Camelot Rising - Kiersten White

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"Princess Guinevere has come to Camelot to wed a stranger: the charismatic King Arthur. With magic clawing at the kingdom's borders, the great wizard Merlin conjured a solution - send in Guinevere to be Arthur's wife...and his protector from those who want to see the young king's idyllic city fail. The catch? Guinevere's real name - and her true identity - is a secret. She is a changeling, a girl who has given up everything to protect Camelot.

To keep Arthur safe, Guinevere must navigate a court in which the old - including Arthur's own family - demand things continue as they have been, and the new - those drawn by the dream of Camelot - fight for a better way to live. And always, in the green hearts of forests and the black depths of lakes, magic lies in wait to reclaim the land.

Deadly jousts, duplicitous knights, and forbidden romances are nothing compared to the greatest threat of all: the girl with the long black hair, riding on horseback through the dark woods toward Arthur. Because when your whole existence is a lie, how can you trust even yourself?"

Lydia Cooper is a Lie - Meaghan McIsaac

Initial Draw: ☆☆☆☆
Character Development: ☆☆☆

Plot/Writing Style: ☆☆☆☆

Overall: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

From the cover:

"For as long as Lydia can remember, it's been her and her dad against the world. But while she loves him, her dad is so overprotective. Well-versed in the dangers of the internet from his job in cybersecurity, he refuses to let Lydia be online without heavy parental controls, and social media is out of the question.

One day, when all Lydia's friends are invited to a movie night at her crush's house - except her because she's not in the group chat - Lydia gets fed up with her dad's rules and makes a social media account. Then an armed intruder shows up at her home. Clearly, there's more to her family's past than she knows.

On the run and separated from her dad, Lydia will need to uncover the secrets her dad has been keeping if she wants to reunite with him. But how can Lydia know who to trust along the way when she doesn't even know who she is?"

A Hasty Read Harder Update

Uh oh, we're leaving for France in half an hour and I just realized I didn't prep this update for while we're gone! May was not a strong reading month for me, but I DID finish Underground Railroad and The Hard Parts, both excellent. I did NOT start Deadly Ever After or Peter Darling, but I have Peter Darling packed for our very long plane ride, so hopefully I make some progress. I tried to download Deadly Ever After, but there was a wait list. Womp womp. I also did not read either of my sci-fi books, and neither of those were available digitally, so again...womp womp.

My June challenges are #2, read a book featured on a "best book cover" list, and #15, read a book written by a librarian. 

For two, I chose Dear Medusa by Olivia A. Cole, That Self-Same Metal by Brittany Williams, and Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley. I've got That Self-Same Metal downloaded, so we'll see if I can make a little progress on my reading there.

For fifteen, I chose These Ghosts Are Family by Maisy Card, Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff, and I want to reread To All the Boys I've Loved Before...none of these were available digitally, so I guess I'll be playing a lot of catch up when we get home!

So there you have it, a very rushed update. Fingers crossed I get some reading done on the plane, and if not...hey, I'll be in Paris.