Reading Reflections: June 2020

Here we are...half way through the year already! How did that happen?

June was not a bad reading month for me. A bit of historical fiction, a bit of contemporary fiction, some Australian authors, some not.

Here's what I read:

The Palace of Tears by Julian Leatherdale - 4.5/5

This is the first book I read by Julian Leatherdale, who was an Australian author. The book was inspired by a hotel in the Blue Mountains just outside Sydney. I thoroughly enjoyed this one and am definitely intending to read the other two books that were published before he unfortunately passed away earlier this year.

Normal People by Sally Rooney - 4/5

I had so many thoughts about this book, and then the TV series which I also watched this month, and yet I haven't written any of them down yet. I actually listened to this one on audio which I think helped because I didn't have to notice that the speech marks were missing. A brief summary of my thoughts - what makes this literature instead of young adult fiction?

The Silk House by Katye Nunn - 4/5

This is the first book I have read by Katye Nunn but it won't be the last. I did a joint review of this one with Bree from All the Books I Can Read. You can read our thoughts here.

Aria's Travelling Bookshop by Rebecca Raisin - 3.5/5

Books, food and France. What more can you want?

Henrietta's War by Joyce Dennys 4.5/5

If I had to pick a best book of the month it would be this one. The irony is that this book has been on my bookshelf for more than 10 years, and in the end I only picked it up because I featured it as part of a Top Ten list. This book is a series of letters that were published during WWII and were then put together in a collection. The writer is writing to her childhood friend who is off fighting the war and she shares a series of anecdotes about life in her small village.

The House on Boundary Street by Tea Cooper 3.5/5

Part of the reason I mentioned the hotel when I talked about the Julian Leatherdale's book is because the same hotel is mentioned in this book. I do have a review half written on this book. Just need to finish it. I did enjoy some of the information about Sydney in the 1920s.

The New Beginnings Coffee Club by SamanthaTonge 4.5/5

This was my middle of the night read last week. It was also my first book by this British author. My library doesn't seem to have any more but I will be keeping my out for her books going forward.

I am linking my post up to the Monthly Wrap up which is hosted at Feed Your Fiction Addiction