2026 Reading - July!

July's theme?  Summer of the Series!  Try a new series, continue on with an ongoing series, or complete a series!  

Not going to lie....the 30 books last month burned me out a bit, so I slowed way down this month and focused on quality over quantity.  Also, there have been some big changes in my personal life that have allowed me to return to other hobbies that are equally as meaningful, but which haven't been accessible for a long while.  

1.  The Once and Future Queen, Paula Lafferty (audio) (The Lives of Guinevere #1) - I had the pleasure of meeting Paula at Skylark Bookshop earlier this year for a small author event.  (Which was absolutely delightful.  More like a conversation with friends than a typical book event!)  Right away, it's literally one of the most beautiful books that I own, and Paula's story of how it came to be is pretty amazing.  Even better, Julia Whelan is the audiobook narrator, and as everyone knows, she's a dream.  I had considered waiting to read it as it's the first in an unfinished series, but curiosity got to me!  This is an absolutely lovely book.  I love seeing this classic story through Guinevere's eyes, and I absolutely adored Vera. As a special bonus, the different relationships were a delight.  Given how many versions of this story I've read over the years, I think it's hard to make it feel fresh, but Lafferty has done just that.  I cannot wait for the rest of the series!  (Also, love a heroine who time travels with her running shoes!)

2.  Honeymoon Phase and 3.  Bad Boy Era, Amy Daws (Mountain Men Matchmaker #3 and #4) - I hadn't intended to include a romance series this month, but I really enjoyed the first two books last month,  and, quite frankly, I got sick and this was all I could handle.  As with many of the romance books I read, I really love the family in this series.  Yes, there are a few things I roll my eyes about, but overall they and their mountain compound are a dream.  

4.  Heavenly Bodies, Imani Erriu (audio) (Heavenly Bodies #1) - A book friend recommended this!  Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but I do wish the relationship had been dialed back a bit.  I tend to like more plot than romance, and this tilted too far in the other direction at times.  BUT, the plot and worldbuilding were good.  There will be 5 books in the series, with #3 coming out this year, so I'm not feeling too rushed to read further just yet.  (Update: I've decided I'll not continue on with the series.  I truly enjoyed the book, but I just have too many series going on.)

5.  The Jasad Heir and 6.  The Jasad Crown, Sara Hashem (audio and print) (The Scorched Throne Duology) - This has been on my TBR for a while, and I'm happy to say that it lived up to its reputation and then more.  Well worth all of the hype I've seen, with satisfying character arcs, excellent magical creatures,  just the right amount of romance, and an ending that made me sigh happily.  

7.  The Endless War, Danielle L. Jensen (The Bridge Kingdom #4) - I have really loved this series so much, and I still very much do.  However, this is my least favorite book so far because I found the first half to be oddly tedious.  The entire rescue from the island was a slog for me, and the cannibalism thing was unnecessary.  However, the ending redeemed the book, and the last half was every bit as amazing as I expected it to be.  Probably going to take a break before I read the final duology.  With series like this, I like to let it marinate a it between duologies so that I can say goodbye to the protagonists in what I just read to prepare for the next couple.  

8.  The Children of Gods and Fighting Men, 9. The Words of Kings and Prophets, 10.  The Land of the Living and the Dead - Shauna Lawless (The Gael Song Trilogy) (audio) - This series is every bit as wonderful as I'd heard it would be.  It’s my second all 5 star series of the year!  

So, funny reading story.  I had every intention of reading the physical books. However, Lawless uses a whole lot of very old Irish and Norse names and I wanted to get them right in my head.  After going back and forth for the first chapter with the (rather large) pronunciation guide, I went to Libro and got an audio version so that I could listen to the names.  For about four chapters I did just that - read my physical copies and would find the right place in the audio and listen to the names.  As I’m sure you can imagine, this became a ridiculous process, and was very frustrating.  At some point, it occurred to me that the audio narrator was actually quite lovely and that her narration style really worked for me.  So I mostly gave up on the print and went to audio for the series.  And it was amazing.  One of the best audio series I’ve listened to in some time! 

Back to the books.  

First off, the writing itself is divine.  The blend of plot, characterization and world building is perfectly balanced, as are the historical and fantasy elements. 

Second, this is a series centered around two women, and wow.  Lawless has created two memorable and very complex women.  Much as you hate the villain, you also feel deeply for her and understand why she feels and acts as she does.  Our heroine has a deep emotional arc that made me ache for her.  They are the complete heart and soul - which is incredible given that this is based on actual history where women seemingly had no power.  

Finally, the plot.  Several times while reading I went to Wikipedia to learn more about the history.  I also read the notes in the back of the book several times.  This series is about the rise of Brian Boru and the expellation of the Vikings from Ireland.  BUT, Lawless doesn’t let it stand on the popular version of that history.  She really digs in to the complexities and asks the readers to question who the real winners were in the end.  I cannot wait to skip to the second cycle so that I can see where she goes next.  

To sum up, Lawless is the queen of nuance.  There are no true good or bad people or events, there is compassion to be had for everyone for different reasons,  and because of that you just feel so darn much while reading these books.  

I was reminded of the works of Morgan Llewelyn, who similarly wrote historical fantasy about ancient Ireland back in the 90’s.  I very recently was able to put on display all of my stored books and have been reading portions of The Lion of Ireland, which is her interpretation of the same history.  Llewelyn’s writing is equally beautiful and complex, but it is very much centered on the men in the story.  (Normal for the time).  It feels like I’m both revisiting those beautiful stories and experiencing them for the first time again.  

PS.  The ending was, for me, so achingly beautiful that it took me a while to truly get back to reading after I finished the trilogy.  I needed to sit with it for a while.