from all my bookstore adventures. I plan to visit every single one in the state. Since I’m in Massachusetts, I’m lucky enough to have a lot of them. You can join in along with my partner and I in our explorations – we have a whole playlist of bookstore videos for you to check out!

Keep an eye out on my YouTube channel or the main updates page here to follow along on all my bookish adventures. My reading recaps go out on Mondays and bookstore adventure videos go out on Thursdays. Plus, there are lots of little shorts in between. As always, I want to hear from you! What have you been reading lately? Are you having fun with it? Have you read any of these titles, and if so, what did you think of them? Tell me everything, and follow along for more!