I’m sick of series.
Except I’m not. I love a trilogy. And a ‘duology’ which I recently discovered
through a New York Times Podcast is not a real word and now I feel stupid. I also love a longer series, if the story is good and the plot allows, keep em coming.
What I AM sick of is waiting for the next book release, a specific brand of torture that goes against everything I’m built for. I am not the ‘wait patiently for the next book,’ kind of gal, in fact I’m not patient in any respect. I will instead inhale a series that I love and once I’m finished lie on my bed, stare at the ceiling and mourn the end like a grieving widow. If you think that’s dramatic… well, you’re entitled to your opinion but I do prefer the term thespian.
Regardless, after recently reading the beginnings of some fantastic series and then enduring the crushing realisation that I have to wait for book two, I decided this month would be one of standalones. I like to think of ‘stand-alone’ books as proper stories, ones that have a clear beginning, middle and end, and tie everything together with a neat little bow so that we can all move on with our lives after they’re finished. None of the cliffhanger-y to be continued nonsense.
The Unmaking of June Farrow, Adrienne Young
My first book of the month and what a breath of fresh air.
It’s shelved as a fantasy novel but I would liken it to the movies About Time and The Time Traveler’s Wife.
June Farrow is a single woman in her mid-thirties who runs her families thriving flower farm in Jasper, North Carolina. All the Farrow women before June have lived and farmed on the same land and are made famous in the local community by the flowers they produce and the madness that each of them is eventually consumed by. A madness that led to June’s mothers’ disappearance when June was a baby.
Young writes so beautifully! I recognise saying this is the equivalent of pulling on a jumper and admiring the stitching... ‘wow the seamstress attached this sleeve with such ease and skill,’ but frankly any sleeve that I attached would be mangled with many holes so we must appreciate craftmanship when we see it.
Young’s YA novel Fable is one of my all-time favourite reads and while The Unmaking of June Farrow is more adult, her signature charm is still there. The only reason this is not a five-star read is because the time travel aspects occasionally had me a little confused. But if you think too long and hard about any time travel your brain starts to hurt. Let it wash over you, it all makes sense in the end.
4.5 Stars
Unruly, David Mitchell
Why do I love David Mitchell so much? I think it’s partly because I’m an avid watcher of the comedic panel show ‘Would I Lie to You’ and David Mitchell has captured my heart with his posh voice and incredibly funny British wit. But mainly it’s because his wife, Victoria Coren Mitchell, is such a fucking icon and he ADORES her (as he should). He acknowledges Victoria emphatically at the end of Unruly which made my heart sing. I want to be her when I grow up and if I could I would dedicate this reading wrap to her. Oh wait, I can!
I doubt I’m the targeted audience for Unruly: The Ridiculous History of England’s Kings and Queens, but I loved it, nonetheless.
Beginning with the legend of King Arthur, Mitchell catalogues the bloody and hilariously chaotic history of medieval Kings and Queens (queens in the loosest form of the term. Women aren’t mentioned until halfway through the book… this is no fault of Mitchell’s more of a broader organisational fault).
Can I recount the names of Kings and Queens and all the other people that played large roles in their rules?
No, I can’t.
Was I particularly invested in any of the history?
No, I wasn’t.
But god it was funny.
Do yourself a favour and listen to it via Audible or wherever you get your audio books. David Mitchell talking in your ear is hilarious.
He ends the book in the Elizabethan era, where the reign of Kings and Queens started to mean a different thing… more politics less influence etc. From the ashes of the Elizabethan era rises our main man Shakespeare whose influence on history, art and literature continues to blow me away.
4 Stars
Troy, Stephen Fry
For those who don’t know, to fall asleep at night I listen to Stephen Fry reading the Harry Potter series. He soothes me, which I understand is a weird thing to say but there is no other phrasing that best suits.
For the last few months I have been down what I’m calling a Trojan Horse sized hole, obsessing over the fall of Troy. When I learned that Stephen Fry had written a book about it, it seemed like all great things had aligned… and I was right.
Stephen Fry’s version of this weird, historical (maybe) fictional (kind of?) story is both utterly captivating and completely genius. I’ll be the first to admit that Troy is not for everyone. But it was for me and if you are slightly interested in the Trojan War and like to be entertained then it’s for you too.
5 Stars
Not in Love, Ali Hazelwood
This was the palate cleanser I needed towards the end of June. I was in a reading slump because Troy is great but it’s also famously depressing. Ali Hazelwood is one of the rom-com authors I adore, she is the answer to most slump ills. Her books are often fluffy and light with a focus on female main characters in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) and we LOVE to see it.
Not in Love was a little different to Ali’s usual rom-com… a little bit more sad-girl a little less traditional and I really enjoyed it. There’s a great array of secondary characters, it’s funny, it’s sexy, and the plot is easy to follow.
Ali is releasing a book around every 6-8 months, and it is quenching my thirst. If this story doesn’t sound like it’s for you wait a few months and check back in.
4 Stars
I did intend for there to be more standalones in this reading wrap. I was halfway through The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers before I got restless and put it down. I have yet to pick it back up. I also started and stopped Alexene Farol Follmuth’s Twelfth Knight. It’s just not a good fit for me, but it’s Reese’s YA Book club pick for June so I think I’m an anomaly.
In more exciting news I’m currently reading some great books. I’m listening to Opinions by Roxane Gay, a collection of her most popular New York Times articles. They’re heavy topics but necessary and relevant ones, especially in today’s political climate. I’m reading The Maiden by Kate Foster, the Waterstones Scottish Book of the Month in March, and longlisted for the 2024 Women’s Prize for Fiction. I bought it with me on holiday to Austria and I’m only a few chapters in but so far so great.
Also, for those of you who don’t follow literary awards as closely and obsessively as me, Noami Kline’s Doppelganger that I recommended on the reading wrap last month just won the inaugural Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction. Yes, I watched the awards and yes, I cried during Kline’s speech. There’s just something so heart-warming about a room full of women celebrating one another’s talent and achievement.
Ben’s Books
Ben read two books in May and he decided to roll the second one over into June (I wasn’t aware that was something you could do but okay). He’s currently spending the weekend at the Austrian Grand Prix travelling back and forth to the Red Bull Ring with some of his mates (the stuff of dreams!) so he’s unavailable for comment. Luckily for us, I have included a snippet of his Goodreads review for The Book That Wouldn’t Burn.
See you all next week!
*Note: A Celebrity Faux Pas
Have you ever been standing in the border security line at Munich airport, seen Stephen Fry walk past and said loudly, ‘omg Mr Fry, I sleep with you every night!!’
No? Yeah, cool, me neither, ha ha.
I’ve got Ali Hazelwood with me for a juicy, palate cleanser in Port Douglas. Can’t wait