August in Review

Announcing Trouble by Amy Fellner Dominy — 4.5 stars
Announcing Trouble was such a fun and fast-paced read! I love baseball romances and this one had the added bonus of hate-to-love. Josie and Garrett’s banter and sexual tension were off the charts and I loved every moment between them! Josie’s voice was funny and I loved hearing her in action as an announcer at the games. Overall, Announcing Trouble was a very cute and entertaining read!

The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory — 4 stars
I picked up The Wedding Date after having a chance to meet the author Jasmine Guillory. It was totally cute and fun. I loved how driven Alexa was and how her life was fulfilling before she ever met Drew. Jasmine Guillory mentioned this topic at her signing and made the realization so much more meaningful while reading! I’m excited to read the next two companion novels in this series and see more of Carlos, Maddie, and Theo.

We Are the Perfect Girl by Ariel Kaplan — 5 stars
A gender-swapped contemporary retelling of Cyrano de Bergerac, We Are the Perfect Girl follows on Aphra as she deals with body dysmorphia and poor self-esteem. I loved the hilarious voice throughout the story as well as the realistic portrayal of teenage self-esteem. I read We Are the Perfect Girl on a whim and I have not been able to get this book out of my mind since as it completely blew me away and has firmly established itself as one of my favorite books of the year.  Do yourself a favor and immediately pick up We Are the Perfect Girl. You won’t regret it.

Stealing Home by Becky Wallace — 5 stars
I’m a sucker for sports romances, especially when the focus is on baseball, so I had been looking forward to Stealing Home all year. And guess what? It did not disappoint. I loved Ryan and her passion for her family’s business and how hard she works to achieve her dream of managing the minor league team herself one day. I loved sweet Sawyer and the chemistry he has with Ryan. I loved Ryan’s best friend, her relationship with her dad, and of course the baseball.  The writing was so strong and Ryan’s voice kept me hooked and rooting for her the Buckley Beavers the entire time. This book had it all and is a perfect summer read!

Mind Games by Shana Silver — 4 stars
Mind Games is a fast-paced sci-fi thriller that will keep you guessing until the final chapters. Shana Silver drives the suspense as Arden and Sebastian race against time to figure out who is stealing their memories and how they can regain them. The pacing is kept fast, and I loved the stealing memories aspect as it is such an interesting concept to think about. One of my favorite parts was when Arden was able to hack into the system and retrieve a few of her encrypted memories as they are specially formatted in the book and told as though they are being played in reverse. I loved finding these parts and the major reveals they contained. Another cool part was the focus on STEM! Read my full review here.

She’s the Worst by Lauren Spieller — 4 stars
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off meets 10 Things I Hate About You in Lauren Spieller’s latest novel, She’s the Worst! She’s the Worst follows two sisters, April and Jenn, who haven’t been close in many years but try to reconnect on the eve of Jenn heading off to college. I loved the sisters’ messy relationship! Even though I don’t have a sister, I could definitely relate to some of the bickering with my younger brother who has a very different personality than I do. Each of their relationships with their parents are also very complicated in different ways. Above all though, this novel is a total love letter to LA and I loved seeing the different places April and Jenn visit! It would be fun to follow their tour in real life! See my aesthetic of the book here.

Have you read any of these books yet? What books did you read in August?