We are OFFICIALLY over half-way through the year already which is amazing! I would most definitely like to be further on with my reading goals than I am at the moment but I’m not lowering my reading goal for the year until July is other. I’m cranking up my reading gears and read some fantastic books last month so THERE IS HOPE, MY FIENDLINGS.

June was a lovely month for me! It started off slow with some average books and finished off with a bang. I’m finally super duper enjoying reading again and have a lot to look forward to in July – so look out for that wrap-up! But let’s not waste time, let’s check out the deals happening around the online bookstore world and dive into this wrap-up!

THE BOOK DEPOSITORY

Always free world-wide shipping from the BD which makes it an awesome place to do all your bookish shopping! New editions of Harry Potter anyone? Grab a copy! Celebrate the Tiger Who Came to Tea with special 50th anniversary editions. Make sure you scan through the New Releases and scout for a deal in their Bargain section, too!

WORDERY

Make sure you check out Wordery for more free world-wide shipping! With a great selection of books you can’t go wrong. Be sure to check out what’s trending in some of the most popular book clubs you could join and don’t miss their book of the week. And for the sports fans in the crowd there’s even something for YOU.

ANGUS & ROBERTSON

An Australian company to support! Angus & Robertson offer free national shipping within Australia on orders of $60AUD. Right now, they have a great selection of winter cookbooks for the cold months and be sure to check out their featured staff picks!

BOOKTOPIA

Another Australian company to support! Booktopia offer flat rate shipping on all orders within Australia and New Zealand. Snap 25% off mystery and crime picks and also explore a world of food! Right now you can order to win a mega prize pack for the treehouse books and get 25% off their Top 100 books!

I am an affiliate with these companies, by purchasing your books by using my links I earn a small commission which helps support Upside-Down Books!

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Eleanor’s Secret
by Caroline Beecham 

Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Caroline Beecham
Published: April 2018
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Pages: 432 {paperback}

This was sent to me for review by Allen & Unwin so many thanks for the copy! Unfortunately, it was not the cup of tea I thought it would be. Whilst it is an interesting dual-time setting, historical fiction it read like a family saga and was a struggle to get through. But I did learn something about War Artists and this alone boosted it to a 3-star rating!

Review to come

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Finnikin of the Rock
by Melina Marchetta

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Author: Melina Marchetta
Published: October 2008
Publisher: Bolinda Publishing
Audiobook Legnth: 13 hours
Page Count Equivalent: 416 {paperback}

Will I continue the series? YES

I did not like this audiobook at all but I loved the story. It was somewhat meandering regarding the direction of the plot but I was hooked nonetheless. If it hadn’t been so intriguing I probably would have returned the audiobook. I will continue the series but with hard copies, not the audiobooks.

Review to come

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Nil
by Lynne Matson 

Genre: Sci-Fi, Young Adult
Author: Lynne Matson
Published: May 2015
Publisher: Square Fish
Pages: 400 {paperback}

Will I continue the series? YES

This was incredible. It was the book of the month for my book club The Squabbling Dragons and I loved it. It was fast-paced, action-packed and everything I hoped it would be. I’ve already bought the sequel and am waiting very excitedly to start reading it.

Review to come

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The Narrow Road to the Deep North
by Richard Flanagan 

Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Richard Flanagan
Published: November 2013
Publisher: Bolinda Publishing
Audiobook Length: 15 hours
Page Count Equivalent: 467 {paperback}

Another “meh” audiobook performance but a very deep book. I would certainly not have made it through the book if I was reading rather than listening. It’s heavy, confusing and confronting. But once I reached the end of the story it was rounded off nicely and made more sense. A book I’ve been reading to read for ages ticked off the list!

Review to come

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 The Belles
by Dhonielle Clayton

Genre: Fantasy, Dystopian, Young Adult
Author: Dhonielle Clayton
Published: February 2018
Publisher: Orion Publishing Group
Audiobook Length: 13 hours
Page Count Equivalent: 440 {hardback}

Will I continue the series? YES

I have been unable to stop raving about this book. I’ve completely fallen in love with it and am so excited for the series to continue on. It’s unique, brilliant and everything and MORE that you could hope for it to be. I’ve not only written a review already for this one, but done a video review on my Booktube channel also.

My review

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 Born at Midnight
by C. C. Hunter

Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Young Adult
Author: C. C. Hunter
Published: March 2011
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Pages: 398 {paperback}

Will I continue the series? YES

This book completely surprised me by how much I loved it. It was a joy to read and something a little different from all the other bog-standard paranormal YA fantasies I’ve read so far. I’m simply itching to pick up book two and dive back in.

Review to come

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• I reviewed some books:
  • The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton
  • Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
  • They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera
• I announced the month-long special of the Alphabethon Read-a-thon
• I discussed new releases for June 2018
• I did my May book haul
• I did my May wrap-up

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• I did the Mid-Year Freak Out Book Tag
• I reviewed Outlander by Diana Gabaldon
• I announced my return to Booktube!

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Looking for a new and exciting book club to join? Come have some fun with Casey and I over at the Squabbing Dragons! We’re a Goodreads book club and we focus on reading Sci-Fi/Fantasy books that are underrated! This July, starting on the 17th, we’ll be starting We See Everything by William Sutcliffe so go grab your copy!

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Genres Read:

Pages Read:

Total: 2,553

Progress Towards Goodreads Challenge:

34%, or, 34/100 books

Like I said earlier, I’m not lowering this just yet but if I do, I’ll lower it to 90 when the time comes.

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June was a fairly uneventful month for me. I worked and I read in my spare time. I didn’t participate in any read-a-thons and I didn’t do any travelling. I did, however, see quite the number of movies (for once!). I have much more planned for July and a WHOLE heap of reading planned for then too, so keep tuned for that.

Seeing as less was going on in my life last month I was able to get back into Booktube, however! Make sure to head across to YouTube to check that out because I’m really excited about being back on there. It’s so much fun making videos! At the moment, considering I’m working full time and already run this blog and social media, I’m posting once a week – a wrap-up/bookhaul, a tag or something else and a couple of book reviews. And I’m really happy with my decision to get back into it so far!

I’ve also been on a fake flower buying rampage to spruce up my Instagram with more colour. I’m addicted to buying stuff when I see bargains for it hanging about and I’m pretty sure I will soon be able to open my own flower shop at the rate I’m going. I’ve discovered a new editing app for my photos – the debate on editing since PicMonkey went monetised has been so real for me – but a friend recommend the phone app of Adobe LightRoom to me, and it’s been a lifesaver. Totally free to download with in-app purchases available.

Most importantly however, I’m just really excited about reading again. It’s felt like I’ve been in a semi-slump for months and months – like over half a year, really. So it’s such a relief to know I want to pick up books and I’m genuinely excited about what I’m reading. I’m helping to host the month-long special of the Alphabethon in July and planning on smashing out some serious reading then which will be AWESOME.

The final thing I’ve been turning my attention to is getting some damn reviews done. I’m super behind and I’m sad I’ve just not found the motivation to catch up. So I’m beginning to push myself to get them done and be back on top of things again! So let’s pray we start to see some more current book reviews happening around here!

Movies I Watched:

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, 2018: 5/10 stars
I was really disappointed with this. I loved the first movie but this was far too much of dinosaurs trying to jump-scare you and eating a whole lot of people. It could have benefitted a lot more from some actual plot lines and perhaps even a touch of character development would be nice.

Kubo and the Two Strings, 2016: 6/10 stars
This was a curious little movie that I watched on a whim and quite enjoyed. It’s odd animation and the plot had me unsure of where it was headed for some time. But eventually it got very interesting and it has a beautiful ending to it.

The Incredibles 2, 2018: 9/10 stars
I don’t think I need to say much at all for this one. It was as good if not better than the original and 100% worth the many years of waiting for it. I want to see it again. And I want more movies. SO GOOD.

300, 2006: 7/10 stars
I’ve been meaning to watch this for the longest of times now and I’m thrilled that I did. It’s such a solid movie and was really entertaining to watch. I’m keen as a bean to watch the sequel and more movies like this in the future!

Ocean’s Eight, 2018: 7/10 stars
I hadn’t planned to see this but just sort of ended up going. I’ve not seen any of the others movies but was surprised at how much I loved this. It was funny, canny and I’d totally watch it again. Not to mention I really want to see the originals now.

The Defiant Ones, 1958: 6/10 stars
This was a bit of a throw back. It’s a movie I’ve heard of before and had on my watch list and when I saw it was on Stan I decided to have a spontaneous movie night with myself. It’s cute, it’s old, it’s black and white and I found I really quite enjoyed it for what it was.

TV Series I Watched:

Black Books, 2000: series 2 & 3
I’m still slowly re-watching this one and it’s as funny as ever. If you haven’t seen this series then you definitely need to!

Lost in Space, 2018: series 1
I finally finished this one!! The ending was such a cruel cliff-hanger and I’m actually really excited for the next season now. Let’s hope the show continues on.

Masterchef Australia, 2018: series 10
It’s beginning to get to the pointy end of the series now and I’m getting really excited about who is going to win. This series is such a commitment being on four days a week but I LOVE IT OKAY.

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Tick! June done! 

What was your favourite book that you read in June? 

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~~ Kirstie ~~

Follow @ozbooksnail