April Wrap-Up 2023
Hiya bookworms!
I hope you all had a wonderful April! I didn’t read too much this month because it was an absolute rollercoaster of things happening. I look forward to hopefully having a calmer May, because this month was just so draining 😅 I managed to read three books and listen to two audiobooks though! I was also pretty happy with the books I managed to read because they were really great! The other ones were average, but Marrow and How Zelda Married Death were absolutely spectacular. What was your fav read of April?
In terms of editing, I’m getting pretty booked for May, and I’m starting to book into June. If you’d like me to edit your manuscript, check out my Editing Services page 😄 For professional learning, I’ve been reading Amy J. Schneider’s The Chicago Guide to Copyediting Fiction, and it’s been so informative. I’m so glad we finally have a book that focuses on editing fiction using CMOS. Now, moving on to my fiction reads of April.
My Library
How Zelda Married Death by Audrey Rose
Review:
LOVED THIS. This was such a cozy read and it gave me all the feels. You may need some tissues when you read this because it’s so sweet you may cry 😅 Death was so precious, and I loved reading his POV. It was so nice to see his journey of discovering human emotions and how his love for Zelda grew. I tabbed so many scenes in this book because they were just too cute. I love how they talk about love in this book. I also love how Zelda has a sidepiece and Death isn’t jealous of that, and he’s the one who gets him for her in the first place. They all just have such a wholesome dynamic. I just love this book so much and would definitely reread this. I want to check out the other cozy read by this author too!
6/5⭐
Netgalley eARCs
The Court Charade by Flore Vesco
Review:
This was a fun graphic novel to read. I initially thought the character on the cover was a fox, so I was a bit surprised that the MC is a girl. That was fine since I didn’t know what to expect initially anyway. I thought the story was super easy to read, even with the handwritten-type font read on my Kobo. The colors and character designs are super pretty too. I didn’t really feel for any of the characters, or feel emotionally invested in the story, but it was a nice, quick story to read.
4/5⭐
Other (e)ARCs
From Brynne Weaver and Trisha Wolfe
Marrow by Brynne Weave and Trisha Wolfe
Review:
OMG. THIS BOOK. Totally wrecked me. I went into this being like “oh it’s so murdery and I love Jack and Kyrie’s dynamic” to finishing it being like “WTF WHY YOU RIP MY HEART OUT LIKE THIS.” Although, I would expect nothing less from Brynne and Trisha. I’ve read every book by Brynne before, but this is my first time reading something by Trisha, and I gotta say I’m obsessed. I’ll definitely be checking out more of her books! Anyhoo, back to the star of the show here, Cornetto, jk, Jack and Kyrie, I was obsessed with their relationship. Jack was such a simp in the beginning, but in the sexiest way possible. This dude fell and he fell HARD. This couple had me freaking crying by the end because of how fiercely they love each other. I want a Jack. That part near the end absolutely ripped my heart out because omg they deserve better. They’ve been through so much pain. WHY YOU DO DIS TO THEM. On a side note, I loved all the bone terminology and forensic content. Jack’s sketches sounded so beautiful and I wish I could have some to hang as prints on my wall. I’m also now obsessed with hyoids. LOL. This book is just so great and gives you all the feels. It will figuratively shatter your bones with how much feels it’ll give you. The murder vibes were totally on point, and I just highly recommend this. You can find a list of the full trigger warnings here.
5/5⭐
Audiobooks
33 Unplayed Voicemails by Melissa de la Cruz
Review:
I got this as a free audiobook to listen to while I was waiting for my preordered audiobooks to arrive. The synopsis sounded pretty cute, so I thought I’d give this a shot, but my goodness I wanted to smack some sense into these characters. This book features the miscommunication trope to the extreme 🤣 The voicemail aspect was pretty unrealistic because nobody’s voicemail lets them leave that many unchecked voicemails, especially ones as long as the ones Evelyn and Marco left each other. I thought that what Evelyn did to Marco was such an asshole move, and if I were Marco, I don’t think I ever would’ve forgiven her for it. It kind of reminded me of the Gottman theory of emotional bids and how small things matter, because if you let those little voicemails slip by, your relationship can deteriorate. I really loved the final message that Marco leaves Evelyn though. That was super sweet and open-minded, and totally made me tear up a bit. That last message totally upped my rating for this audiobook.
3/5⭐
Bride of the Shadow King by Sylvia Mercedes
Review:
Sorry in advance for all the name spellings I’m about to butcher because I listened to the audiobook version. I initially loved Faraine and Vor. I thought they were a great pair, at least until the end of the book anyway. I really disliked the deceit in this book omg. I wish Faraine just told Vor about the thing! Now it’s just a terrible ending, and I ended up feeling so frustrated with how Vor reacted in the end. I felt like Vor should have been more understanding, especially since he wanted Faraine in the first place. I hated Hale’s pining over Zoul, and I totally ship her with Lyria instead. Ilsabel’s storyline was a shock to me as I read the synopsis and was curious about how Faraine ended up marrying Vor in her place. Also, Yolk sounds like such a precious boy and he should be protected at all costs. Overall, this book had great potential, but I really didn’t like the ending. I know it sets the story up for further character development in the upcoming books, but it was just too petty for me.
3/5⭐
That’s a wrap for my super short wrap-up. Hopefully you found more books to add to your TBR. Also, let me know in the comments what your fav book of April was, or what you’re looking forward to reading in May.
Happy reading 😄
