August 2022 Book Haul

I didn't buy as many books in August as I did in any other month. That's not to say I didn't acquire as many, just there are a few I didn't actually purchase myself. 

1. The Bronze Drum by Phong Nguyen - It looked pretty good and I can't say as I've read any books featuring ancient Vietnam. I can't wait to see what it's all about. I don't recall offhand if it's a debut or not, but that doesn't really matter I suppose. I do know it's based on a real historical account of some sisters who helped their country. 

2. Frankly in Love by David Yoon - I have read a book by his wife, and this one just sounded interesting to me. I'm looking forward to seeing where it goes. If I remember correctly, their cover up does not go quite as planned. They end up falling for each other while only using each other as a cover so their oddly strict Korean parents don't freak about them dating non-Korean people. I think...don't hold me to that. 

3. The Next 100 Years: A Forecast for the 21st Century by George Friedman - Not a clue. Bestie said I should read it and I found a copy on Thriftbooks for $4. May as well give it a go, right? 

4. Her Majesty's Royal Coven by Juno Dawson - Been hearing about this one like every other day on BookTube and it sparked my interest as it's about a group of witches employed by the Queen of England to protect her. I'm already about halfway through at the posting of this haul, and I have to say I am enjoying it. 

5. The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker - The cover was pretty. I'm a sucker. I remember hearing about this, but I don't recall if the general consensus was positive or negative. Only that it was among the 2020 popular books, possibly even before that (before I was really into BookTube) since this was published in 2013.

6. Scum Villain's Self-Saving System #2 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu - Stumbled across the table while looking for other books in the science fiction/fantasy section. Loved the first one and had to get the second. 

7. Heaven Official's Blessing #2 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu - I've seen the animated donghua and I adored it. Hua Cheng is funny in his approach to earning Xie Lian's affection. Xie Lian literally does not remember him at all at first. I can't wait to see how it continues. 

8-10. Penryn & the End of Days (series) by Susan Ee - I have no idea what this is about. It was sent to me by Rowan because I needed to feel the same things she did. Past that I couldn't tell you much more than I've heard of the series and have seen it on shelves at te library and bookstore.  

11. The Shining by Stephen King - Picked this one up partly because I liked the cover of the edition I found and, I kid you not, partly because it's headcanon that it's Eddie Munson's favorite book/movie combo. (I'm sure if he was around in the 2000s he'd be all for the Hobbit/Lord of the Rings movies). I want to know what it's about. I've seen bits of the movie and am interested in watching it once I finish the book. 

12. Raven's Gate by Anthony Horowitz - I've read at least one book of his (Magpie Murders) and I own another two (Murder is the Word and Moriarty) so when I saw this middle grade, I couldn't pass it up. I have absolutely no idea what it's about, but I like Horowitz's style, so here's hoping I like it?

13. The Bookseller by Cynthia Swanson - It looked good. I like books that combine my interests. Especially reading about books and reading. I am curious about the plot and how she reconciles her real life with her dream life. 

14. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand - Literally just replacing a copy of it that I had. I already owned a mass-market paperback copy of the book, but it was so thick that I literally could not read the content in the center of the pages without nearly ripping my copy in half. So I found a trade paperback with wider margins. Now I can read it!

15. The Woman In the Window by A.J. Finn - I've already read this one. Picked up a library copy a few years back. Loved it, but now have very limited access to the library that has the copy. So, when the same libary had it in the bin during their bag sale, I couldn't resisst and grabbed it. I may put it on October's TBR for spooky season. 

16. The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett - Not a clue. Maybe just because it was big and pretty. I know absolutely nothing about this book. Haven't even looked it up yet. I know its a standalone and the author branching out into a genre he doesn't normally write in. That's it. That's what I know. 

17. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace - It's huge. It looks good. I have no idea. My old thing of collecting ridiculously thick novels sort of kicked in and figured, why not? I paid the equivalent of $0.33 for it ($4 per bag and I had 12 books in my bag), so it was worth the price. I can't wait to see if I like it or what it's even about. 

18. The Likeness by Tana French - I remember this one also from BookTube. There was another (not the one directly below) that was mentioned, but this one was one of the two that they had. I am looking forward to reading this soon and seeing what the hype was all about. 

19. Faithful Place by Tana French - Grabbed it because it was literally another Tana French novel and I was paying $0.33/book, so why the hell not? If I don't like it, I'll just post it on eBay or Pango. Not a big deal really. I now know that I picked up volumes 2 & 3 in the series. Just need to grab volume 1 and it will be perfect....

20. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness - Replacing a copy that I wanted to reread that got destroyed by water damage. I liked the storyline and am interested in continuing....I just only had volume 3 and 3.5 at the time. They got out unscathed. I found this in a matching edition to what I already owned and grabbed it so I could replace my lost copies. 

21. The Woman in the Mirror by Rebecca James - I forget why I wanted this offhand, other than it is some psych thriller that looks pretty good (I think it's also the only proper hardback I got...The Shining doesn't count because it was rebound with Permabound). No idea what it's about, but definitely interesting cover. 

22. The Last Days of Socrates by Plato - I'm a pseudo-practicing Hellenic witch, so I like to grab as much as I can about Greek history, religion, and culture. When I saw this, I knew it was coming home with me. I like to read not just current non-fiction about Greece and her culture/history/religion...but also ancient fiction and non-fiction alike. It can tell you a lot about the people when you read stuff from the people. Looking forward to this one.