For the second part of Summer Reading, I really focused on audiobooks. I looked mostly for ones I could listen to while I did other things. With the reading challenge at work, I tried to at a minimum listen or read to a book for 1 hour a day. High interest audiobooks are great for that. I get almost all my audiobooks from the library. My library's main online resources for audiobooks are Libby and Hoopla. In my review, I have included links for the Libby website, so people can see what their library offers. Since all Hoopla items are visible without selecting a library, I have included links to the specific titles.

READ

Daredevil: Guardian Devil by Kevin Smith - This was the last of the Daredevil audiobooks I found on Hoopla while I was on my Daredevil kick. It was alright with an interesting straight forward story, but I wasn't a fan of the narrator's voice. It was more of a "Ben Afleck" Daredevil voice, but I prefer Charlie Cox's Daredevil voice. Additionally, it was a short audiobook, around two and half hours long. The premise is Daredevil saves a baby, who is prophesied to be the anti-Christ and gets pulled into a criminal's elaborate ploy. ★★★☆☆ Listened to on Hoopla
Under the Surface by Diana Urban - Last year I read Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban and thoroughly enjoyed the high stakes mystery at sea. This time Urban takes readers to Paris as a group of American kids face complicated relationship and the dangers of the catacombs. While I enjoyed the premise from the beginning, it took longer to get into the action in this story, so it took me several months to finish it. ★★★★☆
Kill the Villainess, Vol. 1 by Your April and Haegi - Lost in a book and stuck living the life of a doomed villain, this girl just wants to figure out how to get back home. I picked this title up because it was a full-color manga. I was only curious what a full-colored manga would look like. The story was slow, but as the adventure progressed, I liked the main character and felt for her as she decided if she should follow her character's destiny or forge or her own path. ★★★★☆ IG Reel
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if your life depended on it by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz - My mom sent me a podcast, where a former FBI negotiator talked about how to negotiate. I was fascinated by it and wanted to learn more about his techniques. I found the library had his book as an audiobook. This book feels very practical. It's about listening to people and understanding them, so you can lead them to lead them to understanding you. ★★★★★ Listened to on Hoopla
The Never Game by Jeffery Deaver - This book was not slow. It was an action thriller, that started with the most exciting point of the book and then went backwards to explain how it got to the climax. I checked it out because it is the novel that inspired Justin Hartley's TV show, Tracker. While this book isn't exactly like the TV show, it provides the character and backstory as the basis for the show. This one is possibly my favorite read of the month. ★★★★★ Listened to on Libby
The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer - As a child, Lucy tried to run away from her problems and live on a remote island as the sidekick for the writer of her favorite book series. As an adult, she found that running away from her problems only works for so long, and she will have to face her problems if she wants to adopt the young boy she tutors. She returns to the island to compete in a competition that if she wins, she will have to money to adopt. There were so many red flags in all the adult-child relationships in this book, I wouldn't recommend. Read for 12 Recs from 12 Friends ★★★☆☆ Listened to on Libby
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine - This is one of my sister's favorite books. As kids we watched Anne Hathaway's movie based on this book. The book is different from the movie, but this Cinderella retelling is possibly more interesting than the original story. When Ella was born, she was cursed to be obedient, when her dad remarries her stepfamily takes advantage of her obedience to make her into a servant. My favorite part of this fairytale romance is that the Prince Charming character, Prince Char is a childhood friend of Ella. It's one of the best books I've read this month. Read for Reb's Recs ★★★★★ Read on Hoopla
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt - This book was a hot-mess ensemble of characters. Tova's is a lonely aging woman who is working at marine aquarium as the janitor. Cameron is a thirty-year-old with no direction. Lastly, but my favorite character is a four-year-old Octopus at the aquarium counting down his days in captivity until he dies. Initially when this title released it had a lot of hype, but I found the execution of the book a bit boring. The characters of the book were the plot. Read for 12 Recs from 12 Friends ★★★☆☆ Listened to on Libby
Finlay Donovan Rolls the Dice by Elle Cosimano - In the fourth installment of this quirky accidental assassin series, Finlay, Vero and most of Finlay's family heads to Atlantic City. These ladies dodge their loved ones as they search for Vero's kidnapped childhood friend and of course, they stumble onto more dead bodies that they will have to hide, if they want to stay out of trouble. I am absolutely obsessed with these two and their laugh out loud misguided ways. ★★★★★ Listened to on Libby

Currently Reading

Snow White with the Red Hair, Vol. 12 by Sorata Akiduki
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
Grimm: The Icy Touch by John Shirley
Spider-Man: The Secret of the Sinister Six by Adam-Troy Castro
Climbing Rejection Mountain: An Actor's Path to Success, Stability, and Self-Esteem by Nick Wyman, Michael X. Martin
Ready Player Two by Ernest Cline IG Reel
The Grim Reader: A Pharmacist’s Guide to Putting Your Characters in Peril by Miffie Seideman

Checked Out, To Be Read

Meet Me at Wonderland by Julia Devillers
Batman Soul of the Dragon (Blu-Ray)
The Jewel Thief by Jeanne Mobley
Four Days a Week: the life-changing solution for reducing employee stress, improving well-being, and working smarter by Juliet B. Schor

In The Reservation Queue

(Image of Jason David Frank--the original Tommy Oliver from Power Rangers--at Phoenix Fan Fusion 2017, from my photo collection)

The Blonde Who Came in from the Cold by Ally Carter
Power Rangers: Force of Chaos by Diana Ma

On Hold, To Be Picked Up

None at this time.

Returned Unread

Beginner's Guide to Digital Painting in Procreate: How to create on an iPad - I got this book because I was leading a Procreate class in early June and needed to brush up my skills. I used it some, but not enough to consider it read.
Perfect Girl by Tracy E. Banghart - The library did a "Blind date with a book" display back in February. The wrapping was too cute to pass up, but I wasn't quite as interested by the book's description. IG Reel
Batgirl: Possession by Jade Aida - I love superhero books, but this one's vibe was a little weird. Plus, I didn't get around to reading much.
Writing an Identity Not Your Own: a guide for creative writers by Alex Temblador - I love writing books, and this one had an interesting concept, I just didn't find time to read it before it was due.
The Beginner's Guide to Procreate: Everything you need to know to master digital art by Roché Woodworth - I (also) got this book because I was leading a Procreate class in early June and needed to brush up my skills. I used it some, but not enough to consider it read.

Update from last month's closing blurb, I got my chosen final prize book. I choose a YA romantasy Half-Blood by Jennifer Armentrout. I read a few Good Reads reviews, most enjoyed the romance, and the reviewers had a crush on the lover interest. However, a few reviews called it a rip-off Vampire Diaries. Since I haven't read Vampire Diaries, I wouldn't know, so I figured, I might as well give it a try.

This month I would like to write more reviews and am looking over some of my old fiction, both original short stories and fanfictions, to see if I have something new that I could publish before next month's Love Your Library. We'll see.

My most recent review is for Under the Surface by Diana Urban. This is the book about being lost in the Paris Catacombs, that I mentioned earlier. You can read it over on IG. This month's story is the first part of an eleven-part superhero story, that I wrote as a teenager during one night of insomnia, although a quick reread makes me wonder if I also proofread and edited it one night 🤣😉. Check out Fairy Troubled for an angsty story about a teenaged fairy superhero.

#LoveYourLibrary

Thank you again, Rebecca for coming up with this blog challenge and I have enjoyed making it a pseudo regular part of my writing life. Check out her blog Bookish Beck

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Inspirational Skai

Wednesday, July 30, 2025