July 2021 Reading Wrap-Up (and new book tracking app!)

I am back again to share a few notes about the books that I read last month. I once again took the time to jot a few sentences down about each book as I read them so I could give you a little more of my "instant" feedback on the books. As always, feel free to ask about anything in particular you have questions about! Also, please comment with what your favorite recent read is - I always love getting new recommendations!

This month I also started testing making the move from Goodreads to StoryGraph for tracking the books I read. StoryGraph gives you great graphs (hence the name!) and I am a sucker for a good graph. You can look at your stats for a month or a year. Here are some fun stats about my July books. It says in July I read 13 books for 4,192 pages (not entirely accurate because some of them were audio - it doesn't seem to track hours vs. pages).

Here is how the "mood" of my July books are reflected (as described by me or by StoryGraph). A lot of "mysterious" and "emotional" books! (Not exactly light summer reading!)

Here is the breakdown on genres. Some books are tagged in multiple genres, which is why it looks like it totals more books than I actually read.

Overall I am enjoying the platform. I am going to track on both platforms for the rest of 2021, but assuming I feel the same by the end of the year, I am going to move fully to StoryGraph in 2022. If you decide to join StoryGraph you can follow my reviews and current reads by looking up my username: CaJenGirl.

Now, without further ado... here are my July reads! As a reminder, ?? = print/e-book and ??= audiobook.

?? Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam ???1/2 Reminded me of the movies Get Out and Us. This underlying creepy vibe where you have no idea what is going on, and you are pretty sure you may hate the ending... and you may be right.

?? The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones ???? A slow-paced horror shrouded in Native American story telling. I had to read this one in silence because if you weren't paying attention you would lost. A unique read that I will remember.

?? Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner ???1/2 I liked the descriptions of the Korean food and the family traditions. The parts around her mother's cancer battle and ultimate death were difficult to hear. Audio was great because it allowed me to hear the correct pronunciations on the Korean words throughout.

?? People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry ???? Witty friends to lovers story with lots of humor and likeable characters. A smart summer read.

?? What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins ????? A beautifully written story that explores grief, a parent's love and accepting the difference between the love of a family of origin and a family of choice. This book made me sob - like nose running, tears streaming crying. I haven't had a book do that in quite a while. But it was done with such love that you can't even be upset about it. This isn't a light read though - read this when you want to get all into your feelings.

?? The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho ??? This book is like a young adult bedtime story. 23 year old me who was always searching for meaning and omens in everything I saw and experienced would have loved this book better than me in my 40s who is a little less whimsical, sadly.

?? Float Plan by Trish Doller ???? Well written romance that makes you want to hop on a sailboat and not return for a long time. I loved the island hopping adventures and all the characters you meet along the way. Definitely recommend if you are looking for a mostly light read with a little escapism.

?? Survive the Night by Riley Sager ???? This is a must buy author for me. I have loved all of his thrillers. They can be a little deranged but if you like a good scary movie, then you will like these books. This one was literally like a scary movie all the way down to the girl making stupid decisions. But I loved how he handled this one. I can't say much more without spoilers.

?? How Y'all Doing by Leslie Jordan ???? I've known of Leslie Jordan for years, but like many people I fell in love with him on Instagram in 2020. This was everything I imagined it would be and absolutely should only be read on audio!

?? Finlay Donovan is Killing It by Elle Cosimo ???? This was such a fun mystery that reminded me a lot of the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich. Smart and funny with just the right amount of tension to keep it moving.

?? WIN by Harlan Coben ???? I have read all of the books in the Myron Bolitar series by the same author so Win was a familiar character. That made this even more enjoyable. Mystery, vigilante justice, witty humor. A great mix.

?? When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain ????? This is one of the best mysteries I have read in a long time. Not because of the actual mystery (I had an idea of who the bad guy was fairly early), but because of the way it was written. This was like literary fiction and mystery. It was about trauma and healing. It was about grief. It was so, so good. Highly recommend.

?? The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris ???1/2 Interesting premise, a little confusing along the way but by the end you had to give the author props for the wacky thing she leaves you with. (Not a great summary, but hard to say more without spoilers.)