Literally all I can think of is “what are numbers 😂. Scrolling through my read pile (before my tbr) and focusing on EVERY title just to make sure it doesn’t include a number. But even though I was struggling to remember what numbers were, I managed to get some titles together!
1, 2, a million thanks to Meeghan @ Meeghan Reads for this prompt today 💜 💜
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Seven Faceless Saints by M.K. Lobb (GR/SG/My Review) –
In the city of Ombrazia, saints and their disciples rule with a terrifying power, playing favorites while the unfavored struggle to survive.
Rossana Lacertosa doesn’t believe in saints. After her father’s murder at the hands of the Ombrazia military, she’s willing to do whatever it takes to dismantle the corrupt system. Even if she has to pay for it in blood—or face the boy who broke her heart.
Damian Venturi is sworn to protect the city. As the youngest captain of the Palazzo security in history, Damian is expected to be ruthless, strong, and to serve the saints with unquestioning devotion. But three years spent fighting a gruesome, never-ending war left Damian with deeper scars than he wants to admit…and too many questions he’s afraid to ask.
When a murderer begins using the city’s slums as a hunting ground, targeting the weak and unprotected, the saints and their disciples are all too happy to look the other way. That is until a disciple ends up in the morgue. Tasked with finding the disciple’s killer, Damian’s investigation leads him to Roz, his childhood friend turned enemy. Together, they will have to put their past feelings aside to find the truth hiding in the pitch-black underbelly of Ombrazia.
As they unravel the mysteries behind the murders, they will discover that there’s something far more sinister—and far less holy—lurking beneath the surface. With darkness closing in and time running out, will Roz and Damian be able to save their city from an evil so powerful that it threatens to destroy everything in its path?
I finished this earlier this year and loved it! Instant favourite read and you should go read it if you like friends-to-lovers-to-maybe-something-to-enemies-back to something-something – it’s good!
Ten Rules for Faking it by Sophie Sullivan (GR/SG) –
What happens when your love life becomes the talk of the town?
As birthdays go, this year’s for radio producer Everly Dean hit rock-bottom.
Worse than the “tonsillectomy birthday.” Worse than the birthday her parents decided to split (the first time). But catching your boyfriend cheating on you with his assistant?
Even clichés sting.
But this is Everly’s year! She won’t let her anxiety hold her back. She’ll pitch her podcast idea to her boss.
There’s just one problem.
Her boss, Chris, is very cute. (Of course). Also, he’s extremely distant (which means he hates her, right? Or is that the anxiety talking)?
And, Stacey the DJ didn’t mute the mic during Everly’s rant about Simon the Snake (syn: Cheating Ex).
That’s three problems.
Suddenly, people are lining up to date her, Bachelorette-style, fans are voting (Reminder: never leave house again), and her interest in Chris might be a two-way street. It’s a lot for a woman who could gold medal in people-avoidance. She’s going to have to fake it ‘till she makes it to get through all of this.
Perhaps she’ll make a list: The Ten Rules for Faking It.
Because sometimes making the rules can find you happiness when you least expect it.
I’m glad I finally read this (as an overdue arc lol) because I enjoyed it, read the second book and now am waiting to read the third book!
One for All by Lillie Lainoff (GR/SG) –
One for All is an OwnVoices, gender-bent retelling of The Three Musketeers, in which a girl with a chronic illness trains as a Musketeer and uncovers secrets, sisterhood, and self-love.
Tania de Batz is most herself with a sword in her hand. Everyone thinks her near-constant dizziness makes her weak, nothing but “a sick girl.” But Tania wants to be strong, independent, a fencer like her father—a former Musketeer and her greatest champion. Then Papa is brutally, mysteriously murdered. His dying wish? For Tania to attend finishing school. But L’Académie des Mariées, Tania realizes, is no finishing school. It’s a secret training ground for new Musketeers: women who are socialites on the surface, but strap daggers under their skirts, seduce men into giving up dangerous secrets, and protect France from downfall. And they don’t shy away from a sword fight.
With her newfound sisters at her side, Tania feels that she has a purpose, that she belongs. But then she meets Étienne, her target in uncovering a potential assassination plot. He’s kind, charming—and might have information about what really happened to her father. Torn between duty and dizzying emotion, Tania will have to decide where her loyalties lie…or risk losing everything she’s ever wanted.
Lillie Lainoff’s debut novel is a fierce, whirlwind adventure about the depth of found family, the strength that goes beyond the body, and the determination it takes to fight for what you love.
Not only is the book excellent, the author is really nice and big supporter for a disability representation in books! I loved reading this because I felt seen with the chronic pain and I loved it.
Nate Plus One by Kevin Van Whye (GR/SG/My Review) –
Boy plus boy. Two weeks in Johannesburg. A summer of music, adventure, self-discovery . . . and definitely not love. What could go wrong?
Nate needs a date to his cousin’s wedding. Jai is Nate’s best friend and secret crush. Could Jai be Nate’s plus-one—and only?
Nate Hargraves is a behind-the-scenes kind of guy. That’s why he dreams of being a songwriter instead of a singer. But things change the summer after junior year as Nate gets ready to fly to South Africa for his cousin’s lavish destination wedding. The trip is bound to be epic. Except—Nate just found out that his ex-boyfriend will be at the reception. Ugh. He does not want to face this one solo.
Jai Patel, Nate’s best friend (and secret crush), has his own problems. The lead singer of Jai’s band, Infinite Sorrow, quit weeks before a contest that promised to be their big break. But Nate rocks Jai’s world when he agrees to sing with the band. Even though Nate’s not one for the spotlight, he knows this is the kind of stuff you do for . . . friends. In return, Jai volunteers to be Nate’s travel buddy around South Africa, a buffer against his ex, and his plus-one at the wedding.
Maybe this summer will be epic after all. Now that Nate’s crush is on board, will love crash the party? Fall in love with this joyful, swoon-worthy rom-com by the author of Date Me, Bryson Keller.
My one gripe with this book is that a large part of it is set in South Africa and YET we get NO braai scenes?? Makes no sense 😂
The Ones We’re Meant to Find by Joan He (GR/SG) –
Cee has been trapped on an abandoned island for three years without any recollection of how she arrived, or memories from her life prior. All she knows is that somewhere out there, beyond the horizon, she has a sister named Kay, and it’s up to Cee to cross the ocean and find her.
In a world apart, 16-year-old STEM prodigy Kasey Mizuhara lives in an eco-city built for people who protected the planet―and now need protecting from it. With natural disasters on the rise due to climate change, eco-cities provide clean air, water, and shelter. Their residents, in exchange, must spend at least a third of their time in stasis pods, conducting business virtually whenever possible to reduce their environmental footprint. While Kasey, an introvert and loner, doesn’t mind the lifestyle, her sister Celia hated it. Popular and lovable, Celia much preferred the outside world. But no one could have predicted that Celia would take a boat out to sea, never to return.
Now it’s been three months since Celia’s disappearance, and Kasey has given up hope. Logic says that her sister must be dead. But nevertheless, she decides to retrace Celia’s last steps. Where they’ll lead her, she does not know. Her sister was full of secrets. But Kasey has a secret of her own.
I’m trying to find this review on my blog but then I realised I only read it and never reviewed it. So, uhh, oops? It’s coming soon, I promise (sometime soon – more likely).
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Boom boom boom! Go ahead, come and leave some titles in the comments so we can share more numbers (in titles) together 😊
DB's Guide to the Galaxy 
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