Wrap Up: April 2016

I read 13 books this month, which is a little less than what I usually read each month but I’ve been really overwhelmed by work and the PhD life recently so I don’t feel too bad. I’m still way ahead with my Goodreads goal (currently 29 books ahead) so that’s all that matters right now.

1. Dreamology – Lucy Keating 

This was a really interesting and cute read about two people who have dreamed about each other and had multiple interesting experiences together in their dreams. However, they meet in person one day and have to figure out why they’ve been dreaming about each other for years. I liked the majority of this book but thought some of the dream aspects were a little bit unresolved. Things just worked themselves out without explanation and I didn’t like that at all.

2. A Hollywood Deal – Nadia Lee 

I don’t read adult romance novels a lot because I find that they all sound the same. But I’ve read some of Nadia Lee’s novels in the past and they’ve been pretty entertaining. When I heard that she had a new release, I bought the ebook straight away. However, it was super underwhelming. On top of that, it was like part 1 of the story and ended on a cliffhanger to be continued in the next book, which is something that I don’t think any of her other books have been like.

3. The Winner’s Kiss – Marie Rutkoski 

This was one of my most highly anticipated series finales of this year. The Winner’s Crime was such an amazing second book that I had really really high expectations for The Winner’s Kiss. It wasn’t as epic and intense as I wanted it to be so I felt a little bit disappointed with it. But I still really enjoyed it and thought it was a great end to the series.

4. The Book of Broken Hearts – Sarah Ockler 

The Book of Broken Hearts is about Jude who comes from a Hispanic family. Her father has early onset Alzheimer’s and Jude thinks that the only way to cure him is to restore his motorcycle, which holds a lot of precious memories. However, the only person who can fix this bike is a sworn enemy of her family’s…I can confidently add this book to my list of favourite summer contemporaries. It had wonderful characters and was a really great book about family, romance and resilience.

5. The Forbidden Wish – Jessica Khoury 

I’ve heard so many great things about this Aladdin retelling and had really high expectations. But this book fell flat in so many different ways for me. I absolutely hated the romance and thought that it didn’t work at all. The plot for me was okay but there were so many things that were just really convenient or ridiculous. I just wasn’t a fan of this one.

6. Exquisite Captive – Heather Demetrios 

This was a really great book about jinn that I flew through in less than a day. I adored the complex characters in this one and thought the urban fantasy setting was really unique. It was just a super addictive story and I loved the plot so much. It was definitely a much better novel for me than The Forbidden Wish.

7. The Haters – Jesse Andrews 

This is the second Jesse Andrews book that I’ve read and haven’t enjoyed. I hated Me and Earl and the Dying Girl and this one wasn’t much better. I didn’t really connect with the humour of the book and since the whole book was carried by the humour, I had a hard time getting through it.

8. The Passion of Dolssa – Julie Berry 

I love historical fiction and when I found out that this one is set in the 13th century, I had to check it out. Religion plays a huge part in this book and initially I had some trouble getting into it because of the themes. The writing style was also really difficult to get into but once I’d gotten past the first 50 pages, I was hooked. The characters were fantastic and easy to love and I absolutely loved the plot.

9. Love, Lies and Spies – Cindy Anstey 

The synopsis of this book promises a Jane Austen-inspired 19th century story about a young lady who would rather be a scientist than get married and a man who is a spy. However, I felt like this blurb was a bit deceiving because there was almost no science in this book and not as much spying as I would have liked. It was mostly about the romance, which was pleasant to read about, but I was completely underwhelmed because I was expecting so much more from the characters and the plot.

10. Bittersweet – Sarah Ockler 

This book is about Hudson, a girl who’s a talented figure skater but whose life fell apart when her dad left. Now she’s stuck in her small town, making cupcakes and waitressing at the diner that her mother owns. She’s given the opportunity to get back into figure skating and her life slowly starts to change. I didn’t always enjoy Hudson in this book but I loved her coming of age story and how she developed throughout the book. It had a lovely wintery setting that I love to read about in books (but hate to experience).

11. Hate is Such a Strong Word – Sarah Ayoub 

This book is one that every Australian teen should put on their radar. It has such a strong message about culture, ethnicity and racism. In this novel, the main character, Sophie, lives in a tightknit Lebanese community in Sydney. She attends a Catholic school where everybody is Lebanese and everybody’s family knows each other. She feels completely stifled by the old-fashioned rules and traditions that her family imposes upon her and is struggling to be heard. I absolutely loved Sophie’s character and how she transformed and blossomed throughout the book. It was a highly enjoyable read.

12. The Rose and the Dagger – Renee Ahdieh 

I’ve been looking forward to this sequel to The Wrath and the Dawn ever since I finished the first book and it didn’t disappoint. I went into it without any expectations as to what would happen next and was really delighted by what I read. I thought the characterisation was really strong and, although the plot wasn’t as intense as I would have liked it to be, I really enjoyed everything… and even shed a couple of tears. I’ll have a full review up for this sequel in a couple of days!

13. Honor Girl – Maggie Thrash 

This is a graphic memoir about Maggie Thrash’s teenage years and her first crush on a girl. It was a really lovely and honest story that I felt really connected to. The artwork was great and I could reread this one over and over. I’ll have a full review up on Happy Indulgence next week.

REREADS

Fangirl – Rainbow Rowell 

I could never get sick of rereading this book. It was just as relatable and adorable this second time around and I love Rainbow Rowell so much! I can’t wait to read her next release (or you know… finally read Eleanor and Park).

DNFed

Dreaming the Enemy – David Metzenthen

I just couldn’t get through more than 50 pages of this book. This is a historical fiction novel about the Vietnam War, which is something that I’m interested in but don’t know a whole lot about. Unfortunately I couldn’t get past the writing style and confusing plot. I had no idea what was happening and it was too much of a struggle to keep going.

I posted four Top Ten Tuesdays this month:

• 05-04-16: Ten Favourite Booktubers
• 12-04-16: Ten Books Every Budding Psychologist Should Read
• 19-04-16: Ten Books That Made Me Chuckle
• 26-04-16: Ten Bookish Delights

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How many books did you read in April and which was your favourite of the month?

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