Pouring Over Books
Welcome to Pouring Over Books, a podcast where we dive into the books we love…and maybe a few we didn’t. Every week I’ll be deep diving into what I’m reading, recommendations, and talking about all the things we love about books! .
Pouring Over Books
July Reads and Books on My Radar for August
In this episode of the Pouring Over Books podcast, LaShawn Wiltz reflects on her reading journey in July, discussing 5 of the 14 books she read, including notable titles like 'What Kind of Paradise' and 'Everyone is Lying to You.' She shares her ratings and thoughts on each book, highlighting her favorites and those that didn't meet her expectations. LaShawn also looks ahead to her August reading list, featuring a mix of fiction and non-fiction, and emphasizes the importance of reading what resonates with you rather than following trends.
BOOKS DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODE
What Kind of Paradise by Janelle Brown
Where the Crawdad’s sing by Delia Owens
Everyone is Lying to You by Joe Piazza
Blessings and disasters by Alexis Okeowo
Baldwin a love story by Nicholas Boggs
Positive obsession : the life and times of Octavia E Butler by Susana M Morris
Razorblade Tears By SA Cosby
How Fascism Works by Jason Stanley
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Follow LaShawn on IG @lashawnwiltz and Threads @lashawnwiltz
Substack: Letters From LaShawn
Hey there, bookworms. Welcome to Pouring Over Books, a podcast where we dive into the books we love and maybe a few we didn't. I'm your host, LaShawn, and every week I'll be deep diving into what I'm reading, recommendations, and talking about all the things that we love about books. So grab your favorite coffee or tea, find a cozy spot, and let's get ready to pour over some great books together. Hello, friends, and welcome back to the Porn of a Book's podcast. I am LaShawn, your host, and friends, how is it already August? My goodness, it is the last full month of summer. School started yesterday, and I feel like these are indeed what they call the dog days of summer, even though here where I am, it has suddenly changed. like a switch went off and it feels like fall. I know it's just temporary, but I'm tired. And I just started training for my half marathon and my son went back to school yesterday. Yeah, it's a lot going on. But anyway, I want to just point out that the podcast is going to be live over on YouTube because I am recording this podcast with video. Hey, new friends. But anyway, I just want to say welcome. And today it is the first of the month. So, of course, we are talking about the books that I read in July and what books are on my radar for August. My goodness, I have to keep saying that. So in July, according to Storygraph, I read, what does it say? I read 14 books. It seemed like more, but the fact is that I started like 20 books that I didn't finish. It was a weird month. Like I couldn't focus or I just could not find, get myself into a rhythm while I was reading books. Like it would start off good, but then it would lose me Or it would start off too slow and I got bored. Nothing was holding my attention. So I have been continuing to DNF with Abandoned. like I've been doing all year, but some of these books I put on my DNF for now, pal. So I will try to revisit them, return to them when I'm in a better frame of mind, when it seems like that is something I want to read. So anyway, of these 14 books I read, I'm going to talk about four of the books that got four stars and above and one book that got below a three. I rarely talk about those, but I feel like I need to talk about this one. Okay, so let's go. Let's start off with What Kind of Paradise by Janelle Brown. The premise. Jane knows only the world her father has built. Off-grid living, philosophy books, and vague stories about her mother's death. As she grows older, Jane begins to question their secluded life and her father's secrecy. When she discovers she's been complicit in a terrible crime, she runs away to San Francisco, seeking the truth. There, in a city transformed by the rise of the internet, Jane confronts the Mysteries of her past, her mother's fate, and the harsh realities beyond her father's utopia. all while forging a new path towards identity and freedom. So let's talk about what I thought. I was so excited for this book. In my head, I think I was picturing a cross between educated and where the crawdags sing. So that puts you in a frame of mind of what I was thinking. It was not so, friends. Not at all. This book was actually fine and engaging, and I was interested up until around 75%. Then when everything, when the plot twists, twist, then I felt like the book just didn't know where to go after that big plot reveal. I feel like we spent the last 25% of the book just floating around. It seemed like waiting for the other shoe to drop. And then when it did drop, it was like anticlimactic. And which was so sad because I was riveted. up until that last 25%. I wanted more and just didn't get it. So I gave it a 3.5 out of five because it was good, but I wanted more. The next book that I want to talk about that I completed was Rose in Chains by Julie Soto, The Premise. Captured as her castle falls, Princess Briony Rosewood is stripped of her magic and freedom, then sold at auction to Tovin Hurst, heir to the notoriously cruel family. Facing a bleak new reality of servitude and danger, Briony must navigate a world ruled by evil. But even in the darkest places, hope flickers and unexpected allies may yet change everything. So I went into this book unaware of any previous version or that the fact that it was based on fanfic. I missed that memo. I put it together about halfway through when I really started getting into the story. And even then I I had to look for it. That's what I'm going to say. Which I really started getting into the story about 25% of the book. I almost put it down because I was like, I don't see why this is interesting. But I'm happy to say that around the 50% mark, I realized I couldn't put it down and was shocked when I noticed that I only had a few pages left. The ending was awesome. The love story, let's just say the chemistry was on point and my Good man, Tobin. I mean, why are you resisting so hard when the truth is obvious? I mean, like, sir, I cannot wait to learn his entire backstory. So I'm really looking forward to the next book. And for Bryony, the female main character, I had my doubts, but the girl is stronger than she seemed. And I'm really ready to see what the direction the next book heads in. But I'm also mad that I've started yet another trilogy that is just beginning. But I enjoyed this one, like I said. I know there was a lot of discourse, germany, sorry, fiction. But if you didn't know, you wouldn't know. You really wouldn't. And I can't wait to read the next one. So I gave this one a four stars. Out of five. The next book on my list is Pen Pal by J.T. Gessinger. The premise. I feel like the book description that they give you on all the websites, all the book sites, is not accurate. Like, it's confusing, which in a way was good because I went in and I was blind, but I feel like it'll be more accurate to give you my own summary. So, our book begins with Kayla standing at her husband's grave, dealing with grief in a huge house that needs repairs and is leaking. She calls a roof repairman and... falls in lust slash love, whatever you think. Meanwhile, strange things keep happening. Her doorbell rings and no one is there. Cabinet doors open and close when no one's there. She's losing time and forgetting things. She feels like someone is watching her. And to top it all off, she has a strange pen pal from the state penitentiary. And when he writes his first letter to her, it says, I'll wait forever if I have to. And the girl writes back. Let's just say that by the time she figures out who he is, nothing prepares you for what's next. My review. Oh, my God. My God. I felt like for half of this book, I was sitting there like, what am I reading? Like, is this a dark romance? Because, you know, it was like a little dominant, sexy. You know, it was sexy times on 10. And I was like, this is a lot. But anyway, so I was like, what am I reading? Is this a dark romance? Is this a case of some stalking going on? Is there some paranormal activity mixed in? Like, what genre am I reading here? And I kept asking, what on earth is going on? Because it was just so weird. The sexy times, almost despised. Almost seemed like a distraction. There was a lot of it. I mean, really it was. Because I kept saying, what the hell is going on in between the scenes? But when the twist came, it twisted me. I should have expected it, but I did not expect it. The book was leaning towards a solid three for me. Mildly entertaining, darkish, good sexy times, a little light BDSM. never hurt anybody. It wasn't horrible. But the twist, the plot twist, it bumped it up to a solid four. And that's all I can say without giving it away because when you realize what has been happening, chef's kiss, four out of five. I gave this one a four out of five. All right. The next book on my list is Hissy Fit by Mary Kay Andrews. The premise, the night before her wedding in the middle of an So smart rehearsal dinner. Interior decorator Keely Murdoch chances upon her fiance and maid of honor doing the do. Keely throws a hissy fit to end all hissy fits, storms out and earns herself instant notoriety in her tiny hometown of Madison, Georgia. The next day, though, she has to deal not only with a broken engagement, but also her business being shut out by folks in town financially obligated to her ex. Rescue comes in the form of the new owner of the local bra plant. Yeah, broad point. A hunk of a guy, Keely can't decide if he's a hopeless romantic or hopelessly weird. Either way, he's hired her to redo the broken down antebellum mansion he's bought for the woman of his dreams. The woman, now here's the weird part, that he's never met. Or maybe he just has. I saw this on a thread and ignored it, but then my friend sent the thread to the group chat and I volunteered as tribute. Since reading a Mary Kay Andrews book has been like, you know, on my list to try to see what the hype was about for a while. Friends, friends, friends. After the first chapter, which I promise you was promising. I mean, when I tell you I could feel the southerness and the accents and the, it's like she immersed us in this little southern town and all of their accents. I could hear it. I could feel it. I could taste it. I could feel the humidity. I was like, yes, it seemed promising. And then the book went downhill for me. from there. Maybe it was how this book was so uniquely Southern. Like I said, it all ooed off the page that not only fascinated me and got me hooked in the beginning, but as it kept going, I think it bothered me. Or maybe it was the way the book's side plot maybe took over what I thought was the whole plot. And maybe it was that the main side character, the guy who, you know, The book has made it seem like he's going to be the main character here in a relationship because I was like, this is a romance, ain't it? He spent 90% of the book chasing another woman. And I don't know, but whatever this was, it wasn't for me. And people rave when people's like, well, where should we start with her? Everyone said Hissy Fit. I gave it a 2.75 out of five and that's being generous for me. It was well-written. Like I said, I was immersed, but the story, it just wasn't for me. The last Last book that I want to talk about that I read in July was Everyone is Lying to You by Joe Piazza. The premise. College best friends Lizzie and Bex drifted apart after graduation when Bex vanished. 15 years later, Bex resurfaces as Rebecca Summers, a wildly successful Instagram influencer. Meanwhile, Lizzie is a struggling writer. Unexpectedly, Rebecca offers Lizzie a career-making exclusive interview and an invitation to a major influencer conference. When Rebecca disappears and her husband is murdered, Lizzie is pulled into the cutthroat world of social media. She must uncover Rebecca's secrets and past betrayals to find her, clear her own name, and potentially save Rebecca's life. I have been hearing about this book for months, mainly because I subscribed to Joe Piazza's podcast. It wasn't on my TBR until suddenly it was on my TBR. I got a Libro FM art for it and was in the middle of my slump that I talked about earlier and said, why not? And I'm so glad that I did, that I gave this one a try. Besides being unexpectedly good murder mystery, I love the way she added elements of influencing that only influencers would know. I love how you can tell who some of the characters are based on, like, you the satire of it all. And I really just want another book based on Beck's lawyer because she was the true mastermind. But all in all, I'm going to say this was juicy and messy and frankly, just a good time. It was my only five-star read this month, I mean in July, and it was just good. Now, let's move on to books that I'm looking forward to reading in August. August seems like a ghost town this month. When I was scrolling all of the lists, I'm I looked at like four or five lists and I looked at Goodreads and I just looked everywhere. And I only found a few things that really caught my eye. So let me see. I have five. Yeah, I have five down that I have to request from the library or get the audio book for, or one of them, I already have the advanced reader copy for it. So there are surprisingly three nonfiction books on this list. And anyone who knows me know that that's odd because I don't read much nonfiction, but do I think will be worth it. So let's get into it. The first book on the list is one of those non-fictions. It's called Blessings and Disasters by Alexis Okeowo, and it comes out today, August 5th. This was on my summer reading list, and it is the first, like I said, the first nonfiction entry onto the list. Alexis Okowo grew up in Montgomery, Alabama, the former seat of the Confederacy, as a daughter of a Nigerian immigrant. Here, she weaves her family stories with Alabama's defying stereotypes about her endlessly complex, often pigeonholed home state. She immerses us in a landscape dominated today, not by cotton fields, but by Amazon rainforests. warehouses, encountering high-powered Christian business leaders lobbying for tribal sovereignty, and small-town women coming out against conservative politics. The author shows how people can love their home while still acknowledging its sins. I'm intensely interested in this one because both of my parents are from Alabama. My mother still lives in Alabama, so I'm really interested in that one. I'm curious. The next book also comes out today. It's People Like Us by J. and mocked. In People Like Us, two Black writers are trying to find peace and belonging in a world that is riveted with gun violence. One is on a global book tour after a big prize win, and the other is set to give a speech at a school that has suffered a shooting. As their two storylines merge, truths and antics abound in equal measure. Characters drink booze out of the award trophy, menaces lurk in the shadows, tiny French cars putter around the countryside, handgun I keep seeing this one on all the lists and I keep hearing about it on podcasts that I listen to. So it's like that too sounds interesting. The next book is Dominion by Addie E. Sitchins. It comes out on, when does this come out? Comes out on the 19th. This one really caught my eye. Reverend Sabre Winfrey Jr., shepherd of the Seven Seals Missionary Baptist Church, believes in God, his own privilege, and enterprise. He owns the barbershop and the radio station and generally keeps an iron hand on every aspect of society in Dominion, Mississippi. He and his wife, Priscilla, have five boys. The youngest, Emmanuel, is called Wonderboy. No one sings prettier, runs as fast, or turns as many heads. But Wonderboy, his father, and all the structures in place that keep them on top are not as righteous as they seem to be. Spoiler, they never are. And when Wonder Boy is caught off guard by an encounter with a stranger, he finds himself confronted by questions he's never imagined. His response sends shockwaves through the entire community. I saw this one, like I said, and I was like, oh. Then I saw Tracy from The Stacks say that it was good. And yes, now it is on my list. And I have a copy, friends. So I I'll let you know. The next book on my list is one of my nonfiction entrees. And it is Baldwin of Story. Comes out 8-19. This is the first major biography of James Baldwin in 30 years. And it reveals how profoundly the writer's personal relationship has shaped his life and work. Drawing on newly uncovered archival material, In original research and interviews, this spellbounding book tells the overlapping stories of Baldwin's most sustaining, intimate, and artistic relationships. With his mentor, the Black American painter, Buford Delaney. With his lover and muse, the Swiss painter, Lucian Hapersberger. And with his collaborators, the famed Turkish actor, Ingen Caesar and Ingen. iconoclastic French artist, Euron Cezac, who's long overlooked significant significance as Baldwin's last great love is explored in this book for the first time. Nicholas Boggs shows how Baldwin drew on the complex forces within these relationships, geographical, cultural, political, artistic, and erotic, and alchemized them into novels, essays, and plays that speak truth to power and had an indelible impact on the civil rights movement and on Black and queer literary history. Very interested in this one. But the book is 720 pages. Feel like either I'm going to have to listen to this one or I'm just going to have to buy the book so I can take my time with it and take notes. This is not a book that I think that I'm going to have to get from the library. I think I'm going to either have to buy it or I'm going to have to listen to it. Probably going to listen to it because that's usually what I do with these types of books. But we shall see. We shall see. The next book is Positive Obsession, The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler coming out on the 19th. I'm just going to read from the book description here. As the first Black woman to consistently write and publish in the field of science fiction, Octavia Butler was a trailblazer. In this work... The author places Butler's story firmly within the cultural, social, and historical context that shaped her life. The civil rights movement, Black Power, women's liberation, queer rights, and Reaganomics. Morris reveals how these influences profoundly impacted Butler's personal and intellectual trajectory and shaped the ideas central to her writing. I have this one pre-ordered. It's Octavia Butler. What else does this say? And that, my friends, concludes the books on my radar for August. But side notes. The book that is not on my list, which from what I heard is the most anticipated book of the year, maybe, it is Catavis by R.F. Kuang. This, I read the description and thought about the kind of writing that R.F. Kuang does and said, oh, this is not for me. And I think the moral, the reason why I want to talk about this is because I want us to start being okay with not reading every last it book that is coming out. Just because the book internets in the literary world and BookTok and Bookstagram has deemed something the it book does not mean that you have to read it. So I'm one of the few people who did not like Babel. which was her last book. I tried and I could not get past chapter two. I hate red yellow face and DNF the Poppy Wars. That was an honest mistake though, because someone led me to believe that that was a romantic scene and that was so wrong. In fact, I had the Poppy Wars right over here. I can see like I DNF, I still have the bookmark in it because I swore I was going to come back to it, but it's like smack dab in the middle when I realized like, Oh no, this is not for me. All of this being said, I put myself on the library wait list for it. I'm number 104. So that means that I might get this book before the end of the year, maybe, but I'm not in a rush. And again, like I said, I probably, when it becomes available for me, I'll probably pass on it because I'm, like I said, you don't, I don't feel like you have to read every book that is supposed to be an it book. That's, you know what, know what kind of reader you are. And when you read something, and you read previous works by the author and you know it wasn't for you, don't force it. Don't force it. I don't want to be one of those people on the internet giving this book a two. But I don't want to struggle read through it. I don't want to struggle read through it. I don't want to get it from the library and take someone's spot who might really, really be interested in it. Maybe when it becomes available by the time that happens. Anyway, let's get into what I just read, what I am currently reading. And what's supposed to be next on my TBR? I just finished Direbound by Sable Sorensen. This book has been on Kindle Unlimited a while, but I never heard of it. I was looking at the August ARCs offered by Libro FM and this one popped up. It was described as fourth wing meets Hunger Games. And for the record, I'm going to just go ahead and say I hate it when the publisher does this. It sets unrealistic expectations. We saw this with... the book earlier this year that got compared to Hunger Games and it was not. Because this book was not Hunger Games. It wasn't even really fourth wing. It had wolves and pack versus dragon and it did not take place at a school, but rather it was more military based. Let me give you my own summary. Meryl Cooper despises the elite bonded warriors and their dire wolves, but when her sister is kidnapped by immortal enemies, she joins the army to rescue her. Thrown in to the brutal bonding trials, Meryn must survive four deadly months of training. Bonded to a silent feral direwolf targeted by ruthless trainees, she's under a constant threat, especially from her cold instructor Stark Theron. As she fights to endure, the crown prince's interest in her makes her even more of a target. In a castle filled with danger, secret, and hidden knives, Meryn must survive to save her sister and herself. This was actually very good. I don't know if it's because there wasn't a fey in sight and the vampires didn't really appear until near the end, but I was intrigued the entire book. The magic system had me intrigued. There was a cliffhanger slash plot twist, I guess you can say, at the end that had me gasping in shock because the whole book, okay, I can't give it away, but I was like, no. And that made me like the book even more because I read so many books these days and a lot of books are written from what I'll call the trope perspective rather than a story perspective. And I can predict, therefore I can predict a lot of plot points. And most of the time I'm fine with that because I just like to see how they're going to get there. But what I really liked about this one was that even though some things were obvious to me, the author still managed to make it interesting and surprising. I'll read the next one when it comes out. And evidently this book was self-published and then it got picked up traditional publishing. So They did like a whole re-editing and added, like the audio book version has an additional chapter from one of the main characters perspective, which gives you more insight into what was going on there. And evidently the next book, they did more editing when she got picked up by traditional publishing. And so it comes out in May. I'm looking forward to it. I think it's a trilogy. Once again, I have started a book, a series, and it's not done. It's not done. I'm still trying with that. I gave this one four stars, mainly on vibes because it had an interesting magical system and it kept me engaged. Now, I am currently listening to Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby. So, when Ike's son Isaiah and his white husband Derek are murdered, Ike is shattered despite never fully accepting his son. Derek's father, Buddy Lee, an ex-con with a rough past, shares Ike's grief and guilt. The two fathers, once ashamed of their sons, join forces to hunt down the killers. As they navigate a violent path of revenge, Ike and Buddy Lee confront their own deep-seated prejudices and regrets. Bound by grief, love, and a criminal past, They're determined to seek justice for their sons, even if it means losing everything in the process. I am enjoying this one so far. I haven't gotten very far. I haven't gotten to all of, I guess you could say, the violent parts yet. But I just love S.A. Cosby's Way With Words. It is really violence written beautifully. The characters are written beautifully. It's just... It's just like grown-up writing. I don't know how else to put it. And it's just such a treat. It is such a treat. Even listening to it, it is such a treat. My physical book that I'm currently reading is How Fascism Works by Jason Stanley. In How Fascism Works, philosopher Jason Stanley outlines 10 key tactics used in fascist politics, such as mythic paths, propaganda, anti-intellectualism, and division to show how democracies, including the U.S., can be eroded from within. Drawing on history, sociology, and global examples from Hungary to the U.S., he illustrates how rhetoric and myth can quickly become dangerous policy. Stanley argues that only by recognizing these patterns can we resist their efforts and defend the democratic ideal. And that's all I'm going to say about that. Next up on my TBR is The Jassad Heir by Sarah Hassim. Ten years after Jassad's fall and the outlying of his magic, Sylvia... The hidden heir lives in secrecy. But when she accidentally reveals her powers to Aaron, heir of the enemy kingdom, she's forced into a dangerous bargain. Their animosity blurs into something more. Even as Sylvia hides her true identity, with rebellion brewing and the truth closing in, Sylvia must choose between the quiet life she's built and reclaiming her destiny. The burned kingdom is rising and it may demand its queen. This book has long been on my TBR, like for a long time since it first came out. But the second book of the duology just came out. So I decided it's time for me to go ahead and read this. I'm like, can I have at least one finished series here? I also might start blessing the... Blessings and Disasters this week. I have a copy and I'm really, really curious about this one. I might start that one too. Who knows? We'll see. We'll see where I can fit it all in. Anyway, friends, that is all I have for you today. If you love this episode, please do me a favor and make sure you follow the podcast so that you don't miss the next episode. It's free. It helps the podcast and it keeps your TBR interesting. As always, you can find me personally on IG and TikTok at LaShawnWilts and on Substack at LettersToLaShawn. Okay. Okay, friends, thanks for listening. I'll talk to you next week. Bye-bye.