I was trying my best to be well-behaved in June and not buy too many books, well that didn’t happen. I ended up buying three physical books and I can’t even tell you how many ebooks –  there were so many that I don’t even have pictures of them all yet (oops). I don’t think I’ll mention all of them in this post as there are way too many, so I’ll pick my favourites. 

My Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth

This has been on my to be read ever since it was announced. I love the title, the cover is absolutely gorgeous and it’s about women in STEM which is apparently a new favourite genre of mine. I don’t think it’s a genre, but I’ve enjoyed multiple books with this theme now. 

I came across the physical book in the Works reduced to just £3, what a bargain. I was so happy with this at the time…until I got home and saw it was only 99p on Kindle. Oh well, it’s a cute book that looks great on my shelves, so I can’t complain.

I wasn’t a huge fan of The Atlas Six, so I’m interested to see what I think of this. At the time of it being announced I didn’t realise they were the same author. As far as I’m aware, this is her actual name and Olivie Blake is a pseudonym, but I could be wrong and it’s the other way round.

Synopsis: Bel would rather die than think about the future. College apps? You’re funny. Extracurriculars? Not a chance. But when she accidentally reveals a talent for engineering at school, she’s basically forced into joining the robotics club. Even worse? All the boys ignore Bel—and Neelam, the only other girl on the team, doesn’t seem to like her either.

Enter Mateo Luna, captain of the club, who recognizes Bel as a potential asset—until they start butting heads. Bel doesn’t care about Nationals, while Teo cares too much. But as the nights of after-school work grow longer and longer, Bel and Teo realize they’ve made more than just a combat-ready robot for the championship: they’ve made each other and the team better. Because girls do belong in STEM.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

The fact that I only just now own this book is an absolute shock to everyone that knows me. I was and still am the biggest The Hunger Games fan and when I told my mom in particular that I hadn’t read that yet, she was overly surprised. 

Well, the film is coming out in a few months and it looks good, so it’s finally pushed me to get this book. I’m going to attempt to read it before the film comes out, which should be fine because I have a while. I just need to get my summer reading out of the way first. 

Synopsis: It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capital, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He’s been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined — every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favour or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute… and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

Honey & Spice by Bolu Babalola

I’m so into contemporary romance right now it’s ridiculous. So much so, that I’m struggling to get through fantasies as I’m thinking about my next romance read. 

When this came up at 99p on Kindle I knew straight away I’d be buying it. I’d heard so many great things about it that I didn’t even read the synopsis before buying it. I’ve now seen that its a fake dating book and I’m crazy excited to read it. Fake dating is one of, if not my favourite trope.

Synopsis: Sweet like plantain, hot like pepper. They taste the best when together…

Sharp-tongued (and secretly soft-hearted) Kiki Banjo has just made a huge mistake. As an expert in relationship-evasion and the host of the popular student radio show Brown Sugar, she’s made it her mission to make sure the women of the African-Caribbean Society at Whitewell University do not fall into the mess of “situationships”, players, and heartbreak. But when the Queen of the Unbothered kisses Malakai Korede, the guy she just publicly denounced as “The Wastemen of Whitewell,” in front of every Blackwellian on campus, she finds her show on the brink.

They’re soon embroiled in a fake relationship to try and salvage their reputations and save their futures. Kiki has never surrendered her heart before, and a player like Malakai won’t be the one to change that, no matter how charming he is or how electric their connection feels. But surprisingly entertaining study sessions and intimate, late-night talks at old-fashioned diners force Kiki to look beyond her own presumptions. Is she ready to open herself up to something deeper?

By the Book by Jasmine Guillory

Ok, firstly I had no idea this was a retelling. I’ll be honest, it was on clearance for £2 so I picked it up without reading the synopsis. Secondly, I didn’t know this was part of a series, but I think it’s a series of standalones? If you know whether this is true, please let me know. 

Synopsis: A tale as old as time—for a new generation…

Isabelle is completely lost. When she first began her career in publishing right out of college, she did not expect to be twenty-five, living at home, still an editorial assistant, and the only Black employee at her publishing house. Overworked and underpaid, constantly torn between speaking up or stifling herself, Izzy thinks there must be more to this publishing life. So when she overhears her boss complaining about a beastly high-profile author who has failed to deliver his long-awaited manuscript, Isabelle sees an opportunity to finally get the promotion she deserves.

All she has to do is go to the author’s Santa Barbara mansion and give him a quick pep talk or three. How hard could it be?

But Izzy quickly finds out she is in over her head. Beau Towers is not some celebrity lightweight writing a tell-all memoir. He is jaded and withdrawn and—it turns out—just as lost as Izzy. But despite his standoffishness, Izzy needs Beau to deliver, and with her encouragement, his story begins to spill onto the page. They soon discover they have more in common than either of them expected, and as their deadline nears, Izzy and Beau begin to realize there may be something there that wasn’t there before.

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