This month I read a variety of exciting ARC ebooks approved by Netgalley and new releases, from espionage and dazzling soirées of historical fiction, romantic comedy of a marriage of convenience and a fantasy world of bookshops and friendship. I love the variety of reading different genres and how authors approach character development to fit a genre.
Books of June
Publication date: 7 Nov 2023
*Thank you to NetGallery for the ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review *
The concept of the novel was fun and light-hearted with less action than I was expecting. Typically I expect high fantasy novels to be fast-paced with high intensity action, so it was interesting to read a slow high fantasy that allowed the characters to develop in a deeper way. The idea of Viv who is made for battle and is helping rebuild a book shop was a fascinating take on the stereotypical warrior trope.
I enjoyed Fern and Viv’s growing friendship and attempts to re-vamp the book shop, this dynamic was well-written and in my opinion was the back-bone to the novel. I think the romantic relationship between Viv and Maylee was weak and lacked moments of emotional intimacy and I couldn’t understand their connection. However, the characters individually were interesting to read about.
The novel’s action with Varine was clever and her defeat leading to becoming trapped within a book was a clever nod to reading and characters written within books are therefore always trapped. However, the action was too quick and I didn’t feel there was lead-up or realisation to the reader at how much of a danger this one villain was to Viv and co. I liked Satchel and his character of initially seeming evil but in reality a light-hearted individual.
I understand this novel is a prequel to Legends and Lattes and I haven’t read this series so I was unsure about this fantasy world and how the magic operated. I didn’t know if the different species of characters were prejudiced by other characters or a hierarchy. So this made it difficult to understand how the characters sat within this world, but that being said not having this knowledge didn’t greatly impact the plot or character development. The last half of the novel slowed down in pace, which made the reading a little difficult.
*Thank you to NetGallery for the ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review *
The socialite spy is an immersive story of espionage and deception through the channels of gossip and trivial party gatherings that reveal the deeper and darker side to the relations and connection of the upper echelons of society in the interwar period of Britain. Sarah Sigal artfully constructs a world of vibrant parties and political upheaval that has Britain’s institutional constitutions in jeopardy. The concept of Lady Pamela, a journalist for The Times, using her fashion column as a disguise for discovering who are sympathisers to the British Union of Fascists (BUF) and who is also sending secrets and intelligence to Germany, is a clever disguise. The party guests and upper class are depicted as self-obsessed and constantly scrambling over one another to be the best and most wealthy and important within society. These characters are deceived by Pamela’s innocent questions under the disguise of wanting to know what fashion is in style and who is the next big thing in interior design. Sigal explores the abdication of the King Edward VIII in 1936 and his relationship with Wallis Simpson as a political tool manipulated by MI5. The first half of the novel has a tight and well-developed story that pushed along in a good pace, however by the 60% mark the novel becomes messy and there are too many sub-plots and characters to keep-up with. This results in confusion and drags the pace down. By the novel’s denouement, I was confused at who was on which side and who was a double-agent. There didn’t seem to be any consequences to Pamela’s involvement or even affair, she just carries on as normal.
The espionage plot of Pamela is contrasted by her domestic life with her husband Francis and the question of having children. Pamela is a thirty year old woman and defies societal conventions as a female writer for a respectable newspaper and not having children. Initially, Pamela is presented as enjoying her life of independence when in reality she cannot physically have children – I think this plot needed to be explored in more depth rather than brushed over in an anti-climatic way. The exposition of the novel was lacking and was built up to be something bigger than just simply worked out in the last 50 pages or so. I was expecting more danger for Pamela and more self-reflection.
Overall, I enjoyed the concept and the setting of the inter-war period and how the rumblings of revolution are seen in all aspects of society and unrest within all classes. The character interactions and dialogue was well-written and developed, but pace and clarity in character alliances need a better distinction.
As a fan of Tessa Bailey’s ‘Bellinger sisters’ series I was eager to read this new series set on a vineyard in Napa. Immediately August and Natalie are introduced as opposites in personality, social standing and background. The comedic and sarcastic insults between the two characters create tension that places both characters on equal footing. These comedic exchange establish August and Natalie as interesting and fiery. I haven’t read the first novel in the series Secretly Yours as like with most of Bailey’s duology novels they can be read as stand alone despite the characters and world linking and appearing in the story. When I read the Bellinger series I was drawn to the blurb of Hook, Line and Sinker (the second novel in the series) so I decided to read that novel first and I was hooked to read the first novel, It happened one summer to learn more about Hannah, Piper, Fox and Brendan.
Tessa Bailey artfully crafts a story of redemption, self-discovery and self-acceptance, both August and Natalie have a past that they are trying to heal and move forward. August’s noble venture of establishing Zellnick Cellar to continue his late best friends legacy distracts him from achieving because he is constantly worried about failure. Similarly, Natalie’s failure in New York motivates her out of spite and fear of not living up to the Vos family name. Ultimately, it is this marriage of convenience that forces these two characters to discover that they aren’t all that different and a spark has already been lit. I liked that Natalie grows as a character from this snobby facade to a vulnerable character that wants to feel wanted, helpful and visible to her family. Instead she is pushed away and returns to New York, feeling like more of a stranger than in Napa. Similarly, August realises he needs to open himself to criticism regarding his wine making in order to heal, honour his friend’s legacy and help Natalia accept herself.
Overall, this is an addictive, fast paced and funny novel that explores deep themes of family, acceptance and love that emphasises the importance of staying true to one’s roots and not pretending to be something to fit a lifestyle. I wanted to see more scenes of August accepting help from Natalie in the wine making process and her standing up to her family in an honest and vulnerable manner. Unfortunately Yours reminded me of It Happened One Summer and has a similar style of choosing love over pride. In particular the idea that Natalie like Piper is disgraced from the social scene and they return to their roots.
*Thank you to NetGallery for the ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review *
The novel’s concept of taking a ‘peasant’ girl and turning her into a lady of class and sophistication reminded me of ‘My fair lady’ especially with the bet between two characters. This is a loose plot that holds the novel together with other subplots of romantic relationships, aspirations and friendship that develop at a good pace. I wasn’t keen on the first person narrative, but that is personal preference because I usually gravitate towards novels written in third person.
The novel is a historical fiction but I don’t think it can be classed as completely historical, if I wasn’t aware that this was set in Paris in the past there were no direct hints in the opening chapters from what I could read. I think adding a date or historical context would have established a clearer picture. I only assume it is set in maybe 17th or 18th century France from the reference to the Queen of France (Marie Antoinette?) which is a guess. This doesn’t distract from the novel’s aim and story but could help the world building to immerse the reader. The novel’s pace was good for a YA novel and there weren’t dark or heavy themes which made this an easy read. I enjoyed the character building of the novel’s ‘villains’ Julien and Rachelle and they were well established as characters to dislike (with good reasons).I think the relationship between Beau and Evie was lacking and could have had more scenes of vulnerabilities that helped create a deeper relationship. I couldn’t understand why Evie went from hating Beau to kissing him. These characters needed a spark. I enjoyed the relationship between the Duke and Evie, this presented a different side to her character.
Evie’s decision at the denouement emphasises her as a strong and female empowered character which is a great message for young female readers regarding having control of ones fate. Overall, the concept was nice and light-hearted with moments of tension. A good introduction to YA fiction and a female lead that is not swayed by pretty jewels and petticoats.
Final thoughts
Overall, June had a wide variety of genres and exciting novels yet to be released and new releases. My favourite of my June readathon was Unfortunately Yours by Tessa Bailey because it was an easy and addictive read with a light-hearted and comedic approach. I was extremely excited to read this novel and it did not disappoint. Travis Baldree’s novel was an unexpected read and I really enjoyed it, the high-fantasy genre is not one that I tend to read because I think the world building can be slow and difficult to understand, hence why I prefer low-fantasy. However, I really enjoyed the cosy vibe that Bookshops & Bonedust had and the less-action packed narrative that focused on friendship and character development. Again, a funny and light hearted read. The glamour and ball gowns of historical fiction was also unexpected, while these novels weren’t my favourite they had elements I thought were clever and well-written. The Socialite Spy had a fantastic concept and I was compelled to read more, but the 60% got a little confusing, similarly Bellegarde had an interesting concept, but there needed to be a deeper attention to world building with historical context and the characters could have been fleshed out more. In conclusion, I’m very pleased with the exciting worlds I travelled to this month and look forward to what July has in store!
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