Welcome to June’s Monthly Minutes at Midnight!
Here’s the deal: I’ll share the books I’ve obtained, posts of interest from others, giveaways I have happening, and just general random shenanigans. You know I love a shenanigan. Also, covers all link to Goodreads, because I am awesome. As always, I link up with the Wrap Up Round Up, too!
The Books
For Review/From Publishers:
To Break a Covenant by Alison Ames
The Splendor by Breeana Shields
Defy the Night by Brigid Kemmerer
Hugest of thanks to the publishers for these lovelies!
eARCs:
Huge thanks to the publishers for these lovelies! (SO many most-anticipated books here! And also, maybe I have a problem? ?)
Purchased:
The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo♦ A Season of Sinister Dreams by Tracy Banghart ♦ Girls at the Edge of the World by Laura Brooke Robson ♦ Daughter of Sparta by Claire M. Andrews ♦ Levitt Funko by Sonya Collections
Won/Gifted/Traded:
Nothing this month!
Shenanigans Since Last Time:
I read 13 books this month. Less than usual, but there were some really long ones in here. Most of them were quite good though!
And a miss that I will snark about soon enough.
I also finished my Goodreads goal, yay!!
Giveaways: Click Here, or on Sidebar
Blogosphere Bulletin
Here are some of the loveliest/most entertaining/super helpful/just plain interesting posts I found this month!
- Ahaana @ Windows to Worlds is starting a feature about diverse readers feeling seen (reach out to her to join in!)
- Beth @ Bethwyrm asks if you can separate the artist from the work (tbh I cannot, generally)
- Camillea @ Camillea Reads shares a Pride Month reading list
- Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction explains how to make book page art
- Nyx @ Drizzle & Hurricane Books shares YA road trip books to feed your wanderlust
- Tracy @ Cornerfolds talks about reading and writing with aphantasia
- Chana @ Paper Procrastinators discusses the flaws of Goodreads and provides alternatives
- Liliana @ Lili Lost in a Book looks at how good (or not) she is at finishing series
- Sammie @ The Bookwyrm’s Den asks why people lie about reading (good question, tbh!)
- Louise @ Monstrumology shares her least favorite tropes
- Laura @ Daydreaming Dragons discusses six magic systems she loves
Fancy & New Since Last I Saw You!
I love looking at pretty covers! So here are some new ones that I have fallen in love with since our last update!
Pretty covers are pretty.
Things we need to talk about at this juncture:
- On July 2, there is a The 100 Quiz event to raise money for Eliza’s (and Bob’s) Little Hearts Learning foundation. Zach McGowan, Chelsey Reist, Lee Majdoub, and Michael Beach are all joining the fun, and it’s for a good cause, so you know I’ll be tuning in!
- Was June any more exciting than May? Idk. I feel like… maybe a wee bit? Lena’s birthday is tomorrow, so there was a small gathering for her last weekend. Here, have some pictures!
The Splendor sounds awesome, though I guess there’ll be romance in it…and it’s not something I do LOL.
Happy belated birthday Lena! And seriously, I can’t tell mother from daughter ?.
Bwhahah I honestly have no idea because I never read synopses whoops ? And awww thank you so much!! She is loving all the birthday wishes!
You…don’t??? Never once??? ? LOL.
HA no I do, but like.. only when I add it to my TBR? So say I added some 2021 book, that was probably 2 years ago or so, and I really don’t read the synopsis before I read the book, I like to go in blind!
I’ll be reading We Have Always Been Here in July, and I see we got some of the same books for review. I hope July is a good month for you too?
Oooh I hope you enjoy it! I liked it but it was a bit slow at times. Still, overall good! I hope you have a great July too!
Congrats on hitting your Goodreads goal! I’ll probably hit mine next month, but I set it really low because I knew I’d be working a billion hours this summer. Happy birthday to Lena! I hope you have an awesome July.
Aww thank you! I hope you reach yours too! I let random.org pick mine because otherwise I make the goal too high. I still have a high goal in my head, so it is useless ? And thank you so much, I hope you have a great July too!
I always set my Goodreads goal a little higher than the year before, and always to last the whole year. I am hoping for a physical copy of Our Violent Ends, but went ahead and requested it on Netgalley just in case because I need to read it! But would love to have the second to match my first. I really need to read something by Brigid Kemmerer one of these days.
So, I USED to do that, but then became high key obsessed with competing with myself. So now I let random.org pick the number. BUT, I also still do the thing you do in my head, so it’s mostly useless ?
I figure I’ll probably just buy both Chloe Gong books at this point, because I probably want to own them? And I don’t see myself getting lucky enough to get a physical bwhaha. And SAME I have only read ONE of Brigid’s books, and I really liked it, so Idk why I haven’t read more- hopefully this one will be great too!
Happy birthday, Lena! Gosh, they’re growing so quickly!
Also, I am floored that you hit your GR goal and it isn’t even halfway through the year. I just adjusted mine downward, because I hate seeing that I’m “x books behind schedule” (I don’t need more stress in my life) and I don’t seem capable of the focus required to read more than a chapter a day of anything.
You found more great books- I can’t wait to see your reviews of them all!
Aw thanks! And RIGHT!? They need to slow down, it’s getting rude!
So, random.org picks my Goodreads goal, because I get wayyy too obsessed with it. To be fair, I am STILL obsessed in my own brain, but it’s somehow better not seeing it every day ? So I feel you, and have kind of done the same, in a sense. (Oh and a tip, if you let random choose- I only go up to the highest number I have ever read, so statistically, t5he chances are it will be much lower heh)
Well, that’s brilliant! 😀 I figure I should use random.org to pick my future reads, too.
Yesss do it! I also am thinking of using a Wheel of Mayhem™ to decide which books to read, because indecision is real.
OMG Wheel of Mayhem?! What sorcery is this? 😀
Happy Birthday to Lena! Looks like a fun day (and there was cake; I would be happy). I saw the cover reveal for All the Right Reasons and I knew I had to have it. Not a pub get lucky with, but a girl can hope. Congratulations on finishing your GR challenge. I mean, you have six more months, show-off.
Yeah, she had a nice time, which was great! And my fingers are crossed for you! Thanks! I mean- to be fair, I let random.org decide. Last year it was something absurd like 13 books bwhaha.
Looks like you had a fun month – how can you beat swimming and cake! So many pretty, colorful covers.
Have a good July!
Aw thanks! Hope you have a wonderful July too!
Your daughter’s B’day pictures were the best! It’s nice to see people celebrating and being happy lol
Karen @For What It’s Worth
AW thank you!! That is so sweet of you! I agree though, seeing her having fun was long overdue!
thank you so much for including my post! i’m so happy you enjoyed celebrating your daughters birthday! the pictures look like so much fun!
Aww thank you!! She really did have a great couple of days!
Hope Lena had a fantastic birthday celebration! Jade turns 19 today—so crazy to think I have a 19-year-old!
NINETEEN!!? Nooo she cannot be 19 already! That is just bananas! Lena did have a good birthday, thank you! And I hope Jade is having a wonderful one too!
I am really excited for She Who Became the Sun. So many great sounding eARC. I hope you enjoy them all. Happy July!
Oooh I hope you love it! I really liked it, I will be reviewing it soon! Thanks so much, hope you have a great July too!
It looks like you have some great reading ahead of you. I am looking forward to reading All of Us Villains. Congratulations on reaching your Goodreads goal! Happy Birthday to Lena! I hope you have a great July and enjoy many good books.
Yay for finishing your Goodreads goal. I have NEVER completed my goal, so I’m determined to complete mine this year! And Happy Birthday to Lena! Love how happy she looks ?
Oooh, The Woods Are Always Watching looks really good! Congrats on finishing your Goodreads goal! I hit my first goal, too, so I’m working on my stretch goal now. 😀 Looks like Lena had a good birthday! Sure hope she did, anyway. Spending it poolside is definitely the way to go, with this heat lol. Thanks so much for sharing my post, too!
Yay for birthday parties!! Looks like you had a great month. Skyhunter and Up All Night are on my tbr. Happy to hear you enjoyed them. <3
I see Defy the Night on your ARC list. I can’t wait to read this one and I hope it lives up to the hype. Heartbreak for Hire is high on my must read list because I adore this author’s books too. Up All Night sounds excellent also. So many books, I just wish I could read faster or by osmosis. It looks like Lena had an awesome birthday!