It’s finally time to today to talk about my libro.fm ACL picks from July and August. I’d been putting this off because there’s quite a lot of them here and I just did not have the energy until now. ut here we are, it’s finally done and we’re just going to jump right into it.
Thank You For Listening by Julia Whelan
I’m so excited to see that we’re getting more and more contemporary romances added to our selections every month. This one sounds really interesting—it follows a former actress turned audiobook narrator who takes on a role in a romance book, though she’s lost her belief in love. I imagine she’s going to fall for her audiobook co-star, who is described as ‘the industry’s hottest, most secretive voice’. From what I can tell, the author has actually worked as an audiobook narrator—notably on Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones, which gives me hope that this might end up being fantastic. I wasn’t completely sold on this one originally, but now I’m really excited to give it a chance.
Honey & Spice by Bolu Babalola
Look at all these contemporary romances! This one sounds absolutely fantastic as well. It follows Kiki, who hosts a radio show at Whitewell University to help her fellow students stay out of ‘situationships’, but she finds herself faking a romance with one of the guys she’s warned her listeners off. Fake dating is 100% my favourite trope in romance books—I don’t know why, but it just makes me so happy. This is Bolu Babalola’s debut, but it’s being described as ‘gloriously funny’ and full of romantic tension, and honestly, that’s all I need to hear.
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
I’ve never read any Gabrielle Zevin before but I picked this up on a whim. I swear, the very next day, I started seeing this everywhere. I’ve seen this described as the book of the year, the book you HAD to read and everything like that. Usually, those kinds of things turn me off from books, but I’m still intrigued by this one. I don’t really know what this is about—I believe it’s something to do with video games and that there’s maybe a bit of romance in there too. Honestly, I was very much sucked into the cover with this one and I figured it might be worth a read so why not just grab it, right?
The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen
July really was the month for romance, hey? Okay so, I’m not entirely sure what this one is classified as because the blurb is kind of vague. I’m like 90% sure it’s an enemies-to-lovers romance, but I think it might also be set in some kind of fantasy world. Like I said, the blurb is vague. But I’m a sucker for an illustrated cover, and even more than that, I love a witty title. From what I can tell, Hart is an undertaker and Mercy is the other lead character, so there you go—the undertaking of Hart and Mercy. This is definitely not the highest book on my list, but I do hope I can get around to it.
Night of the Living Rez by Morgan Talty
This one is a short story collection following twelve different stories about the Penobscot community in Maine. I’ve really been interested in reading more from First Nations communities outside of Australia (as well as continuing to read within Australia too), so this is definitely one that caught my eye. I’m a little nervous about it because short stories aren’t always my thing, and it’s also labelled on Goodreads as ‘horror’, which is the furthest possible thing from my comfort zone. But I’m willing to give it a chance and if it turns out it’s not for me, then it’s not for me. No harm, no foul.
Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gender by Kit Heyam
Now we’re into the picks from August, starting off with this one. I was a little hesitant about this one as well, to be quite honest. I’ve very nearly picked up many books that claim they’re about ‘transgender issues’ only to find out on Goodreads that they’re pushing a transphobic narrative and to put it simply, I’m not here for that shit. From what I tell, Kit Heyam is a trans activist and historian, so I’m hoping I’m in good hands here. I’m also definitely in a non-fiction kind of mood lately, so this is quite possibly one of the first I’ll end up picking up.
I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
I won’t lie; I jumped on this one real quick. I was a big fan of iCarly back in the day—it just started as I was at that awkward pre-teen age and it was a perfect thing to distract me from everything that that age can bring. But I was also definitely grabbed by the title. My mum passed away a number of years ago as well—she was my best friend, so I never felt that way, but there’s something about knowing someone has experienced that loss that kind of feels like kinship even though the experiences are so different. I also just find mother/daughter relationships fascinating, to be quite honest.
Ithaca by Claire North
I’m sorry, but I can’t resist Greek mythology in any form. Seriously, it’s my kryptonite. I love when we get something a little different from the standard stories—yes I love Hades/Persephone, but I also want to see other stories retold. As you might be able to guess, this is about Penelope from the Odyssey. I’ve read a few retellings about her before, but I’ve really enjoyed most of them so I’m excited to see what Claire North might do here. I’ve never read anything by her before, so that could definitely be interesting too.
Bookish People by Susan Coll
Of course, I had to pick up the contemporary romance as well. I honestly don’t really know what this one is about beyond being bookish and there maybe being a cute dog involved. Honestly, those are two things I’ll happily pick up a book for. I hadn’t really seen anyone talk about this yet, but looking at Goodreads, it’s got some pretty average ratings with lots of people mentioning that the writing isn’t the best, so I think this one is going to be at the very bottom of my pile for now.
Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
There was absolutely no way that I was going to pass on this one. Will I actually listen to the audiobook of this? Who knows? But did I want it anyway? Yes. I read my first TJR earlier this year and I pretty much immediately became a fangirl and I’ve been making my way through her books ever since. What I lvoe about TJR is that she can take a subject that I’m not really interested in—the lives of the super rich and famous, and make them actually compelling and heartfelt. I’m excited to meet Carrie and to see what I think of her.
And that’s all for July & August. Have you read any of these? Did you pick any of them up on Libro?
Earl Grey Books 