June Recap

Plus my favorite books of the year so far, and what's in my stack for July

2024 Favorites So Far

Somehow it’s (now over) halfway through the year and while my reading has been fairly mediocre (until now!), there have been some great backlist gems and fantastic new releases. So here are my favorite books of the year so far, in no particular order:

Backlist

• Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk by Kathleen Rooney

• There There by Tommy Orange

• Best of Friends by Kamala Shamsie

• Shark Heart by Emily Habeck

• The Good House by Ann Leary

2024 releases

• Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra

• I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue

• Bear by Julia Phillips

• The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

• Little Rot by Akwaeke Emezi

June Reading

June has by far been my best reading month of the year. Many were four and five stars there was only one I didn’t like. The God of the Woods by Liz Moore and Bear by Julia Phillips earned spot on my all-time favorites shelf, and Little Rot, The Lion Women of Tehran, Margo’s Got Money Troubles, Under Your Spell, and Ambition Monster are all close behind.

Let me know in the comments: What were your favorite reads this month?

You can read my first batch of reviews in June Reading (So Far), and now here are the rest! (You can find all of the books I’ve read so far this year in my Bookshop.org storefront.)

[Thank you to Dutton, Gallery, Atria, Knopf, Viking, Simon Audio, Penguin Random House Audio, and Netgalley for my free review copies.]

🎧 The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza

I'd heard a lot of buzz about this one but wasn't planning on reading it until one of my book club's selected it for the month of June. And while it was an enjoyable read (and definitely made me wish I was in Italy, or at the very wanting to eat a LOT of Italian food), I found it a bit over the top. Some of the side characters felt a bit cartoonish and unbelievable, as did a couple aspects of how it all wrapped up. It's not a book that will stick with me, but I liked it enough while reading it and will try some of Piazza's other books (like Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win).

📖 The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali

The Stationery Shop is one of my all-time favorite books and I’m happy to say The Lion Women of Tehran lived up to, and maybe even exceeded, my expectations. Set against Iran's turbulent history, Kamali weaves a compelling story of love, loss, and the pursuit of freedom. At its center is the friendship between Ellie and Homa, who we meet as young children and follow well into adulthood, delving into the complexities of female friendship and how it’s impacted by various political changes. Her vivid prose captures the political upheaval of the time and I learned a lot about the culture of Iran. I want to see more buzz about this one so give it a read!

🎧 Under Your Spell by Laura Wood

I wasn't sure what to expect from this one, given that I didn't have any familiarity with Wood's young adult novels (and sometimes a YA author trying their hand at adult fiction can be a bit of a transition). But I was very pleasantly surprised! This ended up being a total delight – I adored both protagonists as well as every single side character. The chemistry was palpable, the slow burn worked well, and I found myself laughing out loud (even in the car by myself as I listened) quite a few times. As a fan of celebrity/normal people romances, this fit the bill perfectly. I sincerely hope Wood plans on writing more rom coms because she has become a new favorite. I had such a fun time with Clemmie and Theo (and Clemmie's family) that I was sad to leave them. This was great both on audio (a British narrator!) and in print.

📖 Little Rot by Akwaeke Emezi

This book won’t be for everyone. There are trigger warnings all over the place (you can check those on The StoryGraph), so proceed with caution. It was one of the most (if not THE) unhinged stories I’ve read, full of unlikeable characters and people behaving badly, made me uncomfortable, and I had so much fun. If I haven’t scared you off of reading it, I highly recommend checking it out. (You’ll know pretty early on if it’s for you or not). Akwaeke Emezi’s episode on The Stacks podcast (

Unstacked

here on Substack) was fantastic, and there aren’t any spoilers if you want to listen before reading.

🎧 Bird Milk & Mosquito Bones by Priyanka Mattoo

As a fan of memoirs, especially those of self-discovery, I was excited to read this memoir in essays. Mattoo’s vivid storytelling brought to life her experiences of traveling the world, sharing how each place shaped her and taught her to find a sense of home wherever she is. She covers familiar themes of teenage struggles, falling in love, parenthood, and complicated family dynamics, making the reader feel welcome. I didn’t always find myself eager to pick it up, but I still very much enjoyed Mattoo’s reflections on her life and the places she’s lived.

📖 The World After Alice by Lauren Aliza Green

Love, loss, family drama, all the makings of a novel I hoped would be five stars. But it dragged a bit in the middle and the writing was beautiful but at times overwrought and overly complicated, which pulled me out of the story. Grief is at the center of this story, with each character’s perspectives looking back on a tragic event; so have something light and fun ready if you need a break from heavy subject matter afterward. Green did a wonderful job of developing complicated characters that were both unlikeable and hard not to root for, reminiscent in some ways of Claire Lombardo (and yes, they are also a white upper middle class family, which can feel overdone). This is a character-driven debut novel where the destination pays off but the journey takes a little too long to get there and I’m excited to see what she writes next.

That’s it for now! I’ll be back in your inbox later this month with what I’m reading. In the meantime, you can find me over on Instagram at @readwithkat sharing snippets of my day-to-day reading life.