April was a weird, busy, and stressful month, but also a pretty decent reading month somehow. Things have felt very chaotic in my life lately, which isn't ideal for someone of my personality type, haha, but I'm hoping things are starting to settle down a bit now.
In personal news, I really don't have much to share because things have been pretty uneventful. Our dog River got his second & third (& final!) injections to treat his heartworm April 1st & 2nd, so the rest of the month was spent keeping him calm and helping him recover. We are out of the "bed rest" phase of recovery and he can be a bit more active, but it's about two weeks before he can finally let out two months of pent up zoomies. We can't wait to be done! We also re-tested one of the other random parasites he had, heterobilharzia, and it came back negative! He has to have one more negative test to be confirmed, but we'll take any positive (or negative?) news we can get. And that's about it on the personal front.
In reading news, I surprised myself by reading 14 books! Three of those books became favorites: How High We Go in the Dark, The Starboard Sea, and Nettle & Bone. I also had a really fun time with A Spindle Splintered and really enjoyed Kaikeyi. If I DNF'd anything in April then I don't remember it, so I'm assuming that I didn't, which is always nice. I have so many ARCs to read for May/June/July and plenty to catch up on from April so I'm feeling a little overwhelmed, but I always figure it's better to have too much to read than not enough to read and I'm just going to plug along as best as I can! I've been the moodiest reader these past couple months, but I'm trying my best to stay focused and not let myself get as distracted by things as I have been.
How has your reading month been?? Has it been a weird year for anyone else so far, or is it just me? Regardless, I hope you're all staying healthy and safe and doing well. Please do share any books you read and loved in April (or hated, sometimes venting is helpful!)! :)
# books read: 14
How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia
Source: Libby | Format: Audiobook
Thoughts: This completely exceeded my expectations! It was so heartbreaking and tragic and beautiful all wrapped up in one. The creativity was incredible and I cannot wait to see what the author will be writing next.
Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher ★★★★★
Source: NetGalley | Format: eARC
Thoughts: I loved this delightful and spooky little book. The characters, the setting, the plot, everything was perfect.
Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel ★★★★★
Source: Publisher | Format: Hardcover
Thoughts: Kaikeyi is an incredible story of the villainized queen Kaikeyi from the Ramayana. This was beautifully written and excellently done.
Elektra by Jennifer Saint ★★★★
Source: Publisher | Format: Physical ARC
Thoughts: This was a really satisfying story featuring Clytemnestra, Cassandra, and Elektra and that focused on the curse of the House of Atreus.
A Memory Called Empire (Texicalaan #1) by Arkady Martine ★★★★
Source: Library | Format: Hardcover
Thoughts: This was a fascinating space opera that I had a really good time reading. It was pretty dense and took me a while to get through, and it's one of those that really just throws you in and makes you learn about the world as you go.
The Stardust Thief (The Sandsea Trilogy #1) by Chelsea Abdullah ★★★
Source: Publisher | Format: Physical ARC
Thoughts: This was a really fun fantasy adventure! Not quite as compelling as I'd expected, but really fun nonetheless. I look forward to the sequel!
A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow ★★★★
Source: Libby | Format: Audiobook
Thoughts: I put this book off for a while for who knows what reason, but then an ARC for the second book arrived on my doorstep and I realized I needed to read it! I listened to the audio (fantastic narrator!) and had a blast listening to it. Now I can't wait to read the sequel!
The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas ★★★
Source: NetGalley | Format: eARC
Thoughts: This was a really solid haunted house type of story, though it was a bit disappointing for me overall. That being said, still one I'd definitely recommend.
Bødy by Asa Nonami ★★★
Source: Library | Format: Paperback
Thoughts: This was definitely odd, but enjoyable. I feel like it's description as 'body horror' wasn't entirely accurate and sort of skewed my expectations, but still an interesting collection of stories.
The Starboard Sea by Amber Dermont ★★★★★
Source: Library | Format: Hardcover
Thoughts: I loved this. It was pretty heartbreaking at times, but beautifully written and really captured the characters' emotions and experiences well.
Hotel Iris by Yōko Ogawa ★★★
Source: Library | Format: Paperback
Thoughts: I really am not even sure what to say this about this one. It was very disturbing and uncomfortable, but I think that was probably (hopefully?) on purpose. Not sure I'd really recommend this one, haha.
Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff ★★★
Source: Libby | Format: Audiobook
Thoughts: I started reading this book years ago, but never finished, so I decided to give it another go on audiobook. It's a really well-researched and interesting account of Cleopatra, but I personally felt it meandered a bit too often. I love getting context of the period in which a person lives and the need to understand political happenings/etc., but I just felt that Schiff strayed from the topic too much sometimes.
The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill ★★★
Source: Publisher | Format: Physical ARC
Thoughts: The Ogress and the Orphans was a cute and heatwarming middle grade fantasy, but I will say that it felt a little overdone is hammering the messages it had home. I still enjoyed it, but it just felt a little heavy-handed to me.
The Spanish Daughter by Lorena Hughes ★★★
Source: Gifted | Format: Audiobook
Thoughts: This was an interesting little historical fiction with a touch of mystery. There wasn't anything too groundbreaking or exciting about this one, but perfectly entertaining. I listened to it on audiobook and really liked the narrator!
DNF/To-Be-Finished:
None! (I think...)
(other than reviews)
Top Five/Ten Tuesday:
Can't-Wait Wednesday:
The Friday Face-Off:
Wow, 14 books! That's awesome! My reading is definitely down from previous years but still reading more than I thought I would be!
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