So Much Sci-Fi | July 2025 Reading Wrap Up
Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog!
I can't believe it's already August, July just went by so fast for me! Maybe it's because I was indoors the whole time so the days all kind of blended together. I know I say it every year, but I really hate summer.
In the month of July I read a grand total of 11 books: 8 novels, 1 graphic novel, 1 nonfiction, and 1 poem (yes, just one long, epic poem as opposed to a poetry collection). Most of these were read physically, though I did listen to a couple on audio. 2 of these books were translated (both from Japanese) and I would say 2 are classics, though there is a proper classic from the 1600s, and then there's a "modern" classic from the 70s. Hey, it's over 50 years old at this point, it's a classic in my eyes. I also had a couple of rereads (which I'll acknowledge in the reviews) and 5 of these books were in my TBR Takedown challenge. 10 of these books were from my own shelves, and 1 was from the library.
Alright, let's get into my wrap up for July!
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Novels
Genre: Thriller, Horror, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 3 stars/5.74 CAWPILE
Page count: 341 pages
Day(s) read: 7.01 - 7.05
Final thoughts: This was...interesting. I wanted to read this specifically because the movie is one of my favorites, but honestly it wasn't very good. This is one of those rare cases where the movie is actually better (all my own opinion, of course). There were quite a few uncomfortable moments that seemed to be thrown in just to build tension, and those moments are so far out of pocket that it was really hard to swallow at times. Thank God the movie took those parts out, because I'm sure I (and many other people) would view the movie in a much different light. I did enjoy being inside the shark's mind, though. That was cool.
Translated from the Japanese by Stephen Snyder
Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopian, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4 stars/7.93 CAWPILE
Page count: 274 pages
Day(s) read: 7.04 - 7.06
Final thoughts: Reread for Carolyn's book club. I really loved returning to this story. I decided to annotate this time around, and I underlined so many wonderful lines and passages. I don't think I gleaned anything new or different in the story this time around, but I don't mind. Sometimes it's nice to just revisit a treasured book. I will say, however, that it feels much more culturally relevant these days as opposed to when I first read it, back in 2020. There were moments when I felt so connected to the main characters, and I also felt genuine panic as I thought about the events that were happening in the story, and how they are sadly not that far off to what is happening in real life.
Genre: Science Fiction, Contemporary, Adult
Means of reading: Audiobook
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4 stars/7.02 CAWPILE
Page count: 333 pages (9 hrs 55 mins audio)
Day(s) read: 7.05 - 7.12
Final thoughts: Very wholesome, like the rest of this series (and Becky Chambers's books in general). I appreciate that this book really focused on internal biases and prejudice, and how each person will see the world a little differently than you. This is a prime example of a book I would recommend to someone wanting to explore empathy and diversity in literature. It was nice to see Pei again, as we only briefly interacted with her at the end of book one. I like how each book in the series can be read on it's own, but they are all connected between one or more characters. I'm glad to have finally finished this series.
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 5 stars/9.02 CAWPILE
Page count: 535 pages
Day(s) read: 7.06 - 7.17
Final thoughts: She's done it again, folks! Victoria Schwab just never misses! If you're an Addie LaRue fan, you'll definitely like this book (there's even a reference if you look really close). I loved learning about each of our characters, they were all so fascinating in their own, unique ways. I think my favorite character is Alice. She's just so complex, and exploring her story was half the fun for me. My one critique on this otherwise 10/10 book is that the ending was a little rushed, in my opinion. But honestly, that's kind of how most of Schwab's books are. She spends so much time on the buildup and then it's like she forgets that the story has to end at some point, and so hammers out an ending in order to meet deadlines. That's how it feels to me, anyway.
Genre: Science Fiction, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 2.5 stars/4.00 CAWPILE
Page count: 272 pages
Day(s) read: 7.18 - 7.20
Final thoughts: Well, that was a book, I suppose. It was very middle of the road, for me. Not bad, but not great, either. Nothing about it stood out to me, and to be honest I don't really remember much even only a couple of weeks after finishing it. I really just don't have much to say about it, unfortunately. It kind of sucks that I owned this, I should have just gotten it from the library but I was sucked in by all of the rave reviews I saw of it when it came out. It has since been unhauled from my shelves. If I want to read any more from this author in the future, I will definitely be going to the library.
Genre: Science Fiction, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 5 stars/9.00 CAWPILE (though probably 4 stars upon reread)
Page count: 424 pages
Day(s) read: 7.22 - 7.24
Final thoughts: Read for my IRL book club. If The Memory Police was an emotional reread, then Project Hail Mary was just for funsies. I mean, obviously I reread it in preparation for my book club (this was my pick, as well), but I remembered the story well enough to have gotten by without picking it up again. But I really just wanted to read about Rocky again. My arachnophobia has never felt so conflicted when it comes to Rocky. And I just appreciate hard science in my sci-fi books. Don't give me wibbly-wobbly science, I want physics and chemistry and all that crazy stuff. My astrophysics nerd brain craves that kind of thing.
Translated from the Japanese by Louise Heal Kawai
Genre: Literary Fiction, Magical Realism, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 3 stars/5.66 CAWPILE
Page count: 224 pages
Day(s) read: 7.25 - 7.27
Final thoughts: This was fine. It's pretty much a carbon copy of the first book, just with a different main character. Everything else about the story, the plot points, etc., are lifted from The Cat Who Saved Books and placed in this story. It was sweet and had a nice message about how books teach us how to be empathetic and such (the same as book one, again), but overall it wasn't very memorable. This is the second series of Japanese literary magical realism that follows the same formula every book but just tweaks the characters slightly (the first being Before the Coffee Gets Cold.). If a third book comes out, I don't know if I'll read it. I'm interested in Natsukawa's other works, though.
Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4.5 stars/7.97 CAWPILE
Page count: 336 pages
Day(s) read: 7.27 - 7.31
Final thoughts: Wow. What an incredibly sad, and yet also beautiful, story. Can it really be called a story when it's based on real people and events? Honestly, that just makes it all the more heartbreaking. Even though I'm not of Icelandic heritage, seeing more Scandinavian culture makes me feel so deeply attached to both the characters as well as the landscape itself. Learning about Agnes's story felt like such a privilege, and even though the author herself states that we'll never know her full story, I'd like to think that her spirit rests a little easier now, knowing that she hasn't been forgotten. That's what I hope, anyway. Highly, highly, recommend.
Graphic Novels
Genre: Fantasy, Contemporary, YA
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 5 stars/9.00 CAWPILE
Page count: 256 pages
Day(s) read: 7.31 - 7.31
Final thoughts: I mean, of course this was five stars. How could it not be? It's literally my favorite YA book adapted into a graphic novel. I don't really have a proper review for this because I pretty much inhaled it. It arrived in the mail today (the 31st) and I sat down just to flip through it, see the pretty pictures, and before I knew it I had reached the last page in a sort of Cabeswater-induced stupor. The art is absolutely gorgeous, everything and everyone looks exactly how I pictured them in my head. I have no doubt I'll be picking it up many times in the foreseeable future, just to look at certain panels again.
Nonfiction
Genre: History, Adult
Means of reading: Mixed Media
Star rating/CAWPILE: 4 stars/7.19 CAWPILE
Page count: 430 pages (13 hrs 5 mins audio)
Day(s) read: 7.09 - 7.13
Final thoughts: For a wartime history, I really enjoyed this. I've read three histories from Erik Larson (so far) and each of them have been well-researched, well-executed, and you can clearly tell he loves writing this books. He truly has a talent for creating a well-rounded narrative thread from (sometimes barebones) accounts. I'm never bored reading one of his books. It's amazing and horrifying that it only took the Lusitania 18 minutes to fully sink. 18 minutes. No wonder so many people lost their lives that day. A true tragedy.
Poetry
Genre: Classic, Adult
Means of reading: Physical
Star rating/CAWPILE: 5 stars/9.07 CAWPILE
Page count: 288 pages
Day(s) read: 7.14 - 7.23
Final thoughts: Y'all. Y'all. This was so good! I mean, I knew it would be, it's freaking Paradise Lost, but I don't think I was expecting it to be this good. It was absolutely gorgeous, in every way imaginable. This is kind of book that I would easily research, study, and write an essay about. And just so you know, after I finished this I watched probably half a dozen video essays about it because I couldn't stop thinking about it. I couldn't help but feel incredibly hopeful by the end. Yes, Adam and Eve are mortal and have to give up Paradise, but they walk away knowing that Satan will not win in the end. They walk away from Eden, knowing that they will be welcomed back at God's side when the end times come. There is something so deeply powerful in that. You know that I've had a weird relationship with my faith, but reading this definitely strengthened something inside of me.
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Total page count: 3, 713 pages (25 hrs total audio)
Favorite book of July: Paradise Lost by John Milton
No DNFs this month
No unfinished books this month
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And that's it for July! Overall it wasn't the greatest reading month, but I found some new favorites, and I managed to get a few books off of my physical TBR, so that's always a plus! I'd love to know, what was your favorite book of July? Leave a comment, or DM me on Instagram (link in sidebar under the heading "More Media").
Until next time, friends!
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