Everything I Read in July 2023

Looking for your next book? Check out everything I read in July 2023 ... from classic family dramas to speculative fiction, there is a book here for everyone!

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July was a slow reading month for me, which is probably not surprising given all the traveling I did earlier in the month. Sometime I read a lot on vacation, and other times I'm so tired that I fall asleep after one paragraph!

I ended up squeezing in four books this month, including one audiobook. And even though I didn't read many books, there was a good mix of genres: speculative fiction, family drama, literary fiction, and a coming of age story.

My favorite books this month were The Ferryman and Now Is Not the Time to Panic. These two novels were both excellent and among the best I've read this year! The stories couldn't be more different, so I won't try to compare them, but suffice it to say that I loved them both!

New Summer Book ... if you're looking for a great beach read, check out The Block Party! I read an advance copy of this book back in January, and it was just released. I really enjoyed this twisty book, which is perfect for thriller / neighborhood drama fans. Check out my review here if you're intrigued, or purchase a copy at Amazon or Bookshop!

What have you been reading lately? I'd love to hear about it in the comment section below!

Books I Read in July 2023

I've included links for all of these books on Bookshop.org and Amazon so you can easily find them, as well as my ratings for each book (one star is lowest / five stars is highest).

The Ferryman by Justin Cronin

Appearances are deceiving in The Ferryman! As the outside world deteriorates, citizens of utopian Prospera enjoy long, fulfilling lives until the monitors embedded in their arms (which track their physical / mental well-being) dip below 10 percent. Then they retire themselves, take a ferry ride to the Nursery, and are readied for a new life with bodies renewed and memories erased. Proctor has enjoyed a successful career as a ferryman, yet all is not well. He's been dreaming (supposedly impossible in Prospera), and his monitor's percentage has been steadily dropping. One day, he's called to retire his own father, who delivers a cryptic message before being wrestled onto the ferry.

Meanwhile, unrest is building with the Support Staff, the men and women who keep Prospera running smoothly, and rumors of a resistance group called the Arrivalists are spreading. Proctors soon finds himself questioning everything he once believed in and struggling to discover the truth.

The Ferryman quickly earned a place on my 2023 favorites list! It's hard to talk about this book without giving anything away, but I found the story to be incredibly gripping with many unexpected plot twists (it was hard to put this book down). As the book progresses, important elements of the story are slowly revealed, and it takes a while to figure out what is really happening, but even then you're not entirely sure. The world-building was excellent ... you can really envision the seemingly perfect Prospera, as well as the less than idyllic island that the Support Staff inhabit. If you're a fan of speculative fiction or thrillers, check it out. I think you'll love it, too!

Order on Bookshop.org or Amazon | My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5 out of 5 stars)

Now Is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson

If you're looking for a unique coming of age story, don't miss Now Is Not the Time to Panic! Frankie Budge is a lonely, 16-year-old aspiring writer from Coalfield, Tennessee who's just trying to make it through the summer. When she meets Zeke, a talented young artist who's moved in with his grandmother, romantic and creative sparks fly. The two friends create an unsigned poster with striking images and an enigmatic message: The edge is a shantytown filled with gold seekers. We are fugitives, and the law is skinny with hunger for us. As the posters begins popping up everywhere, rumors of satanists, kidnappers, and more lead to a panic with dangerous consequences.

Twenty years later, Frances Eleanor Budge is shocked to get a call from a journalist that threatens to upend her quiet life. She's writing about the Coalfield Panic of 1996 ... does Frances know anything about that?

Now Is Not the Time to Panic is one of those rare books that I knew I was going to enjoy almost immediately! I absolutely loved the characters. As someone who grew up in the 90's, far from a big city, I could really relate to Frankie, who didn't feel like she fit in within anyone until she met Zeke. The sense of place was wonderful, too ... the author captured that small town feeling so well, including pre-internet isolation and how quickly rumors spread. I also thought the juxtaposition of Frankie's current life to her teenage years was very effective and showed the lasting power of secrets so well. Another book to add to my 2023 favorites list!

Order on Bookshop.org or Amazon | My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5 out of 5 stars)

The Summer Place by Jennifer Weiner

Family secrets are revealed in The Summer Place! Sarah is shocked when her 22-year-old stepdaughter announces her engagement to her pandemic boyfriend. The wheels are quickly set in motion though when Ruby sets the date just three months away. Sarah is worried, but her mother Veronica is thrilled to host the wedding at the family's Cape Cod beach house (one last gathering before she puts the house on the market).

The road to the big day is filled with bumps. Normally headstrong Ruby second-guesses herself, Veronica is forced to face her past as a best-selling novelist, and Sarah's twin brother Sam is coping with a huge loss while trying to figure out who he really is. Meanwhile, Sarah is growing frustrated with her increasingly distant husband Eli and is tempted by someone from her past. When the wedding day finally arrives, everyone's secrets come to light, and the family will never be the same.

I've always loved Jennifer Weiner's books, but I hadn't read one in years. And now I feel like I've been missing out, because I thoroughly enjoyed The Summer Place (I listened to the audiobook). There's just something about her writing that's so comforting ... even when bad things are happening lol. This story has many different characters, each with their own issues and storylines. The characters are well-developed though and the simultaneous plots are easy to keep straight. I did feel like maybe there was maybe a little too much drama, but everything comes together well in the end. If you're looking for a great perfect beach / vacation read, don't miss this one, especially if you enjoy family dramas!

Order on Bookshop.org or Amazon | My Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4 out of 5 stars)

The Furrows by Namwali Serpell

Grief casts a long shadow in The Furrows! 12-year-old Cassandra Williams (C) and her 7-year-old brother Wayne are playing alone together one day, when Wayne is lost forever in a tragic accident. The accident divides the family: their father leaves and starts a new family, but their mother, who refuses to ever give up hope, launches an organization dedicated to missing children. As C grows up, she sees Wayne everywhere, but it can't actually be him ... or can it? One day, C meets a man who is mysterious yet familiar, a man who is also searching for someone. His name is Wayne.

I struggled to get into this book. It has an experimental structure that's more focused on emotion than plot (at least in the first half). It's not clear what is real and what is a dream, and even the circumstances of Wayne's accident change. I found it to be quite confusing. And just when I thought I was catching on, the book shifts into the second half, which is very different from the first. It feels like two different books to me. C's life was profoundly impacted by Wayne's loss, but you don't really get a sense of who she is (apart from her pain). Her whole life, from personal to professional, revolves around Wayne (and maybe that's the point). The Furrows is beautifully written, but it just wasn't for me. It has received many accolades though, so check it out if the premise interests you!

Order on Bookshop.org or Amazon | My Rating ⭐⭐⭐ (3 out of 5 stars)

And that wraps up July! Definitely a slower reading month than usual, but still some great books. I hope you found something interesting to check out! Have you read any of these novels, or do you have a book that you'd recommend to me? Let me know if the comments.

Looking for reading inspiration? Check out all the books I read in June 2023 and and May 2023, plus this roundup of the best books I read in 2022 that I created for bookshop.org!