Hi everyone! It’s been a while! I’m back with an updated blog site and new fun ideas! One of my new ideas is to write some mini-book reviews based on the books I read each month. It’s like Renee’s Reads, but mini. I am going to start with the month of June! I read 6 books that month, but I’m only going to be reviewing 3 of them! June was a good book month because they were all 4 or 5 stars.

Just a precursor, I am not a tough book rater. I often give books five stars if I enjoyed the feeling and the vibe or if it’s the best book I’ve ever read. Four stars are if I mostly enjoyed it. Three stars are for books I just really did not enjoy. And I rarely rate a book one or two stars. If I did not finish it or just struggled to get through it I don’t even rate it. I’m too nice and don’t want to criticize the author because it takes a lot of work to write a book. I hope you enjoy my reviews, but please feel free to check out the reviews on other services for a more overall rating system.

Something I love to do when reading a new book is look to see if there is a playlist to compliment the book on Spotify. I’ve included the playlists I listened to below. Onto my June books!

Synopsis: Carrie Soto is a record-holding Tennis player from the 1980s. When she retires she is the best tennis player in the world, holding twenty Slam records. That is until six years later her record is met by Nicki Chan, a brutal, fierce tennis player. Soto decides to come out of retirement to defend her title and prove that age doesn’t matter. Carrie Soto is Back is a compelling journey of redemption, acceptance, and growth. 

This is the fourth book I’ve read by Taylor Jenkins Reid. This was the last book in the “famous” trio, which includes The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Mailabu Rising, and Carrie Soto Is Back. I saw a post on Instagram about which order to read them in, so I followed it! I’m so glad I did because there were little easter eggs in each book that sort of tied them together. I’m not the biggest tennis fan, but this is a book I recommend to everyone! It’s an incredible story about giving your all even when everything is stacked against you.

Playlist Listened to on Spotify: reading: carrie soto is back

Synopsis: Elsie Hannaway has two lives, by day she is a theoretical physicist professor and by night she becomes a fake girlfriend to supplement her income. Everything is working well for her until the brother of the guy she is fake dating is on her hiring committee for the job she applied for at MIT. Elise is ready to fight for the job she deserves and not let him sway the committee, but when she starts spending time with him she notices that she only feels like herself when she’s with him.

To be honest, I read anything Ali Hazelwood writes! I love her STEM romances so much that I instantly buy any of her new books. The enemies-to-lovers trope is one of my favorites, so I enjoyed this more than her last book. This is a spicy book and if you don’t know what that means, it probably isn’t the book for you. 🙂 If you want a feel-good romance with some conflict, this is the book for you!

Playlist Listened to on Spotify: love, theoretically by ali hazelwood

Synopsis: This is the story of two friends, often in love, but never with each other, who came together to design a video game. Sam Masur and Sadie Green first met when they were kids at a hospital in California where they bonded over their love of video games. Their friendship had ended until they reconnect while at college in Cambridge, MA. This chance encounter sparks their incredible collaboration in video game design. Before graduating college, they created their first hit, Ichigo. What follows is 30 years of rediscovery, failures, redemptions, and discovering what it truly means to be loved.

To be honest I read this book because it was recommended on so many Book-stagram pages. Plus the cover is stunning! I actually found this book while I was in Paris and thought why not buy it now! It did sit on my TBR shelf for a good 7 months, but there are other books that have been on there longer! It took me a little bit to get into it because I am not a video game person. I continued to read it though because of the beautiful coming-of-age story. 

Playlist Listened to on Spotify: tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow

Thank you for reading my first mini-review! June was a great month for reading and I can’t wait to post next month’s mini-review! I hope you enjoyed it! If you’re looking for more book reviews make sure to check out the Books category on my home page. I’m hoping to continue uploading a post every Friday, but depending on the week I may not be able to post. Make sure to subscribe to my email list or on Instagram to know when I post next!

Take care and stay safe,

Renée