A few weeks ago, I set myself a goal to read 20 books this summer. When I blew past that, I decided I just wanted to read as many books as possible.
And the grand total is…
*drum roll please*
Twenty three books!!!!
Crap…now school is here. Save me!!!
(Don’t worry, I scheduled this post, I’m not online at school)
This means there will probably be a drop off in the number of posts I make, but I’m determined to keep this blog going at a 1-3 posts a week rate. We’ll see how that goes.
For old time’s sake, let’s go through all the books I read.
The 23 Books I read this summer (in the order I read them):
1. United We Spy by Allie Carter (Gallagher Girl book 6)
I wasn’t doing star rating when I read this book, but looking back, I’d give it a 4/5. This entire series is hilarious but touching, and the last book tied up the series perfectly. One of my favorite series, definitely a guilty pleasure. Read review for the series here.
2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by JK Rowling (HP book 1)
To be honest, all of the HP books are sort of running together in my memory, but I remember this book surprising me with the hold it had over me. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling (HP book 2)
I loved the mystery in this book, the way it slowly unraveled. I remembered the “secret,” and that allowed me to catch all of the tiny details Rowling dropped in the lead up to the reveal. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Askiban by JK Rowling (HP book 3)
I love Sirius Black. He’s the ultimate good/evil character. And Buckbeak is adorable. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
5. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by JK Rowling (HP book 4)
This book was too long. The plot structure became monotonous. Even so, the book is still great, and the ending of the book marked a definite (and needed) division between the more MG early books and the darker YA later books. 3/5 stars. Read my review here.
6. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling (HP book 5)
I think this was my favorite of the HP books, with books 6 and 7 close behind. I love the Order, and the way a ton of characters came together and we really got to meet the older players in the fight. Umbridge is the ultimate evil character, and sooo relatable as the unfair teacher. 5/5 stars. Read my review here.
7. Harry Potter and the Half Prince by JK Rowling (HP book 6)
I loved the insight we gained into Voldemort’s character in this book. JK Rowling didn’t leave him as a plain evil character; she gave him a rational behind his scheming. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
8. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling (HP book 7)
This was a great end to a fantastic series. Harry, Ron, and Hermione matured, completing their character arcs from book one. The romance in this book was perfect. The last battle was well done, dramatic but also allowing for character growth. 5/5 stars. Read my review here.
9. Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers (His Fair Assassin book 1)
This book really impressed me. It deals with heavy topics–death, killing, abuse–without taking over the book. The romance is sweet and evolved at a good pace. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
10. Dark Triumph by Robin LaFevers (His Fair Assassin book 2)
This book wasn’t as good as Grave Mercy, but it was still really good. Great characterization, good plot. Much darker than the first book. Still good romance, though book 1’s was better (though my sister disagrees profusely). 4/5 stars. I didn’t actually review it, but I will when book three comes out later this year.
11. Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong
I didn’t love this book. There wasn’t anything great about it, and the romance was really lame. The plot didn’t make sense and lacked continuity. I gave it 3/5 stars, but looking back on it, I’m lowering that to a 2/5. Read my review here.
12. Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn book 1)
Just amazing. Impeccable plot pacing and characterization. The magic is unique–I want to be a Mistborn so badly. 5/5 stars. Read my review for the series here.
13. The Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn book 2)
This was my least favorite of the three books, but I still loved it. The characaters really developed, especially Elend and Sazed. This book forced each character to confront their doubts and fears–and Sanderson did it really well. And talk about trust issues after the end of this book!!!! 5/5 stars. Read my review for the series here.
14. The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn book 3)
This was probably my favorite of the series, close with book one. The series wrapped up perfectly. This book dealt with heavy issues–atheism, crises of faith, leadership, war, sacrifice, usurpers–but was still incredibly hopeful and hilarious. The end made me happy, even if it wasn’t necessarily what I had imagined. 5/5 stars. Read my review for the series here.
15. Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins (Sweet Evil book 1)
Classic paranormal romance. Not great writing, but it’s addictive; you can’t stop reading it. Not much plot or characterization, but really great romance. 3/5 stars. Read my review for the series here.
16. Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins (Sweet Evil book 2)
Not as much fun as book 1. The main character was too mopey for the first part of the book, though the second half of the book was enjoyable. Still not much plot, but more than the first book. 3/5 stars. Read my review for the series here.
17. Sweet Reckoning by Wendy Higgins (Sweet Evil book 3)
Probably the best book of the series, in regards to characterization and plot development. The romance is sweet and sexy. 3/5 stars. Read my review for the series here.
18. Blonde Ops by Natalie Zaman and Charlotte Bennardo
I loved this book. It’s ridiculous and improbable, but hilarious all the same. The romance played out nicely and the mystery driving the book was appropriately mysterious. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
19. Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood (Born Wicked book 1)
I was impressed by this book. It had good world-building and character vs society conflicts. The dynamic between the characters was fascinating, and I look forward to reading book two, Star Cursed. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
20. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
I did not like this book, despite the hype surrounding it. The voice was annoying, and the twist ending ruined it for me. 2/5 stars. Read my review here.
21. Belle Epoque by Elizabeth Ross
This book was fine–nothing special, nothing horrible. Interesting conflicts and messages, but the story wasn’t executed well. 2/5 stars. Read my review here.
22. Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn’t Have) by Sarah Mlynowski
I loved this book. It went beyond my expectations of a flippant ChickLit novel, with the classic teenage conflicts handled well and teenage emotions captured realistically. The book was surprisingly relatable for me. 5/5 stars. Read my review here.
23. One for the Money by Janet Evanovich
This book was a fun read. I laughed out loud, but in the serious moments, the book got me thinking about heavy topics–death, guilt, abuse. 4/5 stars. Read my review here.
23 books in 9.5 weeks ends up as about 2.4 books a week, which I think is impressive. So, yay me!
52 Letters in the Alphabet 
You read some pretty good books! I’m working my way through HP too, the goal was to finish it this summer but I have a week until school and I’m just now reading Goblet of Fire, but I love them all so far (:
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Good luck finishing 🙂 Your blog looks really cool too
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