🌦️April 2022 reading thread 📖

[loony]

March Reads - Nothing wowed me, but most were entertaining enough.

Mirror, Mirror - Clara Delevigne ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Sirens of Mars - Sarah Stewart Johnson ⭐⭐
A Boob's Life - Leslie Lehr ⭐⭐⭐
The Last Thing he Told me - Laura Dave ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Little White Lies - Jennifer Lynn Barnes ⭐⭐⭐
Deadly Little Scandals - Jennifer Lynn Barnes ⭐⭐⭐
Horrid - Katrina Leno (plot) ⭐⭐⭐ 1/2 (ending) ⭐⭐
The Naturals - Jennifer Lynn Barnes ⭐⭐⭐
Matrix - Lauren Groll ⭐⭐⭐
Come Find Me - Megan Miranda ⭐⭐⭐
Beauty and the Blacksmith - Tessa Dare ⭐⭐⭐
Good Girl, Bad Blood - Holly Jackson ⭐⭐⭐
The Hex Ex - Erin Stirling ⭐⭐⭐
Don't Ask Me Where I'm From - Jennifer De Leon ⭐⭐⭐⭐
SLAM - Nick Hornby ⭐⭐⭐

[Cher]

I love all these recs, thanks! I’m going to make a list for him.

[kayc]

I was on a Robin Cook kick. His books were all decent. Verity was my favorite read this month but all were enjoyable. Apparently I gave a lot of 3 stars but I did enjoy them all!

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[nelzie]

Apr 1, 2022 9:40:01 GMT -6 junch817 said:

nelzie You literally read a book a day this month. How? Like Howwww? That’s crazy!

Insomnia, lol. I don't recommend it 😂

I'm a pretty fast reader and also listen to audiobooks at 1.75-2x because that's more like my reading speed and if I play them slower I can't pay attention. I read ebooks on the kindle app on my phone so I can pretty much read anytime, anywhere. This month isn't typical though, I usually read more like 20 a month.

[starrynight]

I finished 8 books in March.

- Dear Mrs. Bird by AJ Pearce
- Yours Cheerfully by AJ Pearce
These are charming. Set during WW2 but different enough that it wasn't typical WW2 fiction that I'm currently maxed out on.

- The Sweet Life in Paris by David Lebowitz Reread. This time I did audio, but I think I prefer reading it.

- Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
I thought I read not great things about this, but I enjoyed it.

- Four Lost Cities by Annalee Newitz
- Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney
- The Lost Jewels by Kirsty Manning
- The Little Bookshop on the Seine by Rebecca Raisin (Awful!!)

[starrynight]

I skipped BOTM. Nothing called out to me.

My April books to read include Crying in HMart for book club and Not All Diamonds and Rosé, which just came in for me at the library.

My favorite spot to read is my couch or under all the covers in my bed. I wish I had a cozy little library in my house that was my own space with a comfy chaise or something.

[starrynight]

Re: books for husbands
MH was very excited about Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks. He read that on spring break.

He also really enjoys Erik Larson.

[cdnfroggy]

March was an ok reading month, I didn't love anything. I hit a bit of a slump for the last half and had a hard time finishing anything. I read:

-Such a Pretty Smile by Kristi DeMeester 3 stars
-Road of Bones by Christopher Golder 2.5/3 stars
-Heartstopper Volume 2 and 3 by Alice Oseman - both 5 star reads
-Anatomy: a Love Story - 2.5 stars
-Cherish Farrah by Bethany C. Morrow - 3.5 stars
-Slash-Her: A women in horror anthology - 3.5 stars

For April I have preordered Sea of Tranquility and The Fervor, not sure if I'll read them right away though. I am currently reading Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex by Mary Roach and am really enjoying it.

My favourite spot is to read is our couch with a blanket and a cup of tea.

[angelashly]

I was reading Shiny Pretty Things which is the sequel to Tiny Pretty Thing and it isn't catching me as much as the first one so I may pick up The Silent Sister tonight and then go back to it when I finish that one.

[Radley]

March was a rough reading month for me. I only read 6 books and 5 of them were re-reads.
I’m currently rereading Pride and Prejudice because I love it and don’t have the brain power for a new book right now. I bought Song of Achilles and I hope to read it this month.

[kayc]

Cher, MH also said he really enjoyed a series by Tom Rob Smith-The Child 44 trilogy. Kind of a murder mystery series that takes place in Soviet Russia.

[junch817]

I literally have 7 physical books that came in for me at the library over the last 4 days

Four Aunties and a Wedding

More Than This

Pachinko

Shadows of Pecan Hollow

The Thursday Murder Club

The Diamond Eye (the newest Kate Quinn)

The Next Ship Home: A Novel of Ellis Island



As well as 4 digital copies that came in for me

Alias Grace

Saving Us:A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing In A Divided World

It Ends With Us

As Good as Dead

I have also held my place in line for those 4 ebooks multiple times already, but they have since come back to me and I need to do it again

I also have my 2 new BOTM books on their way to my house. Those lists do not include the books I already have checked out from the library, as well as my other books I own that I haven’t read (but those are so far down on my list they might as well not exist lol) Oh and my audio book.

Im a bit overwhelmed right now lol

On the bright side, my library finally created an app within the county system, and I can now see my place in line for physical copies, so I can now freeze them once I get in front of the line. Previously I could only see my place in line on digital copies because they were on my Libby app and it showed it, but my library didn’t have that feature. So hopefully I can prevent this mess from happening again!

[thatgolfb]

I read 9 books in March! A lot of them were really good.

In Order To Live (memoir) ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If the Shoe Fits (Meant to Be Novel) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Under Construction by Chrishell Stause ⭐️⭐️ 💫 (yeesh)

In the Weeds ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Pachinko ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Very Punchable Face ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Crying in H Mart ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Butter Honey Pig Bread ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Bromance Book Club ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[emma]

I think I’m going to DNF The Mirror Man. I was really looking forward to it and waited for 3 months for my library hold to come up so I’m disappointed. There’s a weird side story going on I just can’t get with

[yellowwallpaper]

Apr 1, 2022 7:21:59 GMT -6 Cher said:

Looking for recommendations from you guys. MH is currently reading a book about the history of voting. He tends to read financial/history books and complains that reading makes him fall asleep. When I told him I was reading a book about a kid with Asperbergers accused of murder, he said maybe he needs to read books like I read so he will be engaged enough not to get bored. I’m going to the library to get him something that might be a little more gripping than gerrymandering. But I don’t think Jodi Picoult is for him either. Any recommendations for a man-friendly fun read? I gave him Project Hail Mary last month and he loved that. So I will probably grab him The Martian but I wanted to pick up something else.

Maybe Harlan Coben? My husband isn’t a reader but he enjoyed The Stranger. He also likes Sarah Vowell’s books. Those are history/nonfiction so probably too similar to what your husband has been reading if he wants a different genre.

[yellowwallpaper]

I read 14 books in March. My favorite was Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin. It might be my favorite of the year so far.

My favorite place to read is in bed. When it’s nice out, I like to read outside.

[thatgolfb]

I didn’t even read the thread prompt lol. I love reading in bed before I go to sleep. It’s so cozy. I don’t watch TV on my bed ever, but books? Always.

[thatgolfb]

Cher I like all of the archeological thrillers but Douglas Preston and/or Lincoln Child, for your H. The Codex and Tyrannosaur Canyon are the first I thought of.

Also he may enjoy John Grisham.

[Bluebird]

Apr 1, 2022 7:21:59 GMT -6 Cher said:

Looking for recommendations from you guys. MH is currently reading a book about the history of voting. He tends to read financial/history books and complains that reading makes him fall asleep. When I told him I was reading a book about a kid with Asperbergers accused of murder, he said maybe he needs to read books like I read so he will be engaged enough not to get bored. I’m going to the library to get him something that might be a little more gripping than gerrymandering. But I don’t think Jodi Picoult is for him either. Any recommendations for a man-friendly fun read? I gave him Project Hail Mary last month and he loved that. So I will probably grab him The Martian but I wanted to pick up something else.

MH is not much of a reader and has similar interests to your H, but he loved Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand.

[adelbert]

I just finished the Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday from Saad Z. Hossain. I loved it. Just like I loved the companion novel Kundo Wakes Up which I read last month.

I think I enjoyed this one even a bit more because it was a bit more joyful but both books were great.

If anyone here likes the combo of fantasy/sci-fi/black comedy/magical realism his books are so good.

[kittyriot]

I managed to get through 12 books. Highlights were Stanley Gucci’s book, Crying in H Mart (had such a hard time pushing through this one for how triggering it was for me, but loved it so much), and Hood Feminism (which I knew I’d love).

I read most happily stretched out on my favourite couch, under a cosy blanket, watching the house go on around me.

[emma]

I went to the library to pick up my 3 holds and ended up checking out 7 books, plus my hold on an ebook from the HCPL came up, so I’m all set for April.

[snowyowl]

It was not a great reading month. I was too busy to read as much as I would like, and some disappointments.

The Singles Table ⭐️⭐️
Awk-weird ⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Charm Offensive ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Switch ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 1/2)
The Reunion ⭐️⭐️ (1 1/2)
First Comes Like ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 1/2)
The Cartographers ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 1/2)
The Man Who Died Twice ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A History of Wild Places DNF (super disappointed, I thought I’d like this one a lot).

Read a novella today, The Ballad of Black Tom. I liked it, but I didn’t realize beforehand that it was based in Lovecraft lore, so I felt like 1) I was missing some context and 2) that it might have been better as a full length book to flesh out some of the ideas. Lovecraft is a no for me, his racism and xenophobia permeates his work. But this was a Black author and a Black main character, so it was an interesting angle.

[jaygee]

Apr 1, 2022 7:21:59 GMT -6 Cher said:

Looking for recommendations from you guys. MH is currently reading a book about the history of voting. He tends to read financial/history books and complains that reading makes him fall asleep. When I told him I was reading a book about a kid with Asperbergers accused of murder, he said maybe he needs to read books like I read so he will be engaged enough not to get bored. I’m going to the library to get him something that might be a little more gripping than gerrymandering. But I don’t think Jodi Picoult is for him either. Any recommendations for a man-friendly fun read? I gave him Project Hail Mary last month and he loved that. So I will probably grab him The Martian but I wanted to pick up something else.

I’m late but H has been going through all the Stephen King “classics” and enjoying them. Or some not as much but it’s interesting for him to see which ones he thinks are actually good. They are long as hell so this has been occupying him for awhile. He listens to them and definitely has to use the sleep timer so he doesn’t lose his place too much.

[jaygee]

I didn’t have much reading time in March. I finished listening to Where the Crawdads Sing, which I didn’t love. Then I spent the rest of the month listening to Malibu Rising. Just finished it yesterday and it was good, not great. Probably my least fav of the Taylor Jenkins Reed books I’ve listened to. I felt it was a bit chaotic and not as much character development as the others. I just didn’t care as much about the characters.

I need a rec for my next audio book as my last two have kind of fallen flat. Any suggestions?

For physical books I’m still reading Queenie but haven’t picked it up in a couple of weeks. I’m going to try to finish it today.

[Cher]

I think I’m going to have to make a Good Reads for MH for all of these suggestions. Then next time we’re in the library, he can check out all of the suggestions. This is awesome. Thank you!

[lucylou]

Apr 3, 2022 10:08:56 GMT -6 Cher said:

I think I’m going to have to make a Good Reads for MH for all of these suggestions. Then next time we’re in the library, he can check out all of the suggestions. This is awesome. Thank you!

these aren’t new or anything but all the Dan Brown books come to mind (Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, etc).

[Cher]

Apr 3, 2022 10:46:36 GMT -6 lucylou said:

Apr 3, 2022 10:08:56 GMT -6 Cher said:

I think I’m going to have to make a Good Reads for MH for all of these suggestions. Then next time we’re in the library, he can check out all of the suggestions. This is awesome. Thank you!

these aren’t new or anything but all the Dan Brown books come to mind (Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, etc).

Ohhh I will have to ask him if he ever read those!

[emma]

Apr 3, 2022 10:51:29 GMT -6 Cher said:

Apr 3, 2022 10:46:36 GMT -6 lucylou said:

these aren’t new or anything but all the Dan Brown books come to mind (Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, etc).

Ohhh I will have to ask him if he ever read those!

how does he feel about Jason Bourne style assassin thrillers? Because I’ve been really enjoying the Orphan X series and just started the Gray Man series and it’s good so far.

[Cher]

Apr 3, 2022 11:01:31 GMT -6 emma said:

Apr 3, 2022 10:51:29 GMT -6 Cher said:

Ohhh I will have to ask him if he ever read those!

how does he feel about Jason Bourne style assassin thrillers? Because I’ve been really enjoying the Orphan X series and just started the Gray Man series and it’s good so far.

I’m not sure, but I will add it to his list!