Monthly Wrap-Up

Monthly Wrap-Up: June 2025

Dini @ dinipandareads24 Comments

I can’t believe June has already come and gone, and with it goes the last holiday I have before the end of the year. 🀭 We held the annual Bali family summer holiday mid-June to celebrate my nan’s 94th birthday and this year we also had family photos (*shudder*). My sister flew down from Japan, and the rest of family flew in from where we’re spread out globally. These years, family holidays feel less and less like a ‘holiday’ due to overly hectic schedules and trying to pack everything into a 1-2 week period, but it’s always lovely to see everyone. Even though I came back feeling the need for a holiday from my holiday, it was also nice to get a break from work!

I thought I would’ve read more in June than I actually did, but I guess it makes sense considering I was away for a week and didn’t manage to finish one book. I didn’t end up going to the gym very much this month either, so that also means I listened to fewer audiobooksβ€”something I hope to remedy in July! 🫣 By the end of June, I managed to finish 12 books.

I only had one 5-star this month and it was also my favourite book of the month: Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman. You may have seen this one mentioned a time or twenty across platforms, which is how I first heard about it too. I’m so glad that it crossed my radar because, while it’s different to what I’d normally read, I won’t hesitate to say that Dungeon Crawler Carl is now one of my new favourite series! It’s wacky, wild, and a whole lot of funβ€”I love Carl, Princess Donut, Mongo, and Mordecai to bits. πŸ’œ

It was also another fun month co-hosting the Let’s Talk Bookish weekly meme. You can learn more about it, read all the discussions, and see the upcoming month’s topics HERE.

*COVERS are linked to Goodreads and the TEXT is linked to my review, if available*
*books are arranged by READING ORDER starting from the latest read*

5 pandas

Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman

4.5 pandas

Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig, Carl’s Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman, One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

4 pandas

The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook by Matt Dinniman, Arcana: The Lost Heirs by Sam Prentice-Jones, The Bad Boy Rule by Maren Moore, The Ornithologist’s Field Guide to Love by India Holton, Record of A Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers, Lights Out by Navessa Allen

(ARC) Arcana: The Lost Heirs
(ARC) The Bad Boy Rule

3 pandas

Embrace the Serpent by Sunya Mara

(ARC) Embrace the Serpent

less than 3 pandas (*or no rating for erotic romances)

Scavenge the Stars by Tara Sim

Yeah, my reading challenges didn’t go so well this month. I caught up on prompts that I missed in May, however, I dropped the ball (again) when it came to June’s prompts. I missed the ones for the Buzzword and Year in Aeldia Challenges, but I do have books in mind for those and so I hope to catch up in July while completing the new month’s prompt. I also hope to tackle more from the backlist, especially ARCs!

βœ” Goodreads Reading Challenge (tracked on Notion): 73/150 books
βœ” Beat the Backlist: πŸ“š 4 backlist books // πŸ“± 0 backlist ARCs β‡’ 2 Bingo Spaces
❌ 2025 Buzzword Reading Challenge: June (“memory words”) β‡’ MISSED
βœ”βŒ 2025 Year in Aeldia: May: Dystopia β‡’ Dungeon Crawler Carl; June (“mystery”) β‡’ MISSED
βœ” 2025 Popsugar Reading Challenge: 2 books β‡’ Prompts 2, 5

This one’s a bit too wide to see properly… You can click the image to see the wider frame (and all the books)

And that’s it for June! How was your month and what was your favourite book? Did you read what you planned or did you go completely off script (or on mood)? I hope everyone is doing good and taking care. πŸ’œ

24 thoughts on “Monthly Wrap-Up: June 2025”

  2. Happy New Month Dini, It’s always good to read your recap because I get more books to my TBR and it’s also so wonderful when family comes together to celebrate even if it’s tiring.
    A little favour can you please check out my site, I’m just getting started again and it would be nice if you could check it out. Thanks in advance

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    • I’m not too mad about 12 books! 🀭 The Carl books are AMAZING! Now is the type of series that I can get on board with for the long run because I’m super invested in seeing everyone survive. I actually have no idea if the series is also done or if they’re still being written. I just hope that everyone I love survives the madness in the end!

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  4. Your yearly family trip sounds so cool, and it is really important to find time to be with family so I am glad it works out well for all of you! The photos look great, I hope you could all relax and enjoy yourselves.

    Despite your trip, I think you managed to read quite a lot, so focus on that. You were busy with your trip, so it makes sense.

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  6. Carl has some of the wildest covers πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚
    Family fun is always nice, happy you got to enjoy some time with them, albeith an hectic few weeks.
    Have a good july, happy reading! Xx

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  7. I love that your family gets together every year to celebrate your Nan and just to reconnect. I will say that I am jealous that you go to Bali every year, as it’s something of a dream vacation for me. I hope you have a wonderful July.

    Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!

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    • My nan’s birthday falls at the perfect time of year when people already tend to go on holiday thanks to school breaks and slower work periods. I’m definitely lucky to be from an island people see as a holiday destination! I hope that you will get to go some time πŸ™‚ And have a wonderful July, too!

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  8. It’s nice that you’re doing a family trip, even though it’s a bit hectic! Your pictures from Bali look stunning, I’d love to visit someday πŸ₯°

    I’ve also been seeing Dungeon Crawler Carl everywhere πŸ˜‚ I’m glad you liked it! I was tempted as well, but not sure if it’s my thing πŸ€”

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    • Thanks, Caro! πŸ’œ I hope you get the chance to visit one day! Honestly, I didn’t think DCC would be my thing because I don’t think I’ve ever really read LitRPG and so I wasn’t sure what I’d think of it. But the audiobook is one of the best I’ve ever listened to. It’s so entertaining and it makes the story that much more appealing. It’s definitely the biggest surprise for me so far this year!

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  9. omg i also finally picked up dungeon crawler carl after seeing it everywhere recently! i’m currently just about halfway through but absolutely loving it and looking forward to continuing the series hihi

    needing a vacation from a family vacation is SO real, i’m currently in the same boat myself lmaoo

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    • YAY! I love finding others who also love DCC. It is so freaking good! It’s definitely been the biggest surprise for me so far this year because I didn’t expect to love it as much as I have. I hope you continue enjoying the series and happy reading! 😍

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      • oooh that must have been such a nice surprise! i fully went into it expecting to love it and i would’ve been so disappointed if it turned out i didn’t hahah, and thank youuu

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