In a surprising turn of events, we’re halfway through the year. And we’re already doing our July TBR. This month we picked seven books to try and read with the help of the TBR Jar. But, if we’re being honest, the TBR is mostly a suggestion at this point.
Prompt 1: A book published before 2020
Book: White Nights by Fyodor Dostoyevstky
This prompt is self-explanatory; we need to pick a book that was published before this decade. So that’s why I decided to pick a classic book, because it was definitely published way before 2020. This month I’m also trying to stay up to date on my reading goal, so picking a short book is a good idea. White Nights by Fyodor Dostoyevsky is one of the shortest books I have on my TBR. And while I’m not the biggest fan of Russian classics (they’re too sad), this is one I’m still curious about. I don’t remember exactly what it is about, but I seen great reviews for White Nights, mostly that it has great descriptions of love.
Prompt 2: A book adapted to a TV series or a movie
Book: Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe
For this prompt, the goal is to pick a book that was adapted to the screen. I have quite a few of those on my TBR, but one I’m curious about at the moment is Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe. It was recently adapted to a TV show by Apple TV, and it has Elle Fanning as the main character. This is another book that I heard great things about and also the TV show looks nice.
As far as I’m aware, in Margo’s Got Money Troubles we follow a 19-year-old college student that has an affair with one of her professors and ends up pregnant. After the baby is born, she finds herself as a single mother who is struggling to pay her bills. So she decides to start an Only Fans-esque account, and we follow her journey with the help of a found family.
Prompt 3: You might love or you might hate this book
Book: Breathe with me by Becka Mack
For this prompt the goal is to pick a book that has a 50/50 chance of being either a 2 stars or a 4.5+ stars. And Breathe with Me by Becka Mack is the perfect book for this prompt.
This is the fifth and final book in the Playing for Keeps series, and I already read the previous four. I read the first two, Consider Me and Play with Me, at the beginning of 2023 and I loved them. And while I don’t think these books are perfect, they just do something to my brain, my brain loves them. So when the third book, Unravel Me, was released later that year, I immediately picked up. Unfortunately Unravel Me ended up being one of my least favorite books ever. In 2024 I read the fourth book in this series, Fall with Me, and I found it to be very meh, a solid 3 stars. But I read amazing reviews for Breathe with Me on Goodreads, so I’m not sure whether I will love this book or not.
As for the plot, the book follows Cara and Emmett, who have been happily married for years. But they have been struggling with infertility, and their journey towards trying to have a baby isn’t the easiest on their marriage. I believe in this book we might be following them on this journey.
Prompt 4: A Sci-fi or fantasy book
Book: Accomplice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer
Recently I have been in the mood to read more fantasy and sci-fi stories, and I also find myself in the middle of quite a bit of series. For this prompt I decided to pick a book that I already planned on reading in July because the sequel is being released next month.
Accomplice to the Villain is the third book in the Assistant to the Villain series. This is a funny romantasy series where we follow Evie, a young woman who gets a job as the assistant to the villain, and The Villain. This series quickly became one of my favorites because of the humor, the found family element, and also because it has the best slow burn romance I ever read in a fantasy setting.
Prompt 5: Star Wars Vibe
Book: Golden Son by Pierce Brown
Good thing I want to read more Sci-Fi, because this is exactly what this prompt asks for. I have quite a few books with ‘Star Wars vibes’, but one I have been particularly interested in is Golden Son by Pierce Brown. This is the second book in the Red Rising series, which I started reading at the end of 2025 and ended up loving the first book.
In terms of the synopsis, I suggest going into this book blindly. The less you know the better. Just think of Hunger Games meets Star Wars meets Brave New World.
Prompt 6: A book that makes you look pretentious
Book: Macbeth by William Shakespeare
The goal of this prompt is to pick a book that, if you’re seen reading it in public, some people would call you performative or think you’re a literary snob. I chose Macbeth by William Shakespeare. I first read this play back in high school, over ten years ago, and remember loving it. And, since I finally got a physical copy of the book, I think it’s time for a reread.
Prompt 7: A book by an author with a native language other than English
Book: QualityLand by Marc-Uwe Kling
I personally find myself reading a lot of books by authors from anglophone countries, even though English isn’t even my native language. And this prompt helps us pick up books by authors from different backgrounds. I decided to pick up QualityLand by german author Marc-Uwe Kling. I believe this is a funny dystopia that takes place in a society where the algorithm makes every decision from everyone. And if you think the algorithm is wrong, then you must be wrong because the algorithm is ALWAYS RIGHT. Or at least that’s what they want you to believe.
Les Deux Tigres 
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