July Reading Wrap-Up

The Idiot by Elif Batuman
Literary Fiction

This one has been on my TBR for quite sometime so I am happy to finally be able to cross it out! It was funny, a little relatable, and overall an enjoyable read. We follow our MC Selin, during her freshman year at Harvard. This actually takes place in 1995 (when I saw GoodReads classify this under historical fiction I almost fainted), so email is new! We see Selin start e-mailing one of her classmates who she becomes quite fond of. We watch her grow and learn as a person, and follow her to her summer trip to the Hungarian countryside. This book is not a romance btw! It is a great coming of age story though!

4.25/5 stars

Ripe by Sarah Rose Etter
Literary Fiction

Now this one was an anticipated read of the year for me! In this novel we follow Cassie, who is working at a tech startup in Silicon Valley. She is realizing how toxic the work environment can be, how fake everyone around her acts. She has a big fascination with black holes, and even mentions having her own little black hole that follows her around, watching her and feeding off of her emotions.

I enjoyed reading this one! I think it was well written, and well paced. Funny, sad and interesting!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for sending me a copy! @bookclubfavorites #bookclubfavoritesinsiders

4.25/5 stars

The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston
Romance, Magical Realism

I LOVED Ashley Poston’s previous novel, The Dead Romantics. So I pre-ordered this as soon as it was available!

In this novel we follow Clementine, who works as a publicist in New York City. When her aunt passes away, she inherits her apartment which her aunt has been telling her that it is ~magical~. She of course doesn’t believe it until she eventually experiences it herself. The apartment randomly travels 7 years into the past for her one day and she meets a man.

This novel has a great premise, but unfortunately for me it fell a little flat. I mean it’s a romance novel, and all romance novels are pretty predictable. However, this one was just too predictable. I wasn’t shocked by any of the “plot twists”, there wasn’t a lot of swoony moments either. A lot of “um okay” moments for me though.

3/5 stars

Milk Fed by Melissa Broder
Literary Fiction, LGBT, Romance

Melissa Broder….I mean it’s self explanatory. You either love Broder or you don’t. I’ve read The Pisces….and lemme tell ya, one of the strangest novels I’ve read and I absolutely devoured it. Immediately had to read through everything Broder has written and Milk Fed was next up!

Milk Fed follows Rachel who works at a talent management agency and is basically an almond mom. She has major mommy issues, and her therapist has her do a “detox” from her mother who is the source of Rachels intense calorie counting habit. She eventually meets Miriam at her favorite frozen yogurt shop and develops a crush.

This book is an easy read, so funny, I love the way Broder writes! However, some of the things the MC says can be triggering so proceed with caution. The MC obviously has a poor relationship with food caused by her poor relationship with her mother and we, as readers, can definitely feel how much it affects her. Broder does have quite descriptive detailing in some scens that can be a little…gross. Overall I enjoyed this book though! If Melissa Broder writes it, I will read it.

4/5 Stars

Elektra by Jennifer Saint
Fantasy, Greek Mythology

Ah my favorite sub-genre of fantasy: Greek Mythology. I love re-tellings, and I think Jennifer Saint does a nice job at them. I really enjoyed her previous novel, Ariadne, so I thought I would check this out too!

This one follows three women, who have all been affected by the curse on the House of Atreus, namely one man in particular: Agamemnon. We follow them throughout the novel. His wife Clytemnestra and her plans for revenge. His daughter Elektra and her love for her father. Lastly a princess of Troy, Cassandra, who gets caught in the crossfire.

This is the first time I’ve read from the POV of Elektra and Cassandra, but I was familiar with Clytemnestra’s story from previous re-tellings. Her chapters were a little repetitive from previous retellings so I was more interested in Elektra and Cassandra. Overall it was an enjoyable read! Easy to follow if you are new to Greek Mythology but if you are already familiar with the story of Clytemnestra or Elektra I would skip this!

3.75/5 Stars