what i read in april.
apparently there was a color palette for book covers
Apparently April was all about the pinks and reds because nearly every single cover of the 10 books I read in April were various shades of pink and red, haha
I promise this was not intentional, but rather, I think it shows what trendy is? Authors and illustrators gravitating towards pinks and reds to hopefully catch the eye in a book store? Anyway…let’s get on with it!
Summer in the City by Alex Aster - this book surprised me and turned out to be the favorite I read in April! Tropes were forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers, and faking dating. Even though these are standard romance tropes, the characters themselves were just really relatable and developed really well for each of their own story lines, and I think that is really what carried the book. The FMC wasn’t too self-sabotaging and the MMC wasn’t over the top, “this only happens in movies” kind of guy.
Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez - I will always read an Abby Jimenez book. She’s one of my favorite authors (she’s a Swiftie too) and yes, her books all have similar themes but that’s what I love about them. They’re comfort reads. SYRM is the start of a new series (many her books, even though they can be read as standalones, they all have friendships that intertwine and show up in the series). Xavier and Sam are “right person, wrong time” and while their story was predictable, the sweet gesture at the end and how it all came together was very swoonworthy.
Always You and Me by Dani Atkins - this one was another book that I really enjoyed reading. It starts off a bit sad but it really picks up. The whole premise of the story starts when Lily’s late husband, Adam, on his deathbed, asks her to promise him she will find her ex-best friend, Josh, and to forgive them both. That part is what kept me going because I wanted to KNOW what the heck the big secret was. Josh and Lily’s banter was sexy too. I love a good banter between couples.
The Perfect Divorce by Jeneva Rose - this is the sequel to The Perfect Marriage, which I absolutely loved and devoured. I was so shocked at the ending. However, The Perfect Divorce fell flat for me. It was a cat and mouse game, but something about what Sarah ended up accomplishing seemed too outlandish. Maybe because *I’m* not that good with tricks and lying so I thought it was outlandish she was able to accomplish such a complicated scenario, but I just wasn’t buying it, lol…this was a fast-paced book, though and the plot kept you guessing, I just enjoyed the first book more.
The Situationship by Abby Jimenez - this was a short 37 page read, but like I said, I read all of Abby’s books, lol - I read this because I needed a palate cleanser between books, and also because I’m currently waiting on some holds from the library. This short story was initially published as a bonus chapter in Target’s special edition Just for the Summer. If you read Just for the Summer, you’ll recognize Maddy and Doug (the supporting characters) and this short story is about how they met!
The Love We Found by Jill Santopolo - this book is a sequel to The Light We Lost and one that I was SOOO excited for because The Light We Lost had me crying my eyes out on a flight, haha - however, the sequel wasn’t good — at all. (spoiler alert) Like, yes, Gabe died and Lucy has had to pick up the pieces and move on, but I felt that the entire book was Gabe this, Gabe that. It has been TEN YEARS. Not to sound uncompassionate or anything, but like I feel that has been enough years to not be comparing your current life to what it was like with your late lover?
Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister - I was so let down by this one. It started off really strong, and the author could’ve taken it another direction and really made it a banger, but it fell so flat. Like, at the end, I literally said outloud, “that’s it? Seriously?” I will say, I did read this really fast because I wanted to know what happened, but man, what a disappointment.
The Grace Year by Kim Liggett - I saw someone post about this on social media and I saw the raving reviews for it and I DON’T UNDERSTAND. Sure, to each their own, totally understand. At first, I was excited for this because it seemed like Hunger Games and Handmaid’s Tale combined, but it was so…not? Yes, the girls had to learn to survive and yes, the girls were in a really shitty men-driven society…but like, the writing was so YA (and I do typically like YA books) and so juvenile that I just had to DNF it.
Tell Me Lies by Carola Lovering - another DNF for me. The first 20 pages talked so much about body image and body dysmorphia that I knew this was going to be too high school of a book for me. I like reading toxic relationship stories because they’re like hate books and it’s like a female rage thing for me, but I just couldn’t keep going with this book. It was so superficial.
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood - ok, so I know this is a series on Hulu and we’re currently watching it (yes, years behind, lol) but I wanted to read the book before starting the show and to be honest, both the show and the book has me terrified and worried because real life is feeling like Gilead right now. I had to stop watching the show and reading the book because it felt too real and my intrusive thoughts kept slipping back in so I set a boundary and just stopped. One quote that shook me to my core was this one below. It’s almost kind of like what’s happening now.
When they slaughtered Congress, we didn't wake up. When they blamed terrorists and suspended the Constitution, we didn't wake up then either. They said it would be temporary. Nothing changes instantaneously.
That’s all for April! Tell me — what did you read in April? What are you reading in May? Would love to know and add more to my TBR, haha
xx
-Julie
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