Tuesday 2 May 2017

Clare's April Wrap Up and May TBR

April Wrap Up:

This month I actually read 16 and a half books! Which I think is pretty good, I had a whole portion of the month where I just didn't feel like reading at all so I'm actually kind of impressed I made it to this many! The two books I haven't mentioned here are Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher which was actually a re-read and The White Road by Sarah Lotz (the half a book) which I ended up DNF-ing not because it was bad - but because it was apparently just too terrifying for me to continue!
Bad BloodBlood Rose Rebellion (Blood Rose Rebellion, #1)Defy the StarsGeekerellaBryant & May - Wild Chamber: (Bryant & May 14)
15. Bad Blood by Demitria Lunetta: I wasn't thrilled with how mental illness was dealt with in this book. It was quite insensitive? Or at least it felt that way to me and some of the elements ended up triggering me a little (I discussed triggers in this post if you're interested in my thoughts!). Also I got weirdly fixated on the historical inaccuracies which is something I tend to do if I can't deal with what I'm really upset by. 
14. Blood Rose Rebellion by Rosalyn Eves: I buddy-read this with Vera @ Regal Critiques and I believe she will have a review going up for it soon! But essentially we both found the main character incredibly frustrating and there were so, so many inaccuracies in the depictions of Europe. 
13. Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray: There was nothing really wrong with this book it just didn't click for me. I do have a review up for it but it was a hard one to write because I don't really understand why I didn't enjoy it? I just really struggled to connect with the characters and story.
12. Geekerella by Ashley Poston: This was cute. That's my main takeaway. It wasn't the most memorable book ever and I did have some issues with it, the writing style didn't fit me but I liked that it was diverse. And like I said, super cute. 
11. Wild Chamber by Christopher Fowler: This was just super entertaining. I think I'm going to pick up this series from the beginning because whilst this can be read on its own I want more backstory - the characters were so interesting I need to know more about them!
My SisterRunning Hot (Arcane Society, #5)The Hunt for Atlantis (Nina Wilde & Eddie Chase, #1)The Tomb of Hercules (Nina Wilde & Eddie Chase, #2)The Secret Of Excalibur (Nina Wilde & Eddie Chase, #3)
10. My Sister by Michelle Adams: This is a really good example of when unlikable characters really work! I strongly disliked many of the characters and even found myself very angry at the main character for some of the things she had done - but it was so compelling and real that I couldn't stop reading!
9. Running Hot by Jayne Ann Krentz: I find with Krentz's books that they're really good at getting me out of a slump (which is what I needed when I read this) and just being a quick, fun read. Which is what this was. Nothing mind-blowing or overly intricate but it took me less than a day to read which was great.
8/7/6. The Hunt for Atlantis/The Tomb of Hercules/The Secret of Excalibur by Andy McDermott: You'll probably see the rest of this series in my wrap up for May because I'm currently a little hooked. I'm really into adventure/archaelogy type series'. Like Lara Croft in book form and these are really fun. I do get frustrated with the characters frequently but they also feel like people I've known for a really long time and I am so invested in their lives. These books are fairly predictable - especially as there seems to be a formula that stays the same for each book. But I'm in a really lazy reading mood at the moment so that suits me fine.
Gone Without a TraceThe Beast of London (Book 1 of the Mina Murray series)He Said/She SaidProof of LiesThe Lost Sisterhood
5. Gone Without a Trace by Mary Torjussen: Really good. I got super sucked into the main characters mind so when things started to go mad near the end it became uncomfortable and compelling. I can't wait to see what Mary Torjussen writes next.
4. The Beast of London by L.D. Goffigan: The best Dracula retelling I've ever read. And yes I've only read maybe 2 others but this was still super good. Really good atmosphere and characters.
3. He Said/She Said by Erin Kelly: God this was just such an intense book. I don't know how else to describe it. I was locked in this weird thing where I wanted to keep reading without stopping but I also had to take breaks occasionally just to breathe!
2. Proof of Lies by Diana Rodriguez Wallach: I loved this so much more than I expected to. From the blurb I expected something fairly typical but the characters and plot ended up feeling real and immersive and I was so hooked on the mystery. I liked how complete the ending was whilst also leading into the next book - so whilst I'm not frustrated by a cliff-hanger I am still excited for the next one!
1. The Lost Sisterhood by Anne Fortier: Juliet, Anne Fortier's first book, was also the first book I ever got for review. Before even starting Dual Reads. Way back I got sent it from Waterstones and loved it and realised I also loved writing reviews. I was obviously expecting great things from this one and it definitely delivered. She does research so well. Combining accuracy with originality. I studied Classics at college so this is something I know fairly well and I loved the nods to history and mythology but also how she put her own twists on events and people so that, whilst recognisable, they were also intriguing and felt new. 


Reviews This Month:


Challenge Progress:

  • 73/200 Goodreads Reading Challenge: 37%
  • When Are You Reading Challenge: No progress this month unfortunately! But I only have 5 more categories to read from and 8 months to do it in so I'm feeling pretty confident! 

May TBR:

A Court of Wings and Ruin (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #3)The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2)Origin (Corpus, #1)Maplecroft (The Borden Dispatches, #1)The Dead HouseMissingTill DeathFire in You (Wait for You, #6)Duels and DeceptionThe Pearl Thief
I firstly want to finish Andy McDermott's Wilde/Chase series (or catch-up, I don't think the series is complete yet) and that should take me a little while. But I am definitely wanting to read A Court of Wings and Ruin the second it arrives! I've been waiting so long for it! Other than that I'm not planning too much but these are some recent acquisitions I'd love to get to soon!


You can also find us on Goodreads (Ann and Clare), Facebook and Instagram to keep up with what we are reading.

18 comments:

  1. The White Road looks like it would be a scary one. And I'm undecided on defy the Stars- I keep going back and forth. Those McDermott books just look like fun adventures and I love those evocative titles! Almost sound like Indiana Jones or yeah Lara Croft adventures. :)

    Gone Without a Trace- totally agree. That one and Missing I just read recently, and both were good.

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    1. I don't know what to advice with Defy the Stars cause I genuinely just feel NOTHING for it. Maybe you'd have better luck with it - I've seen some great reviews?
      And yeah, very Indiana/Lara books! Lots of fun (if slightly implausible)!

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  2. I've read Duels & Deception, Maplecroft and The Dead House. I had some issues with The Dead House but overall it was still good. Prepare for quite a ride though. I ADORE Maplecroft but then LIZZIE! so why wouldn't I? Duels & Deception was quite cute and the main character has lots of spunk which I really like in historical fiction. Great reading month for April and you can see from my recap, I didn't get as much read as I wanted but still did OK.

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    1. God I just love Lizzie! I am so looking forward to Maplecroft! AND I need to grab a copy of The Secrets of Lizzie Borden since you recommended that one as well!!

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  3. You did awesome!! The book you DNF'd sounds like one I should read! :-) Happy May!

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    1. Yeah, if you love scary reads definitely go for it! I'm so mad I wasn't able to finish it cause I do need to know what happens - but I just couldn't keep going and stay relatively sane? Happy May!! :)

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  4. Sorry you didn't love Defy the Stars---I really enjoyed it but sometimes a book just doesn't click for some reason. I agree that it's really hard to review those types of books!

    Nicole @ Feed Your Fiction Addiction

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    1. I'm glad to hear it did work for you! I feel kinda guilty cause it totally wasn't the books fault it just didn't work for me and I definitely don't want to make anyone else wary of reading it! So it was very difficult to review!

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  5. Wow! 16 books? That’s impressive. I wish I could read that much. Happy May!

    Aj @ Read All The Things!

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    1. I have way too much free time! Happy May!

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  6. You read so many books this month! Wow, you read so fast. I'm glad you liked Geekerella, I can't wait to read that one!
    Megan @ http://wanderingsofabookbird.blogspot.co.uk/

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    1. I hope you get to read it soon - and that you enjoy it! I thought it was a good, sweet contemporary!

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  7. You read some intriguing books in April! The McDermott series look fascinating - I'm always interested in the archeology type of adventure books, but haven't actually read that many of them. Hope you have a great reading month in May!

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    1. Same! Archaeology is one of those insta-buy words in a blurb for me! Hope you have a great May too!

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  8. Your April books were very diverse from scifi to "cute" contemporary. I also love to mix up my genres.

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    1. I couldn't possibly stick to one genre! Way too fickle! Glad to hear you do that too!

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  9. I picked up Blood Rose Rebellion too! Same with you, I didn't really enjoy it so I ended up DNFing it!

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    1. I wish I'd DNF'ed. I stuck with it to the end and it was not worth it!

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