Recent Reads (may-jun '26)
featuring romance, fantasy, and non-fiction!
My reading this past month has been particularly fantasy heavy, with some unexpected non-fiction thrown in. I’m on summer break, so my hypothesis is that my brain needs both complexity and factual reading to stay sharp and engaged, hence my reading selection.
Here are some of the highlights:
Just Friends by Haley Pham (mini-review here)
I finally read this and I don’t regret it. It’s a romance between recent college grad Blair and her high school boyfriend, Declan, after Blair returns to her hometown to take care of her sick great-aunt. One of the strengths of this book is the way that it explores grief alongside love. This is a debut by a popular Booktuber in a genre that’s very formulaic, and it’s a bit of a hyped book, but I don’t think Haley Pham deserves the flak she’s getting online. I think this was an alright publishing start and I look forward to what she writes in the future!
Like, Follow, Subscribe by Fortesa Latifi
The subtitle of this book - Influencer Kids and the Cost of a Childhood Online - is what caught my attention at the library and compelled me to check it out. I read it in about two days. Latifi covers a wide range of issues related to child influencers in this book, and I thought that her opinions were nuanced, as she explored both the pros and cons to child influencing. It’s a timely book - and I think it would pair well with Shari Franke’s memoir House of My Mother.
Sailor Moon (Vol. 5 and 6) by Naoko Takeuchi
For some reason, I’ve been especially gravitating towards manga about a middle school student who discovers that she is a reborn guardian of the universe. Sailor Moon feels like my manga, I guess because I picked it up on my own without somebody recommending it. I’m surprised at how much I’m loving it and the characters since I don’t usually get this invested in mangas and I’m looking forward to reading the second half of this series. Two thumbs up.
Guardians of Dawn: Zhara by S. Jae-Jones
This one is for the nerdy girlies. It’s like a combination of Demon Slayer, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and a tiny bit of Sailor Moon all in one in addition to being a Cinderella retelling. And all of that sounds like a lot, but imagine a strong heroine who can wield fire in a world where magic is illegal and demons must be defeated and this book is the result. Another two thumbs up: once the plot got moving, I really enjoyed it.
If you’re curious about what I read during the school year as a college student:
Coda:
Last pickle eaten: Hamburger dill pickles, shared with my 2-year-old niece. 5/5 stars because once we had finished, she picked up her little plate and said, “Oh no! Where did all the pickles go?” 😂
Current read: I don’t know if this is cheating, but my bedtime story is a fan fiction of My Hero Academia, and I’m really enjoying it, despite not being familiar with the original story. (Yesterday Upon the Stair, for those curious about the title.)