 Hello, hello everyone. My name is Laura and this is my channel Laura's Little Library and welcome to today's video Which is my August wrap up So this past month in August I read 16 books and again I have that same trend where the first week or two I feel like I didn't read anything maybe a book or two and then the last two weeks. I ended up reading a ton. However, pretty much most of those books were all Audiobooks that I got from the library and I only own three of the books that I read Which is pretty sad for me trying to read all the books on my shelves, but oh Well, they brought me joy, so I'm gonna talk about them, but I am gonna start with the ones that I did read Either physically or like I own the physical copy for I think from pretty much all of these I had the audiobook with it except for the first one that I'll talk about that is my killer vacation by Tessa Bailey I gave this four out of five stars. I actually Loved it. I'm still kind of in a four four point five out of five stars This was my first Tessa Bailey book and I had been interested in her other book window shopping Which is like her Christmas smutty book and this is like her summer smutty book So this book follows a teacher. She's like a second grade teacher, so she focuses on young kids She finally gets a well-deserved vacation with her brother who's going through a bad breakup And then they find a dead body in their Airbnb and her being a true crime podcast lover Teams up with the bounty hunter much to his dismay to try and figure out who murdered The dead body in the Airbnb. It's grumpy sunshine. I loved the romance I mean, it's a short book and I was just on the edge of my seat the entire time just waiting to keep Reading this I didn't ever want to put it down There were a couple very small things that kind of prevented it from being a five star for me There was some inconsistency with the brother and his romantic interest because it at the beginning of the book it mentioned him Getting off of a bad big breakup with his boyfriend But then all of a sudden he's like Halfway through the book it seems like that was not the main point of him needing a vacation And it was the fact that his best friend is now gone or something like it seems like it was one thing And then it got changed But they didn't change it at the beginning of the book So I was just kind of confused on that little plotline, but otherwise it was an amazing book the smut drove me wild and The murder Was actually pretty good Like I knew it wasn't going to be kind of the main part of the story the main part of the story It was gonna be more the romance But I was very happy with the balance between the murder investigation and the romance I think that there was just enough of the murder to really give this book a plot and Like a meaning behind it and then the ending just had me laughing I absolutely loved it and I would highly recommend this for any Vacation summer read because it is so short and it's on vacation Just top-notch and then I also read people we meet on vacation by Emily Henry Finally like I said I would do all summer long I gave this 3.5 out of five stars It was not my favorite Emily Henry book and I tried to look past because it's the Friends to Lovers trip Which I don't like But I think if it's done well I can like it I just don't think this was done as well as it could have been Which is why it was such a low rating because like to the beginning of it It seems a little slow like I I didn't really like the pacing of the book too much They kept talking about this one event that ended up being way too drawn out Super predictable and I didn't quite understand why it had the effects that it did so I kind of felt disappointed and let down By what was supposed to be the big reveal I was just really easy like you knew it was coming and then it wasn't satisfying When it happened and I also feel like I didn't ship the couple very much I honestly thought they were better as friends like it's an opposite attract Friends to lovers but a little bit of a second chance But like they never dated in the first place But I honestly think they were better off friends and I don't see how they could like Get married and make a household work like it's just not something I don't think that they would last and if the romance is not a couple. I think it's gonna last I'm not gonna like it no matter how good the chemistry is in the moment in the book If I don't see a future read these characters, I don't really care I also read book lovers by Emily Henry and I gave this 4.5 out of 5 stars I love this so much more than people we meet on vacation I'm not sure which I like more book lovers or beach read because I Loved beach read when I read it but now reading book lovers. I can see how Emily's Henry's writing has gotten better She's gotten more experienced. I think that this book is technically better But I'm not sure if I like the story better than beach read So that's kind of where I feel between those two. This one's marketed as enemies to lovers, but in my opinion They're not really enemies. They're both people who take their careers very seriously and are Super I don't want to say uptight, but they're just they're so focused on being Successful and doing their job well and getting frustrated at other people when they don't But they don't really don't guess each other. They had one little meeting that was Off-putting for both of them like they lost a little bit of respect for each other But then they weren't ever really Enemies like there was no Strong hate there before it came to the love part, but I loved the pacing of this book I think it was very different than other enemies to lovers like The relationship in this was just so much better than what I wanted and was expecting and I loved the characters There was a lot more going on outside of the romance, which was fine I think it could have been done maybe a little better, but I liked it. It was just kind of Interesting there was like one main message so I was trying to get across in this book and it was very thick the whole idea of like Putting your work before your family and things like that. So That's why it's not a perfect five-star, but oh my word. I would very much highly suggest this to anyone who likes Non-repetitive romance like something a little more unique people who love Literary people in books like this is definitely one of my favorites. So with the other 13 books that I read this month That's a lot and a lot of them were very just needy ochre. They were pretty much all Contemporary romance except for like one maybe two so those these reviews are gonna be a little bit quicker Just because for most of them I just felt that they were average They didn't blow me out of the water, but they weren't bad So I'm gonna probably go through them a little bit quicker So the next book I'm gonna talk about is not one of the contemporary romance I actually read the seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo and I talked about this in a vlog that I have already released kind of my summer vlog I didn't expect to pick it up I it had been on my radar is like I kind of want to read it And then I had someone in my family read it and say that they really liked it So I picked it up. I thought it was a four out of five star I ended up really liking it more than I expected to but I don't think it lived up to the hype either There were just a few elements where I was like that didn't make any sense that could have been better Or I didn't really enjoy it and like the whole relationship with her and her daughter It was just weird because her daughter would get like a sentence Every chapter just to remind us that she's there but not actually makers part of Evelyn's life as I think we needed her to be in order for her Ark the the part where she was actually important to the story for us to actually care I didn't really care because she didn't really exist until then and I don't think it's because Well, that's how it's meant to be because her mom is never there Because that's not the impression that I would get from like those one sentences I just that could have been done better But I really was interested in and I don't want to spoil it But Evelyn Hugo is bisexual in the book Which was something she couldn't really have out being a Hollywood star in like the 50s So I really enjoyed that struggle and balance of it And that I was rooting for them and then I would get frustrated with them And I'm root for her and then I get frustrated with her and it was just such a roller coaster of a book I think and it was my first Taylor Jenkins read book So I think if any of her other books sound interesting I'll read them But she's not an auto read author for me I wouldn't say and then the only other non contemporary romance book that I read this summer was Warrior of the Wild by Trisha Levinseller This is the last Trisha Levinseller book published that I have not read or I hadn't read until now I read it. So now I've read all of Trisha Levinseller's books to my knowledge. I'm pretty sure according to good reads I'm pretty sure and I loved it I think it was one of her earlier works and you can kind of tell just what's in the writing with a little amateurish But I didn't want to hold that against her. I Love this book five out of five I I don't know what it is Just the way that she comes up with such unique fun ideas for her books just makes me so happy all the time You're following this female warrior who is Ready to like claim her spot in society And then she gets sabotaged on her test and is exiled and has to do this impossible task of killing what they believe to be a god In order to regain her spot in society. So she gets outcasted. She meets other people who have been outcasted they form a little community and uh And she actually says, you know, we're gonna get these tasks done in order to regain our clans I'm like I admired our main character. I liked her. I didn't like the the romance interest too much I think he was someone who kind of had to grow on me But I think that You know, Trisha's lovin sellers come a long way with romantic interests since then. So Yeah, I I did like all the characters overall. I love the plot. I read it so quickly I was just so in trans by it just the aesthetic of just living in a woods and being a warrior that focuses on like hammers and axes and like those the non Sword and dagger or bone arrow type weapons. And if your main character uses something other than a sword A dagger slash knife Or a bone arrow I instantly have just a little more respect and I'm just a little more excited because it's interesting. It's not as Done. So I was excited about that part of the element as well Anyway, I'm gonna move on before this video gets too long then. Oh, oh my word Here's another non Rom-com book that I read. I actually read these hollow vows 3.5 out of five stars for me. I think it was all right I'll probably pick up the second one, but I'm in no rush to do so I like face stories and I thought this one was interesting But I read this at the end of arcus and it's the middle of september and I've already forgotten Most of it and pretty much all of my feelings on it. Like there was a love triangle in it Which I didn't hate but I didn't love Yeah, I don't know. I honestly can't remember enough to really tell you about it. So oops, sorry I read last chance books two out of five stars Not a fan. A lot of these books I'll talk in the vlog So I'll have the vlog link down below if you want more of the thoughts But I didn't like the characters. I didn't like the plot. I didn't like the switch from enemies to lovers They're about rivaling bookstores. One is a small business One is like a chain, but also a family business Didn't care about the relationship. Just there was so much wrong there It was not great. I wouldn't recommend it I'll put it at five. I read four aunties on a wedding by jesse q sotanto This is the sequel to dial a for aunties and I loved it I rated it 4.5 out of five stars I was I don't think it was quite as good as dial a for aunties Which was a five out of five for me Um, I don't I just went a little too far into the I kind of can't believe it like a little too whimsy But also not like but why the time it got to the end. I was like a little more tolerable of it But like I don't know I would still highly recommend it though like it was so funny So much was happening. It was crazy And I still have the thought of like I could definitely see her writing like a third book or a companion or just Something else like this and I would pick it up as fast as I could I then read the layover which was three out of five stars It happened. There was nothing I particularly liked about it, but there's nothing wrong with it It was just a fluffy adult contemporary romance to get me through That day or the next day. So I mean I had travel in it, which is always fun I feel like it would probably be a better book to read while I was traveling because of the atmosphere of it But being at home during the summer. I was just kind of like Okay, it's happened moving on. I read this summer job and this one was also three out of five stars I liked this one just a little bit more though. I If the main character frustrated me But that was the whole point of the book was like one little lie leads to a ton of miscommunication leads to a big blow up But the atmosphere around it and just the premise of it of like someone posing as her friend to take a job in Scotland as a wine expert That was fun. Like the beginning like the first half was amazing. The second half was like, yeah, you expected it What else was gonna happen? But I just It got me so interested in wine and I've always had an interest in Scotland as well as Ireland Just yeah, so Like I I enjoyed what the book was trying to be I just wish it had been a little more unique or interesting I read The Wedding Crashers Again, three out of five stars Uh, I wasn't liking it for most most of the book the ending kind of made it up for me a little bit It went back to being a cute it started off as a cute book Then it went into some other like kind of I don't know how to describe it because it wasn't deep but it wasn't cute anymore And then the ending was super cute so And I don't know if I would Really recommend if it's the book that sounds good to you. I would say to pick it up But if you Are trying something new with adult contemporary romance, I would not suggest this book to Put you into it I think there are much better adult contemporary romances to read than this one if you're not a fan of the genre already I read set on you two out of five stars not a fan Everyone in the book was an influencer except for like one character and there is just a lot of like Really, this is not realistic. This is not something I'm interested. The characters aren't making any sense What's going on? That's a little weird. Okay, I guess so those are just kind of my reactions So not one I would super recommend and same with the next book. I read after it how to fake it in Hollywood Also two out of five stars. This is a fake dating And I generally like fake dating like I read a lot of enemies to lovers in fake dating because that's what I like But none of them are really hitting it for me like for a while. I thought This book was going to be really good. I was like it might even reach 3.5 stars in the beginning because the fake dating didn't go off the way that other fake datings happen, but Then it just went downhill From there and I just I didn't really care. Again, I didn't care if the couple ended up together or not I just didn't see much of the future But and I think coming up of the seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo, which is another Hollywood romance focus Like that one was much better Than how to fake it in Hollywood. I feel like Hollywood was the More contemporary fluffier worse version of it I don't know though just my thoughts and feelings. Don't don't shoot me down for these if you have a different opinion Good for you. I'm happy for you These are just my opinions Then I read Salam with love and this was three out of five stars for me This is about a girl who goes to visit her family for Ramadan And she kind of sees the differences between how her family practices Islam versus how her cousins practice Islam And there were some really cool elements in it. Like there were some elements. I very much enjoyed, but there were also elements where I was like I'm confused I don't think I like it How does that work? Like I'm trying not to give spoilers, which is why I'm just purely giving reactions with like Zero context, but like the love interest I liked him But he felt way too like flat like a 2d character like there wasn't much to him And so because of that at a hard time getting on board with romance and then it was just weird That in relation to the other romance. I had just I was very expressive when listening to this audiobook at work Like I was sitting there cleaning gosses going Hey so Take that with you. Well, I think it is one that I would still recommend though Like it was pretty good. It was it was all right. It was like a three out of five stars It's maybe slightly above average. It was enjoyable. Then I read by the book by jasmine gillary And this was 3.5 out of five stars. It's a beauty in the beast modern day kind of retelling and it's part of this series each book is written by a different author and they do a different Uh fairy tale in like modern day. So like if the shoe fits is the cinderella one I haven't read it By the book was beauty and beast and I was interested in this book because I read Jasmine Guillory's royal holiday and I liked it. It was a very cute Um, like adult christmas romance. So I thought I love beauty and the beast the characters are bookish Like she's trying to be an editor. He's supposed to be writing a book So I thought this could be great and it was pretty good. It was it was really good It was definitely better than a lot of the Contemporary romances. I had been reading but I loved the little knots to beating the beast that were in there like her talking to Various objects, even though they don't come alive And just like her similarities to bell but still being her own character and having her own goals and ambitions It was just kind of interesting how that was done and I would recommend it I don't know if I'll read the other ones if I have time I will but Yeah, it's just a cute little fun read and then the last book Finally that I read this month Highest rated contemporary romance outside of like the ones that I own like the Emily Henry Four out of five star was weather girl Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm I wanted to read that initially this past spring because it was it seems like a very rainy day type reads I wanted to read it in spring when it was rainy But then all of a sudden I forgot I had a hold on it and it came in from the library and I was like, oh Yeah, sure. I'll read it And it was so Cute I I very much enjoyed it. I loved our main character and our love interest They were just adorable like pure cuteness I feel like some elements could have been tightened up here and there like some parts the writing could have been better But overall I just very much enjoyed it. It is about two co-workers. One is our weather girl She does the weather on the news Um, and she works for her childhood idol She's super excited about it except that she doesn't get the relationship with her idol that she was hoping for So she's a little bit bummed about that, but that's because the two people that owned the station were married and got divorced and they Cannot Be professional in the office It's it's insane. So she our main character teams up with this guy from sports who kind of know each other and figure out They're like the only two Jews in the Uh company so like when they're at the Christmas party, that's a holiday party, but everything is Christmas and they're like They decide that they're gonna get their bosses back together To make their work environment better and it's a cute premise I love how they go about doing it the ending just blew my mind Surprisingly, like I wasn't expecting it from an adult contemporary romance like this Especially after all the kind of drabby ones that I've read. So like this It made me so happy. I very much would recommend it for like a rainy day Like maybe a fall or spring day Anyway, those are all 16 books that I read in august. I believe Yeah, that seems right. Sure. Let me know if you like this video. You can feel free to give it a thumbs up I have bookish social media linked down below. You can follow me there to see updates on what I'm reading What books I'm purchasing etc and so forth I post videos on Sundays and Wednesday So feel free to subscribe to keep up to date with all of my videos going up I'm heading it's a spooky season soon. So I have a lot of fun content for that coming up Just saying uh, yeah But until I see you all in the next video. I wish you happy reading