April 2025 Wrap-Up
Happy May!
There are still no May flowers in sight, even after all the snow we had in April 😂 April was a super busy month for me in terms of events. I went to a few market-type events, a wedding, and hung out with friends I hadn’t seen in a long time. Because of this and work, I barely managed to get any reading done. I’m starting to realize I have better luck with audiobooks than physical books because I can listen to them while doing something else. However, I am really proud of myself because even though I only finished 2 books this month, I’ve been reading more consistently—even if it’s just a few pages here and there. I’m super excited because I go on vacation this month, where I’ll hopefully be able to read more.
Editing Update: Oh boy, have I been overbooking myself 😅 I only completed 2 proofreads in April, but I currently have 4 projects to complete in May before I leave for my vacation. I don’t want to jinx anything, but I’ve been killing my deadlines and I’m so proud of myself for doing so 🥳 One project I recently finished was The Saltwater Curse by Avina St. Graves. I highly recommend checking it out when it’s released in June. It’s a monster romance with a kraken, and it even has chapters from the POV of the adorable, coconut-loving shark-doggopus.
My Library
I’ve been adding a ton of books to my personal library, thanks to my birthday haul, but I’ve been reading more from my ARC pile since I’m assigning them more priority for now.
Netgalley eARCs
Until Netgalley accepts Adobe DRM downloads, I am officially taking a break from requesting and downloading anything from there. I have 2 books I have yet to download, but I spend way too much time reading on my computer for work that I will probably just end up buying the books instead, which I don’t mind doing because I want to support the authors anyway 😂
Other (e)ARCs
I’m trying to catch up on my ARCs, so I’ve been reading The Spellshop and Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea. I am loving both stories, and I can’t wait to continue reading the rest of the books in the Treason series because I have all the ARCs from Tor 🙈
Audiobooks
Where Sleeping Girls Lie by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
Review:
Content Warning - sexual assault, #MeToo movement, murder, suicide, death of a sibling, death of a parent
I came across the audiobook and was intrigued, so I listened to the story, but halfway through I realized I had the physical copy on my shelf 😂 At that point, I knew I really wanted to read that story! It was a very captivating book! There wasn’t too much female rage, but the plot had a lot of the #MeToo elements in there. The journal entries scattered throughout were quite haunting. The characters all had some secret reveal that I never foreshadowed. The plot twists were well done! The beginning scene when Sade goes to her new school reminded me a lot of Mean Girls. The lunchroom scene was so identical, especially with the group of popular girls. Overall, this book was a really engaging read, but there were a couple things that were just ok. There was a creepy-teacher storyline that never went anywhere. I kept expecting the teacher to be involved in the whole thing with the boys, but nothing ever happened with him. The other thing was totally minor, but the way the narrator pronounced Mandarin just drove me up the wall 😂 Other than those things, I would highly recommend this book!
4/5⭐
The Weirdies: Maybe This Is a Bit Too Weird by Michael Buckley
Review:
This book was definitely weird. They switched narrators from Kate Winslet to Helena Bonham-Carter which was pretty entertaining. I love how she even creates a story for why the narrators changed. This was another fun adventure, but you get more backstory on Mr. Weirdie and the members of Old Man Weirdie’s criminal gang. Miss Emily’s secret backstory was quite a fun twist, and I loved the ending with her and the Enchantress. Everything ties up nicely in the story, but still leaves room for another one if needed. I didn’t enjoy this story as much as the other 2, but I loved the narrator! I also loved the subtle cameo of the Scooby-Doo gang. If another book ever releases, I’ll still definitely check it out!
3/5⭐
Here’s hoping I get to read more books during my vacation in May! What’s one book you’re looking forward to reading this month? Let me know in the comments below.
Happy reading!
