Happy May, everyone! Another month down and another three books read. It really seems three is my lucky monthly reading number.
If you read, how many books do you get through a month on average? It baffles me when I hear people tell me they read like eight books a month. Like, how? Seriously, how?
Obviously it varies, but I’d say I probably spend eight to ten hours a week reading. Most days I’ll read for about an hour, but then I’ll have a day or two where I spend a few hours getting lost in a book! Like Friday night for example. I got home from work, got supper, cleaned up from supper, got groceries, then came home and spent three full hours on the couch cozied up reading my book until I was catching myself falling asleep between pages. It was glorious!!
I do think I’m slower than the average reader, but still….people, tell me your secrets!
Books I read in April 2024
APRIL READS
Happy Place by Emily Henry
Released: 2023
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 385
Summary: They broke up six months ago. And still haven’t told their best friends. Which is how they find themselves sharing the largest bedroom at the Maine cottage that has been their friend group’s yearly getaway for the last decade. Their annual respite from the world, where for one vibrant, blue week they leave behind their daily lives; have copious amounts of cheese, wine, and seafood; and soak up the salty coastal air with the people who understand them most.
Only this year, Harriet and Wyn are lying through their teeth while trying not to notice how desperately they still want each other. Because the cottage is for sale and this is the last week they’ll all have together in this place. They can’t stand to break their friends’ hearts, and so they’ll play their parts. Harriet will be the driven surgical resident who never starts a fight, and Wyn will be the laid-back charmer who never lets the cracks show. It’s a flawless plan (if you look at it from a great distance and through a pair of sunscreen-smeared sunglasses). After years of being in love, how hard can it be to fake it for one week… in front of those who know you best?
Review: When I saw this book, I knew I had to read it. A colorful cover and Emily Henry as the author? Sign me up! Even Todd said when we stopped for me to look at it, “this looks like a book you’d read!”. You know me too well, husband! I’ve read two other books by Emily Henry and loved them – Book Lovers and People We Meet on Vacation. I’ve also heard Beach Reads is great, so I have to get my hands on that one too! If you haven’t read anything by her and you like romance, having your heart strings pulled, and great character arcs, my suggestion would be to start right now! There’s just really something about her books that I love.
Besides romance, Happy Place covered a lot of different themes such as family, friendships, career, mental health, and the importance of communication. So don’t let the cover fool you on this one, folks! While fake dating isn’t usually my thing, I do love a good build up and this one definitely had it. I was invested in this group of characters, and was interested in the story from the get-go. What I especially liked about this book is how it centered around experiences of growing up, from early university/college days to present days where life just doesn’t seem so figured out as it did when you’re younger. Where friendships change or become non-existent as you get older, and where happier, carefree and lighter times sometimes can feel more like distant memories.
While I really liked this book, it wasn’t my favourite of Emily Henry’s as it didn’t leave me with quite the same feeling as her other two books (and for reasons I mention below in the spoilers). I’m still a big fan of hers and I can not wait for her new book Funny Story that was just released.
** Spoilers: Can I just mention how frustrated I was that (1) it took so long for us to figure out what in the world happened between Harriet and Wynn, and (2) why in the world they didn’t have better communication? Since I’m not a big fan of second chance romances anyways, it was even harder with these two as for a long time I had no idea if I even wanted them back together or not! How can I pine over two people if I’m not given reasons to do so? Rant over!
Rating: 4 out of 5 ⭐
First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston
Released: 2024
Genre: Thriller/Mystery
Pages: 338
Summary: The identity comes first: Evie Porter. Once she’s given a name and location by her mysterious boss Mr. Smith, she learns everything there is to know about the town and the people in it. Then the mark: Ryan Sumner. The last piece of the puzzle is the job.
Evie isn’t privy to Mr. Smith’s real identity, but she knows this job will be different. Ryan has gotten under her skin, and she’s starting to envision a different sort of life for herself. But Evie can’t make any mistakes—especially after what happened last time.
Because the one thing she’s worked her entire life to keep clean, the one identity she could always go back to—her real identity—just walked right into this town. Evie Porter must stay one step ahead of her past while making sure there’s still a future in front of her. The stakes couldn’t be higher—but then, Evie has always liked a challenge…
Review: I think this was my first thriller/mystery read…..ever!! And gosh my expectations were high for this one. I don’t think they were high because of the high ratings or even the fact that it was Reese Witherspoon’s book of the month, I honestly think it was because it was labeled as a ‘thriller’ and it was my first one. I think subconsciously my brain expected to be literally thrilled! I mean, it’s hard not to get swept up in the excitement of this genre.
Overall, I liked this book, and I enjoyed reading it, but it just didn’t ‘wow’ or….’thrill’ me.
Let’s talk about the good because there was definitely some good. I thought the story was unique and creative. I loved all the details and the clues throughout, and it kept me entertained right from the beginning. It’s not too often a book grabs my attention from the very first page, but this one did. This book also did a great job by adding little surprises throughout, instead of just having one big revealment at the end. But (and they’re big ones), while I was interested and invested from the start, that level of interest or investment didn’t go up at all throughout the book, and I wasn’t dying to pick this one back up to find out what happens next. The twists weren’t all that jaw-dropping, and I think the biggest disappointment for me was with the character development. The entire book was centered around Evie Porter, but yet I felt like I didn’t know much about her, and wasn’t drawn to her at all.
I would still recommend this book though because I do believe it’s one that you need to experience for yourself. After all, no two readers read the same book.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 ⭐
Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune
Released: 2023
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 305
Summary: Fern Brookbanks has wasted far too much of her adult life thinking about Will Baxter. She spent just twenty-four hours in her early twenties with the aggravatingly attractive, idealistic artist, a chance encounter that spiraled into a daylong adventure in Toronto. The timing was wrong, but their connection was undeniable: they shared every secret, every dream, and made a pact to meet one year later. Fern showed up. Will didn’t.
At thirty-two, Fern’s life doesn’t look at all how she once imagined it would. Instead of living in the city, Fern’s back home, running her mother’s Muskoka lakeside resort—something she vowed never to do. The place is in disarray, her ex-boyfriend’s the manager, and Fern doesn’t know where to begin.
She needs a plan—a lifeline. To her surprise, it comes in the form of Will, who arrives nine years too late, with a suitcase in tow and an offer to help on his lips. Will may be the only person who understands what Fern’s going through. But how could she possibly trust this expensive-suit wearing mirage who seems nothing like the young man she met all those years ago. Will is hiding something, and Fern’s not sure she wants to know what it is.
But ten years ago, Will Baxter rescued Fern. Can she do the same for him?
Review: While I usually never go to Goodreads to see the rating/reviews before I read a book, I always immediately head straight there once I finish. Literally, as soon as that last page is turned, the phone comes out and down the rabbit hole of reading I go. I love to see everyone’s opinions, and to see where I fit on the average scale. I also like to be able to carry on with the feelings I get from a book, and not have it end so abruptly with that last page.
Usually I’m not too far off the average rating, and if I am, my rating tends to be a little lower than most. Meet Me at the Lake however was definitely a first for me though because I seemed to love this one so much more than everyone else! I adored it, actually.
What’s really ironic is that another first for me happened with this book. I actually didn’t like this book for probably a quarter of the way in, and up until that point I didn’t even really want to finish it. I have no idea what happened (I’m still trying to figure that one out!), but I went from having zero attachment to the characters and their past or present story, to absolutely loving them. And it wasn’t a gradual change either, it was like a switch got flipped!
I felt for these characters, and loved experiencing their joys and sorrows as the grew up. It was more of a mature and serious romance, and had some spice mixed in for just a few pages. No, this wasn’t an inspirational or ground breaking read, nor did it make me think about certain things after it was done. But it did leave me with that feeling (you know the one!), and because of that, it overshadowed the things I didn’t love about it and the rocky start we had. Bonus points for the story taking place in Canada!! If you like your romance novels light and fluffy with lots of witty banter though, you won’t find it with this one.
**Spoilers: As someone who suffers from OCD, I can not let this review go by without mentioning this part of the book. You have no idea how much it warmed my heart to see this referenced in a romance novel. I was disappointed that they only briefly touched on it and I didn’t get to know more about this side of Will’s life, but I was still happy to see any of those words on the pages.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 ⭐
There was one common theme with this month’s reads that I didn’t realize until now– flashbacks. Every single book switched between past and present time. Do you like this in books? If done right, I love them, but often times I just want to be in the now.
Until next time.
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