June turned out to be a really enjoyable month for me, making this the best start to a summer that I’ve had in a really long time. I’ve continued attending physical therapy for my shoulder, and I’m not only feeling better than I was even before the surgery, but I’m able to use my arm a lot more than before as well. 

My family and friends have really made this summer fun. My friends and I have gotten together quite a few times—most notably a dinner celebration to welcome my friend back to the state, one evening/night to go to an outdoor fair, and one whole day where a good portion of my New York social circle got together and attended a midsummer celebration and then went out for sushi afterwards. Even my mom got into the spirit of the summer by bringing me out to IsraelFest, where the parents of one of the hostages in Gaza spoke, which was powerful. After that, there were musicians and vendors and dancing and fun, and a great time was had by all. There were even mounted cops stationed around, and they were letting the kids pet their horses and take pictures with them, which I thought was really cool of them.

Even with all of my social events, I’ve made time to get some reading done. I made some good progress with my ARCs that I’m happy with, although I completely neglected any nonfiction reads for the month. At least I managed to read some books with queer representation for Pride Month, even if I didn’t read any queer-themed nonfiction to expand my knowledge. Here are some of my June highlights:

• I’m hovering at close to 950 followers, and I’m aiming to reach a thousand by the end of this year. So if you are enjoying my blog, spread the word!
• I currently have 3 past due ARCs from NetGalley and 9 from publishers/authors.
• I didn’t DNF any books in June. 

Here’s my breakdown of monthly/cumulative totals for June: 

June Totals:

• Books read: 13
• Books DNF’d: 0
• Pages read: 4,429
• Hours listened: 34.28 hours
• Average pages: 147.63
• Average hours listened: 1.14 hours

Genres Read in June:

• Fantasy: 8
• Historical Fiction: 1
• Mystery: 2
• Romance: 1
• Short Stories: 1

Backlist vs. New Releases:

• Backlist books: 2
• 2024 releases: 11

Fiction Vs. Nonfiction:

• Fiction: 13
• Nonfiction: 0

Format Read:

• Print: 5
• Digital: 4
• Audio: 4

Age Range:

• Adult: 9
• YA: 3
• MG: 1

My favorite book of the month was Lenny Marks Gets Away with Murder by Kerryn Mayne.

Here’s what I read in June:

1. The Slain Divine by David Dalglish (The Vagrant Gods #3) (Publisher ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon
2. Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar (Publisher ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon
3. Past Present Future by Rachel Lynn Solomon (Rowan & Neil #2) (YABC ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon
4. Mirrored Heavens by Rebecca Roanhorse (Between Earth & Sky #3) (NG ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon
5. The Undermining of Twyla and Frank (The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy #2) (Publisher/NG ARC/ALC) | Goodreads | Amazon
6. Lenny Marks Gets Away with Murder by Kerryn Mayne (NG ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon

1. The Sword Unbound by Gareth Hanrahan (Lands of the Firstborn #2) (Publisher ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon
2. Nearly All the Men in Lagos Are Mad by Damilare Kuku (NG ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon
3. Sleep Like Death by Kalynn Bayron (NG ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon
4. The Fire Within Them by Matthew Ward (The Soulfire Saga #2) (Publisher ARC) | Goodreads | Amazon

1. The Dredge by Brendan Flaherty (ALC) | Goodreads | Amazon

1. The Sword Defiant by Gareth Hanrahan (Lands of the Firstborn #1) — reread 
2. The Darkness Before Them by Matthew Ward (The Soulfire Saga #1) — reread

How was your June? Did you do anything interesting or read anything good?