What I Read ♥ June 2024

June was a good reading month, I read a total of 6 books! Three of those books have been on my TBR list for a long time so it was rewarding to finally read them and all in one month. I’m posting my ‘what I read’ post early this month because in July I’ll be partaking in a reading challenge!

I’m publishing this post early because I wanted to let you know that I’ll be partaking in TheBrightSideGirl’s Mermaid & Pirates reading challenge. I wanted to participate in this reading challenge to challenge myself to read more books in a short amount of time and because I’m currently in my mermaid era! Check out this Instagram post for more information in case any of you want to participate in this 2-week reading challenge, the challenge runs from July 1st to July 14th (my birthday!). I’ll also be attempting to do some of the Instagram challenges so follow me on Instagram to see my mermaid book posts! I’ll be doing a recap at the end of the challenge to discuss the books I read and which books were my favorite. Throughout the entire month of July, I’ll be reading mermaid/ocean/island/sea books so if you have any mermaid books that you think I’ll enjoy let me know!

Make sure to follow me on Goodreads to be updated on what I’m reading and on StoryGraph if you’re curious about my book statistics.

My star reading scale
★★★★★/5 – Loved it! Would reread and recommend it to others.
★★★★/5 – Kept me entertained. I would reread.
★★★/5 – Didn’t love or hate but would recommend to others.
★★/5 – Did not enjoy it and probably skimmed through most of it.
★/5 – I hated it and regret wasting my time with this book.
DNF – Did not finish. This will probably be rare because I like to finish every book I start.

Monstrilio by Gerardo Sámano Córdova ★★★/5
Grieving mother Magos cuts out a piece of her deceased eleven-year-old son Santiago’s lung. Acting on fierce maternal instinct and the dubious logic of an old folktale, she nurtures the lung until it gains sentience, growing into the carnivorous little Monstrilio she keeps hidden within the walls of her family’s decaying Mexico City estate. Eventually, Monstrilio begins to resemble the Santiago he once was, but his innate impulses―though curbed by his biological and chosen family’s communal care―threaten to destroy this fragile second chance at life.

I went into Monstrilio not knowing much, I tend to do this a lot with books. I follow a few thriller and horror bookstagram accounts and this one grabbed my interest because the person who I follow (I can’t remember who said it) said that some events that happened in Monstrilio were stuck in their head for days. This book is divided into four parts, one part for each of the main characters. I thought the first part, from the mother’s perspective, was compelling but after that, it fell apart for me. The entire time I kept thinking, when is something going to happen? and when something did eventually happen it wasn’t that big of a deal! If anything, this was a great book to read during Pride Month as every character in the book is part of the LGBT+ community. Overall, this was a meh and disappointing read.

You can purchase Monstrilio here


The Heart: Frida Kahlo in Paris by Marc Petitjean ★★★/5
This intimate account offers a new, unexpected understanding of the artist’s work and of the vibrant 1930s surrealist scene.In 1938, just as she was leaving Mexico for her first solo exhibition in New York, Frida Kahlo was devastated to learn from her husband, Diego Rivera, that he intended to divorce her. This latest blow followed a long series of betrayals, most painful of all his affair with her beloved younger sister, Cristina, in 1934. In early 1939, anxious and adrift, Kahlo traveled from the United States to France—her only trip to Europe, and the beginning of a unique period of her life when she was enjoying success on her own. Now, for the first time, this previously overlooked part of her story is brought to light in exquisite detail. Marc Petitjean takes the reader to Paris, where Kahlo spends her days alongside luminaries such as Pablo Picasso, André Breton, Dora Maar, and Marcel Duchamp. Using Kahlo’s whirlwind romance with the author’s father, Michel Petitjean, as a jumping-off point, The Frida Kahlo in Paris provides a striking portrait of the artist and an inside look at the history of one of her most powerful, enigmatic paintings

I was very interested in reading about Frida Kahlo’s travels to Paris. However, I felt like there wasn’t enough information about Frida’s stay in Paris to actually make this book. I didn’t really care for the author’s father’s stories and found these parts pretty boring and hard to get through. This did make me want to read more about Frida Kahlo’s life as I don’t know too much about her so I’ll have to read more books about her in the future. Another meh read.

You can purchase The Heart: Frida Kahlo in Paris here


Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura ★★★★/5
Seven students find unusual common ground in this warm, puzzle-like Japanese bestseller laced with gentle fantasy and compassionate insight.

Bullied to the point of dropping out of school, Kokoro’s days blur together as she hides in her bedroom, unable to face her family or friends. As she spirals into despair, her mirror begins to shine; with a touch, Kokoro is pulled from her lonely life into a resplendent, bizarre fairytale castle guarded by a strange girl in a wolf mask. Six other students have been brought to the castle, and soon this marvelous refuge becomes their playground.

The castle has a hidden room that can grant a single wish, but there are rules to be followed, and breaking them will have dire consequences. As Kokoro and her new acquaintances spend more time in their new sanctuary, they begin to unlock the castle’s secrets and, tentatively, each other’s

This is one of three books that I crossed off my tbr list this month. I really enjoyed reading Lonely Castle in the Mirror I was engaged throughout most of the book and kept trying to find clues about why these students and how they were related to each other. I also loved how Kokoro’s mother was so supportive and didn’t force her child to go to school, to have a compassionate parent trying to understand their child’s school situation rather than forcing her to go (I also didn’t enjoy going to school as a kid and had parents who weren’t as understanding). When it comes to addressing mental health topics in general (but especially in kids) I think showing empathy, kindness, and having a connection to those in similar situations is important, and Lonely Castle in the Mirror did that. If I were to read this as a teenager when I was going through my issues in school I probably wouldn’t have felt so alone in my struggles. The only big issue I had was the confusing ending (I won’t spoil anything) but some parts didn’t add up to me, I would’ve appreciated another couple of pages going into further or a simpler explanation about how everything connected. Overall, I enjoyed Lonely Castle in the Mirrory and would love to reread it!

You can purchase Lonely Castle in the Mirror here


The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle ★★/5
To make the journey into the Now we will need to leave our analytical mind and its false created self, the ego, behind. From the very first page of Eckhart Tolle’s extraordinary book, we move rapidly into a significantly higher altitude where we breathe a lighter air. We become connected to the indestructible essence of our Being, “The eternal, ever present One Life beyond the myriad forms of life that are subject to birth and death.” Although the journey is challenging, Eckhart Tolle uses simple language and an easy question-and-answer format to guide us.

I did not like this at all! I’m honestly surprised people rank it so highly in the spiritual books genre even to this day! A podcaster whom I listen to mentioned The Power of Now which inspired me to listen to the audiobook. To be fair, it was released back in 1997 and not everything in this book has aged well. Specifically, the part where Eckhart mansplains how women should ‘cope’ with their PMS and how their (male) partners should help them… Yes, there is literally a section of this book about that! I was shocked and had to relisten to make sure I was hearing things correctly! Throughout the book, Eckhart makes these slight jabs at women which again annoyed me. Also, all the mentions of the Bible became repetitive to the point it came off as preachy which again turned me off from this book. The fact I finished The Power of Now is a miracle as I felt like DNFing it after the PMS talk. If you’re into books about enlightenment or spirituality I wouldn’t recommend this at all! There are far better and more modern books written out there about similar topics.

You can purchase The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment here


Klara and the sun by Kazuo Ishiguro ★★★/5
Here is the story of Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, who, from her place in the store, watches carefully the behavior of those who come in to browse, and of those who pass on the street outside. She remains hopeful that a customer will soon choose her. Klara and the Sun is a thrilling book that offers a look at our changing world through the eyes of an unforgettable narrator, and one that explores the fundamental question: what does it mean to love?

I didn’t know much about Klara and the sun going in. All I knew it had to do with a mannequin watching from a store window. That “mannequin” is our main character Klara who is a ‘AF’ artificial friend. The entire time I keep thinking of Klara as the kid-size doll from MEGAN which gave this book a creepy vibe which I was totally here for. Again, not much happened in Klara and the sun. Halfway through the book, there is a weird Black Mirror moment but it didn’t end up going in that direction which slightly disappointed me but this isn’t that type of book. There was a lot of optimism in Klara despite her situation and the crumbling climate shifts that affect the sun which in turn affects her as she’s powered by solar energy. The whole vibe of Klara and the sun was sad but hopefully which I found relatable.

You can purchase Klara and the Sun here


Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin ★★★★★/5
In this exhilarating novel, two friends—often in love, but never lovers—come together as creative partners in the world of video game design, where success brings them fame, joy, tragedy, duplicity, and, ultimately, a kind of immortality

This was cute. I wasn’t expecting to go in loving Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and rating it 5 stars! I loved the gaming element and nods to old games. I didn’t love the main charaters but I didn’t hate them either, I loved some of the side characters, or NPCs if you will. There was so much drama and unexpected turns that I quickly read this up! Some chapters felt like side quests or I was playing a hidden level that I didn’t know I needed to play but glad I did! I loved Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow and highly recommend it if you love gaming especially!

You can purchase Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow here

Have you read any of these books? What did you read in June?