37 Romantic Reads in April

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A detailed look at April’s reading habits: I read 37 books in April, only four of which were from my Up Next Shelf. Interestingly, every single book has a romantic aspect to its plot.

Overview

April Blog UpdatesApril Bookish Posts
πŸ“– Weekly Wrap: March 29th to April 4th
πŸ“– Weekly Wrap: April 5th to April 11th
πŸ“– Weekly Wrap: April 12 to April 18th
πŸ“– Weekly Wrap: April 19th to April 25th
πŸ“– Weekly Wrap: April 26th to May 2nd
πŸ“š Maytime Book Haul
πŸ“š 27 More Than Good Reads in March

Outline

April Reflection and Into May

My April Wrap is the latest I’ve ever posted a Monthly Wrap. However, spending the extra time on the post allowed me to be a bit more detail-oriented – for instance, I love the new colour scheme I picked out; it feels very April. Also, by slowly going over each of the books I read in April – all 37 of them – I realized every single book has a romantic aspect to its plot. Hence, the title: 37 Romantic Reads in April. My April Wrap also feels representative of my reading mood for the past few months; I’ve been gravitating towards low-angst romances as a form of escapism.

Unfortunately, the number of books I read from my Up Next Shelf – I read four – is abysmal. I’m hoping my light book buying ban is effective, and I start picking up books from my Shelf. Considering more than half the books I read were from Kindle Unlimited, I think I also need to seriously think about turning off my KU subscription for a month or two.

I was shocked I only reviewed one book (on this Blog) in April. However, I reviewed quite a few books on Goodreads and The StoryGraph last month (look for the πŸ“Œ). I mentioned a while back moving my shorter reviews to my blog, but I’m still thinking about the structure and organization of those shorter reviews. I was happy to post my Maytime Book Haul, which will be my last book haul for a while.

My minimum to-be-read list for May also includes three books; I go into detail in my May Hopefuls section. This minimum TBR list is my way of making sure books from my Up Next Shelf get read. However, I’m right on track in terms of my Goodreads 2021 Reading Challenge (141 of 365 books). I’m hoping in the next two months, I can pull ahead. I really want to get back into my 2019 reading rhythm.

*These buttons (πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ) and the Kindle Embeds contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission when you click on the links at no additional cost to you. You can read my full disclaimer here.

Books I Read This Month

Key: πŸ” re-read | πŸ€“ reviewed on this blog | πŸ“œ Up Next Shelf | πŸ“Œ Goodreads review

β€’ Blindly Acquitted (Blindly Indicted, #2) by Katie May πŸ“Œ
β€’ All Rhodes Lead Here by Mariana Zapata
β€’ Native (Chosen, #4) by Stacy Jones πŸ“Œ
β€’ Hefty by Jessa Kane πŸ“Œ
β€’ Kingdom of Ash (Throne of Glass, #7) by Sarah J. Maas πŸ” πŸ“Œ
β€’ The Avatar’s Flight (Age of the Andinna, #7) by Kristen Banet
β€’ Scarlett XOXO by Autumn Reed πŸ“Œ
β€’ The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata πŸ” πŸ“Œ
β€’ The Heiress Effect (Brothers Sinister, #2) by Courtney Milan
β€’ Chosen (Chosen, #1) by Stacy Jones πŸ€“ πŸ”
β€’ Nanny Tempts the Beast by MINK
β€’ Luna and the Lie by Mariana Zapata πŸ”
β€’ Just One Look by Lucy Darling πŸ“Œ
β€’ Shadowed Heart (A Death So Sweet, #1) by Candace Wondrak
β€’ Lost (Silver Falls University, #1) by M. Sinclair πŸ“Œ
β€’ Coach’s Daughter by Jessa Kane
β€’ Husky by Jessa Kane
β€’ Too Hard by Alexa Riley πŸ”
β€’ Rules for Being a Girl by Candace Bushnell and Katie Cotugno πŸ“œ
β€’ Torn to Bits (Kingdom of Wolves, #3) by Katie May
β€’ Tethered to the World (Phantom Touched, #1) by Stacey Brutger πŸ” πŸ“Œ
β€’ The Hero and the Hacktivist (Girl Band, #4) by Pippa Grant
β€’ Small Town Girl (Pink Springs, #1) by Alexa Riley πŸ“Œ
β€’ The Baby Maker (Hunter Brothers, #1) by Lili Valente
β€’ Not the Marrying Kind by Kathryn Nolan πŸ“œ
β€’ Shackled to the World (Phantom Touched, #2) by Stacey Brutger πŸ” πŸ“Œ
β€’ Finding Serenity (Silver Lining, #2) by Amanda Perry
β€’ Crooked Heart (A Death So Sweet, #2) by Candace Wondrak
β€’ Contagion by Amanda Milo πŸ“Œ
β€’ The Bridge Kingdom (The Bridge Kingdom, #1) by Danielle L. Jensen πŸ“œ πŸ“Œ
β€’ The Traitor Queen (The Bridge Kingdom, #2) by Danielle L. Jensen πŸ“Œ
β€’ Fostering Hope (Silver Lining, #1) by Amanda Perry πŸ” πŸ“Œ
β€’ Her Reasons (Reasons, #1) by J.L. Akins πŸ”
β€’ I Pucking Love You (The Copper Valley Thrusters, #5) by Pippa Grant πŸ“Œ
β€’ From Blood and Ash (Blood and Ash, #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout πŸ“œ πŸ“Œ
β€’ Rabid (Kingdom of Wolves, #6) by Ivy Asher and Raven Kennedy πŸ“Œ
β€’ Violent Heart (A Death So Sweet, #3) by Candace Wondrak πŸ“Œ
N/A
β€’ Breaking the Bully by Jessa Kane @ 80%
β€’ Forever Mind by Ella Goode @ 57%
β€’ Restless Spirit by Briana Michaels @ 14%

Book Types: Most books were on Kindle Unlimited (22).

Rating Distribution: Most April reads were 3-stars (15).

April Breakdown

Want to Read from this month

Here the Whole Time by Vitor Martins
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

To Exist is To Resist: Black Feminism in Europe Edited by Akwugo Emejulu and Francesca Sobande
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Unchosen by Katharyn Blair
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Disability Visibility Edited by Alice Wong
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

So Sad Today by Melissa Broder
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

The Bird King by G. Willow Wilson
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Unashamed: Musings of a Fat, Black Muslim by Leah Vernon
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Fat Activism: A Social Movement by Charlotte Cooper
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Aubrey Gordon
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

All About Love by bell hooks
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Girl Squads by Sam Maggs
β˜…
Get the Book: πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ ~ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ ~ πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ

Most Favourite and Least Favourite*

*Can’t be a re-read

Most Favourite: All Rhodes Lead Here by Mariana Zapata.

Least Favourite: Violent Heart by Candace Wondrak. See why here.

Longest and Shortest Books

Longest Book: Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas at 989 pages.

Shortest Book: Husky by Jessa Kane at 61 pages.

Statistics

Most Read Genre: Reverse Harem Romance (14).

Origin Breakdown: Most of the books I read were “instant” reads (24), meaning I purchased and immediately read them.

Most Read Author: Jessa Kane (3), Candace Wondrak (3) and Mariana Zapata (3) with three books each!

*Person of Colour includes non-white human characters in fantasy novels

Best Performing Bookstagram Posts

April Book Reviews

Powerful and Motivational

The Body Is Not An Apology (2nd ed.) by Sonya Renee Taylor

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Single Sentence Review: A powerful book that delves into the oppressive history of modern beauty standards, transforming the meaning of self-love.

My May Hopefuls

I finished two of my three April Hopefuls; I’m (still) currently reading The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi. Another book I’ve been meaning to finish for awhile – it’s been featured on my Weekly TBR many times – is Memory Serves by Lee Maracle. In hopes of ensuring I’ll finish it, I’ve added Memory Serves to my May Hopefuls.

The other two books on my minimum to-be-read list for May is The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner and Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay. I love how The Lost Apothecary combines historical fiction with contemporary mystery – also the feminist messaging is awesome. Bad Feminist is broken into digestible essays that cover different but connecting topics. I’m particularly enjoying the essays that give insight into Gay’s experience as a professor and graduate student.

Anticipated May Releases

Forbidden by Karla Sorensen
Released Yesterday (May 20, 2021)!

Imposter Syndrome by Kathy Wang
Releasing May 25, 2021

See my Upcoming Release page for more of the books I’m looking forward to in May!

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