I have no idea where August went. It was a very up and down month, but I, like many of you, am looking forward to the fall season, so hopefully we all get to enjoy these upcoming months. :)
In personal news, August has been pretty busy and it absolutely flew by! This past weekend was especially a blur because from Friday evening through Tuesday afternoon our AC decided to call it quits (during a heatwave, when everyone else's AC has gone out, of course!) and my life was pretty much taken over by trying to figure out how to keep our house cool, haha--it got to be 95 degrees(!) in my house on Saturday but Sunday we were able to get our hands on a portable AC. Although Sunday still got quite warm as the last day in the heatwave, everything became much more manageable after that. It's not an experience I recommend! Outside of that delightful end to the month, I think August mainly consisted of work, continuing to work on crafting a performance routine for aerial (it's been quite a challenge with lots of ups and downs), and some reading (though never as much as I'd like!). I also went to a really fun charity circus show that some of my friends performed in, which was a blast, and I got to go see one of my favorite bands, Driveways, for the first time, which was also an incredible night. All in all, I think August was pretty okay, all things considered.
In reading news, I read some really great books in August! I really enjoyed The Dungeon Book and The Infinite State in particular, and I was really excited to finally finish up The Cure for Living. Although I had mild disappointment that I didn't like Blacktail more, I don't think I really disliked any of the books I read in August, so I always take that as a win.
# books read: 10
Thoughts: I was a bit bummed to not enjoy this quite as much as I'd hoped to, but I still very much appreciate the story Hawkins told and his creative mind. My review for this is already up, so feel free to take a look if you're curious about my thoughts in more detail. I also want to make a quick note here that there is quite a bit of animal violence (as one might expect, given the premise), so just keep that in mind you're sensitive to that like I am before diving in.
Thoughts: I loved this! Hanrahan continues to impress me with his imaginative stories and world-building and I really enjoyed getting to know Bait and Cornelius in this one. Highly recommend for all fantasy lovers!
Thoughts: This was a fantastic start to a new sci-fi series from Richard Swan, and I'm so curious to see where he takes this story and how he'll continue to expand the world.
Thoughts: This was a pretty fun horror that incorporated some monstrous deities, isolated islands, claustrophobic places (like submarines!), and families that seem to be hiding things...
Thoughts: This is a short sci-fi that I'd had my eye on for a while, and I've seen it described as cozy sci-fi, which I'd generally agree with. I didn't connect with it quite as much as I'd hoped, but I still enjoyed the story Newitz told and the world-building elements included.
Thoughts: A new book about Cicero? Sure, why not! I think this was a very accessible and well-researched look at Cicero. I really appreciated how much detail and time Edwards gave to contextual history/background as well that helped ground and situate the reader to better understand everything. This one will be out 9/15!
Thoughts: I was so excited to finally read a sequel to Dreams of the Dying, which I read so many years ago, and this did not disappoint!
Thoughts: This was so familiar that I'm not entirely sure I haven't already read this one at some point, but regardless I really appreciated this book and thought Catmull provided some really great reflection and thoughtful ideas to consider. (I will say that my first thought at seeing "Catmull" was "ah yes... the bane of my existence when trying to subdivide my poorly made beginner meshes on Maya..."
Thoughts: This has a really strong start and I thought it would go somewhere very interesting... but unfortunately, it didn't quite live up to that and ended up just feeling more like a romance that didn't captivate me at all. Well-written, but not a standout for me and I lost interest.
Thoughts: This was a really good middle grade horror that I think tackled grief, anxiety, OCD, and more in some incredibly thoughtful and effective ways. I definitely recommend this one!
I'm sorry to hear about your A/C, how awful! I hope the fall weather comes soon. Looks like a pretty good month for books, though😁
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