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Monthly Wrap Up

Monthly Wrap Up – July 2020

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Welcome to another wrap up. I read nineteen books this month, which is my best month yet. I read some great books and took part in two great readalongs with Tandem Collective UK and other bookstagrammers. The first was for All My Lies Are True, the sequel to The Ice Cream Girls. This took a different format and I particularly enjoyed having it start with the author reading the beginning of the book. The second was for A Court of Mist and Fury, the second book in the Court of Thorns and Roses series. I am now totally hooked on this series and am counting down to August’s readalong of book three. 

So here is what I read in July:

  1. Nine Elms by Robert Bryndza
  2. All Fall Down (DI Helen Grace 9) by M. J. Arlidge
  3. The Bad Mother’s Virus by Suzy K. Quinn
  4. The Paper Bracelet by Rachael English
  5. The Unwinding: and other dreamings by Jackie Morris
  6. Somebody’s Daughter by Carol Wyer (Natalie Ward Book 7)
  7. All My Lies Are True by Dorothy Koomson (Ice Cream Girls 2)
  8. Lost by Leona Deakin (Dr Bloom 2)
  9. Fleishman Is In Trouble
  10. If I Can’t Have You by Charlotte Levin
  11. Spirited by Julie Cohen
  12. The Resident by David Jackson
  13. Playdate by Alex Dahl
  14. Precious You by Helen Monks Takar
  15. The Storm by Amanda Jennings
  16. A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Mass
  17. Eleven Lines To Somewhere by Alyson Rudd
  18. Shed No Tears by Caz Frear (DC Cat Kinsella Book 3)
  19. The Missing Pieces of Nancy Moon by Sarah Steele

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I had been trying to decide if my favourite book this month was All My Lies Are True or The Resident when The Missing Pieces of Nancy Moon swooped in at the final hour and claimed the title. I highly recommend all three books, particularly Nancy Moon.

Thank you to the tagged publishers for my gifted copies of the books.

What did you read in July? Did we read any of the same books?

Categories
book reviews

The Bad Mother’s Virus by Suzy K. Quinn

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Published: May 30th, 2020
Publisher: Amazon Media
Format: Kindle
Genre: Humourous Fiction

Thank you to Megan at Ed Public Relations for the invitation to read this book and the gifted eARC.

SYNOPSIS:

100% of net profits donated to coronavirus healthcare initiatives (details below)

Laugh out loud for your immune system with this parenting comedy
Single mother, Juliette Duffy, is getting married. Again. And this time, she is determined to make it all the way down the aisle. But you never know what’s around the corner, do you?

Follow Juliette as she tries to plan a wedding that may never happen, cheers up a grandmother quarantined on a cruise ship and experiences self isolation hell with her dramatic ex-partner and his mother.

If you’re feeling gloomy and fed up, and looking for a REALLY good laugh and the ultimate feel-good book, download on Kindle Unlimited and laugh your way to better immunity.

A note from your author
I think we all need a bit of cheering up. There are so many real, human funny and heart-warming stories in the midst of this pandemic, and that’s what this book is about. But there’s a serious side to all this too, that hasn’t been forgotten.
THANK YOU EVERYONE who donates to healthcare heroes by reading this book. You are contributing to many good causes AND hopefully laughing and feeling good, even if things feel scary or uncertain.
We’ll get through this everyone!
Huge love,
Suzy xxx

MY REVIEW:

“But if there’s one thing I’ve learned about life, it’s to expect surprises.”

The Bad Mother’s Virus is the fifth installment in the popular Bad Mother’s series. In this book Juliette Duffy is starting 2020 in a positive mood. She is planning her wedding to Alex and declares that 2020 will be the year of health and wellness, not banking on the coronavirus derailing not only her plans but the lives of the world. The story follows the early days of the virus, its spread to a global pandemic that sees Juliette attempt to navigate panic buying, homeschooling and life in quarantine while fighting a custody battle with her ex.

Though I have two of the other books in this series, this was the first time I’ve read any of the Bad Mother’s books. When I was contacted asking if I wanted to read and review a copy and learned that Suzy was donating all profits from the book to finding a coronavirus vaccine and healthcare heroes, I jumped at the chance. Despite taking my first foray into the lives of the characters five books deep, I never felt confused about their backstories as the author succinctly catches the reader up with past events in the early pages of the book.

Though it is full of humour, there are some emotional and more serious topics covered in the book too. As someone who’s fought custody battles that element of the story is very real and brought back some unwelcome memories for me. I felt a camaraderie with Juliette and was rooting for her every step of the way. In fact overall I found the characters to be compelling, real and relatable and laughed most at Nana Joan’s antics. 

An entertaining, quick and easy read that offers a relatable look at our current crazy times. 

Rating: ✮✮✮.5

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Suzy K. Quinn is the author of feel-good romance and page-turning thrillers and published her hilarious parenting memoir Lies We Tell Mothers last year. She wrote The Bad Mother’s Virus exclusively during the lockdown, while juggling homeschooling, the inevitable extra cleaning and cooking, and generally not having a moment’s peace! Suzy’s books have sold over three quarters of a million copies worldwide and have been translated into 7 languages. Suzy is also a journalist and has previously written for The Guardian, Perfect Wedding Magazine, Sunday Times Magazine and The Sun. Suzy currently lives in Essex with her husband Demi and two daughters, Lexi and Laya and is available for interview and to write features.

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BUY THE BOOK:

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